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DURFEE Engl 101 assignment: RESEARCH PAPER QUICK WRITES
OVERVIEW
So, maybe you guys didn’t know this, but apparently it’s senior cut day. I’m sorry you are in class and they are not. But if I had shown up and only six of you were there I would have taken it all in out of you. So this is better.
Also, this is your assignment for Friday, and you are getting a head start on it.
THE GOAL: By the end of Friday, you should have a good start of a draft. Because, remember, a draft of your research paper is due, in-class, printed out, for peer workshopping. THE MORE YOU HAVE READY FOR THE WORKSHOP, THE BETTER THE FEEDBACK YOU’LL GET.
You can start this now, and finish it on Friday.
For Today (WEDNESDAY), let’s do a series of quick writes based on the reading. You will need to consult your sources to be able to complete this task (material you should have in your annotated bibliogrpaphies).
DETAILS
Quick Write #1:Think about the essays Chimera.In that essay, we learn about one idea (grief) by learning about how another thing, something that seems totally unrelated to it it works. The way the author explains how it feels having lost his wife is by explaining what he knows about how the immune system works, the nervous system works, phantom leg syndrome, etc. He knows a lot about these things and that’s why it is easy for him to explain one thing using the other. This is sort of like a metaphor.
You can also think about how dog-fighting was used in Offensive Play. As most of you figured out, dog-fighting is like playing football. And we understand how football is dangerours better because we read about dog-fighting.
For five to seven minutes, EXPLAIN your topic in writing.You can use a metaphor to do it. Is managing money like hoarding Halloween candy? Should cheerleading count as a sport the way scrubbing the floor is like exercise? Is being a good mentor like being a good pet owner?
Don’t freak out about this. Just try. If you can do this, you’ll find that you really get what your topic is, what your thesis is, etc. You might find that this can be a very powerful part of your essay—perhaps a conclusion or introduction even.
Quick Write #2:Think about the essay An American Hunger.Remember the part where we learned about the two sports writers? As we talked about in class on Monday, you learned contextfor the larger argument about the Ali by reading about these two men. They represented certain parts of the argument.
For Five to Seven minutes, write about parts of your research that are not necessarily directly about your topic, but, by knowing about it, we understand your argument better.So, for instance, if you know something about how the human arm works, you know that throwing a baseball is harder than it looks. If you know something about how serotonin is released into the brain, you know something about how video games can be addictive.
Again, don’t freak out, just try. Lots of times students don’t take the time to explain all the things a reader needs to know about their topic in order to understand and believe their argument. Here is a chance to get these important parts down.
NOTE:maybe you know there is stuff you could explain that would improve your essay but you have no information about it. Today would be a good day to do some quick research to learn about what you don’t know.
Quick Write #3:Think about the reading for today about memorializing the Boston Marathon Bombing. In this essay, the writer is using Boston as an EXAMPLE of what is hard about creating any kind of memorial. She goes on to write about other memorials (Sandy Hook, Las Vegas, etc).
For Five to Seven Minutes, Write about an EXAMPLE OR EXAMPLES that prove your thesis.Is there a particular movie score where, if the music wasn’t there, it would just not be the same? (For instance, Jaws). Is there a story of a student who was undocumented who went out to do something that saved lots of people that shows why we should allow undocumented students to get financial aid in college?
Here again, if you don’t have this kind of information, you can use this time to find it. Writing a paragraph or two on this will help you to build your paper.
Quick Write #4: Remember way back when when I asked you to post about why you cared about your subject and why others should care about it? That was a sneaky way to get you to start to draft an opening and a concluding paragraph. An opening paragraph should lay out what you are going to prove to your reader and should let the reader know why you care about it. It should culminate in your thesis.
A concluding paragraph should demonstrate to a reader how you have grown your thesis over the course of your paper (not just repeat it) and it should leave your reader understanding why they should care about your subject.
Take the remaining time in class to try to draft a rough version of your introduction and conclusion to your paper. This will require you to write a version of your thesis that would appear in your introduction, and to write a version of your grown up, fully in blossom thesis as it would appear in the concluding paragraph.
BONUS:Once you’ve done all this, do a quick list of what you have to prove to prove your thesis. Make the list in order of how it appears in your thesis.
