For the final essay of the semester, you will be writing a researched argument paper. Your paper will synthesize the information you have gathered during your research, using it either for support of your claim or as a counter argument. You were asked to choose an issue, something you felt strongly about and could argue for or against. Then you were asked to do some research, reading what others had to say about the issue and collecting your resources into an annotated bibliography. Through your reading, you should have come to a better understanding about the issue and made connections between the sources you read and your own opinion of the issue.
Part of your job as writer of this paper is to put these writers in conversation with one another and use them to support your claim. The ultimate use of the resources in your paper should be to support whatever conclusions you have come to in researching the issue and to support your side of the argument or to use as a counter argument.
Your paper should have a thesis, a so what?, a strong argument that lays out your case and that explains to the reader why this issue matters, why it is important to understand what experts and others in the field have been saying about the issue, and to defend your position on the issue. You will present your argument using a variety of rhetorical moves/devices, which may include ethos, pathos, and logos.
Your paper should be 6-8 pages in length (exclusive of works cited page) and use at least 5-7 outside sources from a variety of genres, including newspapers, scholarly journals, books, periodicals, professional websites, etc. It is important that your sources reflect a willingness on your part to look at the topic through a number of others eyes.
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