English 103 Fall 2021 Essay 1
Argument: The Price We Pay for What we Want
100 points (Rough Draft 10; Final Draft 90 = 100)
- 5 Points Extra Credit for Tutoring Proof
OVERVIEW
In this unit we have read two compelling and thought-provoking short stories, “The Ones Who
Walk Away From Omelas” by Ursula K. LeGuin and “The Perfect Match” by Ken Liu. These are
new wave science fiction tales but, as with most science fiction, they are addressing issues in
real life, particularly raising the question, what price are we paying for the things that we want?
In LeGuin’s story, we tackle moral issues concerning what we are willing to overlook or support
in order to have a comfortable life. Likewise, in Liu’s story we investigate what we are losing or
giving up in order to have the technology we love.
Drawing upon your Prewriting and using examples from the short stories and your own
experience, in a fiercely original, thesis-driven, and well supported essay, please answer the
following prompt.
PROMPT
What price is society paying in order to have the things it wants?
DIRECTIONS
Answer the prompt question by taking a clear position in your thesis statement.
Support your position with evidence from both short stories and your own
knowledge/experience, and any research you conduct.
Make sure your body paragraphs are “quote sandwiches” with 1-2 quotes/paraphrases,
proper MLA in-text citation, and analysis to tie your evidence to your claim in the topic
sentence.
Make a call to action in your conclusion (kairos). In other words, what should readers do
or think after reading your essay?
The paper must be 5-7 pages, with a separate Works Cited page.
Per English Dept. guidelines, it should be in MLA format, 8 th edition.
DUE DATES
Rough Draft—due on Canvas for peer review before midnight 9/14; 10 points. Drop off
to tutors for a bonus 5 points. You will also be reviewing two of your peers’ drafts.
Final Draft—due on Canvas before midnight 9/21; 90 points.
CHECKLIST FOR WHAT TO INCLUDE IN ALL ESSAYS
In this and all essays you should:
Open with something that hooks your readers and provide context on your topic OR introduce
your texts and authors if you are writing about literature
Write a clear and forceful thesis statement that answers the prompt
Use ample support to illustrate your points (logos, pathos appeals)
Make sure all quotes or paraphrases have signal phrases and are in “quote sandwiches” with
proper MLA in-text citation (see handouts on Canvas if you need to refresh your memory on
how to do this; this goes for any of these skills)
Add appropriate transitions between ideas within paragraphs and to connect your points
between paragraphs
Conclude with a summary of your analysis and make a final point or call to action (kairos)
Carefully proofread for spelling, grammar, and format errors
Write a catchy title