Assignment 2.4: Second Formal Essay Researching out from Gilbert

ENG 102 / Mlady February 28, 2011

Assignment 2.4: Second Formal Essay – Researching Out from Gilbert

Over the weekend, you formed and selected a query to guide your research and located your first sources in relation to that query. Now that you have located several sources, it is time to begin drafting your own essay that examines a specific concept or sub-argument from Gilbert’s text. The goal of this essay is to put Gilbert’s ideas in context with the data you found through your research. In other words, Gilbert’s concept will be verified, refuted, extended, or complicated through your essay, depending on what your sources tell you. Keep in mind you will not really know which of these your essay accomplishes until you have written the first draft.

Your essay should guide the reader through an examination of a point of interest by presenting the pertinent information you found and by providing your interpretation of the relationships that exist between Gilbert and your sources. For your first draft, I recommend writing the query--that you chose as the basis of your research--at the top of your document. Then, address your query by telling the story of what you found and how you make sense of the information. When drafting, please make sure:

 That any quote you use is explained, both in terms of what the author intended to say by it and what it means to you.

 To imagine what a reader, one who is well-read but who may not have read Gilbert or your sources, would need to know in order to follow your thinking.

The page, source and formatting requirements are as follows:

 The minimum page requirement is 5 pages, not including the works cited page.

 The essay must properly cite Gilbert’s text plus three (3) other sources using MLA conventions for in-text citation and the works cited page. Please refer to p465 and 474 in your Rules for Writers Handbook for formatting guidelines for both the paper and the works cited page.

 You may use sources that you located in Assignment 2.3, but you are also welcome to use completely new sources, as long as they conform to one of the categories given in Assignment 2.3. You are welcome to use more than 3 sources if you wish, although I recommend that you focus on incorporating quality sources well rather than using more sources.

Two (2) copies of your first draft are due on Monday, March 7th. This draft will receive my comments to guide revision, and we’ll work through several revision activities that week as well.