University:
Capital University
Course:
EDUC 310 | Writing: Theory and Practice
Academic year:

2022
Views:

379

Pages:

1
Author:

Alma Stephenson

for a Critical Paper A thesis statement cannot merely be a statement of fact: Oliver Stone’s Platoon depicts the Vietnam War. A thesis cannot be a question: Does Oliver Stone’s Platoon portray the Vietnam War accurately? A thesis cannot be an incomplete sentence: How Platoon shows the Americans in Vietnam. A thesis statement should avoid the use of “I”: In this essay I am going to explain how Platoon depicts the discord among American soldiers as a microcosm of American society. A thesis statement should focus on the film, not on the viewer: Platoon shows the viewers the experiences of soldiers in Vietnam. Ideally, a thesis statement for a critical essay should have an evaluative (critical) component: In his film Platoon, Oliver Stone effectively uses the soldier characters to epitomize the consequences of internal conflict. Your thesis is your “stand” on the subject. It should avoid the pitfalls above, be a sentence (or two) in length, and should state clearly and specifically your intentions as an opinion that can be supported.