PARAGRAPHS

Fragment – incomplete sentence pieces that are not connected to or do not form an independent clause Because Love God knew his potion was dangerous. [WRONG] Because Love God knew his potion was dangerous, he didn't want to share it with Mabel. [RIGHT] Misplaced/Dangling Modifiers – modifiers are words, phrases, or clauses that add description; a misplaced modifier describes the wrong part of a sentence and a dangling modifier is missing thepart it’s supposed to modify At the fair, the man gave Waddles to Mabel that was 15 pounds. [WRONG] At the fair, the man gave Waddles, who was 15 pounds, to Mabel. [RIGHT] Double Negative – combining two or more negativewords in a sentence in a way that is supposed to produce a positive force Mabel knew that beating Paficica wouldn't do her no good if it was by cheating. [WRONG] Mabel knew that beating Paficica would not do her any good if it was by cheating. [RIGHT]

PARAGRAPHS SECTION V

Paragraphs – a group of sentences that together convey a shared purpose structured around the same topic. Introductory Paragraphs (Introductions)Hook (Lead / Opening Statement) – can begin with the title Anecdotal (Brief story to set the mood and lead the reader into the topic)

Ex. Watching Gravity Falls through, it can be said without a doubt that Bill Cipher would have won his ideal world if he hadn’t let his excessive pride get n the way. With powers like his, being able to possess even the brightest minds and achieving breaking out of the mindscape, it’s clear Bill was at an advantage.

The more powerful he became, the more he believed everything would roll in his favor. Bill was blinded by his fatal flaw of hubris and lost it all. Query Based (Question that brings the reader to the topic - avoid second person POV “you”) Ex. Would Bill really have won against the townspeople in Gravity Falls?Thesis Statements (the purpose of a piece of writing – usually one sentence in length, but can be longer depending on the purpose – must be something that is arguable)Assertion (claim - a subject + a “sowhat” about the subject)

Ex. The Pine twins provided little threat to Bill and could have been avoided all together.Fact (empirically verifiable but often difficult to argue extensively about - better used as evidence to support a claim Ex. Bill was an interdimensional demon. Opinion (personal position on a topic) Ex. Bill was the greatest antagonist seen in Gravity Falls. Belief (social, religious, or political in nature – an opinion held by many to be a fact, though it is not necessarily factual – often involves a judgement) Ex. It would be a sin to think any human being could defeat an all powerful demon like Bill Cipher.Generalization (uses absolute or statistical pronouns: all, always, every, never,none, most, half – avoid using this type of thesisstatement unless citing thesource of the data) Ex. Most humans that came in contact with Bill were tricked by his mysterious ries motives.Document Based (cites a specific source, author, and position on a topic)Ex. In "Weirdmageddon 2: Escape From Reality," Bill had most of the townspeople of Gravity Falls captured as statues for his chair, leaving few as a threat. Theory (a statement that can be tested and potentially proven- often answers a research question)

Ex. If Bill had thought out his plans without leaving empty spaces to fill, he could have continued executing his plans without being stopped.Clarification/Expansion of Thesis (could extend the thesis, preview the evidence supporting the thesis, give the purpose of thesis, establish the importance or significance of examining the intricacies of the thesis – this could be several sentences long) Ex. With tons of different factors shown in Gravity Falls, such as being alive for trillions of years, lacking empathy, taking over dimensions, being able to become a three dimensional being, etc. the Pine twins or anyone else were no match for Bill, his only weakness was his own arrogance. Ex. Gravity Falls examines Bill's arrogance throughout the show with his witty remarks or failed plans in order to foreshadow his final defeat against his own pride. (purpose of thesis) Ex. This information about the connection between Bill and his arrogance will lead to understanding his fatal mistake which took away his perfect ending. (establishing the importance or significance of thesis)Body Paragraphs (must have echoes of the thesis in each AND present evidence to support or expand on the thesis) Topic Sentences (must specifically indicate the topic of the paragraph and focus on one subject and/or area of evidence or support – could start with a “Transition of Logic” that connects to the previous paragraph to give context)

