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Jack Gialanella Assignment Sequence 1

Assignment Sequence for Argument Essay.

Rationale:

This sequence of assignments builds on the reading and writing skills we have been practicing with other assignments this semester (clarity, grammar, purpose, organization, delivery, validity and soundness) The sequence itself consists of a large set of short, in-class and homework readings and writings that should serve as pre-thinking, prewriting for the essay due at the end. Though I provide brief rationales throughout this sequence, I offer a discussion of the major principles here, at the start of the sequence.

One major skill addressed here is the ability to critically engage difficult texts. The term –critical— is only appears as descriptive adjective, but it is actually a plurality of concepts. Critical reading is a process during which the reader attempts to discover 1. What is being communicated, 2. If that message is viable and well supported, 3. Why the message is being communicated and finally 4. The choices the author made in order to construct the message as such—the how. 5. To question one’s own read and one’s own answers to the questions. This involves analyzing the both the text and one’s own statements about the text, interpreting the text and one’s own statements about it, evaluating the text and one’s own statements about it. Of course, I allow the student to begin with the text because the external object sometimes feels more concrete and the skills involved in critically reading it are skills that have been encouraged throughout their education (to some degree) thus far. As soon as we run into different reads, though, it is time to begin encouraging students to point their high-powered perception at their own thinking. If students attain critical skills in reading, the next step is to bring these skills outside the classroom. I do hope that the skills, abilities, and processes that are the subject of this class serve my students in other classrooms and well beyond their time at the university.

One way to foster critical reading is to provide them questions with that they should consider while reading the text. The danger is that they will “mine” the text for these questions. This is why I allow time for two reads of each piece and a low stakes (in terms of grades) assignment to encourage the second read.

While this discussion leans toward the topic of organization, it seems useful to make a statement about the way my sequence is organized. In order teach students to increase their ability to remember their insights during a read, I sometimes allow significant time to pass (after the initial read and conversation) and then, I require students to recall the insights we had during the read and subsequent discussion. Evidence shows that, though this can be frustrating, but that it ultimately leads to greater ability to recall information (and to store it in long term memory). Long term memory of skills form English 1020 is crucial; though writing is many things, it is a developmental process that will continue long after the student is sitting in my classroom. In order to mitigate frustration, I make this recollection process low stakes in terms of grading. I also am upfront with the students. In the lectures, I explain that, though this is frustrating, the benefits are huge and it is less frustrating than trying to recall information and insight in a higher stakes situation (i.e. a test or a heated debate).

The last piece of the initial rationale is concerned with metacognitive reflection. No matter how I try to avoid it, I will end up training my students to write as I do. This would be an okay outcome, but not an ideal one. Ideally, I can teach students an academic language by showing them how I account for my choices in writing. If I teach them which revision questions are important in academics, they may learn to ask similar questions. In doing this, it is my hope that they still may come to different answers to the


questions. It seems to me that the self- reflection exercises give a student an opportunity to write and then to consider how each choice was made and then (or in some cases, how a choice was not made and a piece of their paper occurred haphazardly). This gives the student a choice to remake (or consciously) make each decision during the revision process. I want the student to realize that even a haphazard piece of writing is good. It is material that can help a person understand themselves. If the student reflects on what they have said afterward, the process can help a person gain insight in their own writing process and their own leanings in evaluation of the world they live in. For example, it can reveal a moment of emotional expression and this can lead a person to evaluating and understanding his or her own make-up. These self-reflections are designed to make certain considerations habitual. With these considerations in mind, a person can teach themselves to revise instead of relying on a continuous teacher to guide the process. My hope is that self-reflections set a foundation for a person to teach themselves to revise not only their papers, but their ideas in general. In other words, I hope this sequence helps to introduce academics and writing as a multi-dimensional pursuit that is as existential and social as it is vocational.

My own bias: Of course I see the large bias at the heart of my practice; it is nothing else than the upshot of enlightenment thinking. The bias amounts to the statement: “Knowledge is good. With enough knowledge, we can intervene in any process and emancipate ourselves from the forces that terrorize us.” This is the promissory note of science. If the statement is true then so is the more specific statement: “Self-knowledge is good and can cure the maladies at the heart of human thinking.”

