English 101 & 102

Coursepack
2023-2024
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Table of Contents
Table of Contents 2
Introduction 2
Article 1: Audience, Purpose, & Genre and The Writing Process 3
Article 2: How to Read Like a Writer 12
Article 3: The Literacy Narrative 17
Article 4: Ethos, Pathos, and Logos 27
Article 5: The Rhetorical Modes 31
Article 6: Rhetorical Analysis & Structuring Academic Arguments 46
Article 7: Grammar 59
Article 8: Opinion Editorial 65
Article 9: Working with Sources 70
Article 10: Giving Presentations 81
Links to Sources Used in the Coursepack 84

Introduction
The English Department faculty would like to welcome you to your first semester of English at Alfaisal
University! We hope that in this first semester, you will build upon the reading, writing, listening, and
speaking skills you already possess to become a more confident and effective communicator.

We want to help you develop a set of skills that you will be able to use in new situations, not only
throughout your time at Alfaisal, but also in your future careers. Whatever your professional goals, you will
need to communicate well in order to achieve them.

Think of a career that you could see yourself doing someday. How important will effective communication
be in your job? In almost every field, the ability to speak and write well is essential to success and
advancement. It would be difficult to imagine a great engineer, a great doctor, or a great entrepreneur who
is not also an outstanding communicator. While we will address all areas of communication, the primary
focus of this course is academic writing. We want to help you become good writers.

This coursepack is a collection of articles and resources from various universities and writing centers (all
sources used are attributed). It is like a custom-made textbook, with the best texts we could possibly
select to help you develop as writers. We want you to be able to take advantage of a variety of materials
to learn writing and rhetoric. We have modified the language of most of these materials to make them
more accessible to a multilingual audience. If you would like to read more or you would like to read the
original versions, links to each article have been listed for you at the end of the coursepack.
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Article 1: Audience, Purpose, & Genre and

The Writing Process
So, what is good writing? If you were to ask ten people this question, you might receive ten
different replies. There are a few words you might hear repeated; for example, many people
describe good writing as “clear,” “well-organized,” or “correct.”

Let us consider the word “clear.” Is good writing clear? More importantly, clear to whom?

If a chemist is writing a scientific article in The Journal of Organic Chemistry and uses technical
language to describe how to make an analog for ibuprofen, his or her writing will be clear to
other chemists. However, the article will be unclear to people who only took high school
chemistry.

Now let us imagine that the chemist who has found an analog for ibuprofen wants to write a
grant proposal to receive money for the research project. Writing a grant proposal often means
communicating with an audience of regular people. In that case, the chemist would have to
define “synthetic analog,” explain why it is important, and simplify the process so that it can be
understood by the people who are making decisions with money.

In short, before we can decide what makes a piece of writing “good,” there are even more
important questions we need to answer:

● Who is the audience? To whom are you writing? What are their expectations? What
kinds of writing strategies or techniques will be most persuasive to them? What do they
already know? Understanding your audience is crucial to deciding how and what to write.
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● What is the purpose? What are you trying to accomplish with this piece of writing? Are
you trying to change people’s attitudes or opinions? Are you trying to get them to follow a
course of action, make a decision, understand a topic better, know how to do something,
take your argument seriously, etc.? While your primary purpose in writing papers for this
class will be to receive a high mark, your writing will be better if you consider broader
purposes than just the class and broader audiences than just the instructor.

● What is the genre? A genre refers to a type of writing. What are the rules, conventions,
norms, or expectations for the genre in which you are writing? What does writing in this
genre typically look like? In what style is it usually written? Remember that conventions
can change significantly from one genre to the next. For example, what makes a viral
Tweet is very different from what makes an excellent research paper, because they are
different genres. In a Tweet, brevity, wit, and humor are valued much more highly than
grammatical accuracy. However, if you were to use Twitter-like humor in a research
paper, it may not be well-received. This is because your audience brings a set of
expectations that change depending on the genre. In order to write well in any genre,
you need to first study models or examples in the genre and learn about the genre’s
conventions from those examples.

Audience, purpose, and genre are the three primary elements of what is often called the
rhetorical situation. Rhetoric refers to the art of persuasion. All writing is persuasive to an
extent, though some writing is more clearly persuasive than others. At the very least, you are
trying to persuade your audience to listen to your ideas.

Let us return to the example of the chemist writing about a synthetic analog to see how the
definition of good writing can shift based on the rhetorical situation (Table 1.1):

Genre Audience Purpose Good Writing

Scientific Readers of The To help other chemists In this case, good writing
article. Usually Journal of Organic understand the means using highly technical
a scientific Chemistry. The process of creating the and specific language to
article includes audience likely analog and be able to explain the process in such a
an abstract, includes replicate it in their own way that it can be re-created.
introduction, researchers, labs. A secondary It should include labeled
methods, professors, graduate purpose might be to diagrams of molecules. The
discussion of students, and others add to a body of tone should be formal and
results, and with significant knowledge in the field academic.
conclusion. background of organic chemistry.
knowledge.

Genre Audience Purpose Good Writing

Grant A panel of reviewers To persuade the In this case, good writing

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proposal. Often who will read your reviewers to award a means using a balance of
a grant includes grant proposal. The grant to your research technical and accessible
a statement of audience might have project by convincing language. It will include
purpose, an only a basic them that your project defining your terms clearly.
explanation of understanding of is worthwhile and is This will make the reviewers
methods, a chemistry (and no likely to work. feel confident in your expertise
proposed understanding of but also able to understand
budget, and a organic chemistry). the project’s possibilities (and
timeline. to get excited about its
potential). The tone should be
formal, but not academic.
Table 1.1

As you can see from the table above, the description of good writing changes significantly
depending on why (purpose), what (genre), and to whom (audience) you are writing. Before you
can understand what makes good writing, you must first answer these important questions.

This course will provide you with a set of tools, techniques, and strategies that you can use in
your writing. You will need to learn how to decide which strategies to use in your writing. We
want you to be flexible as writers, able to adapt to different writing situations.

Good writing is about learning how to make good choices. You will have to decide whether to
rely more heavily on logic or emotion to enhance your argument. You will have to choose, in a
given paragraph, whether to use cause/effect or process analysis to make your point. You will
have to decide whether to use longer or shorter sentences, technical jargon or everyday diction,
a transitional phrase or simply a new paragraph.

However, you are not making these choices in the dark. Instead, your choices should be
informed by your audience, your purpose, and your genre. Those three elements need to guide
your decisions about how and what to write.

We will begin this semester by discussing the various strategies and techniques that are
available to us as writers. We will begin to notice how authors use these techniques to
communicate in a variety of rhetorical situations (to different audiences in different genres for
different purposes). In order to pay attention to HOW something is written, we need to learn how
to read like writers.

The first writing assignment will be a literacy narrative--an exploration of your own experiences
with reading and writing, and how those experiences have shaped the way you communicate
today. Then you will have a chance to practice making smart and well-informed choices as
writers when you write an opinion editorial that offers a well-supported perspective on a given
issue. You will present the main ideas from your opinion editorial to the class.

We hope that by the end of the semester, you will have grown both in your confidence and in
your ability to communicate effectively. In whatever rhetorical situations you find yourselves in
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the future, our goal is to ensure that you have strategies ready to use so that you can
accomplish your purpose and engage your audience across a variety of genres.

Suggested activity 1: Get into groups. Imagine that your group is a research team. Your
team recently discovered that exercising at least three times a week improves memory. Your
study of college students found that those who exercised three times a week before a test
performed an average of 7% better on the test than those in the control group, who did not
exercise.

Now imagine that you want to publish your findings in three places: in a post on the website of
the Ministry of Health, in an Instagram post for a wellness-focused company, and in an article
in Alfa Press, the Alfaisal student newspaper.

Fill out the table showing how the audience, purpose, and genre will differ in each publication.

Under “audience,” describe who will be the most likely people to read each one and what
background knowledge or interests they have. Explain how you might make your research
interesting to them.

Under “purpose,” describe what your primary purpose might be, given your particular
audience. What do you want your audience to know or believe or do as a result of reading
your writing?

Under “genre,” explain what features or sections or diagrams or illustrations or memes or

photos or structure your writing might have.

For more help, look back at the questions listed under the bullet points “Who is the audience?
What is the purpose? What is the genre?” Also, look again at the sample table filled out for
you above.
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Publication Audience Purpose Genre

Instagram post for

wellness company

Ministry of Health
website

Alfa Press (Alfaisal

student newspaper)

The Writing Process

Suggested Activity 2: Before you read this article, write about your own writing process by
answering some or all of the following questions. What are the steps you usually take to write
a paper? In what order? Do you ever go back and repeat steps? How do you come up with
ideas? What is usually the hardest part of the paper to write? How are you able to see your
own mistakes when you revise the paper? What aspects of the writing process are working
well for you, and what might you need to improve?

Writers typically go through a series of steps in composing a paper. We refer to these steps as
“the writing process,” and they look a little different for every person. Generally, there are three
main phases in creating a paper: pre-writing, writing, and revising/editing.

However, these steps are not always clear-cut or linear. You may need to return to the
brainstorming phase briefly while you are editing. During the revision stage, you may find
problems with your paper’s organization, and you might therefore need to return to outlining.
While coming up with ideas for a topic, you might get a great idea for an introduction and start
composing the first paragraph before an outline is written.

The writing process is messy and unique to each individual. It is important for you as a
developing writer to understand what’s usually involved in each step and decide what works for
you. Perhaps there will be a strategy or technique you’ve never tried before; now is the time to
try it.
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Your writing process will improve as you reflect on it and create solutions to the problems you
tend to encounter when you write.

Brainstorming

Before you start writing, you will think about what to write and how to write it. This pre-writing
process is called brainstorming. Brainstorming simply means working to generate as many
ideas as possible.

For an academic writing assignment, begin by reading the assignment instructions and the
rubric carefully. Make sure you understand the conventions of this particular genre. Then spend
some time considering your audience and your purpose. To whom are you writing? What
knowledge and background do they bring to the reading? What do you want your audience to
know, to believe, or to be able to do when they have finished reading your paper?
You might brainstorm by creating a list of ideas, by freewriting, or by drawing a map, graphic
organizer, or diagram. You need not worry about grammar or organization at this stage: your
main task is to generate ideas.

Many students begin by searching the internet for ideas. While this is a good idea in later
phases of the writing process, it is not a good way to brainstorm. When you read someone
else’s ideas, it is difficult not to repeat them. In order to ensure that the ideas for your paper are
your own, avoid doing an internet search about your topic until you have finished your
brainstorm.

At some point, usually near the end of the brainstorming phase or the beginning of the
organizing phase, the writer composes the thesis statement: one or two sentences that capture
the paper’s main idea. The whole paper needs to be organized around the thesis statement.
The main job of the body paragraphs is to develop, defend, and/or explain the thesis. If you draft
a thesis statement early on, you can always revise it later (much more on thesis statements
below).

Organizing

Another important element of pre-writing is organizing your ideas into a logical sequence. Many
writers prefer to compose a formal outline with Roman numerals, letters, and numbers to
designate main points and sub-points. Others prefer to jot down a list of bullet points and move
to the drafting phase more quickly.

You can begin an outline with the paper’s three major parts: introduction, body, and conclusion.
For the body of the paper, consider what the main point of each paragraph should be, and make
sure that each main point helps develop and support the thesis statement. Then begin to
arrange supporting details under those main points.
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Take a look at how your ideas are arranged. Does each idea build on the previous one? Does
the sequence of the paper make sense, from beginning to end? What arrangement of
arguments will be most persuasive to your audience?

There are so many ways to arrange your ideas in a paper. For example, you could organize
your thoughts from first to last (chronologically), from general to specific, or from least
persuasive to most persuasive. The key is simply to be thoughtful and intentional about how you
organize your paper and to ensure that your organization fits with your purpose.

Drafting

Once you have a good plan in place, it’s time to sit down and write. Make a plan to reduce or
eliminate distractions so you can stay focused on writing.

As you work through your outline or your list of bullet points, you will find gaps that need to be
filled and rough ideas that need to be carefully refined. This is a good time to begin using the
internet as a resource. Find sources that support or develop your ideas and be sure to include
proper citations of those sources if you use them. Return to the rhetorical modes and decide
where you might use some of them to further explain your ideas. Consider how you’re using
ethos, pathos, and logos to help you make your point.

At this point, most writers are not yet concerned with grammar or mechanics. The purpose of a
draft is simply to get your ideas into the document, as completely as you can. If you find that you
are stopping and interrupting yourself too much, you will disrupt the flow of ideas. On the other
hand, some writers are very distracted by obvious mistakes, and they need to tweak the
grammar a little bit as they go. Find the method that works best for you.

One final note: some writers find that it is hard to start writing the introduction first. If this is true
for you, try starting your paper with the first body paragraph and write the introduction once the
body is complete.

Revising and Editing your writing

What is the difference between revising and editing?

Revision usually involves making bigger changes to your writing; editing is about making
smaller changes.

The word “revision” literally means “to look again.” You want to be able to see your paper with
fresh eyes. How is this possible? One important strategy to use is time. If you can put your
paper away for a few hours or even a few days, when you return to it, you’ll be able to see its
strengths and weaknesses more clearly.
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Revising a paper may involve adding, subtracting, and/or moving ideas. When you revise,
consider the organization of your ideas and make changes if necessary. Find ideas that are
under-developed and add necessary information to them. Find unnecessary information and
remove it.

HINT: Keep your audience and your purpose in mind as you revise. Thinking about who you are
writing for and why you are writing will help you choose what to keep and what to change.

Additionally, there are two principles of good writing that can guide your revision: unity and
coherence. Unity is making sure that all of the ideas relate to each other and help support the
thesis. There is nothing in the essay that doesn’t belong. Coherence is making sure that your
ideas are in the right order and that they flow well from one point to the next.

Editing a paper involves making smaller changes: checking for issues with English grammar,
mechanics, and usage, and fixing those issues. In this course, the paper should follow the
conventions of standard edited academic English. Finding and correcting those errors in
grammatical conventions will demonstrate your ethos as a writer and help make your ideas
seem more credible.

You may want to begin by using grammar-checking software. While this is a good first step,
keep in mind that this software cannot catch all mistakes. You will also need to check for a
variety of different issues, including run-on sentences, fragments, ambiguous pronouns,
problems with capitalization, punctuation, and articles.

If you plan out your time in advance, you can step away from your paper for several hours (or
even a full day or two) so that you can return to it with fresh eyes. Not looking at your paper for
a time may help you find errors when you return to edit it.

However, it is often very difficult to spot your own errors. Peer feedback can be a useful tool to
help you identify errors in your writing. The more time you give yourself, the more you can take
advantage of the resources available to you (peer feedback, instructor feedback, and the
Academic Success Center) to submit the most polished piece of writing you possibly can.

For a much more in-depth look at revision, please see the article “Revising Drafts” in the
Appendix.

Suggested Activity 3: Brainstorming exercise. In groups of 5 come up with as many ideas as

possible for one of the following general topics. Each group will present their brainstorming to
the class in a short presentation. Come up with a thesis statement and 3 supporting points.
Consider your audience and your purpose.

Stress: Good or bad?

Homework: Necessary or not?

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Fast fashion: Ethical or not?

Recycling: Does it really work?

Standardized tests: Good or bad?

School Uniforms: Beneficial or not?

Suggested Activity 4: Introductory letter

Write at least half a page, single-spaced, and use a letter format, including a greeting such as
"Dear Dr. [include your professor's name]" and a closing such as "Sincerely."

