Name____________________________Hr.____
Junior English: Argument Writing #2
SOURCE B
LEARNING TARGET SL. 11-12.4:
I can write a claim.
I can support my claim with specific evidence.
I can explain how evidence connects to the claim.
I can identify counterargument
PROMPT: According to this article, “American Attitudes about Materialism,” is the
American dream still an achievable reality today, or is the American dream dead?
DIRECTIONS:
1) Read Source B below.
2) Complete a SOAPSTone annotation for the source (there is space on the bottom of pg. 2
for your SOAPStone)
3) Write one paragraph taking a stance on this topic. Use the outline attached to this packet.
Create an argument using a minimum of two examples from the text to support your
ideas.
a. ORDER OF PARAGRAPH: Claim, Evidence, Analysis Warrant, Evidence,
Analysis, Warrant, Counterclaim, Refutation, Warrant
Source B
“American Attitudes about Materialism, Consumption
and the Environment." Linkages Virtual Policy
Dialog. Linkages Sustainable Consumption &
Production Pr, 15 Aug. 1997. Web. 10 Feb. 2013.
<http://www.iisd.ca/consume/mer_5.html>.
The following is excerpted from an article on a news Web site.
American people apparently share the sense that something is amiss, but they do not necessarily use the
word "overconsumption" to describe it. The Merck Family Fund commissioned a survey by The Harwood
Group as part of a broad, long-term effort to examine patterns of consumption in the United States and the
consequences of those patterns for our society and the environment. David Mermin of the Harwood
Group reported on the national public opinion survey of 800 randomly selected individuals. (A more
detailed treatment of the survey findings and methodology, Yearning for Balance: Views of Americans on
Consumption, Materialism, and the Environment, is available under separate cover from the Merck
Family Fund.) The survey revealed four overarching findings:
1. Americans believe deeply that society's priorities are out of whack. People of all backgrounds believe
that materialism, greed, and selfishness increasingly dominate American public life and the private lives
of individuals. These forces are crowding out a more meaningful set of values centered on family,
responsibility, and community. People do not want to repudiate material gain, but they want a greater
sense of balance in their lives. The survey also revealed that many people believe that their closely held
values - responsibility, family life, and friendship - are at odds with those of other Americans. Eighty-five
percent of those surveyed rate these values extremely high, but fewer than half believe "most people in
our society" rate these values equally high.
2. Americans are deeply concerned about their future. The American Dream is increasingly defined by
purchasing, material gain, and by "keeping up with the Joneses" rather than by a sense of opportunity.
Americans see this as unhealthy and destructive. The children absorb the lessons of their consumer
culture: 86 percent of respondents said that "Today's youth are too focused on buying and consuming
things," and 58 percent describe most American children as "very materialistic." Harwood noted that
people worry that if we do not change course, social conditions will continue to worsen, and our children
and future generations will bear the burden.
3. People are ambivalent about making changes in their lives and in our society. Survey results showed
that Americans want financial security and comfort, but they also hold deep nonmaterial aspirations for
themselves and their country. Eighty-two percent of Americans agree that "most of us buy and consume
far more than we need. It's wasteful." Yet they struggle to reconcile the need for changes in themselves
and others with their core belief in freedom to live as we choose.
4. Americans associate the environment with these concerns, but in a general way. People have an
intuitive sense that our propensity to want "more and more" is unsustainable. Eighty-eight percent of
those surveyed believe "protecting the environment will require most of us to make major changes in the
way we live."
With such concerns in mind, the conference participants began to address some difficult yet essential
questions. Is it time to think about a new American Dream based not on consumerism but on a better
quality of life? What changes are required for such a shift to occur?
SOAPSTONE:
ARGUMENT PARAGRAPH: SOURCE B
DIRECTIONS: Write your response to the prompt below.
Claim: Do not use personal pronouns, unless instructed otherwise.
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
Evidence #1: (Direct quote via quote weave, paraphrase, or summary) + Citation in MLA from a
text with context or necessary background for evidence.
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
Explanation of Evidence/Infer/Analysis #1: Analyze this example. What are the KEY words
from the evidence, if you provided a direct quote? What do these KEY words reveal? What else
needs to be explained about this evidence?
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
Warrant #1: How does evidence #1 support your claim? How does this evidence prove the
position you have taken? (Do not use the words “my claim” in the warrant).
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
Transition between evidence #1 and evidence #2: Refer to transition word list for more ideas.
Evidence #2: Original piece of evidence from your background knowledge (news, movies, TV,
personal anecdotes, etc.)
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
Explanation of Evidence/Infer/Analysis #2: Analyze this example. What are the KEY words
from the evidence, if you provided a direct quote? What do these KEY words reveal? What else
needs to be explained about this evidence?
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
*Counterclaim/Refutation may be placed after analysis #1and/or after analysis #2, depending
on the counterclaim*
*Counterclaim: The opposition to your claim. What is this opposition going to argue against
your claim and the evidence you have provided thus far?
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
*Refutation: Your response to the counterclaim. This response should be based on the evidence
and analysis you already provided in this body paragraph or new evidence and analysis. The
refutation should parallel your warrant.
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
Warrant #2: How does evidence #2 support your claim? How does this evidence prove the
position you have taken? (Do not use the words “my claim” in the warrant).
______________________________________________________________________________
Concluding Sentence: Restate your claim and compare your two major pieces of evidence using
fresh language.
______________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________.