ESSAY 3? Synthesized Independent Research ... - BGSU Blogs

ESSAY 3 – Synthesized Independent Research Argument
Dr. Ethan T. Jordan
GSW 1120
Proposal Due 2/25, Draft Due 3/11, Final Draft 3/25
For this essay, you will be making an argument of your own using your own source material. As
with the other multiple source essay, you will be synthesizing the multiple viewpoints you
discover as you research independently using the library databases and other resources. Also,
remember that while you are using source material, the most important element to remember
is that this is YOUR argument, not the source authors’. Just as a reminder, this essay must
receive a passing grade in order to pass this course, so I would highly suggest approaching this
assignment in the following way:
Step 1 – Finding a Topic
This is perhaps the most difficult aspect of this essay, and it is the one that may trip you up the
most. While I would like you all to focus your essay on an aspect of popular culture (books,
films, music, television, art, video games, etc.), this is not a review or evaluation of a pop
culture text. In choosing your topic, be sure to discuss something that is interesting to you, not
that you feel will be interesting to me… you are putting the work into this, so starting with a
topic you don’t care about will only make it more difficult. Also, there are a number of topics I
would want you to avoid at all costs, simply because they are almost impossible in such a short
paper and offer very few arguable positions; these topics include gun control, abortion,
lowering the drinking age, capital punishment, your favorite/least favorite political
candidate, euthanasia, and other non‐debatable or discussion‐killing topics. Start with a
general idea for a pop culture topic (such as “video games” or “reality television”), then get
more specific by…
Step 2 – Developing a Research Question
Instead of giving a report or informative paper about your topic, you are trying to answer a
research question related to pop culture in some way. As such, your essay should not be just
about “video games” or “reality television” in a broad way. Instead, you’ll be looking to get
much more specific and ask a particular question about this broader topic. Focused and specific
research questions will yield better and more manageable papers.
In order to develop a research question related to your broad topic, you’ll want to move from
fact/definition based research questions to value/policy related questions (or from top to
bottom on the chart below from compose/design/advocate page 147:
Fact:
What happened? Who was involved? Where? When?
Definition:
What is something? How does it work? What is the accepted way of using the word, title, or
expression?

Interpretation:
How do we make sense and understand what happened? How are we to connect facts and
definitions into a story that makes sense to us?
Consequence:
What caused something to happen? What are the effects of what happened?
Value:
Is what is at stake good, useful, or worthy of praise/blame?
Policy:
What should we do? What rules should we make/enforce? What laws should we write?
In other words, your research question should not be “What is reality television?” or “Why did
reality television get popular?” Instead, you might ask, “Should reality television participants be
paid?” or “Should Reality TV participants be seen as ‘actors’?”
Step 3 – Create a Well-Supported Argument
Choose 6-8 sources to support your claims. This research is going to be vital to your essay’s
argument, just like the other MSE assignment we did this semester. You will have to undertake
this research on your own, using library databases, physical library materials, and other
internet-based research. The library has a top-notch popular culture department with books,
films, and music that will be helpful for this essay. For source support, you’ll want to find a
range and depth of source material, and as such, I want you to try to have at least:
- 4 academic resources (academic books, journal articles, or other academic resources)
and
- no more than 4 popular sources (such as popular magazines, websites, books, or other
internet sources).
In addition to having a balance between academic and popular sources, I would also like you to
strive to find more than just Internet-based sources. In other words, if all of your video gamerelated
research is coming from Gamepro.com, you are not finding a range and depth of
research material.
Step 4 – Re-read and annotate your chosen sources carefully, focusing on synthesis and
common themes, and find pop culture texts or examples if needed
Step 5 – Begin to outline your essay, incorporating relevant source material where you believe
it will be most helpful – think about how sources speak to each other (agree with, disagree
with, agree and disagree, elaborate or expand upon, etc.). In other words, a single paragraph
should not deal with a single source – instead, it should deal with a particular idea, one which
several sources may either agree upon, or one that lacks consensus. Also, be sure to include
only relevant sources – make them work for you, not the other way around. Synthesis is vital to
this essay, just as it was with the Multiple Source Essay.
Step 6 – Once again, there is no set organizational structure for this essay. Work to develop a
thesis that is arguable (has no clear yes or no/right or wrong answer, but you are finding a way
to answer it using your sources). Also, like the previous MSE essay, I suggest structuring your