1. Describe your background as a reader and writer.

2. Reflect on your strengths and areas of improvement in writing.
3. Set at least three goals in taking this class.
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Article 2: How to Read Like a Writer

By Mike Bunn
Adapted by Emily Wilson

During the coronavirus lockdown in the summer of 2020, I quickly got bored with Netflix shows
and decided to try watercolor painting. I ordered supplies, watched Youtube video tutorials, and
began my new hobby. My early paintings were lacking, but over time, my work improved. I
learned how to control the brushes, mix colors, and apply the right amount of water to the paper.
Once the lockdown was over and I had a chance to visit an art museum, I realized that
something had changed in the way I looked at the paintings of professional artists. I was
noticing things that I had never before noticed, such as color saturation and brush stroke
patterns. What had changed? I was seeing paintings like a painter. I wasn’t just seeing the
picture (the beach, the sunset, the buildings, etc.), I was also, for the first time, seeing the
techniques the artist used to create the picture. And I was thinking about how I might use some
of those same techniques in my own paintings.

This article will teach you how to look at texts differently, to understand not just what a text says,
but how it was created. Ultimately, this will help you become a better writer.

What Does it Mean to Read Like a Writer?

When you Read Like a Writer (RLW), you work to identify some of the choices the author made
so that you can better understand how to make smart choices in your own writing. The idea is to
carefully examine the things you read, looking at the authors’ techniques in order to decide if
you might want to use similar techniques in your own writing.

You are reading to learn about writing.

Most of the time, we read for information. We read a recipe to learn how to bake lasagna. We
read a sports news site to see if our team won the football match. We read Instagram to see
who has commented on our latest post, a syllabus to see when the next writing assignment is
due, a physics textbook to learn the first law of thermodynamics. Usually, when we do that kind
of reading, we focus on what the text is about and not how the text is written.
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Reading like a writer is all about trying to understand how the piece of writing was put together
by the author. As you read in this way, you think about the choices the author made and the
effect of those choices on you, the reader. What is it about the way the text is written that makes
it interesting, confusing, persuasive, funny, powerful, etc.? Architects look at buildings differently
than most people do. They notice the choices that were made in the building’s design and
materials, because they learned how to notice those things. Similarly, you can learn how to
notice the way a text is “built.”

The goal as you read like a writer is to locate the most important writerly choices in the
text—choices as large as the overall structure or as small as a single word used only once—to
consider the effect of those choices on potential readers. Then you can go one step further and
imagine what different choices the author might have made instead, and what effect those
different choices would have on readers.

Say you’re reading an essay in class that begins with a few quotes from Dr. Martin Luther King
Jr. about racial justice. As a writer, what do you think of this technique? Does it work well to
begin this essay with these quotes? How does the author transition from the quote to the rest of
the introduction? What if the quotes were from someone else, someone who was not as
well-known? What if the quotes were longer?

And here is the most important part: would you want to try this technique in your own writing?

Would you want to start your own essay with a quote? What would be the advantages of this
technique? What might be the disadvantages? How would readers respond? Have you noticed
essays similar to this one that also begin with quotes? How well does the quote lead to the
thesis statement? There is no one “correct” way to begin an essay. There are more effective and
less effective ways to introduce a topic. Whether or not an introduction is effective depends on
several factors, including the audience, the purpose, and the type of writing.

The goal of reading like a writer is to carefully consider the choices the author made and the
techniques that he or she used. The more you notice how something is written, the more you’ll
feel confident to make smart choices in your own writing.

Why is this skill so important? Reading like a writer will help you to learn any new genre.
Imagine that you are working in a job someday and your boss asks you to write up an
environmental compliance plan (ECP) for a new engineering project. You have never written
one before, and you're not even sure what they should look like. Where do you begin? You
begin by reviewing examples of previous ECPs, and you read them like a writer. You read to
notice how they are written: their format, their organization, the level of detail they include,
where the main idea is located, how each idea is developed, etc. Reading like a writer (and
completing the first writing assignment for this class, a rhetorical analysis paper) will teach you
how to teach yourself any new genre.

Questions to Ask Before You Start Reading

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Before you even start reading, you need to consider the rhetorical situation surrounding the text
you’re reading. Among the factors you’ll want to consider before you begin are:

● Do you know the author’s PURPOSE for this piece of writing?

o Why did he/she write it? What was the goal?
● Do you know who the intended AUDIENCE is for this piece of writing?
● Do you know the GENRE of this piece of writing? What do you usually expect from
writing in this genre?

If you’re reading for a course assignment, then the assignment instructions are part of the
context. What does your instructor expect you to get from the reading? How will the text be used
in class?

Questions to Ask as You Are Reading

Here are some example of the kinds of questions you might ask yourself as you read:

● How is the writing organized? Is there a clear introduction, body, conclusion? How does
it start? How does it end? Why do you think the main points are organized the way they
are in the body?
● How effective is the language the author uses? Is it more formal (scholarly, academic,
professional) or more informal (personal, casual)? What words stand out the most, and
why?
● Where do they use long sentences? Where do they use short sentences? Do you see
any reason for their choices in sentence length?
● What kinds of evidence does the author use to support his/her claims? Do they use
statistics? Quotes from famous people? Personal stories? Do they cite books/articles?
● How effective or appropriate is this evidence? Would a different type of evidence be
more effective?
● Are there places in the writing that you find confusing? What about the writing makes it
confusing?
● How does the author move from one idea to another in the writing? Are the transitions
effective?

Notice that in these questions, I am encouraging you to question whether aspects of writing are
appropriate or effective, not whether they are “correct.” There is no correct tone to use, no
correct evidence to include, no correct transitions to make. There are simply choices that are
MORE effective or LESS effective. And the degree of effectiveness depends on the audience,
the purpose, and the genre. How effectively does this writing work to engage a certain audience,
to fulfil a certain purpose, to follow the conventions of a certain genre? In light of my own
audience, purpose, and genre, how can I make the most effective choices possible?

What Does RLW Look Like in Action?

Let’s return to the opening paragraph of this essay and spend some time reading like writers to
get comfortable with the process.
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During the coronavirus lockdown in the summer of 2020, I quickly got bored with Netflix shows
and decided to try watercolor painting. I ordered supplies, watched Youtube video tutorials, and
began my new hobby. My early paintings were lacking, but over time, my work improved. I
learned how to control the brushes, mix colors, and apply the right amount of water to the paper.
Once the lockdown was over and I had a chance to visit an art museum, I realized that
something had changed in the way I looked at the paintings of professional artists. I was
noticing things that I had never before noticed, such as color saturation and brush stroke
patterns. What had changed? I was seeing paintings like a painter. I wasn’t just seeing the
picture (the beach, the sunset, the buildings, etc.), I was also, for the first time, seeing the
techniques the artist used to create the picture. And I was thinking about how I might use some
of those same techniques in my own paintings.

● What kind of introduction is this?

● What do you think the author’s purpose might be in starting with a story?
● Where do you notice specific details? Are those details needed? Do they serve a
purpose?
● What do you notice about the language used? Is it more formal or more informal? Does
it fit with the rest of the article?
● What point is the introduction making? Does it make the point effectively for you? How
could it be more effective?

Reading for craft instead of content, questioning why the author made certain decisions, and
considering what techniques you might use or adapt in your own writing—this is what reading
like a writer is all about.

Are you ready to start reading?

Suggested Activity 1:

Read JUST ONE of the articles in the Appendix. Annotate it carefully, either on a printed
copy or on an ipad (be prepared to show the instructor your annotations in class).

Then respond to the following questions about your chosen article:

9 “Reading Like a Writer” Questions:

● What do you think is the author’s purpose?
● For whom does this seem to be written?
● How is the article organized? (For example, does it have sections? Is there a clear
introduction, body, and conclusion? Where does it start? Where does it end?)
● Where does the author most clearly state the main point, and how does he/she do
so?
● What kinds of evidence does the author use? (quotes, statistics, stories, etc.) How
effective is this evidence?
● What kind of language does the author use? (Formal, informal, assertive,
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empathetic, argumentative, helpful, direct, inspirational, humorous, sarcastic, etc.)

Give an example.
● How does the author transition between ideas?
● What techniques or patterns does the author use? (For example,
comparison/contrast, cause/effect, narration, description, process analysis,
classification, etc.)
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Article 3: The Literacy Narrative

This article is a compilation of information from Dr. Ruth Li, Dr. Emily Wilson, the Naugle
Communication Lab at the Georgia Institute of Technology, the Guide to Teaching First-Year
Writing from the University of Michigan, and the writing program at Arizona State University.

What is a literacy narrative, and why are you writing one for this English course?

A literacy narrative is a story about a writer’s process and growth in developing different forms
of literacy, which might include reading, writing, viewing, interpreting, etc. It is a way to help you
re-examine the experiences and perspectives on literacy that have shaped you into the
communicator you are today.

Since it is often easiest to begin by writing about something you know well (your own life), we
have placed the literacy narrative near the beginning of the semester, and at the end of the
term, we hope that you can look back and see yet another step you’ve taken this semester on
your literacy journey.

For the literacy narrative, you will choose a memory or event to focus on. While you might want
to begin by brainstorming all of your most significant experiences with reading and writing, you’ll
want to zero in on a single experience that feels important to you. Your narrative should include
a combination of:

1. Narrative scene-setting and description of specific events and memories (“showing”).

These are the “story” elements.

2. Reflection upon the larger meaning and significance behind your experiences (“telling”).
Thse are the “essay” elements.
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In writing the narrative, you could consider questions such as: in what ways has this experience
with reading or writing influenced your life? What insights or lessons about language or literacy
have you gained from this experience?

Getting Started
Any literacy-linked experience from your life can be the basis of a literacy narrative. For
example:

1. What languages do you live your life in? How do you navigate your way through those
different languages? How do you live differently in one language than in another? What
languages do you use for different purposes?
2. What is your earliest memory of reading and writing?
3. How did you learn to read and write? Did you ever teach anyone else to read or write?
4. Who encouraged you to read and write?
5. What events interrupted and/or slowed down your ability and/or desire to read and write?
6. Did you apply literacy skills to other content areas: sports, music, video games, etc.?
7. What kinds of reading have you done in your past and what kinds of reading do you do
now?
8. What teachers had a particular impact on your reading and writing?
9. What assignments had a particular impact on your reading and writing?
10. Have different schools or other institutions had an impact on your reading and writing?
11. How do you currently feel about reading and writing?
12. What rewards have come from reading and writing?
13. Did a special or important event from your past make you the reader and/or writer you
are today?
14. Was there a moment or moments that were especially empowering?
15. Did you ever read a book or poem or song that made sense to you beyond the words on
the page?
16. Do you remember learning to cook or bake from a recipe card? Did someone in your life
teach you how to read recipes, assemble ingredients, and use appropriate measuring
tools? How did you “read” the food to know if it was cooked properly?
17. What was your favorite book when you were growing up? Was there a character you
identified with? Was it Hermione?
18. What is the first book you remember reading or the first book you remember being read
to you? Why do you think it stayed in your memory?
19. What kinds of things do you remember reading about online when you were a child?
Were there kinds of information that fascinated you and made you want to learn more?
20. Do you remember the first time you tried to deliver an oral presentation in school? How
did it go?
 19

Suggested Activity 1:

Take 5 minutes and write about a memory or experience related to reading, writing, viewing,
using different languages, etc. Feel free to use the list of questions above to help you
brainstorm.

After 5 minutes, stop writing and re-read what you’ve just written.

Then write one sentence that explains what this story shows about who you are as a
reader/writer/communicator.

Structuring Your Literacy Narrative

A literacy narrative communicates an idea through telling a story, which means that it follows a
unique organizational pattern. The 5 elements of a story are listed below.

Exposition: introduction, background, and setting

Rising action: details that build toward the central conflict/idea/issue

Conflict: main external event or internal conflict/idea/issue

Falling action: details that build toward the resolution

Resolution: insight and lesson learned

Suggested Activity 2:

Take a story that you are very familiar with (book, movie, etc.), and match up the story’s plot
with the 5 elements of a narrative using the table below. Write just a brief sentence for each of
the 5 elements.

Exposition: introduction, background, and

setting

Rising action: details that build toward the

central conflict/idea/issue

Conflict: main external event or internal

conflict/idea/issue

Falling action: details that build toward the

resolution

Resolution: insight and lesson learned

 20

SAMPLE LITERACY NARRATIVES

Literacy Narrative #1: Mother Tongue

by Amy Tan

I am not a scholar of English or literature. I cannot give you much more than personal opinions
on the English language and its variations in this country or others.

I am a writer. And by that definition, I am someone who has always loved language. I am
fascinated by language in daily life. I spend a great deal of my time thinking about the power of
language -- the way it can evoke an emotion, a visual image, a complex idea, or a simple truth.
Language is the tool of my trade. And I use them all -- all the Englishes I grew up with.

Recently, I was made keenly aware of the different Englishes I do use. I was giving a talk to a
large group of people, the same talk I had already given to half a dozen other groups. The
nature of the talk was about my writing, my life, and my book, The Joy Luck Club. The talk was
going along well enough, until I remembered one major difference that made the whole talk
sound wrong. My mother was in the room. And it was perhaps the first time she had heard me
give a lengthy speech, using the kind of English I have never used with her. I was saying things
like, "The intersection of memory upon imagination" and "There is an aspect of my fiction that
relates to thus-and-thus'--a speech filled with carefully wrought grammatical phrases, burdened,
it suddenly seemed to me, with nominalized forms, past perfect tenses, conditional phrases, all
the forms of standard English that I had learned in school and through books, the forms of
English I did not use at home with my mother.

Just last week, I was walking down the street with my mother, and I again found myself
conscious of the English I was using, the English I do use with her. We were talking about the
price of new and used furniture and I heard myself saying this: "Not waste money that way." My
husband was with us as well, and he didn't notice any switch in my English. And then I realized
why. It's because over the twenty years we've been together I've often used that same kind of
English with him, and sometimes he even uses it with me. It has become our language of
intimacy, a different sort of English that relates to family talk, the language I grew up with.

So you'll have some idea of what this family talk I heard sounds like, I'll quote what my mother
said during a recent conversation which I videotaped and then transcribed. During this
conversation, my mother was talking about a political gangster in Shanghai who had the same
last name as her family's, Du, and how the gangster in his early years wanted to be adopted by
her family, which was rich by comparison. Later, the gangster became far richer than my
mother's family, and one day showed up at my mother's wedding to pay his respects. Here's
what she said in part: "Du Yusong having business like fruit stand. The local people call putong,
the river east side, he belong to that side local people. That man want to ask Du Zong father
 21

take him in like become own family. Du Zong father wasn't look down on him, but didn't take
seriously, until that man big like become a mafia. Now important person, very hard to inviting
him. Chinese way, came only to show respect, don't stay for dinner. Respect for making big
celebration, he shows up. Mean gives lots of respect. Chinese custom. If too important won't
have to stay too long. He come to my wedding. I didn't see, I heard it."

You should know that my mother's expressive command of English belies how much she
actually understands. She reads the Forbes report, listens to Wall Street Week, converses daily
with her stockbroker, reads all of Shirley MacLaine's books with ease--all kinds of things I can't
begin to understand. Yet some of my friends tell me they understand 50 percent of what my
mother says. Some say they understand 80 to 90 percent. Some say they understand none of it,
as if she were speaking pure Chinese. But to me, my mother's English is perfectly clear,
perfectly natural. It's my mother tongue. Her language, as I hear it, is vivid, direct, full of
observation and imagery. That was the language that helped shape the way I saw things,
expressed things, made sense of the world.

Lately, I've been giving more thought to the kind of English my mother speaks. Like others, I
have described it to people as 'broken" or "fractured" English. But I wince when I say that. It has
always bothered me that I can think of no way to describe it other than "broken," as if it were
damaged and needed to be fixed, as if it lacked a certain wholeness and soundness. I've heard
other terms used, "limited English," for example. But they seem just as bad, as if everything is
limited, including people's perceptions of the limited English speaker.
I know this for a fact, because when I was growing up, my mother's "limited" English limited my
perception of her. I was ashamed of her English. I believed that her English reflected the quality
of what she had to say. That is, because she expressed them imperfectly, her thoughts were
imperfect. And I had plenty of empirical evidence to support me: the fact that people in
department stores, at banks, and at restaurants did not take her seriously, did not give her good
service, pretended not to understand her, or even acted as if they did not hear her.

