Svab

English 9 - 2015-16

Ellen Foster - Foils

A character foil is a secondary character in a novel or story that reflects (like foil) characteristics of the protagonist back to us. The secondary characters in a story, and how the protagonist interacts with them, tell us more about the protagonist him/herself. In Ellen Foster, Ellen interacts with many different people: family and those who represent something like family (and, ironically, those family members who are not very good at being family).

Your task is to choose one person and write a brief (one page maximum) description of that character: two strong and interesting paragraphs. Find the pages in the book where that character appears, and take some notes. How does Ellen describe this person? What are some personality characteristics Ellen says he/she has? What role does this person play in Ellen’s life?

• Daddy
• Mama
• Starletta
• New Mama
• Mama's Mama (Ellen's grandmother)
• Mavis (field hand on Ellen's grandmother's farm)
• Nadine (Ellen's aunt)
• Dora (Nadine's daughter, Ellen’s cousin)
• Julia (Ellen's art teacher)
• Roy (Julia's husband)
• Stella (Ellen's foster sister at her new mama's house, who is in middle school but has a baby.)
• Betsy (Ellen's aunt on her mother's side, where she stays for a weekend.)

Criteria: 

• typed, double-spaced.
• no more than one page (front only)
• comprising two paragraphs
• not written in first person
• written in present tense (Ex: “Ellen finds Dora annoying.”)

The first paragraph:

• will have an introductory sentence
• will contain general information, including a brief, physical description, about the person and where and when Ellen encounters him/her in the story
• will end with a sentence that transitions easily into…

The second paragraph:

• will have an introductory sentence that transitions seamlessly from the first paragraph
• will contain insights as to why this character is important to Ellen. What purpose does this character serve in Ellen’s life? (Could be positive or negative.)
• will end with a concluding sentence

• The title of the character description will simply be the character’s name.
• Quotes from the novel should be integrated into the text. You should have at least TWO quotes.

Example: When Ellen first encounters Roy, she is surprised “he could clean a house like a woman” (46).

See rubric on reverse for scoring.

This is a quiz grade.

Name: ____________________________________________________

Svab/English 9 - 2015-16

Ellen Foster Character Foil Assignment

Format

The description is typed, double-spaced, and in correct MLA format,                     5              ______

              consisting of no more than one page.

The first paragraph begins with an appropriate introductory sentence             

              and ends with a transition sentence.                                                                     5              ______

The second paragraph begins with an appropriate introductory sentence

             and ends with a concluding sentence.                                                                             5              ______

The study has at least TWO appropriate quotes from the text.                                  5              ______

Content                                                                                                                                                              

The first paragraph includes a brief physical description of the character

and information about his/her place in the story.                                                                13              ______

The second paragraph includes insight as to the importance of the

character to the novel.                                                                                                                      13              ______

The study is free of Grammar, Usage, Mechanics, and Spelling (GUMS)

errors.                                                                                                                                                        4               ______

                                                                                                        Total Points                                           _________/50

                                                                                                        Grade                                                            ____________

 STAPLE THIS SIDE TO THE FRONT OF YOUR CHARACTER DESCRIPTION.

DUE: Thurs., SEPT. 10, 2015.