You’ll Never Learn by Annie Murphy Paul
GETTING STARTED
CHOOSING A TOPIC
For this assignment, choose a part of the essay you have selected to which you would like to
respond. You may respond to the author’s main argument or you might choose to respond to just
one idea in it. (You do not need to address all of the parts of the essay you have analyzed.) As
long as you represent the author’s ideas fairly and accurately, you can respond to any part of the
essay you choose. Keep in mind, however, that you will not be completing research to write this
essay, so you must choose a topic about which you can write from your own experience.
Finally, choose an angle, or approach, for your response:
? Agree and expand into an area not discussed
? Disagree and explain
? Agree with part and disagree with part and explain
? Question underlying assumptions
? Reframe the debate in other terms
AUDIENCE ANALYSIS
Attach a one-paragraph audience analysis to your essay in which you describe the audience to
whom you imagine yourself writing. Be sure to provide the following information: any
pertinent demographic information, values/interests/beliefs the audience might have that are
relevant to your discussion, and audience knowledge/attitude toward the topic. (WR p.6, A2-b) Response to an Argument ENG 111 Ramos 2
WRITING YOUR ESSAY
INTRODUCTION
As we will see in this unit, the introduction and the conclusion of an essay are often used by
writers to connect with the audience. But they need not all look the same. You will be expected
to use your introduction to connect to your readers and bring them into the heart of your essay.
(WR C2-a)
? Be sure to connect to the audience. How can you connect to them where they are and
bring them into your essay? How might your ideas be important to them?
? Be sure that you provide a context for your argument. What debate or conversation are
you entering into? How has it been discussed before?
? Be sure, no matter how you start, to still provide at thesis or focus statement/question to
clearly focus the essay on a specific topic. You might choose to state your thesis clearly
up front or develop your position over the course of the essay and reveal your complete
thesis at the end. (“Thesis Statements” handout)
Consider the various strategies in the assigned readings for effective openings and closings.
CONCLUSION
Your essay should end with a conclusion that does more than simply summarize what you have
already said. It should be a culmination of your ideas and take your readers from the world of
your essay to their own world. (WR C2-c) Consider the following:
? Remind the audience or develop why the audience should care about this topic. Why
should this topic be important to them?
? Explore the implications of your ideas. If we agree/disagree with you, then what?
? Leave the reader with a final thought.
ORGANIZATION
You will probably need to introduce the essay to which you are responding fairly early in your
essay. Include a brief summary of the essay’s main argument and point to the idea(s) you plan to
engage. You might choose to present the essay’s ideas first and then respond, or you might
choose to create a point by point response. This depends on your approach. Remember,
however, your essay should primarily be devoted to developing your own ideas; your essay
should develop your own clear lines of argument with support for each.
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