Skills 17.5 & 17.6

Sections 17.4 & 17.3

Start and end with the “big picture” through effective titles, introductions, and conclusions. What readers need from principle creates a closed approach is an ability to predict what is coming as well as regular fulfillment of those predictions. Lay out the “big picture” of your essay with their title and introduction and then return to the “big picture” in the conclusion.

Don’t use “topic title” and “funnel introduction”. Never start with broad generalizations and then narrow it down to your topic. A better approach is to hook your readers immediately with an effective title and a problem-prosing introduction.

Good titles follow the principle of old before new information. A good title needs to have something old (a word or phrase hooks into a reader’s existing interests) and something new (a word or phrase that forecasts the writer’s problematic question, thesis, or purpose). Composing a title for your essay can help you find your focus when you get stuck in the middle of a draft. It forces you to focus on what is old and what is new for your audience.

Old information is what your readers already know. New information is the surprise of your argument, the unfamiliar material that you add to your readers’ understanding. Your thesis statement forecasts the new information the paper will present, a thesis statement in closed-form prose comes at the end of the introduction. Before the thesis in the introduction is usually the problem stated or the old information. First- problem, (old information). Then-thesis, (new information).

Typical elements of a Closed-Form Introduction:

• An opening attention-grabber.
• Explanation of the question to be investigated.
• Background information.
• A preview of where your paper is heading.

Pages 384-387

Proposal arguments call an audience to action. They make a claim that some action should or ought to be taken.

Practical proposals focus on local, practical problems and generally target a specific audience-usually the person with the power to act on the proposal.

A policy proposal addresses public policy issues with the aim of swaying the public’s support toward the writer’s proposed solution.

The power of proposal arguments is often enhanced with images which can appeal to both logos and pathos. Proposals sometimes take the form of multimodal texts such as posters or advocacy advertisements calling an audience to action.

Proposals can also be delivered as oral presentations such as presenting at a public hearing.

All proposals have one feature in common-they offer a solution to a problem. Your task is to convince readers that the problem is worth solving, that your proposed solution will actually work, and that the benefits outweigh the costs. 

A proposal argument typically has three parts:

• Description of the problem
• Proposal for a solution
• Justification

To get your readers to take action-the ultimate purpose of a proposal-you must overcome some difficult challenges. 

• To give the problem presence:

• Use anecdotes or examples of people suffering from the problem.
• Provide startling facts or statistics to dramatize the problem.
• Include a photograph or other image that conveys the problem.
• Use other appeals to pathos.

• Appealing to the interests and values of decision makers:

• Show decision makers how acting on your proposal will benefit them directly.
• Use audience-based reasons.
• If appropriate appeal to idealism and principle (do the right thing, even if it will cause temporary grief).
• Show how benefits to the sufferers outweigh costs to others.

• Overcoming inherent conservatism:

• Emphasize the seriousness of the problem.
• Stress the benefits of solving the problem.
• Show that the risks are minimal.
• Show that negative consequences are unlikely.

• Predicting consequences:

• Take care not to overpraise benefits.
• Persuade readers that your predictions are realistic-show how the links in the chain lead directly from the solution to the benefits.
• Cite cases where a similar proposal led to real benefits.

• Evaluating consequences:

• Use money as measurement.
• Emphasize the benefits of increased happiness, less suffering and/or saved time.
• Emphasize the greatest good for the greatest number.
• Emphasize idealism and principle.

Chapter 1, Concept 1.1 & Chapter 20, Skill 20.1

Subject matter problems are the heart of college writing. A thesis statement is the main point a writer wants to make in an essay. What is the question that lies behind the thesis? What is the problem or issue that the writer is wrestling with? Experienced writers immerse themselves in subject matter questions in pursuit of answers or solutions.

Shared problems unite writers and readers. A good, interesting question is at the heart of good writing.

Where do problems come from? Good questions do not always have right answers. The kinds of questions that stimulate the writing most valued in college are open-ended questions that focus on unknowns or invite multiple points of view. A good question sets the writer on the path of inquiry, critical thinking, analysis, and argument. You can write about questions or problems that are already “out there” or you can initiate your own.

Argue your own thesis in response to a research question. The best way to produce effective, engaged, and ethically responsible research papers is to begin with a good research question. There is a difference between topic focus and question focus. A topic focus invites you to collect information without a clear purpose. A question focus encourages active construction of meaning. 

Write with your own voice. Think about the topic enough that you form your own opinion and can express your own feelings. You can test the initial feasibility of your research question by considering the following prompts:

• Are you personally interested in this question?
• Is the question both problematic and significant?
• Is the question limited enough for the intended length of your paper?
• Is there a reasonable possibility of finding information on this question based on the time and resources you have available?
• Is the question appropriate for your level of expertise?

Writing Project 7.4

An annotated bibliography includes the writer’s “annotation” or commentary on each source. These annotations can be either summary-only or evaluative.

Summary-only Annotations: Provides a capsule of the source’s contents without any additional comments from the bibliography’s author.

