· LANGUAGE! students alternate between writing
compositions based on the text that they have read
and writing from prompts that elicit their imagination
and their personal experiences.
Writing exercises encompass:
· Expository Paragraphs
· Personal Narratives
· Expository Opinion Essays
· Literary Analysis Essays
· Persuasive Essays
"The Treasure of the Sierra Madre" Literary
Analysis
I like a good action story that makes me think. "The
Treasure of the Sierra Madre" by B. Traven is that kind of
story. Traven tells the story of three men who dig for gold
in the Sierra Madre Mountains of Mexico. Dobbs and
Curtin don't know how to prospect for gold. They depend
on Howard, a long time gold prospector, to lead them into
the mountains and teach them the process of panning and
sifting for gold. The men find gold, but then the trouble
begins. The author uses the character of Dobbs to show how
the greed for gold can change a good man into a bad one.
Three scenes--the discussion of dividing the gold, the night
in the tent, and the gila monster incident--show how the
hunt for gold turns Dobbs from a normal person to a possible
murderer.
At the beginning of the story, Dobbs seems to be a normal
person. He puts up money for the trip, and he is grateful
to Howard for showing him and Curtin how to prospect
for gold. "My hat's off to you," he tells Howard. "I'd hate to
think what would have happened to Curtin and me if we'd
gone it alone." As the gold starts rolling in, however, Dobbs's
greed for it grows. He wants to go for seventy-five thousand
dollars worth, much more than either of his partners wants.
As his hunger for gold increases, so does Dobbs's distrust in
64 Unit 32 · Go For Gold
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"I've dug in Alaska and in Canada and Colorado. I was
with the crowd in British Honduras where I made my fare
back home and almost enough over to cure me of the [gold]
fever I'd caught. I've dug in California and Australia, all
over the world practically. Yeah, I know what gold does to
men's souls. . . . Aw, as long as there's no find, the noble
brotherhood will last, but when the piles of gold begin to
grow, that's when the trouble starts."--Howard, the old
prospector from The Treasure of the Sierra Madre
For its dramatic portrayal of the pitfalls of human greed,
The Treasure of the Sierra Madre endures as one of the
most popular Hollywood movies ever made. The screenplay,
written by John Huston, was based upon a 1936 novel by
B. Traven, a mysterious and elusive individual who wrote
novels under an assumed name and who lived incognito in
Mexico in the 1920s. John Huston, a well-known American
film director, actor, and screenwriter, won an Academy
Award in 1948 for his screenplay version of the novel.
This classic film tells a gripping story of three men--
Dobbs, Curtin, and Howard--who join forces to prospect
for gold in the mountain range known as the Sierra Madre
of northeastern Mexico. Dobbs and Curtin have separately
traveled to Mexico in search of an opportunity to make a
H66
Handbook
Draft Paragraph
Let's Work Out!
Regular exercise helps p
eople in two
important ways It imp
roves people's
health. It make the har
t, lungs, bones,
and muscles stronger. W
orkin' out is also
good for the mind. It m
akes people feel
better about themsel
ves. It calms them
down when they feel b
ad. People should
get exercise.
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Editor's Marks
Draft Paragraph with Edits
Let's Work Out!
Regular exercise helps people in two
important ways It improves people's health.
It make the hart, lungs, bones, and muscles
stronger. Workin' out is also good for the mind.
It makes people feel better about themselves.
It calms them down when they feel bad.
People should get exercise.
The Benefits
of Exercise
First,
s
It keeps people at a healthy weight. Exercise
angry or stressed
When people get
exercise, they stay fit,
healthy, and happy.
.
Using the Six Traits to Revise a Paragraph
(Unit 6)
Handbook
H67
STEP 6
Revised Paragraph
The Benefits of Exercise
Regular exercise helps people in two important
ways. First, it improves people's health. It makes
the heart, lungs, bones, and muscles stronger. It
keeps people at a healthy weight. Exercise is also
good for the mind. It makes people feel better
about themselves. It calms them down when they
feel angry or stressed . When people get exercise,
they stay fit, healthy, and happy.
Ideas and Content : added another explanation
Organization : added a transition
Voice : used a more formal tone of voice for a school paper
Word Choice : used more specific words
Sentence Fluency : wrote a longer sentence
Conventions : corrected spelling, punctuation, and grammar errors
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