1. What does this quote mean?
The Research Paper
What does this quote mean?

2. What are you trying to tell your audience?
Start with your
Basic topic

3. Then… figure out why your topic is important Examples:
--the impact of the atomic bomb of modern warfare
--how aggression and anger affects personality
--the assassination of JFK remains one of the biggest and most controversial American mysteries to date
--the battle of Antietam was one of the bloodiest battles in American history

4. What does your audience need to know about your topic to be informed?
Group similar sub-topics
together
Shakespeare’s Shakespeare’s Playwright & The Returning Death &
Parents & Siblings Education Poet Globe to Stratford The Folio
Childhood Career Later Years

5. Add supporting details and extra information
Shakespeare’s Career
-several plays on London stage by 1592
-wrote Romeo and Juliet, The Merchant of Venice, Hamlet, etc.
-divided his time between London and Stratford

6. What is a thesis statement?
A thesis statement is an opinion-based sentence that names the topic of your paper. It is the last sentence in your introduction.

7. A thesis statement must do three things:
Make a claim (that is debatable)
Be supportable with research
Be specific and narrow (only covering what is discussed in paper)
Be expressed in one sentence
**You may need to revise it after you’ve written your paper in its entirety.

8. Types of Claims
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.

9. Types of Claims
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.
**Types of Claims from Purdue OWL

10. Example Argumentative RP Thesis:
Example of an argumentative thesis statement:
High school graduates should be required to take a year off to pursue community service projects before entering college in order to increase their maturity and global awareness.
The paper that follows should:
Present an argument and give evidence to support the claim that students should pursue community projects before entering college.
*From Purdue OWL

11. Weak Strong Drug addiction is a big problem.
Drug addiction has caused a huge increase in violent crimes.

12. Weak Strong Home and schools.
Parents need to participate more in the education of their children.

13. Weak Strong The space program is a waste of money.
I want to share some thoughts with you about the space program.
Strong
The space program is a waste of money.

14. Never use first (I, me, we, my, mine, our) or second (you, your) person in your final thesis statement. It’s too informal.

15. Write a belief statement about your topic:
I believe….
Example: I believe that the SAT tests should be eliminated.

16. Now add a fact to the belief statement
I believe….because….
Example: I believe that the SAT tests should be eliminated because they cannot predict success in college.

17. Finally, take away your “I believe” statement and you have your thesis!
Example: SAT tests should be eliminated because they cannot predict success in college.

18. The Introduction 18

19. The Introduction
The Hook—opening sentence that catches the reader’s attention
Quote from a source
Startling Statement/fact/statistic (use a misconception about the topic)
Vivid word picture description (of a scene or story related to topic)
Image bursts (Ancient buildings. Spicy food. Colorful clothing.)
Rhetorical question (make sure it is appropriate and thought-provoking) 19

20. The Introduction
The Link-bridge between hook & thesis statement, explaining the significance of the hook
All Hard Core Rock musicians are
drug-seeking Satan worshippers who
are hardened criminals. This is a
misconception that many people share
about those who perform Hard Core Rock
music, but this is not an accurate
image of all of these artists. 20

21. The Introduction
Thesis Statement—purpose of paper and preview of points
Hard Core Rock music is a genre that is misunderstood because the positive message is often overlooked.
Write your thesis from your worksheet in the box on your handout. 21

22. How can you avoid PLAGIARIZING in your research paper?
1. Use QUOTATION marks to identify a direct quote from your source. ALWAYS use quotation marks around quotes taken from your text which are word for word. Only use direct quotes when it is important for the reader to know the exact words that the author used. You also need to cite the source of your information immediately after your direct quote.

23. The Crime of Plagiarism
2. CITE the source of your information when using ideas and information taken from the text. Even if you put the information in your own words, you must still cite your source.

24. The Crime of Plagiarism
3. PARAPHRASE correctly. Just changing one or two words in a sentence from your source is not acceptable, even if you cite it. You must use your own sentence structure and ideas.

25. The Crime of Plagiarism
4. Do NOT use others’ WORKS and IDEAS as your OWN. The most obvious form of plagiarism is turning in work that you did not complete at all, but that you “borrowed” from another and turned it in as your own. Just changing the name and some words does not make it yours.

26. Avoiding Plagiarism
If you have any information that contains a NUMERICAL figure, make sure that you document it. As a rule, numbers are not common knowledge.

27. Avoiding Plagiarism
Do not try to write as PROFESSIONAL as the sources you are using. Use coherent language and avoid long technical terms whose meaning you do not know.  

