Question

use your course textbook and read \after twenty years\ beginning on page 263. based on the information in the excerpt, write a response to the following:
write an essay about a specific moment of loyalty, or its absence, that you have experienced.
connect your experience to the events in o henrys \after twenty years\ using text evidence to support your ideas.
remember to —

• clearly state your thesis
• organize your writing
• develop your ideas in detail
• use evidence from the selection in your response
• use correct spelling, capitalization, punctuation, and grammar

Explanation:

To complete this essay, first, recall a personal moment of loyalty or its absence. For example, a friend breaking a promise (absence of loyalty) or standing by you in tough times (loyalty). Then, analyze "After Twenty Years": the policeman (Jimmy) and his friend (Bob) have a loyalty test—Jimmy sends a plainclothes officer to arrest Bob as he’s a criminal, showing loyalty to the law over friendship. Connect your experience: if your friend betrayed trust, relate to Bob’s betrayal of the law (and Jimmy’s loyalty to duty). Structure: Introduction (thesis: “My experience of a friend’s disloyalty mirrors the complex loyalty in ‘After Twenty Years’ as both show how loyalty can conflict with duty or trust.”), Body (personal story, text evidence from the story—quote Jimmy’s decision or Bob’s criminal past), Conclusion (tie together). Ensure clear thesis, organized paragraphs, detailed ideas, text evidence, and proper grammar.

Answer:

To write the essay:

Step 1: Choose a Personal Experience

Reflect on a moment of loyalty (e.g., a friend kept a 5 - year promise to help you move) or its absence (e.g., a friend lied about a secret you shared). For example, a friend promised to meet you for a project but ghosted you, showing disloyalty to your partnership.

Step 2: Analyze “After Twenty Years” for Loyalty Themes

In O. Henry’s story, Jimmy (the policeman) and Bob (his friend) made a 20 - year appointment. Bob is a criminal, and Jimmy (loyal to the law) sends another officer to arrest Bob instead of confronting him himself. This shows loyalty to duty over friendship, or Bob’s loyalty to his criminal path (and disloyalty to the law).

Step 3: Connect the Experience to the Story

If your experience is disloyalty (friend broke a promise), relate it to Bob’s disloyalty to the law (he’s a criminal) and Jimmy’s loyalty to duty. For example: “My friend’s failure to keep our project promise mirrors Bob’s disloyalty to the law—both broke commitments (my friend to our partnership, Bob to legal conduct). Yet Jimmy’s loyalty to his duty (arresting Bob) shows how loyalty can shift: like how I still valued honesty (loyalty to moral conduct) even after my friend’s betrayal.” Use text evidence: “When the plain - clothes man arrests Bob, Bob says, ‘Is that you, Jimmy? I knew you’d never forget.’ This shows Bob’s loyalty to their friendship, while Jimmy’s loyalty to the law overrides it—just as my loyalty to fairness made me confront my friend’s lie.”

Step 4: Structure the Essay

• Introduction: State your thesis (e.g., “My experience of a friend’s disloyalty highlights the complex nature of loyalty, as seen in ‘After Twenty Years’ where loyalty to duty and friendship collide.”).
• Body 1: Describe your personal moment (details: when, what, how the loyalty was present/absent).
• Body 2: Analyze the story’s loyalty (Jimmy’s duty, Bob’s friendship - vs - crime conflict) with text quotes (e.g., “‘Silky’ Bob’s criminal identity and Jimmy’s choice to send another officer show clashing loyalties.”).
• Body 3: Compare/contrast your experience and the story (how both show loyalty’s complexity: choices, consequences).
• Conclusion: Restate thesis, summarize how the story and your experience reveal loyalty’s layers (duty, friendship, trust).

Ensure:

• A clear thesis (e.g., “Loyalty is not one - dimensional, as seen in my friend’s disloyalty and ‘After Twenty Years’ where duty and friendship collide.”).
• Organized paragraphs (each body paragraph has a topic sentence, details, text evidence).
• Detailed ideas (explain how emotions, actions, and consequences shaped loyalty in both stories).
• Text evidence (quote the story: “‘Twenty years is a long time, but not long enough to change a man’s nose from a Roman to a pug,’ said the other.” to show the fake Jimmy, highlighting loyalty’s deception).
• Proper spelling, grammar, and punctuation.