Essay
Movies
Professor Stevens, English 21

BRAINSTORMING FOR A PAPER

In making a brainstorming list, you collect ideas and details that relate to your subject. Don’t out major details from minor ones or try to put the details in any special order. Your aim to is just to make a list of everything about your subject that occurs to you.

To get a sense of brainstorming process, take a sheet of paper and write about some of the everyday aggravations you have experienced going-to-movies. See how much material you can accumulate in five to fifteen minutes.

Downsides to going to a movie theater:

Drive to theater, heavy traffic
Parking spot
Distance to theater
Long lines,
Sold-out shows
Ticket Cost, popular movie
Crowded into seats between strangers
Unhealthy food: Popcorn, Candy, Soda, Hot dog, Ice-cream
Running kids
Telling about movie
See over others
Laughing
Shouting youngsters
Older people make noise
Talking
Walking over people
Taking a date
Finding a seat
Commercials
Too crowded
Icky stuff on floor
Kids showing off
Sick people, coughing, sneezing

CLUSTERING CIRCLES

Clustering or circles is another strategy that can used to generate material for a paper.  In clustering, you use lines, boxes, arrows, and circles to show relationships between the ideas and details that occur to you.  Put minor ideas or details in smaller circles and use connecting lines to show how they relate as well.

Don't worry yet about grammar, punctuation, or spelling. You don't want to take time correcting words or sentences that you may decide to remove later.  Instead, make it your goal to state your thesis clearly and develop the content of your paper with plenty of specific details.

A SHORT FORM OF A PAPER ABOUT ATTENDING MOVIES

The “HAZARDS” of Going-to-movies

Although I love movies, I've found that there are drawbacks to going-to-movies. One problem is just the inconvenience of it all. To get to the theater, I have to drive for at least fifteen minutes, or more if traffic is bad. It can take forever to find a parking spot, and then I have to walk across a huge parking lot to the theater. There I encounter long lines, sold-out shows, and ever-increasing prices. And I hate sitting with my feet sticking to the floor because of other people's spilled snacks. Another problem is my lack of self-control at the theater. I often stuff myself with unhealthy calorie-laden snacks. My choices might include a bucket of popcorn, a box of Milk Duds, a giant soda, or all three. The worst problem is some of the other moviegoers. Kids run up and down the aisle. Teenagers laugh and shout at the screen. People of all ages drop soda cups and popcorn tubs, cough and burp, and talk to one another. All in all, I would rather stay home and wait to see the latest movie hits on cable TV in the comfort of my own living room.

Langdan,  College Writings with Readings

A LONG FORM OF A PAPER WITH DETAILS, AN ESSAY: A STUDENT MODEL

In conversation, you might say to a friend who has suggested a movie, "No, thanks. Going to the movies is just too much of a hassle. Parking, people, everything." From shared past experiences, your friend may know what you are talking about so that you will not have to explain your statement. But in writing, your point would have to be backed up with specific reasons and details.

Below is a paragraph by a student named on:  why Going-to-movies is a nuisance? A paragraph is a short paper of around 150 to 200 words. It usually consists of an opening point called a topic sentence followed by a series of sentences which support that point

Even though I love movies, my friends have stopped asking me to go.  There are just too many problems involved in going to the movies.  There are no small theaters anymore; I have to drive fifteen minutes to a big multaplex. Because of a supermarket and restaurants, the parking lot is filled. I have to keep driving around to find a space. Then I have to stand in a long line, hoping that they do not run out of tickets.  Finally, I have to pay too much money for a ticket. Putting out that much money, I should not have to deal with a floor that is sticky seems coated with rubber cement.  By the end of a movie, my shoes are often sealed to a mix of spilled soda, bubble gum, and other stuff.
           The theater offers temptations in the form of snacks I really don't need. Like most of us I have to worry about weight gain. At home I do pretty well by simply watching what I keep in the house and not buying stuff that is bad for me. I can make do with healthy snacks because there is nothing in the house.  Going to the theater is like spending my evening in a market Seven-Eleven that's been equipped with a movie screen and there are seats which are comfortable.  I try to persuade myself to just have a diet soda.  The smell of popcorn soon overcomes me.  My friends are as bad as I am.  Chocolate bars seem to jump into your hands; I am eating enormous mouthfuls of milk duds. B y the time I leave the theater I feel sick and tired of myself.
           Some of the other moviegoers are the worst problem. There are teenagers who try to impress their friends in one way or another. Little kids race up and down the aisles, giggling and laughing. Adults act as if they're watching the movie at home. They talk loudly about the ages of the stars and give away the plot. Other people drop popcorn tubs or cups of soda, crushed ice and soda on the floor. Also, coughing a lot and doing other stuff.
           I decided one night that I was not going to be a moviegoer anymore. I joined a local video store, and I'll watch movies comfortably in my own living room.

