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SAMPLE ESSAY OUTLINE AND BASIC 5 – PARAGRAPH ESSAY FORMAT

This is a sample outline/set of notes for a 5-paragraph thesis-centered essay on “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman.

Thesis:

· The THESIS of your essay is your topic, or what your essay is about. Your thesis should be a sentence that explains WHAT YOU THINK THE STORY MEANS.

· For example, a possible thesis for “The Yellow Wallpaper” is: “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman is a story about the oppression of women.

Five-Paragraph/Five-Part Essay:

The five-paragraph or five-part essay is an essay with five paragraphs. It has a thesis statement and is about 500 words or 2 typed double-spaced pages long. The format for the 5-paragraph essay is as follows:

1. Introduction. Your THESIS STATEMENT (TOPIC) should be the first sentence of your introduction. The introduction tells your reader what your essay is about. Your introduction should be about 4-12 sentences long.

2. First body paragraph. This is a paragraph about 4-12 sentences long that gives ONE example from the story that backs up what you think the story is about. The first sentence in your paragraph needs to state that example (also called a SUPPORTING POINT.)

3. Second body paragraph. This is a paragraph about 4-12 sentences long that gives a SECOND example from the story that backs up what you think the story is about. The first sentence in your paragraph needs to state that example (also called a SUPPORTING POINT.)

4. Third body paragraph. This is a paragraph about 4-12 sentences long that gives a THIRD example from the story that backs up what you think the story is about. The first sentence in your paragraph needs to state that example (also called a SUPPORTING POINT.)

5. Conclusion. This is a paragraph about 4-12 sentences long that ends your essay. You should begin your conclusion by writing, In conclusion. You need to briefly re-state your thesis (topic) and each of your three supporting points.

Outline:

Before you write your essay, you should make an outline. It will help you with your essay and save time. First, you need to pick and write down your thesis or topic. Remember the thesis (or topic) is what YOU think the story means.

Thesis: “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman is a story about the oppression of women.

You should then write down your THREE supporting points, which are THREE examples from the story that back up your thesis (topic). That means you need to find THREE WAYS that “The Yellow Wallpaper” is a story about the oppression of women.

1. Charlotte Perkins Gilman based the story “The Yellow Wallpaper” on the real-life rest cure, which oppressed women.

2. The narrator in “The Yellow Wallpaper” is kept from doing any work or using her mind at all.

3. By the end of “The Yellow Wallpaper,” the narrator is completely insane because of how much she has been oppressed by her husband and the rest cure.

Then, for each of those three supporting points, you would have to write an entire paragraph if 4-12 sentences explaining and discussing more. Remember the key words:

· WHO

· WHAT

· WHEN

· WHERE

· WHY

· HOW

For example:

· HOW did the real-life rest cure oppress women?

· WHEN did real-life women get treated with the rest cure?

· WHY was the narrator in the made-up story “The Yellow Wallpaper” treated with the rest cure?

· WHY was she forbidden to work or think?

· HOW did it make her insane?