In-Class Essay #3 directions & topic choices

In-Class Essay #3 Directions & Topics
WR 121, Prof. C. Agatucci - Fall 2004
Essays #2, #3, & Final Exam Essay (timed "In-Class" essays) will be scored using Final Exam Essay evaluation criteria, and letter graded: 2 highest grades [ @ 20%] will be computed
in determining final course grade, but see also WR 121 Final Exam Policy.
NO Late or "Make-Up" In-Class Essays are allowed.
NO Revision Option is offered on In-Class Essays to improve original score/grade.

For deadlines, preparation, & materials needed, see also WR 121 Course Plan

General Directions and Evaluation Criteria for In-Class Essay #3 are much the same as for In-Class Essay #2, so please review In-Class Essay #2 handout directions.
In-Class Essay #3 Topic Choices (stated below) repeat choices given for In-Class Essay #2 and add some new topic choices based on new readings. See also In-Class Essay #3 Evaluation checklist provided below.
NOTE WELL: YOU MAY NOT WRITE IN-CLASS ESSAY #3 ON THE SAME TOPIC THAT YOU CHOSE FOR IN-CLASS ESSAY #2!!

General Directions (very similar to those you will receive for the WR 121 Final Exam Essay):
Choose one of the following topics for your In Class Essay #3 Exam, BUT do NOT choose the same topic on which you wrote In-Class Essay #2. Whichever topic you choose, make sure your essay addresses the chosen topic and is unified by a clearly stated thesis and a narrowed focus so that you can develop a limited number of points in some depth and persuasive detail. The essay must be well-developed with supporting examples, specifics, or details collected from observation, experience, and reading. Topic choices are drawn from Muller readings. At relevant points in your essay, you will be expected to integrate at least two citations (i.e. summary, paraphrase, and/or quotation) from a reading referenced in the chosen topic. If you use summary, paraphrase, and/or quotation from any additional sources in developing your essay, these sources must also be cited. Avoid plagiarism by following accepted practices for in-text citations and by giving full bibliographical information on source/s in a list of Work/s Cited at the end of your essay.

Topic #1: Parental Influence
Both Annie Dillard, in “An American Childhood,” and Robert Coles, in “I Listen to My Parents and Wonder What They Believe,” explain how parents’ values and behaviors can affect their children - positively and/or negatively. Write an essay in which you identify two or three influential values and/or behaviors of your parents, and analyze how and why they have influenced you.
Remember: You must state and develop a clear thesis that addresses the assigned topic, and you must integrate at least two relevant citations from Dillard and/or Coles, citing the author correctly and avoiding plagiarism.

Topic #2: Reading and/or Writing Effectively
Mortimer Adler's "How to Mark a Book," Peter Elbow's "Freewriting," and Donald Murray's "The Maker's Eye: Revising Your Own Manuscripts" present the authors’ advice for developing effective reading or writing practices. Write an essay in which you identify, illustrate, and analyze the effectiveness of two or three strategies that you use in your own reading and/or writing processes.
Remember: You must state and develop a clear thesis that addresses the assigned topic, and you must integrate at least two relevant citations from Adler, Elbow, and/or Murray, citing the author/s correctly and avoiding plagiarism.

Topic #3: Ethnic Identification and Its Consequences
In "The Cult of Ethnicity," Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr., expresses his concerns about the "unhealthy" consequences of "promoting, celebrating, and perpetuating separate ethnic origins and identities" in the U.S.A. today, although he concedes that there can also be some "healthy consequences" (48, 8). In response to Schlesinger's essay, however, Jamie Taylor explains that "strong identification" with one's ethnicity can be healthy, rather than divisive (38-39). Write an essay which you identify and analyze at least one "healthy" consequence and at least one "unhealthy" consequence of strong identification and celebration of people's ethnic origins.
Remember: You must state and develop a clear thesis that addresses the assigned topic, and you must integrate at least two relevant citations from Schlesinger and/or Taylor.

Topic #4: Appeals of Advertising
In "Red, White, and Beer," Dave Barry offers a satirical analysis of how television commercials have used "retail patriotism" (520) to sell beer. Analyze the appeals used in at least one case described by Barry and in at least one case from your own experience of U.S. advertising, to demonstrate (a) why such appeals are effective in persuading U.S. consumers to buy the advertised products; and/or (b) how critical analysis of such appeals can help consumers resist these advertising tactics.
Remember: You must state and develop a clear thesis that addresses the assigned topic, and you must introduce at least two relevant citations from Barry.

