Many students report being inspired by the reading in this class. In 1200 words, answer and defend your position on the following question: What advice would you give to college students looking to live a meaningful life? Use evidence from Man’s Search for Meaning, Brown’s work, Esfahani Smith’s work, and at least one other credible source to support your thesis and reasons.
Brené Brown: The power of vulnerability | TED Talk
Emily Esfahani Smith: There’s more to life than being happy | TED Talk
Writing Instructions
- Include a strong, arguable thesis in your introduction. Underline your thesis statement.
- Support your position with reason and evidence.
- Include at least four credible, scholarly sources in your Works Cited page and refer to each of these sources at least once in the essay. Man’s Search for Meaning must be one of your sources.
- Present and refute at least one possible counterargument. How might someone argue against your thesis or one of your claims? Why is your argument still stronger?
- Refer back to these instructions and the English 1 Rubric frequently to make sure you are meeting the expectations.
Grading Criteria
This essay will be graded using the English 1 Rubric with special attention to
- argumentation (e.g. ethos/pathos/logos, refutation, excellent evidence) and
- language (e.g. grammar, punctuation, sentence structure) will also be considered in the grading.