Ex. Additionally, numerous articles can be seen talking about Bill's supernatural powers and how he fails at his plans when he gets too close. (Now every sentence in this paragraph must be related to the connection between Bills failures and his arrogance) Presenting Evidence from Quotations (quotes should NEVER be used as individual sentences – quotes should be embedded within sentences) ORIGINAL QUOTE – “Ex. Bill's failures can be seen in several episodes of Gravity Falls, including, “However, Mabel activates the pyrotechnics of the play, destroying the puppets and removing any vessel Bill could use to talk to the kids.” (Gravity Falls Wiki) Ex. “However, Mabel activates the pyrotechnics of the play, destroying the puppets and removing any vessel Bill could use to talk to the kids,” according to Sock Opera (Gravity Falls Wiki) Ex. Unfortunately for Bill, “Mabel activates the pyrotechnics of the play, destroying the puppets and removing any vessel Bill could use to talk to the kids” according to Sock Opera (Gravity Falls Wiki) Ex. Unfortunately for Bill, “Mabel activates the pyrotechnics of the play, destroying the puppets and removing any vessel Bill could use to talk to the kids [but not permanently]” Sock Opera (Gravity Falls Wiki) Ex. Unfortunately for Bill, “Mabel...destroy[ed]...any vessel Bill could use...” Sock Opera (Gravity Falls Wiki)Examining the EvidenceParaphrasing (rewording of a quote into other wordsof the same length without quotation marks, but still citing the source

- useful for examining the quote and transitioning to your analysis of the quote) ORIGINAL QUOTE – “Mabel activates the pyrotechnics of the play, destroying the puppets and removing any vessel Bill could use to talk to the kids.” (Sock Opera, Gravity Falls Wiki) Ex. PARAPHRASE – The Twins were able to defeat Bills antics over and over again Summarizing (condensing larger quotes or sections -useful for closing the examination of the quote/evidence and transitioning to your analysis of the quote) ORIGINAL QUOTE – “Mabel activates the pyrotechnics of the play, destroying the puppets and removing any vessel Bill could use to talk to the kids.” (Sock Opera, Gravity Falls Wiki) Ex. SUMMARY –Mabel destroyed the vessel Bill used to sabotage his plan.Abstract Examples (hypothetical, “what if” examplesthat do not refer to a source – AVOID USING THEM AS EVIDENCE – but useful for examiningthe quote)Ex. Bill might have been able to win if he stopped letting his hubris shake his thoughts.Concrete Examples (actual examples that do refer toa source – useful for enhancing your analysis of the quote)Ex. A study in the November 2011 New England Journalof Medicine shows that the average person stands to lose 12 pounds in any given year if they eliminate fast food from their regular diet.

Closing Sentences (must end the discussion of the topic within the paragraph with a transitional or culminating word – possibly an adverb – and should echo the thesis of the essay) Ex. Clearly, Bill is seen as a big threat but is easily taken down. Closing Paragraphs (Conclusions – should not be mere summaries of the previous paragraphs of your essay) Consequences of Disregarding the Thesis (establishing the potential consequences of disregarding the implications of the thesis –CREATING A COUNTERARGUMENT – could be one or more sentences) Ex. If defeating Bill was easy without his own self sabotage standing in the way, he would have been defeated way earlier in the show.Statement(s) of Extension (extending the consequences of disregarding the implications of the thesis – could be one or more sentences) Ex. As such, Bill's arrogance/hubris can be seen as his self sabotage that ultimately was his own defeat. Reestablishing the Significance of the Thesis (could be one or more sentences) Ex. Thus, with his constant bragging and failure at the same time, the townspeople of Gravity Falls carried unnecessary fear for the demon that carried his own failure in his mind. Final Sentence (closing statement that connects to the hook and finishes the essay (finish your argument) – the “Smokey the Bear”/”Drop the mic”/dot dot dot moment…)