Short Story Analysis: Tag Along By Tom Ryan

Introductory Paragraph:

General statement to introduce the topic and include brief summary of text:

The transition years are something that you sit down with your family and friends, and look back on either in awe or embarrassment.But one thing individuals tend to forget is that all those embarrassing outfits, failures, and bad decisions, are the bedrock to the person you are today.

"Tag Along" by Tom Ryan, is the journey of four very different teenagers; Paul, Candace, Roemi and Andrea, struggling to attend Junior Prom night while they coincidentally run into each other. Faced with personal challenges, and confusions about their place in the world, these characters learn to take control of their own decisions and grasp the concept of maturation.

Thesis statement: In "Tag Along" by Tom Ryan, the author

Eventually Andrea becomes fed up with the constant supervision of her mother and by the end of the novel, Andrea speaks to her mother on the phone, while she's at the dance, about the fact that she is old enough to make decisions for herself, Andrea pleads that her mother trusts her, as she has never broken any rules before.Andrea has made the leap from being a controlled, goody-two-shoes, to a strong young woman, who is growing by learning to listen to herself.

Body paragraph #2: Person vs Person conflict

Topic sentence:

Person vs. person is the classic showdown between the protagonist, the main character of the story; the antagonist, the character who tries to bring about his downfall. The person vs person conflict that takes place in this argument is between Andrea and Candace.

Context:

When Paul, Candace, Roemi and Andrea reunite again, after separating in the Ledge, they head to Roemi's glamorous house, where tensions rise between Andrea and Candace, about the choice of each others lifestyle.