Instructions
Sample Essay
I use it, and I’m just fine, so I don’t see how it could be harmful.
I don’t see those people who are fighting to outlaw marijuana also out there fighting to outlaw alcohol.
Many important writers, artists, and athletes agree with my opinion. There’s no evidence that marijuana can kill you or make you sick, so it must be okay.
This is just old people making war on young people. If they’d just stop, we’d have a peaceful country instead of all this left/right division. But they’ll keep at it. Anything they think is “addictive” will be fair game. Pretty soon, they’ll be outlawing video games and social media.
How are young people supposed to relax and have fun? Pretty soon, we’ll all be staying home doing jigsaw puzzles.
Well, I don’t think we’re going to put up with it much longer. If they think the riots a couple of years ago were bad, they haven’t seen anything. Their arguments against marijuana are worthless.
This assignment will assess your ability to recognize fallacies and rhetoric in the argument presented in the sample essay above. It will also assess your ability to avoid fallacies and negative rhetoric in expressing ideas.
Analyze the argument in the sample essay. State the conclusion and summarize the reasons.
There are at least 10 fallacies in the essay on marijuana. Identify at least five of these by the terms introduced in either the text or the lesson.
Rewrite the essay, using similar ideas but avoiding the fallacies and negative rhetoric. For example, the first paragraph might be rewritten as “Arguments opposing marijuana lack legal and scientific support.” (150-200 words)
Writing Requirements
1-inch margins
Double spaced
12-point Times New Roman font
Title page
Grading
This assignment will be graded using the Week 5 Assessment Rubric
Outcomes
- CO?4: Evaluate arguments by applying standard tests.
CO?5: Evaluate the role of cognitive bias and fallacies of relevance in critical reasoning and decision-making.
- CO?7: Create a fallacy-free argument that incorporates principles of ethical decision-making.Read/review the following resources for this activity:
Textbook: Chapter 12
Lesson
- Instructions in Week 5 Workbook
Instructions Course Project Overview Week 5 Assignment: This week, you will submit a thesis statement and an annotated bibliography of at least five sourcesthat you will use in your paper, as well as a brief statement explaining how the source supports your argument. Your paper should include the following:
Your selected topic from Week 2
Part 1: A thesis statement stating your opinion/conclusion on the issue you chose in Week 2, the supporting points you will offer, and at least one relevant opposing view you will address.
Part 2: An annotated bibliography with an evaluation of at least five (5) sources you intend to use in your final paper to support your claim.
- The annotation will include 1) Full citation in APA format, 2) a brief description of the content of the source, and 3) a brief statement of how the source supports your argument.
These sources provide evidence to support the idea that your claim should be accepted by the reader.
- Scholarly sources are preferred and should be used where available; due to the nature of some of the topics, authoritative articles in very high-quality substantive journals may also be acceptable.
A brief statement of how the source supports your argument.
- Example (Excerpt)
Chosen Topic: Does the burden of student loans cause young adults to have trouble developing self-sufficiency and individualism?Thesis Statement: The current pattern of young adults remaining with family because they cannot afford independent living due to student loan obligations is having a negative effect on young adults developing self-sufficiency and individualism.Waite, L. J., Goldschneider, F. K., & Witsberger, C. (1986). Nonfamily living and the erosion of traditional family orientations among young adults.?American Sociological Review, 51, 541–554. https://doi.org/10.2307/2095586The authors use data from the National Longitudinal Surveys of Young Women and Young Men to test their hypothesis that nonfamily living by young adults alters their attitudes, values, plans, and expectations, moving them away from their belief in traditional sex roles. They found their hypothesis strongly supported in young females, while the effects were fewer in studies of young males. Increasing the time away from parents before marrying increased individualism, self-sufficiency, and changes in attitudes about families. This source strongly supports my thesis that the current pattern of young adults remaining with family because they cannot afford independent living due to student loan obligations is having a negative effect on young adults developing self-sufficiency and individualism.Writing Requirements