Minor Assignment 2: Synthesis
Introduction: This is an introduction to Major Essay 2. Your introduction should begin with a hook to gain your reader’s attention, and then transition to your essay’s focus. The introduction should culminate in a thesis statement that presents your argument about the myth that these three writers want to dispel.
***** 175 Words Minimum (~two-thirds of a page)
Major Assignment 2: Synthesis
In Essay 2, you are faced with the same audience as essay 1 (a group of teachers who wanted to learn more about writing) but with one important difference:
Several members of this group continue to believe one of the two “bad ideas about writing”
identified below. Your purpose for writing Essay 2 is to convince these instructors that this “bad
idea about writing” is, in fact, a bad idea and not helpful to their future writing students. So, while your purpose in Essay 1 was to inform, your purpose in Essay 2 is to persuade.
To do so, your argument will draw support from three essays. I’ve suggested thematic
groupings and natural pairings of articles below, but you may select articles from other sections
of Bad Ideas about Writing if you’d like, and you may consider other “bad ideas” discussed in
your text but not listed below.
Group 1: Bad Idea 1: Good writing happens naturally, with minimal process.
“Some People Are Just Born Good Writers” – Jill Parrot
“Failure Is Not an Option” – Allison D. Carr
“Strong Writing and Writers Don’t Need Revision” – Laura Giovanelli
Or:
Group 2: Bad Idea 2: Standard English is essential to good writing.
“There is One Correct Way of Writing and Speaking” – Anjali Pattanayak
“African American English is Not Good English” – Jennifer M. Cunningham
“Official American English Is Best” – Steven Alvarez
Components of the Synthesis Essay:
Introduction:
Your introduction should begin with a hook to gain your reader’s attention, and then transition to
your essay’s focus. The introduction should culminate in a thesis statement that presents your
argument about the myth that these three writers want to dispel.
Body Paragraphs:
Each body paragraph should present one key point in support of your thesis; this key point
should be presented at the start of the body paragraph, in the topic sentence. Each body
paragraph must incorporate evidence (in the form of summary, paraphrase, or direct
quotation) from at least two of the three sources as well as analysis.
Do not organize your paragraphs so that you have one paragraph per source. The
goal of this essay is to bring these authors into conversation with one another (and with
you!), not to relegate each author to his/her own separate paragraph.
Conclusion:
Your conclusion should summarize your main points and restate your thesis. Your
expanded thought can take many forms: You might advise your audience on how they can
apply this lesson to their teaching, or you might remind them of the ways in which doing so will
impact their students’ approaches to writing.
Works Cited List:
This essay will include a Works Cited list. This Works Cited list should follow MLA format and
should appear on a separate page at the end of the essay.
Each article should have its own entry, and the entry should be double-spaced with hanging
indents. Entries should be alphabetized by the author’s last name.
Author (Last name, first name). “Title of Essay.” Title of Book. Publishing info (if available). Page
Numbers (if available and stable). Title of Database or Website where Book was Found.
URL or DOI.
Outline:
Another way to think about this essay is by looking at the outline of what this type of essay
should look like:
I. Introduction
a. Hook
b. Discuss Topic
c. Thesis
II. Body Paragraph 1
a. Topic Sentence
i. (The first reason that good writing does not come
naturally is…)
b. Evidence
i. Quotes/Summaries/Paraphrases from at least 2 of the 3
essays
c. Your Reasoning
i. You are explaining why the quotes/evidence you present
are significant and worthy of paying attention to
III. Body Paragraph 2
a. Topic Sentence
i. (The next reason that good writing does not come
naturally is…)
b. Evidence
i. Quotes/Summaries/Paraphrases from at least 2 of the 3
essays
c. Your Reasoning
i. You are explaining why the quotes/evidence you present
are significant and worthy of paying attention to
IV. Conclusion
a. Thesis
b. Expanded Thought
*****800 Words Minimum (3+ pages not including the Works Cited list)
