Questions and Topics We Can Help You To Answer:
Paper Instructions:
Writing an Argument for an Academic Audience
Overview: Argument begins with purpose, with taking a well thought-out stand on a debatable topic. Your task is to write an academic argument about a topic you consider important or worth debating (you have already selected your topic in A2 topic proposal). You will need to research your chosen topic in preparation for establishing a clear claim and developing a well-supported argument pitched to the Olympic College academic community. Furthermore, your argument should add something unique or new to the conversation, and not just repeat someone else's argument.
Purpose: To convince knowledgeable readers to agree with your argument. The content and style of your argument will vary according to your chosen field of study. For instance, if you are a psychology major, you might write an argument that attempts to convince members of the OC academic community of the merits of prescribing anti-depressants to teenagers; alternatively, if you are an English major, you might write an argument advocating the inclusion of more multicultural literary works in the literary canon.
Audience: The audience for this argument is the OC academic community (or members of your field of study). Prior to writing your argument, we will discuss argument strategies and the conventions of academic argumentation that will help you meet the needs and expectations of your audience. You may want to consider the following aspects of your audience to help shape your argument:
•how much they already know about your subject
•if they already have preconceptions about your subject
•they should have some stake in the issue (or you should be able to convince them of this)
•their general beliefs and values
•demographic information, such as income, age, education, race/gender (if applicable), political leanings, etc.
•their potential reactions to your claim
Focus: The focus of the essay should be your stand on the topic you’ve chosen and why you believe your stand is worthwhile/correct/best/etc. The essay should be focused on a specific claim, several clear reasons, and evidence for each reason, all of which will determined by the needs of your audience. Your claim and supporting reasons should be clearly set up within the first few paragraphs of your essay, and the connections between your claim, reasons, and evidence continually explained throughout the essay so your reader knows how everything fits together.
Development: Generally speaking, the more hostile your audience, the more development (at least in terms of evidence) you'll need. Sources you use should be specific and relevant and should be clearly credible to your audience. Several potential sources for information include:
•peer-reviewed journals and scholarly texts
•statistical info
•sample cases
•quotes/paraphrases from other print sources
•personal experience to bolster other evidence or to establish your own stake in the issue
•other forms of media
•personal observation and analysis
•These are by no means all the possibilities, but they should get you started.
Please note: While you have gathered and evaluated sources in the course of writing your A3 annotated bibliography, you may find that you will need to conduct additional research as you develop your argument.
Coherence: The essay needs to follow a very clear logical progression between your claim, your supporting reasons, and your evidence. The essay should flow smoothly as it moves from your basic claim statement to discussing your supporting reasons and then any possible counter-arguments, questions, or concerns your audience may have. You will need an excellent understanding of your claim in order to be able to communicate your point of view clearly and convincingly to your audience. You will also need to avoid confusing your audience through poor essay structure, tangents, abstract evidence, logical errors, lack of evidence to demonstrate your points, writing over (or under) the heads of your audience in terms of vocabulary, and stylistic or editing errors.
Requirements:
•Include an interesting introduction which provides a hook, defines unknown terms and gives necessary background or contextual information.
•Provide a clearly stated claim (narrow, debatable, realistic).
•Give thoughtful and relevant reasons to support your overall claim.
•Use sufficient evidence (at least seven outside sources) to support your argument.
•Organize your claims, reasons and evidence so that the paper is unified and focused. Use clear transitions to guide readers between your ideas.
•Analyze your target audience (their beliefs, values, background, assumptions) and write according to their needs and interests.
•Address your readers’ opposing views wherever necessary.
•Use appeals effectively and avoid fallacies of argumentation.
•Include a Works Cited page and use proper MLA documentation for citations.
•Avoid distracting spelling and grammar errors to improve credibility.
•Type your essay in a readable, 12-point font and double-space it. Follow proper MLA essay format and submit your essay as specified in class.
Paper Length: 6-10 pages
Tentative Due Date: Monday, February 29
Worth: 30% of your course grade
