For this project, you will explore and write about a debatable or controversial

For this project, you will explore and write about a debatable or controversial word in your major, future profession, or community. Your essay will guide the reader into a new or proper understanding of this word.
In your professional life, a supervisor may request your input on a debatable topic or trend in your field. As a student in the humanities, you also may wish to weigh in on any concerns of the day that affect your campus, community, hometown, or nation more broadly. Ultimately, your essay will offer an answer to the question: Why does a correct understanding of this word matter so much?
Your essay should be 5-8 pages long, written in MLA essay formatLinks to an external site.. Your essay should “dialog” with at least two outside sources. All sources should be incorporated using correct MLA documentation styleLinks to an external site..
Guidelines
Use the following questions to guide you:
What controversial word or phrase might I (re)define?
Why does this topic matter now? What’s happening in the culture that makes this timely?
What question am I trying to answer?
Where is this conversation happening and who else is talking about it?
What authorizes me to write on this topic?
Why does this topic matter? What’s at stake?
What caused this current controversy or incorrect term?
What is my position and re(definition)? What changes after someone reads my paper?
How would an audience object to my point? What analogy might I use to guide them?
Who is my audience? What do they value? How does my essay ultimately benefit them?
Evaluation Criteria
Your essay will be evaluated based on the following criteria:
Ethos. Does the writer show what authorizes them to write this essay using a display of experience, expertise, a “conversion experience” or sustained curiosity in the topic?
Kairos. Is the writer’s topic timely? What is the occasion for writing? Has the writer used words related to time like currently, recently, now, trending, lately, etc?
Logos. Has the writer asked precise questions and offered evidence to engage reasoning? Is it clear what question the writer is attempting to answer?
Pathos. Has the writer created urgency about the topic and generated emotion (fear, curiosity, hope, shame / guilt?) Is the writer offering a clear payoff? That is, has the writer asked the reader to imagine a world in which their argument was true? What would change and for whom?
Thesis. Does the writer offer a clear and debatable thesis position (While many argue that. . . this term actually…)?
Sources. Has the writer has dialogued with at least two sources using proper MLA citation? Has the writer introduced their source’s expertise? Has the writer properly embedded quotations by beginning the sentence with an analysis verb, embedding the quote, citing the quote, and reflecting on the quote? [ie: Psychologist Dr. Martha Brown recently assessed that “the college campus mental health concern is now a crisis” (7). This “crisis” suggests we take a different approach to our interventions.] Has the writer included a correctly MLA-formatted works cited page?
Style. Does the writer vary sentence lengths and openings, employ advanced grammar, and write with precise analysis verbs? Has the writer made use of some “garnish techniques” like analogy, chiasmus, repeated first words, and/or self-answering questions?
Organization. Does the writer create transition sentences between paragraphs and provide a logical and beneficial organization?
Clarity. Does the writer define any confusing or vague terms? (By mental health, I mean. . . / By white privilege, I mean. . . / By core exercises, I mean. . . )
Evidence. Does the writer offer clear examples with every point made? For example, “When I refer to a healthy vegan diet, I mean to avoid processed foods like vegan chips or vegan candy in favor of foods that come directly from the earth (carrots, apples, whole grains).”
Benefit. Does the writer show why their position matters, who benefits, and what changes for the better if the reader adopts the argument?
Rebuttal. Does the writer address possible reader objections with analogies and good reasoning? Does the writer include a paragraph that talks to the reader about what they might be feeling or thinking?
Conclusion. Does the writer explain what might happen next in future conversations or research regarding this topic and leave the reader knowing how this paper contributes to the conversation?
*it can be any word to re-define, however privacy may be a good one. just a recommedation