Homework Assignment #10:  Instant Draft of Essay #3

The following questions focus on helping you develop a thesis and provide evidence to support the thesis.  The sheet will also help you to determine which aspects of your argument you need to concentrate on as you work toward your first draft of Essay #3.   

Answer the following questions in as much detail as possible.  Bring two copies of the instant draft to class on Monday, February 28. 

1. Develop a tentative thesis for Essay #3.  Based on the inferences you've made from your primary sources and your summary of relevant context from Polenberg, Leffler, and lecture notes, what argument can you make about the your topic?  What do your primary sources reveal about the topic?

2. What points will you need to make in order to convince the reader of the validity of your thesis?  List each point you plan to make and explain its relation to the thesis in one or two sentences.

3. What evidence will you use to support each of your points?  Summarize, quote, or paraphrase the evidence for each of your points.  After your citation of the evidence, briefly explain why the particular evidence you have selected supports your point.  In other words, what is the connection between your point and your evidence? 

4. On Monday, we will discuss the instant drafts.  What questions or concerns do you have about your thesis, evidence, and overall plan for the paper?