English 1020
The Researched Argument, Part One
Purpose
The goal of the semester paper is to have you research and write an argument about an issue that matters to you. That issue should arise from a community to which you belong, and, ideally, your essay should allow you to contribute to the dialogue about that issue in your community.
In order to facilitate your increased competence in writing persuasively, the semester paper will be broken down into four interrelated parts, each part devoted to answering an essential question about your issue. When completed, your semester paper will be approximately 10-12 pages and include a separate Works Cited page.
No final papers will be accepted that have not moved through this drafting process. You must secure instructor approval to change the issue of your researched argument, and you will be required to submit a new version of this assignment.
Process for Part 1
Your task for this first part is to write a 3-4 page paper (typed, double-spaced, with MLA citation and a separate Works Cited page) in which you endeavor to clearly define the issue you've chosen to write about:
• Introduce your topic and state, as clearly as you can at this point, your
argument (thesis) regarding that topic.
• Identify the important aspects of the issue (that is, what do people disagree about?).
• Define the key terms in the issue (for example, “homelessness” or “freedom”
are terms that must be specifically defined within the context of your paper).
Put most simply, your task in this paper is to answer as fully as you can the following essential question about your issue: What is it?
To answer this question does not require you to develop an argument. Rather, it requires that you make as clear as you can what you want to write persuasively about.
In this paper, you should not outline the history or causes of the issue; you should not explain why you believe one way or another; you should not argue for a particular course of action. All of that will come later.
You will have to do some research for this paper, and you should include specific references within your paper that you have found thus far that you think are important to understanding and defining your issue.
Evaluation
This is considered part of a longer paper, so this writing task is a draft (which counts for credit). My expectation is that this draft has been thoughtfully researched and composed (and proofread). Your paper will be deemed Exemplary, Satisfactory or Unsatisfactory based on how well and how fully you address the aspects of the paper noted above. Because you will revise this paper and incorporate it into the final semester paper, my comments will not be corrections but revision directions and suggestions.