28. MLA Format

29. Sample 1st Page*
･Do not make a title page for your paper unless specifically requested
･In the upper left-hand corner of the first page, list your name, your instructor's name, the course, and the date. Again, be sure to use double-spaced text.
･Double space again and center the title.
Do not underline, italicize, or place your title in quotation marks; write the title in Title Case (standard capitalization), not in all capital letters.
･Use quotation marks and/or italics when referring to other works in your title, just as you would in your text: Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas as Morality Play; Human Weariness in "After Apple Picking”
･Double space between the title and the first line of the text.
･Create a header in the upper right-hand corner that includes your last name, followed by a space with a page number; number all pages consecutively with Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3, 4, etc.), one-half inch from the top and flush with the right margin. (Note: Your instructor or other readers may ask that you omit last name/page number header on your first page. Always follow instructor guidelines.) 29

30. Works Cited Page: Books*
Basic Format:
Lastname, Firstname. Title of Book. Place of Publication:
Publisher, Year of Publication. Medium of Publication.
Examples:
Gleick, James. Chaos: Making a New Science. New York:
Penguin, Print.
Gillespie, Paula, and Neal Lerner. The Allyn and Bacon Guide to
Peer Tutoring. Boston: Allyn, Print.
Palmer, William J. Dickens and New Historicism. New York: St.
Martin's, Print.
---. The Films of the Eighties: A Social History. Carbondale:
Southern Illinois UP, Print.
Works Cited Page: Books
When you are gathering book sources, be sure to make note of the following bibliographic items: author name(s), book title, publication date, publisher, place of publication. The medium of publication for all “hard copy” books is Print.
Book with More Than One Author
The first given name appears in last name, first name format; subsequent author names appear in first name last name format. If there are more than three authors, you may choose to list only the first author followed by the phrase et al. (Latin for "and others") in place of the subsequent authors' names, or you may list all the authors in the order in which their names appear on the title page. (Note that there is a period after “al” in “et al.” Also note that there is never a period after the “et” in “et al.”).
Two or More Books by the Same Author
List works alphabetically by title. (Remember to ignore articles like A, An, and The.) Provide the authorﾕs name in last name, first name format for the first entry only. For each subsequent entry by the same author, use three hyphens and a period.
There are many other possible factors that may arise when citing books. For a more complete list of rules and examples see the OWL’s “MLA 2009 Works Cited Page: Books” at 30

31. Works Cited Page: Periodicals*
Article in a Magazine Format:
Author(s). "Title of Article." Title of Periodical Day Month Year:
pages. Medium of publication.
Example:
Buchman, Dana. "A Special Education." Good Housekeeping
Mar. 2006: Print.
Article in Scholarly Journal Format:
Author(s). "Title of Article." Title of Journal Volume.Issue (Year):
Duvall, John N. "The (Super)Marketplace of Images: Television
as Unmediated Mediation in DeLillo's White Noise." Arizona
Quarterly 50.3 (1994): Print.
Article in a Magazine
Cite by listing the article's author, putting the title of the article in quotations marks, and italicizing the periodical title. Follow with the date of publication. Remember to abbreviate the month. Please note the first example on this slide.
An Article in a Scholarly Journal
In previous years, MLA required that researchers determine whether or not a scholarly journal employed continuous pagination (page numbers began at page one in the first issue of the years and page numbers took up where they left off in subsequent ones) or non-continuous pagination (page numbers begin at page one in every subsequent issue) in order to determine whether or not to include issue numbers in bibliographic entries. The MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers 7th edition (2009) eliminates this step. Always provide issue numbers, when available. Please note the second example on this slide.
There are many other types of periodical publication. For a more thorough list of examples, please see the OWL’s “MLA 2009 Works Cited: Periodicals” at 31

