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English 111 G/H Rhetoric
and Composition
Essay 4
See an Example Essay 4: Example 1
| Example 2
E4: Editorial
In the editorial, you will restate the problem/issue
identified in the documented white paper (E3) to the degree appropriate
for the target publication and suggest a feasible, detailed plan
of action or way of thinking about it. Through the research you
have done for E3, you have become authoritative concerning this
problem/issue. The considerations for the white paper apply here
also: if you have chosen a topic about which you have strong
emotional, political, or religious convictions, make sure to
show that you understand the issue in all its complexity, recognize
the counterarguments people may raise, and base your position
on experience and knowledge, supporting your assertions with
evidence from your research. This requires that you be rational
in your analysis of other positions. While you should feel strongly
about your problem/issue, you should also be able to recognize
the validity of opposing points of view and rebut arguments that
conflict with yours. You will complete an editorial analysis
exercise in class to help you prepare to write your editorial.
The editorial will be much shorter (about 2 pages) than other
essays, so it’s important to be concise and authoritative.
You’re making an argument about something which concerns
you both as a person and member of a larger community. You’ll
have to make a logical argument (logos), but you will also need
to make use of the appeals to ethos and pathos to make your argument
more persuasive. Use this essay as a way of learning something
new and for a better understanding of the process of argumentation.
You also need to make sure your writing is clear and concise
and that you develop a thoughtful position about the issue and
argue your position clearly and convincingly. Your thesis statement
should contain your claim and call for action. This thesis may
be in the form of an enthymeme. Be sure to describe what you
propose in detail. You must establish authority and credibility
through evidence and counterarguments.
We’ve been working on these skills all semester, and
now is the time to demonstrate what you’ve learned. Take
time to visit the Writing Center and have peers work through
your paper with you. The more feedback you get, the better your
paper will be.
You will submit at least one draft to your instructor for
commentary. Make sure to identify your target publication at
the top of your essay. After you get it back, consider his or
her response and revise. Then submit a final draft—free
of any commentary and/or hand-written marks—in the portfolio.
E4 due date: ____/____ Length: about 2 pages
Prewriting assignments
Assignment #1: Publication analysis
Write a memo explaining what specific publication
(e.g. New York Times, Forbes magazine, a PTA newsletter)
you have targeted and why. You will need to identify this specific
publication at the top of the editorial and adapt your writing
to the audience of the publication. Perform an audience analysis
as you think about structuring your argument, and discuss this
in your memo as well. Consider the advice in chapter 14--proposal
arguments--of Writing Arguments. What does the audience
know about your topic? What background information do you need
to provide? Since the editorial must stand on its own and cannot
rely on the white paper to explain terms or background, you will
have to make the problem or issue clear in the editorial. Think
about how your audience already feels about the issue. Does your
proposal ask them to go against the opinions they already have?
Remember that, while you need to cite information from sources
in general (in research papers, white papers, and reports), editorials
do not use in-text citations.
Assignment #1 due date: ___/___
Evaluation criteria
Use the following questions about
the main elements of an essay to analyze the strengths and weaknesses
of your essay. Use these questions when reading each others’
essays for peer critiquing. Your instructor will be using these
criteria when evaluating your essay.
Proposal
- Does the essay clearly define the problem
or issue?
- Is the amount of background information appropriate for readers
of the target publication?
- Is the essay appropriate for the target publication?
- Does the thesis statement contains the writer’s claim
and a call for action?
- Does the call for action details necessary steps ?
Presence/persuasion
- Does the writer establish authority and credibility?
- Is the evidence sufficient, logical, credible, and accurate?
- Does the writer avoid logical fallacies?
- Does the essay summarize, present, and critique opposing
arguments logically and fairly?
- Are the suggested approaches to problem or issue logical
and feasible
- Are the writer’s assertions are supported by evidence
General characteristics of effective
essays
Evaluate your essay against the course
goals for English 111. An effective essay will demonstrate these
characteristics.
Critical thinking: Essay demonstrates
control over conceiving and defending a statement about a topic,
including defining and limiting a topic. Makes a clear and arguable
statement about topic, developing statements logically and adequately.
Recognizes complications or alternative viewpoints. Paragraphs
are sequenced and clearly developed.
Argument, structure, and development: Essay makes an argument to an audience. Essay is
structured around a controlling idea or thesis statement. Evidence
illustrates or argues the controlling idea. Evidence is appropriate
to topic and purpose. Evidence is sufficient. Audience is defined
implicitly or explicitly and accommodated through essay. Whole
paper structure supports controlling idea.
Standard edited English awareness: Language use contributes to success of essay. Vocabulary
and syntax are appropriate to purpose and occasion. Sentences
vary to reinforce logic of essay. Essay demonstrates understanding
of standard English conventions, including sentence boundaries
and completeness, concord, appropriate modification, and mechanics,
including spelling, punctuation, and manuscript conventions.
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Copyright 1997 Department of English |
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New Mexico State University |
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Use only with permission |
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