Thread: Help! Once and Future King!?

I have an English assignment where I have to write an essay about whether or not The Once and Future King by T.H. White is an optimistic or pessimistic view. I'm very frustrated because after reading and doing the quizzes on spark-notes and cliff-notes I still don't understand if it's either. I can't seem to start an essay without going off topic. I need someone to help me. Please!

I'm not all that great when it comes to writing essays, so if you can please tell me your view on the book and tell me how you would start the essay. Thanks. Most descriptive answer gets 10 points. Thanks!

Please keep in mind that there is no right answer to this. Your teacher wants your opinion. You're the expert on that. You'll have to back up your opinion, of course, and express it, but that's the major point of the essay.

Perhaps you can try this: if you really can't decide whether the book is optimistic or pessimistic, then write the essay about that. On the one hand... and on the other hand... Support both sides with evidence from the book. You may find your views become clearer as you write it, which may change what you're writing. I suspect your teacher will be quite pleased with something like that, as it shows both that you read the book and that you were actually thinking about it. Sometimes "I don't know" can be a good thing.

For what it's worth, I'd personally go the 'optimistic' route, but I could make the argument either way.