32. Works Cited Page: Web* Web Source Format:
Editor, author, or compiler name (if available). “Article
Name.” Name of Site. Name of institution/organization
affiliated with the site (sponsor or publisher). Date of last
update. Medium of publication. Date of access.
Works Cited: Electronic Sources (Web Publications)
MLA lists electronic sources as Web Publications. Thus, when including the medium of publication for electronic sources, list the medium as Web.
Citing an Entire Web Site
It is necessary to list your date of access because web postings are often updated, and information available on one date may no longer be available later. Be sure to include the complete address for the site. Remember to use n.p. if no publisher name is available and n.d. if not publishing date is given.
It is always a good idea to maintain personal copies of electronic information, when possible. It is good practice to print or save Web pages or, better, using a program like Adobe Acrobat, to keep your own copies for future reference. Most Web browsers will include URL/electronic address information when you print, which makes later reference easy. Also, you might use the Bookmark function in your Web browser in order to return to documents more easily.
Important Note on the Use of URLs in MLA
MLA no longer requires the use of URLs in MLA citations. Because Web addresses are not static (i.e. they change often) and because documents sometimes appear in multiple places on the Web (e.g. on multiple databases), MLA explains that most readers can find electronic sources via title or author searches in Internet Search Engines.
For instructors or editors that still wish to require the use of URLs, MLA suggests that the URL appear in angle brackets after the date of access. Break URLs only after slashes. See previous slide comment.
There are many other possible kinds of sources that can be cited from the Internet. For a more thorough list of examples, see the OWL’s “MLA 2009 Works Cited: Electronic Sources (Web Publications)” at 32

33. Works Cited Page: Web* Examples:
Bernstein, Mark. "10 Tips on Writing the Living Web.”
A List Apart: For People Who Make Websites. A
List Apart Mag., 16 Aug Web. 4 May 2009.
Felluga, Dino. Guide to Literary and Critical Theory.
Purdue U, 28 Nov Web. 10 May 2006.
"How to Make Vegetarian Chili." eHow.com. eHow,
n.d. Web. 24 Feb
And here are some examples. 33

34. Parenthetical Documentation

35. Parenthetical Documentation
How much of my paper should be documented?
You do not have to document your TOPIC or TRANSITION sentence because you wrote them. The rest of every body paragraph must be from a SOURCE, and must be documented.
How do you document?
To document, you put important information in PARENTHESIS after the information you have QUOTED, PARAPHRASED, or SUMMARIZED.

36. Author-Page Style* In-text Example:
Wordsworth stated that Romantic poetry was marked by a "spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings" (263).
Romantic poetry is characterized by the "spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings" (Wordsworth 263). Wordsworth extensively explored the role of emotion in the creative process (263).
Corresponding Works Cited Entry:
Wordsworth, William. Lyrical Ballads. London: Oxford
U.P., Print.
In-Text Citations: Author-Page Style
MLA format follows the author-page method of in-text citation. This means that the author's last name and the page number(s) from which the quotation or paraphrase is taken must appear in the text, and a complete reference should appear on your Works Cited page. The author's name may appear either in the sentence itself or in parentheses following the quotation or paraphrase, but the page number(s) should always appear in the parentheses, not in the text of your sentence.
The both citations in the in-text examples on this slide, (263) and (Wordsworth 263), tell readers that the information in the sentence can be located on page 263 of a work by an author named Wordsworth. If readers want more information about this source, they can turn to the Works Cited page, where, under the name of Wordsworth, they would find the information in the corresponding Works Cited entry also shown on this slide. Reduce font size on slide to allow breathing room and space. Also, use a different font for the sample text so instructions look different from the excerpt. 36

37. Print Source with Author
In-text Example:
Human beings have been described by Kenneth Burke as "symbol-using animals" (3).
Human beings have been described as "symbol-using animals" (Burke 3).
In-text Citations for Print Sources with Known Author
For Print sources like books, magazines, scholarly journal articles, and newspapers, provide a signal word or phrase (usually the author’s last name) and a page number. If you provide the signal word/phrase in the sentence, you do not need to include it in the parenthetical citation. These examples must correspond to an entry that begins with Burke, which will be the first thing that appears on the left-hand margin of an entry in the Works Cited (as noted in the corresponding Works Cited entry on this slide). See comments from previous slide. 37

38. Print Source with Author*
Corresponding Works Cited Entry:
Burke, Kenneth. Language as Symbolic Action: Essays
on Life, Literature, and Method. Berkeley: U of
California P, Print.
And this is how the Works Cited listing should look. 38

39. With Unknown Author* In-text Example:
We see so many global warming hotspots in North America likely because this region has “more readily accessible climatic data and more comprehensive programs to monitor and study environmental change . . .” (“Impact of Global Warming” 6).
In-text Citations for Print Sources with No Known Author
When a source has no known author, use a shortened title of the work instead of an author name. Place the title in quotation marks if it's a short work (e.g. articles) or italicize it if it's a longer work (e.g. plays, books, television shows, entire websites) and provide a page number.
In this example, since the reader does not know the author of the article, an abbreviated title of the article appears in the parenthetical citation which corresponds to the full name of the article which appears first at the left-hand margin of its respective entry in the Works Cited. Thus, the writer includes the title in quotation marks as the signal phrase in the parenthetical citation in order to lead the reader directly to the source on the Works Cited page. See comments from previous slide. 39

