Miguel Fernandez
Miguel.fernandez@cgc.edu
Books?
ENG102 8 WEEK version means 16 weeks of work in just 8 weeks
2 classes/wk 2:50min
No time to miss work/classes
Syllabus
Introductions
Paper Topics
Paper Descriptions:
Trainer
1st argumentative paper
Final argumentative paper
Standard class:
Lesson
Activity
Lesson
1) Creative vs Expository
2) What is a thesis / argumentative thesis
NEXT CLASS: Look at the list of sample topics and come up with 2 or 3
choices!
CREATIVE ESSAY “I’m Special”
ENG101
Creative Composition
“I” believe/ “I” feel / “I” Think
vs
EXPOSITORY ESSAY
ENG102
Argumentative research
“Facts show” [never/rarely use I
except maybe in conclusion and
intro] – confident universal
statements
Opinion
Creative examples
Proof
Expert knowledge w/ quotes &
citations
Listed personal experience, details of 3rd party identified and listed sources,
your life and beliefs as source
detailed explanations quoted from
outside sources
Purpose: Use writing skills to
Purpose: to convince someone w/ an
entertain
open mind
Fun and funny and/or moving to
Removed voice
readers
Creative & drama
Critical thinking
Argue what you feel
Argue what you can prove
“Debate rarely changes a mind….[text deleted/to be continued]” –
Is college and ‘fair’ argumentation just a fantasy of being
“civilized, that doesn’t scale to the real world?”
What does a basic argumentative paper
look like?
(pic on board)
Sample paper 1:
http://www.newclassroom.com/LMPaper1SAMPLEENG102.pdf
Sample Feedback for an F, C, A paper:
http://www.newclassroom.com/samplefeedback.htm
Thesis: your paper’s topic, as a sentence. NEVER A QUESTION if your thesis is an
argumentative thesis.
WHAT IS AN ArgumentativeTHESIS? A single sentence summary of an
argument you are going to make or point of view you are going to take.
1)NOT A QUESTION / DOES NOT END IN QUESTION MARK.
BAD: Could drinking tap water in former Arizona industrial lands increase risk of cancer?
BETTER:Drinking tap water from former Arizona industrial lands will increase risk of cancer.
2)SOMEONE CAN DISAGREE WITH YOU/ TAKE THE OPPOSITE SIDE, otherwise it’s
not argumentative.
BAD: Plastic Surgery in teenagers.
BETTER:Plastic surgery in teenagers is a growing trend caused by peer and media image
pressure
BAD: Preparing a car to win a street race.
BETTER:Chip modification is the most important way to prepare a car for a street race.
BAD: Misdiagnosis of Attention Deficit Disorder
BETTER: Misdiagnosis of Attention Deficit Disorder is leading to overmedication of school
age children.
3)NARROWED TO MATCH AUDIENCE
(See narrowing lesson)
4) TAKES A SIDE FIRMLY, NOT JUST uses weak words like “possibly, sometimes, might,
could, etc”
BAD: Video games might increase violence in pre-teens.
BETTER: Video games increase violence in pre-teens.
BAD: Sometimes it is possible to use supplements to win bodybuilding contests.
BETTER: Supplements are now a necessity in order to win bodybuilding contests.
5) BE CAREFUL in choosing the words of your THESIS: EVERYTHING YOU SAY YOU
ARE GOING TO COVER IN YOUR APPROVED THESIS, MUST BE COVERED IN YOUR
PAPER.
For example: If your approved thesis is:
Grappling is the most effective mixed martial arts technique in Ultimate Fighting
competitions
THEN….
You must compare it to all other major techniques, and discuss it for defense, offense and
counter moves….
MORE SPECIFIC means less to cover: Grappling is the most effective mixed martial arts
technique for dealing with reach-based attack styles in Ultimate Fighting competitions
For example, what is the Difference between these thesis:
“Fast food is a main contributor to the obesity problem in the US” vs
What can you cover? What can’t you cover?
“Fast food is the cause of the obesity problem in the US” vs
What can you cover? What can’t you cover?
“The fast food industry is a major cause of the obesity problem in the US” vs
What can you cover? What can’t you cover?
“Bad Nutrition is the main reason for the growing obesity problem in the US”
What can you cover? What can’t you cover?
For each above, can you use below as arguments?:
1)Happy meals reward kids with toys for eating fast food
2)Fat content of most pre-frozen food is higher than fresher foods in order to retain taste
3Food chemicals and additives are known to affect the metabolism, usually slowing it down
4)Advertising targeting children airs heavily on most kid channels such as Nickelodeon
5)Fast Food is cheap
6)Frozen microwaveable meals are notoriously low in nutritional value
7) Portion size is out of control compared to meal portion size from the 1950’s.
