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Use these essay questions as writing and critical thinking exercises for all levels of writers, and to build their literary analysis skills by requiring textual references throughout the essay.
Differentiation Suggestion: For English learners or struggling writers, strategies that work well include graphic organizers, sentence frames or starters, group work, or oral responses.
Scaffolded Essay Questions
Student Prompt: Write a short (1-3 paragraph) response using one of the bulleted outlines below. Cite details from the text over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.
1. While Clare is only in the story briefly, her character plays an important role.
2. The author builds tension throughout the story, keeping his audience unsure of what may happen next.
3. The yellow piece of paper is an important symbol in the story.
Full Essay Assignments
Student Prompt: Write a structured and well-developed essay. Include a thesis statement, at least three main points supported by text details, and a conclusion.
1. The story has two settings: the apartment and the ledge. How does the development of each setting’s atmosphere affect Tom and the audience? Write a well-developed essay that answers this question, considering in particular the author’s use of imagery to develop the atmosphere of each setting. Use specific quotations from the text, including examples from both settings, to support your answer, and remember to cite all direct quotes.
2. How does fear drive Tom’s actions and the story’s plot? Complete your own research on how fear can affect thoughts and actions. Write a structured essay in which you connect your research to the theme of Controlling and Overcoming Fear in “Contents of the Dead Man’s Pocket.” Support your ideas with specific textual examples from the story and your research, and remember to cite all direct quotes and attribute paraphrased examples to your sources.
3. The author crafts an ironic ending that is foreshadowed by Tom’s epiphany while on the ledge. Write a well-developed essay in which you connect these literary devices of situational irony, foreshadowing, and epiphany to one or more of the following themes: The Consequences of Unbridled Ambition or The Will to Live. Use specific quotations from the text to support your answer, and remember to cite all direct quotes.
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