My mother has long realized the limitations of her English as well. When I was fifteen, she used
to have me call people on the phone to pretend I was her. In this guise, I was forced to ask for
information or even to complain and yell at people who had been rude to her. One time it was a
call to her stockbroker in New York. She had cashed out her small portfolio and it just so
happened we were going to go to New York the next week, our very first trip outside California. I
had to get on the phone and say in an adolescent voice that was not very convincing, "This is
Mrs. Tan."

And my mother was standing in the back whispering loudly, "Why he don't send me check,
already two weeks late. So mad he lie to me, losing me money.

And then I said in perfect English, "Yes, I'm getting rather concerned. You had agreed to send
the check two weeks ago, but it hasn't arrived." Then she began to talk more loudly. "What he
want, I come to New York tell him front of his boss, you cheating me?" And I was trying to calm
her down, make her be quiet, while telling the stockbroker, "I can't tolerate any more excuses. If
 22

I don't receive the check immediately, I am going to have to speak to your manager when I'm in
New York next week." And sure enough, the following week there we were in front of this
astonished stockbroker, and I was sitting there red-faced and quiet, and my mother, the real
Mrs. Tan, was shouting at his boss in her impeccable broken English.

We used a similar routine just five days ago, for a situation that was far less humorous. My
mother had gone to the hospital for an appointment, to find out about a benign brain tumor a
CAT scan had revealed a month ago. She said she had spoken very good English, her best
English, no mistakes. Still, she said, the hospital did not apologize when they said they had lost
the CAT scan and she had come for nothing. She said they did not seem to have any sympathy
when she told them she was anxious to know the exact diagnosis, since her husband and son
had both died of brain tumors. She said they would not give her any more information until the
next time and she would have to make another appointment for that. So she said she would not
leave until the doctor called her daughter. She wouldn't budge. And when the doctor finally
called her daughter, me, who spoke in perfect English -- lo and behold -- we had assurances the
CAT scan would be found, promises that a conference call on Monday would be held, and
apologies for any suffering my mother had gone through for a most regrettable mistake.

I think my mother's English almost had an effect on limiting my possibilities in life as well.
Sociologists and linguists probably will tell you that a person's developing language skills are
more influenced by peers. But I do think that the language spoken in the family, especially in
immigrant families which are more insular, plays a large role in shaping the language of the
child. And I believe that it affected my results on achievement tests, I.Q. tests, and the SAT.
While my English skills were never judged as poor, compared to math, English could not be
considered my strong suit. In grade school I did moderately well, getting perhaps B's,
sometimes B-pluses, in English and scoring perhaps in the sixtieth or seventieth percentile on
achievement tests. But those scores were not good enough to override the opinion that my true
abilities lay in math and science, because in those areas I achieved A's and scored in the
ninetieth percentile or higher.

I have been thinking about all this lately, about my mother's English, about achievement tests.
Because lately I've been asked, as a writer, why there are not more Asian Americans
represented in American literature. Why are there few Asian Americans enrolled in creative
writing programs? Why do so many Chinese students go into engineering! Well, these are broad
sociological questions I can't begin to answer. But I have noticed in surveys -- in fact, just last
week -- that Asian students, as a whole, always do significantly better on math achievement
tests than in English. And this makes me think that there are other Asian-American students
whose English spoken in the home might also be described as "broken" or "limited." And
perhaps they also have teachers who are steering them away from writing and into math and
science, which is what happened to me.

Fortunately, I happen to be rebellious in nature and enjoy the challenge of disproving

assumptions made about me. I became an English major my first year in college, after being
enrolled as pre-med. I started writing nonfiction as a freelancer the week after I was told by my
 23

former boss that writing was my worst skill and I should hone my talents toward account
management.

But it wasn't until 1985 that I finally began to write fiction. And at first I wrote using what I
thought to be wittily crafted sentences, sentences that would finally prove I had mastery over the
English language. Here's an example from the first draft of a story that later made its way into
The Joy Luck Club, but without this line: "That was my mental quandary in its nascent state." A
terrible line, which I can barely pronounce.

Fortunately, for reasons I won't get into today, I later decided I should envision a reader for the
stories I would write. And the reader I decided upon was my mother, because these were stories
about mothers. So with this reader in mind -- and in fact she did read my early drafts--I began to
write stories using all the Englishes I grew up with: the English I spoke to my mother, which for
lack of a better term might be described as "simple"; the English she used with me, which for
lack of a better term might be described as "broken"; my translation of her Chinese, which could
certainly be described as "watered down"; and what I imagined to be her translation of her
Chinese if she could speak in perfect English, her internal language, and for that I sought to
preserve the essence, but neither an English nor a Chinese structure. I wanted to capture what
language ability tests can never reveal: her intent, her passion, her imagery, the rhythms of her
speech and the nature of her thoughts.

Apart from what any critic had to say about my writing, I knew I had succeeded where it counted
when my mother finished reading my book and gave me her verdict: "So easy to read."

Literacy Narrative #2: Always Living in Spanish

By Marjorie Agosín

In the evenings in the northern hemisphere, I repeat the ancient ritual that I observed as a child
in the southern hemisphere: going out while the night is still warm and trying to recognize the
stars as it begins to grow dark silently. In the sky of my country, Chile, that long and wide stretch
of land that the poets blessed and dictators abused, I could easily name the stars: the three
Marias, the Southern Cross, and the three Lilies, names of beloved and courageous women.

But here in the United States, where I have lived since I was a young girl, the solitude of exile
makes me feel that so little is mine, that not even the sky has the same constellations, the trees
and the fauna the same names or sounds, or the rubbish the same smell. How does one
recover the familiar? How does one name the unfamiliar? How can one be another or live in a
foreign language? These are the dilemmas of one who writes in Spanish and lives in translation.

Since my earliest childhood in Chile I lived with the tempos and the melodies of a multiplicity of
tongues: German, Yiddish, Russian, Turkish, and many Latin songs. Because everyone was
from somewhere else, my relatives laughed, sang, and fought in a Babylon of languages.
Spanish was reserved for matters of extreme seriousness, for commercial transactions, or for
illnesses, but everyone’s mother tongue was always associated with the memory of spaces
 24

inhabited in the past: the flowering and vast Vienna avenues, the minarets of Turkey, and the
Ladino whispers of Toledo. When my paternal grandmother sang old songs in Turkish, her voice
and body assumed the passion of one who was there in the city of Istanbul, gazing by turns
toward the west and the east.

Destiny and the always ambiguous nature of history continued my family’s enforced migration,
and because of it I, too, became one who had to live and speak in translation. The
disappearances, torture, and clandestine deaths in my country in the early seventies drove us to
the United States, that other America that looked with suspicion at those who did not speak
English and especially those who came from the supposedly uncivilized regions of Latin
America. I had left a dangerous place that was my home, only to arrive in a dangerous place
that was not: a high school in the small town of Athens, Georgia, where my poor English and my
accent were the cause of ridicule and insult. The only way I could recover my usurped country
and my Chilean childhood was by continuing to write in Spanish, the same way my
grandparents had sung in their own tongues in diasporic sites.

The new and learned English language did not fit with the visceral emotions and themes that my
poetry contained, but by writing in Spanish I could recover fragrances, spoken rhythms, and the
passion of my own identity. Daily I felt the need to translate myself for the strangers living all
around me, to tell them why we were in Georgia, why we ate differently, why we had fled, why
my accent was so thick, and why I did not look Hispanic. Only at night, writing poems in
Spanish, could I return to my senses, and soothe my own sorrow over what I had left behind.

This is how I became a Chilean poet who wrote in Spanish and lived in the southern United
States. And then, one day, a poem of mine was translated and published in the English
language. Finally, for the first time since I had left Chile, I felt I didn’t have to explain myself. My
poem, expressed in another language, spoke for itself . . . and for me.

Sometimes the austere sounds of English help me bear the solitude of knowing that I am foreign
and so far away from those about whom I write. I must admit I would like more opportunities to
read in Spanish to people whose language and culture is also mine, to join in our common
heritage and in the feast of our sounds. I would also like readers of English to understand the
beauty of the spoken word in Spanish, that constant flow of oxytonic and paraoxytonic syllables
(Verde que te quiero verdo), the joy of writing — of dancing — in another language. I believe
that many exiles share the unresolvable torment of not being able to live in the language of their
childhood.

I miss that undulating and sensuous language of mine, those baroque descriptions, the sense of
being and feeling that Spanish gives me. It is perhaps this reason that I have chosen and will
always choose to write in Spanish. Nothing else from my childhood world remains. My country
seems to be frozen in gestures of silence and oblivion. My relatives have died, and I have grown
up not knowing a young generation of cousins and nieces and nephews. Many of my friends
disappeared, others were tortured, and the most fortunate, like me, became guardians of
memory. For us, to write in Spanish is to always be in active pursuit of memory. I seek to
 25

recapture a world lost to me on that sorrowful afternoon when the blue electric sky and the
Andean cordillera bade me farewell. On that, my last Chilean day, I carried under my arm my
innocence recorded in a little blue notebook I kept even then. Gradually that diary filled with
memoranda, poems written in free verse, descriptions of dreams and of the thresholds of my
house surrounded by cherry trees and gardenias. To write in Spanish is for me a gesture of
survival. And because of translation, my memory has now become a part of the memory of
many others.

Translators are not traitors, as the proverb says, but rather splendid friends in this great human
community of language.

Note: Oxytonic words stress the last syllable, while paraoxytonics stress the next-to-last syllable.

Suggested Activity 3:

What is the main idea of each literacy narrative? What does each narrative show you about
who these women are as writers and communicators? Is there a sentence in each one that
you think best captures the narrative’s main idea? Identify each of the 5 elements of a story in
each narrative.

Create a Venn diagram comparing and contrasting Tan’s “Mother Tongue” and Agosin’s
“Always Living in Spanish.” Consider the articles’ main ideas, organization, and language.

Suggested Activity 4:
 26

Choose a literacy-related memory from your life and tell it as a brief story, using the 5
elements of narrative (listed below). Start by just writing 1-2 sentences for each of the 5
elements.

Exposition: introduction, background, and

setting

Rising action: details that build toward the

central conflict/idea/issue

Conflict: main external event or internal

conflict/idea/issue

Falling action: details that build toward the

resolution

Resolution: insight and lesson learned

 27

Article 4: Ethos, Pathos, and Logos

by Conrad Van Dyk, Concordia University

adapted by Emily Wilson

Introduction

Aristotle, an ancient Greek philosopher, was commonly known as the father of rhetoric. He
defined rhetoric as “an ability, in each [particular] case, to see the available means of
persuasion” (37). In other words, if you want to be persuasive you have to be both tactical and
tactful. You have to find the method that works for your specific audience.

Aristotle also argued that there are three primary ways to make a persuasive appeal. He called
these logos, ethos, and pathos. These three appeals are at the heart of communication. They
are sometimes referred to as the rhetorical triangle. It is helpful to think of these appeals as
connected, because sometimes they overlap.

Ethos

Ethos is the appeal to the authority and credibility of the speaker or writer. Let’s say you want to
know more about what it’s like to be a female CEO in another country. Would you want to hear
from a man or from a woman? Or let’s say you want to read a compelling argument in favor of
online learning. Would you believe a blog post published by an online-only university?
 28

We want the author or speaker to have credibility. Establishing ethos is slightly more difficult for
writers than for public speakers. If you’re giving a speech, you can give plenty of visual cues
that reveal who you are and why you should be believed. Your clothing, your gestures, your
body language—all these things influence your audience’s perception of your message.

For a writer, it’s more difficult to create a sense of ethos. One strategy is to describe your
experience in relation to the subject matter:

While doing research on the effects of lack of sleep on college students …

Having worn a school uniform myself, I can tell you …

Another way to establish ethos is to use tone to show your personality, character, and attitude
toward the subject. Compare the following statements, and ask yourself, what is my opinion of
each speaker based on how they are making their arguments?

Vaccines are just a money-making strategy for big pharmaceutical companies. They say
they care about public health, but all they care about is their own profit.

Vaccines are essential to eliminating disease, and all approved vaccines have been
proven to be highly effective, with no serious safety concerns.

I understand why people might feel hesitant about getting vaccinated. They are
concerned about side effects and wonder if getting the vaccine is worth the risk.

The first statement sounds like it’s being made by a rather opinionated person. The second
statement sounds objective and slightly detached, and the last one may come across as
empathetic and understanding. We know nothing about these speakers, and yet we get a sense
of their ethos from the tone they use to make their arguments. Ask yourself: what tone will most
likely reach your audience and help them see your arguments as credible? Sometimes
demonstrating your ethos is as simple as fairly acknowledging arguments on the other side.

It is also important to remember that grammar is part of your ethos. If you are writing an
academic paper, then following the rules of standard academic English is one way to get your
audience to take your arguments seriously. Just as it might be more difficult to believe a speaker
who is dressed very informally (e.g., shorts, t-shirt, flip-flops) in a formal setting, it might be
difficult to get people who are reading an academic paper to take your argument seriously if it is
not written using edited academic English.

Present yourself in a way that inspires trust, and then your audience will be more willing to listen
to your ideas.
 29

Pathos
Pathos is the appeal to the emotions. Anytime your writing has an emotional impact you are
dealing with pathos. Consider the following two statements:

I think we need to provide more mental health instruction.

A friend of mine lost her daughter to suicide.

The second statement appeals to the audience’s emotions of compassion and pity, and makes a
case for better mental health instruction by powerfully demonstrating a potential consequence of
lack of mental health care.

You can appeal to people’s emotions in many ways. You can make them cry, you can use
humor, you can show outrage. Even the most seemingly objective writing styles will contain
some element of pathos. A science textbook, for instance, may instill a feeling of awe at the
beauty and complexity of the universe.

Some people may argue that all emotional arguments are invalid or unimportant, but this is not
the case. Humans are not merely rational beings; we are also emotional beings. Logical
arguments alone rarely change minds. While you want to avoid emotional manipulation, you
also want to recognize and wield the power of emotion to present the most compelling argument
to your audience. Pathos is a legitimate form of persuasion.

Logos

Logos is the appeal to logic. Any time you build a case by presenting logical reasons (causal
explanations, facts, statistics, etc.), you are using logos.

Here are two examples of logos in action:

The rise in violent crime that lasted from the 1960s to the 1990s can be explained by
higher levels of lead in the atmosphere. Since leaded gasoline has been phased out,
crime levels have plummeted.

Cats should not be allowed to roam the neighborhood. A study conducted in Michigan
showed that when cats were kept on a leash or indoors, the songbird population rose by
23%.

Not every attempt at logic will persuade. Sometimes the writer may be guilty of a logical fallacy.
In other cases, the logic may be sound, but the reader may not trust the source (ethos) or may
find the reasoning cold and heartless (a lack of pathos).
 30

It is also important to note that citing valid, authoritative sources is one way to demonstrate your
ethos. If you are properly citing credible sources, your audience will view your argument as
more credible. While citations are primarily an appeal to logos, this is also an example of how
the rhetorical appeals may sometimes overlap.

It’s always best to think of all three rhetorical appeals as different pieces of the puzzle. They
don’t have to be mutually exclusive strategies. Use them in any combination that fits the
rhetorical situation.

WORKS CITED

Aristotle. On Rhetoric: A Theory of Civil Discourse. Translated by George A. Kennedy, Oxford

UP, 2007.

Suggested Activity 1:

Read the article “Why It’s a Mistake to Ban Social Media–And What to Do Instead” in
the Appendix. Identify the author’s appeals to ethos, pathos, and logos in that article.
Be prepared to discuss the evidence you found for each of those appeals, as well as
how effectively you think the author used them.

