A clearly stated position on an issue, usually stated very early in the essay.
What is a thesis statement?
100
The part of the essay where you provide full publication information for any source you used.
What is the Works Cited list?
100
An oversimplification that asserts that only two possible positions are possible.
What is an either-or argument?
100
These are two good reasons for including opposing points of view in your argument.
What is demonstrating that you've carefully researched the issue?
What is building your credibility?
100
Is this semicolon used properly?
I spent my weekend drafting my argument essay; which I plan to bring to office hours for help with this week.
What is no?
200
Support for your reasons that does not consist of opinion or personal belief.
What is evidence?
200
A brief reference to an author's last name and a page number within the body of your essay.
What is an in-text citation?
200
An argument that prompts others to believe or do something on the grounds that everyone else believes or does it.
What is a bandwagon appeal?
200
Admitting that some people do not agree with you or that some people have experiences that are different from your own.
What is acknowledging other viewpoints?
200
Can you use "I" and "me" in your argument essay?
What is yes. Please use them sparingly.
300
Making your thesis more manageable by limiting it.
What is qualifying a thesis?
300
The next best thing to an author's last name when you need to cite a source that has no author.
What is an article title?
300
A comparison between things that resemble each other but not in ways that are important to the argument.
What is a false analogy?
300
A step beyond acknowledging other viewpoints, this is a way of conceding that opposing views have some merit or adopting other viewpoints as part of your own argument.
What is accomodating other viewpoints?
300
A verb or adjective that you turn into a noun, which sometimes reduces the clarity of your writing.
Example: A decision was made by the committee to begin the closing of the factory.
What is a nominalization?
400
Three kinds of appeals a writer might weave into an effective argument.
What are logical (logos), emotional (pathos), and ethical (ethos)?
400
A way of including information from an outside source without quoting it or summarizing it.
What is paraphrasing?
400
An argument that tells readers that one false move will lead to an unpreventable chain reaction of bad outcomes.
What is the slippery slope fallacy?
400
Stating in your essay that another viewpoint is wrong, questionable, flawed, faulty, etc.
What is refuting an argument?
400
The name of the error demonstrated here:
While running to get to class on time, the shoulder strap on my backpack broke.
What is a dangling modifier?
500
A link (sometimes stated, sometimes implied) between the reason you provide and the claim that you make. In other words, it's an underlying principle that shows readers why your reasons support your thesis.
What is a warrant?
500
Is this a fair paraphrase?
Original article by Jane Smith: Spring is a season gently warmed by the promise of new beginnings.
Paraphrase: Spring brings warmth and promises new beginnings.
What is no?
500
An assumption that because one event followed another, the first event caused the second.
What is faulty causality?
500
A fallacy that happens when writers acknowledge an opposing viewpoint but choose to acknowledge one that nobody seriously entertains or believes.
What is the straw man fallacy?
500
It's the problem with this in-text citation:
As Jane Smith asserts, "Nobody buys the newspaper anymore these days (64)".
What is the order of the punctuation at the end of the citation?