Exploratory Essay"gender in pop culture"
Hussain
unit_2_essay_assignment.docxENGL 1213 Hampton, Fall 2014
Assignment: Unit 2 –Exploratory Essay
Length: 4-6 pages (approx. 1000-1500 words)
Revised Draft: Due to the D2L dropbox by 11:59pm on Wednesday, October 8th.
Overview: According to Ramage, Bean, and Johnson, an “exploratory essay tells the story of an intellectual journey” (Writing Arguments 47). In other words, an exploratory essay is a chronological summary of your research on a certain issue that shows how your thoughts on that issue have developed. Rather than stating a specific thesis or claim, you should begin with a question or problem and “describe your inquiry process as you work…your way though sources or different views” on the issue you’ve chosen to explore (48).
Purpose: This essay assignment is meant to be a precursor to the essays that you will write for Units 3 and 4. You should consider this a “thesis-seeking” stage – the first stage of research that you will continue throughout the course. For Unit 3, you will be expected to write an Ethical Argument, arguing that some aspect of popular culture is either ethical or unethical. For Unit 4, you will be asked to write either a Causal or a Proposal Argument, exploring possible causal relationships between popular culture and the real world or proposing a possible solution to a problem related to popular culture. We will continue discussing these argument types throughout the course. For now, you should focus on gathering research and developing your thoughts on the issue of your choice.
Some topics you might consider for this assignment are: gender in pop culture, race in pop culture, sexuality in pop culture, drug and/or alcohol abuse in pop culture, or violence in pop culture. If none of these topics interest you, feel free to chose another relevant issue of your choice. However, keep in mind that the issue you chose must incorporate the pop culture theme. If you need help choosing an issue, please come talk to me.
For the research, you should look for sources that examine the issue that you have chosen. For example, several scholars have argued that the ways in which men and women are portrayed in American popular culture have led to a variety of real-world problems (such as self-esteem issues, eating disorders, and even steroid abuse). These arguments would thus be useful sources for an argument focusing on gender in pop culture. If you have a specific pop culture “text” (or “texts) in mind, you could also look for scholarly sources that have already analyzed that “text.”
You should read, summarize, and respond to each of your sources in order to (1) explore multiple perspectives on the issue you’ve selected and (2) use that information to develop your own opinion on the issue.
Requirements:
· a clear issue question that you want to explore
· a minimum of 4 sources, covering multiple perspectives on your issue
· a summary of each source (see the “Summary Criteria” handout for more information)
· a response to each source, including both believing and doubting points
Audience: Your audience for this paper is the members of our class (both your peers and your instructor). Your goal is not to persuade an audience but to take part in a project of inquiry and inform us of the different views on the issue you’ve selected.
