Today’s Plan:
- Reading for Argument (30 minutes max)
- Proposal Review Quiz (Canvas)
- Homework
Reading for Argument
I’m 1/2 way through evaluating the proposals. One thing that I’ve noticed is a need to review how to read for argument. Others might call this how to read “critically,” but I want to avoid that term since it can have negative connotations. I want you to read, modifying the words of poet Robert Pinsky, like a good chef eats. This means reading to recognize not only meaning (taste), but to recognize construction (technique). Any good meal needs to be a balance of salt, fat, sweet, and acid. It needs to consider texture. It needs to have what the Japanese call “umami,” which is a more earthen savory flavor (a different kind of salt–I think it can also be an herbal or seasoning flavor, such as cumin).
What happens when we translate these needs to writing? What are the core dimensions of (almost any) writing situation? Or–at least–what are the core dimensions of the kind of writing I want you to be reading and producing this semester?
- There needs to be a claim. I need to walk away knowing exactly what the writer wants me to think OR do differently. Sometimes the claim is clearly laid out, sometimes it is more subtle. Sometimes the writer carefully delineates a problem that requires a solution.
- There needs to be an exigence. This often comes before the claim. Why are we reading this NOW? Why is this timely? (In rhetoric, we refer to this as kairos, which I will talk about later in the semester). Why is the author, in the words of Bitzer, called to write? Sometimes it is difficult to distinguish where exigence ends and the claim begins.
- There needs to be evidence for that claim. What does the writer use to support her position? What kind of evidence does she offer is it: a logical argument, where she stipulates a series of premises and deductions? Is it an empirical argument, where she appeals to facts and statistics? Is it a hermeneutic argument, in which her argument relies on an interpretation of an important text (for instance, “the bible says X” or “we all agree that the first amendment protects Y”). Is it anecdotal evidence, where the writer will point to her experience? Is it expert testimony, where the writer will interview an expert? Often a writer will use a variety of evidence to make her case, to support her claim.
- There should be a refutation. Here is where the author imagines responses to her argument. The refutation will often tell us the most about who she considers her audience–whose minds she is really trying to change.
Every time you are reading for this class–every time you are writing for Canvas–I want you to go through this checklist. The more detail the better. Let’s give this a practice run in class today, looking at Hill’s Undefeated article on Nike’s decision to feature Colin Kaepernick as the face of the “Just Do It” slogan’s 30th anniversary.
Let’s head to Canvas.
Proposal Review Quiz
Check Canvas–if you didn’t submit a Google Drive link properly, then I put in a zero and sent you a message on how to fix it. Don’t worry about the zero, it is just a placeholder/warning light.
If I have graded your proposal, then I have commented in your Google Doc. Let’s talk about the comments in there. There’s generally three things I do:
- Yellow highlight on a period. This means there is a grammatical issue with the sentence and I would like you to rewrite it. It also means that I think if you read the sentence out loud, you will catch it. If there is every a highlight that you don’t know how to fix–or it you can’t see the mistake–then let me know!
- I set the document to “suggestions” and make some changes. Look at these long enough to recognize what I’ve done. Often, if I see an issue, I’ll fix one and then expect you to go through the paper and fix the rest. Teach a person to fish. Once you think you’ve got it, just hit the checkmark to accept my suggestion.
- I write comments in the margins. Comments are more substantive. They are my reaction to what I am seeing. Sometimes they deal with content, where I give feedback to an argument or a suggestion on how to strengthen it. Sometimes they are structural, meaning I make a suggestion as to whether something needs to be rearranged, moved around, etc. On the rough drafts of medium.com posts, which we’ll start working on Friday, I’ll expect you to address my comments. I don’t comment on final drafts because commentary takes me a lot of time–I will simply score them. When you are done with a comment, then you hit “resolve” (note that this makes the comment disappear).
I’ve put together a quiz in Canvas. Relax, it is not really a quiz. It is a collection of material I’ve pulled from proposals that I’d like us to examine, appreciate, or revise as a class.
Homework
Read one article for your first medium.com post and use the argumentative analysis from Wednesday’s class to generate a paragraph long summary of the piece.
Submit this paragraph to Canvas under Constant Writing > Wednesday, Sept 5.
