Major Project 2: Academic Research Paper

Major Project 2: Academic Research Paper
Due Date: May 22nd
The purpose of MP 2 is 1) to learn how to do academic research and evaluate sources and 2) to enter the existing academic conversation on your topic and contribute with a well-crafted argument. The Burkean dialogue script should have informed you on the type of academic conversation happening on your topic: the key ideas, issues, existing arguments and debates in that conversation.
Your rhetorical situation:
This research paper allows you to delve deeper into the dialogue/conversation that you set up in SA 2.2 (Burkean dialogue). Putting yourself in conversation with your academic sources, write a 5-7 page paper in which you present your own argument on the topic. In total, your research paper should have 4-5 sources.
Your paper should provide a persuasive, interesting and well-organized argument with substantiated evidence analysis. Here are some guidelines to aim for:
Effectively follows the genre conventions of an academic essay (Outcome 1)
Shows an understanding of the existing conversation on the topic and specifies the focus of the paper (Outcome 1)
Makes an arguable and interesting complex claim on the issue (Outcome 3)
Utilizes an organizational strategy that shows how the complex claim is developed with minor claims and evidence (Outcome 3)
Uses quotes/paraphrases as evidence from sources and provide an analysis of them, demonstrating intertextuality (Outcome 2)
Addresses one or more counterarguments/concessions in order to support the complex claim (Outcome 2)
Provides a discussion of stakes of the argument (Outcome 3)
Uses MLA style for both in-text citations and works cited page (Outcome 2)
Academic Audience:
Youre writing to your class, a diverse college audience with different language varieties who appreciates good analysis, but may have no background on your topic. So youll need to give any key contextual info on your topic and provide clear definitions of any jargon.
Format:
5-7 pages; 12-point Times New Roman, double-spaced
Use 1-inch margins
In-text citations and works cited page in MLA style

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