“This Is What It Means To Say Phoenix, Arizona”
by Sherman Alexie

You will argue that your interpretation and
evaluations of a text are valid ones, and you will use the text itself as evidence to prove your argument. To accomplish this, you need to prove your points by briefly summarizing and quoting from the short story, “Phoenix, Arizona.” This does not mean you should summarize great chunks of the work in your own essay. Focus on how and why the elements of the story work together, not on what sequence of events is given within the story. Remember, one of your first tasks is to narrow this topic down to a manageable main idea and thesis.

Is the ending of “Phoenix, Arizona” an optimistic or pessimistic one? Argue your interpretation, and be sure to define how you are defining optimistic or pessimistic. Are there indications in the text that the characters will change, or does the text show they
will stay the same? Use the words of the story as evidence for your analytical argument.