Assignment Descriiption: For this essay, choose a reading we have not discussed in class from Acting Out Culture (you may use the same reading you chose for the first assignment). Next, identify an important topic that the author discusses and find another text online that is “in conversation” with the original reading on this same topic. While the readings may not reference one another directly, you must show, through detailed summary and analysis, how they are engaging in the same conversation.
You should begin your essay by introducing the main topic. You may address sides people often take in the debate (e.g., those in favor of universal healthcare vs. those opposed). For other open-ended topics, portray the scope of what’s known about the issue and what questions writers and scholars are still wrestling with.
Include a summary of each text when you introduce them. These summaries should only draw on information that is relevant to the topic. Since some texts may address a wide variety of issues, you should avoid unnecessarily lengthy summaries by attempting to cover the entire essay.
As you demonstrate the “conversation” happening in your readings, be sure to identify the rhetorical situation as well as each author’s thesis. The authors do not need to disagree with each other to be in a conversation with one another; they can also indirectly agree with or expand on parts of each other’s claims. Use direct quotations as evidence.
In the last paragraph, based on your analysis of these texts, enter into the conversation yourself. Which author has more to say? What questions about this topic remain to be answered by these texts? Offer some ideas to the reader for further avenues of inquiry and research.
Purpose: The goal for this assignment is to help you identify and enter conversations in writing while evaluating and analyzing a variety of texts.
Guidelines and Requirements: In order to earn full credit, this essay must be written in MLA format 1000-1500 words (excluding the Works Cited page), and should include:
a paragraph that introduces the central topic.
a detailed summary of each reading.
an analysis of each reading, showing how they respond to one another using properly formatted quotations and in-text citations.
a conclusion in which you offer your interpretation of the topic based on your analysis of each reading.
a Works Cited page with both texts along with any other sources you choose to consult.
(I’ve included the essay I did according to the first source)