THE RESEARCH PAPERAmanda L. RobbinsWorld LiteratureFall 2013

• The big idea which you hope to prove by the end of your paper

• Should not be too big (you won’t be able to sufficiently discuss the matter in the amount of time allotted) Ex. The events in the novel 1984 by George Orwell closely mirror modern day China. (This is NOT a 5 paragraph paper)

• Should not be too small (you won’t be able to write much of a paper) Ex. The point in the novel 1984 where the government thought police spy on their citizens is very similar to recent FBI activities that included monitoring citizens’ Facebook pages. (This is more of an explanation or supporting statement)

THE CLAIM

• The claim statement is the most important statement in your paper

• The statement should come at the very end of your introduction

• Your supporting statements should each serve as an explanation or reason for your claim.

• The claim statement requires you to think about what you want to write about from the outset

• It can change as you start writing (but make sure it matches your supporting statements and evidence!)

THE CLAIM

• Now let’s practice writing your claim• 1. What is your topic?

– School lunches• 2. What is your stance on your topic?

– School lunches are unhealthy.• 3. Phrase your stance as a positive, bold statement.

– School lunches must be healthy and nutritious.• 4. What is one BROAD, non-specific reason why this is true?

– Students need to succeed.• 5. Add on that broad statement either as an introductory

phrase:– In order to help students to succeed, school lunches must

be healthy and nutritious.• or as a final thought to the sentence:

– School lunches must be healthy and nutritious so that students can succeed.

THE CLAIM

• Topic sentences, or support sentences, go at the start of every paragraph

• These sentences tell what the paragraph will talk about, just like the claim tells what the paper will talk about

• Just like the claim, they should be broad yet specific

TOPIC SENTENCES

• Now, let’s practice writing your topic sentences• 1. What are the three reasons you came up with to

support your claim?– Better lunches = better focus– Helps the local economy by supporting small

farmers– Kids can get to try new foods

• 2. Phrase these as strong, concise sentences– Students who eat a healthy lunch will have better

focus in class– Small, local farms can supply fruits and vegetables

to students, also helping the local economy.– It is important for children to be exposed to new

foods like fruits and vegetables

TOPIC SENTENCES

• 3. Number these 1-3, with 3 being your strongest point, 2 being your weakest point, and 1 being the middle.– 1. Small, local farms can supply fruits and

vegetables to students, also helping the local economy.

– 2. It is important for children to be exposed to new foods like fruits and vegetables

– 3. Students who eat a healthy lunch will have better focus in class

• 4. Add in a transition phrase for numbers 2 and 3– 2: Additionally, In addition, Also, Secondly– 3: Finally, Lastly, Thirdly

TOPIC SENTENCES

• Evidence is what you use to support your paper. This is where you bring in your ethos, logos, and pathos (especially logos)

• Evidence can be data, facts, quotations, situational examples, etc.

• For each topic sentence, you’ll need two points of evidence.

EVIDENCE

• Ethical appeal (ethos) – be one of the audience • Logical appeal (logos) – common sense/statistics• Emotional appeal (pathos) – anecdote/charged words• Simile or Metaphor• Rhetorical question

• Allusion– Maybe if we could all walk on water, our world would be perfect.– Even Hercules could not carry the weight of a student’s stress on his shoulders.

• Parallel expression– We have petitioned; we have remonstrated; we have supplicated; we have

prostrated ourselves before the throne…– The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone; it is to the vigilant, the active, the

brave.

• Restatement– Cutting counselors will slash opportunities for healthier students and slice

dreams in half.– Teachers often beg students to study while pleading for class preparation and

demanding participation.

EVIDENCE

• Now, let’s practice gathering evidence• 1. List your topic sentences in the 1-2-3 order of

importance– 1. Small, local farms can supply fruits and

vegetables to students, also helping the local economy.

– 2. It is important for children to be exposed to new foods like fruits and vegetables

– 3. Students who eat a healthy lunch will have better focus in class

• 2. Find two pieces of evidence (articles, facts, quotations) that support each topic sentence. REMEMBER, you must give credit to where you found this evidence!!!

EVIDENCE

Topic Sentence 1st source 2nd sourceSmall, local farms can supply fruits and vegetables to students, also helping the local economy

Report by Robert Smithsen on how local farms productivity is helping increase economic growth.

www.cnn.com/3/12/local_produce_equates_to.htm/

Interview with Glendale farmer Steve McGill about his farm’s production

A Better Produce Stand by Eileen Laumann

EVIDENCE

• The introduction opens up your paper and establishes your topic

• It also is a great place to establish ethos, or credibility

• The introduction contains the claim in its last sentence

THE INTRODUCTION

• Now, let’s practice writing the introduction• 1. Section 1 (several sentences, but combined) – be slightly vague – don’t mention

the topic until the end of your story. Use charged words/emotional words (PATHOS). Using a personal story gives you ETHOS. HOOK your reader!

