DEVELOPING THE THESIS STATEMENT Honors 102 Dr. Klodt THE THESIS STATEMENT What does a thesis statement accomplish? A thesis statement… …establishes the goal your writing will achieve …proves a specific argument to your reader …anticipates your reader’s questions How? + Why? …forecasts your interpretation to your reader THE THESIS STATEMENT What does a thesis statement accomplish? Theme → Topic What you are writing about Thesis → Goal What you will accomplish THE THESIS STATEMENT What is it? • A thesis is a specific interpretation you will prove to your reader. • A thesis transcends obvious + common knowledge. • You write about a theme (e.g.: A topic: the role of money), but you prove a thesis (e.g.: A goal: the indictment of the American dream for inherent materialism). • The analytical essay comes full circle, connecting the interpretation (conclusion) back to the thesis (introduction). THE THESIS STATEMENT Writing a thesis statement is a process. Writing a thesis statement takes time + effort + multiple drafts. If you write a thesis statement quickly and blithely, your essay will inevitably be superficial and will earn a poor grade. Translation: ����! THE THESIS STATEMENT “I’m in the Empire Business”: Money, Avarice, and the American Dream in Breaking Bad (Vince Gilligan 2008-2013) By analyzing the evolution of Walter White’s greed in five episodes of the Emmy Award-winning series, Breaking Bad becomes an allegory for contemporary American culture, in which money sanitizes moral depravity. Walter White (Bryan Cranston) repeatedly insists that his motives are noble: He justifies the profits from cooking methamphetamine to ensure his family’s security after he succumbs to cancer. Yet as his drug empire begins to generate millions of dollars, Walter White steadily abandons his family (Skylar, Walt Jr., baby Holly, Hank, Marie), abandons his loyalties (Jesse Pinkman, Gus Fring, Mike Ehrmantraut), and abandons his morality (lying, stealing, killing without remorse). Breaking Bad unmasks the pathos of greed: Walter White abandons his humanity to the obsession of making more money, of coveting a fortune that paradoxically—since he is dying from cancer—he will never be able to spend. Despite his moral bankruptcy, the viewer still wants Walter White to succeed: We want him to continue cooking a drug that destroys lives. We root for him to evade the law. We thrill when he escapes death. And we celebrate when he kills his enemies. Breaking Bad reveals how easily we rationalize immorality for the sake of money and how greed dehumanizes not only Walter White, but the viewing public, as well. The American Dream is, in essence, an economic dream, and by challenging the viewers’ justification for Walter White’s greed, Breaking Bad shows how selfishness and moral corruption are consequences of our pursuit of the hallowed American dream. THE THESIS STATEMENT “I’m in the Empire Business”: Money, Avarice, and the American Dream in Breaking Bad (Vince Gilligan 2008-2013) By analyzing the evolution of Walter White’s greed in five episodes of the Emmy Award-winning series, Breaking Bad becomes an allegory for contemporary American culture, in which money sanitizes moral depravity. Walter White (Bryan Cranston) repeatedly insists that his motives are noble: He justifies the profits from cooking methamphetamine to ensure his family’s security after he succumbs to cancer. Yet as his drug empire begins to generate millions of dollars, Walter White steadily abandons his family (Skylar, Walt Jr., baby Holly, Hank, Marie), abandons his loyalties (Jesse Pinkman, Gus Fring, Mike Ehrmantraut), and abandons his morality (lying, stealing, killing without remorse). Breaking Bad unmasks the pathos of greed: Walter White abandons his humanity to the obsession of making more money, of coveting a fortune that paradoxically—since he is dying from cancer—he will never be able to spend. Despite his moral bankruptcy, the viewer still wants Walter White to succeed: We want him to continue cooking a drug that destroys lives. We root for him to evade the law. We thrill when he escapes death. And we celebrate when he kills his enemies. Breaking Bad reveals how easily we rationalize immorality for the sake of money and how greed dehumanizes not only Walter White, but the viewing public, as well. The American Dream is, in essence, an economic dream, and by challenging the viewers’ justification for Walter White’s greed, Breaking Bad shows how selfishness and moral corruption are consequences of our pursuit of the hallowed American dream. THE THESIS STATEMENT “I’m in the Empire Business”: Money, Avarice, and the American Dream in Breaking Bad (Vince Gilligan 2008-2013) By analyzing the evolution of Walter White’s greed in five episodes of the Emmy Award-winning series, Breaking Bad becomes an allegory for contemporary American culture, in which money sanitizes moral depravity. Walter White (Bryan Cranston) repeatedly insists that his motives are noble: He justifies