April Calendar for Project 3
Project 3 - Rhetoric in ActionProject Overview
Project Three challenges students to take a stand on a public issue and to use language to facilitate positive social action. Students apply rhetorical principles such as ethos, pathos, and logos as they write for a real audience of their choice (for example, creating a website or sending a cover letter and persuasive report to a state senator). In the first two ENC1102 projects, you learned about rhetorical strategies of argumentation (Project One) and how to consider various differing views on a particular controversial topic (Project Two). In Project Three, you will lean on this knowledge to help you research a topic of personal and social significance and then argue for change. There are a wide variety of topics that you could write about (see below for examples); ask yourself what in the world needs changing, perhaps on a local, global, political, or social level. Your job is to convince your readers of the importance of your chosen topic and motivate them to enact change by offering a well-researched and persuasive argument. It’s not enough, however, to argue for a change; this project will also ask you to participate in enacting some sort of change. Assignment There are two parts to this project: the essay and the action/presentation. Please note that your instructor will apply different weights to each portion of this assignment. Project Tips 1. Many students make the mistake of simply repeating the suggestions of other authors instead of coming up with their own calls for action. If those arguments were sufficient, why does your chosen injustice continue to be a problem? When considering the suggestions of other authors on your given topic, try to use your knowledge of various arguments and rhetorical devices to make an even more effective call to action. 2. Sometimes, students fail to persuade their readers because they do not accurately represent an opposing argument. Therefore, as you write your paper, you should spend as much time considering various legitimate counter-arguments as you do your own, so that your argument is as persuasive as possible. If your readers can see that you’ve considered a wide range of diverse viewpoints, they will be more likely to value your position as reasonable and impartial. 3. Try to keep your audience in mind as you write and revise your essay, especially when recommending actions that could be taken to affect your chosen problem. For instance, if you’re writing to address the problem of wasted gasoline used by students who drive to campus instead of walking, riding bikes, or taking the bus, it will be unconvincing to a student audience to simply say, “Students should ride their bikes more often.” Think deeper—what exactly keeps students from riding their bikes? (Heat? Convenience? Speed?) You need to craft recommendations that people might actually do, argued persuasively to consider possible objections they might have. 4. Outcomes
The genres of this project are a persuasive essay that promotes social action and a dynamic presentation that informs and persuades. These genres take things beyond simple informational discussions by offering sound ways that the issue can be solved. Your audience, therefore, is any group of people that is predisposed to disagree with your argument, or any group of people who have not previously acted on this issue in effective ways. When writing to this kind of skeptical audience, it is important to use a tone that will make that audience want to agree with you: calm but firm and considerate of other points of view, and extremely knowledgeable. |
P3 DeadlinesAction: April 17 at noon
Presentation of Action: April 19 (RIA Day) Early Draft: Sunday, April 7; 5:00 p.m. Intermediate: Sunday, April 14; 5:00 p.m. Peer Review: Sunday, April 21, 5:00 p.m. Final: Monday, April 29, 5:00 p.m. Planning Worksheet |