Besides the vacuous response that “people like practical skills that they can use toward an end—and I am certainly teaching people to produce stances and arguments”, my only defense is the following: it has taken a large amount of self-knowledge for me to even understand the questions: “If truth is possible, is it automatically good? …and what in us wants the truth? Is it something more abstractly human capacity or the ever practical instincts of an animal; one that chooses life and life affirming practices without having to justify why it does so? …and is there some other force to which even truth must conform? Does this suggest not only a duality of human nature, but a duality in which one side of the nature may possess more primacy than the other?” If one of these is more concrete and the other exists as (forgive me) the psychological spirit of a species that is less concrete, yet more timeless, then which is more real—which is more the nature of a human. In the end, aren’t we asking if art (creation) must conform to truth, or if truth must take its place as subservient to creation? Aren’t we really asking a question about our own freedom and our own ability to decide our nature? It seems to me that the capacity to deal with these questions must take place on the basis of a possible untruth—specifically that truth is possible. “Truth is possible” could, at the very least, be like the developmental stage of adolescence. What I have in mind is the adolescent’s false belief that he or she is nothing like his or her parents. An adolescent must believe this in order to develop an identity and a feeling of ownership over himself. It is only later that he or she can thrive even in knowledge that he carries large portions of his parents with him in behavior. This problem of truth is a concern at the core of the humanities and sciences; the question drives the impulses that constitute the conflicted heart of my rationale.


Day one

I. Announcements/ whole class discussion:

A. Essay Three is approaching. It will require you to effectively argue a position on a controversial, social injustice that you see in your world.

B. What do I mean by “effectively”? – let class answer, and help them explicate as they do so. If possible, do this by way of asking questions. Explication is important. It seems crucial for teaching one’s self how to think and write—and that is my highest goal for my students—for them to learn to teach themselves.

C. To lead into the shared reading, ask the class to recall what a fallacy is from earlier this semester? Though it is somewhat frustrating to recall information that has not been presented in a while, studies show that it is far more effective than “block-style” learning. (Make it Stick)

II. Reading for Today.

A. Last class, we read the section in your text book on arguing a position: What are two important things you remember from that read? Write them down.

B. Have each person, in turn, say what they remember?

C. Use the text to fill in what they missed—if anything.

III. Independent and then Group activity:

A. Grammar worksheet for run-ons: Tell them not to think of it as proper grammar, but as related to meaning. By yourselves, make the meaning of each sentence clearer. Remember, you may do this in several ways. It seems better to present grammar as something that can either facilitate or hinder one’s ability to be understood—a literacy instead of a correct way of doing things—a decree handed down by a dubious authority. See appendix A

B. Break into groups of three, compare your answers. (do this to show them that there are multiple correct answers and that this is not totally formulaic—there is room for style. Also, if people inferred different meanings, it lends credibility to my decision to teach some grammar. Let them discuss this. If everyone infers similar meanings, be ready to give them a counter example of possible meaning for class discussion.

C. See if they can infer, identify, and discuss the ways coordinating conjunctions, subordinating conjunctions, and punctuation work to help clarity. As they state them, write the 5 major ways to clarify, on the blackboard. 1. Use two separate sentences, 2. Use a coordinating conjunction, 3. Use a subordinating conjunction, or 4. Use a semicolon, or 5. Use a semicolon and a conjunctive adverb.

IV. Homework— Please read Thoreau’s Civil Disobedience for Next Class.


As you read, consider the following questions:

1. What is the big subject at hand?

2. What is Thoreau’s position on it?

3. Why does he hold his position? What reason(s)?

4. What is one example of good evidence for his reason?

5. In order to hold his position, what must Thoreau’s definition of the individual be? How do you know this?

Day Two:

I. Discuss the read as a class:

A. Were there any parts that were difficult to understand?

B. what were they? Talk about these, let them make sense of it. Revisit some key passages.

C. What was most appealing?

D. What was less than appealing?

E. Do you guys agree with him?

II. Quiz:

A. Ask questions from Homework.

B. These will be graded and handed back to you. If you don’t like your grade, you can replace it by looking the answers up in your text and citing where you find evidence for each (Proper MLA style).

