This week we read essays both supporting and abashing the five paragraph essay. Overall, I felt that the two essays argued the same thing -- that we must teach students organization in papers, and make clear that they don't have to actually be five paragraphs but contain an introduction, conclusion, and several logically-ordered body paragraphs.
This is what I want to know... where did the idea of the three-part thesis come from? I find that the biggest problem that Kimberley Wesley points out, and yet it does not appear in the "definition" of the Five paragraph essay that she cites. Here is what I mean...
As the FPT requires, "an introductory paragraph moving from a generality to an explicit thesis statement and announcement of three points in support of that thesis."
But nowhere in that statement do we find "an explicit thesis that INCLUDES three subpoints"... and yet somehow tons of educators (including my own teachers) have gotten this idea, which leads to the problematic thesis statements that lead to summarization rather than argument; examples here...
"In all three books, protagonists suffer from a permanent character flaw of excessive pride which causes them to be separated from loved ones, closed to new ideas, and absorbed in self-pity."
"In all three books, the role of women within the novels is similar."
So, my point here is that the five paragraph theme is really moot, but this mysterious three-pronged thesis has got to go!"
Resource for this week is the old standby... PBS... gotta love it.
http://www.pbs.org/teachers/
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