Theme: Conflicts of War

Students will write an essay dealing with the theme of the effects of war on soldiers using the stories "Before the Firing Squad" by John Chioles (390-395) and "Home Soil" by Irene Zabytko (420-424). Students should write a minimum of 500 words.

Use the following paragraph as the introduction to your essay:

War is often portrayed as glamorous or heroic. Young men and women are encouraged to enlist as a means to achieving their dreams, and many have benefitted from their service training or the G.I. bill. But the reality of war is never glamorous. While war is sometimes necessary, the decisions soldiers face are never easy ones or without consequences. “Before the Firing Squad” by John Chioles and “Home Soil” by Irene Zabytko examine several soldiers who must make and face choices thrust on them by war.

Do not just summarize the stories in the body of the essay. Focus on specific soldiers, the choices they make, and the consequences of their actions. What motivates the soldiers? Why do they make the choices they do? What happens to them?

You may change the order of the stories in your essay (Zabytko first instead of Chioles), but if you do, change the order in the paragraph above as well.

Do not use first person (I, we) or second person (you, your) pronouns in your essay. Do not refer to the authors. The voice in a short story is referred to as the narrator.

Requirements

Length: Your essay must be a minimum of 500 words, excluding the introduction.
Documentation Format: You must include an MLA formatted Works Cited page that includes correctly formatted internal citations for the stories and the additional resources.
Sources: You are restricted to the two stories selected. Your response is based on your own close reading of the works and selection of relevant evidence in support from each work.
Format: The essay must be in MSWord format (.doc or .docx). Create one body paragraph for each story. The paragraphs should appear in the same order as the works listed in the thesis.

Students must use MLA style documentation. Internal citations should identify the author and page number for the stories. Students must also include an MLA Works Cited page.Students should proofread carefully their final drafts for spelling, grammar, and punctuation as well as clarity, conciseness, and completeness. The final draft should be typed, double spaced, with one inch margins, in Times New Roman 12 pt. The essay should be a minimum of 800 words.

The essay will be evaluated based on how well students develop their arguments with significant support from the story (thesis, topic sentences, supporting details from the story); clarity, cohesion, and conciseness; correct use of MLA format; and grammar and spelling.For this essay, students may use a dictionary to help with words with which they are not familiar but should not refer to the dictionary definitions in the essay. Students must use MLA style documentation. Internal citations should identify the author and line number for the poems and author or authors for any articles or other resources. Students must also include an MLA Works Cited page.

Students should proofread carefully their final drafts for spelling, grammar, and punctuation as well as clarity, conciseness, and completeness. The final draft should be typed, double spaced, with one inch margins, in Times New Roman 12 pt. The essay should be a minimum of 900 words.The essay will be evaluated based on how well students develop their arguments with significant support from the poems (thesis, topic sentences, supporting details from the poems); clarity, cohesion, and conciseness; correct use of MLA format; and grammar and spelling.