The Writing Process

      (Unity/Topic Sentence) Located in the class syllabus, the steps of the writing process aid the student in fulfilling Dr. Gill’s expectations for each written artifact. (Adequate Development/Body) First, once a topic is selected, the student needs to set a foundation by reading and journaling nine scholarly sources that support the student’s stance on the subject and three scholarly sources for the opposition. Now the brainstorming process can begin. The four fundamental questions that every rhetor should ask include: 1) who is my audience, 2) what is my purpose, 3) what is my premise, 4) what is my chosen quotation. These questions set the rhetor on the right track for writing the essay. On the course homepage, Dr. Gill has outlined the rubric for each argumentative essay. By following the rubric, the student can now write the rough draft. As soon as the rough draft gets completed, the student should make an appointment with a Writing Center tutor to fix any grammatical errors and awkward sentence structure. After applying the suggested edits, the student should construct an editing log as evidence that the student visited a tutor. Finally, the student has the option to visit Dr. Gill in a teacher conference to receive additional insight on how to improve the essay. (Coherence/Conclusion) Carefully application of each step in the writing process will lead each developing rhetor to a successful semester.

 

      (Unity/Topic Sentence) Going more into detail, Dr. Gill’s dictated rubric for the argumentative essay lists the six constituent elements of Aristotelian Classical Argumentative Rhetoric. (Adequate Development/Body) The first element refers to the introduction paragraph made up of three sentences: the hook, the bride, and the divided thesis sentence with the opponent's claim and the main rhetor’s claim. The hook catches the attention of the audience by including a quote that sets up the context of the discussion topic. The bridge interprets the quote and shows the writer’s voice through use of language. The thesis sentence includes both the opposing and the rhetor’s stance with three supporting reasons. The next paragraph refers to the narration where an event that relates to the subject at hand gets related to provide the reader with the necessary background information. The student should also include in this paragraph the matters at stake by dictating what each side believes. Third, the confirmation paragraph reiterates the rhetor’s thesis and emphasizes the importance of the argument. To show respect and acknowledge the opponent’s point of view, the concession paragraph incorporates the three con scholarly sources. The fifth element, the refutation, comprises of three paragraphs where the rhetor restates the three main points by recasting the language and citing three pro sources in support of each main point. Finally, to wrap up, the summation paragraph offers the student a final chance to convince the reader that the solution presented throughout the paper is the best for society. (Coherence/Conclusion) Mastery of the six constituent elements of Aristotelian Classical Argumentative Rhetoric provides each student with an arsenal of tools to utilize critical thinking in everyday life.