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How can I write a thesis statement for "Ex-Basketball Player" by John Updike?

Thesis statements are hard. You have so many thoughts and ideas, but you have to boil it down to a single statement.  With "Ex-Basketball Player" a thesis could go a variety of ways. On one hand, the poem is depressing. Flick was once a great, well-known player. Now he is only able to bounce inner tubes around. On the other hand, the poem shows readers that Flick is apparently making the best of things. I...

Thesis statements are hard. You have so many thoughts and ideas, but you have to boil it down to a single statement.  With "Ex-Basketball Player" a thesis could go a variety of ways. On one hand, the poem is depressing. Flick was once a great, well-known player. Now he is only able to bounce inner tubes around. On the other hand, the poem shows readers that Flick is apparently making the best of things. I think that is a bit of a stretch though. I would focus your thesis on the depressing themes of the poem. 


I recommend a thesis that begins with an incomplete clause about one idea and finishes with another idea, because it forces you to write about both topics. For example:



Although many gifted athletes assume that their abilities ensure lifetime greatness, "Ex-Basketball Player" shows readers that the fall from greatness is a long and common fall.



That particular thesis even allows you to use real life examples of famed athletes that didn't quite live up to the hype. 

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