Controversy Identification Assignment ENG 529 (Prof. Derkatch, 2020F)
Submission on D2L
Value 20% of the final grade
Length 3 pages (800 words, double-spaced 12-pt Times New Roman, 1-in margins; this standard format helps me read your documents effectively)
Sources 3-4 primary texts you find on your own (i.e., not from ENG 529); see below
Overview
For your remaining two major assignments in ENG 529, you will (1) track a public controversy through various media and then (2) write an essay using the rhetorical concepts from our course to analyze that controversy. I ask you to choose a controversy we have not discussed in class, although you may choose one we have discussed if you find new primary sources and offer a distinct perspective on the controversy. The goal of these assignments is not to engage with or take a position on the topic of your selected controversy but to understand and analyze the discourse surrounding that controversy to determine how it works and what its effects are.
1. The Controversy Identification Assignment is intended to help you understand the discourse surrounding the controversy. For this assignment, you will choose a public controversy and track it through various media to identify and describe the controversys key topics, stakes, stakeholders, and texts. See below for more information.
2. The Final Analysis Assignment (due December 9) will build on your findings from the Controversy Identification Assignment to analyze your primary sources using the rhetorical concepts form our course. See the separate assignment sheet for more information
The Controversy Identification Assignment
For the current assignment, you will identify a specific controversy and 3-4 primary sources focused on that controversy. By primary, I mean texts that are the objects of your analysis. These sources will be drawn from public discourse, including newspapers, magazines, websites, and blogs. Make sure to consider the context and cultural weight of the publications you choose. Do not use sources already assigned in this class. I recommend looking over the key terms from Module 1 (ambiguity, controversy) as you try to decide on a controversy to examine.
Its up to you how you structure your assignment but you will want to make sure to address the following elements over the course of your submission:
What, in brief terms, is the controversy about?
What are the controversys key topics?
What is at stake in the controversy? Why is it important?
Who are the key stakeholders? (e.g., people who are actively involved; people who are not directly involved but are affected by it; people who are in control of its outcome)
What are the key texts you are working with and how do they fit in the controversy?
When sketching out your controversy, keep the rhetorical triangle in mind for each of your primary texts. While you will not be analyzing the texts, you should still pay attention to where they are published, who wrote them, and whom they address.
2
You do not need a formal introduction or conclusion, as you would in a regular essay, but please take care in how you organize, explain, and support your ideas, using paragraphs and quotations from the readings. Please include parenthetical citations and a bibliography in MLA style or another citation style of your choice (e.g., APA, author-date). Publication information for all course materials is listed in MLA style on D2L in Content under COURSE BIBLIOGRAPHY.
Assessment Criteria
Your paper will be assessed according to the following criteria:
controversy identifies a substantive and relevant controversy and describes it clearly and effectively over several well-structured paragraphs
stakes and stakeholders clearly outlines why the controversy is significant (e.g., its potential effects and impacts) and who is involved in and affected by the controversy
texts identifies and situates 3-4 new primary sources suitable for analysis and incorporates textual evidence judiciously
clarity and polish carefully edited and polished (paragraph/sentence structure, spelling/punctuation), formatted correctly, within length requirements, all sources fully and correctly documented
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