Who Says Holdstein Aquiline Chapter 8 Writing organizing

Who Says? Holdstein & Aquiline, Chapter 8 Writing, organizing, outlining 1

Crafting your argument • Note that "argument" here is a term for a position or claim, not a dispute. Main parts: 1. Claim = answer to your RQ; often answers the "So what? " question; avoid bias; make it debatable 2. Reasons = claim is supported because … this shows your line of thought; is it logical? 3. Evidence = your research; data is important; credible; relevant This paper holds that (claim) because of (reasons) based on (evidence). 2

Organizing • Collect all your notes, printouts. • Look for gaps in the materials 3

Outlining This is usually a form of pre-writing for your draft, although some start the draft before the outline. The outline should include: • Why you chose this topic • Your research questions and thesis statement [ the “answer” to the main question] • The evidence that will help make your argument (support your thesis) • Brief summary of ideas that come from each source with short citations (e. g. discuss Smith results ) • What have you learned, concluded [and what would you need to know next? ] Format is up to you [see handout, assignment]; formal (I then A, B etc. ) or informal often with questions How serious is X? 4

Bibliography [Technically, a bibliography is an exhaustive list on your topic; you are collecting a list of References or Works Cited] Annotations that you have been doing will help you organize your outline. Usually include summary, relevance [and author/source ethos] No need to include the annotations with your final paper, just the Works Cited list in alphabetical order. 5

Title This matters. They often have two parts with a colon, as in the Snapchat paper Even a “working title” can help you focus your paper 6

Planning and drafting • You might both do an outline and write some of the paper [that’s why you were asked for the intro and conclusion with the outline] • There’s a good list of what you need to begin a full draft on pp. 113 -114. It reflects the process approach we have used during the semester. Note that they suggest • • • Thesis is focused You have supporting arguments backed by evidence You might not have a clear introduction yet You have to start at some point Don’t worry about spelling etc. on the first draft 7

The written structure • • Intro/body/conclusion Consider subheadings for these, and within the body Intro might be last thing you write Structures can be: Chronological Narrative Inductive from specifics to general conclusion [Deductive] General statement, then evidence [most research papers are like this] • Compare and contrast • Cause and effect • Definition [note these last two are not argument papers] • • • Be sure to make good use of transitions 8