WELCOME to Live Chat:Drafting the Essay

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Welcome to Our Live Chat:

Drafting the Persuasive Essay

How is everyone today? How was your week?

What should your draft What should your draft include?include?

Used with permission of artist.Used with permission of artist.

What is a draft and how does it differ from the final product?

Writing the Draft

The objective of writing the first draft is to get your ideas in some kind of written form so that you can see them and work with them.

How do you write the first draft? What do you do?

Here is what writer Stephen King says about writing a first draft: "Put away your dictionary...spell it phonetically and correct it later...When you sit down to write, write. Don't do anything else except go to the bathroom, and only do that if it absolutely cannot be put off."

More on Writing the Draft

You will be able to follow King’s advice if your outline and notes are available to guide you and keep you on track. If you occasionally get stuck, you can write some phrases, free write, or even skip a section that you cannot easily put into words. You will have another chance at your draft later.

Remember what writer Louis L'Amour says about writing a first draft: "Start writing, no matter about what. The water does not flow until the faucet is turned on. You can sit and look at a page for a long time and nothing will happen. Start writing and it will."

Why Do We Participate in Peer Reviews?Why Do We Participate in Peer Reviews?Peer reviewing is important because it

gives students an opportunity to have their rough drafts read by an

objective party who can make good suggestions on how it can be

improved before the final

submission.

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Remember… you are helping each other.

If something doesn't work, you aren't helping by not saying anything and you aren’t hurting by saying "I don't understand what you mean." Or "I think an example would help me understand." Or "I think you should define this."

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Just saying "this is great" or "this is interesting" says nothing.

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There are different types of comments or responses each of you should make when evaluating a paper.

Pointing: Say which ideas (or words) stood out.

In paragraph 1 where you described Miss Bessie -- your description of her being five foot tall and weighing less that 100, but being "a towering presence in the classroom." Really caught my attention and gave me a picture of a tough little lady

Your description --of the A"bad situation" in paragraph 4 didn't give me a clear picture of why it was bad. Could you describe it more clearly -- Why is it bad?

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Summarizing: Explain the writer's main idea (purpose) in a single sentence.

I really understood-- your main idea of the importance of beginning saving money for the future at a young age. Your example of. . . really made the point clear.

I wasn't sure what point you were trying to make -- could you possibly reword the last sentence (third sentence or whichever one) so that the point you are making is clearer or more easily understood.

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Other suggestions What aspects of the main idea does the author develop well?

Which ones need more support?

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Other suggestions Does the author use examples, support, or illustration of each

aspect of the main idea?

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Other suggestions

Are there smooth transitions between ideas? Between paragraphs? Again, don’t simply answer the questions with just a simple yes or no.

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Other suggestions Do you have a sense of satisfaction at the end of the essay? Do

you have any unanswered questions or doubts? Did the writer leave you hanging?

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What do you do if you get What do you do if you get stuck stuck

while writing your draft?while writing your draft?

Used with permission from the artist.Used with permission from the artist.

Even professional writers suffer from writer’s block sometimes.• Some of the greatest writers in literature such as

Leo Tolstoy, Virginia Woolf, Katherine Mansfield, Joseph Conrad, and Ernest Hemingway were tormented by writer's block. However, if you have ever looked at War and Peace, you would not believe that Tolstoy had any problems writing!

• Don't let writer's block stop you. Writer Jack London gave the following advice: "You can't wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club." (LOL)

Strategies to Use if You Get StuckStrategies to Use if You Get Stuck 1. Go ahead and write drivel at first, as long as you

write. Out of your nonsense and ramblings, however, believe that something good will come, some idea will catch fire right there on the page, there will be sparks, and patterns will emerge.

Be willing to throw stuff out. It's all right. Do you think Shakespeare didn't litter his kitchen floor with balled-up pieces of paper?

One nice thing about the word-processor is that you're not wasting paper and trees; you're just exercising the delete key. But this is no time to worry about the environment. Fill that wastebasket with paper and trust that something will come of all this scribbling. It will.