III. Writing activity.

“[Government] has been most expedient when the governed are most let alone by it”

A. Ask: After reading CD, do you think Thoreau might change his mind on this when viewing child the contemporary human rights issue of sweatshop labor? What might he say about consumers? Let them talk and debate. Relating the read to a contemporary real event should help retention and understanding. It anchors the ideas in a more concrete reality.

B. Break into groups of three. Discuss your answers and show your partners evidence from the text if there is a disagreement.


2. In-class writing

A. In 5 lines or less, summarize Thoreau’s major point.

B. Identify one unexplained assumption that props up Thoreau’s position.

C. Have you ever had a concern similar to his? Explain.

3. Group activity

A. Fallacy worksheet. See appendix B

1. As per the section in your text. Identify the fallacy contained in each sentence.

2. When you are finished. Break into groups of three. Compare your answers and discuss any differences. Explain why you say it was the fallacy you say it is—you might both be correct?

3. When you are finished, hand these in along with your explanations.

4. Homework:

Answer these questions. Use just a few sentences for each question.

A. Are there any fallacies that you remember in Thoreau?

B. What is one question you have after reading Civil Disobedience?

C. What is one thing you learned?

D. How would Thoreau define government?

E. What is the individual’s relationship to his or her government?

F. “but the government in which the majority rule in all cases cannot be based on justice, even as far as men understand it.” (Para-4). What does Thoreau mean by this?

G. To whom is Thoreau responding-who is the "they say" and what do they say? Who is the “I say” and what does he say?

-- be prepared to discuss this in class and answer quiz questions for Tuesday, October 20th.

Studies show that reading with a question in mind helps retention. (Make it Stick)


5. Homework

A. Answer your question for next class.

Day Three:

I. Hand back graded quizzes. Remind them to revise their answers if they are unhappy with their grade.

II. Class discussion/ activity. Krs, Zac De la Rocha, and Last Emperor “Criminals in Action” Track—this, to give them a little break from texts that need to be read.

A. Before I play it, ask class if they normally understand the message that is communicated to them in hip-hop songs.

B. Play Track. Define Allusion and talk about its power to establish context.

C. Ask:

1. What are they talking about? What is the exegesis? How do you know? (If they don’t know, fill in the context.

2. Who was Franz Fanon? Psychiatrist, philosopher, Marxist humanist. What does he mean by “the wretched of the Earth?

3. What was the Ho Chi Mihn trail?

4. Why does Last Emperor say that the expansion of free market capitalism and technology create a desert wasteland? Is it an allusion to something specific?

5. What is the “whoop whoop” sample? Does it serve as an allusion?

6. How do this allusions work together to give you a better idea of the message?

7. Are there any allusions in Thoreau that you don’t understand? Write them down. Look them up for next time.

III. Group activity:

A. Fallacies, again. Break into groups of 3. Identify the following fallacies? Common fallacies write on board. 10 minutes

1. If you only get a C in English 1020, then you will have a terrible GPA and you won’t be able to have a meaningful career. – slippery slope


2. More people are hit by automobiles when crossing streets at cross walks than when jay walking, therefore crosswalks are not safe. – post hoc ergo propter hoc

3. Poverty causes crime—oversimplification

B. To add humor and break outside the classroom, use Youtube comments as a device for understanding fallacy. Tell them that Dostoevsky said “you can judge the degree of civility in a society by entering its prisons.” I think the same is true of youtube comments—let’s take a look.

A cross section of what we found on Youtube:

4. “People didn’t use toothpaste in the paleo era, therefore toothpaste is bad.” (naturalistic fallacy)

5. “Freedom of speech is important because people should be able to speak freely”—(begging the question).

6. Mom-- “We can’t get a cat because we don’t have a schedule conducive to taking care of one.

Son- “But mom, if we don’t get a cat, rats will enter our home and give us disease—why don’t you care about our health?” (Straw man)

7. “Donald Trump is a greedy, idiot with bad hair. Who wants a president with such bad hair?” (ad hominem (fallacies of irrelevance)

8. “Oh yeah, Bernie Sanders needs to take of his dress and step into the ring and debate Hilary like a man.” – among other problems-- ad hominem. As class: How do the parties in this conversation undermine their credibility? Does anyone else remember the name we give this in rhetoric (ethos). (after this experiment, I might avoid having a class look at Youtube comments about political speeches. They are too inflammatory).

