Paper #3: The Argument Paper

Introduction:

The purpose of an argument paper is to help readers, be they agreeing, disagreeing, or neutral on the topic, to see your perspective about a certain issue.  The best argument papers carefully considers the audience and uses the components of the rhetorical triangle to move the reader towards the writer’s cause: ethos, creating credibility as a writer; pathos, appealing to the emotions and values of the reader; logos, using facts and logic to convince the reader.

The Assignment:

For this persuasive paper, please pick ONE of the following thesis statements listed below and argue for or against it. You may modify the thesis to fit your position but should have a clear point of view. Write a 3 page double-spaced expository essay that convinces your reader of your point of view using evidence from the following sources to support your thesis: a. your own lived experience; b. at least two of the texts we discussed in Seminars 1-3 (that could mean the book or the articles we read).  You must also include a counter-argument and address it with a refutation or concession and include a Works Cited page as well as in text citations for any sources used. Keep in mind that this is NOT a paper about True Diary so focus on making the argument generalizable.

Possible Thesis Statements (pick one to agree or disagree with):

a. Getting a college education is the best way to achieve financial stability.

b. The American Dream of being able to obtain success regardless of the socioeconomic class one starts in is still achievable by most people.

c. Socio-economic class is the biggest factor in a person’s success.

d. It is important for people of different socio-economic backgrounds to get to know each other.

e. Happiness is not dependent on money or social class.

You do not need to use any outside sources beyond the ones given in class. Any ideas, quotations, paraphrases found from an outside source MUST be cited both in text and in a Works Cited page; otherwise, your paper may be in danger of plagiarism, which would result in a zero score for the assignment.

Paper 3 Outcomes:

Demonstrates kairos and the effective use of the rhetorical triangle

Demonstrates audience awareness and the inclusion of a counterargument

Demonstrates clear understanding of the parts of an expository essay, including an introduction, supporting body paragraphs, and appropriate conclusion

Demonstrates effective essay writing skills: clear focus, organization, appropriate development, thoughtful analysis, and coherence technique

Demonstrates how to integrate outside sources into an expository essay

Demonstrates the conventions of academic writing including MLA formatting and a formal level of writing.

Getting Started:
Prewriting Stage: Begin by doing some good pre-writing on all the possible ways you could support your thesis. It may involve re-reading certain parts of the book or articles again, reviewing your seminar discussions, and talking with other people about your ideas. Make sure to think about both sides of the issue. If you can’t see another side to your topic, you might need to pick a different one. Think about what most people would probably think about your topic. If it seems to confirm the status quo, then you can assume your audience will probably be agreeing or neutral. (An example might be “The American Dream is still achievable regardless of a person’s background.”) If your topic seems to differ from the status quo, then your audience will probably be neutral or disagreeing. (An example might be “A college degree does not necessarily set a person up to succeed financially.”) Considering what your audience might think about your topic will help you to think about what to include in the body.

Writing the Paper

Drafting Stage: At this point, you are ready to put your ideas together into an organized fashion.
1. Wordsmith the prompt into a working thesis that fits your ideas.
2. Decide what are your strongest points of support and also what are the strongest counterarguments. Then do an outline (you could use the template provided in Canvas under Paper 3 Resources).
3. For each point, find evidence (personal example or example/quote from text) to support your idea. Make sure to keep track of the page numbers that you found them on. Remember that you need to have at least 1 personal example and 2 examples from the seminar readings. When you use your own personal examples, you may use the “I” voice in these instances. Otherwise, stick to third person.

Writing stage: Keep in mind the conventions of an academic paper:  

*You should have a clear introduction, body, and conclusion.  
*The thesis should be found at the end of the introduction.  
*The first time you mention either book, you should give the full title, author’s name, and a summary statement.  
*Each paragraph should have adequate, relevant, and specific support, in the form of an example or a quote.  
*You should have a logical reason for the order that you put your ideas.  
*Conclusions should restate the thesis and not include any new ideas.  
*Avoid using second person “you” or metalanguage like “I think” “I believe” or announcements like “I will be writing about”.

General Guidelines

All drafts should be double-spaced and typed.  Remember that unacknowledged use of anyone else’s words or ideas is considered plagiarism, for which there are serious consequences.  Please follow the MLA conventions for citing books, and include an in-text citation as well as a Works Cited page at the end.  Of course, if you use additional sources, those should go in there, too.  Your paper will be evaluated on how well it follows the criteria outlined above and demonstration of desired outcomes.  Please note that plagiarism, which is the use of any unattributed ideas, words, phrases, sentences, is a serious offense and will have serious consequences.

Paper Talk (optional)
Peer review will not be required as posting draft 1 will be optional due to the tight schedule at the end of the quarter. However, if you want to get feedback from others you’ve worked with in the past, please feel free to contact them to do an informal peer review. If you’d like to get feedback from the instructor, please post your first draft in the Paper Talk 3 Discussion Board by the due date. If you are unable to post a completed first draft, you can post what you have. If you miss the deadline to post, you can still contact the instructor, make an appointment with the embedded tutor, visit the Writing Center for help, or upload your paper to the e-tutoring consortium (info for doing so on the Writing Center webpage) for feedback.

Submitting & Evaluation
Turning it in: The submission link for your paper will be available starting the day before the paper is due and because this is the final paper, no late papers will be accepted. Please submit your paper as a .rtf or .doc/.docx format only. No other formats will be accepted for upload.

Evaluation: Please take a look at the rubric associated with the paper. Your paper will be evaluated on how well it follows the criteria outlined above and demonstration of desired outcomes. Please note that plagiarism, which is the use of any unattributed ideas, words, phrases, sentences, is a serious offense and will have serious consequences. Please include a Works Cited page, formatted according to MLA standards.

Paper Talk: Draft 1 posted (optional): Mon, Aug 23
No Peer Response required for this paper
Final Draft: Thur, Aug 26

Expository Essay Evaluation Form:

Is the writing:

Yes

Emerging Passing

Emerging Not Passing

No

Focused:

Appropriate response to assignment

Contains effective controlling idea/argument

Stays focused throughout on the central idea

Developed:

Has adequate and relevant supporting details and examples

Develops supporting ideas with appropriate level of analysis

Organized:

Clear pattern of organization with ideas flowing in smooth, logical fashion

Each paragraph has a topic sentence and no outside ideas

Ideas related one to each and each to all

Clear:

Uses appropriate style of language, sentence boundaries, verb usage and other writing conventions appropriate to writing task

Uses clear, readable language

Uses a variety of sentences and words

Edited:

Capitalization
Grammar
Punctuation
Spelling
MLA Formatting

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