Strategy #2: Physical ExerciseStrategy #2: Physical Exercise People who tell you that physical exercise is

important for mental activity are telling the truth. If nothing's happening on the computer screen or

paper, take a walk around the block. Hit the treadmill or tennis courts or drive to the gym. But take your notebook with you. Fresh blood will be flowing through your brain and jogging might just jog something loose in your head. It happens.

Now you know why it's called "jog"ging. LOL

Strategy #3: Start in the MiddleStrategy #3: Start in the Middle

Another trick is to start in the middle of your writing project.

Avoid the problem of getting started by starting on a part of the project that interests you more and then come back to the introductory matter later. This sounds a bit like starting to earn your second million dollars before you've earned your first, but it's really not a bad idea in any case, because sometimes it's easier to say where you're going after you know where you've been. After all, your readers will never know you wrote the introduction last.

Strategy #4: Tape RecorderStrategy #5: Read & Take NotesStrategy #4: Tape RecorderStrategy #5: Read & Take Notes 4) Another maneuver around the old writer's block

is to talk about your topic into a tape recorder. Play the tape back and write down what you hear in clusters of ideas.

5) Many people read and take more notes at times like this. Since reading will make you think, you should write out all of the ideas and insights that come to you as you read. Soon you will have plenty of new material to add to your paper.

Strategy #6: Free WritingStrategy #7: TalkStrategy #6: Free WritingStrategy #7: Talk 6) Try free writing, which is writing fast, in phrases or

sentences, on your topic without imposing any structure or order. Then do some more reading and follow that with additional free writing. Getting words on the page in any form is what it takes for some writers to break out of a block.

7) It is also extremely useful to talk about your ideas for your paper with someone else to get fresh insights and solve some of your writing problems. Or ask someone else to read a draft of your paper and to write some comments on it. This will provide you with insights and ideas to get you moving again. This is the idea behind using peer groups! You have a ready made group of readers!

Finally, give yourself permission to write a less than perfect first draft.

Finally, give yourself permission to write a less than perfect first draft.

• You can paralyze yourself by trying to produce a finished draft on the first try.

• Lower your expectations for the first draft, and remind yourself that you can always go back later and fix it.

Must you know your opponent's positions? Why or why not?

Other Side of the Argument: Counter-arguments• You can not know if your position is

correct if you do not know both sides of the entire issue. This goes for everything in life.

• Plus, you can not possibly write a good argumentative essay if you do not know both sides of the issue. You can not convince your reader that your side is right if you do not cover the other side of the issue.

• For example, an attorney never asks a question he or she doesn't already know the answer to.

What are counter-arguments?

Counter-Arguments

Counter-arguments are the other side of your assertion. They are the "yeah, buts" of the people who disagree with you.

It is your job to convince the opposition by acknowledging and then refuting their points, encouraging them to accept your point of view or consider your point of view as a possibility, and giving them "food for thought."

It is possible that they will listen or read and still reject your position. But with established truths, opinions of authorities, primary source information, statistical findings, and personal experience, you will be able to form a logical well-developed argument.

Refuting an Argument

Refuting an opposing view means to attack it in order to weaken, invalidate, or make it less credible to a reader.

Since all arguments are dialogues or debates even when the opponent is only imaginary, refutation of the other point of view is always implicit in your arguments.

As you write, you should be looking at your own argument as an unsympathetic reader may look at it, asking yourself the same kinds of critical questions and trying to find its weaknesses in order to correct them.

If your argument is long and complex, choose only the most important points to refute. Also, you must have evidence to support what you are countering.

You must refute counter-arguments before your reader can make them.

For example, if your assertion was: "President Bush was right to have the U.S. invade Iraq," then you would be working to prove that statement to your readers.

However, someone who was reading your paper might say, "BUT we did not find weapons of mass destruction." That is an example of a counter-argument. The counter-argument disagrees with the original claim. It finds the holes or weaknesses in the argument.

In your paper, you must refute counter-arguments before your reader can make them. You will never convince people that invading Iraq was right unless you provide an answer to "we didn't find WMDs."