• My sister Melissa had always dreamed of being a photographer. When photography was offered as a course in high school, she signed up right away, excited to begin what she hoped would be a new career. Her photography class was right after lunch, and she would always hurry there as soon as she had dumped her half-eaten tray of school food. Unfortunately, the carbohydrate-loaded lunch she was given barely gave her enough energy to hold up the camera. She was tired and sluggish in class, and her photos were always out of focus. It was only when Melissa decided to start bringing her lunch instead of eating the fatty, disgusting school offering that her pictures, as well as her focus, sharpened. Because the school didn’t offer healthy alternatives, her current career as a photography for Prestige Portraits might never have happened if she had not changed her ways.

THE INTRODUCTION

• 2. Section 2 - 1 sentence – explains “Why are you telling me this story?”. Describe the problem– Many people do not realize that school

lunches can better the students in so many ways if they only change one thing: offering more fruits and vegetables.

• 3. Section 3- 1 sentence - Your claim – In order to help students to succeed,

school lunches must be healthy and nutritious.

THE INTRODUCTION

• a lot• very• happy • awesome• big• Fine• Really

• bad

• great• good• beautiful• look• always• Nice

• So• well

• like• basically• you know• many

DEAD WORDS – KILL EM!

• “I’d like you to consider my reasons, and change your mind.”

• “Here are my reasons for….”

• “How would you feel if ….”

• “For example, …”

• “In my opinion…”

• “I think…” OR “I believe…”

• “In today’s society…” OR “In the world today…” OR

“Nowadays…”

USE VERBS TO REPLACE WEAK WORDS

Chastise – verb: to inflict punitive measures (punishment)My parents chastise me regularly if I do not clean the kitchen.

Begrudge – verb: to envy a person’s possession of something.I certainly do not begrudge his position in the company.

Beseech – verb: to implore, pleadThe police often beseech the public to behave on New Years Eve.

Attest – verb: to certify as accurate or true I’m sure that your parents will attest to your intelligent choices.

Adhere – verb: to stick together

If a student would adhere to the rules, learning would be easy.

Acquiesce – verb: to comply or submitThe dogs acquiesce so that they will receive a treat.

 • lax – not energetic or stringent

– Students and teachers display a lax effort toward the end of the school year.  • malevolent – wishing evil to others

– Dr. Evil in some superhero comics turns into malevolent creatures after some type of chemical reaction. Just look at Batman’s Joker.

 • mediocre – ordinary

– Coach Arthur is no mediocre basketball coach. She has a state championship to show how great our Indians are.

• obligatory – mandatory– The obligatory monthly faculty meetings can often be forgotten when

teachers are so engrossed in their work after school. • affable – easy to approach

– In an effort to present affable upperclassmen, students are encouraged to be polite and create positive influences with underclassmen.

USE ADJECTIVES TO REPLACE WEAK WORDS

• The body paragraphs are the meat of your paper. This is where you give your supporting evidence to establish your claim

• Each body paragraph should have a reputable source and AT LEAST one quotation

• Quotations must also have:– Lead-ins– Parenthetical citation

BODY PARAGRAPHS

• Quotations cannot stand alone. Each quotation MUST have a lead-in.• Somebody Says lead-in

– Gives credit to the speaker or author– Separates the lead-in from the quotation by a COMMA– If the speaker is the author, the parenthetical only needs to have

the page number– EX: Mark Twain once said, “I have never let my schooling interfere

with my education” (36).• Sentence lead-in

– Two sentences: one, the lead in; two, the quotation– Separates the lead-in from the quotation by a COLON– EX: Characters like Huckleberry Finn show that the modern school

system was not a large issue for Clemens: “I have never let my schooling interfere with my education” (Twain 36).

• Blended lead-in– Combines lead-in and quote into one seamless sentence with NO

PUNCTUATION between– EX: Though he had a degree from Yale, Twain would“never let my

schooling interfere with my education” (36).

LEAD-INS

• When giving a quote, you must also give credit to the work you got it from. You do this through a parenthetical citation (meaning, a citation in parenthesis).– EX: “Don’t stop me now” (Mercury

94).• A parenthetical citation – Goes at the VERY END of the

sentence– Is placed BEFORE the ending

punctuation– Includes the author and page

number BUT NOT “pg” or “page”– If the author is mentioned in the

sentence before the quote, no author is needed in the citation

PARENTHETICAL CITATION

• Now, let’s practice writing the first body paragraph• 1. Begin by copying down your #1 topic sentence

• Small, local farms can supply fruits and vegetables to students, also helping the local economy.

• 2. With a lead-in, incorporate a supporting quote to serve as evidence.– It is proven that “purchasing local fruits and

vegetables increases the local economy’s profit margins by up to 23%” (Smithsen).

• 3. Explain the quotation in your own words, making sure to tie it back into your claim.– Every time a school uses a local farm as the

source for their healthy lunches, they are also benefitting their community and the economy.

