English 1302-- Essay #3

· Essay # 3 is the Final Exam Essay for this class.  All that you have learned this past semester about writing documented academic essays should be reflected in this final essay.  This essay is worth 200 points.

 

Essay # 3 Guidelines: Arguing to Mediate: 

· This essay is based on Chapter 11 of the textbook.

· Use the SAME subject (from Parts III and IV of the text, Pp. 307-590) as you used in Essay # 1.

· The essay must be at least six FULL pages in length (a Works Cited page is required, but it does NOT count in the page length requirement for this assignment).

· Incorporate material from at least FOUR library sources (books or articles from the library databases—see end of document) into your essay.  TWO of these sources MUST be new ones—different from those used in Essay # 2.  If you fail to use material from TWO NEW library sources as source material for your essay, you will earn a failing grade for the essay.  

· Incorporate material from as many primary sources (essays on your topic in Parts III or IV) as needed to support the points in your argument—the Works Cited page for this essay should have SEVEN or more entries

· Refer to all of the blue boxes: “Concept Close-Up” and “Best Practices” in Chapter 11 as you write.

· Carefully review Chapters 6 and 7.

Writing a Mediation Argument:

· The purpose of arguing to inquire is to become well informed and to see all sides of an issue. The purpose of arguing to convince is to create a case structure that proves a thesis through logic and evidence. The purpose of arguing to persuade is not just to get an opponent to agree through logic and evidence, but also to gain support through appeals to character, emotion, and style. Finally, the purpose of arguing to mediate is to resolve—or at least reduce—conflict through critical thinking.  The aim of a mediation argument is to reduce misunderstanding by acknowledging valid points on both sides of a conflict, identifying common ground, and proposing a course of action that satisfies both sides.  

· An essay that argues to mediate builds upon what you do in arguing to inquire, to convince, and to persuade. Writing such an essay involves the same process of inquiry, analysis, and development of a case, but at the same time employs these to achieve a different goal: the goal in mediation is not to just understand, or to gain intellectual assent, or even to gain the hearts of your audience, but rather to help find a common ground that opposing parties can both accept.

· To write a successful mediation essay, the writer must first thoroughly understand the positions of the opposing factions. This means careful reading of ALL the primary sources to identify the theses, reasons, and evidence.

· Most conflicts result from interpreting facts differently rather than disagreement about the facts themselves. Where the facts of the case are at issue, the job of the mediator is to make additional inquiry using credible sources to establish the true facts. If opponents are basing their arguments on insufficient evidence, then the job of the mediator is to make further inquiry to provide the needed facts.

· However, in attempting to mediate between two opposed and strongly held positions, facts alone are not enough. You must also investigate why people hold the beliefs they do.  Therefore, in reading and analyzing the sources that espouse the positions of the contending parties, you have to consider these questions:

Is the difference a matter of assumptions?

Is the difference a matter of principle?

Is the difference a matter of values or priorities?

Is the difference a matter of ends or means?

Is the difference a matter of implications or consequences?

Is the difference a matte of interpretations?

      Is the difference a matter of personal background, basic human needs, or   emotions?

                                                                                                 (Pp. 288-291, “Best Practices” blue box on P. 289)

· To answer these questions, you must read and reread your sources carefully. The answers you give will be inferences you draw about the thinking and the emotions of the writers as they are revealed implicitly in their writing. What does this mean? Well, a writer may state his thesis explicitly as when he says "Greater restrictions should be placed on immigration to the United States." But you must infer why he holds this opinion. Why he holds this opinion is not just a matter of the reasons he gives in his case structure but how he thinks and views the world. These unspoken ideas and feelings are what the "Questions for Understanding Difference" are designed to reveal (289). You cannot successfully mediate unless you understand how the contending parties think and feel.

· In sum, in arguing to mediate you are trying to prove to both sides that there is a middle way, a compromise that allows each to maintain its interests while giving to the other some of what it wants.

Organizational Structure of the Mediation Argument:

            Your essay will have three sections:

 1.      Overview of the conflict

 2.      Explanation of the differences underlying the conflict

3.      Proposed solution

Accessing Library Sources Online:

Online Databases (articles):

      1.      Go to CourgarWeb/Library/Find Articles & Books Online (right side)

2.      Search by Subject

3.      Select the appropriate subject

4.      Select a database to search

5.      Enter search terms 

Netlibrary (online books):

      1.        Go to CourgarWeb/Library/Find Articles & Books Online (right side)

2.      Select Electronic Books

3.      Enter search terms

***Include as much support (facts, testimony, statistics, etc.) as possible in your essay, but make sure to explain all of the data that you use—do not just stick a statistic or a quotation in the middle of a paragraph.  Introduce the data you use, and thoroughly explain HOW and WHY it is relevant to your argument.

General essay requirements: 

· Margins: 1 inch (top, bottom, sides)

· Font: Times New Roman, 12 pt.

· Line spacing: Double-space EVERYTHING (extra line spaces between paragraphs and other sections of the paper is incorrect). NOTE: the sample student essay (Pp. 202- 205) is NOT double-spaced; editors single-space to save paper and pages. . .ALWAYS use the sample MLA research paper on pp. 157-166 as your model for your essays.

· MLA in-text citations should be used EVERY time material from a source is used—this includes references to material and paraphrases of material as well as direct quotes (See “Research & Writing Resources” on the Course Home page)

· MLA Works Cited Page: see MLA guide under “Research & Writing Resources” on the Course Home page (the Works Cited page is always the last page of the essay, but it DOES NOT count as one in the required page length of the essay)

· MLA formatting guidelines: see the sample MLA research paper on Pp. 157-166 in your text book—use it as a model for your essays in this class. . .pay attention to and follow the marginal guidelines