Even when refuting a counter-argument, you must provide PROOF!

Remember: Even with a counter-argument, you MUST provide your readers with PROOF that YOU are right!

You are trying to think what a reader who disagrees with you would say and say it

first. You have all done that before with your parents. LOL

How do you develop

counter arguments?

Developing Counter Arguments

Read your paper critically. What would people with opposing views say? Think about ways in which they might poke holes in your supporting arguments. Anticipate their questions, concerns, objections, and counterarguments.

By anticipating the objections and counterarguments, you can overcome them. How would you go about doing this?

Developing Counter-Arguments (continued) After you have drafted your paper, reread it and

make a list of your reasons and evidence. Reread what you have written from your opponent's perspective, looking for ways to knock down your reasons and evidence. You can also use your outline for this.

Next to each of your points, list your opponent's possible objections. Answer the objections using facts, examples, and expert testimony.

A persuasive argument is credible.

It is so trustworthy that readers can change their

minds painlessly.

How do you build credibility?

To Build Credibility

• Be thoroughly honest. Demonstrate integrity toward the topic. Do not falsify data, spin evidence, or ignore facts. Document your sources and cite them wherever appropriate.

• Make realistic claims, projections, and promises. Avoid emotionally charged statements, pie-in-the-sky forecasts, and undeliverable deals.

• Develop and maintain trust. From your first word to your last, develop trust. You do this by your attitude toward the topic, treatment of readers, and respect for opposing viewpoints.

Recognizing Deceptive Arguments

When you are doing your research, you need to read the information carefully and to apply your best critical thinking skills to what the author is saying. You must analyze the articles that you are reading and find the "holes" in the arguments. To do this, you must decide which arguments are valid and which are not.

The danger of deceptive arguments comes from their misleading nature, which may cause you to reject a valid opposing argument or embrace an argument that has little rational merit.

Beware of Deceptive Arguments

Deceptive arguments often distract people from the vital issues and focus their attention on matters of little importance. By reading and evaluating opposing views, you will become more proficient at recognizing deceptive arguments.

Many arguments seem reasonable at first reading; however, once students read the opposite opinion, they are forced to decide between two apparently equally plausible arguments. Though opponents may use the same statistics and even the same logic, they may reach different conclusions.

Recognizing Deceptive Arguments (Logical Fallacies)

• When researching, you need to read the information carefully and to apply your best critical thinking skills to what the author is saying.

• Analyze and find the “holes” in the arguments that you are reading. Decide which arguments are valid and which are not.

• With practice, you will become better at detecting deceptive arguments.

Deceptive Arguments

Deceptive arguments may mislead you, causing you to believe the wrong information.

Because deceptive arguments often confuse and distract people, they may take attention from important issues. Deceptive arguments are often more emotionally charged, gaining bigger headlines.

Practice Reading &Thinking!

A big part of learning to write well is learning to read critically.

Read things you might not normally read, such as newspaper articles. Analyze them. What is the topic? What is the main point? What proof is offered? Look for “holes” in the thinking of the writer. Demand proof for assertions!

Demand Proof!

• Example: A political add on TV in Florida stated that Florida Senator Bill Nelson, when he was a state official, caused insurance rates to rise.

• My first thought: I’d like to see back up for that assertion. How did one person cause insurance rates to rise????

• Since deceptive arguments may appear reasonable, it is important that you read both sides of all issues.

Some Types of Deceptive Arguments False Dilemmas & Either/Or Statements Bandwagon Slanters Persuasive Definitions Personal Attacks Post Hoc Scare Tactics Slippery Slope Strawman Testimonials Generalizations Categorical Statements Begging the Question False Analogy

Deceptive Argument: False Dilemmas & Either/Or Statements

There is no reason to have just two alternatives. Example: "Either you’ll vote for the Republican candidate or you’ll have to vote for the Democratic candidate."