HOW TO MAKE SURE YOUR TOPIC IS IN
ARGUMENTATIVE FORM
By nature of being argumentative,
there must exist opposite or opposing points of view.
Ask this question as a test of whether your thesis is in argumentative form:
What counterarguments do you expect to address OR what kinds
of counterarguments may exist? If the potential ‘other side’ exists
but is ridiculous, make sure you do not have a weak argument.
If you can't find any possible opposite/opposing point of view to
your argument, you probably don't have a thesis in argumentative
form.
EXAMPLES:
1)WRONG: Effects of nerve gas on soldiers who survive chemical attacks
OK but weak: Nerve gas has negative effects on soldiers who survive chemical attacks
OK/ARGUMENTATIVE FORM: Nerve gas exposure continues to harm the health of
survivors long after the attack
2)WRONG: Problems in treating Alzheimers’ patients
OK but weak: There are problems in treating Alzheimers’ patients
OK/ARGUMENTATIVE FORM: Alzheimers victims in nursing homes face more
severe problems than those who receive home care.
3)WRONG: Robots and the car industry in the United States
OK/ARGUMENTATIVE FORM: ????
4) WRONG: Gambling and corruption at the Wild Horse Pass Casino
OK/ARGUMENTATIVE FORM: ????
Think of it in terms of having to take a specific point of view or stand in a topic.
For example, in a debate, you can't argue "Different treatments for dealing with
Cancer": that's an informative paper, appropriate to ENG101 or call for an informative
paper.
For the final paper in this class you could compare and contrast or take a point of
view related to this.
SO YOU COULD ARGUE: "Herbal treatments have become an effective
alternative to cancer patients not responding to Chemotherapy"
end
II. WHAT does an argumentative paragraph look like?
*Each content paragraph in an argumentative paper is TPEO or TPEOEO or
TPEOEOEO
Topic Sentence: one sentence in EACH paragraph – what the
paragraph is about or paper’s subtopic – in an argumentative paper: a
specific argument under paper’s thesis.
Point: In your own words, how the topic sentence/subtopic/this
paragraph is important to, argues for the paper’s thesis. ‘Point’ is
necessary in paragraph to prevent lack of clarity or misinterpretation by
audience different POV
Evidence or Example: one of TWO quotes or paraphrased details and
expert knowledge from an outside source that supports your
paragraph’s topic sentences. ALWAYS with a citation
Optional explanation of Evidence: in your own words, commentary or
how the evidence you quoted is important or supports your topic
sentence and/or your paper thesis. Not always required if your
evidence (quote) is straightforward.
SAMPLE PARAGRAPH SHOWING EACH PART AND ESPECIAL THE ‘E” of evidence/expert knowledge
Thesis: Adopting the aluminum bat instead of the wood bat
in amateur baseball fundamentally changes the game.
YELLOW:
T
BLUE:
P
grey =
E(vidence/xpert knowledge)
green:
Optional comment
Safety issues on the playing field increase immensely when aluminum bats are present. In any
competitive sport, no one wants anyone to get hurt. Unfortunately aluminum bats increase the risk in
baseball. Teams across the country are beginning to return to the traditional wood bat; one of those
teams is the Wellesley Raiders. Eric Winer, president of the Wellesley American Little League, said
in the July issue of Greater Boston Magazine, “We had an incident last year…when one of our top
pitchers, Billy Hughto, got struck by a line drive of a metal batted ball and was out for the season”
(22). This incident easily helped Eric Winer make the decision to switch from aluminum to wood.
Winer was not alone in making the safety choice: “The Millburn Mullvers tried aluminum bats, but
quickly switched back after a line drive broke the hand of the first baseman despite gloves. This kind
of line drive with wood bats had never led to an injury” (“Millburn Mullvers website”).
end
1) CRACKING THE TIMED ESSAY and SOCRAPR for cracking the timed or ‘I
have no idea’ artistic quality/’how does’ essay
III. Cracking the Essay: maximizing the points in a timed essay.
Psych portion of Police captain’s test (proposed/rejected 2002): <a page describing incidents in the last year at
Precinct 22, including two fatal shootings of officers responding to incidents, including media coverage and
indictment of 5 officers and 2 detectives in a drug dealer protection scheme, low morale, and hostile neighborhood.>
If you are being transferred to this precinct, is it better to enter with a reputation of being feared or being respected?
Explain why, using personal example and strategic procedure.
