Unit One

 

In this unit you will study chapters one, three, four, five, six, and seven of the textbook.

 

Chapter one discusses what we actually mean when we talk about "argument." Even though it begins with a disclaimer that "argument" cannot be clearly defined, it proceeds from there to provide you with a definition.  I hope it will give you an understanding of what your arguments (at least for this course) should consist of and what they should attempt to do..

 

Chapters three, four, five, six, and seven "break down" arguments for you. They show you what's at the core of any argument, and they explain all the elements that are a part of any argument.

 

Begin now!

 

  1. Read all of chapter one of the textbook. Here are a few study questions to keep in mind as you read:

 

·         Why is argument neither a "quarrel" nor a "pro-con" debate?

·         What is the difference between "implicit" and "explicit" argument?

·         What are the "defining features" of argument?

·         What do the authors mean by "the problem of truth"?

 

  1. Homework #1 (10 points) Due date As soon as you finish reading chapter one, go back and look at the "Petition to Waive the University Mathematics Requirement" on pages 19-22.  Imagine that you are responsible for deciding whether student Gordon Adams should be granted his request in that petition. Go to the electronic class bulletin board and write out your decision and your justification for that decision. Post it to the electronic bulletin board as "Homework #1." I'm not specifying a word count for the assignment, but you should explain your decision thoroughly enough that readers will clearly understand your position--so try to convince your fellow committee members (your classmates, in other words) that yours is the right decision. Typically, a solid paragraph of 50-100 words will get the job done.

 

  1. Read all of chapters three and four in the textbook. Here are a few study questions to keep in mind as you read:

 

·         What are the "elements of persuasion" contained in the so-called "rhetorical triangle"?

·         What's the difference between an "issue question" and an "information question"?

·         Why are shared assumptions an important aspect of argument? 

·         What is the Toulmin system, and how is it useful both in analyzing and in creating arguments?

·         What is meant by "writer-based" vs. "audience-based" reasons, and what is "the power of audience-based reasons"?

 

  1. Homework #2 (10 points) Due date Turn to the exercise labeled "For Class Discussion" on page 76 of the textbook. Following the example provided, identify any unstated assumptions (warrants) you can in the six enthymemes in the exercise. Write out the unstated assumptions (be sure to number them appropriately, please), and send them to me in an email message. You do not need to write out the claim and the stated reason, just the unstated assumption(s).

 

  1. Quiz #1 (20 points) Due date Quiz #1 covers chapters three and four of the textbook. To access the quiz, click on the "Quizzes" link on the course homepage.

 

  1. Read all of chapter five in the textbook. Here are a few study questions to keep in mind as you read:

 

·         What are the four criteria for evaluating evidence represented in the STAR acronym?

·         What are the strengths and limitations of the various kinds of evidence?

·         What is meant by "angle of vision," and how does that concept influence the various "strategies for framing evidence"?

 

  1. Quiz #2 (20 points) Due date Quiz #2 covers chapter five of the textbook. To access the quiz, click on the "Quizzes" link on the course homepage.

 

  1. Read all of chapters six and seven in the textbook. Here are a few study questions to keep in mind as you read:

·         What are the ways in which an arguer can construct an effective ethos?

·         What are some of the recommended ways of creating pathos?

·         What is the difference between "one-sided," "multisided," and "dialogic" arguments, and why is this difference important?

·         What is the difference between refuting an opposing view and conceding to it?

  1. Homework #3 (10 points) Due date Read the argument "Minneapolis Pornography Ordinance," by Ellen Goodman, on pages 136-7.  Then address the following questions in an email message to me: What is the opposition's point that Goodman concedes to? And how does she attempt to "shift the field of values" in her essay? Again, I will specify no word limit for your responses to these questions; but make sure your answers are complete. Analyze the strategy Goodman uses and explain it to me.

 

  1. Quiz #3 (20 points) Due date Quiz #3 covers chapters six and seven of the textbook. To access the quiz, click on the "Quizzes" link on the course homepage.

 

  1. Homework #4 (20 points) Due date The essay "'Half-criminals' or Urban Athletes? A Plea for Fair Treatment of Skateboarders," by student David Langley, is on pages 141-3of the textbook. The essay is an argument in the classical format, and it serves as a model for your own First Argument paper. It follows the organizational pattern diagrammed on page 61 of the textbook, just as your own first essay should do. Look at that essay first and discover the parts of the classical argument discussed in chapter three? Where is Langley's exordium, his narratio, his propositio and partitio, etc.? See if you can accurately analyze his argument, since it's the model for your own first paper.  But you don't need to write anything down--not yet. 

