english 101 essay

ENG101-450 Essay 1 Overview

THE TOPIC FOR ESSAY 1: “Universal love” in the digital age

BIG QUESTION for Essay 1: After reading the three sources and reflecting on the evidence and ideas presented in them, do you think that digital technology makes “universal love” more or less possible?

SOURCES FOR ESSAY 1

“The Myth of Universal Love” by Stephan T. Asma

“In Defense of Technology” by Andrew O’Hagan

“The Limits of Friendship” by Maria Konnikova

Essay 1 is an exploration of a topic combining what other people think about our topic (They Say) with your perspective (I Say). We begin Essay 1 with “The Myth of Universal Love” by Stephan T. Asma. In this article, Asma sums up three views on how far we can (or should) extend our love, in other words, our significant relationships. We will then read two articles about how digital technology affects relationships – adding a new perspective to Asma’s ideas about universal love.

STEP 1 of writing this essay: Read and understand Asma’s article.

· Complete Essay 1 Log_1.

· Formulate your response to Asma’s article: this is your position on the theme of universal love. Which ideas in Asma’s article seem most convincing to you? Which ideas seem wrong to you?

· Summarize and quote the article and explain why you agree or disagree. This will be the starting point of your essay.

STEP 2 of writing this essay: Now we are going to introduce the DIGITAL AGE to Asma’s reflection on universal love. Indeed, the issue of “universal” love is increasingly relevant in a globalized world where digital technology makes global communication possible, leading to relationships with people far outside our family and communities.

· Read “In Defense of Technology” by Andrew O’Hagan (print it from Blackboard) and “The Limits of Friendship” by Maria Konnikova (I will give you a photocopy).

· Find evidence in the articles that seems relevant to the theme of “universal love” (significant relationships outside of our family and local communities) in the digital age.

· Complete Essay 1 Log_2.

· Answer this question: according to these articles, how does digital technology affect relationships of love or friendship?

STEP 3 of writing this essay: End this essay with a reassessment of your position in Step 1 of this essay. Did O’Hagan and Konnikova’s articles make you change your position on Asma’s article -- or not?

· Include the evidence from the two articles that contributed to your final position on the possibility of real universal love in the digital age.

Here is where you finally answer the BIG QUESTION: After reading the three sources and reflecting on the evidence and ideas presented in them, do you think that digital technology makes “universal love” more or less possible?