Peer Review Essay 2 Discussion: When the Emperor was Divine and The Fire Next Time
To peer review rough drafts, please follow these instructions and look at shared document
1. Post your Rough Draft of your introduction and ONE body paragraph.
2. Read Tristian’s rough draft. Peer review their introduction and body paragraph by answering the following questions in the reply to their post (I would recommend copying and pasting the questions).
Introduction
A. Does the introduction include the authors and title information and a brief summary of both of the books?
B. Does the introduction address the essay assignment by including a clear thesis statement that responds to the essay question and develops a complex argument? Does the thesis statement clearly lay out the components (central arguments) that they will use to prove it?
C. What is the thesis statement and central arguments?
Body Paragraph:
D. Does the body paragraph clearly refer to the larger argument that the thesis is making?
E. Does the body paragraph develop a central argument that brings the texts together? It should be based around a specific SIMILARITY or DIFFERENCE that the paragraph will explore.
F. Does the paragraph include quotes from BOTH readings that are integrated using MLA guidelines?
G. Does the paragraph include commentary (explanation and analysis of those quotes) that brings the texts in conversation with one another?
Tristian’s post: “INTRODUCTION: What is the definition of the American Dream? The American Dream is the concept that when coming to the United States from other countries, anyone, regardless of their background, can achieve their goals and prosper to be the best version of themselves. It grasps the idea that individuals have the opportunity to do anything. Although, as time has gone on this seems to be a facade because this isn’t true. Citizens of the United States have been fighting against poverty, systematic racism, and injustices for hundreds of years. Two books highlight the facade of the American Dream and explain stories of those who were treated unfairly, due to their race. The first novel that highlights this illusion is a book called “When the Emperor was Divine” by Julie Otsuka and the second novel is called “The Fire Next Time” by James Baldwin. After reading these novels, I believe that race influences the characters’ identity as Americans in similar and different ways.
BODY PARAGRAPH 1: In the novel, “When the Emperor was Divine” Julie Otsuka goes into depth about the injustices Japanese Americans faced during World War II. The book follows a family through their internment in the United States and readers are exposed to the raw emotion of what it meant to be a Japanese-American in that time. Throughout the novel, we see a young boy struggling with his identity as a Japanese-American and readers view his family’s hardships throughout their life. In the novel, the family was from Berkely, California and readers see that they get forcibly removed from their home and sent into an internment camp. They are all American citizens, but since they are of Japanese descent, they are looked at as the enemy. This represents the injustices they faced because of who they are. In the novel, the audience also sees the children undergo many identity challenges because of the treatment they received.”
