Identity Argumentative essay

Identity Argumentative essay

Prompt: Make an argument about a topic as it is handled in TWO of the works you have read so far in this course. Use material from both works to support your argument. In other words, identify the common topic with which both texts are deal, and then identify the argument being made about this topic by the author of each text. What is your response to their arguments? Why? Cite and analyze both texts to develop your response to their arguments.

Text Choices:

● “Two Kinds” by Amy Tan
● “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker

While this essay is considered a “comparison/contrast” essay, that name can sometimes be misleading. Keep in mind that your thesis, and your essay, should be an argument. Often, the term “comparison/contrast” leads to an essay describing the similarities and differences between two texts; however, that is not an argument. Instead, an argument would be an analysis of the thematic relationship between the two texts.

Guidelines:
● Essay must be double-spaced, 12 pt. Times New Roman, 1-inch margins.
● Keep your analysis parallel.
● Your thesis should not state the obvious because that is not an argument. Your thesis should be arguable; someone else should hypothetically be able to disagree with it.
● Your reader has read the two texts you are discussing, but your reader has not analyzed them in the depth that you have. Therefore, you do not need provide too much summary.
● Your topic sentences should introduce your point of comparison and link to your argument. If your topic sentence states a fact, then it is easy to fall into the trap of summarizing throughout the whole paragraph, rather than analyzing.
● Organization of this essay is very important. In general, it is most effective to be able to go back and forth between your two authors. If you spend the first half of your paper discussing one and the second half discussing the other, it makes it difficult for your reader to follow your argument, and it makes it harder for you to connect the two texts together. Therefore, I recommend that you discuss one point of comparison at a time, going back and forth between each author. The following page provides one example of an effective organizational strategy.
● Make sure you are bringing in quotations from the texts and analyzing those quotations in depth. Talk about the writer’s word choice and tone and how they relate to the effectiveness of the texts.
● Use proper MLA style for in-text citation and your Works Cited page. In-text citation requires that every time you quote from the book, put the author’s name and page number (or line number in the case of poems) in parentheses.
● You must include a Works Cited page at the end of your paper that lists the texts you are using.

Use the book “Arguing about Literature” second edition for sources