The Researched Argument Paper
300pts.
The research paper is a kind of capstone assignment in English 1, a chance to combine your interests and ideas with the skills of writing and research you have strengthened week after week this semester. Before you embark on your research journey, you need to choose one of the prompts below–Prompt A or Prompt B. Each prompt calls for an 8-10 page research paper with a minimum of six sources, but the questions asked are different. While Prompt A is open-ended and calls upon you to define your own research question and approach to answering it, Prompt B sets forth a clear structure to your inquiry and may offer a more predictable strategy for developing and organizing your paper. Please note that for the purposes of this class your paper must have some connection to race. For example, if youre going to research the healthcare system then you have to look at it through a racial lens remembering that you dont have to focus on black and white people. You may want to explore issues within Native American communities, Asians, or Pacific Islanders.
Prompt A
After reading and thinking about the theme of our class this semester, knowledge and power, choose a current specific issue that sincerely interests you and write an insightful argumentative paper on that topic. I highly recommend that you choose an issue that is specific, detailed, and multi-faceted. Whatever you choose, you will use your own insight as well as scholarly research to establish the critical and creative terms of your inquiry. Ideally, your approach will problematize, or challenge established views of the topic you have chosen.
While this is a research paper, it is still a thesis-driven, argumentative essay. I want to read your thoughts about the issue(s), and I want you to convince me of your opinions. The topic you choose and the position you take should invite debate and differences of opinion. Your paper should not merely report facts; rather, it should show that you can use facts and critical thinking to persuasively support your position on the issue. It may help for you to write your own prompt in order to keep your essay focused and argumentative. If you do this, please make sure that it is open-ended and invites ideas, not just facts.
Prompt B
If a less-open ended prompt appeals to you, consider using the problem-solution model for your project. A problem-solution paper asserts that X is a problem and that Y is the best solution to that problem, offering evidence to show that X is a problem and to prove that Y is the best solution to it. In this assignment, your purpose is to persuade your reader that a specific and significant problem (of your choosing) exists. Then, you should identify at least three potential solutions to the problem, evaluate and/or defend these solutions (using refutation), and persuade your reader to accept your evaluation of which solution (or solutions) is/are most useful.
In response to Prompt B, be sure to do the following in the body of your essay:
1. Establish that a specific problem exists. Examine the causes of the problem. Provide detailed support to prove that the problem is significant. Explain to readers how this problem affects them. Be sure to present only ONE problem.
2. Present three solutions to the problem. Describe and explain the solutions. Provide detailed support to persuade readers that your solutions are effective. Begin with the least effective approach (the first solution could even be a solution that you think is ineffective) and end with the most effective solution.
3. Use refutation to evaluate the effectiveness of the solutions. You might concede when
evaluating the first solution that it is ineffective. This is a good way of criticizing a contemporary popular solution that you find ineffective. Then, in the refutation of your second solution, you might concede and refute the critics. Presumably, in your refutation for your final and best solution, you will focus on defending your solution against objections. The general movement of refutation should be as follows: 1) identify and summarize objections to your solutions; 2) then, concede (partially); and/or 3) refute the objections.
For Both Prompts
What Ill Be Thinking When Evaluating Your Researched Argument:
Is your thesis clear, complex, but unified, and strong?
Does your thesis statement offer an insightful, dynamic point of view (one that does not merely echo one of your sources)?
Does the rest of your essay follow the map outlined in your thesis paragraph?
Is your research relevant and strong? Are you using it accurately to support your argument?
How well do you use quotations?
Are your introduction and conclusion effective? Memorable? Distinctive?
Do you stay on topic? Is the writing organized and not repetitive?
Are you using the elements of counter-argument or refutation to deepen the thinking about the topic?
Are there too many grammar/usage/structure err
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