Suggested Activity 2:

Watch 5 commercials. Identify the ethos, logos, and/or pathos appeals in each
commercial.
 31

Article 5: The Rhetorical Modes

The rhetorical modes are different patterns you can use to communicate your ideas. They are
helpful ways of developing your thoughts if you are having trouble figuring out what to write.

For example, if you want to write about online learning, but you don’t know where to begin, it
can be helpful to think about the ways online learning is similar to and different from in-person
learning. That uses the rhetorical mode of comparison and contrast to develop your ideas. Or
maybe you want to think about the effects that online classes have on students’ mental health.
That uses the rhetorical mode of cause and effect. Or maybe the most powerful way to make
your argument is to tell a story about your own experiences with online learning. That would be
using narration.

These rhetorical modes are all different ways of helping you persuade. You must choose the
modes that are best suited to helping you make your argument. Most genres do not use a single
rhetorical mode. Instead, writers choose different modes to help them communicate their ideas
to their audience.

This article will introduce you to six rhetorical modes: narration, process analysis, definition,
division/classification, comparison/contrast, and cause/effect. These are some of the modes
most commonly found in different types of writing (genres). As you read about each mode,
consider where it might be useful. What kinds of arguments would be best suited to that mode?

Like the picture above, the rhetorical modes are different pathways we can choose to help us
accomplish our purpose in writing.
 32

Excerpts from Models for Writers: Short Essays for Composition, by Alfred Rosa and Paul
Eschholz, 11th Edition

Cause and Effect

Every time you answer a question that asks why, you engage in the process of causal analysis
— that is, you try to determine a cause or series of causes for a particular effect. When you
answer a question that asks what if, you try to determine what effect will result from a particular
cause. You will have many opportunities to use cause and effect in the writing you will do in
college. For example, in history, you might be asked to determine the causes for the 1991
breakup of the former Soviet Union; in political science, you might be asked to determine the
critical issues in the 2008 U.S. presidential election; in sociology, you might be asked to analyze
the effects that the Covid vaccine has had on social behavior patterns among Saudis; and in
economics, you might be asked to predict what will happen if the VAT tax is reduced or
eliminated.

Fascinated by the effects that private real estate development was having on his neighborhood,
a student writer decided to find out what was happening in the older sections of cities across
the country. In his first paragraph, Kevin Cunningham describes three possible effects (or fates)
of a city’s aging. In his second paragraph, he singles out one effect, redevelopment, and
discusses in detail the effect it has had on Hoboken, New Jersey.

One of three fates awaits the aging neighborhood.

Effect: decay Decay may continue until the neighborhood becomes a
Effect: urban slum. It may face urban renewal, with old buildings
renewal being razed and ugly new apartment houses taking
their place. Or it may undergo redevelopment, in which
the government encourages the upgrading of existing Effect:
housing stock by offering low-interest loans or outright Redevelopment

grants; thus, the original character of the neighborhood

may be retained or restored, allowing the city to keep Effects of
part of its identity. redevelopment

An example of redevelopment at its best is Hoboken,

New Jersey. In the early 1970s Hoboken was a dying
city, with rundown housing and many abandoned
buildings. However, low-interest loans enabled some
younger residents to refurbish their homes, and soon
the area began to show signs of renewed vigor. Even
outsiders moved in and rebuilt some of the abandoned
houses. Today, whole blocks have been restored, and
neighborhood life is active again. The city does well,
 33

too, because property values are higher and so are

property taxes.

Determining causes and effects is usually a complex process. One reason is that immediate
causes are readily apparent (because they are closest to the effect) and ultimate causes are not
as apparent (because they are somewhat removed and even hidden). Furthermore, ultimate
causes may bring about effects that themselves become immediate causes, thus creating a
causal chain. Consider the following causal chain: Sally, a computer salesperson, prepared
extensively for a meeting with an important client (ultimate cause), impressed the client
(immediate cause), and made a very large sale (effect). The chain did not stop there: the large
sale caused her to be promoted by her employer (effect).

A second reason causal analysis can be complex is that an effect may have several possible
or actual causes and a cause may have several possible or actual effects. An upset stomach
may be caused by eating spoiled food, but it may also be caused by overeating, flu, allergy,
nervousness, or any combination of factors. Similarly, the high cost of electricity may have
multiple effects — higher profits for utility companies, fewer sales of electrical appliances,
higher prices for other products, and the development of alternative sources of energy.

Sound reasoning and logic are present in all good writing, but they are central to any causal
analysis. Writers of believable causal analysis examine their material objectively and develop
their essays carefully. They examine methodically all causes and effects and evaluate them.
They are convinced by their own examination of the material but are not afraid to admit that
other causes and effects might exist. Above all, they do not let their own prejudices interfere
with the logic of their analyses and presentations.

Because people are accustomed to thinking of causes with their effects, they sometimes
commit an error in logic known as the “after this, therefore because of this” fallacy (in Latin,
post hoc, ergo propter hoc). This logical fallacy leads people to believe that one event
somehow caused a second event, just because the second event followed the first — that is,
they sometimes make causal connections that are not proven. For example, if students
perform better after a free breakfast program is instituted at their school, one cannot assume
that the improvement was caused by the breakfast program. There could be any number of
other causes for this effect, and a responsible writer would analyze and consider them all
before suggesting the cause.
 34

Narration
To narrate is to tell a story or to recount a series of events. Whenever you relate an incident or
use an anecdote (a very brief story) to make a point, you use narration. In its broadest sense,
narration is any account of any event or series of events. We all love to hear stories; some
people believe that sharing stories is a part of what defines us as human beings. Good stories
are interesting, sometimes suspenseful, and always instructive because they give us insights
into the human condition. Although most often associated with fiction, narration is effective and
useful in all kinds of writing.

Good narration has five essential features — a clear context; well chosen and thoughtfully
emphasized details; a logical, often chronological organization; an appropriate and consistent
point of view; and a meaningful point or purpose. Consider, for example, the following
narrative, titled “Is Your Jar Full?”

One day, an expert in time management was speaking to a group of business

students and, to drive home a point, used an illustration those students will never
forget. As he stood in front of the group of high-powered overachievers he said,
“Okay, time for a quiz,” and he pulled out a one-gallon mason jar and set it on the
table in front of him. He also produced about a dozen fist-sized rocks and carefully
placed them, one at a time, into the jar. When the jar was filled to the top and no more
rocks would fit inside, he asked, “Is this jar full?”
Everyone in the class yelled, “Yes.”
The time management expert replied, “Really?” He reached under the table and
pulled out a bucket of gravel. He dumped some gravel in and shook the jar causing
pieces of gravel to work themselves down into the spaces between the big rocks. He
then asked the group once more, “Is the jar full?” By this time the class was on to
him.
“Probably not,” one of them answered.
“Good!” he replied. He reached under the table and brought out a bucket of
sand. He started dumping the sand in the jar and it went into all of the spaces left
between the rocks and the gravel. Once more he asked the question, “Is this jar
full?”
“No!” the class shouted.
Once again he said, “Good.” Then he grabbed a pitcher of water and began to
pour it in until the jar was filled to the brim. Then he looked at the class and asked,
“What is the point of this illustration?”
One eager beaver raised his hand and said, “The point is, no matter how full your
schedule is, if you try really hard you can always fit some more things in it!”
“No,” the speaker replied, “that’s not the point. The truth this illustration teaches us
is: If you don’t put the big rocks in first, you’ll never get them in at all. What are the ‘big
rocks’ in your life — time with your loved ones, your faith, your education, your dreams,
a worthy cause, teaching or mentoring others? Remember to put these big rocks in first
 35

or you’ll never get them in at all.”

So, tonight, or in the morning, when you are reflecting on this short story, ask
yourself this question: What are the “big rocks” in my life? Then, put those in your jar
first.

This story contains all the elements of good narration. The writer begins by establishing a clear
context for her narrative by telling when, where, and to whom the action happened. She has
chosen details well, including enough details so that we know what is happening but not so
many that we become overwhelmed, confused, or bored. The writer organizes her narration
logically with a beginning that sets the scene, a middle that relates the exchange between the
time-management expert and the students, and an end that makes her point, all arranged
chronologically. She tells the story from the third person point of view. Finally, she reveals the
point of her narration: people need to think about what’s important in their lives and put these
activities first.
 36

Process Analysis
When you give someone directions to your home, demonstrate how to make ice cream, or
explain how a president is elected, you are using process analysis. Process analysis
usually arranges a series of events in order and relates them to one another, as narration and
cause and effect do, but process analysis has a different emphasis. Whereas narration tells
mainly what happens and cause and effect focuses on why it happens, process analysis tries
to explain — in detail — how it happens.

There are two types of process analysis — directional and informational. The directional type
provides instructions on how to do something. These instructions can be as brief as the
directions for making instant coffee printed on the label or as complex as the directions in a
manual for assembling a new gas grill. The purpose of directional process analysis is to give
the reader directions to follow that will lead to the desired results.

Consider these directions for sharpening a knife:

If you have never done any whittling or wood carving before, the first skill to learn is
how to sharpen your knife. You may be surprised to learn that even a brand-new knife
needs sharpening. Knives are never sold honed (finely sharpened), although some
gouges and chisels are. It is essential to learn the firm stroke on the stone that will
keep your blades sharp. The sharpening stone must be fixed in place on the table, so
that it will not move around. You can do this by placing a piece of rubber inner tube or
a thin piece of foam rubber under it. Or you can tack four strips of wood, if you have a
rough worktable, to frame the stone and hold it in place. Put a generous puddle of oil
on the stone — this will soon disappear into the surface of a new stone, and you will
need to keep adding more oil. Press the knife blade flat against the stone in the
puddle of oil, using your index finger. Whichever way the cutting edge of the knife
faces is the side of the blade that should get a little more pressure. Move the blade
around three or four times in a narrow oval about the size of your fingernail, going
counterclockwise when the sharp edge is facing right. Now turn the blade over in the
same spot on the stone, press hard, and move it around the small oval clockwise,
with more pressure on the cutting edge that faces left. Repeat the ovals, flipping the
knife blade over six or seven times, and applying lighter pressure to the blade the last
two times. Wipe the blade clean with a piece of rag or tissue and rub it flat on the
piece of leather strop at least twice on each side. Stroke away from the cutting edge to
remove the little burr of metal that may be left on the blade.
–Florence H. Pettit
 37

After first establishing her context and purpose, Pettit presents step-by-step directions for
sharpening a knife, selecting details that a novice would understand.

The informational type of process analysis, on the other hand, tells how something works,
how something is made, or how something occurs. You would use informational process
analysis if you wanted to explain how the human heart functions, how an atomic bomb
works, how hailstones are formed, how you selected the college you are attending, or how
the polio vaccine was developed. Rather than giving specific directions, informational process
analysis explains and informs. For example, you might use informational process analysis to
explain how a bill becomes a law in the US legal system.

Clarity is crucial for successful process analysis. The most effective way to explain a process
is to divide it into steps and to present those steps in a clear (usually chronological)
sequence. Transitional words and phrases such as first, next, after, and before help to
connect steps to one another. Naturally, you must be sure that no step is omitted or given out
of order. Also, you may sometimes have to explain why a certain step is necessary, especially
if it is not obvious. With intricate, abstract, or particularly difficult steps, you might use analogy
or comparison to clarify the steps for your reader.
 38

Definition

Definition allows you to communicate precisely what you want to say. At its most basic level,
you will frequently need to define key words. Your reader needs to know just what you mean
when you use unfamiliar words (such as accoutrement), words that are open to various
interpretations (such as liberal), or familiar words that are used in a particular sense.
Important terms that are not defined or that are defined inaccurately confuse readers and
hamper communication. Consider the opening paragraph from a student essay titled
“Secular Mantras”:

Remember The Little Engine That Could? That’s the story about the tiny
locomotive that hauled the train over the mountain when the big, rugged locomotives
wouldn’t. Remember how the Little Engine strained and heaved and chugged, “I
think I can — I think I can — I think I can” until she reached the top of the
mountain? That’s a perfect example of a secular mantra in action. You probably
have used a secular mantra (pronounce it “mantruh”) already today. It’s any word or
group of words that helps you use your energy when you consciously repeat it to
yourself. You must understand two qualities about secular mantras to be able to
recognize one.

Student Keith Eldred engages his readers with the story of the Little Engine and then uses
that example to lead into a definition of secular mantra. He concludes the paragraph with a
sentence that tells readers what is coming next.

There are three basic ways to define a word, and each is useful in its own way. The first
method is to give a synonym — that is, use a word that has nearly the same meaning as the
word you wish to define (face for countenance, nervousness for anxiety). No
two words have exactly the same meaning, but you can nevertheless pair an unfamiliar word
with a familiar one and thereby clarify your meaning. Another way to define a word quickly,
often within a single sentence, is to give a formal definition — that is, place the term in a
general class and then distinguish it from other members of that class by describing its
particular characteristics. For example:

Word: A watch

Class: is a mechanical device

Characteristics: that is used for telling time and is usually carried or worn.

See if you can identify the word, class, and characteristics in the following sentence:
Semantics is an area of linguistics that is concerned with the study of the meaning of words.

The third method of defining a word is to give an extended definition — that is, to use one or
more paragraphs (or even an entire essay) to define a new or difficult term or to rescue a
 39

controversial word from misconceptions that may obscure its meaning. In an extended
definition, you provide your readers with information about the meaning of a single word, a
concept, or an object. You must consider what your readers already know, or think they know,
about your topic. Are there popular misconceptions that need to be corrected? Are some
aspects of the topic seldom considered? Have particular experiences helped you understand
the topic? You can use synonyms or formal definitions in an extended definition, but you must
convince readers to accept your particular understanding of it.

In the following sequence, the writers provide an extended definition of freedom, an important
but elusive concept:

Choosing between negative alternatives often seems like no choice at all. Take
the case of a woman trying to decide whether to stay married to her inconsiderate,
incompetent husband, or get a divorce. She doesn’t want to stay with him, but she
feels divorce is a sign of failure and will stigmatize her socially. Or think of the
decision faced by many young American men [many] years ago, when they were
forced to choose between leaving their country and family or being sent to Vietnam.
When we face decisions involving only alternatives we see as negatives, we feel
so little freedom that we twist and turn searching for another choice with some
positive characteristics.
Freedom is a popular word. Individuals talk about how they feel free with one
person and not with another, or how their bosses encourage or discourage freedom
on the job. The feeling of freedom is so important that people say they’re ready to die
for it, and supposedly have. Still, most people have trouble coming up with a precise
definition of freedom. They give answers describing specific situations — “Freedom
means doing what I want to do,” or “Freedom means not having my mother tell me
when to come home from a party” — rather than a general definition covering many
situations. The idea they seem to be expressing is that freedom is associated with
making decisions, and that other people sometimes limit the number of alternatives
from which they can select.
–Jerald M. Jellison and John H. Harvey
 40

Division and Classification

A writer practices division by separating a class of things or ideas into categories

following a clear principle or basis. In the following paragraph, journalist Robert MacNeil
establishes categories of speech according to their level of formality:

It fascinates me how differently we all speak in different circumstances. We have

levels of formality, as in our clothing. There are very formal occasions, often requiring
written English: the job application or the letter to the editor — the dark suit,
serious-tie language, with everything pressed and the lint brushed off. There is our
less formal out-in-the-world language — a more comfortable suit, but still respectable.
There is language for close friends in the evenings, on weekends —
bluejeans-and-sweatshirt language, when it’s good to get the tie off. There is family
language, even more relaxed, full of grammatical short cuts, family slang, echoes of
old jokes that have become intimate shorthand — the language of pajamas and
uncombed hair.

–Robert MacNeil

With classification, on the other hand, a writer groups individual objects or ideas into already
established categories. Division and classification can operate separately but often accompany
each other. Here, for example, is a passage about levers in which the writer first discusses
generally how levers work. In the second paragraph, the writer uses division to establish three
categories of levers and then uses classification to group individual levers into those categories:

Every lever has one fixed point called the “fulcrum” and is acted on by two forces —
the “effort” (exertion of hand muscles) and the “weight” (object’s resistance). Levers
work according to a simple formula: the effort (how hard you push or pull) multiplied
by its distance from the fulcrum (effort arm) equals the weight multiplied by its
distance from the fulcrum (weight arm). Thus two pounds of effort exerted at a
distance of four feet from the fulcrum will raise eight pounds located one foot from
the fulcrum.
There are three types of levers, conventionally called “first kind,” “second
kind,” and “third kind.” Levers of the first kind have the fulcrum located between the
effort and the weight. Examples are a pump handle, an oar, a crowbar, a weighing
balance, a pair of scissors, and a pair of pliers. Levers of the second kind have the
weight in the middle and magnify the effort. Examples are the handcar crank and
doors. Levers of the third kind, such as a power shovel or a baseball batter’s
forearm, have the effort in the middle and always magnify the distance.

In writing, division and classification are affected directly by the writer’s practical purpose —
what the writer wants to explain or prove. That purpose determines the class of things or
ideas being divided and classified. For instance, a writer might divide television programs
according to their audiences (adults, families, or children) and then classify individual
 41

programs into each category to show that television networks value certain audiences more
than others. A writer who is concerned about violence in television programming would divide
programs into those with and without fights and murders and then would classify several
programs into those categories. Other writers with different purposes might divide television
programs differently (by the day and time of broadcast, for example, or by the number of
women featured in prominent roles) and then would classify individual programs accordingly.
The following guidelines can help you use division and classification in your writing:

1. Identify a clear purpose, and use a principle of division that is appropriate to that purpose.
If you want to examine the common characteristics of four-year athletic scholarship
recipients at your college or university, you might consider the following principles of
division — program of study, sport, place of origin, or gender. In this case, it would not be
useful to divide students on the basis of their favorite type of music because that seems
irrelevant to your purpose.
2. Divide your subject into unique categories. An item can belong to only one category. For
example, don’t divide students as men, women, and athletes.
3. Make your division and classification complete. Your categories should account for all
items in a subject class. In dividing students on the basis of geographic origin, for
example, don’t consider only the United States because such a division does not account
for foreign students. For your classification to be complete, every student must be placed
in one of the established categories.
4. State the conclusion that your division and classification lead you to draw. For example,
after conducting your division and classification of athletic scholarship recipients, you might
conclude that the majority of male athletes with athletic scholarships come from the
western United States.
 42

Comparison and Contrast

A comparison points out the ways that two or more people, places, or things are alike. A
contrast points out how they differ. The subjects of a comparison or contrast should be in the
same class or general category; if they have nothing in common, there is no good reason for
setting them side by side.

The function of any comparison or contrast is to clarify and explain. The writer’s purpose may
be simply to inform or to make readers aware of similarities or differences that are interesting
and significant in themselves. Or the writer may explain something unfamiliar by comparing it
with something very familiar, perhaps explaining the game of squash by comparing it with
tennis. Finally, the writer can point out the superiority of one thing by contrasting it with another
— for example, showing that one product is the best by contrasting it with all its competitors.

As a writer, you have two main options for organizing a comparison or contrast: the
subject-by-subject pattern or the point-by-point pattern.
For a short essay comparing and contrasting the cities of Riyadh and Dammam as places to
live, you would probably follow the subject-by-subject pattern of organization. With this pattern,
you first discuss the points you wish to make about one city and then discuss the
corresponding points for the other city. An outline of the body of your essay might look like this:

Subject-by-Subject Pattern
I. Riyadh
A. Climate
B. Fun things to do (parks, events, etc.)
D. Accommodations

II. Dammam
A. Climate
B. Fun things to do (parks, events, etc.)
D. Accommodations
The subject-by-subject pattern presents a unified discussion of each city by emphasizing the
cities and not the four points of comparison. Because these points are relatively few, readers
should easily remember what was said about Riyadh’s climate when you later discuss
Dammam’s climate and should be able to make the appropriate connections between them.

For a somewhat longer essay comparing and contrasting solar energy and wind energy,
however, you should consider the point-by-point pattern of organization. With this pattern,
your essay is organized according to the various points of comparison. Discussion alternates
between solar and wind energy for each point of comparison. An outline of the body of your
essay might look like this:
 43

Point-by-Point Pattern
I. Installation expenses
A. Solar
B. Wind
II. Efficiency
A. Solar
B. Wind
III. Operating costs
A. Solar
B. Wind
IV. Convenience
A. Solar
B. Wind
V. Maintenance
A. Solar
B. Wind

With the point-by-point pattern, the writer makes immediate comparisons between solar and
wind energy so that readers can consider each similarity and difference separately.

Each organizational pattern has its advantages. In general, the subject-by-subject pattern is
useful in short essays where few points are to be considered, and the point-by-point pattern
is preferable in long essays where numerous points are under consideration.

A good essay of comparison and contrast tells readers something significant that they do not
already know — that is, it must do more than merely point out the obvious. As a rule, therefore,
writers tend to draw contrasts between things that are usually perceived as being similar or
comparisons between things usually perceived as being different. In fact, comparison and
contrast often go together. For example, an essay about the cities of Dubai and Abu Dhabi
might begin by showing how much they are alike but end with a series of contrasts revealing
how much they differ. A consumer magazine might report the contrasting claims made by six car
manufacturers and then go on to demonstrate that the cars all actually do much the same thing
in the same way.
 44

Suggested Activity 1: Return to the article “Why It’s a Mistake to Ban Social Media” in the
Appendix. Identify at least THREE rhetorical modes the author uses in that article. Be
prepared to discuss which modes you found, what evidence points to those modes, and how
effectively they help the author make her point.

If you have more time, return to the opinion editorial you analyzed earlier and identify
rhetorical modes used in that article as well.

Suggested Activity 2: Returning to the scenario from week one, imagine once again that
your group is a research team that has recently discovered that exercising at a moderate level
at least three times a week improves memory. You conducted a study of college students and
found that those who exercised three times a week prior to a test performed an average of 7%
better on the test than those in the control group, who did not exercise. You are working on
presenting these findings in an article for an online magazine popular with college students.

Write 3 short outlines in which you present this material using three DIFFERENT rhetorical
modes other than division/classification (because it is used in the example below). Here is an
example:

MODE: division/classification

Article title: 3 Types of Memory (and How You Can Improve Them!)

Outline:

I. Working memory
A. Explanation of what it is
B. How to improve it (sleep)
II. Sensory memory
A. Explanation of what it is
B. How to improve it (foods rich in Vitamin E)
III. Short-term memory
A. Explanation of what it is
B. How to improve it (exercising 3 times per week, using data from the study to
prove the effectiveness of this technique)
 45

Suggested Activity 3: Friendships are meant to give us connection, support, and enjoyment.
There are many different types of friendships that serve different purposes. Divide friendships
into at least 3 different categories and explain (and provide an example) for each category.
 46

Article 6: Rhetorical Analysis &

Structuring Academic Arguments
A ‘rhetorical analysis’ sounds intimidating. But it is just noticing things about someone else’s
writing. In a rhetorical analysis, you notice how the author is using different writing techniques or
strategies to make a point. This will help you become a stronger writer. As you notice how
someone else is using different strategies, you can consider how you might use them in your
own writing. Examining how something is written is a great way to teach yourself any new genre
that you might need to learn.

For our second writing activity, we will be close reading a text and writing a one-paragraph
analysis of that text. This is to help you understand how authors craft their arguments and
prepare to craft your own argument in the Opinion Editorial.

To help you understand what rhetorical analysis looks like, this article will walk you through a
step-by-step analysis of Dr. Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream” speech (if you’ve never heard
of this speech before, read it briefly here or watch it here). Then we will take a closer look at
paragraphs taken from a sample rhetorical analysis essay, and we will walk through 2 different
color-coding activities that will help you notice different features of this unique genre.

First, I need to read this essay carefully and write notes about what I notice. I’m looking for the
three rhetorical appeals (ethos/pathos/logos), patterns of organization, rhetorical modes
(comparison/contrast, narration, cause/effect, etc.), and any other features that really stand out
about how this speech is written. Here is a Google doc where you can read my notes on the
speech.

Second, I need to think about Dr. King’s audience, purpose, and genre. As I write the essay, I’m
going to constantly be thinking about why Dr. King might have chosen the rhetorical elements
he did for THIS audience to accomplish THIS purpose using THIS genre.
 47

● Audience. He is speaking to a large crowd of supporters. Most of his speech is

addressed to them. But this speech is also televised. So he knows he is speaking to
some people who may not agree with him.
● Purpose. His primary purpose seems to be to inspire his supporters to persist in legal,
non-violent protest and to not give up in the quest for justice. A secondary purpose might
be to persuade people who don’t agree with him that his cause is valid and just.
● Genre. This is a speech, so he needs to use elements like repetition to make it
memorable for his listeners.

Now I am ready to choose the an element that I will analyze for my writing activity and put
them into a thesis statement. The elements I think are the most important are pathos, repetition,
comparisons, and organization from specific to general.

My thesis template is “Dr. King uses __[element of King’s rhetoric]__, in order to __[purpose]__.”

So here is my thesis statement:

“Dr. King uses strong pathos in order to inspire his audience of supporters to work
toward a great dream of justice.”

My topic sentence might look like this:

King appeals to pathos, making his audience feel outrage and inspiration alternately, in
order to motivate his listeners to persist in non-violent protest and build a more just
future.

I need quotes or paraphrases from the speech that show him appealing to these two different
emotions. My annotations help me find those examples quickly. The finished body paragraph
might look like this:

King appeals to pathos, making his audience feel outrage and inspiration alternately, in
order to motivate his listeners to persist in non-violent protest and build a more just
future. He also makes them feel outrage when he reminds them of the unjust treatment
they have endured. He cites specific examples--including “police brutality,” signs that
read “For Whites Only,” and being denied lodging in motels--that demonstrate the
inequality against which his audience is fighting. However, while he wants his audience
to remain stirred up against injustice, he does not primarily want them to feel rage. As
the speech moves forward, King uses a different appeal to a more positive emotion:
inspiration and hope. He repeats the words “I have a dream” numerous times and paints
a picture of a country that is a “beautiful symphony of brotherhood” (King 1963). Toward
the end of the speech, he repeats the phrase “let freedom ring,” a line from the patriotic
song “America the Beautiful,” as a means of encouraging his audience to keep working
toward a better world. King effectively balances the two different appeals to pathos. He
needs to acknowledge his audience’s suffering, but his primary purpose is to inspire
 48

people with hope. In the end, King accomplishes this purpose effectively by ending on
that high note of freedom ringing from many different mountain tops across the country.

The sentence in yellow is the topic sentence. It identifies the element the paragraph will discuss
[pathos]. IDENTIFICATION of the author’s rhetorical strategies is step 1.

The phrases and sentences in blue are EVIDENCE. This is where I use specific evidence from
Dr. King’s speech, in the form of short quotes and paraphrases, to support my claims about
what rhetorical elements he is using.

The phrases and sentences in green are ANALYSIS. This is where I explain how Dr. King is
using those rhetorical elements to accomplish his purpose for his audience. This might also
include evaluation (judgment) of Dr. King’s use of the rhetorical elements. I state why I think his
appeals to pathos are so effective in accomplishing his purpose.

IDENTIFICATION, EVIDENCE, and ANALYSIS are the three moves we make in rhetorical
analysis. Your paragraph for your writing activity should have all three of these elements.

As you write your own rhetorical analysis, carefully choose the element you want to analyze
(make sure there are multiple examples) and always think about how this element is helping the
author accomplish his purpose. The template “The author uses _____ in order to _____” is a
helpful way to think about structuring your paragraph.

Now that we know the three key sections of every body paragraph in a rhetorical analysis paper,
let’s take a closer look at how to integrate quotations/citations, transition words, and precise
vocabulary into our rhetorical analyses. The paragraph below is taken from the paper “A
Lopsided Pyramid: An Analysis of Michael Greger’s Call to Ditch the Dairy.”
 49

Sample Color-Coded Rhetorical Analysis Paragraph from a Rhetorical Analysis

Include and color-code/highlight the following elements in the sample paragraph:

Yellow for the topic sentence. It identifies the element the paragraph will discuss.

Blue for EVIDENCE. This is where you see the author using specific evidence from Dr. King’s
speech, in the form of short quotes and paraphrases, to support their claims about what
rhetorical elements King is using.

Green is ANALYSIS. This is where the author explains how Dr. King is using those rhetorical
elements to accomplish his purpose for his audience. This might also include evaluation
(judgment) of Dr. King’s use of the rhetorical elements.

King appeals to pathos, making his audience feel outrage and inspiration alternately, in
order to motivate his listeners to persist in non-violent protest and build a more just future. He
makes them feel outrage when he reminds them of the unjust treatment they have endured. He
also cites specific examples--including police brutality, signs that read “For Whites Only,” and
being denied lodging in motels--that demonstrate the inequality against which his audience is
fighting. However, while he wants his audience to remain stirred up against injustice, he does
not primarily want them to feel rage. As the speech moves forward, King uses a different appeal
to a more positive emotion: inspiration and hope. He repeats the words “I have a dream”
numerous times and paints a picture of a country that is a “beautiful symphony of brotherhood”
(King, 1963). Toward the end of the speech, he repeats the phrase “let freedom ring,” a line from
the patriotic song “America the Beautiful,” as a means of encouraging his audience to keep
working toward a better world. King effectively balances the two different appeals to pathos. He
needs to acknowledge his audience’s suffering, but his primary purpose is to inspire people with
hope. In the end, King accomplishes this purpose effectively by ending on a high note of
freedom ringing from many different mountain tops across the country.
 50

Structuring Academic Arguments

Elements of a paper

Most academic papers include the following elements:

● Introduction
○ Hook (gets the reader’s attention and focuses them on the topic of the paper)
○ Thesis Statement (states the paper’s main idea)
● Body paragraphs
○ A topic sentence near the beginning of each paragraph
○ Supporting details in each paragraph
● Conclusion
○ Summary of main points
○ Takeaway for the reader

Take a look at the following annotated essay (taken from “What Cancel Culture Shares with
Incarceration”) and notice how each element is present.

Cancel culture has been a popular topic in recent years because of

its rise on social media. Cancel culture, or “call out” culture, is
The author begins with a
defined as a form of ostracism in which a person, typically a somewhat neutral tone
and introduces us to the
public figure, is “canceled” for their problematic behavior. This definition of cancel
can often result in the person targeted being shamed in online culture. By the end of the
first paragraph, however,
forums, losing followers, losing contracts with companies, and we can clearly see that
this will be an argument
even being fired. Often, the stated goal of cancel culture is to hold
AGAINST cancel culture.
people accountable for their words and actions. However, cancel
Here, in the thesis
culture does more harm than good, because it does not actually statement, the author lists
hold people accountable in healthy ways and it does not align with 2 reasons why cancel
culture is more harmful
restorative justice practices that offer a chance for redemption. than helpful.

Cancel culture isn't the only nor the most effective way to hold
This topic sentence
someone accountable. True accountability begins with clearly relates to the
thesis statement and
acknowledging the harm that’s been caused and taking steps to shows the main topic of
this paragraph:
 51

repair that harm. It also requires society to see the person that’s accountability. The
supporting details explain
caused harm as fully human and capable of change. Because why cancel culture does
cancel culture does not take this into account, it doesn’t address not actually work well as
a form of accountability.
the root issues and does not provide a path toward real change.
When we cancel people, we deny them the opportunity to truly
repair the harm they’ve caused and to address the conditions that
contributed to that harm so that that harm is not repeated. This is
what true accountability looks like.
This topic sentence
Better accountability can be found in enacting restorative justice. transitions from the
A core principle of restorative justice is that no one is the sum paragraph about
accountability to talk
total of their worst mistakes; everyone is redeemable. What about restorative justice.
Supporting details go on
redemption looks like is answering for wrongdoing and taking to contrast restorative
steps to repair the harm that was done. This process is not easy. It justice with the “shame
and blame” mindset of
is much easier to shame, to blame, to dehumanize. In the long run, cancel culture.
however, these actions do not create a better world. People keep
making the same mistakes over and over again. We must stop
seeing people as disposable and give them opportunities to learn
from their mistakes and assist in repairing the harm that they have
caused if we want to create that better world.

It is true that there are situations and people that deserve to be In the final body
paragraph, just before the
called out and canceled. This is because of the ways in which conclusion, the author
addresses the opposing
power flows through systems in the United States. It is no secret argument. She concedes
that there are systems in place in this country that benefit one that there may be times
when cancelling someone
group of people while oppressing others. People in positions of is necessary to hold a
powerful person
power need to be called out when they cause harm or when they accountable.
oppress others. However, a disproportionate number of people
who are cancelled are not members of these privileged groups.
Instead, they are easy targets.

While cancel culture has a place in society, it is a very limited one. In the conclusion, the
author returns to her main
 52

Our society would see greater benefits if we helped people see the point and gives us a
takeaway: what we can
harm they caused and then provided them with opportunities for gain as a society from
redemption and resolution. We gain nothing from viewing one seeing each other as fully
human.
another as disposable and everything in seeing each other as
whole human beings with the capacity to learn from our mistakes.

How do I write an intro, conclusion, and body paragraph?

Traditional Academic Essays In Three Parts, by Dr. Liliana Naydan. The University of
Michigan

Part I: The Introduction

An introduction is usually the first paragraph of your academic essay. A good introduction does
2 things:

1. Gets the reader’s attention. You can get a reader’s attention by telling a story, providing a
statistic, pointing out something strange or interesting, providing and discussing an interesting
quote, etc. Be interesting and find some original angle from which to engage others in your
topic.

2. Provides a specific and debatable thesis statement. A good thesis statement makes a
debatable point, meaning a point someone might disagree with and argue against. It also
serves as a roadmap for what you argue in your paper (more about thesis statements below).

Part II: The Body Paragraphs

Body paragraphs help you prove your thesis and move you along a compelling
trajectory from your introduction to your conclusion. If your thesis is a simple one, you
might not need a lot of body paragraphs to prove it. If it’s more complicated, you’ll need more
body paragraphs. An easy way to remember the parts of a body paragraph is to think of them
as the MEAT of your essay:

Main Idea. The part of a topic sentence that states the main idea of the body paragraph. All
of the sentences in the paragraph connect to it. Keep in mind that main ideas are…

● like labels. They appear in the first sentence of the paragraph and tell your reader
what’s inside the paragraph.
● arguable. They’re not statements of fact; they’re debatable points that you prove with
evidence.
● focused. Make a specific point in each paragraph and then prove that point.
 53

Evidence. The parts of a paragraph that prove the main idea. You might include different types
of evidence in different sentences. Keep in mind that different disciplines have different ideas
about what counts as evidence and they adhere to different citation styles. Examples of
evidence include…

● quotations and/or paraphrases from sources.

● facts, e.g. statistics or findings from studies.
● narratives and/or descriptions, e.g. your own experiences.

Analysis. The parts of a paragraph that explain the evidence. Make sure you tie the evidence
you provide back to the paragraph’s main idea. In other words, discuss the evidence. You will
often need to choose a rhetorical mode that will help you explain and analyze the significance of
your evidence.

Transition. The part of a paragraph that helps you move fluidly from the last paragraph.
Transitions appear in topic sentences along with main ideas, and they look both backward and
forward in order to help you connect your ideas for your reader. Don’t end paragraphs with
transitions; start with them.

Keep in mind that MEAT does not occur in that order. The “Transition” and the “Main Idea” often
combine to form the first sentence—the topic sentence—and then paragraphs contain multiple
sentences of evidence and analysis. For example, a paragraph might look like this:
T.M.E.E.A.A.A.

Part III: The Conclusion

A conclusion is the last paragraph of your essay, and it typically does one of two things—or, of
course, it can do both:

1. Summarizes the argument. Some instructors expect you not to say anything new in your
conclusion. They just want you to restate your main points. Especially if you’ve made a long
and complicated argument, it’s useful to restate your main points for your reader by the time
you’ve gotten to your conclusion. If you opt to do so, keep in mind that you should use different
language than you used in your introduction and your body paragraphs. The introduction and
conclusion shouldn’t be the same.

2. Explains the significance of the argument. Some instructors want you to avoid restating
your main points; they instead want you to explain your argument’s significance. In other
words, they want you to answer the “so what” question by giving your reader a clearer
sense of why your argument matters. They may want you to provide your readers with a clear
takeaway--something to remember from your paper.

● For example, your argument might be significant to studies of a certain time period.
● It might be significant to a certain geographical region.
 54

● It might influence how your readers think about the future. You might even opt to
speculate about the future and/or call your readers to action in your conclusion.

Thesis Statements

Source: The Writing Center at the University of North Carolina

Introduction

Writing in college often takes the form of persuasion—convincing others that you have an
interesting, logical point of view on the subject you are studying. Persuasion is a skill you
practice regularly in your daily life. You persuade your roommate to clean up, your parents to let
you borrow the car, your friend to vote for your favorite candidate or policy. In college, course
assignments often ask you to make a persuasive case in writing. You are asked to convince
your reader of your point of view. This form of persuasion, often called academic argument,
follows a predictable pattern in writing. After a brief introduction of your topic, you state your
point of view on the topic directly and often in one sentence. This sentence is the thesis
statement, and it serves as a summary of the argument you’ll make in the rest of your paper.

What is a thesis statement?

A thesis statement:

● tells the reader how you will interpret the significance of the subject matter
under discussion.
● is a road map for the paper; in other words, it tells the reader what to expect
from the rest of the paper.
● directly answers the question or responds to the prompt of the writing
assignment. A thesis is an interpretation of a question or subject, not the
subject itself. The subject, or topic, of an essay might be World War II or Moby
Dick; a thesis must then offer a way to understand the war or the novel.
● makes a claim that others might dispute.
● is usually a single sentence near the beginning of your paper (most often, at
the end of the first paragraph) that presents your argument to the reader. The
rest of the paper, the body of the essay, gathers and organizes evidence that
will persuade the reader of the logic of your interpretation.
 55

How do I create a thesis?

A thesis is the result of a lengthy thinking process. Formulating a thesis is not the first thing you
do after reading an essay assignment. Before you develop an argument on any topic, you have
to brainstorm ideas, look for possible relationships between known facts (such as surprising
contrasts or similarities), and think about the significance of these relationships. Once you do
this thinking, you will probably have a “working thesis” that presents a basic or main idea and an
argument that you think you can support with evidence. Both the argument and your thesis are
likely to need adjustment along the way.

Writers use all kinds of techniques to stimulate their thinking and to help them clarify
relationships or comprehend the broader significance of a topic and arrive at a thesis statement.

How do I know if my thesis is strong?

If there’s time, run it by your instructor or make an appointment at the Academic Success Center
to get some feedback. Even if you do not have time to get advice elsewhere, you can do some
thesis evaluation of your own. When reviewing your first draft and its working thesis, ask
yourself the following:

● Do I answer the question and/or respond to the prompt? Re-reading the

question prompt after constructing a working thesis can help you fix an
argument that misses the focus of the writing assignment. If the prompt isn’t
phrased as a question, try to rephrase it. For example, “Discuss the effect of X
on Y” can be rephrased as “What is the effect of X on Y?”
● Have I taken a position that others might challenge or oppose? If your
thesis simply states facts that no one would, or even could, disagree with, it’s
possible that you are simply providing a summary, rather than making an
argument.
● Is my thesis statement specific enough? Thesis statements that are too
vague often do not have a strong argument. If your thesis contains words like
“good” or “successful,” see if you could be more specific: why is something
“good”; what specifically makes something “successful”?
● Does my thesis pass the “So what?” test? If a reader’s first response is
likely to be “So what?” then you need to clarify, to forge a relationship, or to
connect to a larger issue.
 56

● Does my essay support my thesis specifically and without wandering? If

your thesis and the body of your essay do not seem to go together, one of them
has to change. It’s okay to change your working thesis to reflect things you
have figured out in the course of writing your paper. Remember, always
reassess and revise your writing as necessary.
● Does my thesis pass the “how and why?” test? If a reader’s first response
is “how?” or “why?” your thesis may be too open-ended and lack guidance for
the reader. See what you can add to give the reader a better take on your
position right from the beginning.

Examples:
Suppose you are taking a course on contemporary communication, and the instructor hands out
the following essay assignment: “Discuss the impact of social media on public awareness.”
Looking back at your notes, you might start with this working thesis:

Social media impacts public awareness in both positive and negative ways.

You can use the questions above to help you revise this general statement into a stronger
thesis.

● Do I answer the question? You can analyze this if you rephrase “discuss the impact” as
“what is the impact?” This way, you can see that you’ve answered the question only very
generally with the vague “positive and negative ways.”
● Have I taken a position that others might challenge or oppose? Not likely. Only
people who maintain that social media has a solely positive or solely negative impact
could disagree.
● Is my thesis statement specific enough? No. What are the positive effects? What are
the negative effects?
● Does my thesis pass the “how and why?” test? No. Why are they positive? How are
they positive? What are their causes? Why are they negative? How are they negative?
What are their causes?
● Does my thesis pass the “So what?” test? Not really. It is so general that it does not
give the audience something specific to care about.
 57

After thinking about your answers to these questions, you decide to focus on the one impact you
feel strongly about and have strong evidence for:

Because not every voice on social media is reliable, people have become much more
critical consumers of information, and thus, more informed voters.

This version is a much stronger thesis. It answers the question, takes a specific position that
others can challenge, and it gives a sense of why it matters.

Suggested Activity 1: Take a look at the following thesis statements written below. Label
them as STRONG or WEAK. For the weak ones, identify the problem(s) from the following
list:
1. Not a position that others might challenge or oppose.
2. Not specific enough (too vague or general).
3. Does not pass the “so what?” test OR the “how or why?” test.
Then revise the weak thesis statements to make them stronger.

Thesis statements:
1. The space program is good and should be funded.
2. People should eat fewer sugary foods and more healthy foods.
3. The best way to get people to eat fewer unhealthy foods is to put a high tax on those
foods.
4. Smart phones have positive and negative impacts on teens.
5. The comparisons encouraged by social media have a negative impact on teens’ body
image.
6. Recycling is one way we can save the planet, and everyone should be encouraged to
recycle.
7. A recycling program at Alfaisal is necessary for our planet’s health and will only be
successful through a great marketing campaign, more clearly labeled containers, and
strong incentives.

Suggested Activity 2: Return to one of the articles in the appendix (such as one of the
opinion editorials). Put the article into a version that can be annotated (print out a copy so that
you can write on it, upload it into Google docs so that you can comment on it, etc.). Then do
the following:

● Write a note about what kind of introduction the author uses and whether or not you
think it’s effective (and why).
● Underline the thesis statement. (Note that some articles don’t have conventional thesis
statement; just try as best you can to find the main idea of the paper.)
 58

● Draw a box around what you think is the best topic sentence and make a note about
why it is so effective.
● Draw a # next to an especially persuasive supporting detail and make a note about
why you think it is so persuasive.
● Put a * next to a takeaway or “so what?” in the conclusion. Write a note about whether
or not you think the conclusion is effective (and why).
 59

Article 7: Grammar

ELEVEN COMMON ERRORS: A STUDENT SELF-EDITING GUIDE

Source: The Writing Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison

Why does spelling matter? Are grammar rules there just to make my life more difficult? If
people understand what I’m saying, why does it matter how I say it? If these questions have
ever crossed your mind, you’re not alone. The rules governing grammar, spelling, and
punctuation can seem tedious and even pointless to follow, especially since they tend to
change over time. But the reason it’s important to pay attention to things like grammar and
spelling has less to do with getting it “correct” and more to do with making sure your audience
listens to your message. Imagine if you bought tickets to see a prominent speaker give a talk
about an important issue. You file into the auditorium, sit down, silence your phone, and wait
expectantly. When the speaker comes out on stage, he’s wearing a clown suit! Are you still
able to hear the words that he is saying? Yes. Are you listening to him? No. You’re too
distracted by what he’s wearing. Even if he has brilliant ideas, you won’t take them very
seriously because of how he’s dressed. It’s the same with following the conventions of
standard edited academic English when we engage in academic writing. We want our
audience to take us seriously. Grammar matters because it is how we “dress” our writing. Just
as we dress ourselves differently when we attend different events, we “dress” our writing
differently for different audiences. Grammar is part of our ethos.

This is a list of some of the most common errors in SEAE (standard edited academic English)
 60

that students make in their papers. Each error is very briefly defined and examples are
provided. This is intended to be a review and a reference for you. If you are not familiar with
these terms, you will need to do a bit more research and work in order to learn them. Once
you know how to identify them and fix them, you will be better able to edit your papers, build
your ethos, and make sure that nothing distracts from your ideas.

1. Sentence Fragments. Make sure each word group you have punctuated as a
sentence contains a grammatically complete and independent thought that can
stand alone as an acceptable sentence.

Incorrect: Tests of the biologists’ data have produced some curious findings. For example,
the pollen of forty-eight plants native to the Middle East.
Revised: Tests of the biologists’ have produced some curious findings. For example, they
found the pollen of forty-eight plants native to the Middle East.

Incorrect: Scientists report no human deaths due to excessive caffeine consumption.

Although caffeine does cause convulsions and death in certain animals.
Revised: Scientists report no human deaths due to excessive caffeine consumption,
although caffeine does cause convulsions and death in certain animals.

2. Misplaced and Dangling Modifiers. Place modifiers near the words they describe; be sure
the modified words actually appear in the sentence.

Incorrect: When writing a proposal, an original task is set for research [Who is writing a
proposal?]
Revised: When writing a proposal, a scholar sets an original task for research.

Incorrect: Many tourists visit Arlington National Cemetery, where veterans and military
personnel are buried every day from 9:00 a.m.until 5:00 p.m.
Revised: Every day from 9:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m., many tourists visit Arlington National
Cemetery, where veterans and military personnel are buried.

3. Faulty Parallelism. Be sure you use grammatically equal sentence elements to express
two or more matching ideas or items in a series.

Incorrect: The candidate’s goals include winning the election, a health program, and
education.
Revised: The candidate’s goals include winning the election, enacting a national health
program, and improving the educational system.

Incorrect: Some critics are not so much opposed to capital punishment as postponing it for
so long.
Revised: Some critics are not so much opposed to sentencing convicts to capital
punishment as they are to postponing executions for so long.

4. Unclear Pronoun Reference. Pronouns must clearly refer to definite referents [nouns]. Use
 61

it, they, that, these, those, and which carefully to prevent confusion.

Incorrect: Einstein was a brilliant mathematician. This is how he was able to explain the
workings of the universe.
Revised: Einstein, who was a brilliant mathematician, used his quantitative ability to
explain the workings of the universe.

Incorrect: Because Senator Martin is less interested in the environment than in

economic development, she sometimes neglects it.
Revised: Because of her interest in economic development, Senator Martin sometimes
neglects the environment.

5. Pronoun Agreement. Be sure that each pronoun agrees in number (singular or plural) with
the noun to which it refers (its antecedent or referent).

Incorrect: When a candidate runs for office, they must expect to have their personal life
scrutinized.
Revised: When candidates run for office, they must expect to have their personal lives
scrutinized.

Incorrect: According to tenets of the “new urbanism,” everyone needs to consider the
relationship of their house to the surrounding community.
Revised: According to tenets of the “new urbanism,” everyone needs to consider the
relationship of his or her house to the surrounding community.

6. Incorrect Pronoun Case. Determine whether the pronoun is being used as a subject,
object, or possessive in the sentence, and select the pronoun form to match.

Incorrect: Castro’s principles inevitably led to a conflict between he and President

Kennedy.
Revised: Castro’s principles inevitably led to a conflict between him and President
Kennedy.

Incorrect: My mother gave my brother and I some money to go to the store.

Revised: My mother gave my brother and me some money to go to the store.

7. Omitted Commas. Use commas to signal nonrestrictive or nonessential material to

prevent confusion, and to indicate relationships among ideas and sentence parts.

Incorrect: When it comes to eating people differ in their tastes.

Revised: When it comes to eating, people differ in their tastes.

Incorrect: The Huns who were Mongolian invaded Gaul in 451.

Revised: The Huns, who were Mongolian, invaded Gaul in 451. [“Who were Mongolian”
adds information but does not change the meaning of the sentence because Huns were a
Mongolian people; it is therefore nonessential and should be set apart with commas.]
 62

8. Superfluous Commas. Unnecessary commas make sentences difficult to read.

Incorrect: Field trips are required, in several courses, such as, botany and
geology.
Revised: Field trips are required in several courses, such as botany and
geology.

Incorrect: The term “scientific illiteracy,” has become almost a cliché in

educational circles.
Revised: The term “scientific illiteracy” has become almost a cliché in educational
circles.

9. Comma Splice. Do not link two independent clauses with a comma (unless you also
use a coordinating conjunction and, or, but, for, nor, so yet). Instead use a period or
semicolon, or rewrite the sentence.

Incorrect: In 1952 Japan’s gross national product was one third that of France, by the
late 1970s it was larger than the GNPs of France and Britain combined.
Revised: In 1952 Japan’s gross national product was one third that of France. By the late
1970s it was larger than the GNPs of France and Britain combined.

Incorrect: Diseased coronary arteries are often surgically bypassed, half of bypass grafts
fail within ten years.
Revised: Diseased coronary arteries are often surgically bypassed; however, half of
bypass grafts fail within ten years.

10. Apostrophe Errors. Apostrophes indicate possessives and contractions but not plurals.
Caution: its, your, their, and whose are possessives (but no apostrophes). It’s, you’re,
they’re, and who’s are contractions.

Incorrect: In the current conflict its uncertain who’s borders their contesting.
Revised: In the current conflict it is [it’s] uncertain whose borders they are [they’re]
contesting.

Incorrect: The Aztecs ritual’s of renewal increased in frequency over the

course of time. Revised: The Aztecs’ rituals of renewal increased in frequency
over the course of time.

11. Run-on sentences. Make sure that you do not have more than two independent
clauses (complete thoughts that could stand alone) per sentence. If you do have two
independent clauses, they need to be joined with a semicolon or with a comma and a
coordinating conjunction (and, or, nor, but, yet, etc.).

Incorrect: There are many kinds of fruit but apples are the best.
Revised: While there are many kinds of fruit, apples are the best. OR There are many kinds
of fruit. However, apples are the best.
 63

Incorrect: The laboratory instructor was not specific, so the students were confused, and
they asked the professor for help.
Revised: Because the laboratory instructor was not specific, the students were confused.
They asked the professor for help.

Suggested Activity: Return to your literacy narrative or one of your journal entries. Find 5
sentences that contain grammatical errors. If you cannot find any errors, ask your instructor or
a peer to highlight for you sentences that don’t follow the rules of edited academic English.
Then complete the chart “Improving My Academic Writing,” located on the next page and in
the Appendix.
 64

Improving My Academic Writing

Original Sentence Type of Error (according to the New and Improved Sentence
conventions of academic English)

EXAMPLE: Dr. King appeals to pathos, Comma splice Dr. King appeals to pathos; he makes his
he makes his audience alternate audience alternate between outrage and
between outrage and inspiration. inspiration.

Sentence 1:

Sentence 2:

Sentence 3:

Sentence 4:
 65

Article 8: Opinion Editorial

When was the last time you had an argument? Maybe you discussed with a family member
where to have dinner; maybe you debated with a friend about which smartphone has the best
features; maybe you tried to persuade your instructor to extend a deadline.

You engage in persuasion on an almost-daily basis, and you are already very good at reading
your audience and deciding what strategies will be the most persuasive to them. Remember
that rhetoric simply means “the art of persuasion,” and one of the goals of this class is to help
you become better at persuading other people to listen to your ideas and take them seriously.

One type of writing that is common in many careers is persuasive writing that shows a strong
understanding of different sides of an issue. If you are an engineer, you may write a design
review in which you explain the strong points and the weak points of a new app that your
company is designing. If you are an entrepreneur, you may need to write a business proposal
that clearly explains to investors both the opportunities and the risks of the venture. If you are a
doctor, you will want to clearly outline the risks and benefits of a treatment plan for a serious
disease. We want to help prepare you to feel more confident about facing these communication
challenges.

In our next unit in English 101/102, you will have the chance to practice persuading an audience
to see your perspective on a chosen issue. Remember that for the opinion editorial, you will be
arguing for just ONE side. However, you will also need to briefly consider and answer opposing
arguments as well. This is your time to start using the different rhetorical strategies and
techniques that you have noticed in other people’s writing. We hope that this will build your
ethos as you work to fairly consider different perspectives. We also hope that it will enrich your
 66

thinking about each topic we discuss in class. And finally, we hope that it will prepare you for
writing in different fields.

In each in-class activity, forum, debate, journal, and paper, we want to see you thoughtfully
choose the rhetorical modes (cause/effect, comparison/contrast, narration, classification, etc.),
the rhetorical appeals (ethos, pathos, and logos), the language, and the types of introductions
and conclusions will be best suited to helping you make your arguments.

Suggested Activity 1:

One side of the classroom will be designated as “Strongly Agree” and the other side will be
designated as “Strongly Disagree” (so the center of the classroom is neutral and midway
between Neutral and Strongly Agree means you “Somewhat Agree”). The instructor will read
the series of statements about climate change listed below. After each statement is read,
stand in the section of the room that shows your level of agreement. Once everyone has
taken their positions, the instructor will ask people to explain why they chose that spot and
support their opinion with good reasons.

1. The climate crisis represents a moral failure for all of humanity.

2. Individual people should feel guilty about the effects of climate change.
3. Climate responsibility rests with leaders of large businesses, not with average people.
4. Selfishness is the main reason for the climate crisis.
5. Small actions, like recycling, choosing reusable products, etc. actually make a
significant difference in terms of impact on the climate.

Suggested Activity 2:

The class will be divided in two for a debate. Here is the debate question: Is the world so
overpopulated that governments should engage in population control? One side will
argue YES and the other side will argue NO.

Please find in the Appendix a document titled “Sources for Debate on Overpopulation.” Each
side needs to divide up the sources and take notes on the readings that would be helpful in
the debate (you’ll need to consider sources for BOTH sides--some sources will help support
your side, but you’ll also need to refute the other side).

When the preparation time is over, the debate will begin. We will hear arguments from the
PRO side and then the CON side, followed by a rebuttal from the PRO side and a rebuttal
from the CON side.

At the end, you will write a brief reflection about what you thought were the most persuasive
 67

arguments on each side and which way you were convinced in the end.

Suggested Activity 3: Read one of the sample Opinion Editorials (in the Appendix). Then
answer the following questions:

Questions Analyzing Your Chosen Article:

● What do you think is the authors’ purpose?
● For whom does this seem to be written?
● How is the article organized? (For example, does it have sections? Is there a clear
introduction, body, and conclusion? Where does it start? Where does it end?)
● Where do the authors most clearly state the main point, and how do they do so?
● What kinds of evidence do the authors use? (quotes, statistics, stories, etc.) How
effective is this evidence?
● What kind of language do the authors use? (Formal, informal, assertive, empathetic,
argumentative, helpful, direct, inspirational, humorous, sarcastic, etc.) Give an
example.
● How do the authors transition between ideas?
● What rhetorical modes do the authors use? (For example, comparison/contrast,
cause/effect, narration, description, process analysis, classification, etc.)
● What rhetorical appeals do the authors use? Explain how those appeals are used to
help make the argument. (Ethos, pathos, and/or logos)
● Do you think that the pro side or the con side was stronger? Why?

Suggested Activity 4:

Sample Op-Ed: Social Media

1. Read one of the op-eds in the appendix, such as “Why it’s a mistake to ban
social media — and what to do instead.”

2. With a partner, respond to ONE of the following questions:

1. What is the opinion or call to action in this editorial?

2. What evidence does it use to make its argument?

3. What examples of ethos, logos, and pathos can you find in the editorial?

4. What do you notice about the language and tone of the editorial?

5. How persuasive do you find the editorial? Is it effective?

 68

6. Identify one sentence or passage from the article that you find important
or interesting.

7. Do you agree or disagree with the editorial? Explain your reasoning.

Suggested Activity: Complete the Opinion Editorial Template. (There is a completed sample
template in the appendix.)

Template for an Opinion Editorial

Name(s):
Topic:
Idea for introduction
(example, quote, statistic,
short story, etc. If you’re
doing the design review or
core activities assessment,
describe the object, system,
or company you’re
analyzing.)

Thesis statement

Argument 1, with 2 reasons

(consider how you’ll appeal to
ethos, pathos, or logos;
consider how you might use
cause/effect,
comparison/contrast,
prob/solution, examples, etc.)

Argument 2, with 2 reasons

(consider how you’ll appeal to
ethos, pathos, or logos;
consider how you might use
cause/effect,
comparison/contrast,
prob/solution, examples, etc.)

Argument 3, with 2 reasons

(consider how you’ll appeal to
ethos, pathos, or logos;
consider how you might use
cause/effect,
comparison/contrast,
prob/solution, examples, etc.)
 69

Counterclaim or addressing
the opposition, with reasons
why you still hold to your
original argument (consider
how you’ll appeal to ethos,
pathos, or logos; consider
how you might use
cause/effect,
comparison/contrast,
prob/solution, examples, etc.)

Conclusion (which side will

you choose and why?)
 70

Article 9: Working with Sources

In the last writing assignment (written debate), you had the option of using a few outside
sources to support your claims on either side. Now we will do a thorough review of how to cite
sources in preparation for your final project, which is a group presentation.

In this article, we will explore the answers to three key questions about working with sources.
First, why do we need to use sources? There are a variety of excellent reasons to use
ideas and quotes from different authors. It is important that you have a clear purpose in
citing sources.
Second, how do we properly cite sources? This section will discuss both in-text citation
and writing full citations in a reference list at the end of the paper.
Third, how do we decide whether to quote, paraphrase, or summarize a source? It is
easy to fill a paper with quotes, but that is not always the best option. Choose ways of
incorporating sources that make sense for the flow of your ideas.

1. WHY do we cite sources to help support our argument?

Source: Online Writing Lab, Purdue University

According to Purdue University’s writing lab, here are some good reasons for using outside
sources in our work:

● Provide support for claims or add credibility to your writing.

○ Unless you’re an expert in the topic you’re writing about, it will help your ethos if
you cite people who can speak from their education, experience, or research in
the field.
● Refer to work that leads up to the work you are now doing.
 71

○ Researching outside sources will help not repeat what someone else has already
done. You will find places in the field where you can add new ideas.
● Give examples of several points of view on a subject.
○ It is often difficult to see more than one way of thinking about a topic, but
researching many sources can expand your point of view.
● Call attention to a position that you wish to agree or disagree with.
● Highlight a particularly striking phrase, sentence, or passage by quoting the original.
○ The best reason to directly quote a source is that it says something so precisely
and perfectly, it should not be changed. Otherwise, a paraphrase or summary
works best.
● Distance yourself from the original by quoting it in order to cue readers that the words
are not your own.
○ If you are citing a source that you disagree with, directly quoting it can separate
your ideas from the source’s ideas.
● Expand the breadth or depth of your writing.
○ Writing is a social activity, and we write best in conversation with other voices.
Citing sources brings those voices into the paper and allows you to have lively
interaction.

2. HOW do we cite sources in an academic paper?

Every source you cite must have both an IN-TEXT CITATION, which is where you briefly write
the author’s name, the year, and the page number next to their ideas. Each source must also be
listed with a FULL CITATION (author, title, publisher, year, etc.) at the end of the paper in a
reference list (sometimes also called a “Works Cited” list or a “Bibliography”).

Proper citation is one of the most important skills you can learn. If you use a source but do not
cite it properly, it may be considered plagiarism.

How to Write In-Text Citations (adapted from Purdue University’s Online Writing Lab)

In this class, you will learn how to write citations using APA 7 format. This is the format most
commonly used in the sciences. Once you learn how to cite sources using one format, it is easy
to switch to a different one.

Any time you use an idea from someone else--whether direct quote, summary, or
paraphrase--you need to include parentheses next to that idea stating where it is from. It looks
like this: (Smith, 2001).

When using APA format, follow the author-date method of in-text citation. This means that the
author's last name and the year of publication for the source should appear in the text; for
example, (Jones, 1998).
 72

If you are directly quoting or borrowing from another work and there is a page number available,
you should include the page number at the end of the parenthetical citation. Use the
abbreviation “p.” (for one page) or “pp.” (for multiple pages) before listing the page number(s).
Use a short dash for page ranges. For example, you might write (Jones, 1998, p. 199) or
(Jones, 1998, pp. 199–201).

So the order of an in-text citation is as follows:

1. Open parenthesis: (
2. Author’s last name
3. Comma
4. Year of Publication
5. Comma
6. Page number (s)
7. Close parenthesis: )
Only include numbers 5 and 6 if a page number is available.
The end punctuation goes OUTSIDE the close parenthesis
So a CORRECT in-text citation looks like this (Smith, 2001).
An INCORRECT in-text citation looks like this (Smith, 2001.)

NOTES:

If a source has two authors, you’ll write the in-text citation like this: (Said & Al-Masri,
2015).

If a source has three or more authors, you’ll write the in-text citation with the first
author’s name only, followed by the Latin phrase “et al.” So an in-text citation for a text
with three authors (or more) would look like this: (Selassi et al., 2019).

Regardless of how they are referenced, every single source that is cited in the text must appear
in the reference list at the end of the paper.

SHORT QUOTATIONS

If you are directly quoting from a work, you will need to include the author, year of publication,
and page number for the reference (preceded by "p." for a single page and “pp.” for a span of
multiple pages, with the page numbers separated by a short dash).

You can introduce the quotation with a signal phrase that includes the author's last name
followed by the date of publication in parentheses.

Example 1: According to Jones, "students often had difficulty using APA style, especially
when it was their first time" (1998, p. 199).
 73

Example 2: Jones (1998) found "students often had difficulty using APA style" (p. 199);
what implications does this have for teachers?

If you do not include the author’s name in the text of the sentence, place the author's last name,
the year of publication, and the page number in parentheses after the quotation.

Example 1: She stated, "Students often had difficulty using APA style" (Jones, 1998, p.
199), but she did not offer an explanation as to why.

LONG QUOTATIONS

Place direct quotations that are 40 words or longer in a free-standing block of typewritten lines
and omit quotation marks. Start the quotation on a new line, indented 1/2 inch from the left
margin, i.e., in the same place you would begin a new paragraph. Type the entire quotation on
the new margin. Maintain double-spacing throughout, but do not add an extra blank line before
or after it. The parenthetical citation should come after the closing punctuation mark.

SUMMARY OR PARAPHRASE

If you are paraphrasing an idea from another work, you only have to include the author and year
of publication in your in-text reference; you don’t need page numbers. APA guidelines, however,
 74

do encourage including a page range for a summary or paraphrase if it helps the reader find the
information in a longer work.

