Major Paper One: A Decision and Its Impact
We’ve all made decisions in our lives that have had lasting impact: decisions concerning educational and career goals, relationships, even about our own sense of personal integrity. These decisions shape our lives, so they are a perfect topic to explore in writing.
Your task for Paper One, the first of your four major papers this semester, will be to write an essay about such a decision, to explain it to your readers so that they too will understand how much it affected you. By its very definition, an essay will have a central purpose (or message) and you will explain that purpose with plenty of supporting detail (development) to help engage your readers, and a thoughtful pattern of organization to help readers follow along easily. There is no “formula” for that; you’ll need to think about your reader (audience) as you write to make it as reader-friendly as possible. We don’t want our readers to have to work too hard to get our message, so we focus, organize, and develop with them in mind. And we usually want to give them an enjoyable experience while we’re at it.
Your essay should be at least two full pages in MLA format (i.e. one inch margins all around, 12 point standard font, double-spaced). You’ll find an example of MLA format in Blackboard Handouts section.
Due dates:
9/17 Working drafts due for peer response. Bring four hard copies for peer response.You can print in class, but please do so before class begins.
9/24 Submitted draft due, along with the peer review sheets and revision plans.
When I respond to submitted drafts, I will address the following aspects of your papers:
- Purpose: Does the paper have a definite sense of purpose or message for the reader? Does it remain focused on this purposethroughout?
- Development: Are there enough details to get the message (purpose!) across – or will readers have to fill in gaps for themselves? Are all the details meaningful? Purposeful?
- Organization: Does the structural set-up of the paper allow readers to follow along easily? Does the set-up make the purpose come across with maximum effect?
- Voice/tone: Is the voice of the paper authentic? Is the tone appropriate for the purpose and audience?
- Style: Is the writing clear? Is it punctuated so that readers will be able to read it easily? Is the grammar and spelling correct, so that readers are not distracted by the “mistakes” and can concentrate on the message and the details?
A note about details: It isn’t enough just to “add detail.” You have to include purposeful details, such as “meaningfulexamples, reasons, details, descriptions, anecdotes, evidence” (quote taken from official SWIC Course Outline).
