English 104-67 and 104-75
Spring 2012
Project Three: Research Essay
30% of Final Grade
8-to-12-page researched argument written in MLA style with works-cited page. Remember, you must have an opinion about your topic that you back up with your research; this is not a report. You will need to synthesize 15-20 sources into your essay:
· Include a minimum of 3 peer-reviewed articles in academic journals.
· The rest can be peer-reviewed articles, books, magazines, news articles, Web sites, etc.
The works-cited page does not count toward the 8-12 pages required.
Due Tuesday, March 20: First Draft for peer review. Bring a hard copy to class and post electronic version to Blackboard.
Meet with me in conference to go over your draft during week 10 or 11.
Due Thursday, March 29: Second Draft for peer review. Bring a hard copy to class and post electronic version to Blackboard.
Due Tuesday, April 3: Final Draft of Research Essay. No late work accepted:
1. Post Electronic Version to Discussions on Blackboard.
2. Turn in paper version, along with your first draft. Make clear which is the final version. Staple your papers and place in a two-pocket folder.
3. Include photocopies of sources—just the parts you actually used. Highlight sections you summarized, paraphrased, or quoted.
Tips:
Demonstrate that you can take one issue related to your topic and thoroughly explore the conversation on that issue, using what you learn to develop and support your own argument. Consider a number of perspectives. You can’t adequately argue for your own point of view until you can clearly articulate the views of others. Be sure to incorporate paraphrases and direct quotes into your essay through proper in-text citation.
Present a logical argument, but keep in mind that the audience also needs to trust the speaker and feel an emotional stake in the argument. Build your credibility by using good sources, developing a sound argument, and being fair to those who disagree with you.
To help make the task more manageable, you might want to create an outline by asking yourself how many aspects of your topic you intend to explore. For example, if you think your introduction and conclusion will take half of a page each, then what will you do with the other 7-11 pages? Maybe you decide you will cover four sub-topics; that means you might have a goal of writing two pages on each point, for a total of eight pages. Think about subheads you could use for each section; those will help create your outline and keep you focused as you write. Writing two pages on each sub-topic might seem less overwhelming than worrying about the entire essay all at once.
Here is another way to think about organizing your essay:
1. Introduce your topic and your credentials in a way that makes your audience receptive to what you have to say (ETHOS).
2. Present the current status of your topic (based on what others are saying).
3. Tell the audience what you plan to argue.
4. Present your argument and use facts, statistics, and the opinions of experts to support what you have to say. This is the main part of your essay (LOGOS)
5. Present the arguments of those who disagree with you and explain why you think they are wrong. You could also do 4 and 5 together, presenting a number of perspectives as you bring up each point you want to make.
6. Conclude by restating your main argument, while using emotional appeals to move your audience (PATHOS).
