Synthesizing Cultural Identity

Writing the Paragraph

Choosing Evidence

• Choose which article you feel best supports your position. This is the article you will use as the source for text evidence in your paragraph.

Topic Sentence: first sentence of paragraph

• Use the statement about Culture that you agreed with most (“My position”) as your topic sentence.

Our individual personalities and perspectives are most strongly impacted by our culture.

OROur individual personalities and perspectives are most

strongly impacted by our peers and circumstances.

Embedding Evidence• After your topic sentence, embed your

first piece of text evidence (Quote #1). Establish what the article is about and include the text evidence in a way that it all flows within your paragraph.

Evidence of Embedded Evidence• In the article “Matrimony with a Proper Stranger”, Rajiv

and Valdana have ventured out against the American expectation and stayed true to their Indian culture by agreeing to an arranged marriage, which became a “very happy one”. Despite being in the “[U.S.] for four years, [Rajiv] called his parents […] and told them he was ready for [an arranged] marriage”.

*Notice how the example seamlessly fits into the sentence and flows within the paragraph. Changes to the pronouns were made and indicated with brackets [ ].

Explain Evidence• For each piece of text evidence, you

need to analyze/explain how the evidence supports your topic sentence.

– Example: Despite being in the “[U.S.] for four years, [Rajiv] called his parents […] and told them he was ready for [an arranged] marriage”. Clearly, Rajiv chose to follow his Indian heritage, when it came to marriage, rather than follow the American custom of dating.

Transition• Transition to your next example.

Remember to embed your quotation!– Example: Furthermore, Helft describes…

• Again, analyze/explain how the evidence supports your topic sentence.

Conclude• Wrap-up your paragraph by

summarizing the position you took and supported in your paragraph.

• Based on the information given by Helft in his article, it is clear that there are many who cleave to their cultural roots instead of assimilating to their surroundings.