8. Listen to: “Talk To Strangers” by Saul Williams

“Hey Saul Williams, why did you let Nike, a company that uses sweatshops, use your song for their commercial. “The real question is not why Saul Williams did a Nike commercial but why Nike is doing a Saul Williams commercial (avoiding the issue /red herring)

9. “Hey Saul Williams, why did you do a commercial for Nike even though you spoke out against Nike’s business practices?”

“Hey, it’s not my fault that you guys (fans) didn’t buy enough albums; I made no money on that album. I had to sell the song to Nike. (blaming/ appeal to pity).

C. Who wants to argue like these youtubers in their paper? Me either…and that is the rationale.


IV. In class writing:

1. List a few social issues/ injustices that you see in your world.

2. Can you think of any specific examples of these?

3. Pick on specific example? What do you think Thoreau might say about it? Why would he say it? Would you agree with him? Why or why not?

V. For Homework.

1. Revise the answers on your quizzes.

2. Pay attention to some social issues in your world. Is there one that particularly upsets or intrigues you? Why? Be prepared to write about this.

Day Four:

Analyzing analogies and metaphors has been shown to help critical thinking abilities (www.criticalthinking.org). Metaphors and analogies are important in all writing genres. In poetry, they often are used to explain experiences that defy normal explanation. Consider models of atoms in science—are these representations anything other than metaphors that help a person understand a specific type of relationship—i.e. the relationship pf electrons to nucleus etc… These are visual representations and verbal explanations of what is often better explained by mathematics. Earlier this semester, one of your classmates said to me, “taking an average of our first draft and final draft grade is like taking an average of our running practice and final performance while judging a marathon. It seems unfair in the same way.” Analogy and Metaphor are not only poetic, but perhaps are most enjoyable in poetry.

I. Class activity—

A. Dictionary of obscure sorrows:

1. What was the impulse to create this dictionary?

2. Do we support this impulse?

3. Have you ever had a situation for which you have no words? Write it down and hang on to it.


3. Are there any worries about narrowing these types of experiences down to a singular term? What do we lose? What do we gain? If a culture has a term for something like this, does it indicate anything about that culture?

4. Vocabulary –nouns, verbs, adjectives are fine, but more often than not, I think analogies and images speak in more poignant tones. In fact, the narrator of our video relies heavily on this to define the words he uses.

B. what is an analogy? Let class define it and talk about its form.

C. Parts of a metaphor.

- tenor

- vehicle

D. The evidence says that analyzing analogies increases your ability to think critically. Also, is there anything about metaphors and cliché’s that remind you of the relationship between valid forms of arguments and fallacies? Try to get them to see that the forms of cliché’s and fallacies are similar to good arguments and metaphors. The form is not the problem—so what is the flaw? It relies, often, on context and what else is contained in the text. I expect you to, in determining the virtues that account for effective and fresh analogies —to begin understand how to use them in your writing.

The other purpose of this (and poetry in general) is to slow down your reading so you may absorb that which is communicated to you more clearly. So please, read slowly.

II. Group activity.

A. Eliot’s “The Gradual All”- read silently and then aloud – 5 minutes. See appendix C

B. as a group, discuss

1. What happened in this poem?

2. What is the more universal concern? How do you know?

3. Identify some analogies in the poem and talk about them.

4. Why these particular analogies?

5. What are these analogies doing?

6. Are there thematic relationships, connotative relationships?

7. Does it change what the poem might be communicating?

8. How so?


III. Discuss this as a class.

A. Did Thoreau use any metaphors?

B. What did they mean?

IV. Hand in revised quizzes.

V. Read Fromm for next week. You have 5 nights to read this. Read it slowly and take some time between each chapter so your attention doesn’t burn out.

A. Keep these questions in mind as you read (I will post them on Canvas, too).

1. What is the most common misunderstanding of Marx?

2. What is the equivocation that sometimes happens with the term "materialism"?

3. What is the individual, according to Marx? If you quote him to answer this, what can that quote mean? Unpack it. Is it different than Thoreau’s?

