Thursday, November 15, 2007

Thesis Group Work with Experts

This is the same exercise we've done in class. Use it to test your own thesis, or for peer editing.



Debatability


In your own words, what is the writer’s claim about the text?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Is this claim debatable? Offer one counter-argument to this claim.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Does the thesis address any possible counter-arguments? Does this/would this make it a stronger thesis?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________


Intellectual Daring

In your own words, what is the writer’s claim about the text?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Which parts of the argument are descriptive, provide background information, summarize the plot, recapitulate accepted interpretations of the text, or seem obvious?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Which aspects of the argument seem to offer new insight into the text or into the theme the author discusses?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________


Clarity

In your own words, what is the writer’s claim about the text?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Is the thesis in the active voice, and does it avoid negative phrasing? (see handouts from Elements of Style)
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Is anything about the thesis hard to understand? Is there a pronoun that leaves you unsure what the author means it to describe? Does the ordering of ideas ever interfere with your ability to understand the argument? If not, what works in this thesis that makes it easy to understand?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Is the language of the thesis precise? Do any of the words the author uses seem too vague, or are you unsure what they should mean in this context?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________


So What?

In your own words, what is the writer’s claim about the text?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Does this thesis offer new insight into the text, or uncover a layer of meaning that you had not considered before? What does it add to our reading of the text?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

What are the implications of this thesis for our thinking about the topic?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Does the thesis suggest the ways in which it enhances our reading of the text and/or our thinking about the topic? (Does it answer the “so what?” question?)

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Tuesday, November 13, 2007

Online Writing Lab at Purdue

The online writing lab at purdue has lots of information on correct citation, the writing process, and how to correct frequent problems in student writing. Check them out at:

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/

Office Hours

Still confused? I'm happy to work with you on writing during my office hours, Tuesdays from 6-7 PM and Thursdays from 11:30-1:30 AM in the room shown on your policy sheet. Anyone who can't make those times can set up an appointment with me after class, by email, or by text message. Remember you are required to come to office hours at least once during the quarter.

link for George Orwell's "Politics & The English Language"

http://www.orwell.ru/library/essays/politics/english/e_polit