Evaluative Annotations: Adds the author’s critique or assessment of the work, including comments about the source’s rhetorical context, its particular strengths or weaknesses, and its usefulness or value.

Annotations can vary in length. Short annotations that are only a few sentences long are most common when there are multiple entries. Long annotations can be up to 150 words and are more detailed analyses or fuller summaries. Long annotations can make an annotated bibliography too long if there are numerous entries. Reading articles rhetorically and writing annotated bibliographies helps us become more engaged in the research and really prompt us to think in exploratory ways.

Each entry of an annotated bibliography has 2 parts, a bibliographic citation and an evaluative annotation. A bibliographic citation should cite the source in either MLA or APA format. An evaluative annotation usually includes 3 parts:

• Rhetorical information-includes the source’s rhetorical context (genre,purpose, and audience). Are there any biases to be noted?
• A summary of the source’s content.-Summarize the source’s actual argument whenever possible.
• The writer’s evaluation of the source-what are the source’s particular strengths and weaknesses? How useful is the source for specific purposes? How might the writer use the source in a research project?

A critical preface explains the scope and purpose of the bibliography. Highlight your critical thinking and show the way that you conducted your research. Include:

• A contextual overview that shows the purpose of the annotated bibliography and suggests its value and significance for the reader.
• The research question posed by the author.
• The dates during which the bibliography was compiled.
• An overview of the number of items in the bibliography and the kinds of material included.

The key to producing a good annotated bibliography is to take good research notes as you read.

Sections: 2.2, 2.3, 17.4 & 17.10

A strong thesis statement surprises readers with something new or challenging. Your answers to your subject-matter question becomes your thesis statement. A strong thesis usually contains an element of uncertainty, risk, or challenge. A thesis is something to be quarreled with. A strong thesis surprises the reader with a new, unexpected, different, or challenging view of the writer's topic. There are two suggested ways written in the text to create a surprising thesis.

1. Trying to change your reader's view of your subject. 

2. Giving your thesis tension.

To change your reader's view of your subject, you must first imagine how the reader would view the subject before reading your essay. Then, you can articulate how you aim to change that view. 

For example: Before reading my essay, my readers think this way about my topic. After reading it, my readers will think this way. You can enlarge your reader's view by introducing new points and information. You can clarify your readers view of something that was previously fuzzy, tentative, or uncertain. You can restructure readers' whole view of a subject.

The old/new contract is when the thesis comes at the end of the introduction. What precedes the thesis is the explanation of the problem that she is addressing or the conversation that she is joining. This is also called the, "problem-before-thesis-structure." Start the introduction with a question to hook the readers. Features of an effective introduction include...

• Topic area and context
• A direct or implied question
• An indication of how the question invites tension, evoked controversy, or is otherwise problematic.
• An indication of how the question is significant or worth examining.
• The writer's thesis, which brings something new to the audience.

Start and end with the "big picture" through effective titles, introduction, and conclusion. Do not make broad generalizations in your introduction. 

Suggestions for effective titles:

• State or imply the question that your essay addresses. 
• State or imply, often in abbreviated form, your thesis.

For good closed-form introductions, present something old or something already known, and something new or something the audience did not previously know, that may surprise them. 

Problem equals old information. Thesis equals new information. 

Typical elements of a closed-form introduction:

• An opening attention-grabber. 
• Explanation of the question to be investigated. 
• Background information. 
• A preview of where your paper is heading.

Use occasional open-form elements to create voice in closed-form prose.

Chapter 5, Section 5.1

When you read with the grain of a text, you see the world through the author's perspective, apply the texts insights to new contexts, and connect its ideas to your own experience and personal knowledge.
When you read against the grain, you resist it by questioning its points, raising doubts, analyzing the limits of it's perspective, or even refuting its argument. It is very important to read a text and be able to analyze and really understand it. You should be able to summarize it's ideas.

Both, reading against the grain and reading with the grain are extremely important strategies. There are suggestions for both listed in the text.

Suggestions for reading with the grain:

• Listen to the text, follow the author without judgment.
• Try and see the subject through the author's perspective.
• Add support to thesis with your own points and examples.
• Apply the argument in new ways.

Suggestions for reading against the grain:

• Challenge, question, and resist the author's ideas.
• Point out what the author missed or overlooked.
• Identify what is unsupported or inaccurate in the argument.
• Rebut the author's ideas with counter-reasoning  and counterexamples.

There are a variety of things that make college reading difficult and prevent you from reading effectively. Some things that make it difficult are: new subject matter, vocabulary-unfamiliar words or language, unfamiliar rhetorical context-not knowing the author's purpose or intended audience, unfamiliar genre-different genres require different reading strategies, and/or a lack of background knowledge-not understanding culture or context.

Some strategies for overcoming these difficulties and reading like an expert are:

• Reconstruct the rhetorical context. (Ask questions about purpose, audience, etc. Look up info about the author.)
• Take notes
• Match your reading speed with your goals.
• Read a complex text in a "multidraft" way.
• Use summary writing.

Summary writing is a condensed, abstract version of the text. It demonstrates your understanding and can help you retain what you read in order to analyze the text and create new views and arguments.