Reading Secondary Sources - PowerPoint Presentation

Slide1

Reading Secondary Sources

Making ArgumentsSlide2

Thesis StatementsSlide3

A challenge that arises for many of us in our careers as scholarly writers is one of finding and using what we might call the

language of positing

:Slide4

a language that advances argument founded significantly in hypothesis and reasonable suppositions rather than on absolute certainty or certainty of absolute rightness. Slide5

Indeed, over-determinedness in assertions – claims that are presented as absolutely known or proven when a thoughtful reader can

see

that they are in fact hypotheses or arguable assertions – can seriously detract from the value and convincingness of a scholarly piece.Slide6

But

how does one build an argument out of assertions or ideas even while acknowledging a level of uncertainty to be at play in them? Slide7

Part of the answer lies in thinking about what most matters to your argument – that is, about where it is that you must most forcefully assert your point in order for your line of thought to work and where it is that you can afford to (or that you must) acknowledge the existence of other possibilities. Slide8

Figuring this out requires reflection and strategic thought. Another part of the answer lies in growing familiar with and developing your own style of using a language of positing.Slide9

The best place to learn this language is from other scholarly writers. Look back at the scholarly writers we know from our course and from others – especially the writers you like – and see how they handle this challenge of articulating claims. Slide10

Instead of an absolute assertion like, “The green represents hope and the blue represents despair, and thus the painting shows a war between the two,” try:Slide11

“

If

we understand

the green as representing hope and the blue as representing despair, as conventions of the time (or as this painter’s other works, or as something else)

suggest

we have reason to do,

then we can characterize the painting as depicting

conflict

between two distinct emotional conditions

.

”Slide12

So the basic formula here is: If

you

first [think about things in this viable way]… then

you

can [understand something more that I really want you to see] …Slide13

Here are a few more formulas:

Given that … it seems reasonable to assert that … and working with this understanding of ____ as ____ allows us to …

Archival evidence suggests there is good reason for supposing …

While research to date is inconclusive as to _________, it clearly communicates _______ (or, “it does consistently suggest _________”)

Clearly there are many questions to ask about _______, but given ____________, one of the most important must be understood as ________________.Slide14

As you draft your essays, experiment with degrees of assertiveness. Think about what must be asserted most strongly and what might (or must) be asserted in a more conditional way. Attune yourself to degrees of assertiveness in the scholarly writers you read.Slide15

Remember that a lot of us actually think in the language of positing. You have this language in you already. Often, reflecting on the process that actually led you to the hypothesis/ the argument/ the sense of truth you feel you have about your question gives you tools for communicating its validity to readers. Experiment with recreating your own thought process for your readers on the page.Slide16

Now:

Write down what is most fascinating and puzzling about the text that will be at the center of your essay. What’s the most intriguing question you can ask about the text right now?Slide17

Now check that question—is it a question about the whole universe, that is, about our world

outside

the text, or a question about how the text makes meaning? If it’s the former, transform it into an

interpretive

problem

about the text

now; if it’s the latter, revise

it

to make it more specific and

concrete.Slide18

Jot

down a list of all the

aspects of your text that

seem related to that question. These should be not only scenes, themes, ideas,

etc

, but formal elements: tone, narrative style, recurring images, characterization, structure, diction, setting, tropes,

etc.Slide19

Now, with that stuff in mind, try writing a first thesis, a claim, in response to your

question. If possible use one of the formulas suggested earlier. (The next slide will repeat them.)

(Even if you already have a thesis statement, try to create a different one based on this exercise. Granted, it might have some similarities to your original one.)Slide20

If we first [think about things in this viable way]… then we can [understand something more that I really want you to see] …

Given that … it seems reasonable to assert that … and working with this understanding of ____ as ____ allows us to …

Archival evidence suggests there is good reason for supposing …

While research to date is inconclusive as to _________, it clearly communicates _______ (or, “it does consistently suggest _________”)

Clearly there are many questions to ask about _______, but given ____________, one of the most important must be understood as ________________.Slide21

If you have your original

thesis statement,

compare your two thesis statements.

• Are they in tension with each other?

• Which one is more supported by the pieces of evidence you just listed? Slide22

• How do you feel when you write/read either of your

claims?

(In other words, does the claim matter? Why?) If you’re excited about it, write why.

If you feel nothing, write why.Slide23

Can you flip

either of the statements?

In other words, is the (or an) opposite also true? Try flipping the terms of your claim around

now.

Does it work? What does that reveal?Slide24

Can you now write a better thesis statement given the exercises we just did?

Or is there a way to combine your two statements to create a stronger position?Slide25

Now share your thesis statement with one person sitting next to you.

Discuss whether you think the thesis statement could be improved based on the conversation we just had.Slide26

Is anyone willing to share their thesis statement?Slide27

Finally…

A week after we come

back

from

Thanksgiving

break your

last paper will be due. In addition to that we’ll be hearing presentations about a field of study that interests you

.

Each presentation should be about 10- 15 minutes long.Slide28

For example, you can present on science fiction and children’s literature. Or medieval literature and queer theory. Or modernism and feminist theory on

visuality

.

Your task will be to decide on a fairly narrow field, and find out the following:Slide29

• What are seven primary sources that seem important to this field? (i.e. novels, poems, plays, letters

)

• What are seven secondary sources (i.e. scholarly works) that seem important to this field?Slide30

You’ll submit an annotated bibliography detailing these sources, and your presentation should describe the field and how you came to decide that these are the 14 key texts in it.

You can link your presentation to your final paper, but it’s

not necessary.Slide31

Finally!

Please, please, please, go online and fill out the survey evaluating

this class: https://

apps.qc.cuny.edu

/

courseevaluation

/

logon.aspx