4. Is the definition of government different than that in Thoreau’s work?

5. What was Marx’s major concern?

6. What was his position on that concern?

Day Five:

I. In class writing/ quiz

A. Answer the questions I asked for homework. A sentence or two, for each will suffice. If you have more to say, please do so.

B. Did anyone notice some fallacies that people commit when trying to explain Marx’s theories? What are they? Why do you think they occur?

II. Class activity: Metaphors again:

A. Pass out Bly’s Poem. See appendix D

1. Let them read it, silently


2. Then have class read sections out loud—call on people who have not talked in a long time

III. Break into groups.

1. what does this poem communicate?

2. What is the analogy, here?

3. Explain this poem it in your own words

4. Why these particular analogies? Why a dog instead of a cat or horse?

Again, call on a few people who haven’t talked.

- Would this poem mean something if you are an older reader, vs. a younger reader. If so, why? –one paragraph is sufficient space to explain your answer.

- Ask them to discuss, this and in groups, produce one paragraph for each question to hand in. Give reasons for your belief about the poems meaning. See if anyone has changed their minds about what the poem meant.

IV. In class individual writing.

A. What disagreements did you have in the poetry discussion and why do you think you had them? How did you resolve them (did you resolve them?) pass them in

B. Pull out your “experience that defies words” from last class.

1. Try to write a metaphor explaining it.

2. Who managed it? Who had trouble?

This is creative metaphor work and it is difficult.

C. Academic writing and metaphor (class discussion)

1. Did anyone have the experience in which their metaphor did not represent the situation well?

2. In academic writing, the false analogy fallacy happens for similar reasons and it needs similar attention to the ones we use in poetry. Remember Last Emperor’s line, “Poverty is the most malignant form of cancer”? Is this appropriate? Why or why not? What context would he need to establish or would his audience need to already have accepted?

Day Six:


I. Class discussion:

A. Part of what I hope you learn here in college is that a problem is often more complex than we realize. The ideas of simple truth and falsity are helpful, but they are limited categories and sometimes we need to go beyond them. Does that Make sense?

B. Draw Wittgenstein’s cube of indeterminacy”—the Necker cube

1. In writing (do not shout it) What is this?

2. Read answers aloud and compare, see if the word “cube” or Box” was not evoked.

C. In writing, again, which side is the front, what is the back?

E. Can you make your perception of the cube shift?

F. Does anyone know the name of this phenomenon?

G. What are the implications of this for facts based in observation?

H. What would we need to track in order to discover why someone thinks one side or the other is in front? That is right, their perspective (and its limitations) or, more importantly, their values.

III. Break into groups

A. discuss what some of Thoreau’s values are? Are there any he should hold but doesn’t?

B. What about Marx?

C. In a line or two, what is the similarity between the exegesis in Thoreau and Marx?

D. What is the difference?

IV. In class writing.

A. If you had to choose a social injustice to write about, what would it be and what would be your position? What is a good reason for holding that opinion?

B. Pass it to the person next to you.

1. On this paper, list two fallacies that you worry would come up if the argument lacked detail. Then write why you say this.

V. Homework for next time: Essay 3 Assignment sequence part 1. They never say it outright, but these two thinkers give you the tools to answer the following questions: Infer the following from you read and justify your answers by referring to/explicating the text:


1. What is Thoreau’s definition of the individual? What is his definition of the government?

2. What is Fromm’s definition of the individual? What of the government?

3. What is the individual’s relationship to production, in Marx? How does it function?

VI. Assign essay 3 rough draft. Due two classes from now. See Appendix E and F

A. Hand out description

B. Read through it as a class

C. Answer all questions.

Day Seven:

I. Collect first part of assignment sequence.

A. ask them their answers—list them on the board and help clarify this read. Read excerpts from the text out loud, supporting their ideas. Let the person who answered explicate what they think is meant by that excerpt.

B. see if there are any more questions

II. Individual activity: Give disclaimer. If they do not want to look at his lyrics, we will discuss bad arguments the class has heard and patch together a fallacious argument.

A. Immortal Technique’s “Beef and Broccoli” Song—give them lyrics and let them listen to song.

1. Identify the fallacies?

2. How does he undermine his credibility?

3. Think of fallacies like metaphor and cliché

- review form of metaphor and flaw of cliché

- look at form of fallacy and the flaw. Can there ever be a legitimate appeal to authority? Etc…

III. Group activity

A. Break into groups and compare what you found.


B. As a group:

1. re write his argument without the fallacies (And without the profanity!)