Obviously, there are other alternatives: don't vote at all, or vote Libertarian or some other alternative party. To avoid false dilemmas (either this or that), we have to use our imaginations for the other possibilities.

Sometimes a false dilemma is stated without using "either...or." For example: "If you don't bring me flowers, then you don't really love me.” (EITHER you bring me flowers OR you don't love me.)

False Dilemmas: Either/Or Statements Example: Either we’ll leave at 1 pm

or at 1:30.There is no reason to have just two

alternatives.You could leave at 1:05, 1:15, or any

time in between 1 and 1:30. To avoid false dilemmas, use your

imagination to think of the other possibilities.

False Dilemma: “If…then” Statements & Perfectionism

False dilemmas can be “if…then” statements. This is a form of blatant manipulation.Example: "If you really loved me, then you

would…...” False dilemmas can also be perfectionism,

which states that if the solution is not perfect, then we shouldn’t bother.Example: Since the FCATs are a poorly

designed test, the schools shouldn’t do any standardized testing.

Bandwagon: the idea that everybody does it or believes it I'm guessing that you have all used this type of argument

when you were younger. You'd say to your parents, But everyone is going OR All of the kids have one of those.

And what answer did your mom give? If everyone was going to jump off a cliff

does that mean you should, too? LOL

Slanting: Labels

Labels used to persuade through emotionally charged language instead of reason.

Example:According to the West, people who strap bombs

to their bodies and blow up themselves and innocent civilians are suicide bombers.

According to radical Islamists, those same people are martyrs.

Slanting: Persuasive Definitions

Persuasive definitions are a form of slanting in which the definition closes off the argument because the definition is actually a conclusion instead of a real definition.Example: The Iraq War is an illegal war

being fought just for oil.By defining the war as illegal and being fought

just for oil, you are limiting all discussion. Those assertions would have to be proven.

Deceptive Argument: Slanters

Slanters attempt to persuade through inflammatory and exaggerated language instead of reason.

The adjectives used to describe people or their political positions often reveal the speaker's beliefs. Many do not intend to display their bias, but the words they use send a signal to careful readers and listeners.

For example: President Reagan called the guerillas fighting against the Nicaraguan government in the 1980s "freedom fighters." The Nicaraguan government called them "terrorists." The labels they chose slanted the way you viewed any claim about those people. Each label concealed a claim.

"Freedom fighters" – The guerillas are good people fighting to liberate their country and give their countrymen freedom

"Terrorists" – The guerillas are bad people, inflicting violence on civilians for their own partisan ends without popular support.

Slanters: Persuasive Definitions

One form of "slanting" is using persuasive definitions, by which someone tries to close off the argument by making a definition that should be the conclusion.

For example, when people define "abortion" to mean "the murder of an unborn child," they make it impossible to debate whether abortion is murder and whether a fetus is a human being. Those conclusions are built into the definition.

Another form of "slanting" is the loaded question, which conceals a dubious claim that should be argued for rather than assumed. For example, "When did you stop beating your wife?" The question assumes you either are or have been beating your wife.

Personal attack

People use this to attack their opponents personally instead of discussing ideas or behavior. They often attack their opponent’s character, family life, looks, or personal habits, rather than focusing on the issues.

Example: When Ann Coulter called Democrat presidential candidate John Edwards a “faggot,” she was attacking him personally instead of debating his ideas.

Deceptive Argument: Personal Attack

Personal attack - criticizing an opponent personally instead of rationally debating his/her ideas. Attacks focus on someone's appearance, personal habits, or character rather than focusing on the merits of the issue at hand.

The implication is that if something is wrong with the person, whatever he or she says or does must be wrong. It is the suggestions that deserve attention, not the person who makes them.

For example, "Sarah is divorced so whatever relationship advice she gives you can't be good." Sarah's marital status has nothing to do with the quality of her advice. Isn't it also possible that Sarah could be married and give terrible advice?

Post Hoc - Latin for "after this, therefore caused by this."

Just because one event comes after another event, doesn’t mean the second one is caused by the first.

