Mental, emotional, physical, and social issues

Choose Your Own Adventure Essay

Have you watched Black Mirror’s Bandersnatch on Netflix? If you have not, do so now…

Okay. Whether you liked the show or not, you have to agree that the set-up of the episode is interesting. It was inspired by a series of Young Adult novels called Choose Your Own Adventure where the reader was given different choices throughout the story to change the narrative direction. For this essay, you get to choose the topic you want to focus on.

For this essay, you'll need to conduct research relating to a new topic that you have not discussed in the previous essays and correlate the content to a new theme that you have not explored yet from A Scanner Darkly. The key to this assignment is to clarify the connection between the focus of your research to the novel. Your theme will manifest through that connection.

In 6-8 page essay formatted by MLA guidelines, analyze a new theme from A Scanner Darkly. Within each body paragraph, examine the following:

1. The issues that characters have and how these issues correlate to the theme; 2. The mental, emotional, physical, and social consequences that result from these issues; 3. Specific passages from the novel that prove your claims; 4. Key terms and theories that support your claims.

Your conclusion will be a reflective paragraph where you discuss how you personally connect to the thematic elements that were deconstructed in the essay. You must relate terms and theories that you discussed in relation to the characters in the body paragraphs to yourself and how you have either observed or experienced first-hand these factors.

*For the research component, you need to incorporate at least two written sources that must be an article, journal, newspaper, or book (online or print). These sources must be credible and cannot be older than fifteen years. A Works Cited page is required but does not count toward the page requirement.

Choose Your Own Adventure Essay Outline

I. Introduction

A. Hook: Question, Quote, Famous Saying, or Definition

B. Background Information

1. Provide information that the reader needs to know so to better understand your analysis in the body paragraphs. Include definitions and explanations of terms, theories, and concepts that you intend to reference in your argument. Provide context of any historical and/or cultural references that would be necessary to know.

C. Thesis Statement: 1 sentence

1. What is the theme that will be analyzed and why is it significant to understand?

II. Body Paragraphs

A. Topic Sentence: 1 sentence

1. What is one component of the theme that will be deconstructed?

B. Support the topic sentence

1. Discuss issues that the characters have and how these issues correlate to the theme. 2. Analyze the mental, emotional, physical, and social consequences that result from these issues. 3. Reference specific passages from the novel that prove your claims. 4. Relate key terms and theories that support your claims

III. Conclusion

A. Thesis #2: 1 sentence

1. What has been your experience with the issues related to the theme?

B. Support the thesis

1. How have you observed or experienced first-hand the different elements relating to the theme? 2. How do you compare/contrast to the characters you already analyzed? 3. Relate key terms and theories that support your claims.

C. Discuss the importance of your hook.