I am having trouble with a thesis statement for an essay I did for Flower for Algernon. My teacher wants a thesis statement at the end of this intro. In the past few decades, man things have changed for mentally ed people. In the past, a mentatlly ed person was considered a burden on society. They were often put in instutions for their whole life. After the Civil Rights Movement, things began to change. Now people diagnosed as mentally ed have more opportunities. We even use kinder words to descrie them. It's too bad Charlie Gordon didn't live in the present day. (Need Thesis statement here)

Question

I am having trouble with a thesis statement for an essay I did for Flower for Algernon.  My teacher wants a thesis statement at the end of this intro.                                  In the past few decades, man things have changed for mentally ed people.  In the past, a mentatlly ed person was considered a burden on society.  They were often put in instutions for their whole life.  After the Civil Rights Movement, things began to change.  Now people diagnosed as mentally ed have more opportunities.  We even use kinder words to descrie them.  It's too bad Charlie Gordon didn't live in the present day.  (Need Thesis statement here)

bobpursley · Answer

A couple of things.
1) Civil rights momement? I thought all this was brought on by the 1975 Developmentally Disabled Assistance and Bill of Rights Act. I don't personally that had anything to do with the Civil Rights Acts of 1964, or the movement.

2) I am not certain where you are going with the essay, but the last two sentences make me wonder.

So decide where you are going with this, then draft the essay thesis. Put it here, and we can critique it..after that all will see if those two sentences fit or not. I think if I were doing the essay, it would be that we need to accept folks as they are, not as we see ourselves. In that case, those two sentences would fit.

casey · Answer

Charlie was the character in the book that the essay was about. The essay is about the differences in how people were treated before the 1960's. They were isolated and they weren't educated in the public school system. These things all relate back to the character in the book and how it would be different for him today. I'm sorry if the opening doesn't make sense. I guess you would have to read the rest of the essay. I was just having trouble coming up with the thesis my teacher asked me to add to the end of my intro. In the essay I discuss family relationships, education and opportunities in society. Thank you for your response.