 

When you've recognized the structure of Langley's argument, send me an email message that:

 

a)     identifies Langley's claim and forecasting statement (write out his exact words)

 

b)     identifies the paragraph in which he argues each reason (just write, "Reason 1: Paragraph 6, Reason 2: Paragraph 7," etc.)

 

c)      identifies the paragraph(s) in which he addresses counterargument(s) and the counterargument strategy he uses, refutation or concession.

 

d)     briefly "critiques" Langley's argument (the Toulmin system will help you do this). In a message of 100 words or so, evaluate both the strengths and the weaknesses of his argument. The textbook has provided you with many tools for making this kind of evaluation. You can look at the reasons he gives (whether they're the "right" reasons), unstated assumptions he makes, the backing he does or doesn't provide for those assumptions, the evidence he provides, his response to the counterargument(s), etc.

 

Remember, this assignment should be sent to me as an email message. Number your responses just the way I've done here. If you have questions before you take on this assignment, please let me know.

 

 

  1. First Argument paper (200 points) Due date Please read this assignment all the way through, including the Homework #5 assignment, before you begin working on it. Let me know if you have questions before you get started.

 

For this assignment we will follow Option 1 on page 140 in the textbook. The paper you write will be approximately one thousand (1,000) words, or roughly four typed, double-spaced pages in length.  It should follow MLA (Modern Language Association) formatting guidelines:

1.       Set your margins at one inch on all four sides of the page: top, bottom, left, and right.  Indent new paragraphs half an inch, and do not put extra line spaces between your paragraphs.  Just double space the whole paper, in other words. 

2.      Use twelve-point type, and use a standard typeface such as Arial, Courier, New Times Roman, or, my personal favorite, Georgia. 

3.      Use the Header function on your word processor to number your pages consecutively in the upper right corner of the page, and include your name in the header (e. g., "Gooding 3").  Your header should be half an inch from the top of each page. 

4.      Do not include a title page with your essay.  Put the following information in the upper left corner of the first page of your essay: your name, my name, the course prefix and number ("English 102"), and the date of submission.  Double space and then center your title.  Double space again and begin your essay.  The essay itself will of course be entirely double spaced.

To see what your paper should look like, look at the sample paper on pages 332-7 of the textbook.  Your first paper will not include a works cited list, but in all other respects it should look like the sample paper. 

 

The subject of the essay is up to you. I recommend that you consider the parameters of the assignment: This is a "classical argument," as explained in chapter three of the textbook, so you must consider reasons both for and against your position when you write the paper. An equally important consideration is that you are not allowed to use outside sources (library sources or websites, in other words) in this paper. Use "'Half-criminals' or Urban Athletes? A Plea for Fair Treatment of Skateboarders," by student David Langley, on pages 141-3 of the textbook, as your model. Notice that Langley uses only evidence from his personal experience, along with deductive argument (what the textbook calls, on page 94, a "reasoned sequence of ideas") to make his case. You should follow his lead.

 

One thing you might do in planning the paper is what I suggested in conjunction with chapters three and four of the textbook: create a series of enthymemes to construct the "frame" of your argument. This strategy can help you not only to clarify your own reasons and clearly articulate the counterarguments against you, but also to sketch out an outline (the "frame") of your essay.  Immediately below is an example. 

 

Example

 

Claim: American youth should be compelled to do a year of community or military service as soon as they turn 19, before being allowed to continue their education or their career.

 

Reasons:

1)      American citizens have a civic obligation to their fellow citizens and their country, and mandatory military or community service is a good way to ensure that they fulfill that obligation.

2)     Mandatory service will teach young people valuable lessons about both their fellow Americans and civic responsibility.

3)     Community service will benefit those being served and improve the quality of life for all Americans.

 

Rebuttal:

1)      America is a free country, and forced community service impinges on an individual's personal freedom.

2)     Americans already fulfill their civic obligations amply in the form of income, sales, and property taxes.

 

Homework #5 (10 points) Due date Consider this homework assignment to be part of the First Argument paper assignment. Once you have brainstormed your topic and sketched out your argument (even if just in your head), I ask you to submit what we will call an "argument preview." Go to the class bulletin board and provide us with a thumbnail sketch of your argument. Post that sketch to the bulletin board as "Homework #5." An example of what I'm looking for follows. Notice that all I've done is take the enthymemes from up above and turned them into paragraphs, adding just a few details to the "frame" I sketched for myself up above.