2. Explain why you think he made these mistakes. Since he often says intelligent things let us assume he is intelligent.

3. What are his values? How do you know?

4. Who is his audience? How do you know?

5. By the way, what are some reasons people employ profanity in their language? What does it communicate?

Put everyone’s name on the paper.

III. How are the papers going?

A. Tell your group partners:

1. What is your thesis?

2. What is the best reason for holding it?

3. What is the strongest piece of evidence that you will use to support that reason?

4. What does the opposition say?

5. What is the strongest support for the opposition’s position?

B. Partners get a few minutes to give feedback. Was the speaker clear? Is his/ her claim focused and supported well? Are there any reasons to still worry about fallacy?

III. In class writing:

A. Write a paragraph about what you just told your group and what you have learned?

B. Write one paragraph explaining the next steps you will take in order to revise your draft.

C. I will come around and check in with each person as we do this.

IV. If there is time, let them start re- drafting.

Day Eight:


I. Drafts are due:

A. Explain the benefits of peer review (looking at others arguments should help you critique your own.

II. Let them vote—peer review or an average of the two grades (First and final draft)

III. If peer review. See Appendix G

A. Break into groups of three and exchange essays.

B. Pass out feedback directions and guide.

C. Have auditor make notes and fill in questions from sheet

D. Then 5 minutes for auditor to present information to author while 3rd person keeps track of time and redirects focus if necessary.

IV. Go around and help groups with focus and time management.

If they decide to take an average of both papers:

I. Class activity - (Race Baiting video and Howard Zinn)

A. Watch

B. Break into groups and discuss:

1. What is race baiting?- the unfair use of statements about race to try to influence the actions or attitudes of a particular group of people

2. What is a caste system? social/ class distinctions based on heredity.

C. What is the central claim/ thesis?

D. what reasons are given for it?

E. What evidence was produced to support those reasons?

F. Would you like to look up this evidence to check his claims? That is what citation helps us accomplish.

-Laws examples


- Implicationsof lending practice discrimination—what does this do to inheritances?

-Education/ taxes

V. In class writing:

A. This is part of your assignment sequence. Remember this is 10% of your final grade. Tell me:

1. What was the social issue you chose?

2. Why is the issue important to you?

3. What was your purpose? What would you hope a reader learns from reading your paper? Be specific.

4. How effective were you? How can it be more effective?

5. Is there anything that makes you not want to edit this draft? Explain. 10 minutes and then hand in to me.


Appendix A:

Make the following sentences more clear. If you use a subordinating conjunction to do so, choose the one that best expresses the relationship between the two clauses in the sentence.

1. Although my cat can play the guitar, he does not sing very well and he only plays Bob Dylan songs.

2. Plato argues why a person is by nature reasonable.

3. You can apply the actual process toward the conceptual process toward life.

4. When we do see the elderly person being athletic were categorize them out of the norm.

5. The insignificance is due to the fact that the ideologies used is changing since the time of Kant.

6. Freud was the first to address the issue in his work Civilization and its Discontents in 1930. (note: one reason that there is so many footnotes in this work is that some of the ideas he borrowed from social theorist in his day).

7. She completes all of her homework. However, she doesn’t always come to class.

8. Hiking in the forest, the leaves were beautiful.

9. Waking up early in the morning, the sun rose.

10. I saw the car peeking through the window.

11. Fortunately, it will rain tomorrow.

12. I worked hard on this essay and deserve a high score.

13. I cooked a meal for my guest made of oysters

14. I made the meal entirely from my head for my guest.

15 The basket of flowers was carried by the girl.

16. She telephoned at four asking me to come over at eight.

17. The boy wore a bracelet made of leather on his wrist.

18. Because I didn’t do my homework I won’t go to class.


Appendix B

Fallacy work sheet: Name that Fallacy and define it.

1. "America: love it or leave it."

2. "Since scientists cannot prove that global warming will occur, it probably won't."