paper into concepts or ideas that support your argument once you’ve done some research and
have an understanding of the concepts and ideas that are being discussed currently with regard
to your topic. Once you get a sense of the topics, you’ll better be able to organize and structure
your essay.
(These individual elements may be part of individual sentences/paragraphs/sections, so this is NOT an outline.)
An introduction that gives the context for the argument you are going to make,
and describes the question you will answer. You should also indicate your
purpose for the essay – what do you hope to accomplish (or what are you
arguing?) Have a thesis statement that answers your question and
indicates your main supporting points (go for 3 or more).
Argument – you are attempting to persuade readers of your point of view,
rather than simply reporting facts or summarizing others’ viewpoints.
Instead, you want to use others’ information as support for your own
claims. This is vital, since you may feel drowned out by the inclusion of
other’s work in your own – overquotation or paraphrasing will make it
seem as if your views are unimportant – instead, make your claims the
focus of the paper, not the sources’ claims.
Synthesis of the sources you decide to use to support your argument. This
involves using multiple sources in a single paragraph in order to show
that your claim is valid. You can use sources that agree with your point of
view in order to lend weight to your claims, or you can use sources that
disagree in order to refute outside viewpoints (also known as
counterargument). Also, do not place sources together that have no
relation to each other, or don’t create false relationships between
sources. Use MLA citation to include relevant quotations or paraphrasing
(if you are paraphrasing an author’s unique concept or language, this still
needs cited). Synthesis is vitally important to the success of this essay, so
focus on including more than one source in most instances.
Counterargument of opposing viewpoints or sources that contradict your views.
If a source is on the opposing side, what have they ignored/missed/left
out that you are highlighting? What makes their claims less persuasive
than your own? You’ll want to refute this counterargument to show that
while it may be valid in some ways, it does not take away from your
argument. Once again, this does not need to appear at the end of the
essay – I suggest bringing up and responding to readers’ objections as
they arise, that way, you can use other viewpoints to respond to them
and make your own arguments more persuasive.
A conclusion that reinforces your thesis based on the material you’ve discussed.

In other words, you’ll want to show, once more, how your argument is
sound and supported by the research. Also, you can point to some future
action (although you can do this in many ways, you should resist the urge
to directly address the reader, as in “Now get out there and work!”).
Step 7 – Give the paper a good read-through out loud – it may seem silly, but it really works. If
you are not the reading-out-loud type, save your paper as a separate document
and change the font to something unfamiliar to you and read!
Final Advice:
Avoid copying an organizational structure or argumentative structure from the source
essays – this means that you are simply rewriting an already-written essay.
Organize your body paragraphs by concept/idea, not by author. Ordering the essay
author by author will not create synthesis, since each source will have no other
support or opposition.
Use metadiscourse to refer back to your thesis main points – remind readers why
what you are presenting demonstrates your thesis. (We don’t know unless you
show us what you are saying…)
When in doubt, cite it! Doing so will help you avoid plagiarism, and if you are using too
much source material, it can always be cut… Don’t forget your Works Cited page!
Consider the audience for the essay – who will read this? What are they expecting to
see? Do they agree or disagree with your views? Would they be inclined to agree
already? Imagine their doubts, questions, and opposing arguments and deal with
them effectively.
Pull quotations from your notes to make your work easier. Create your own synthesis
worksheet (just as we did in class), so that when it comes time to write, you can
copy and paste.
Make your title work for you. Your title should not be a secret for the audience to
decode. Instead, indicate what your paper will do.
Avoid the second‐person “you” at all costs! This creates an awkward relationship
between you and your readers which can create a hypothetical situation or can
alienate readers to which your statement doesn’t apply.
Timeline:
Your proposal is due on 2/25/2013 via email.
Your first draft is due on 3/11/2013 via email. (Late drafts forfeit the right to instructor feedback.)
Your final draft is due on 3/25/2013 at the start of class.

You are able to revise this essay again once you receive your grade. If you choose to do so,
you’ll need to conference with me beforehand. Also, please be aware that if you do not turn in
a rough draft for this assignment, you cannot revise for a better grade. You have until 4/8/2013
to revise this essay if you choose to do so.
Length:
This paper should be 2000-2500 words (roughly 6 to 8 pages) typed and double spaced. (Longer
papers generally do better for this one, so go for the high count.) Double space your essay, use
1-inch margins, and Times New Roman font (or something similar). Center the title of your
essay, and please do not create a title page.
Final Packet Contents:
For the final draft of this essay, you will need to turn in:
- peach page for this essay (Audience and Values Exploration from portfolio)
- first draft of the essay with my comments (printed)
- final version of the essay (printed)
- goldenrod rubric page filled out with your name and paper info at top (from portfolio)
Need Additional help?
Bounce ideas off of the writing consultants at the Learning Commons.
Make an appointment with me during office hours.
GOOD LUCK!