Instruction
Essay One: Argument on Campus (Critique)
Paper One: Writing a Critique
In chapter four of your book, we learned how to critique the arguments presented in the article Open Your Ears to Biased Professors by David Fryman. For this essay, you will write a critique of an article on a topic that also deals with freedom and speech on college campuses. Campus Preachers: a Necessary Evil by Matthew Ruckman discusses the conflict between freedom of speech on college campuses as it applies to the phenomenon of campus preachers who speak on campus property throughout the semester. "Campus Preachers Push Limits" by Amy Mariani discusses a recent campus incident and argues that campus preachers right to free speech ends when their speech becomes "insidious speech" and endangers students in the process. "The Psychology of Street Preachers" by Hanna Bleau argues that the approach street preachers take in trying to preach is not consistent with real Christian values or beliefs. Your purpose is to choose one of these articles to respond to and identify the author's position on the issue and critique the reasons and evidence given to defend his or her point of view. As in the sample essay in Chapter Four, you will bring your own personal experience, observations and knowledge of the subject to explain to the reader your opinion of Ruckmans, Mariani's, or Bleau's argument, but your primary job is not to agree or disagree with the article but to evaluate their argument and comment on the quality or lack of quality you see in how they present their Claim, Reasons and Evidence. Chapter Four provides you with instructions on planning, drafting and revising the essay, as well as a sample essay to guide in organization and content.
Your essay will be three to four pages long and in MLA document format. You will write at least one draft of the essay before turning in the final draft.
The articles are under the tab "Articles" on the main menu to your left.
First Draft will be peer edited in class on Thursday, Sept. 14.
Final Draft (and first draft) are due on Thursday, Sept. 21.