Antihero Essay

When we began Wuthering Heights I told you that the main character Heathcliff is an “antihero” similar to
many of those that we see in modern day culture. Heathcliff manages to be passionate and charismatic while
also being deeply flawed. Here lies the appeal of the antihero. To finish Wuthering Heights, we are going to
explore the idea of the antihero so that we can make some conclusions about why our culture is so fascinated
with them. Your prompt:

Select an antihero that you are familiar with. In a well-developed essay, compare and contrast this
character with Heathcliff. Why is our culture so captivated and fascinated with antiheroes?

Your steps to achieve this:

1. You’ll first need a thesis. You may choose two ways to compare and one to contrast or two ways to
contrast or one way to compare. This thesis must follow all of the required elements on the “what
makes a good thesis” sheet (Skills section, page 2). Put this thesis to the side to look at as you write.

2. Then you will need to write least three body paragraphs. These should follow the order of your
thesis. Look at the model of a paragraph that you were given (Skills section, page 10). Each body
paragraph should have an opening, supporting details and specific examples and explanation of how
these examples show your point.

You need three paragraphs at a minimum. However if you find that your paragraphs are getting too
long, break a paragraph up.

You will need at least two quotes, correctly cited, for each point from your thesis. This is six quotes
in total. Look at your sheet about how to correctly quote and cite (Skills section, page 12).

3. Afterwards you will need a conclusion. Restate the points from your thesis. Don’t just copy down
your thesis– to restate means to say differently.

Then, conclude something. Look at what you said before about antiheros. What conclusions can you
make about why our culture is so fascinated with this type of character? Explain yourself and
elaborate- do not make the reader assume your meaning. See your sheet about conclusions to help
you (Skills section, page 13).

4. Now, after you have finished your body paragraphs and conclusion, write your introduction. This
should follow the funnel format (Skills section, page 9). Now that you have written your essay you
know what information you have to funnel towards.

Your introduction must identify the characters and what they are from (books should be underlined,
movies, short stories and TV shows should be in quotations.)

5. Give your essay an interesting title. Do not underline it or put it into quotes.

6. Your essay must be typed, 12-point font, Times New Roman, double-spaced, spell checked and
proofread. Do not use any personal pronouns.

7. Your essay is due at the start of class on _____________________________. Points will be

deducted for every day it is late.

See the back of this sheet for a checklist of everything needed for this paper.