Topic #5: How Males Can Live Longer
Natalie Angier analyzes several biological, social and psychological differences between males and females, applying selected research findings (current as of 1999, when Angier's article was first published), to explain "Why Men Don't Last: Self-Destruction as a Way of Life." Whether you agree or disagree with Angier's causal analyses, the fact remains that, in 2004, females do tend to live longer than males in our society, as well as in those of many other cultures. Write an essay in which you explain and illustrate "How Males Can Live Longer," drawing upon your own experiences/observations, as well as at least one of Angier's points.
Remember: You must state and develop a clear thesis that addresses the assigned topic, and you must introduce at least two relevant citations from Angier.

Additional Topic Choices

Topic #6: Patriotism
In his 1762 essay entitled "National Prejudices," Oliver Goldsmith, an Anglo-Irish writer, deplores the xenophobic patriotism of his eighteen-century countrymen. Goldsmith declares himself "a citizen of the world" (243) and enjoins others to see themselves not only as patriots of one particular society but as "general inhabitants of the globe, or members of that grand society which comprehends the whole human kind" (242). Write an essay presenting and illustrating your own definition of "patriotism." In the process, respond to Goldsmith's provocative questions: "Is it not possible that I may love my own country, without hating the natives of other countries? that I may exert the most heroic bravery, the most undaunted resolution in defending its laws and liberty, without despising all the rest of the world as cowards and poltroons?" (243).

Topic #7: Gender Communication Problems
In “Sex, Lies and Conversation: Why Is It So Hard for Men and Women to Talk to Each Other?” Deborah Tannen examines communication problems between females and males that result from different gender role expectations and behaviors. Write an essay in which you identify and analyze one or two communication problems created by gender roles or expectations of males and/or females in our society. Draw upon your own experiences/ observations, as well as points made by Tannen, to develop your essay discussion.

Topic #8: The Power of Television
In "Loose Ends," Rita Dove claims that television's "projected reality" is powerful not because children and adults "confuse TV with reality," but because many of us "prefer [television] to [the] reality" of our own lives (503-504). Write an essay in which you confirm and/or challenge Dove's opinions by analyzing and illustrating appeals of selected popular television program/s based on your own observations and experiences.

Adler, Mortimer J. "How to Mark a Book." Rpt. The McGraw-Hill Reader: Issues Across

the Disciplines. Ed. Gilbert H. Muller. 8th ed. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2003. 47-49.

Angier, Natalie. "Why Men Don't Last: Self-Destruction as a Way of Life." New York Times 17 Feb. 1999.

Rpt. The McGraw-Hill Reader: Issues Across the Disciplines. Ed. Gilbert H. Muller. 8th ed.

Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2003. 223-226.

Barry, Dave. "Red, White, and Beer."   Dave Barry's Greatest Hits, 1988. Rpt. The McGraw-Hill
        Reader: Issues Across the Disciplines. Ed. Gilbert H. Muller. 8th ed. Boston: McGraw-Hill,
        2003. 519-521.

Coles, Robert. “I Listen to My Parents and I Wonder What They Believe.” Redbook February 1980.

Rpt. The McGraw-Hill Reader: Issues Across the Disciplines. Ed. Gilbert H. Muller. 8th ed.

Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2003. 438-442.

Dillard, Annie. "An American Childhood." An American Childhood. HarperCollins, 1987. Rpt. The

McGraw-Hill Reader: Issues Across the Disciplines. Ed. Gilbert H. Muller.

8th ed. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2003. 184-189.

Dove, Rita. "Loose Ends." The Poet's World. 1995. Rpt. The McGraw-Hill Reader:

Issues Across the Disciplines. Ed. Gilbert H. Muller. 8th ed. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2003.

503-504.

Elbow, Peter. "Freewriting." Writing Without Teachers. Oxford UP, 1973. Rpt.

The McGraw-Hill Reader: Issues Across the Disciplines. Ed. Gilbert H. Muller.

8th ed. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2003. 52-56.

Goldsmith, Oliver. "National Prejudices.'" The Citizen of the World, 1792. Rpt. The McGraw-Hill Reader: Issues Across the Disciplines. Ed. Gilbert H. Muller. 8th ed. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2003. 241-243.

Murray, Donald M. "The Maker's Eye: Revising Your Own Manuscripts." The Writer 1973. Rpt.

The McGraw-Hill Reader: Issues Across the Disciplines. Ed. Gilbert H. Muller.

8th ed. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2003. 56-60.

Schlesinger, Arthur M., Jr. "The Cult of Ethnicity." Time July 8, 1981. Rpt. The McGraw-Hill Reader:
Issues Across the Disciplines. Ed. Gilbert H. Muller. 8th ed. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2003.
47-49.

