Part A
045
Regarding the short story “Evil Robot Monkey,” by Mary Robinette Kowal, at the bottom of this sheet, write a strong Thesis Statement for a larger essay. You won’t write that full essay for me, but I need to know that you understand how to set one up. I have provided you with an example below. All of my ideas, as will all of your ideas, come from the “Tone Discussion Chart” we filled out. Obviously, if you haven’t done that chart, do it FIRST, then come back here and use its information to complete this assignment. Make a copy of this page, write your thesis statement on it, turn it into a pdf, and turn that in.
Your prompt: In at least 100 words, discuss the narrator’s or author’s tone in “Evil Robot Monkey.” Select a descriptive word from the Word bank which embodies the narrator’s tone, and reveal
one of the two quotes (not the paraphrase) you selected from the text to support your argument. Underline the descriptive word you have selected. You’ll notice that this looks very much like an ACES paragraph without the summary.
My Thesis Statement example with ideas from the “Tone Discussion Chart”:
In Mary Robinette Kowal’s short story “Evil Robot Monkey,” the narrator’s tone is
condescending. The ape in the story, whose name is Sly, certainly believes himself to be at least creatively superior to the humans who gawk at him through his cage. The narrator reveals this attitude through the following exposition: “Sly bared his teeth, knowing these people would take it as a grin, but he meant it as a threat” (par. 3). The thought revealed here shows that the narrator wants us to understand that the ape thinks the humans are intellectually inferior to him. The narrator says that Sly menacingly shows his teeth, but he knows these ignorant, foolish humans will misunderstand his intentions as innocent musings, bereft of critical thought.
Your Thesis Statement (don’t forget to introduce the work’s title and author):
