Topic Sentences “Venus Envy” and “Eye of the Beholder”

Checking for Topic Sentences Every single body paragraph of an academic needs to have an effective topic sentence. A topic sentence is a sentence at the beginning of a paragraph that clearly states the point that the rest of the paragraph will be about. For an academic essay, a topic sentence should do one of two things: clearly state the reason your thesis is correct that the paragraph will discuss clearly state how the ideas/stories/explanations in the paragraph relate to the thesis

Checking for Topic Sentences Example Thesis: While princess toys are often touted as a harmless part of growing up for little girls, their recent saturation of the market is still troubling because girls have fewer non-princess toy choices, the focus of the toys is undeniably on appearance and beauty, and princess toys help to support rigid gender norms. Some Example Topic Sentences that relate to this thesis: If princess toys were one choice among many, that would be one thing, but the overwhelming abundance of princess products takes that choice away from young girls. (The rest of this paragraph might discuss statistics that the student has gathered about princess vs non-princess toys for girls. It also might compare the choices in the “girls” section of the toy aisle to the “boys” section. This sentence connects this paragraph to the thesis because it makes a claim about why the princess craze is troubling.)

Checking for Topic Sentences More Example Topic Sentences: While there are certainly still toys for little girls that are not part of the “princess craze,” some toy lines have introduced princess elements to compete with Disney, which further diminishes girls’ choices. (Notice that this is the SECOND paragraph about choice. Each one of the blue reasons in the thesis might have more than one paragraph devoted to explaining them. The rest of this paragraph should might give examples of several “girls” toys that were changed to make them into a princess toys, and discuss the specific reasons and implications that surround each change.) Princess merchandise places a great value on outward appearance, and there are princess products available to help little girls “feel pretty” as well, and this encourages girls’ imaginative play to revolve around achieving a certain standard of beauty. (The rest of this paragraph should further explain how the products value outward appearance, give examples of the toys that help girls “feel pretty” and explain why it’s a problem for girls’ play to be centered around achieving beauty standards. Notice how this topic sentence relates back to the second reason in the thesis.)

Checking for Topic Sentences Example Topic Sentences: The explosion of princess toys onto the shelves of toy stores everywhere are part of a recent trend in children’s toys that sharply divides the “girls” toys from the “boys” toys, which is a practice that supports socially constructed gender norms that do more harm than good. (The rest of this paragraph should give more evidence of this trend and support the statement that these gender norms can be harmful to the girls who are not comfortable with the socially constructed ideas of what femininity should be.) Notice that every single one of these topic sentences: Relates back to the thesis in some significant way. Tells the reader what specific point in support of the thesis the paragraph is going to prove.

Highlight your Thesis By this point in the writing process, you should have a thesis that: Makes a clear claim about the issue that invites discussion Makes a claim that can be supported over the course of 4-5 pages Is NOT a question Is NOT a statement of fact If you need to make any last minute changes to your thesis, do so now.

Highlight the Topic Sentence of Each Paragraph Does each topic sentence clearly and succinctly state the main point of the paragraph? Does each topic sentence connect the paragraph back to the thesis? If the answer to either of these questions is “no,” you need to revise your topic sentence(s). If you realize that a paragraph covers too many topics to be covered by one topic sentence, you need to break up that one paragraph into several, each with its own topic sentence.

“The Eye of the Beholder” p. 187 This essay uses the form of a narrative, or a story, to get its point across. Using narratives in your essays can be an effective way of engaging your audience. Narratives introduce them to the story of one individual is dealing with the issues you are writing about, making the issues more immediate and more human. Why does this author decide that she is “ugly”?

“Eye of the Beholder” Describe the author’s transformation at the department store. What is her attitude about the women in the photographs at the beauty counter? About the woman who helps her with her makeover? (These don’t stay consistent throughout the essay because the author’s attitude changes as the story progresses.) Why do you think that the author makes the choice she does at the end?

Pop Culture and Identity How does this essay comment on the influence of pop culture on identity? Would you say that pop culture has had a positive/constructive influence, or a negative/destructive influence? What do you think this essay is saying about how all of these advertisements have influenced Suh to think of herself as a woman? Is it just the advertisements, or are they working together with other forces in Suh’s life?

Effects of Ads on Identity There has been a lot of talk about how ads with unrealistic beauty standards affect women, but not as much has been written about how ads about how to “be a man” affect men.

“Venus Envy” p. 168 According to the author, how have men’s expectations of themselves in regards to appearance changed recently? Why? Point to places in the article that support your answer. What do you think of this issue? Is this a case of men and women being on a more “equal” playing field now (because both “have to” be more concerned about appearance)? Or is this a case of a trend that has historically damaged women also beginning to have negative effects on men?

Connections Between the Essays Having read about Suh’s experiences in “Eye of the Beholder,” what connections can you make between her day at the beauty counter and what McLaughlin describes in “Venus Envy”?