The Purpose:
In this first project we are re-considering research papers. Can we include our opinion in them? Can we include sources NOT by credible experts? Why? What else have you learned about research writing? This project (hopefully!) will give you a more flexible idea of what a research paper can be, helping you make choices as to how to present your research in college. This project will also give you practice explaining to others why you think the way you do.
To fulfill this draft assignment, there are four tasks to complete:
Task 1: Select a Challenge Essay from “Undercurrents” That You’d Like to Riff Off
Choose an essay in “Undercurrents” (UMB’s online journal of Undergraduate writing) that you’d consider riffing from in a research paper of your own. Your main goal for this draft is to discuss how this challenge essay broadens your view of research writing. To successfully do this, you’ll offer both insights from your own experience writing research papers as well as a thorough analysis of the chosen essay’s rhetorical moves (see next task).
Task 2: Identify and Evaluate Specific Rhetorical Moves from your Challenge Essay
You’ll name specific rhetorical moves in the challenge essay that interested you. Then you’ll analyze those moves using rhetorical concepts (especially audience and purpose) to help explain why you felt they were successful. Where do they make interesting and successful choices to get their specific audience on board? Why do you think this? Why would you like to try this out in a paper you wrote? Are there less successful choices? Why do you think they are not successful?
Be thorough.
Task 3: Compare Your Challenge Essay’s Writerly Moves to Those in Our Readings
To deepen your explanation, you’ll also compare your challenge essay’s rhetorical moves to those you found in Gopnik, Amicucci, Ariely & Wertenbroch, and/or Young (You must use at least one of these other research papers).
Think about the following:
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Where do you see one writer (Gopnik, Young, Ariely, etc.) make a similar choice to your challenge essay?
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Where do you see one writer make a choice that contrasts with a choice in your challenge essay? (for example: “uses I” versus “doesn’t use I”).
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And most importantly, explain why you think these two different rhetorical situations– your challenge essay versus one of our readings–influenced why each made the writerly moves you are comparing? Do you think one does a better job of engaging their audience (students? parents? teachers?) and achieving their purpose? Why?
Task 4: Apply a Filter to Your Draft
Amicucci uses the term filter to describe the way we present ourselves to our audience. So how much do you want to reveal about yourself? How do you want to come across in your writing? Consider things like what language, tone, voice you’d use. Do you want to sound Informal? Serious? Humorous?
Amicucci shares personal experiences like hiking and food reviews to seem more relatable to her student audience. She’s not just another teacher or writer. (She has a life too!)
Similarly, you could share examples from your own experience writing research to explain the moves you prefer in the challenge essay.
As Amicucci advises,”Decide what version of yourself you want to be in your essay, and choose filters to make yourself appear in a certain way” (26). How would you write this project 1 draft for an audience of your fellow students?