3. "If we pass laws against fully automatic weapons, then it won't be long before we pass laws on all weapons, and then we will begin to restrict other rights, and finally we will end up living in a communist state. Thus, we should not ban fully automatic weapons."

4. "Government is like business, so just as business must be sensitive primarily to the bottom line, so also must government."

5. "A book is pornographic if and only if it contains pornography."

6. If Obama was really an American citizen, he would have showed the certificate to the public. He is a liar."

7. "Fred, the Australian, stole my wallet. Thus, all Australians are thieves."

8. "Satanist Quarterly reports that 87% of Americans are atheists. Therefore, there is no god."

9. "Immigration to California from Mexico increased. Soon after, the welfare rolls increased. Therefore, the increased immigration caused the increase in welfare rolls."

10. "Protesting against racial injustice only causes more of it to occur.”

11. "The car accident would not have occurred if the parking meter had not gotten in the way."

12. "If you get hit by a car when you are six then you will die young. But you were not hit by a car when you were six. Thus you will not die young."

13. That candidate is a pinko-commie. You can’t trust anything he says.

14. “He doesn’t deserve an A.”

“Well, it would break his heart if he didn’t make the dean’s list.”


15. We either need to raise health care prices or physicians will not be motivated to provide good health care services.

® Appendix C

Today's poem is by Eliot Khalil Wilson

The Gradual All

The clear-water light of autumn is firstto go. Then, the detailed particulars:the late sun on brick, the frost-feathered pane,the aster blooming in the auburn fieldof feed corn, blur as if poorly erased,replaced by dishwater light of old snow.

Since the dark cloud shadows have come to stay,squirrels run on air between telephone poles,four dark birds, starlings or grackles or crows,hover like distant un-moored ellipses.

And remembering Monet won't help you.When he tired of the Rouen Cathedral,grew bored with the hazy dim shadow-browns,he'd feed his eyes lemons or coiled roses— all manner of vivid, articulate things.

Now you can't get close enough to your own skinand the paint of the world will not stay in place,and each morning more of the night remains—bleeding in, clouding out the needed linesand when those lines dissolve....

When the streams of your eyes have flooded their banks,holding your panic is fine art enoughand, regardless, you cannot see to run.


Copyright © 2003 Eliot Khalil Wilson All rights reservedfrom The Saint of Letting Small Fish Go Cleveland State University Poetry Center Reprinted by Verse Daily® with permission

Appendix D:

The Resemblance Between Your Life and a Dog

by Robert Bly

MONDAY, 16 FEBRUARY, 2004

Poem: "The Resemblance Between Your Life and a Dog," by Robert Bly, from Eating the Honey of Words

The Resemblance Between Your Life and a Dog

I never intended to have this life, believe me—It just happened. You know how dogs turn upAt a farm, and they wag but can't explain.

It's good if you can accept your life—you'll noticeYour face has become deranged trying to adjustTo it. Your face thought your life would look

Like your bedroom mirror when you were ten. That was a clear river touched by mountain wind. Even your parents can't believe how much you've changed.

Sparrows in winter, if you've ever held one, all feathers, Burst out of your hand with a fiery glee. You see them later in hedges. Teachers praise you,

But you can't quite get back to the winter sparrow. Your life is a dog. He's been hungry for miles, Doesn't particularly like you, but gives up, and comes in.

http://www.robertbly.com/

http://writersalmanac.publicradio.org/author.php?auth_id=1370


Appendix E:

ENGL 1020: Essay 3 Assignment Description: Arguing a Position.

Description: Identify an injustice in society in which the establishment is encroaching on the rights and freedoms of the individual. In your essay, tell me how Thoreau would critique this? How would Marx critique this and finally, what is your position on the matter after reading Thoreau and Marx?

Purpose: For this paper you will argue a position on a social problem that interests you. You will look at the problem from multiple angles, create a thesis and provide good reasons for you position. You will demonstrate how your position differs from others (or if it is the case, why you have come to similar conclusions to another).

Audience: Your goal is to help yourself, your classmates, and your instructor view this problem in a different light. Your final paper will be polished.

What I am grading on: (SEE RUBRIC FOR ALL DETAILS)

1. Content:

- your ability to write a clear, insightful, and appropriately qualified thesis.

- your ability to provide good and plausible reasons for your main claims.

