Esfahani

Please break your essay up into the following component parts, highlighting the various parts of each paragraph as follows:

Thesis: dark blue Topic sentence: red Opinion/analysis: light blue Supporting detail:purple Commentary: green Transitions: pink

=Introduction:= =The carpet is ordinary. This pen is rather ordinary. Holcomb, Kansas is the connotation for ordinary, says Truman Capote, in his novel __In Cold Blood__. But what exactly is ordinary? Is it simplicity? Is it something that does not immediately dazzle us? From Capote's account, we are presented with an ordinary city: Holcomb, Kansas. Through specific imagery, a tone that neither praises nor complains, and selection of detail, a reader is allowed a thorough outlook on Capote's view of Holcomb, Kansas. = = = = = = = =Body Paragraphs:= = = = Capote begins with a beautiful composition of imagery, giving a simple, yet elaborate idea of where Holcomb stands. He informs the reader "other Kansans call [Holcomb] 'out there'". And just by that, the reader can guess that he disagrees with that outlook. Though the passage overall implies that the town is dull, Capote still describes the views as "awesomely extensive" and offers that the beasts of burden are as "grain elevators rising as gracefully as Greek temples". If that isn't admiration, then what is? Capote goes on to illustrate the remaining business buildings of Holcomb, which he depicts as "dark" and "dead". This gives the reader an implication that Holcomb is abandoned. Though it wasn't mentioned until midway into the passage, it makes sense in such a serene village to be empty of living, breathing nature-eaters. The reader is then introduced a resident: a "postmistress" and greatly detailed depiction of the woman she is, simply by her appearance and position "presid[ing] over a falling-apart post office...". This woman almost stands as a metaphor for the town, itself. Up until now, the reader assumes that the author is intrigued by the city, but then in a tone the reader can only guess is disgust, Capote says "Holcomb, like the rest of Kansas, is dry". = = = = It is not until almost the end of the passage that an ironic detail is presented. In the simplest manner, the reader is told of the pride of the town: Holcomb School. Its glamour is apparently camouflaged by the community, but a "good-looking establishment". Suddenly, the city appears prosperous of a population and stature, where prior to this all other details indictaed its complete vacancy and even poverty (if there was a population ).= = = = = =Conclusion:= = = ="Ordinary life" is what Truman Capote conclusively calls Holcomb and its inhabitants. With exposing imagery, promising detail, and an unpredictable tone, we are presented with Capote's very own explanation ordinary.= = = =P. Esfahani=