40. With Unknown Author* Corresponding Works Cited Entry:
“The Impact of Global Warming in North America.”
GLOBAL WARMING: Early Signs Web. 23 Mar.
2009.
And this is how the Works Cited listing should look. 40

41. Where do you put the period?

42. In-Text Citations 1 sentence
“In 2013, more than 59 percent of the population still believed that more than one person was involved in the murder of John F. Kennedy” (“Who shot the president” 78).

43. In-Text Citations More than 1 sentence
In contrast to the conclusions of the Warren Commission, the United States House Select Committee on Assassinations (HSCA) concluded in 1978 that Kennedy was probably assassinated as a result of a conspiracy. The HSCA found the original FBI investigation and the Warren Commission Report to be seriously flawed. While agreeing with the Commission that Oswald fired all the shots which caused the wounds to Kennedy and Connally, the HSCA stated that there were at least four shots fired (only three of which could be linked to Oswald) and that there was a high probability that two gunmen fired at the President. (“Who Shot JFK” 56-58)

44. In-Text Citations More than one source in a sentence
Although some medical ethicists claim that cloning will lead to designer children (Miller 12), others note that the advantages for medical research outweigh this consideration (James 46).

45. Body Paragraphs

46. Writing Paragraphs
Organized around one “controlling” idea that is usually stated in a topic sentence
Made up of supporting sentences that develop the main idea
Typically 5-8 sentences
Topic Sentence: doesn’t have to be the first sentence (you can begin a paragraph with details that build up to a summary topic sentence)
Topic Sentence formula: topic + something particular about the topic
You should always be able to find a topic sentence in a paragraph!

47. Body Paragraphs
Topic Sentence—clearly identifies main point of the paragraph…it is like a mini thesis statement for each paragraph.
The variety of cuisine in Brussels provides a delicious culinary experience.
Write a topic sentence for each of your body paragraphs. 47

48. Body Paragraphs
Transition sentence to next point (reviews current paragraph and previews relationship with next paragraph; it is the puzzle piece that connects your paragraphs).
Belgians enjoy eating their delicious food while watching popular sporting events.
Write a transition statement for each of your body paragraphs. The last body paragraph’s transition sentence is a summary of that paragraph’s main idea. 48

49. Body Paragraphs
Meat of the paragraph:
Find information about the topic of each paragraph and put it in your own words.
Start writing after the topic sentence.
Make sure you are putting the information in a logical order and are paraphrasing correctly!
Don’t forget to document at the end of each block of information you paraphrase from a source. 49

50. THE WORKS CITED PAGE

51. General Info. About Works Cited:
üThe title of the page, WORKS CITED, is centered at the top of the page.
üEverything on the page is DOUBLE-SPACED, never more than that.
üEntries on a Works Cited page are called BIBLIOGRAPHIC entries, which means “Biblio”- BOOK and “graphic”-WRITING.
ü The entries on the Works Cited page are in ALPHABETICAL order.

52. General Info. About Works Cited:
ü  When you alphabetize, you alphabetize by the FIRST word of the bibliographic entry, unless it begins with the three English articles, A , AN , and THE. You ignore these words and alphabetize by the SECOND word in the title.
You do not INDENT the first line of a bibliographic entry, but you do indent the SECOND line of a bibliographic entry. It is the opposite of a PARAGRAPH in an essay where you indent the FIRST line.

53. General Info. About Works Cited:
All of your SOURCES must be DOCUMENTED in your paper, so be sure to put only the sources you used on your Works Cited page.
Every PERIOD, COMMA, and COLON are very important, so do not get careless when you create your entries.

