Would this serve as an effective thesis statement or topic sentence? If not, what’s wrong?

People have a variety of opinions about whether cats or dogs are better; it’s all about how you look at it.

The essay starts off with a soft opener that greatly contrasts the message of “We Lie the Most to Ourselves.” She tells herself, “I did nothing this weekend so today I will be working my ass off and then I will rinse and repeat for the rest of all time. Or something.” The opener shows how the author is not being upfront with herself. By finishing with “Or something” it is clear that the author knows she is lying to herself and that she will not become the type of person who works her ass off, rinses and repeats. Although the introduction seems to be soft and meaningless, it is very reminiscent of what many of us say to ourselves in our everyday lives. We lie to ourselves that we will become more hard working people that strive for success. And for most of us, we finish the day where we started.

If you wrote the following sentence, and that quote appears in Jon Ronson's book, on page 56, how should your in-text citation look?

Near the beginning of the book, Ronson writes that “The snowflake never needs to feel responsible for the avalanche”

Correct these run together sentences with a coordinating conjunction or semicolon.

In Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, I visited Oswald’s Bear Ranch, it was an eight-hour drive from my family’s cabin and we were very tired when we got there.

Combine each of the sentences below with a concessive subordinator to emphasize one or the other sentence as indicated.

Some consider the TV show Girls groundbreaking. I find the character of Hannah irritating.

Use a concessive subordinator of your choice to emphasize the fact that you find the character of Hannah irritating, and de-emphasize the fact that some find the show groundbreaking.

Would this serve as an effective thesis statement or topic sentence? If not, what’s wrong?

We need to break down gender stereotypes in today’s society because there are a lot of them.

The main character in the story is depicted as a young seven year old boy with his three older brothers Manny and Joel. With a mother that works the graveyard shift and a father that is unemployed Torres shows the struggle of a family trying to get through their daily lives. By getting the inside look through the narrators eyes, a seven year old boy, you have a sense of how each character feels with every situation the family comes across. With each chapter in the book tells a small story about the family’s struggle through the place of action and the attitude of all the characters.

If you wrote the following sentence, and that quote appears in Aziz Ansari's book, on page. 67, how should the in-text citation look?

He further explains, “If we’re honest with ourselves, we realize that, however bizarre, we actually prefer to be lied to”

Correct these run together sentences with a coordinating conjunction or semicolon.

All the seats are already taken by the time he gets on the train, he always has to stand on BART.

Combine each of the sentences below with a concessive subordinator to emphasize one or the other sentence as indicated.

Michigan gets a lot of snow. Many people move there for the kind people and the affordable rent.

Use a concessive subordinator of your choice to emphasize the fact that many people move there for the kind people and the affordable rent, and de-emphasize the fact that Michigan gets a lot of snow.

Would this serve as an effective thesis statement or topic sentence? If not, what’s wrong?

Many children are still taught to fit into their gender roles, but being exposed to gender stereotyping can limit their opportunities as a person.

As she goes on to bake her Cherry Bars we get more knowledge of her past. As a victim of bulimia, Gay has had issues with her self-esteem for many years now. Many have questioned her use of the bathroom after every meal. Her horrible ex-boyfriend had even caught her and had the decency to say, “I’m glad you’re working on the problem." How much of an ass do you have to be to ever say that to someone? That is wrong on so many levels. But she didn’t even say anything to him about it. She agreed with him and stayed in that horrible relationship for a while. You can see how low her self-esteem is to stay with a type of man like that. I believe she still thinks that he was right about her in the end.

If you wrote the following sentence, and that quote appears in Jon Ronson's book, on page 98, how should your in-text citation look?

“We tend to love nothing more than to declare other people insane,” he asserts.

Correct these run together sentences with a coordinating conjunction or semicolon.

Thanh wrote in his journal every night one day he hoped to become a writer.

Combine the sentences below with a concessive subordinator to emphasize one or the other sentence as indicated.

The Harry Potter series is an engaging read. The books are very long.

Use a concessive subordinator of your choice to emphasize the length of the books and de-emphasize the fact that they’re an engaging read.

Would this serve as an effective thesis statement or topic sentence? If not, what’s wrong?

Gender stereotypes have been a prevalent form of discrimination throughout history.

At the end of Biss’s essay she states, “Bringing us, of course, back to zero.” (Biss, 25). Biss stating this at the end of the essay confirms her inability to move forward. In the pain scale zero is the first number. It is the first point in the scale that measures the magnitude of pain. Bringing us back to zero is similar to as saying coming back to the starting point. Biss’s time explaining zero, Christ, the kelvin scale and etc. only amounting to her ending up where she started. Confused and unsure. Biss also stated “Grasping at the pain does not bring relief.” (Biss, 11). She says this but throughout the essay she tries to understand her pain. The more she tried to understand her pain the more pain was on her mind. Biss is consumed by her pain. It’s as if Biss’s only purpose in life is to find meaning in her pain. Ultimately, Biss could not escape pain and is not able to move on.

If you wrote the following sentence, and that quote appears in Naomi Wolf's article, on page 14, how should your in-text citation look?

Naomi Wolf ultimately argues that “The beauty myth is always actually prescribing behavior and not appearance”

One of these two sentences is a fragment. Correct the incorrect sentence.

My habit is always being late. A habit that drives my husband crazy.

Combine the sentences below with a concessive subordinator to emphasize one or the other sentence as indicated.

Neville is frequently late to class. He does an excellent job with everything he is assigned.

Use a concessive subordinator of your choice to emphasize the fact that Neville is frequently late to class and de-emphasize the fact that he does an excellent job.

Would this serve as an effective thesis statement or topic sentence? If not, what’s missing?

Additionally, we as a culture are not responsible for public shaming because the mob mentality has been proven as false—people are driven by their own free will.

Biss also uses the Beaufort scale to show how pain can never be defined. The narrator refers to this scale in parallel with how pain is felt. As the pain scale increases so does the description of hurricanes from the Beaufort scale. In the final section of the essay, the narrator states that “The description of hurricane force winds on the Beaufort scale is simply, ‘devastation occurs’” (Biss 25). In this allusion, after a hurricane, the outcome is disaster and calamity. Similar to a person in a large amount of pain, they will also feel devastated from the pain as well. At the end of a hurricane, people will have to start back at square one. This process of restarting from the beginning shows that pain is a pattern of reaching the maximum point and returning back to the minimum amount of pain. However, it also makes people question if there is such a thing as a point of devastation in the pain scale. What is considered “the worst pain imaginable?” The narrator ends her narration unable to answer this question, which indicates that she’ll continue to be trapped in a cycle, with no answers.

If you wrote the following sentence, and that quote appears in Aziz Ansari's book, on page 222, how should the in-text citation look?

Near the end of the book Ansari quotes a sociologist, who claims that “There are two ways of thinking of satisfaction. One is the passionate/companionate love hedonic view, that the best life would be the one with the most passion in it. The other is a narrative view, that the best life is about building a story”

One of these two sentences is a fragment. Correct the incorrect sentence.

According to Aziz Ansari’s groundbreaking and extremely hilarious book Modern Romance. We are no longer just content with the “good enough” marriage.

Combine the sentences below with a concessive subordinator to emphasize one or the other sentence as indicated.

Jill’s new shoes look great. They are one size too small and hurt her feet.

Use a concessive subordinator of your choice to emphasize the fact that Jill’s shoes look great and de-emphasize that they are one size too small and hurt her feet.