Lyndon B. Johnson, "The American Promise." March 15, 1965



Unit 2: The Art of PersuasionTeacherMs. Megan Kang E-Mail kangm@Telephone(949) 293-5028Office HoursThursdays 4:10-5:10pm"Persuasion is often more effectual than force." —AesopOctoberMondayTuesdayWednesdayThursdayFriday6Persuasive Writing Kick Off!7Speeches from the past8Speeches from the past9Submit Interview TranscriptSpeeches from the past10Prewriting: Writing a thesis statementTHESIS STATEMENT DUE(end of class) 13Prewriting: Gathering evidence & citing sources14Submit two sourcesPrewriting: Gathering evidence & citing sources15Prewriting: Creating an Outline OUTLINE DUE (end of class)16Drafting17ACT Writing Workshop20Drafting21Drafting22ROUGH DRAFT DUE (beginning of class)Revising: Peer Review23Revising: Peer Review continued24ACT Writing Workshop27Editing and Proofreading: type out final drafts28Editing and Proofreading: type out final drafts29FINAL DRAFTS DUE (beginning of class)Publishing & Presentation30Publishing & Presentation31The Art of Persuasion:Persuasion aims at producing results. Persuasive writing is a tool for getting others to understand YOUR particular point of view. In Crafting a Life (1996), Don Murray talks about why he writes: "To give myself voice. I am heard when I write; I vote in the human community, registering my opinions, what I stand for, what I fear, what I stand against, what I celebrate. To discover who I am. Writing [...] celebrates my difference, authenticates who I am, justifies my existence." How to express your opinions and beliefs, support them with evidence, and convey these thoughts using an intentional writing voice are skills urgently needed in all areas of life.Persuasive Speech Writing:Throughout this unit, we will be reading a variety of persuasive speeches—spoken statements that present a position and try to convince an audience to accept that position or to take action. You will craft your own persuasive speech in order to convince others to adopt your point of view on a particular issue. Through reading and writing persuasive speeches, you will hone your ability to:Have a definite point of view and clearly state your goal;Support your position with solid evidence, such as clearly organized facts, examples, and statistics;Use rhetorical devices to grab and hold the reader's attention; andRemember the rules of the good paragraph: a single topic per paragraph, and natural progression from one to the next.? Speeches we will read: Frederick Douglass, "The Hypocrisy of American Slavery." July 4, 1852Abraham Lincoln, "Gettysburg Address." November, 19 1863Susan B. Anthony, "Woman's Rights to the Suffrage." 1873Martin Luther King, Jr., "I Have a Dream." August, 28 1963Lyndon B. Johnson, "The American Promise." March 15, 1965 Barack Obama, "A More Perfect Union." March 18, 2008Prompt"We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America." [The Constitution of the United States, 1787]In 2-3 pages, write a speech that presents your opinion on the following question: What must happen so that "We the People" may achieve "a more perfect Union?" You must draw upon (1) personal experiences from your life, your family, and/or your community, (2) the assigned speeches from class, and (3) at least 2 additional sources to construct your speech. Questions to consider:Who are "We the People"? Who gets to decide this?How has our understanding of "We" changed over time?What responsibilities do "We the People" have? What makes a "perfect Union"?How have speeches from the past responded to this question? How is today's society different than that of Frederick Douglass', Abraham Lincoln's, Susan B. Anthony's, Martin Luther King Jr.'s, and Lyndon B. Johnson's? How has it stayed the same? RequirementsThe following must be included in your writing folder and/or your essay when you turn it in. Be sure to read carefully and ask questions if you need to:RequirementPoints PossiblePoints ReceivedInterview Transcript Submission - Thur. 10/915THESIS Submission - Fri. 10/1010Additional Sources Submission - Tues. 10/145OUTLINE Submission - Wed. 10/1510ROUGH DRAFT - Wed. 10/22 (MUST be double spaced. Handwritten is fine)252 Peer Review Sheets10FINAL DRAFT - Wed. 10/29(MUST be typed, double spaced, size 12 font, 1 inch margins)50Ideas: (clear thesis statement; message is focused, interesting, and specific)10/50Organization: Successful Introduction Paragraph (Hooks reader and clear thesis statement)Successful Body Paragraphs (at least 3) Successful Conclusion Paragraph (Restate thesis and “clinch” the essay)Meets page length requirement 10/50Word Choice: (purposeful word choice moves the reader to a new vision of ideas)10/50Sentence Fluency: (my paper has rhythm and flow; it is easy to read aloud) 10/50At least 2 sources cited in essay + Works Cited Page10/50**Extra Credit: Deliver your speech to the class5Total Points125Developing Strong Thesis StatementsThe thesis statement or main claim must be debatableAn argumentative or persuasive piece of writing must begin with a debatable thesis or claim. In other words, the thesis must be something that people could reasonably have differing opinions on. If your thesis is something that is generally agreed upon or accepted as fact then there is no reason to try to persuade people.Example of a non-debatable thesis statement:Pollution is bad for the environment.This thesis statement is not debatable. First, the word pollution means that something is bad or negative in some way. Further, all studies agree that pollution is a problem; they simply disagree on the impact it will have or the scope of the problem. No one could reasonably argue that pollution is good.Example of a debatable thesis statement:At least 25 percent of the federal budget should be spent on limiting pollution.This is an example of a debatable thesis because reasonable people could disagree with it. Some people might think that this is how we should spend the nation's money. Others might feel that we should be spending more money on education. Still others could argue that corporations, not the government, should be paying