the profits from cooking methamphetamine to ensure his family’s security after he succumbs to cancer. Yet as his drug empire begins to generate millions of dollars, Walter White steadily abandons his family (Skylar, Walt Jr., baby Holly, Hank, Marie), abandons his loyalties (Jesse Pinkman, Gus Fring, Mike Ehrmantraut), and abandons his morality (lying, stealing, killing without remorse). Breaking Bad unmasks the pathos of greed: Walter White abandons his humanity to the obsession of making more money, of coveting a fortune that paradoxically—since he is dying from cancer—he will never be able to spend. Despite his moral bankruptcy, the viewer still wants Walter White to succeed: We want him to continue cooking a drug that destroys lives. We root for him to evade the law. We thrill when he escapes death. And we celebrate when he kills his enemies. Breaking Bad reveals how easily we rationalize immorality for the sake of money and how greed dehumanizes not only Walter White, but the viewing public, as well. The American Dream is, in essence, an economic dream, and by challenging the viewers’ justification for Walter White’s greed, Breaking Bad shows how selfishness and moral corruption are consequences of our pursuit of the hallowed American dream. THE THESIS STATEMENT “I’m in the Empire Business”: Money, Avarice, and the American Dream in Breaking Bad (Vince Gilligan 2008-2013) By analyzing the evolution of Walter White’s greed in five episodes of the Emmy Award-winning series, Breaking Bad becomes an allegory for contemporary American culture, in which money sanitizes moral depravity. Walter White (Bryan Cranston) repeatedly insists that his motives are noble: He justifies the profits from cooking methamphetamine to ensure his family’s security after he succumbs to cancer. Yet as his drug empire begins to generate millions of dollars, Walter White steadily abandons his family (Skylar, Walt Jr., baby Holly, Hank, Marie), abandons his loyalties (Jesse Pinkman, Gus Fring, Mike Ehrmantraut), and abandons his morality (lying, stealing, killing without remorse). Breaking Bad unmasks the pathos of greed: Walter White abandons his humanity to the obsession of making more money, of coveting a fortune that paradoxically—since he is dying from cancer—he will never be able to spend. Despite his moral bankruptcy, the viewer still wants Walter White to succeed: We want him to continue cooking a drug that destroys lives. We root for him to evade the law. We thrill when he escapes death. And we celebrate when he kills his enemies. Breaking Bad reveals how easily we rationalize immorality for the sake of money and how greed dehumanizes not only Walter White, but the viewing public, as well. The American Dream is, in essence, an economic dream, and by challenging the viewers’ justification for Walter White’s greed, Breaking Bad shows how selfishness and moral corruption are consequences of our pursuit of the hallowed American dream. THE THESIS STATEMENT “I’m in the Empire Business”: Money, Avarice, and the American Dream in Breaking Bad (Vince Gilligan 2008-2013) By analyzing the evolution of Walter White’s greed in five episodes of the Emmy Award-winning series, Breaking Bad becomes an allegory for contemporary American culture, in which money sanitizes moral depravity. Walter White (Bryan Cranston) repeatedly insists that his motives are noble: He justifies the profits from cooking methamphetamine to ensure his family’s security after he succumbs to cancer. Yet as his drug empire begins to generate millions of dollars, Walter White steadily abandons his family (Skylar, Walt Jr., baby Holly, Hank, Marie), abandons his loyalties (Jesse Pinkman, Gus Fring, Mike Ehrmantraut), and abandons his morality (lying, stealing, killing without remorse). Breaking Bad unmasks the pathos of greed: Walter White abandons his humanity to the obsession of making more money, of coveting a fortune that paradoxically—since he is dying from cancer—he will never be able to spend. Despite his moral bankruptcy, the viewer still wants Walter White to succeed: We want him to continue cooking a drug that destroys lives. We root for him to evade the law. We thrill when he escapes death. And we celebrate when he kills his enemies. Breaking Bad reveals how easily we rationalize immorality for the sake of money and how greed dehumanizes not only Walter White, but the viewing public, as well. The American Dream is, in essence, an economic dream, and by challenging the viewers’ justification for Walter White’s greed, Breaking Bad shows how selfishness and moral corruption are consequences of our pursuit of the hallowed American dream. THE THESIS STATEMENT “I’m in the Empire Business”: Money, Avarice, and the American Dream in Breaking Bad (Vince Gilligan 2008-2013) By analyzing the evolution of Walter White’s greed in five episodes of the Emmy Award-winning series, Breaking Bad becomes an allegory for contemporary American culture, in which money sanitizes moral depravity.