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English 103 serves as your introduction to college writing, in particular, to argumentative writing. An argument is any text (written texts, but also visual texts, like paintings or films, and even music) that tries to persuade its audience. For example, you can easily look at a campaign speech, and see the ways that candidates are trying to persuade you to support their candidacy. You might also look at rap lyrics and ask some argument-oriented questions: How are these lyrics trying to make me feel? What ideas are they asking me to accept? You could even look at a children's movie and wonder what messages about values and acceptable behavior it delivers to its impressionable audience. In each of these situations, you would be analyzing texts as arguments, i.e., trying to understand their persuasive elements. In your academic career at Viterbo University, you’ll be called upon to perform many tasks associated with argument—you’ll interpret data, conduct research, and write essays that make argumentative claims and support them. English 103 is a foundational class that ensures your basic ability to recognize and evaluate persuasive appeals, and to construct your own arguments in order to persuade readers of a point.

The course begins with a seven-week long scrapbook assignment, designed to help you identify some arguments that you might be interested in or already engaged in. The assignment will also help you learn to read accurately and critically, summarize efficiently, and respond to arguments with writing of your own. Week by week, you will write mini-essays that summarize and respond to readings from our course text, The Aims of Argument. At the end of the process, you will have a small scrapbook that provides an overview of your thinking about a number of course readings.

In the second half of the semester, you will go through a series of stages to create a ten page, researched argument on a topic of your choosing. In the academic discipline of Composition Studies, the stages are often called "The Writing Process":

Invention: the first stage of the process, where you explore ideas, do preliminary research, and choose a topic.
Planning: the stage of the process where you do most of your research, as well as some and preliminary writing and outlining to organize your project.
Drafting: where you sit down and write the different parts of your essay and fit them all together into a complete first draft.
Feedback: where your peers and I read your draft, ask questions, and provide ideas about how you could improve your argument.
Revision: where you make substantial changes to your paper, such as adding paragraphs of support, adding new ideas, changing your opinion on certain elements of your argument, etc.
Editing: the final stage of the process, where you proofread your final draft, format it according to MLA style, make sure your paper is correctly punctuated and all the words are spelled correctly, etc. At the end of this stage, you're ready to hand the paper in.
Presenting: at the end of the process, you will present an oral version of your argument to the class.

This assignment will challenge you to stay organized, be thorough in your research, find a wide variety of sources and weave your own ideas with those sources to create a unified, coherent argument. The Composition research paper is a a preview of the kinds of advanced work that will be required in your various majors at Viterbo.

In addition to these writing projects, you will have assigned readings from the St. Martin's Handbook. These readings are designed to help you with the writing process on a number of levels, and to help you get familiar with the handbook, which can serve as a valuable writing resource for you in all your Viterbo courses.

By the end of the semester, students will effectively combine personal expression and research work to create well-balanced arguments. The writing and critical thinking skills developed in English 103 are crucial to students’ success in the larger university.

COURSE TEXTS:

— Lunsford, Andrea. The St. Martin’s Handbook 5^th ed. New York: St. Martin’s, 2001.

— Photocopying expenses. Expect approximately $15, spread out over the course.

COURSE OBJECTIVES:

— To identify argumentative issues and positions through effective research

— To become a more proficient reader of arguments

— To achieve heightened awareness of the contexts and motivations that drive arguments

— To see your own personal background as a perspective that relates to arguments

— To participate in public discourse by making effective arguments

— To acquire new levels of sophistication in writing style

— To complete polished, finished essays by engaging in a complex writing process

involving expression, comprehension, analysis, revision, editing, and formatting

COURSE POLICIES:

— The Viterbo University Catalog stipulates that students who miss more than 15%

of class time (6 classes) due to unexcused absences may fail. Only absences due

to Viterbo-sponsored events are considered excused. Absences due to illness, family

responsibilities, vacations, etc. are unexcused. If you are absent and unexcused, you

may not make up any in-class assignments that you miss, you are responsible for turning

in any work due during the class you missed, and you are responsible for keeping up with

the class.

— Late work may be accepted with no penalty under extreme circumstances. Other late

work may be accepted with penalty or may not be accepted.

— Viterbo University policy applying to nondiscrimination on the basis of disability: “it is

the policy of Viterbo University to comply with the Rehabilitation Act and the Americans

With Disabilities Act and regulations issued thereunder to the extent applicable to

Viterbo University.”

GRADING SCALE

The course is based on a 1000 point system. You must achieve a C or better to advance into English 104

910-1000 A

880-909 AB

810-879 B

780-809 BC

700-779 C

600-699 D

below 600 F

ASSIGNMENTS:

3 individually graded mini-essays, which will become 50 points each (150)

entries in the Scrapbook

Scrapbook 175 points

Topic proposal with preliminary bibliography 50 points

for the Researched Argument

Positions paper for the Researched Argument 75 points

First draft of Researched Argument 100 points

Final draft of Researched Argument 200 points

Two tutoring sessions with peer tutors in the 25 points each (50)

Learning Center

Quizzes and daily work 50 points

Presentation 50 points

Participation 100 points

Total: 1000 points

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