This second writing assignment is a good time to begin research on a possible final paper topic. However, this assignment and WA-3 can be about any topic you choose. They do not have to be on your final paper topic (but they can be. Make sense?)
Choose your topic and do an Internet search for an article or articles on it. You can also use the List of Interesting Websites. If you can find fact, opinion, and belief in one article, that’s great, but you can use two or three if you need to. However, all the articles should be on the same topic.
Articles that strictly report facts (such as an encyclopedia entry or unbiased news report) will not work well for this assignment. You need to choose articles expressing a writer’s or writers’ point of view. New York Times editorials would be a good choice for this assignment but are not required.
Cover Page
Step One: INTRODUCTION
Step Two: ARTICLE SUMMARY. What is the article about? Briefly summarize it for me. Notice the use of quotation marks, italics, and end citation below.
The SOURCE goes in italics. The ARTICLE TITLE goes in quotation marks.
Example: In Slate.com’s article, “After-Birth Abortion: The Pro-Choice Case for Infanticide” author William Saletan outlines a horrifying possibility where pro-choice arguments about the lack of “personhood” of a fetus could also be applied to newborn infants. Saletan describes how certain philosophers have asserted that an infant has no more “personhood” than a late-term fetus due to its lack of neural development, and therefore has no more of a claim to life. Having no claim to life, the infant, if not desired by anyone, can be terminated with no moral quandary (2015).
Step Three: Find a direct quote that is an example of FACT.
Example: In Saletan’s article, he tells his readers that “An examination of 18 European registries reveals that between 2005 and 2009 only 64% of Down’s syndrome cases were diagnosed through prenatal testing. This percentage indicates that, considering only the European areas under examination, about 1700 infants were born with Down’s syndrome without parents being aware of it before birth” (2015). This quote is an example of fact because…
Step Four: Find a direct quote that is an example of OPINION.
Example: Saletan goes on to describe how philosophers Alberto Giublini and Francesa Minerva stated in the Journal of Medical Ethics: “Therefore, we claim that killing a newborn could be ethically permissible in all the circumstances where abortion would be. Such circumstances include cases where the newborn has the potential to have an (at least) acceptable life, but the well-being of the family is at risk” (2015). This quote is an example of opinion because…
Step Five: Find a direct quote that is an example of BELIEF.
Example: Later, in the same article in the Journal of Medical Ethics, Minerva and Giublini state that “Merely being human is not in itself a reason for ascribing someone a right to life” (as cited in Saletan, 2015). This quote is an example of belief because…
Step Six: CONCLUSION
REFERENCES: Using APA Style, list your article or articles on your References page. Use in-text citations for your quotes.
Expected length: 6-8 paragraphs but meeting the assignment requirements is more important.
Points: Content = 70 pts. Grammar = 20 points. APA Style = 10 pts (100 total).
Of the 70 points for content,
5 points for the introduction, 5 points for the conclusion: These should be on your topic, not on what fact, opinion, and belief are.
15 points for the article summary
15 (5/10) points for identifying a factual statement and explaining why it is factual (can it be verified, confirmed, corroborated? Or is it an objectively true fact?)
15 (5/10) points for identifying an opinion-based statement and explaining why it is an opinion (on what factual evidence is it based? Is there an exhortation? Is there another conceivable or realistic course of action. considering the evidence?)
15 (5/10) points for identifying a belief-based statement and explaining why it is a belief (it seems to be based on personal reasons rather than factual evidence. What could these reasons be?)
