Essay
1 Assignment
Essay 1 is a 5-7 page (typed and double-spaced) argumentative essay.
Choose a social or political issue that has been subject to public debate and
disagreement in recent years. Take a clear position on that issue, and defend that
position with a strong, well-developed, and well-explained set of reasons.
The
range of possible issues to discuss is too wide to capture in a single list.
Some examples of suitable issues include: abortion, euthanasia, the death
penalty, affirmative action, regulation of firearms, animal rights,
marijuana/drug policy, same-sex marriage, transgender rights, immigration
policy/DACA/DAPA, access to health care, and so on.
A few
examples of positions on these issues might be: “Women have the right to control
their own reproductive systems, which includes the choice to end an unwanted
pregnancy”; “All humans, including unborn humans, have the right to life, and
that makes abortion immoral”; “Equality requires that universities consider the
racial and ethnic background of applicants when deciding whom to admit”; “Gun
control measures are ineffective and violate the fundamental American right to
own firearms”; and so on.
Be sure that your paper’s topic fits the topic of this assignment. If it does
not the paper is guaranteed to receive a low grade. Feel free to consult with
the instructor on your topic to make sure that it is suitable for this
assignment.
In the
essay’s introductory paragraph, introduce the issue to the reader and state
your position in the form of a thesis statement. Defend your position
throughout the body of the essay. Each body paragraph should develop and focus
on a clear reason, or premise, in support of your position. There is no fixed
number of body paragraphs that your essay should have; the number of paragraphs
depends upon the number of reasons you offer in support of your position.
However, you must have a minimum of three premises to support your conclusion,
which means that you must have a minimum of three body paragraphs. Finish the
essay with a conclusion paragraph that sums up what was discussed in the essay.
This is
an argumentative essay: the point for this essay is to develop a thoughtful,
original, strong, well-reasoned argument in support of your position. There are
no minimum research requirements for Essay 1, though you will likely need to
conduct research to find evidence to support at least some of your points.
All uses of outside research must be carefully documented
through proper citation. Papers that do not contain proper citation and
documentation of all sources and when they are used will not be accepted. The in-text citations and the works cited
page should be in MLA format.
Essay Guidelines
Each essay needs an introductory paragraph. This
paragraph briefly introduces your subject to the reader, and it ends with your thesis
statement. The thesis is the point that you are trying to get across with
your essay. The entire essay can be seen, in a sense, as support for your
thesis; anything in the essay that does not help support your thesis is not
relevant and should not be included in your essay. Also, the essay should end
with a conclusion paragraph that reiterates your thesis, and summarizes
what you’ve said in your paper to support your thesis. The conclusion paragraph
should contain no new points.
Use your own words. When using research, quotes should be sparingly used. They are
appropriate to accentuate a particular point, particularly if a writer’s words
are themselves unique or particularly well-constructed, and they can be
necessary as textual evidence to support your account. But do not rely on
quotes to do the work of summarizing and explaining.
Remember that your essay is a composition. Pay attention to
the presentation of points. Be sure that each paragraph logically follows from
what precedes it. (And be sure that each paragraph has one clearly identifiable
topic.) The essay should read like one organic whole, not like a series of
parts.
Be careful not to assume unreasonable prior knowledge on the part of the reader
of your essay.
All sources must be
identified by a works cited page, and each time you refer to a source or rely
upon ideas from a source, you must cite that use, including specific page
numbers if applicable, in the text of the essay where you are using that
source. If you use an outside source and do not do these two things, the paper
will either not be counted as credit for the assignment, or it will receive a
low grade. Furthermore, the paper may be seen as an example of plagiarism –
using someone else’s work and passing it off as your own – and will receive a
“0” and may result in further disciplinary actions. The in-text citations and
the works cited page should be in MLA format.
Always remember to use sufficient detail in explaining
points. Do not raise a point that needs explanation or discussion without
subsequently explaining/discussing it.
Pay attention to grammar and spelling at all times.