Claims and Evidence

Directions: First, state your working thesis or your thesis question. Next, list one source (in MLA format) that you think will help to support your main claim. Then, state why you think that source will help you to prove your claim.

Due before class on November 19th.

Reply to Classmate: ask a classmate a question about the source and/or the claim that might help provoke further research. OR, if you have a source you think would be useful to your classmate (either one you are using or one you might have come across in your Wonderland travels), please share that information with your classmate.

Reply due before 5pm on Friday, November 21st.

Discovering Topics

Directions: In order to determine your topic for your research synthesis, you must first begin to test what you want to say, what you want to say and who you want to say it to. First, read LBH 14-16 and answer 1.5--LBH p.17--to create an academic question. Perform exercise 2.5 on p. 35 to create your topic.

Initial reply due before class on Wednesday, November 12th. 

Reply to classmate: ask a question that will provoke your classmate to think more deeply about his or her topic. For instance, if the topic is too broad, ask a question that will encourage your classmate to think about one specific area of the topic. If the topic is too narrow, ask a question that will encourage your classmate to think more deeply about the issue, which will widen his/her scope.

Due before 5pm on Friday, November 14th.

Unit III Reflection

Directions: you have just finished your second college paper, and your first (and, likely, last) rhetorical analysis. Please answer the following questions in the form of a paragraph (no more than 200 words). What do you feel you gained from understanding how others use rhetoric in their arguments? What aspect of the unit did you find most useful? How will you use the knowledge from this unit to both create and interpret arguments in the future? Is there anything more you would like to know about rhetoric before we move on?

Due before 10pm on November 5th.

5 points for posting on time
5 points for following directions and answering all the questions.

Thesis and Reasons: RA

Directions: after you have presented your theses to the class, type up the workshopped/edited thesis and your four reasons/topic sentences. For this week, you will not be required to comment on your classmates' blogs, but I would encourage you to review your classmates' blogs, in case you are still struggling.

Due by 10pm the day you present your thesis. So, if you present on Monday, the blog will be due at 10pm that night. If you present on Wednesday, the blog will be due by 10pm that night.

5 points for being on time
5 points for following directions (you must have at least four reasons to support your thesis)

S.O.A.P.S. and Logical Fallacies

Directions: Watch the video and identify the rhetorical elements.

Part One:

Identify the S.O.A.P.S. for each side of the battle. Label each as Shakespeare and Dr, Seuss.

Part Two:

Identify at least two logical fallacies that each author's side makes. State each logical fallacy and then state why it is a logical fallacy.

Response due before class on Wednesday.

Classmate response: instead of a response to a classmate, respond to yourself. Our discussion on Wednesday will have clarified some of the fallacies and the S.O.A.P.S. If you feel that you correctly labeled everything, then congratulate yourself on a job well-done. However, if you want to add to parts One or Two in order to create a more complete analysis, then this is your chance. Your initial response and response to yourself will be graded as follows:

Initial response: 2 points
Following directions in initial response: 2 points
Response to self on time: 2 points
Response to self accurately identifies mistakes in original post (if any): 4 points

Response to self due by Friday, October 24th at 5pm.

Ethos and Pathos

Directions: watch the following video and point out the S.O.A.P.S. and the ethos and pathos. What makes the ethos and pathos effective? What makes the ethos and/or pathos ineffective? Would the clip be as effective if the speaker used only ethos or pathos?

Initial response due before class on Wednesday.

Reply to classmate: Find a classmate that you disagree with his/her labeling of one of the elements (or who left out one of the elements) and ask a question that will lead him/her to the discovery of a deeper understanding of that element. For instance, did your classmate truly understand the purpose of the video or the way the speaker used ethos and pathos? Or did your classmate misinterpret how the two were used together in order to achieve the speech? If you cannot find a classmate you disagree with, find a post you agree with and detail why and how your classmate's response was effective.

Reply to classmate due before 5pm on Friday, October 17th.

Unit II Reflection

Directions: You have now written your first English 121 argument. Now, please answer the following questions: Have you ever written a college paper before? How does this assignment compare? How do you think you will use the skills you learned in Unit II in your future essays (in this class and your future college classes)? Do you have any questions about writing a short argument before we move on? (On this last question, if I get a lot of the same answer, we will review in class, rather than me providing you with an individual answer.)

You can respond in paragraph or list form. 200 word maximum.

Due before 10pm on October 7th.