1 page philosophy essay

DIAGNOSTIC ESSAY DUE NEXT CLASS SESSION

You will be required to submit many writing assignments for this course. I have very exacting standards when it comes to grading papers. This exam is a diagnostic one (1) page essay exam, the purpose of which is to help you assess your writing skills for this course. NB: The exam has no bearing on your course grade.

The exam will be graded PASS/NOT PASS. I will give a NOT PASS score to any paper that demonstrates repeated failure to follow the rules of basic English grammar or to any paper lacking clarity. A NOT PASS score typically is an indication that (a) your writing skills are below freshman college level and you need serious help with your writing or (b) you've failed to proofread your paper and thus have not taken this assignment seriously.

In either case, future papers submitted to me of NOT PASS quality will receive severe point deductions which will lower the individual assignment grade and course grade. Rewrites are not allowed. So, if you receive a NOT PASS please seek tutoring now, purchase and use a good writing guide, get your act together, or see me for advice.

Here are some errors I find particularly loathsome or annoying:

NB: All examples are direct quotes from President George Bush.

Misuse of homonyms or near sound-alikes Know the difference between, e.g., affect/effect, by/buy, there/their, suppose/supposed, than/then, etc. A spell-checking program will not catch these errors. Confusion of homonyms is avoidable. Please consult a dictionary if you are unsure of a word or its use.

• A tax cut is really one of the anecdotes to coming out of an economic illness. • I understand there's a suspicion that we—we're too security-conscience. • Reading is the basics for all learning.

Lack of Subject-Verb agreement

• Rarely is the question asked: Is our children learning?

Poor grammar

• You teach a child to read, and he or her will be able to pass a literacy test. • This has been tough weeks in that country.

Incoherence

• They misunderestimated me. • Free societies are hopeful societies. And free societies will be allies against these

hateful few who have no conscience, who kill at the whim of a hat.

Below are the three essay topics. Select one topic. Your essay should be a minimum of 250- 350 words or approximately one (1) page. Under no circumstances should your essay exceed one page. Your papers are to be typed, double-spaced, with 1-inch margins (top, bottom, sides). Please use a standard, non-italic font and a reasonable type-size (e.g., 12-point Times New Roman). No novelty fonts. Your name, your student ID, this course title and hour should appear on the upper right hand header of the paper, i.e., within the top margin and not in the body of the page. No title for the essay is necessary. But please indicate which essay question you are answering. Upload your essay to iLearn. Essays not meeting any one of these criteria automatically receive a NOT PASS.

ESSAY #1

Identify a stereotyped group to which you belong. Describe the stereotype and discuss where or how we see the depiction (i.e., in TV commercials or programs, newspaper cartoons, books, movies, etc.). Be specific. Then show that the stereotype is just or refute it as unjust.

ESSAY #2

Please read and think about the following two quotations: [A] "Any jobless person could get a job is she or he really wanted to work." [B] "Most jobless people were once normal working citizens who were let down by society." In your essay, please do the following:

1. Compare the statements. Explain how they are similar. 2. Contrast the statements. Explain how they differ. 3. Take a position with respect to the two statements by defending one of them or mediating between them, and justify your defense with an example from your own observation or experience.

ESSAY #3 Television commercials affect our lives in a variety of ways. Write an essay in which you examine the effects of television commercials upon society or upon private lives.