BODY PARAGRAPH 1

• 4. Using a transition statement, make your second point about your topic– In addition, as time progresses and purchases

increase, local farmers will also be able to enlarge their farms.

• 5. Back up this point with another quotation– Farmer Steve McGill states, “Growing my farm

has helped me to get my product out to the next three counties” (38).

• 6. Explain the quotation in your own words, making sure to tie it back into your claim.– With farmers able to enlarge their product, they

make more money and can further benefit the community and local schools.

BODY PARAGRAPH 1

• Follow the same steps for body paragraphs 2 and 3, making sure to use your topic sentences in the right order and with transition statements!

BODY PARAGRAPHS 2 & 3

• “To be” verbs are some of the most simple verbs around– Be, is, am, are, were, was

• Replace your “be” verbs with actions or more exciting verbs

• Gatsby seems to be choosing his lifestyle based on his pursuit of Daisy.

– Gatsby chooses his lifestyle based on his pursuit of Daisy.

• Daisy regrets being married (to Tom).

– Daisy regrets marrying Tom. • Nick is poor, and he is living in a cheap house.

– Nick’s poor lifestyle causes him to live in a cheap house.

• Tom is angry when Daisy is crying over her lost love, Gatsby.

– Tom expresses anger when Daisy cries over her lost love, Gatsby.

SPICE UP YOUR VERBS – DON’T “BE” BORING

Voice means the structure of the sentence.

Active: Erica saved her money yearly.

Contains Subject/Verb/Direct Object – in that order.

Passive:The money was saved by Erica every year.

Contains Direct Object/Verb/Subject – in that order.

• THE CLUE TO PASSIVE VOICE IS THE WORD “BY”

AVOID PASSIVE VOICE

• It was determined by the committee that the report was inconclusive.– The committee determined that the report

was inconclusive

• We were invited by our neighbors to attend their party.– Our neighbors invited us to their party.

• The writing test was practiced each day by the students. – The students practiced for the writing test

each day.

• The articles were read by an audience. – The audience read the articles.

CHANGE PASSIVE TO ACTIVE VOICE

• The conclusion restates your claim and show what the material you have presented adds up to. – You can state what you have presented supports your claim.

• It analyzes and evaluates your main points for your reader; also considers the consequences and general implications Restate your three main points using different vocabulary

– Make it short. Wrap it up quickly so you don’t lose your audience by saying EVERYTHING that they’ve already heard.

– Concise word choice – choose the most powerful word for maximum impact.

• No NEW information is presented in the conclusion

THE CONCLUSION

• Now, let’s practice writing the conclusion• 1. Restate your claim in a new, different way

– ORIGINAL CLAIM: In order to help students to succeed, school lunches must be healthy and nutritious.

– RESTATEMENT: School lunches must be healthy and nutritious so that students can succeed.

• 2. Restate your first topic sentence and evidence. Show how you proved your claim– Using local farms to provide healthy lunches gives

back to the community, bettering students’ education and lives.

• 3. Rephrase your second and third idea in one compound sentence.– Additionally, students can find they have new tastes

for fruits and vegetables, and they will also do better in school having had a balanced meal.

THE CONCLUSION

• 4. What impact has this situation had on the future, on

society, on schools? What is the result if someone follows your suggestions? Call your listener/reader to ACTION!! – Diction (word choice) is key here. This is your LAST

statement. How will you leave the reader?– Use powerful words that will convince your audience

(Ethos & Pathos).

It’s time to step up to success and better school lunches. The students of today can be great achievers but only if they are nourished in both body and mind.

THE CONCLUSION

EDIT – WHAT TO DO/WHAT TO LOOK FOR

Highlight your compound sentence. Write COMPOUND in the margin. Put and S over the subjects and V over the verbs; underline the

comma/conjunction

Highlight your complex sentence. Write COMPLEX in the margin. Underline the dependent clause

Highlight your absolute BEST statement of the entire essay so far. Write

BEST SENT in the margin

Draw a box around 3 of your very BEST vocabulary words. Write BEST VOCAB in the margin – not ones I gave you.

Circle 3 words that you can change to stronger vocabulary.

Remove YOU from the essay – Original: You should use the time teacher gives you to do your homework early.

New: A student should use the time the teacher offers to complete any homework

before he goes home.

IDENTIFY THE ELEMENTS - HIGHLIGHT AND LABEL

Highlight your absolute BEST statement of the entire essay.

LOGOS: Did you include any statistics? Any facts? Any basic information related

to success or failure associated with fine arts classes Highlight the BEST statement you used to show it.

PATHOS: Did you use charged words? Love, hate, misery, failure, success, joy,

suffering, passion What did you include that would make the reader empathize with you? Highlight the BEST statement you used to show it.

ETHOS: What statement declares that you are an expert? Why should anyone listen to your thoughts and BELIEVE them? Did you tell them that you are a student? Not enough. Describe to them yourself as an artist/musician/actor. Highlight the BEST statement you used to show it.