So, maybe you guys didn’t know this, but apparently it’s senior cut day. I’m sorry you are in class and they are not. But if I had shown up and only six of you were there I would have taken it all in out of you. So this is better.
Also, this is your assignment for Friday, and you are getting a head start on it.
THE GOAL: By the end of Friday, you should have a good start of a draft. Because, remember, a draft of your research paper is due, in-class, printed out, for peer workshopping. THE MORE YOU HAVE READY FOR THE WORKSHOP, THE BETTER THE FEEDBACK YOU’LL GET.
You can start this now, and finish it on Friday.
For Today (WEDNESDAY), let’s do a series of quick writes based on the reading. You will need to consult your sources to be able to complete this task (material you should have in your annotated bibliogrpaphies).
DETAILS
Quick Write #1:Think about the essays Chimera.In that essay, we learn about one idea (grief) by learning about how another thing, something that seems totally unrelated to it it works. The way the author explains how it feels having lost his wife is by explaining what he knows about how the immune system works, the nervous system works, phantom leg syndrome, etc. He knows a lot about these things and that’s why it is easy for him to explain one thing using the other. This is sort of like a metaphor.
You can also think about how dog-fighting was used in Offensive Play. As most of you figured out, dog-fighting is like playing football. And we understand how football is dangerours better because we read about dog-fighting.
For five to seven minutes, EXPLAIN your topic in writing.You can use a metaphor to do it. Is managing money like hoarding Halloween candy? Should cheerleading count as a sport the way scrubbing the floor is like exercise? Is being a good mentor like being a good pet owner?
Don’t freak out about this. Just try. If you can do this, you’ll find that you really get what your topic is, what your thesis is, etc. You might find that this can be a very powerful part of your essay—perhaps a conclusion or introduction even.
Quick Write #2:Think about the essay An American Hunger.Remember the part where we learned about the two sports writers? As we talked about in class on Monday, you learned contextfor the larger argument about the Ali by reading about these two men. They represented certain parts of the argument.
For Five to Seven minutes, write about parts of your research that are not necessarily directly about your topic, but, by knowing about it, we understand your argument better.So, for instance, if you know something about how the human arm works, you know that throwing a baseball is harder than it looks. If you know something about how serotonin is released into the brain, you know something about how video games can be addictive.
Again, don’t freak out, just try. Lots of times students don’t take the time to explain all the things a reader needs to know about their topic in order to understand and believe their argument. Here is a chance to get these important parts down.
NOTE:maybe you know there is stuff you could explain that would improve your essay but you have no information about it. Today would be a good day to do some quick research to learn about what you don’t know.
Quick Write #3:Think about the reading for today about memorializing the Boston Marathon Bombing. In this essay, the writer is using Boston as an EXAMPLE of what is hard about creating any kind of memorial. She goes on to write about other memorials (Sandy Hook, Las Vegas, etc).
For Five to Seven Minutes, Write about an EXAMPLE OR EXAMPLES that prove your thesis.Is there a particular movie score where, if the music wasn’t there, it would just not be the same? (For instance, Jaws). Is there a story of a student who was undocumented who went out to do something that saved lots of people that shows why we should allow undocumented students to get financial aid in college?
Here again, if you don’t have this kind of information, you can use this time to find it. Writing a paragraph or two on this will help you to build your paper.
Quick Write #4: Remember way back when when I asked you to post about why you cared about your subject and why others should care about it? That was a sneaky way to get you to start to draft an opening and a concluding paragraph. An opening paragraph should lay out what you are going to prove to your reader and should let the reader know why you care about it. It should culminate in your thesis.
A concluding paragraph should demonstrate to a reader how you have grown your thesis over the course of your paper (not just repeat it) and it should leave your reader understanding why they should care about your subject.
Take the remaining time in class to try to draft a rough version of your introduction and conclusion to your paper. This will require you to write a version of your thesis that would appear in your introduction, and to write a version of your grown up, fully in blossom thesis as it would appear in the concluding paragraph.
BONUS:Once you’ve done all this, do a quick list of what you have to prove to prove your thesis. Make the list in order of how it appears in your thesis.