Notice what the supporting evidence does here. It provides you with a basis for understanding why the writer makes the point that is made. Through this specific evidence, the writer has explained and successfully communicated the idea that going-to-movies can be a nuisance.

The evidence that supports the point in a paper often consists of a series of reasons followed by examples and details that support the reasons. That is true of the paragraph above: three reasons are provided, with examples and details that back up those reasons. Supporting evidence in a paper can also consist of anecdotes, personal experiences, facts, studies, statistics, and the opinions of experts.

AN EXTENSIVE ESSAY FORM OF A PAPER WITH DETAILS: A STUDENT MODEL

The “controlling idea” of a paper is called a thesis statement (rather than, as in a paragraph, a topic sentence). The “controlling idea” appears in the 1^st paragraph.  The supporting paragraphs allow for a fuller treatment of the evidence that backs up the “controlling idea” than would be possible in a single-paragraph paper.

Organization of the Conventional Essay.  Example: The following example will help you understand the look of an essay.  The writer of the paragraph on going-to-movies, later decided to develop her subject more fully. Here is the essay that resulted.

                                           The Hazards of Going-to-movies
           I am a movie fanatic. My friends count on me to know movie trivia (who was the   pigtailed little girl in E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial? Drew Barrymore) and to remember every big Oscar awarded since I was in grade school (best picture 1994? Forrest Gump). My friends, though, have stopped asking me if I want to go out to the movies. While I love movies as much as ever, the inconvenience of going out, the temptations of the theater, and the behavior of some patrons are reasons for me to wait and rent the video.
            To begin with, I just don't enjoy the general hassle of the evening.  Since small local movie theaters are a thing of the past, I have to drive for fifteen minutes to get to the nearest multiplex. The parking lot is shared with several restaurants and a supermarket, so it's always jammed. I have to drive around at a snail's pace until I spot another driver backing out. Then it's time to stand in an endless line, with the constant threat that tickets for the show I want will sell out. If we do get tickets, the theater will be so crowded that I won't be able to sit with my friends, or we'll have to sit in a front row gaping up at a giant screen. I have to shell out a ridiculous amount of money-up to $8-for a ticket. That entitles me to sit while my shoes seal themselves to a sticky floor coated with spilled soda, bubble gum, and crushed Raisinets.
           Second, the theater offers tempting snacks that I really don't need. Like most of us, I have to battle an expanding waistline. At home I do pretty well by simply not buying stuff that is bad for me. I can make do with snacks like celery and carrot sticks because there is no ice cream in the freezer. Going to the theater, however, is like spending my evening in a Seven-Eleven that's been equipped with a movie screen and comfortable seats. As I try to persuade myself to just have a diet Coke, the smell of fresh popcorn dripping with butter soon overcomes me. Chocolate bars the size of small automobiles seem to jump into my hands. I risk pulling out my fillings as I chew enormous mouthfuls of Milk Duds. By the time I leave the theater, I feel disgusted with myself.
           Many of the other patrons are even more of a problem than the concession stand. Little kids race up and down the aisles, usually in giggling packs. Teenagers try to impress their friends by talking back to the screen, whistling, and making what they consider to be hilarious noises. Adults act as if they were at home in their own living room. They comment loudly on the ages of the stars and reveal plot twists that are supposed to be a secret until the film's end. And people of all ages create distractions. They crinkle candy wrappers, stick gum on their seats, and drop popcorn tubs or cups of crushed ice and soda on the floor. They also cough and burp, squirm endlessly in their seats, file out for repeated trips to the rest rooms or concession stands, and elbow me out of the armrest on either side of my seat.
           After arriving home from the movies one night, I decided that I was not going to be a moviegoer anymore. I was tired of the problems involved in getting to the theater, resisting unhealthy snacks, and dealing with the patrons. The next day, I arranged to have premium movie channels installed as part of my cable TV service, and I also got a membership at my local video store. I may now see movies a bit later than other people, but I'll be more relaxed watching box office hits in the comfort of my own living room.

Langdan,  College Writings with Readings