Write a full literary analysis essay with a defensible thesis on fate versus choice in Romeo and Juliet, supported by evidence from across the play.
The Prologue calls Romeo and Juliet "star-crossed lovers," framing fate, destiny written in the stars, as a theme sitting right at the play's surface. But nearly every catastrophe in the play is also triggered by a specific, nameable choice: Romeo's choice to attend a party he was not invited to, the decision to marry in secret, Romeo's choice to fight Tybalt, and his choice to buy poison rather than wait even one more day for news. A genuinely rigorous reader has to hold both readings at once and decide, with evidence, which one the play ultimately supports, or whether it deliberately refuses to choose.
This week walks through the full literary analysis essay process for the first time this year: a specific, arguable thesis; two or three body paragraphs, each built around one piece of evidence and its analysis; and a conclusion that does more than restate the thesis. The goal is not to summarize the plot, which the reader already knows, but to argue something specific and defensible about it.
Mastery looks like: They can write a specific, arguable thesis about fate versus choice and support it with organized evidence across at least three body paragraphs.
Common stumbles: Writing a thesis that states an obvious topic instead of an arguable claim; summarizing plot in body paragraphs instead of analyzing how the evidence supports the thesis.
See it visually
Interactive, spoken-aloud tools that show this idea in motion.