English Blog Due Tomorrow No Later

An Issue Question and Working Thesis Statement

After reading chapter three of Writing Arguments, you are now ready to consider the rhetorical triangle as you compose an argument with supporting reasons. The purpose of this assignment is to take a step in thinking through an argument you would like to make and anticipate the opposing viewpoints as you consider your message, audience, and speaker.

For this first blog assignment, your task will be to consider a possible topic you might wish to pursue in a classical argument, generate a working thesis statement, and list possible reasons you would use to support your thesis statement. The challenge here is to choose an angle that would serve you well if you were to flesh this brief piece of writing out into a six or seven page essay.

We have already discussed the fact that most issues have more than two sides to them. Your goal, then, is to choose a topic for which you are able to clearly identify one angle in your claim. In order to accomplish this, you want to avoid sweeping claims in your thesis. For example, if you were to argue that all American workers should be required to submit to random drug testing, you would end up with too much to handle in an essay. I would like to know if my brain surgeon was on something for obvious reasons, but there are very different reasons that fast food workers may need to be tested randomly. If you were trying to argue in favor of this sweeping claim, you would find yourself in a tangled web of supporting reasons, one having nothing to do with the other, having no way to build upon your arguments, and end up lacking in persuasive appeal. The trick is, therefore, to choose one angle of an issue. This assignment will help you do just that.

Step 1: Choose a topic

Reread the discussion board responses for the Discussion Board II assignment until you find a few possible topics that are of interest to you.

Step 2: Prewriting