 

            Example

 

I plan to argue that all Americans, as soon as they turn 19, should be required to perform a year of mandatory service to their country. They can perform this service either in the military or in community service organizations. I feel all Americans have an obligation to their country and their fellow citizens, and mandatory service is a good way for them to meet that obligation. It will also teach them valuable lessons about life and civic responsibility; it will help them to "grow up," in other words. And it will benefit the people being served and improve the quality of life for all Americans.

 

I realize many people would be likely to disagree with my idea of imposing mandatory service, suggesting, for instance, that such an idea goes against the notion of individual freedom and personal choice that Americans value so highly. Some would also say that we already fulfill our civic obligation by paying taxes that support social programs for those in need. Additionally, some might claim that if service is mandatory, many young Americans will resent it and therefore only complete their term of service grudgingly. I concede that there is some merit in all of these objections. But I will argue that the time commitment is minimal, and afterward the young people will have the freedom to pursue their chosen career path--hopefully a little wiser from having served. It is also true that we pay for service to the needy through our taxes, but the service commitment would be a tangible, hands-on commitment that would hopefully benefit the giver of service as much as the receiver. Moreover, I believe that negative attitudes toward the obligation could be rectified in the act of serving. People forced to serve might start out feeling resentful but would come to value their own contribution and feel better not only about the experience but about themselves as human beings.

 

I will respond to your "argument preview" before you proceed with a draft of the paper itself. Other students in the class are also welcome to respond to your argument preview, with the goal of giving you constructive advice for the paper.

 

Submitting Your Essay

 

The final draft of the paper itself must be typed up on your word processor, the same way you would type up a paper to be handed in in class, and sent to me as an attachment to an email message. Use the subject "First Argument." Do not forget to format the paper appropriately, following the guidelines I gave you above.

 

Important note! With this essay, I ask you to submit a "self-analysis" along with the essay. The self-analysis should identify what you take to be the strengths of your argument (amount and types of evidence provided, responses to counterarguments, or whatever), and its potential weaknesses (assumptions you are making that might be easy to challenge, lack of hard evidence, or whatever). This self-analysis might run 100 or more words and is worth 10 pints out of the total 200 possible on the assignment.

 

Your self-analysis should be submitted as an email message to me, with the essay attached to that message in a Word document. I'll read your self-analysis first, then open and read your essay

 

 

Extra-credit opportunity: You have the opportunity to pick up as many as 20 extra-credit points on this assignment. You can earn 10 points simply by posting your rough draft of the First Argument to the class bulletin board. Bear in mind, though, that to get the full 10 points, your draft, though it may be rough (that's why they call it a rough draft), must also be a complete draft. Partial drafts will get partial points--if any. Due date

 

You can also earn as many as 10 extra-credit points by critiquing a fellow student's draft, even if you did not post a rough draft of your own. However, to earn these points--or even a share of them--you must follow the guidelines I provide. Those guidelines are available below in a sample critique that I wrote of the David Langley "skateboarder" paper. Please bear in mind that you must follow my example to get the extra credit. If you choose this extra-credit option, you can critique any of the rough drafts that are posted to the class bulletin board. The only restriction on this choice is that you cannot critique a paper that has already been critiqued by somebody else unless all of the rough drafts posted to the bulletin board have already been critiqued at least once. Remember, too, that the purpose of the critique is to give the writer feedback according to your understanding of the assignment. So post your critique as a "reply" to that draft. The writer will then see that there is a response to his or her draft and will (hopefully) take a look at your critique. Due date

 

Important note!  Please be aware that the due dates for all extra-credit opportunities are firm due dates.  You will not receive credit, even partial credit, for any extra-credit activity that you post after the specified due date. 

 

Guidelines for critiquing the First Argument paper

 

           

Sample papers written by prior students can be found at the following links:

 

Sample First Argument paper (Chris)                 Sample First Argument paper (Cabrena)

 

Sample First Argument paper (Debbie)              Sample First Argument paper (Heather)

 

Sample First Argument paper (Holly)                 Sample First Argument paper (Jessica)

 

Sample First Argument paper (Brett)                 Sample First Argument paper (Cindy)

 

Sample First Argument paper (Blake)                Sample First Argument paper (Michael)

 

 

 

End of Unit One. Move on to Unit Two.

 

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