to limit pollution.Another example of a debatable thesis statement:America's anti-pollution efforts should focus on privately owned cars.In this example there is also room for disagreement between rational individuals. Some citizens might think focusing on recycling programs rather than private automobiles is the most effective strategy.The thesis needs to be narrowAlthough the scope of your paper might seem overwhelming at the start, generally the narrower the thesis the more effective your argument will be. Your thesis or claim must be supported by evidence. The broader your claim is, the more evidence you will need to convince readers that your position is right.Example of a thesis that is too broad:Drug use is detrimental to society.There are several reasons this statement is too broad to argue. First, what is included in the category "drugs"? Is the author talking about illegal drug use, recreational drug use (which might include alcohol and cigarettes), or all uses of medication in general? Second, in what ways are drugs detrimental? Is drug use causing deaths (and is the author equating deaths from overdoses and deaths from drug related violence)? Is drug use changing the moral climate or causing the economy to decline? Finally, what does the author mean by "society"? Is the author referring only to America or to the global population? Does the author make any distinction between the effects on children and adults? There are just too many questions that the claim leaves open. The author could not cover all of the topics listed above, yet the generality of the claim leaves all of these possibilities open to debate.Example of a narrow or focused thesis:Illegal drug use is detrimental because it encourages gang violence.In this example the topic of drugs has been narrowed down to illegal drugs and the detriment has been narrowed down to gang violence. This is a much more manageable topic.We could narrow each debatable thesis from the previous examples in the following way:Types of ClaimsClaims typically fall into one of four categories. Thinking about how you want to approach your topic, in other words what type of claim you want to make, is one way to focus your thesis on one particular aspect of your broader topic.Claims of fact or definition: These claims argue about what the definition of something is or whether something is a settled fact. Example: What some people refer to as global warming is actually nothing more than normal, long-term cycles of climate change.Claims of cause and effect: These claims argue that one person, thing, or event caused another thing or event to occur. Example: The popularity of SUV's in America has caused pollution to increase.Claims about value: These are claims made of what something is worth, whether we value it or not, how we would rate or categorize something. Example: Global warming is the most pressing challenge facing the world today.Claims about solutions or policies: These are claims that argue for or against a certain solution or policy approach to a problem. Example: Instead of drilling for oil in Alaska we should be focusing on ways to reduce oil consumption, such as researching renewable energy sources.Which type of claim is right for your argument? Which type of thesis or claim you use for your argument will depend on your position and knowledge of the topic, your audience, and the context of your paper. You might want to think about where you imagine your audience to be on this topic and pinpoint where you think the biggest difference in viewpoints might be. Even if you start with one type of claim you probably will be using several within the paper. Regardless of the type of claim you choose to utilize it is key to identify the controversy or debate you are addressing and to define your position early on in the paper.Source: AMORE INFORMATION________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________THESIS STATEMENTREASON CREASON BMORE INFORMATION________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________MORE INFORMATION________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Citing Online SourcesMLA (Modern Language Association) style is most commonly used to write papers and cite sources within the liberal arts and humanities. Here are some common features you should try and find before citing electronic sources in MLA style. Not every Web page will provide all of the following information. However, collect as much of the following information as possible both for your citations and for your research notes:Author and/or editor names (if available)Article name in quotation marks (if applicable)Title of the Website, project, or book in italics. (Remember that some Print publications have Web publications with slightly different names. They may, for example, include the additional information or otherwise modified information, like domain names [e.g. .com or .net].)Any version numbers available, including revisions, posting dates, volumes, or issue numbers.Publisher information, including the publisher name and publishing date.Take note of any page numbers (if available).Medium of publication.Date you accessed the material.URL (if required, or for your own personal reference; MLA does not require a URL).Citing an Entire Web SiteEditor, author, or compiler name (if available). Name of Site. Version number. Name of institution/organization affiliated with the site (sponsor or publisher), date of resource creation (if available). Medium of publication. Date of access.The Purdue OWL Family of Sites. The Writing Lab and OWL at Purdue and Purdue U, 2008. Web. 23 Apr. 2008.Felluga, Dino. Guide to Literary and Critical Theory. Purdue U, 28 Nov. 2003. Web. 10 May 2006.A Page on a Web SiteFor an individual page on a Web site, list the author or alias if known, followed by the information covered above for entire Web sites. Remember to use n.p. if no publisher name is available and n.d. if no publishing date is given."How to Make Vegetarian Chili." eHow. Demand Media, n.d. Web. 24 Feb. 2009.An Image (Including a Painting, Sculpture, or Photograph)Provide the artist's name, the work of art italicized, the date of creation, the institution and city where the work is housed. Follow this initial entry with the name of the Website in italics, the medium of publication, and the date of access.Goya, Francisco. The Family of Charles IV. 1800. Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid. Museo National del Prado. Web. 22 May 2006.Klee, Paul. Twittering Machine. 1922. Museum of Modern Art, New York. The Artchive. Web. 22 May 2006.An Article in an Online Scholarly JournalFor all online scholarly journals, provide the author(s) name(s), the name of the article in quotation marks, the title of the publication in italics, all volume and issue numbers, and the year of publication.Dolby, Nadine. “Research in Youth Culture and Policy: Current Conditions and Future Directions.” Social Work and Society: The International Online-Only Journal 6.2 (2008): n. pag. Web. 20 May 2009.Personal InterviewsPersonal interviews refer to those interviews that you conduct yourself. List the interview by the name of the interviewee. Include the descriptor Personal interview and the date of the interview.Smith, Jane. Personal interview. 19 May 2014.Rhetorical DevicesTechniques that an author or speaker uses to convey to the listener or reader a meaning with the goal of persuading him or her towards considering a topic from a different perspective, using sentences designed to encourage or provoke a rational argument from an emotional display of a given perspective or action.List of Commonly Used Devices:Allegory: Narrative form in which characters and actions have meanings outside themselves; characters are usually personifications of abstract qualities.Allusion: A figure of speech which makes brief, even casual reference to a historical or literary figure, event, or object to create a resonance in the reader or to apply a symbolic meaning to the character or object of which the allusion consists. Analogy: Comparison of two things that are alike in some respects. Metaphors and similes are both types of analogy.Anaphora: regular repetition of the same word or phrase at the beginning of successive phrases or clauses. For example, "We shall fight in the trenches. We shall fight on the oceans. We shall fight in the sky."Anecdote: A brief story or tale told by a character in a piece of literature.Aphorism: A concise statement designed to make a point or illustrate a commonly held belief. The writings of Benjamin Franklin contain many aphorisms, such as "Early to bed and early to rise/Make a man healthy, wealthy, and wise."Apostrophe: A figure of speech in which a person, thing, or abstract quality is addressed as if present; for example, the invocation to the muses usually found in epic poetry.Appeals to ethos/pathos/logos: Rhetorical arguments in which the speaker: Ethos: Appeals to ethics, moral, or character by establishing credibility or relying on information provided by credible sources.Pathos: Appeals to emotions by attempting to affect the listener's personal feelings.Logos: Appeals to logic by attempting to persuade the listener through use of deductive reasoning and facts. Diction: An author's choice of words to convey a tone or effect.Didactic: Intended for teaching or to teach a moral lesson.Epiphany: A sudden or intuitive insight or perception into the reality or essential meaning of something usually brought on by a simple or common occurrence or experience.Euphemism: Substitution of a milder or less direct expression for one that is harsh or blunt. For example, using "passed away" for "dead."Foreshadow: To hint at or present things to come in a story or play.Hyperbole: An overstatement characterized by exaggerated language.Imagery: Sensory details in a work; the use of figurative language to evoke a feeling, call to mind an idea, or describe an object. Imagery involves any or all of the five senses.Irony: A situation or statement characterized by significant difference between what is expected or understood and what actually happens or is meant. Irony is frequently humorous, and can be sarcastic when using words to imply the opposite of what they normally mean.Juxtaposition: Placing of two items side by side to create a certain effect, reveal an attitude, oraccomplish some other purpose.Litote: Form of understatement in which the negative of the contrary is used to achieve emphasis and intensity. For example, "She is not a bad cook." Or "No man ever followed his genius until it misled him" (Thoreau).Metaphor: Unlike similes, metaphors compare unlike things without explicitly stating the comparison with “like” or “as.”Oxymoron: A figure of speech that combines two apparently contradictory elements, as in "jumbo shrimp" or "deafening silence."Paradox: A statement that seems contradictory, but is actually true.Personification: Treating an abstraction or nonhuman object as if it were a person by giving it human qualities.Repetition: the conscious and purposeful replication of words or phrases in order to make a point. In this example, it’s clear that the limits of duty are being sketched out. The speaker is trying to show that duty is not the only or even the most important virtue. i.e. Duty does not trump honesty. Duty does not trump common sense. And duty, my friends, does not trump morality. Rhetorical Questions: questions that are not meant to be answered; i.e. Can poverty ever be eradicated?Simile: Similes use like and as to make explicit comparisons between unlike things.Satire: A literary style used to make fun of or ridicule an idea or human vice or weaknessSarcasm: A sharp caustic remark. A form of verbal irony in which apparent praise is actually bitterly or harshly critical. Syntax: The way words are put together to form phrases, clauses, and sentences. It is sentence structure and how it influences the way a reader perceives a piece of writing.Utopia: An imaginary place of ideal perfection. The opposite of a dystopia. —An imaginary place where people live dehumanized, often fearful lives. ................
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