70-100 Microsoft exam example. (can cover 1250 pages of study materials)
You are a database developer for an online retailer. Each customer is tracked by ip, to create business intelligence
tracks for ‘browser’ type customers, along with standard cookie deployment for those preparing an order. <Click to
see schema and exhibit of existing methodology in flow chart and pseudo code>. BI division reports an increase in
failed attempts to buy from customers using mobile devices without stateful cookie objects. Customer Support
confirms this. You are tasked with looking at and recommending from several competing choices in scripts (1
internal, 3 commercial products) to simulate cookies with stateful objects and allow mobile users to shop with no
further problems immediately.
Choose a script (CLICK exhibits to see each proposal and summary) to recommend and justify a best choice, with at
least 2 reasons per strategy action group (purchasing, sales, development, etc).
What are the benefits and problems of using artificial skin?
Procedure for breaking down a direct question essay
(what is, who is, when, why, where)*
Sample Question: What are the benefits and problems of Using Artificial Skin for Scientific Testing
1) Always read the Question FIRST. Circle the thing(s) the assignment wants you to find or answer.
[Would you circle Artificial skin? Is the question asking you to find Artificial skin? NO. Same for Scientific Testing. What the
question *IS* asking you to find are the benefits AND the problems. Circle the words 'benefits' and 'problems']
2) Write those terms on a scrap section of your paper (eg on the back of the paper, write 'benefits', skip some space, then write
'problems' and underline both). If the terms aren’t clear, write next to it in your own words
3)Go back and re-read the question. [The circled items will attain 'cognitive focus': subconsciously become things you look for -eg if you are simply looking at people crossing the street, you may/may not notice someone with a red dress. But if you think 'red
dress' and then look, your mind will focus on scanning for the red dress, consciously or subconsciously].
3A) If you are an average or fast reader, read the text then go to step 4.
3B)If you are a slow reader, as you read the text, underline every important section of the text dealing with what the question
wants you to find ('benefits' and 'problems').
4) From the text (or parts of text you underline in 3B), find/write down the answer or EVIDENCE to each term as you find it, in
the form of some buzz words or summary you will remember.
For example:
Benefits
-ethical-no animals
-scientific-reproduce results easily-no variation w/diff animals
-cheaper than human trials
-screen humans for best candidates
Problems
-what about info from organs working together?
You could logically "think" up/extrapolate more reasons (for example, problem could be that lawyers could sue if the "patches"
of artifical skin tissue was not broad enough genetically and ethnically), but on an essay question, at minimum, use what the text
gives you.
NOTE: doing step 4 above can help you if you are running out of time! If you are almost at "pencils down," quickly write "out
of time - ideas on back" at bottom of paper. Sometimes you may get partial credit for finding the answers even if you didn't have
time to write up the essay to completion.
5) Work on an intro (see types of introduction handout later in the course)/ Put your brainstormed idea into a thesis form
6) Order the list of your examples on the back: write #1 next to the ones with most evidence/strongest case/that you understand
best, down to the least evidence/weakest case/reason you understand least. Choose as many as a)the assignment requests (for
example, 'in 5 paragraphs including intro and conclusion...' you would do 2 benefits and 1
problem); OR
b) as time allows (with at minimum 1 benefit and 1 problem); OR
c) the standard 2-3 pieces of evidence per topic/question asked.
START writing! Use direct quotes from the text as "Evidence" in answering the question(s), when possible.
7)Make a concluding paragraph that restates how your points support your thesis.
Procedure for breaking down an artistic or Stylistic “How Does” question (usually asks ‘how’)
A stylistic quality question is different from a direct question essay in the sense that you are being asked to discuss artistically
rather than analyze or answer; or are asked about a specific style or artistic TECHNIQUE: “how does” the artist/business person
do something/achieve an effect specifically. You have to be careful to discuss specific techniques or patterns, not the “what
is,” in a stylistic quality question. The ‘assrro’ acronym example
Here are some examples of a stylistic quality questions and the way many
WRONGLY answer them:
1)How does Faulkner create a setting of nostalgia?
[If you answered, Faulkner’s novels are full of nostalgia for the old South, for example…you would NOT be
answering the question]
2)How does Monet’s paintings use color to fit within the impressionistic style?
[If you answered, Monet’s paintings are bright and full of pastel colors and…, you would NOT be answering
the question]
3) How does IBM successfully market to the professional woman??
[If answered, IBM targets women who want a portable powerful computer you would NOT be answering
the question]
4) How does a successful retail manager increase the energy level of floor salespeople? [If answered, A
successful retail manager must be a leader instead of just a boss, you would NOT be answering the
question]
5) How does author XXXX set the mood in his short story….?
[If you answered, The author sets a dark mood of depression and tragedy, you would NOT be answering
the question, you have identified the mood]
STEPS:
1) Follow STEPS 1-3 for a direct question, standard essay
4) If you know enough about the author, art, movement, writing, etc, to discuss the technique and answer the question with
specifics, GO FOR IT, then follow STEPS 5-7 for a direct question/standard essay.
