Research/Argumentative Paper:  Power, Persuasion, Practices, and Products

        conspicuous consumption gifts, conspicuous consumption gift, conspicuous consumption merchandise, gifts for conspicuous consumption, gift for conspicuous consumption

 

“Is America Falling Apart?” “Pie in the Sky,” “My Wood,” “The Powerful Theory of Conspicuous Consumption,” and Fahrenheit 451 all explore the effects of consumer culture. 

 

RESEARCH PAPER ASSIGNMENT:  Select one of the options below. 

 

Option 1:  Analyze and evaluate the practice of any company.  You can endorse or indict, and your reasons for doing so do not have to involve ethics.  For example, you could praise a company for its brilliant advertizing or strategizing.  In your thesis, you will clearly tell a very specific audience that the practice is X (creative; inhumane; short-sighted; etc.).  Then, in the body of your paper, you will develop reasons for your thesis.  You will support these reasons with solid, credible evidence, taking care to lend credibility to each source (even the opposition).  You must also acknowledge the opposition and then refute (including identifying one fallacy) or concede their points.  In the conclusion of your paper, you will recommend a course of action.

 

Option 2:  Expose the negative side of a consumer item.  Because you will be “exposing” it, please do not select something obvious (guns, bombs, TVs, cars, video games, alcohol, cigarettes, drugs).  A paper such as this would have no purpose because these are things we already know have deleterious effects.  Choose a topic for which there is an audience who doesn’t agree or isn’t acting.  There must be opposition, and that opposition cannot consist of the people who make money due to the existence of the consumer item.  In your introduction, you will introduce the consumer item as much as necessary in order for your audience to understand and appreciate your thesis.  In your opposition ¶, you will explain why people see the item as positive.  If possible, identify a certain group, and cite all of their reasons for feeling good about the consumer item.  Follow this with a polite transition and a STRONG thesis to the contrary.  Then, thoroughly develop your criticism of the item. 

 

Table of Contents:

General Instructions:                                               1

Topic Ideas:                                                  2

Requirements:                                              3

Schedule of Due Dates:                              4-5

Organization Options:                                 6

Citation Examples:                                       7

Possible Topic Ideas

(This list is not exhaustive; feel free to find your own topic)

 

Option 1:  Evaluate the Practice of a Company.

 

           Materials used (flammable; poisonous; green; renewable)

           Products made (1977 boycott of Nestlé’s baby formula—vs. breast milk)

           How products are made (Coke’s causing pollution and water depletion in India)

           Who makes products (underpaid workers; children; prison inmates)

           Where products are made (outsourced to get around pollution and fair labor laws)

           Company rules

           Treatment of employees (wages; benefits; breaks; overtime; promotions, etc.)

           How products are transported (truck; boat; air)

           Hiring practices (fair; unfair; savvy)

           Packaging (plastic; styrofoam; nonexistent; green)

           Labeling (hidden ingredients; false claims; fine print—Hydroxycut; Maxoderm...)

           Advertising campaigns (effective; ineffective; unethical)

           Subliminal messages/memes (Denham’s Dentrifice; product placement)

           Celebrity endorsements and/or the rescinding thereof (Michael Phelps & Kellogg’s)

           Commercials/ads becoming more and more prevalent (bathrooms; gas pumps; etc.)

           Requirements for interacting with customers (use “miss” even if customer is 70)

 

Option 2:  Expose the negative side of a consumer item. 

 

        Isolation/Lack of Community

        Disconnection from Nature

        Fear of Germs/The Outside World

        Devolution

        Devastation of the Environment

        Distrust of Others

        Laziness

        Conformity

        Waste/Pollution

        Negative Reputation with Other Countries

        Lack of Pride in Workmanship

        Decreased Quality/Planned Obsolescence

        Class Distinctions/Status Obsession

        Decay of Public Amenities

        Dependence

 

Requirements (Check off as final assurance that you have met each requirement):

 

        6-8 pages + a Works Cited page

        At least 6 sources, all credible (2 must be for the opposition.) 

        Indicate the sources for the opposition with an asterisk* on your Works Cited.

**You may not use internet articles unless they are from reputable online newspapers.

**Encyclopedias, dictionaries and other reference sources do not count toward the source requirement; however, you should still include them on your Works Cited page.

        Your in-text citations must correctly introduce your sources the first time you use them (full name, credibility, and the name of article or publication).

        Your subsequent in-text citations must have the first word of the Works Cited citation and page number (if applicable); they still require a lead-in.

        Acknowledgement of the opposition

        Refutation and/or concession of the opposition’s points

        Diplomatic treatment of both the audience and the opposition

        Use or identification of at least 2 appeal types (indicated in parentheses immediately following)

        Identification & explanation of a fallacy

        No more than 5 major errors per page

 

Important Information Regarding Grading:

 

 

How do I put the paper together?:

 

Below are 2 outline options.  Your choice will depend on the nature of the opposition and your ability to refute it. 

 

Approach 1.  Point/Counterpoint:  Each point is a refutation of 1 of the opposition’s points.

 

I.  Intro (approximately 3 paragraphs)

 

A.  Attention-getter

 

¶ B.  Introduction to the topic (Here you must be utterly objective.  The reader should not be able to tell how you feel about the topic until s/he gets to your thesis.):  Decide exactly what your target audience needs to know before they can appreciate your thesis.

 

¶ C.  Opposition:  Identify your opposition, explain their stance and show knowledge of the reasons why they believe as they do.  Be diplomatic and respectful of their views.

 

¶ D.  Transition, Concession, & Thesis:  Having identified the opposition, diplomatically suggest that although their points are valid, your points are worth taking into consideration (perhaps moreso).  Concede the points you cannot argue against.  End with your thesis.    

