Assignment: Write a 4-6 page synthesis essay over at least 6 sources about why the show “Walker, Texas Ranger” is so popular and successful. Works Cited page required, does not count towards 4-6 page total. Also, remembering if using long/block quotes not count them towards total either (and to be moderate with them and to format them correctly).
Sources must be substantial. Send an email with a Works Cited for approval.
These sources ideally mention “Walker, Texas Ranger”, but if not need to be tied together through the topic. For example, if you wanted to do representations of women in your Course Lens the ideal sources are ones that speak specifically to that topic. If you can’t find enough sources that do so you may find sources talking about representations of women in the same genre and/or in similar works to your Course Lens. In some cases you could find material talking about representations of women in general or in less specific situations, but then you’d need to make sure to work them into your conversation as a whole.
You are simply informing your audience of the dominant conversation of your topic as it appears in a fair sampling of the overall discourse. Your job is to present the facts in a reasonably objective manner. You’ll use techniques of summary, paraphrase, and quotation to support YOUR ideas about the agreement/disagreement, connection/challenge among the sources.
Synthesis: Weaving summaries, paraphrases, and quotations into YOUR discussion, a quality synthesis balances material from sources into your discussion. The purpose for explanatory synthesis is to inform, describing factual information accurately and concisely. A good explanatory synthesis shows the relevance and relationship of each source to the writer’s original thesis. A good synthesis shows connections between and among sources or discrepancies between and among sources. A good synthesis seeks to understand the sources fully, completely, honestly. A synthesis identifies similarities and differences among the sources, illustrating YOUR understanding of the ideas and the evidence offered. Do read about synthesis in your textbook chapters to understand the skills of synthesis more fully.
Each body paragraph must contain at least 2 secondary sources. All sources must be fully introduced the first time they are used. Evidence needs to be present through summary, paraphrasing, and direct quotation. MLA integration of sources is a major factor in this essay. You must demonstrate your ability to cite sources through MLA in the essay and on the Works Cited.
Correct Example:
intro (introductory hook + introduction of sources + thesis)
body paragraph 1- Sources 1,2, and 3
body paragraph 2- Sources 3,4, and 5
body paragraph 3- Sources 2,5, and 6
body paragraph 4, Sources 1,4,5, and 6
and so on until conclusion (summation of argument, repositioning of thesis, ending appeal for action)
