English Question
Learning Goal: I’m working on an English project and need an explanation and answer to help me learn.
Background: In his memoir, Just Mercy, Bryan Stevenson, lawyer and founder of the Equal Justice Initiative (EJI), tells the story of EJI, from its early days with a small staff facing the nation’s highest death sentencing and execution rates, through a successful campaign to challenge the cruel practice of sentencing children to die in prison, to revolutionary projects designed to confront Americans with our history of racial injustice. One of EJI’s first clients was Walter McMillian, a young Black man who was sentenced to die for the murder of a young white woman that he didn’t commit. The case exemplifies how the death penalty in America is a direct descendant of lynching — a system that treats the rich and guilty better than the poor and innocent. Essay Task: Write a 6-7 page argument paper on a topic from Just Mercy. Your topic should be focused and specific. To support your argument, you will need to integrate evidence from Just Mercy plus at least three (3) more credible and outstanding sources. Essay Purpose: Your purpose is to situate yourself within an ongoing conversation about race and justice in America, to identify a topic of interest from Just Mercy, to conduct an inquiry via research, and to formulate your position on this topic. Your goal is to enlighten your reader on your deeper understanding of race and justice in America. Skills Required: In order to complete this paper, you will need to know how to locate credible sources, smoothly integrate them into the paper, and use these sources + Just Mercy to support your position. Grading Criteria: Successful papers will: introduce the topic, provide background/context for the topic, and articulate a powerful thesis; establish claims to logically support the thesis; present relevant, credible, and interesting researched evidence that supports the claims and thesis; synthesize evidence from Just Mercy and three (3) more credible and outstanding sources to support the position; smoothly integrate relevant phrases and passages from your sources – incorporate both direct quotes and paraphrases – to support your claims and thesis; engage and persuade your intended audience; establish credibility and trust with the audience (ethos) use strategies to appeal to emotion (pathos) and logic (logos); conclude paper effectively and leave your reader with something to ponder further; discuss the greater significance of this topic and consider a “call to action;” use correct MLA citation format and include an MLA formatted Works Cited page; be organized in a logical manner that guides the reader from one idea to the next; be thoroughly edited so that sentences are readable and appropriate for an academic paper; Steps to follow as you develop this research paper: DECIDE on a particular topic/issue from Just Mercy for investigation. THINK: What topics/issues from the book interest you the most? What do you question? What do you want to investigate further? UNDERSTAND how Bryan Stevenson represents your topic of interest in Just Mercy? What is Stevenson’s position on your topic of interest? What particular evidence does Stevenson include in Just Mercy on this topic. VIEW the pages from the Weeks 10 and 11 Modules on how to conduct credible research on a topic and on how to formulate a focused research question. SUBMIT your Project 2 Proposal. ENGAGE in strategic research to find credible sources that explore and respond to this research question. DEVELOP a Source Synthesis Matrix to organize your thinking and sources. DRAFT your thesis statement or major claim.
Grading Criteria for the Project 2 Essay For reference, consult the Project 2 Student Sample that was included here in the Week 13 Module. Successful papers will: 1. introduce the topic, provide background/context for the topic, and articulate a powerful thesis; Here is a page on what to Include in an Academic Essay Introduction Here are suggestions for how to word your Thesis Statement 2. establish claims (or points) to logically support the thesis; Here is a page on the P.I.E. paragraph format — a great method for paragraph structure. 3). present relevant, credible, and interesting researched evidence that supports the claims and thesis; synthesize evidence from Just Mercy and at least three (3) more credible and outstanding sources to support the position; smoothly integrate relevant phrases and passages from your sources – incorporate both direct quotes and paraphrases – to support your claims and thesis; Here is a page on what it means to Synthesizing Sources Here is a page on how to integrate quoted and paraphrased evidence into an essay. Here is a page on academic templates to integrate sources. 4). engage and persuade your intended audience; establish credibility and trust with the audience (ethos) Demonstrate your knowledge of your topic based on the evidence you integrate from Just Mercy and your two credible outside sources. Only cite from outside sources that are credible to help YOU to build cred! Make sure your sources are cited accurately in your essay and that you include a Works Cited page formatted in MLA Style. Proofread your essay! Pay attention to mechanics and sentence clarity. Review this MLA Style page for how to refer to titles of works and this page on how to avoid and fix run-on sentences. use strategies to appeal to logic (logos); Integrate wisely chosen evidence from Just Mercy and outside sources to logically support your points and thesis. Draw logical conclusions throughout your essay. Establish continuity and flow through your essay structure and transitions. use strategies to appeal to emotion (pathos) Integrate evidence from Just Mercy and outside sources to connect your reader emotionally to your topic. Pay attention to word choice! Consider integrating an image or two into your essay — images are an excellent way to appeal to emotion. If you do include an image, embed it next to the corresponding paragraph and even comment on it. For example, “The image to the right is of xxxxxxxx, a 13-year-old-boy who was tried as an adult” or “This infographic demonstrates the disparity in sentencing based on race.” Here is an example of a research paper in MLA Style that includes an image.
5). conclude paper effectively and leave your reader with something to ponder further; discuss the greater significance of this topic and consider a “call to action;” 6). use correct MLA citation format and include an MLA formatted Works Cited page; Here is a page on MLA Syle Here is a page on Source Citations and the Works Cited page. 7). be organized in a logical manner that guides the reader from one idea to the next; Here is a page on Project 2 Essay Structure Here is a page on how to effectively transition from one idea to the next ????. be thoroughly edited so that sentences are readable and appropriate for an academic paper; Here is a page on Run-On Sentences Here is a Sentence Skills Workshop with helpful tips.
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APA
1670 words