Thesis:  Strong statement regarding what your particular audience should think or do. 

 

II.  Body:  Main point ¶s:  Identify the opposition’s point.  Then, refute this point.

 

A.  Give each point its own ¶, topic sentence (This may involve a “however.”) and smooth

transition from the previous point.

1.  Support each point with examples, facts, source material, and explanations/reflections.

            2.  Make sure you identify and explain a fallacy in at least one of your main point ¶s.

            3.  Make sure you use or identify at least two appeal types in your body.

 

III.  Conclusion: 

·         Leave the reader thinking without introducing new material.

·         End your paper with a call to action (like Collins).

 

 

Approach 2.  Your Points:  Each point is one of your reasons rather than a refutation:

 

I.  Intro (approximately 3 paragraphs)

 

A.  Attention-getter

 

¶ B.  Introduction to the topic (Here you must be utterly objective.  The reader should not be able to tell how you feel about the topic until s/he gets to your thesis.):  Decide exactly what your target audience needs to know before they can appreciate your thesis.

 

¶ C.  Opposition:  Identify your opposition, explain their stance, and show knowledge of the reasons why they feel as they do.  Be diplomatic and show respect for their views.

 

¶ D.  Transition, Concession, and Thesis:  Having identified the opposition, diplomatically suggest that although their points are valid, your points are worth taking into consideration (perhaps moreso).  Concede the points you cannot argue against.  End with your thesis.   

Thesis:  Strong statement regarding what your particular audience should think or do. 

 

II.  Body: 

 

A.  Main point ¶s:  Identify and develop your points.  Give each point its own ¶, topic sentence, and smooth transition from the previous point.

1.  Support each point with examples, facts, source material, and explanations/reflections.

2.  Make sure you use or identify at least two appeal types in your body.

 

B. Refutation ¶s:  Identify and offer a refutation ¶ for each reason you can refute.

            1.  Make sure you identify and explain a fallacy in at least one of your ¶s.

            2.  Clearly explain why the opposition’s points &/or reasoning are invalid or flawed.

 

III.  Conclusion: 

·         Leave the reader thinking without introducing new material.

·         End your paper with a call to action (like Collins).

Due Dates and Requirements

 

 

Monday, May 4; Tuesday, May 5; Wednesday, May 6:  Topic Sheet & Sources Due

1.  Correctly formatted sheet with the following:

  1. Topic
  2. Purpose:  Will you convince or persuade?
  3. Audience:  Who doesn’t agree or needs to alter his/her behavior?
  4. Tentative Thesis: Focused, Supportable, Strong, Interesting. 

*Direct this toward your audience; make sure “agree” or “act” is clear

 

2.  Packet of four sources, carefully read and highlighted:  All must be credible; two must be for one side, and two must be for the other. (This means eventually you will, at the very least, need to find two more sources for the side you argue.)

 

Monday, May 11; Tuesday, May 12; Wednesday, May 13: 

1.  Opposition ¶:  You will compose a ¶ that identifies the opposition and clearly states their overall stance; then acknowledges their reasons for believing as they do.  Be diplomatic!  Below this ¶, list out the points you must concede and the points you plan to refute.  Indicate whether you will use point/counterpoint or develop your own points and follow with a few refutation ¶s.

 

2.  Outline:  Following the format you have chosen, create a complete outline of your paper. 

 

Mon, May 18; Tues May 19; Weds, May 20:  Workshop Draft Due—Bring two copies! 

 

Monday, May 25; Wednesday, May 27; Thursday, May 28:  Final Draft Due! 

Submit in folder with the following:

Help with Works Cited Citations:

 

*Instructions are in Keys for Writers, 166-169 (Basic Rules) and 169-194 (Samples)

 

 

Book:  Lane, Tristan.  Ben and Jerry’s.  Santa Clara, CA:  Houghton Mifflin, 2007.

 

Editor as author:  Lanze, Deirdre, ed.  Recalls.  3rd ed.  Boston:  Norton, 2006.

 

Work in an Anthology:  Juncker, Margaret.  “Wages Today.”  The Plight of the

 

American Worker  4th ed.  Ed. John D. Shehorn.  Boston, Bedford, 2008.  56-60.

 

Newspaper:  Riley, Jane.  “Label Lies.”  Fresno Bee  26 October 2007:  A5.

 

Scholarly Journal:  Jones, Ty.  “Heinz.”  Food and Wine  45.6 (2006):  125–133.

 

Magazine Article:  Diaz, Trey.  “Food Dye.”  Health  26 October 2005:  15.

 

Database Article:  Cite as print article (above) and then add the following:

·             Name of the database, underlined (Expanded Academic ASAP.)

·             Name of the service providing the database (Infotrac.)

·             Name of library w/ city & state (Mission College Library, Santa Clara, CA.)

·             Your date of access (30 April 2008.)

Rosenberg, Debra, Lynn Waddell, and Suzanne Smalley. "Another Mine Accident." 

Newsweek 21 Jan 2008: 40. Academic Universe. Lexis-Nexis.  Mission College

Library, Santa Clara, CA.  30 April 2009.

Help with In-text Citations:

*Instructions are in Keys for Writers, 148-149 and 155-157.

 

First Use:  In his article “Walmart Wages:  Welfare?,” Harvard Professor of Sociology Glenn Colbert mentions the effect that Walmart wages are having on the American system as a whole:  “Because their pay and benefits are so poor, Walmart workers actually cost the American taxpayer millions in emergency room visits each year” (23).

 

Subsequent Uses:  He also suggests that Walmart’s labor practices are suspect:  “There have been many instances in which workers should have been paid overtime for working more than the allotted hours, yet they were asked to take 2-3 hour breaks in the middle of the day so as to get around this and have each ‘shift’ count separately” (Colbert 24).