Argument essay

Rhetoric 110N: Schepmann, Spring 2016

Essay #2: Argument Essay

Length: 5–6 pages (not including Works Cited page)

Reading Response #3 due in Canvas: Wednesday March 2^nd, 9:00 a.m.

First 3 pages of First Draft due in Canvas: Monday March 7th, 9:00 a.m.

Class canceled for Individual Writing Conferences: Monday March 7^th and Wednesday March 9^th; conference slots will also be offered Tuesday March 8^th

Quiz MLA Formatting/Works Cited draft: In the lab, Friday March 11^th

Final Draft due in Canvas: Tuesday March 22^nd by 11:59 p.m.

For your first formal paper, you looked closely at the rhetorical choices of an author and evaluated his/her argument(s) based upon those choices. For your second formal paper, you’ll be creating an argument of your own that builds off of ideas expressed in one of the two reading clusters we are discussing in class—food matters and the implications of technology in our culture. In your paper you should develop your own argument related to the cluster-topic you choose. This argument will need to interact with ideas from at least one of the texts from our They Say/I Say reader as well as two other texts of your choosing.

Potential Topics:

To choose or create a topic for your argument paper, you will need to first develop an open-ended question of your own that you want to answer. To do this, work from our shared readings and research you do on your own, to form the answer of your question in the context of the other arguments you’ve seen. The answer you come to should take a clear stand on the issue and eventually become the thesis for you paper.

For example, as you saw in your food readings, Steven Shapin and Marion Nestle take different approaches to respond to the questions: How can individuals be better informed in order to eat in a way that is both healthy and sustainable? and What are the responsibilities of food producers to consumers? From these questions, Shapin and Nestle developed their separate arguments (or theses).

To give you some starting points if you choose to write about food matters, following are some general questions related to food matter issues you may want to consider and research further for your own paper:

• How does capitalism influence food production and consumption?
• What are the health (or labor) consequences of the mass industrialization of food?
• How do we maintain sustainable agricultural methods while still producing enough food to feed everyone?

On the technology front, Nicholas Carr considers the intellectual ramifications of instant and constant Internet access in his article with a title that asks his own research question: “Is Google Making Us Stupid?” and Malcolm Gladwell appears skeptical of the power of social media to create meaningful social change in his article “Small Change: Why the Revolution Won’t be Tweeted.” As you read these articles, ask yourself how you feel about what these critics are saying about the dangers and limitations of technology. Whether you agree, disagree, or run somewhere in between their arguments, this paper is an opportunity for you to craft your own argument responding to what they have said.

You want to be mindful when crafting your question. For example, Is the Internet beneficial? might be too broad of a topic. But consider these questions, which are a bit more specific:

• Does the new age of “digital intimacy” make us more or less connected as a society?
• How does the Internet enable us to connect and become more politically involved?
• Should a government be allowed to impose controls over its people’s access to information and/or freedom of expression on the Internet?
• What effects do new technologies and interfaces have on human intelligence and/or memory?

These all tap into the larger question of the benefits of technology, but they also help to narrow down the field a bit while still allowing you enough space to exercise your critical thinking on your chosen topic. If you decide to craft a question of your own, try to write a question both specific and open enough to give you space to make your argument. NOTE: You are welcome to explore or modify any of the example questions posed above in you own paper. You are also free to generate your own question.

Requirements:

• This essay must be at least five full pages long. It must be typed in 12-point font, double-spaced, with one-inch margins.
• This essay must cite (quote and/or paraphrase) from at least three texts, including at least one of our shared readings (or a reading from our They Say/I Say reader). For your other two sources, you can use another of our assigned readings, do research on your own, or use an additional text either provided by me in Canvas or discussed by your classmates in class.
• If pulling in research of your own for your other two sources, please use reputable sources (other articles/essays within your They Say/I Say reader or other textbooks, a documentary, books, information from an organization’s website, newspapers, magazines, or scholarly journal articles). Keep in mind that any information not considered common knowledge must be cited, or its origins explained. REMEMBER: Many of your authors have cited other reputable sources within their articles and some have even included full citations at the end of their pieces; these can be excellent places to consult.  
• This essay must be written per MLA conventions pertaining to formatting, page layout, and citation style.  ALL information from outside sources must be cited. We will discuss this further in class, and I will provide excerpts from the Rules for Writers text that will likely be the most valuable resource to you as you check citations and formatting unique to your paper.
• For this paper, you will also need to include an MLA-formatted Works Cited page that lists all of your outside sources correctly. Failure to follow MLA format and citation style on this paper will result in a grade deduction.

I CHOSE THE TOPIC: IS THE INTERNET NECESSARILY BAD? 

My thesis Nowadays that the Internet has been frequently involving in one’s life, there is doubts that the Internet is changing one’s habit and distance onself from the world. However, there is generous of advantages that people are taking granted of the technology.

And here are some of the source I would like to use: Online learning helps prepare pupils for university - Experience of online learning in school develops learners’ by Professor Marn Oliver.

Is Google Making us stupid? - as the other side of the arguement. 

and can you pick one more useful source?