54. WRITE ROUGH DRAFT WORKS CITED PAGE
THIS WILL BE GRADED!

55. “IN CONCLUSION” or “As you can see,” or “As already stated,”
The Conclusion
Restate Thesis (paraphrase your own thesis…no more than three words in a row from the original)
NEVER BEGIN WITH
“IN CONCLUSION” or “As you can see,” or “As already stated,” 55

56. The Conclusion Intensified Insight leading into a
quote (Give any final thoughts and lead into a quote that you find in your source.)
People should make informed decisions about Heavy Metal music before criticizing it. Neil Young agreed with this when he said, “All that stuff about heavy metal and hard rock, I don't subscribe to any of that. It's all just music…Who's to say what is and isn't a certain type of music?” (Young 1). 56

57. The Basic Principles of Persuasive Writing
Tips for Writing Your Argumentative Research Paper

58. Persuasive writing is…
Writing that sets out to influence or change an audience’s thoughts or actions

59. You are subjected to persuasion everyday…
From the time you wake up until the time you go to bed…
When you turn on the radio, television, read the paper or a magazine…
Buy a product or use a service, your choice has likely been influenced by a persuasive marketing ad.

60. How do we get others to accept our point of view?
By appealing to their reason
By appealing to their emotions
By appealing to their ethics
AND…
Offer opinions (not for your RESEARCH paper)
Urge actions
Back up points with evidence

61. Appealing to Reason
Remember that an argument is an appeal to a person’s sense of reason; it is not a violent fight, dispute or disagreement. It is a measured, logical way of trying to persuade others to agree with you.
One critical thing to remember is that there are at least two sides to every issue. If you take the attitude that there is only one side--your side--you will quite likely alienate your reader.
Examples: Statistics, Court Cases, Studies, Expert Opinions (Quotations), Historical Examples

62. Appealing to Emotion
The logical appeal is certainly an extremely persuasive tool. However, our human nature also lets us be influenced by our emotions.
One way of evoking emotion in your reader is to use vivid images or language that is emotionally charged
Ex: anecdotes, vivid images, details of the pain of certain procedures

63. Appealing to our Good Character
The appeal to your ethics can occur on one or more of the following levels in any given argument:
Are you a reasonable person? (willing to compromise/concede?)
Are you authoritative? (knowledgeable?)
Are you an ethical/moral person? (is argument ethically sound/morally right)

64. The ethical appeal…
Is based on the audience’s perception of the speaker.
Don’t overlook it! It can be the most effective of the three!

65. Elements of a good argument
Remember to identify any unfamiliar or uniquely used terms in your argument!
If you forget to define your terms, (or choose not to define them) you run the risk of alienating your audience or confusing them!
Ex: If you argue that teachers should “monitor” their students, the word monitor should be defined. What does monitor mean? Does it include looking through their registrar’s files? Reading through their notebooks?

66. To assess the validity of your paper… Ask yourself the following questions:
Do I have enough evidence? (Is it sufficient?)
Will my audience believe my evidence? (Is it trustworthy?)
What are the assumptions built into my argument, and are those assumptions fair? (Is it verifiable?)
Does my conclusion follow logically from the claims I make?

67. Complexify your argument
There are several rhetorical “moves” or patterns writers can utilize to enhance their argument and demonstrate critical thinking about their topic. Cause and effect: discuss what has led to your topic becoming an issue and why the issue is affecting people.
Qualification: “qualification” here means to limit your position to specific contexts or situations, a “yes, but…” perspective. Qualifying not only can demonstrate that you understand the complexity of an issue but can show you have a unique perspective on it.
Examination of the opposing argument: know thy enemy. Analyzing other perspectives on your topic has three key advantages: you demonstrate a broad understanding of the issue; you can strengthen your position by comparing it to others; and you’ve given yourself plenty more to write about.
Concede a little, as necessary: it’s perfectly okay to admit your position is not perfect; in fact, breaking down what works and what doesn’t about your topic can enhance your analysis. Anticipating and alleviating your reader’s concerns can be incredibly persuasive.
Propose a solution: a logical and feasible solution to your issue provides authority and credibility, and it can make for a strong conclusion.
Examine the implications: what effect will this issue have on individuals and/or the world? Discussing what lies ahead for your topic also makes for a strong approach to a conclusion.
Note: there is no “correct” strategy about how to integrate these techniques into your writing, nor is there a desired amount or limit to how many can be used. Use your best judgment.

68. Reminders for your paper.
Make sure you have parenthetical documentation in EVERY PARAGRAPH and a Works Cited page.
Highlight all direct quotes (only 3 allowed)
No 1st or 2nd person (I, me, my, you, our, us, we)
No contractions (can’t, won’t, shouldn’t)

69. Works Cited Page
All information on this PowerPoint was copied from the following website:
-“The Basic Principles of Persuasive Writing.” UBC Writing Centre. The University of British Colombia, 8 March Web. 23 March 2010. -

70. Starred Slides from Purdue OWL
Purdue Writing Lab Phone Number:
Purdue OWL: