What are the sources or consequences of social isolation
Background: The texts we read in this unit all interrogate the relationship between the self and society. While the readings in the first part of the unit all encourage vigilance against the perils of encroaching authority and community, the final cluster of texts delves into the human need to draw the community closer or to seek guidance from authorities and institutions.
Main Task: Drawing on readings and class discussions, write an essay that makes a claim about the individual’s relationship to community or authority and persuades the reader this claim is valid. To do this, you must employ strong argumentation strategies and synthesize ideas from the texts.
This assignment allows you to follow what’s interesting to you about this topic. As we progress through the unit, think about what question you want to see answered, what idea you are uniquely equipped to communicate based on your experience and what you found in the texts. Choose from the focus questions below.
Focus Questions: Your essay should answer ONE of the following questions.
What is the nature of the individual’s relationship to the community or authority?
What are the sources or consequences of social isolation, of an individual being excluded from a community?
Why do we conform or obey when to do so conflicts with our perceptions, desires, or consciences?
What compels people to rebel against the group or defy authority?
How do we know when it is moral to accept or reject the demands of the community or authority?
Argue that one or more of the following are dangerous or beneficial: conformity, community, obedience, authority, individualism, nonconformity, disobedience.
Would contemporary society benefit more from having a stronger sense of community or from having a stronger sense of individualism?
What is more important for each individual, fulfilling one’s own desires or serving the community or institution one is a part of?
How does one’s culture or background influence one’s attitudes about conformity or individualism?
How do individuals come together in beneficial, cooperative communities? Or, what creates destructive communities?
Three Quotations REQUIRED: The success of your argument hinges on its successful synthesis and integration of source material. You will quote from three different sources in order to support your thesis. Two of the sources must be assigned texts. Your third source can be any of the following: 1) A third assigned text; 2) A source you find through your own research; 3) A description of an experience you’ve had that works as evidence for your thesis.
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Essay 1 Goals _
In each of the major essays you write for English 1A, you will be working to demonstrate the skills we have practiced throughout the corresponding unit. Below are the writing and thinking skills you should be aiming to demonstrate in Essay One. These goals will also be incorporated into the grading criteria for the essay.
1) Demonstrate a thorough understanding of at least two published texts.
2) Synthesize the ideas of published authors, as well as your experience and/or the
experiences of a classmate, in order to create and support an arguable thesis.
3) Create a thesis statement that provides a clear, compelling argument and previews the support for that argument.
4) Substantiate your thesis using analysis, supporting evidence, and logical organization.
5) Achieve a unified and focused statement with your essay—everything in the essay should work together to support your central claim.
6) Incorporate an introduction that engages the reader and prepares the reader for the thesis.
7) Incorporate well-developed supporting paragraphs using the P.I.E. strategy. 8) Incorporate a conclusion paragraph that explores the significance of your
argument synthesis.
9) Engage and refute a position that opposes your own.
10) Write clear and correct sentences while using diction and tone appropriate for the academic community.
11) Use MLA-style in-text citations.
12) Integrate at least three quotations with rhetorical effectiveness.
13) Be original, creative, and thoughtful, demonstrating the critical reading and thinking skills practiced throughout the unit. Effectively persuade the reader.
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Essay 1 Guide: Organizing Your Argument Synthesis _
This essay requires synthesis. Synthesis means drawing connections among different sources. As stated in Writing and Reading Across the Curriculum, “in a synthesis, you make explicit the relationships you have inferred among separate sources.” Here, you will synthesize the diverse perspectives represented in the unit’s reading in order to answer a single question about the individual’s relationship to the community.
This is also an argumentative essay, so a primary goal of the essay is to persuade the reader to adopt your position. We will discuss strategies for persuasive writing in class.
Below are the basic pieces of the puzzle. Use this as a guide for how to craft your own argument synthesis as you develop your blocking plan. However, if you decide to vary this structure in a way that improves the effectiveness of your essay, go for it. For example, this outline suggests having a separate refutation section after the proof. Some writers prefer to weave a related refutation point into each proof paragraph.
Heading & Page Numbers: In the upper-left corner of the first page, list your name, your instructor’s name, the course, and the date. For this essay, also include the focus question your essay is answering in the heading. Also, you must number your pages. In MLA style, the writer’s name appears before the page number in the upper-right corner of each page.
Title: Include a title that capture your reader’s attention and previews the subject of your essay. (It should be centered, and the font size and type should be the same as all the other words on the page.)
I. Introduction (1 paragraph, about 200-250 words): The primary purpose of an introduction is to engage your reader’s interest and prepare the reader for your thesis statement. It tells the reader what the argument is about and why it’s important. It might draw the reader in with a relevant anecdote or fact; it might explain what is happening in the world right now that would make this a worthwhile debate to engage in. It also might introduce or define any key terms or ideas you will use in the essay. By the end, the reader should know what they need to know in order to understand your thesis and be excited to read your argument.
II. Thesis Statement (1-2 sentences, at the end of the introduction): The thesis states your main point and previews your evidence in support of that point. Be specific. Be arguable—that is, make a point that’s interesting enough that you could have a debate about it. The thesis for this essay should take the form of a robust and assertive response to your focus question. After your readers read your thesis, they should have a crystal-clear idea of what they’re going to encounter in the rest of the essay. In order to make things very, very clear, you can list your three or four main points—the points you’ll develop in your supporting paragraphs—in your thesis. Be aware that to some readers this doesn’t look very sophisticated. As an alternative, you can have an “umbrella” thesis, one overarching claim that accommodates the three or four points to come.
III. Proof (2-3 paragraphs, about 500-750 words): The proof is the most important and longest part of your argument. It spells out your position and elaborates it with analysis and evidence. Generally speaking, the strongest, most compelling evidence should come last so that it will be freshest in the reader’s mind. P.I.E. paragraphs are highly recommended. These will help you to, with each paragraph, make a specific claim in support of your thesis and prove that point with evidence and analysis. Each body paragraph should incorporate some form of evidence, most likely in the form of quotes or paraphrases, and analyze the evidence in order to prove the paragraph’s claim.
IV. Concession/Refutation (1-2 paragraph, about 250-500 words): In order to be persuaded by your argument, your reader needs to know that you have fully thought through positions that might oppose your own. This section is where you show the reader you have. However, you want this section to strengthen your argument, not weaken it. Therefore, while you might concede that an opposing position has some merit, your job is to explain why your position is nonetheless important and valid. Alternatively, you might refute an opposing claim outright, by mounting a counterargument, and explaining why the opposing position is wrong. Again, P.I.E. paragraphs are highly recommended.
V. Conclusion (1 paragraph, about 200-250 words): Your conclusion may briefly review your main points for the reader. More importantly, it should discuss the significance of your argument. What can we learn from your argument? What of significance can we all take away from what you’ve written? How might it change how we think about obedience, conformity, or individuality in our own lives? This is also your last chance to urge readers to adopt your position. Emotional appeals—appeals to the reader’s compassion, anger, etc.—may be useful.
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