Tannen, Deborah. “Sex, Lies, and Conversation: Why Is It So Hard for Men and Women to Talk to

Each Other?” Washington Post 1990. Rpt. The McGraw-Hill Reader: Issues Across

the Disciplines. Ed. Gilbert H. Muller. 8th ed. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2003. 228-232.

Taylor, Jamie. "Cultish Behavior or Doltish Behavior?" The McGraw-Hill Reader:
Issues Across the Disciplines. Ed. Gilbert H. Muller. 8th ed. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2003. 38-39.

In-Class Essay #3 Evaluation                    Name___________________________
WR 121, Fall 2004, Prof. C. Agatucci
Two highest scores/grades on three in-class                         Grade & Score_______________
essays count (2 @ 20% of course grade)                              No Late/Make Up Allowed

____Must be written in blank bluebook(s) or In-Class Essay will not be accepted for grading.
____Must avoid plagiarism: see Category #6 below

PASSING SCORES & GRADES: High Pass = 4 (Grade of A);
Clear Pass = 3 (Grade of B); Marginal Pass = 3- (Grade of C)
FAILING SCORES & GRADES: Fail = 2 (Grade of D); Low Fail = 1 (Grade of F)
In-Class Essays must demonstrate at least minimum competency (score of “3-”)
in all 6 of the following categories in order to receive a Passing Score/Grade:

_____1. ASSIGNED TOPIC & TOPIC FOCUS: Clearly addresses (all parts of) assigned topic question & explores relevant issues; topic/thesis is well focused (limited enough) to allow for satisfactory treatment in an essay of 750-1000 words within timed writing period. Student chose a new topic for In-Class Essay #3 - i.e. NOT the same topic addressed in In-Class Essay #2.

____2. CONTENT, THESIS/PURPOSE: Shows depth, complexity of thought (not simplistic) in exploring issues relevant to assigned topic; establishes and maintains a clear "focus" unified by a thesis statement, with clear controlling sentences (e.g. thesis/purpose statements, topic sentences, thesis transitions); engaged writing to communicate with the intended audience. Essay must be written to make a central point--i.e. unified by, organized and developed to support a clear, focused thesis that responds explicitly to assigned topic.

____3. ORGANIZATION, COHERENCE, ESSAY FORM: Effectively organized by a clear, logical organizational pattern appropriate to assigned topic & thesis; essay structure (e.g., introduction, conclusion, transitions & paragraph breaks) clearly establishes and carries out organizational pattern; effective transitions, logical reasoning, & clear expression maintain strong coherence throughout the essay.

____4. PARAGRAPH DEVELOPMENT: Body paragraphs are well-developed, drawing upon reading, personal experience, observation; general points (e.g. topic sentences) are developed with strong supporting detail & well-selected examples, with sufficient explanation to establish relevance of body points & specific evidence to the essay topic & thesis.

____5. STYLE & COMMAND OF STANDARD WRITTEN ENGLISH: Clear, coherent, effective style demonstrates control of diction/word choice & sentence structure, creating tone appropriate to topic/purpose; & pleasing sentence variety; strong Command of standard written English is demonstrated by few flaws in grammar, usage, punctuation, mechanics; no serious patterns of errors (e.g. subject-verb agreement, verb form/tense, persistent misuse of commas) and no more than three (3) major/high distortion errors (errors that hurt clarity)—e.g. fragments; run-on (CS) comma splices & (FS) fused sentences; unclear pronoun references, word choices, or sentence structure.

____6. EFFECTIVE & RESPONSIBLE USE OF READING. Demonstrates strong reading comprehension & integrates smoothly, effectively viewpoint/s &/or quotations from relevant reading, as required by assigned topic; avoids plagiarism: all sources are cited responsibly within (in-text) & at the end of (Works Cited) the essay; good faith effort to follow MLA style.

Outcome 1 Write essays that . . .
    ...use a thesis to establish control over content;
    ...supply relevant and adequate supporting details drawn from observation, personal experience and/or responsive reading;
    ...employ the organizational strategies of effective beginnings, transitions, and endings; and
    ...conform to standard edited English.
Outcome 2 Achieve Outcome 1 under time constraints (prior to the final exam), while conforming to expectations of an assigned topic and of edited English appropriate for timed writing.
Outcome 4 Employ one or more sources responsibly (without plagiarizing) in a summary or another writing assignment.
Outcome 5 Demonstrate, in an essay, a sustained style employing rhetorically effective tone, persona, diction, idiom, and syntax [i.e. sentence style & word choice].

In addition, preparatory & follow-up assignments & activities--e.g. written plans, preliminary drafts & author's directions, writer's workshops--will help you achieve WR 121 learning Outcomes #7, #8, & #9.