Task

For your first paper, you will analyze and evaluate the line of argument in one of the
articles on the Student Picks Article List. You will have a chance in class to choose an
article. his assignment will give you a chance to practice recognizing and assessing
the argument strategies we have !een discussing in class. Your analysis will take the
form of a !rief essay "#$% pages&.
Follow the suggestions in HYS 'hapters () and (* to make sure that your analysis
ties it all together.
+e sure to do the following somewhere in your paper,
descri!e who is writing, where and when the article was pu!lished and who
reads that pu!lication. -o some digging to find out a!out these. hen
evaluate the author.s decision to write this argument to this audience.
hroughout your paper, consider how the overall argument is affected !y the
author.s identity and choice of audience.
descri!e the author.s line of argument !y summarizing the choices of span.
/n which span does the author spend the most time0 why0
o for each span, summarize the ma1or claims. 2hat kinds of claims are
developed most fully for that span0 2hy0
o for each ma1or claim, analyze and evaluate how the author appeals to
ethos, pathos, or logos. 3nclude the use of special language, page
layout or visual images.
o as appropriate for the claims, look for how the autho r addresses
others involved in the issue. 2ho is the author enlisting as allies0 4ow
does the author deal with people with other viewpoints0
as appropriate, evaluate the persuasiveness the claims and support from the
point of view of an opponent. 4ow would an opponent involved as a specific
kind of stakeholder react0
give an overall evaluation of the 5uality of the argument.
Purpose and Audience
A version of this analysis will !e posted on the class we!site. You and your
classmates will !e reading the analyses while choosing topics, finding relevant
articles, and developing arguments on the issue. Your readers will need to learn
a!out the ma1or points of the article from you. hey will also depend on you to some
e6tent for pointers to the author.s strengths and weaknesses that could !e useful
later on.
2hile everyone is supposed to read all the articles eventually, your classmates will
read your analysis first. For reade rs who have not read the article, you need to
present enough detail so that they are a!le to 7see7 it as you do !ut not so much
that you repeat the whole thing.
So your purpose is not to paraphrase the entire article, !ut to give a !ird.s eye view.
Focus on what the spans lead you to see and, as much as possi!le, the ma1or claims
within the spans. Your readers are relying on you to give a fair interpretation of the
author.s position. here is no one a!solutely right interpretation, so you have to give
convincing reasons and evidence for what you think the author is doing.
Format requirements
As always, your draft should !e typed, dou!le$spaced, using standard margins, font
and type size. 8eview the course policies for 7Format7 for la!eling your drafts and for
materials accompanying the final draft.