5) IF YOU DON’T KNOW SPECIFIC “HOW DOES” or don’t have time for the artistic view, you
can use the generic toolbox of patterns/ starter categories for artistic essays below: SOCRAPR.
These will allow you to quickly start an artistic essay in a time-limited setting. SOCRAPR:
a) Similarities in the text/painting/musical piece
b) Opposites (For example, funeral and birthday, hopelessness and bliss, etc)
c) Contrasts (bright settings with people painted in dark colors, talking about toys while
bombs are exploding,etc)
d) Repetitions (same words or sounds used, same scenes or behavior reoccurring, etc)
e) Author (something signature or biographical to the author)
f) Parallels (same thing happening to A and B, what has happened to A reflected in what’s
happening to B (For example, in a story about confusion how the language parallels the content by
not using punctuation)
g) Relationships (For example Father and Son heroes vs father and son villains in a story, the
family dynamic between parent and teenagers as model for boss/worker)
Here are some examples of how you WOULD answer the 5 sample questions above, using the SOCRAPR patterns:
1) Faulkner creates a setting of nostalgia by repeatedly showing the old guides and hunters
recalling their adventures, intercut with scenes of urban sprawl and new tombstones added at
the cemetery.
2) Monet contrasts bright natural blues and greens with out of focus white and black to…etc.
He next contrasts….
3) IBM successfully markets to the professional woman in exactly the opposite way from the
makeup companies strategies: treat the woman as independent, not wanting to fit into the
mainstream, and seeking self satisfaction, not that of others.
4) A retail manager increases the energy level of floor salespeople by following the
relationship model of parent with multiple competing children: motivate quietly, reward
privately to prevent envy/non coolness peer pressure, and make each think that they are the
favorite as long as they are not whiny or slacking off.
5) The author sets the dark mood of the story in the way that has become signature to his style:
by having the world suddenly reflecting the inner feelings of the broken hero: the sky suddenly
darkens, wind ‘breaks apart the skeletons of dying trees,’ and ‘the clouds cry for a few
minutes, then move on, breaking into nothingness.’
SAMPLE ARTISTIC QUESTIONS: SOCRAPR at work
Similarities, Opposites, Contrasts, Repetition, Author, Parallels, Relationships
1) “As Gregor Samsa awoke one morning from an uneasy dream he found himself transformed into a gigantic
insect.”
Q: How does the author foreshadow that the story to follow is going to be concerned with conflict and change?
Contrast: wakes up (peaceful sleep) to a "nightmare"
contrast: awoke one ordinary morning (like any other morning, not "awoke one terrible morning") to something
extraordinary (he's now a giant bug)
opposites: man vs insect, insect vs gigantic insect
2) “Damp and grotesque, climbing down to the pits, each step was dewy, almost slimy. The stairs were damp,
jagged, like an old man's mouth driveling beyond repair. “
Q: In this description of a stairwell, how does the author use language to fuel the impression of it leading to
ancient horror?
a)Author typically uses anthropocentric metaphor - old man's mouth driveling suggest disease or age near death
b)Repeats words for wet: damp, dewy, driveling, suggesting anyone could slip. Cthulhu ancient like horror.
c)uses similar words that have to do with disgust: slimy, grotesque, driveling
3)Q: In the Matrix, how does the author show the mind world as fantastically different from the body's reality,
yet still understandable in human terms?
a) opposites: in body reality, the matrix people have to follow gravity and laws of physics. in mind world, once the
imagination has been trained to forget physics, anything can be done.
b)contrast: mind world is ideal, so have thousand dollars worth of clothing while in the body reality they wear rags; in
mind world the rich feast on steak, in body reality they eat gruel
c) repetition of human ideal SIM model objects: in mind world, for those who are aware, hair is perfect, clothes are
perfect, moves are perfect, recovery from wounds leaves no scars.
d) Larry W. author rumored to have had sex change: Agent smiths all look similar, but main is different; All the
viruses in the Matrix world are at least part time humans -- the werewolves, ghosts, etc. To allow the viewer to see
the story as human characters in action.
4)Q:How does shakespeare create a greater sense of tragedy in Hamlet?
a) Relationships: Death and murder, with all the main characters related -- Father and Son, Father and Daughter, Son
and Mother.
b) Similarities: poison kills the good and the evil and the vengeful; the play within the play
c) Contrasts: hamlet pretends to be insane but drives his beloved insane for real with his pretending
d) Repetition: Hamlet fails to act directly several times at the near cost and finally cost of his life
e) Parallelism: Poison kills the father, the son, the mother, the father-in-law, and almost brother-in-law.