Written Response (Part A): A Defensible Idea, Developed and Controlled
How the response is judged
Part A is scored on thought and understanding, organization, matters of choice (diction, syntax, voice, stylistic devices), and matters of correctness. The prompt asks for a personal or critical/analytical response to a supplied text, so the essay must be anchored in that text even when it draws on your own experience.
Concepts you must control
- A controlling idea (thesis) that takes a position - not a topic announcement.
- Unity: every paragraph advances that idea; nothing is included because it is interesting.
- Development: specific, integrated evidence - quotation, paraphrase, observed detail - analyzed, not summarized.
- Organization: a deliberate order (cause–effect, comparison, concession-then-rebuttal) with transitions that signal the logic, not just the sequence.
- Voice and register: first person is appropriate in a personal response but must be purposeful; an analytical response stays controlled and textual.
- Diction and syntax: precise verbs, awareness of connotation, varied subordination and parallelism, no clichés or empty intensifiers.
- A conclusion that earns insight rather than restating the introduction.
Traps
Retelling plot instead of analyzing it; a thesis that merely restates the prompt; broad generalizations with no textual anchor; decorative devices that do not serve meaning; forcing a rigid five-paragraph frame; running out of time with no conclusion.
Worked example
Thesis formula: "Although [obvious reading], [text] suggests [claim], because [reason] and [reason]." Test it before writing: can you name two pieces of evidence for each reason? If not, the thesis is too vague. Plan for five minutes, write for thirty, revise for five - checking that the first and last sentences of each paragraph carry the argument.