Overview
For this essay, you’ll to craft a well-researched argument about a controversy in your chosen community.
Purpose
Your purpose of writing should be to create specific change–perhaps through increasing your reader’s awareness, perhaps shifting their perspective, and perhaps through mobilizing your readers to act. What change would you like to see in your community? How will you convince your audience to make that change?
How Do I Get Started?
You’ll:
Decide on a community ‘close’ to you.
Decide on a controversy in that community that you would like to learn more about.
Identify a question about the controversy you would like to answer through your research.
Research the controversy and answer your question, making use of credible, published online sources.
Identify your position about the controversy and determine your purpose for writing. What real change can you hope to enact with your research and writing?
Craft, through following the writing process we’ve followed this semester, a written argument making clear your position on the controversy and purpose for writing.
The following topics are off-limits because they have been overused: abortion/ plan B pill, euthanasia, death penalty, legalizing marijuana, gun control, drinking age.
As with Units 1 & 2, the Discussions, Assignments, and Studio activities will lead you to actually writing this essay. In those activities, we’ll continue to discuss academic arguments and practice properly integrating and citing our research. We’ll look at examples and go step by step. As we do, you’ll
complete a Research Proposal to get you thinking about your topic and issue in more detail. Once you’ve found at least three sources and crafted an
Annotated Bibliography, you’ll begin developing a rough draft of your thesis statement and begin to organize your ideas in an outline. You’ll submit your rough draft for feedback. After additional review and revision, you’ll submit your essay.
Your research question will help you stay on track in your research. Here are some examples. Notice how they are debatable; some people would agree and some people would disagree.
Is horse racing considered animal abuse? Should sanctuary cities stay or go?
Should Critical Race Theory be taught in schools? Should transgender people be allowed into the military?
Who is your Audience?
It is easy to demonize those who hold the opposing view of yours. In this assignment, we are assuming that your audience are the people who hold the opposing view. So to make sure they continue to read your essay and perhaps be persuaded, you need to explain the controversy in neutral terms and explain what people from each side of the debate believe from their perspective – in a way they would approve. So no name calling or inflammatory language. Find research that presents your position in a non biased, credible, neutral way and also find research that presents the opposing position in a non biased, credible, neutral way. Your job is to explain both positions in your introduction to show you are credible, shore up your ethos as the writer of your essay, and prove you considered both sides an issue before making your recommendation.
What’s your position?
Look at both sides of the issue before you form your own opinion. You need to know ideas from people who disagree with you and from people who agree with you, so you can understand the big picture and make up your own mind, so make sure you find sources that represent both sides. This is the messy, uncomfortable part. Your job is to research with an open mind and resist the urge to rush ahead and jump to conclusions. So give yourself plenty of time this week to test and tweak your topic.
How will you Structure your Essay?
In the introduction, stay neutral as you lay out the controversy and what each side believes. Then in the last sentence tell us your position, your thesis, what you want to convince us to believe. In your body paragraphs convince us to believe the thesis. Address the opposing view after you have convinced us of your side. The opposing view belongs in a body paragraph before the conclusion. You’ll explain what the opposing view believes and then refute it. Explain why your ideas in your thesis are better. For a great model, please see the student sample essay in the Module 13 studio.
Submission Requirements
You will write a polished, 5-6 page essay using MLA guidelines and
incorporating 4-6 published, credible, verifiable sources (provide the
URL). (That means write at least 5 full pages and get onto the 6th page to be sure.) Your Works Cited page will be on page 7.
In standard essay format, you will write:
An Introduction, which will provide an overview of the controversy, what both sides believe from their perspective and provide a thesis statement stating your position.
Body Paragraphs, which show the strengths of your particular position using PIECE:
P: Point. Your paragraph begins with your point (claim or topic sentence). A complete sentence that tells your readers what you want to convince them to believe in the paragraph. It supports a part of your thesis (which is what you want to convince them to believe in the entire essay).
I: Introduce. You need to introduce the source of every quote or paraphrase (ie every time you borrow an idea from a source). Imagine introducing it to a friend. What would your friend need to know to understand it’s a credible, relevant source? The introduction starts a new sentence, and ends
with a comma before the quote or paraphrase.
E: Evidence. The evidence (quote or paraphrase) is part of the introduction sentence and follows after the comma. It has quotation marks if you copied it exactly. It does not have quotation marks if you paraphrased it or summarize it in your own words.
C: Citation. Before the period of the quote or paraphrase, write the citation in parentheses. The citation must be the first word on your Works Cited page entry for the quote or paraphrase.
E: Explanation. Explain how you see the quote or paraphrase supports your claim.
And a Conclusion that summarizes your main points and suggests
action that the reader should take after reading your essay.
A Works Cited page in MLA format that includes each of your sources.
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