Example: I turn out the light, and then the dog barked. My turning out the light did not

cause the dog to bark. The cat running down the hall did.

Deceptive Argument: Post Hoc

Post Hoc - Latin for "after this, therefore cause by this." - Politicians love this one!

Example: Since Governor Bush took office, unemployment of minorities decreased by 7%. Governor Bush should be applauded for reducing unemployment among minorities.

Before we pat the governor on the back, the speaker must show that Bush's policies are responsible for the decrease in unemployment. It is not enough to show the decrease came after his election.

Scare tactics

Scare Tactics use threat as a form of persuasion: “Do this….or else.” The issues discussed using scare tactics are usually real, but the method used is deceptive.

Example: We must close our borders NOW! Even as we speak, terrorists are slipping undetected into the U.S., possibly even carrying nuclear or biological bombs.

While it is true that terrorists may be entering our country, the speaker is trying to scare people into action instead of using reason.

Slippery Slope

• This is another form of scare tactics. It’s premise is that once you start down the “slope,” it’s all down hill from there.

• Example: If we allow illegal aliens to remain in our country, they will overwhelm our social services. American citizens will not be able to get help from the government. No one will speak English any more. All of our customs will be changed. Soon we will be little more than Mexico north.

Strawman

This means putting words into someone else’s mouth. The premise is that it is easier to knock down a straw person than a real one.

Example: The police chief said he was going to wait for the outcome of the investigation. It’s obvious that he doesn’t care about our community.

The police chief never said that he didn’t care about the community. The speaker put words in the police chief’s mouth in order to discredit him.

Testimony or Relying on Experts

When doing research, we accept the ideas of people who are knowledgeable in their fields.

Quoting an expert is a valid way of supporting your arguments. When you do this, however, be sure that you keep the meaning of the quote. Do not distort it by using it out of context.

Unreliable Testimony

Actors or athletes who advertise products often know little about those products.

Also, many people who make public statements have little knowledge about the issues they are discussing.

Example: Movie stars or rock stars give opinions on what the U.N. should or shouldn't do to end hunger in Africa. The fact that a person is famous in the entertainment field doesn't mean he or she knows how to solve problems in world affairs.

Generalizations & Stereotyping

A generalization is an assertion (argument) based on insufficient evidence.

Generalizations are often applied to groups that we feel are different than we are. Stereotyping and sexism are forms of this fallacy.

Example: Blondes are dumb.Obviously, not all blondes are dumb anymore

than all women or all men are dumb.

Begging the Question

In this is a form of circular logic, the question remains, "begging" to be answered. Instead of providing support, the assertion is restated.

Example: Guns are deadly because they kill people. The words deadly and kill people mean the

same thing. Instead of proving that guns are deadly, the statement goes in a circle repeating its claim.

False Analogy – Comparing apples to oranges

Classic example: If we can put a man on the moon, why can't we find a cure for the common cold?Medicine and space technology are not the

same. Different scientists work in those fields and the advances made are not related.

Perfectionist Dilemma

Another form of false dilemma is the perfectionist dilemma, which assumes either the situation will be perfect if we do this, or we shouldn't do it (all or nothing at all)

For example: We shouldn't vote for raising property taxes to pay for improvements to the schools because no matter how much money we pour into the schools, they'll never be first rate.

Writing Tip of the Week: "Although" or "Though"

• The words "although" or "though" can not be used in place of "however." For example, you can not say: "Although, I still made it to class on time."

• The word "although" is a subordinator and begins a subordinate clause. Therefore, "Although, I still made class on time" is a fragment, not a sentence.

• To make it a sentence, you could: (1) changed "although" to another word: "However, I still made it to class on time," (2) eliminated "although," which would leave "I made it to class on time," (3) or add the subordinate clause to a main clause: "Although I still made it to class on time, I had forgotten my book" OR "Although I was running late, I still made it to class on time."

• Also, there would not be a comma after "although" or any other subordinator (because, after, since, before, when, even though, as if, as long as, until, unless, etc.)

Thank you for attending!

• Do you have any questions?

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