Show Me the Thesis!

I just finished an essay in the Jul/Aug 08 issue of Good called "Poor People Unite!" The title pretty much conveys the thesis of the essay:

"What the world needs is an economic superpower that represents the interests of the world's poor: Call it Pooristan."

The rest of article sticks to that point. I think it was a rare example of a piece of writing in the published world that would translate fairly well into a classroom environment. Not only does the whole essay focus on one idea, it is actually an original idea that requires an essay to explain.

Why do I care that I found an example? Because of this quote from Wes Anderson (from a different article in the very same issue of Good):

Whenever I am getting ready to make a movie I look at other movies I love in order to answer the same recurring question: How is this done, again?

Who is Wes Anderson, you say? He's the director--auteur, really--of my favorite movie, The Royal Tenenbaums and four other highly-regarded indie features. He is meticulous in the details on film. He writes the stories. He chooses the soundtracks. He has a group of actors who continually work with him. He consistently uses the same font throughout a film--for credits, titles, in-film buildings and signs, everything. He is generally considered to be one of the best and most original filmmakers currently making films. And he needs examples to get going.

If someone considered among those at the pinnacle of their field needs a little inspiration at the outset of a project, it makes sense that students learning to put thoughts on paper could use a spark to get them going and show them how this is done.