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PROJECT 3: COMMENTARY English 1302 5+ pp ds, 5+ sources, 100 points ©2016 Stacia Campbell, Ph.D. LENGTH REQUIREMENT: 5 Full pages MINIMUM, in a 12-point Times New Roman font with 1-inch margins. Writing for length does not include header, title, or Works Cited.

RESEARCH REQUIREMENT: MINIMUM OF 5 SOURCES introduced, incorporated, cited, and listed on a correctly formatted Works Cited page. Include variety: websites, articles, videos, images, brochures, etc. ASSIGNMENT: USING CHAPTER 12 IN Argument Today, WRITE A COMMENTARY PAPER in which you STATE YOUR CREDO and assumptions, then ARGUE your own ANGLE from a specific POSITION on an issue that has CURRENT EVENTS and DIFFERING VIEWPOINTS surrounding it RIGHT NOW in the news, social media, communities, etc. WORK HARD ON YOUR TOPIC AND ANGLE – YOU NEED A FRESH ONE! Example: Instagram’s new “censorship”! Remember, YOU ARE THE COMMENTATOR GUIDING THE DISCUSSION! (it may be helpful to think of sports commentator up in the glass window box announcing at a soccer or football game and providing details on the key players!) Follow this path to save time:

1) CHOOSE 5 SOURCES AS YOUR “information base” 2) Then, CREATE A CREDO STATEMENT regarding the issue (See Page 244 in our textbook) 3) Then, WRITE DOWN YOUR ANGLE – the particular perspective from which you are arguing and what informs it 4) AFTER you have a nicely focused CREDO and an ANGLE,

PREWRITE to answer the following (See Page 244):

 Because . . . , I believe that . . .

 My assumptions (underlying warrants) are . . .

 Some people believe what I believe because . . .

 Some people don’t believe what I believe because . . .

5) Then, DEVELOP AN OUTLINE OF YOUR MAIN IDEAS. Use the STRUCTURE you sees on Page 242: Intro, Explain Current Event or Issue, Support your Argument, Clarify your Argument, and Conclude.

6) In the “SUPPORT YOUR ARGUMENT” section, you will need more than one paragraph. (Yes, the support section is more than one paragraph. In fact, you may need one whole paragraph to explain one social media post that created a “furor” related to your topic!) You can easily develop your main idea sentences for each paragraph by finding the most important themes and the most convincing information to share from your sources. DO NOT ARRANGE YOUR BODY PARAGRAPHS HERE BY SOURCE. ARRANGE THEM BY YOUR OWN STRONG MAIN IDEAS AND TOPIC SENTENCES! YOU ARE THE GUIDE. DEVELOP AND SEQUENCE YOUR OWN MAIN IDEAS ONE BY ONE! Use good evidence and reasoning!

7) FOR YOUR CONCLUSION (last paragraph), DELIVER YOUR OWN PERSONAL “closing statement” on the issue to bring your point home! Do NOT restate your thesis in the same words. Come up with a powerful closing statement that leaves readers thinking about their own views on the issue (but without using “you” )

8) CONTINUE LEVELING UP WITH YOUR RESEARCH WRITING SKILLS! Remember to introduce each source use by telling about its author, where and when it was published, the context of the discussion, the expert credentials of its author, the target audience and purpose of the source, etc. GUIDE YOUR READERS into a discussion of what the sources have to offer to THE CONVERSATION you have created.

9) Remember, after the FIRST TIME YOU USE A SOURCE, you may refer to it again and again by the author’s last name only (but in the first reference, you must provide the author’s first and last names!) (and if you don’t have an author, first keyword in quotes).

10) When you have completed your draft, format your Works Cited page in MLA documentation style. See Page 405of your textbook for this course! Alphabetize your entries by the author’s last name. For example, “Atef, Mohammed.” Or “Smith, John.” (A would come before S in the list). You have 5 sources minimum this time, so alphabetize carefully!

11) Before the final deadline, be sure to edit your paper for grammar errors! No comma splices, run-on’s, or fragments should appear in your

writing at this second college level of composition! Proofread or see a tutor at our Academic Success Center for help!

GRADING CRITERIA FOR THIS PROJECT: NOTE: AN “A” PAPER WILL fulfill all of the criteria here PLUS demonstrate at least TWO of the STYLISTIC STRATEGIES discussed on Page 249 (metaphor, analogy, simile, character mindset to show tone, sensory, images)

1) Commentary genre with thesis as credo and focus maintained throughout paper.

2) AN ANGLE created by the writer that narrows the focus of the discussion and relates to CURRENT issues that invite debate NOW. (no sources older than 2 years)

3) Third-person academic tone free of shits in point of view (no second- person “you” in this one!)

4) Demonstrated structure outlined in assignment sheet and on Page 242 of Chapter 12)

5) Developed body paragraphs that have their own MAIN IDEAS, TOPIC SENTENCES, and SUPPORTIVE EVIDENCE from relevant and substantive research materials.

6) Evidence of CRITICAL THINKING about sources and EXPLANATION of them.

7) Transitions to provide logical reasoning and coherence. 8) Case-building to distinguish writer’s own belief IN CONVERSATION with

other beliefs/perspectives/viewpoints. 9) Minimum length of 5 pages of student original writing 10) 5 sources minimum, introduced, incorporated, cited, and

documented on source list accurately in MLA format. 11) Sentence variety, style, and grammar at Level 2 of college comp (no

sentence boundary errors, no problems with agreement, and care with phrase and word-level editing!)

MORE TEXTBOOK HELP! DO NOT SKIP CHAPTER 12! IT IS IMPORTANT!

SEE PAGE 242 FOR ORGANIZATING YOUR PAPER!

SEE PAGE 243 FOR HELP WITH DEVELOPING AN ANGLE!

SEE PAGE 243 FOR CREDO DEFINITION! YOU NEED A CREDO!

SEE PAGE 249 FOR HELP WITH STYLE!

SEE PAGE 251 FOR 10 TIPS! SEE PAGES 253-57 FOR SAMPLES!