Example 1: According to Jones (1998), APA style is a difficult citation format for first-time
learners.

Example 2: APA style is a difficult citation format for first-time learners (Jones, 1998, p.
199).

How to Write Full Citations in a Reference List/Works Cited/Bibliography (Adapted from

Purdue University’s Online Writing Lab)

Since most of your sources will be digital, instructions for citing an electronic source are
provided below. Please see the APA Formatting and Style Guide (7th Edition) on Purdue’s
Online Writing Lab for complete instructions about how to cite almost any resource.

If the page names an individual author, cite their name first:

Lastname, F. M. (Year, Month Day). Title of page. Site name. URL

Price, D. (2018, March 23). Laziness does not exist. Medium.

https://humanparts.medium.com/laziness-does-not-exist-3af27e312d01

If the resource was written by a group or organization, use the name of the group/organization
as the author. Additionally, if the author and site name are the same, omit the site name from the
citation. Kindly note that author’s first names are not used; instead there is a first initial only (for
example, Said, M. instead of Said, Mohammed).

Group name. (Year, Month Day). Title of page. Site name. URL

American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. (2019, November 21). Justice
served: Case closed for over 40 dogfighting victims.
https://www.aspca.org/news/justice-served-case-closed-over-40-dogfighting-victims

If the page's author is not listed, start with the title instead. Additionally, include a retrieval date
(the date that you looked at the article) when the page's content is likely to change over time.

Title of page. (Year, Month Day). Site name. Retrieved Month Date, Year, from URL

Tuscan white bean pasta. (2018, February 25). Budgetbytes. Retrieved March 18, 2020,
from https://www.budgetbytes.com/tuscan-white-bean-pasta/

If the date of publication is not listed, use the abbreviation (n.d.).

 75

Author or Group name. (n.d.). Title of page. Site name (if applicable). URL

National Alliance on Mental Illness. (n.d.). Mental health conditions.

https://www.nami.org/Learn-More/Mental-Health-Conditions

There are wonderful programs and applications that can help you build your reference list.
However, it is important that you know the basic rules of referencing. Sometimes these
programs get small details wrong, and you will need to correct them. One program we
recommend is mybib.com.

3. HOW do we choose whether to quote, summarize, or

paraphrase?

General Considerations
There are three methods of incorporating the writing of others into your paper as evidence:

● quotation, which is anything from a word to several sentences taken word-for-word from
the original source and enclosed in quotation marks
● paraphrase, which is a rephrasing in your own voice and sentence structure of one
portion of the original source and is about the same length as the original sentence or
sentences you are paraphrasing
● summary, which is shorter than the original source and gives the text’s central idea in
your own words

In what follows, you will learn some strategies for using these methods of incorporating
evidence into your paper.

The following section has been adapted from “How do I effectively integrate textual evidence
into my paper?” from the Sweetland Center for Writing at the University of Michigan.

Quoting

When you use a quotation as evidence, you should integrate it into your own writing using a
“signal phrase.” Take, for example, this quotation, taken from page 418 of the essay “Prejudice
and the Individual” written by Gordon Allport and published in 1949:

“Much prejudice is caught rather than directly taught.”

A direct quote should not appear by itself; it needs a signal phrase. Some of the most common
verbs used in signal phrases are: argues, asserts, contends, emphasizes, explains, observes,
 76

and suggests. Here are three ways to integrate Allport’s quotation into a sentence of your own
with a signal phrase:

1. Allport claims that “prejudice is caught rather than directly taught” (1949, p. 418).
2. “Much prejudice is caught rather than directly taught,” claims Allport (1949, p.
418).
3. “Much prejudice,” Allport claims, “is caught rather than directly taught” (1949, p.
418).

You can adapt a quotation to fit your own paragraph and sentence structure by making small
changes to words and indicating those changes with square brackets.

Say, for example, you liked this quotation from Allport:

“It should be added that overgeneralized prejudgments of this sort are prejudices only if
they are not reversible when exposed to new knowledge” (1949, p. 417).

However, you want to apply Allport’s words to a specific example of your own. You could adapt
the quotation like this:

The young man in my example was not prejudiced, according to Allport’s definition; his
opinion was “reversible when [he was] exposed to new knowledge” (1949, p. 417).

You can also use ellipses to indicate that you have left irrelevant words out of a quotation.
Again, say you wanted to use this quotation from Allport:

“The best opinion today says that if we eliminate discrimination, then—as people
become acquainted with one another on equal terms—attitudes are likely to change,
perhaps more rapidly than through the continued preaching or teaching of tolerance”
(1949, p. 417).

But the middle part is less important to your paper than what Allport says at the start and the
end. You could modify the quotation like this:

“The best opinion today says that if we eliminate discrimination . . . attitudes are likely to
change, perhaps more rapidly than through the continued preaching or teaching of
tolerance” (1949, p. 417).

Longer quotations must be formatted in a special way; usually, they are indented from the left
margin and/or single-spaced. Depending on what citation style you use, guidelines differ
regarding what defines a long quotation and how a long quotation should be formatted.
Typically, a quotation of four or five lines is considered long.
 77

Paraphrasing

To paraphrase a source for use as evidence, you should use as little of the original language as
possible and put the passage in your own voice and sentence structure. Also, because
paraphrasing involves wrapping your words around someone else’s idea, people often forget to
give credit to the author. Even though a paraphrase is in your words, it is not your idea.
Remember to cite your source when you paraphrase. Here is another quotation from Allport and
an example of weak and strong paraphrase:

“Education combats easy overgeneralizations, and as the educational level rises we find a
reduction in stereotyped thinking” (Allport, 1949, p. 422).

WEAK PARAPHRASE: Learning fights against stereotypes, and as more people are more
educated we notice a decrease in prejudice (Allport, 1949, p. 422).

STRONG PARAPHRASE: Allport (1949) explains that the more we learn, the harder we will find
it to make unfair assumptions about groups of people, which means as more people pursue
more education, prejudice decreases (p. 422).

In the weak example above, you can see the sentence structure in the paraphrase is very
similar to the quotation—notice, for instance, the use in both the original sentence and the weak
paraphrase of a comma plus the conjunction “and.” Also, the replacement of Allport’s words with
synonyms makes the paraphrase too close to the original—Allport’s “education” is replaced with
“learning” in the paraphrase; his “combats” is exchanged for “fights”; “overgeneralizations”
becomes “stereotypes.” The strong example above does a better job of restating Allport’s idea in
a new sentence structure and without simple word substitution. Also, notice the weak
paraphrase does not give Allport credit by mentioning him, but the strong one does.

Summarizing

When you summarize another writer’s idea to use as evidence in a paper of your own, you are
taking the essence of the writer’s idea and stating it more briefly, with less detail and
explanation, than in the original. You may summarize an article or a chapter, or even a book, in
a sentence, a paragraph, a page, or more—the purpose of your summary should dictate how
specific you are. Summaries should be mostly in your own words, but often summaries include
quotations or paraphrases when it is necessary to highlight a certain key point. When you are
writing a summary, you need to be very careful not to use the original writer’s words without
putting those words in quotation marks. You also need to be sure that when you summarize, you
are fairly representing the original writer’s main idea. Here is a paragraph from Allport and
examples of weak and strong summary:
 78

“While discrimination ultimately rests on prejudice, the two processes are not identical.
Discrimination denies people their natural or legal rights because of their membership in some
unfavored group. Many people discriminate automatically without being prejudiced; and others,
the “gentle people of prejudice,” feel irrational aversion, but are careful not to show it in
discriminatory behavior. Yet in general, discrimination reinforces prejudices, and prejudices
provide rationalizations for discrimination. The two concepts are most distinct when it comes to
seeking remedies. The corrections for discrimination are legal, or lie in a direct change of social
practices; whereas the remedy for prejudice lies in education and the conversion of attitudes.
The best opinion today says that if we eliminate discrimination, then—as people become
acquainted with one another on equal terms—attitudes are likely to change, perhaps more
rapidly than through the continued preaching or teaching of tolerance.” (Allport, 1949, p. 417)

WEAK SUMMARY: Discrimination is when people are denied their rights because they belong
to some unfavored group, and it is addressed with legal action or a change in social practices.
Eliminating discrimination from society would have a drastic effect on social attitudes overall,
according to Allport (1949, p. 417).

STRONG SUMMARY: Allport explains that discrimination occurs when an individual is refused
rights because he or she belongs to a group which is the object of prejudice. In this way,
discrimination reinforces prejudice, but if instances of discrimination are ruled illegal or seen as
socially unacceptable, prejudice will likely decrease along with discrimination (1949, p. 417).

You will notice that the weak summary above uses exact words and phrases from the source
(“unfavored group,” “social practices”) and also some words and phrases very close to the
original (“when people are denied,” “eliminating discrimination”). It does not effectively restate
the original in different language. It also does not fairly represent the complete idea of the
source paragraph: it does not explain the relationship between discrimination and prejudice, an
important part of what Allport says. The strong example does a better job using independent
language and fairly conveying Allport’s point.

How to choose which method of incorporating evidence to use

These methods of incorporating evidence into your paper are helpful in different ways. Think
carefully about what you need each piece of evidence to do for you in your paper, then choose
the method that most suits your needs.

You should use a quotation if:

● you are relying on the reputation of the writer of the original source to give authority or
credibility to your paper.
● the original wording is so remarkable that paraphrasing would diminish it.

A paraphrase is a good choice if:

● you need to provide a supporting fact or detail but the original writer’s exact words are
not important.
 79

● you need to use just one specific idea from a source and the rest of the source is not as
important.

Summary is useful when:

● you need to give an overview of a source to orient your reader.
● you want to provide a background that leads up to the point of your paper.

Last but certainly not least, remember that anytime you use another person’s ideas or language,
you must give credit to that person. If you do not know the name of the person whose idea or
language you are using, you must still give credit by referring to a title or any such available
information.
 80

Suggested Activity A: Use a citation generator such as mybib.com to make a

reference list for the following sources:

Source A: https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/data/statistics-report/index.html

Source B: https://diatribe.org/issues/63/learning-curve

Source C: https://diabetes.diabetesjournals.org/content/69/Supplement_1/339-OR

Source D: https://www.healthline.com/health/diabetes/chocolate-for-diabetics

Suggested Activity B:

Choose one of the sources listed above. Then write:

● A direct quote from the source, with an in-text citation.

● A paraphrase of that quote, with an in-text citation.
● A summary of one of the main ideas from the source, with an in-text citation.
 81

Article 10: Giving Presentations

This semester, we will briefly introduce you to public speaking, and you will have a chance to
give a short, low-stakes presentation to the class. In the second semester of English, the
presentation will be higher-stakes, and we will do more to ensure you are prepared for it.

Why do presentation skills matter?

Imagine yourself in a future career, and think about all the ways that speaking to your bosses
and colleagues is part of your workday. You need to speak up in a meeting to explain a problem
with a building design. You need to speak to your boss about giving you work assignments that
better use your skills and talents. You need to present a business proposal to a group of
investors.

Whether it’s formal or informal, spontaneous or planned, with visual aids or without them,
speaking well is key to success in most careers. You need to develop a set of skills that will
allow you to speak up with confidence. You do not want to withhold your ideas because you
doubt your ability to speak well.

What does it mean to speak well?

Most features of effective public speaking are the same as the features of all good
communication. You still need to understand your audience and how best to engage and
persuade them. You still need a clear purpose that is well-suited to the spoken form. Finally, you
need to understand your genre.

Some students think that giving a presentation at the university level just means writing a paper
and then reading it to an audience. However, a presentation for a class is its own unique genre,
and you should not approach it exactly the same way you write a paper.
 82

There are a number of key differences between papers and presentations. A paper can be
much more in-depth. Your audience can go back and re-read sentences if they missed
something. It relies on visually delivering information. On the other hand, a presentation has to
capture and sustain an audience’s attention. It is usually much shorter than a paper and cannot
include as many details. It relies mostly on auditorily delivering information.

In modern society, there are more visual than auditory learners. This means that you need to
use all of the means available--body language, visual aids, stories, etc.--to capture your
audience’s attention and hold onto it.

In this unit, you will learn tips for giving effective presentations. You will learn how to use eye
contact, gestures, tone of voice, and many other devices to communicate your ideas, and you
will get a chance to practice speaking in front of an audience of your peers.

Suggested Activity. After learning tips for effective presentations, watch a TED talk and use
the table provided below to take notes on what the speaker did well and what the speaker
could have done better. Be sure to consider a wide range of different aspects, including (but
not limited to):

● Body language (gestures, eye contact, posture)

● Use of voice (changes in volume and tempo; tone; pauses)
● Organization of ideas
● Use of visual aids
● Use of storytelling

End with a discussion of the speaker’s strengths and weaknesses and how you can apply
what you learned to your own public speaking.

What the Speaker Did Well Things the Speaker Could Improve
 83

Required Activity: Prepare a brief presentation (with slides) that highlights the main ideas
from your written debate paper. Consider what aspects of the paper will be most interesting
and engaging to your peers. Be sure to present your main idea and a few carefully selected
supporting details, with a focus on pros and cons. You will find a rubric below that the
instructor will use to assess your presentation.

Presentation Rubric
Advanced Successful Emerging

Length 5-7 minutes long 4-8 minutes long Too short or too long

Slides Three to five slides that are Three to five slides that Three to five slides.
visually appealing, concise, are somewhat appealing Might have far too much
and serve as a strong, and support ideas well. content on them. Might
clear support to ideas. be confusing or
overdesigned.

Delivery Strong, clear voice with Some inflection; gestures May be monotone; may
good inflection; good use are good and not lack eye contact; may
of pauses; effective distracting; some eye use too many or too few
gestures; straight posture; contact with the audience. gestures.
good eye contact with
audience.

Ideas Highly engaging for the Somewhat engaging. May be confusing,

audience. Effectively Presents the main ideas disorganized, or
presents all of the main from the pro-con paper. unclear. May contain
ideas from the pro-con Good translation of ideas details without enough
paper but transforms them from the written format to context to understand
in a way that makes sense the spoken format. Good them.
for the format. Excellent selection of key
selection of a few key supporting details.
supporting details and a Takeaway for the
strong takeaway for the audience at the end.
audience at the end.
 84

Links to Sources Used in the Coursepack

1. How to Read Like a Writer
https://wac.colostate.edu/docs/books/writingspaces2/bunn--how-to-read.pdf

2. Ethos, Pathos, Logos

https://natureofwriting.com/lessons/page/6/

3. What Cancel Culture Shares with Incarceration

https://blog.commonjustice.org/blog/what-cancel-culture-shares-with-incarceration

4. Traditional Academic Essays in Three Parts

https://lsa.umich.edu/content/dam/sweetland-assets/sweetland-documents/WritingGuides/Traditi
onalAcademicEssaysInThreeParts.pdf

5. Thesis Statements
https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/thesis-statements/

6. Eleven Common Errors: A Student Editing Self Guide

https://writing.wisc.edu/handbook/grammarpunct/commonerrors/

7. Why We Cite Sources

https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/using_research/quoting_paraphrasing_and_s
ummarizing/index.html

8. In-Text Citations: The Basics

https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_formatting_and_style_guide/ml
a_in_text_citations_the_basics.html#:~:text=In%2Dtext%20citations%3A%20Author%2D,on%2
0your%20Works%20Cited%20page.

9. Full Citations
https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_formatting_and_style_guide/ml
a_formatting_and_style_guide.html

10. Quoting, Paraphrasing, Summarizing

https://lsa.umich.edu/content/dam/sweetland-assets/sweetland-documents/WritingGuides/HowD
oIEffectivelyIntegrateTextualEvidence.pdf

12. How do I Effectively Integrate Textual Evidence into My Paper?

https://lsa.umich.edu/content/dam/sweetland-assets/sweetland-documents/WritingGuides/HowD
oIEffectivelyIntegrateTextualEvidence.pdf