- your ability to provide enough appropriate evidence to support your reasons

- your ability to demonstrate a thorough understanding of the texts we have read (Thoreau and Fromm)

- your ability to structure your argument for an audience unfamiliar with your social problem

2. Form:

- your ability to order your ideas so they flow in a coherent traceable and understandable manner

-your ability to revise your work based on feedback, peer review and your two trips (minimum) to the writing center.

-your ability to edit and proofread your work for mechanics, and clarity.


- your ability to remember to print a rubric from canvas and attach it as the last sheet of your essay. You will lose 10 points if you fail to provide this.

3. Beakdown: your assignment sequence will count for 10 percent of your final grade for this assignment, the remaining 90% will be an average between your rough draft and your final draft.You will lose 10 pts if you fail to visit the writing lab twice.

Details: See syllabus-- 5-8 pages typed, double-spaced, 11 or 12 point font proper MLA citation.

Appendix F:

A B C D FAssignment sequence

Has substantially completed entire assignment sequence on time. Demonstrates high level of insight and understanding.

Has completed entire assignment sequence (on time), displaying insight and understanding.

Has completed entire assignment sequence (on time) displaying adequate understanding.

Has completed assignment sequence but insight and understanding need development

Has not completed assignment sequence

Thesis Has a clearly stated and insightful controlling idea.

Has clearly stated controlling idea.

Has controlling idea clearly stated or clearly implied

Has controlling idea that is in need of focus and development

Has no discernable controlling idea.

Support -Topic sentences are clearly distinguished from thesis-all paragraphs are supported with good reasons and strong relevant evidence- demonstrates attention to detail and organization

Communicates and synthesizes information in a way that achieves a specific and clear purpose.-achieves clarity and depth in reasoning.

Communicates and synthesizes information adequately. Each idea leads to the next in a way that achieves a specific purpose. Each idea Insight, and depth are present but inconsistent.

Strong reasonable and evidential support is present but is not effectively organized

Support is chaotic and unfollowable or not present.

Content Shows a strong Demonstrates Demonstrates Draft shows


understanding of the texts we have read. Shows careful and insightful thinking about issue at hand.Demonstrated thorough understanding of academic context, text, subtext

understanding of texts we have read. Ideas demonstrate insight about their relationship to issue.Demonstrates understanding of academic context, text, subtext.

adequate understanding of the texts we have read and how they relate to issue at hand.

Understanding of text in need of development

Understanding of academic context is lacking in draft

little or no understanding of texts

Draft shows little or no awareness of academic context

Clarity All meanings are clear and wording is careful and concise on a sentence, paragraph and “entire essay:

All meanings are clear and reasonably concise on a-sentence level-paragraph level- and entire essay level

Meanings are mostly clear in term so sentences and paragraphs and paper.

Clarity needs development on sentence level but paragraphs and entire paper is clear

Clarity is lacking on various levels and interferes with meaning.

Grammar and mechanics

Any errors in grammar, syntax and mechanics are so insignificant that they are unnoticeable

Errors in grammar, syntax and mechanics are noticeable and too abundant for an out of class essay

Errors are distracting from content and purpose

Errors interfere with meaning.

Citation All sources are cited in proper MLA style both in text and on the works cited page.

Every place that needs a citation contains a proper citation, non are missing

--same Same Same Sources are cited improperly according to MLA standards, or citations are missing where they are needed—even once!


Appendix G:

Peer Review:

1. What claim is author asking you to accept? (thesis)

2. Were there plausible reasons given to accept position? Was the position of the opposition presented fairly and addressed adequately? (Did you notice any fallacies?)

3. What type of evidence was used? (Facts, statistics, quotes, examples). Was at least half of the evidence based on quality research and statistics or was most of it anecdote and testimonial? Remember, this essay is social so we must see the magnitude of the problem; statistics and research-based evidence will help achieve this. Were the facts skewed or fair?

4. Do you feel evidence was relevant to those reasons? How could it be better?

5. Did author establish credibility? Do you trust them? Why or why not?

6. Was the wording clear on a sentence, paragraph and entire essay level?

7. Was the information organized?

web viewassignment sequence for argument essay. rationale: this sequence of assignments builds on...

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