Use these essay questions as writing and critical thinking exercises for all levels of writers, and to build their literary analysis skills by requiring textual references throughout the essay.

Differentiation Suggestion: For English learners or struggling writers, strategies that work well include graphic organizers, sentence frames or starters, group work, or oral responses.

Scaffolded Essay Questions

Student Prompt: Write a short (1-3 paragraph) response using one of the bulleted outlines below. Cite details from the text over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.

1. Explore the contributing factors that led Dahmer to his first murder.

• Is one factor more to blame than the others? (topic sentence)
• Find and discuss 2-3 examples from the text with an analytical focus to substantiate your argument.
• How do these contributing factors signify an overall Lack of Social Support for Vulnerable Individuals during the late 1970s?

2. Compare and contrast Derf Backderf and Jeffrey Dahmer’s social and familial lives.

• According to Backderf, do these similarities bring them closer together as friends? (topic sentence)
• Find and analyze 2-3 examples from the novel that either support or negate this assertion.
• How do these two comparisons speak to the larger theme of Nature Versus Nurture?

3. Describe the setting of the novel in relation to the development of the characters.