Introduction for New AP Language Students - PowerPoint Presentation

Slide1

Introduction for New AP Language Students

The Argument EssaySlide2

Sample Prompts

For centuries, prominent thinkers have pondered the relationship between ownership and the development of self

(

identity), ultimately asking the question, “What does it mean to own something?”

Plato

argues that owning objects is detrimental to a person’s character. Aristotle claims that ownership of tangible

goods

helps to develop moral character. Twentieth-century philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre proposes that ownership

extends

beyond objects to include intangible things as well. In Sartre’s view, becoming proficient in some skill and

knowing

something thoroughly means that we “own” it.

Think

about the differing views of ownership. Then write an essay in which you explain your position on the

relationship

between ownership and sense of self. Use appropriate evidence from your reading, experience,

or observations

to support your argument. Slide3

Sample Prompts

Consider the distinct perspectives expressed in the following statements.

If

you develop the absolute sense of certainty that powerful beliefs provide, then you can get

yourself to accomplish virtually anything, including those things that other people are certain

are impossible.

William

Lyon Phelps, American educator, journalist, and professor (1865–1943)

I think we ought always to entertain our opinions with some measure of doubt. I shouldn’t

wish people dogmatically to believe any philosophy, not even mine.

Bertrand

Russell, British author, mathematician, and philosopher (1872–1970)

In

a well-organized essay, take a position on the relationship between certainty and doubt. Support your argument

with

appropriate evidence and examples. Slide4

Sample Prompts

American essayist and social critic H. L. Mencken (1880–1956) wrote, “The average man does not want to be free.

He simply wants to be safe.” In a well-written essay, examine the extent to which Mencken’s observation applies to

contemporary society, supporting your position with appropriate evidence. Slide5

Evidence

Historical

evidence

Current

events

Scientists or discoveries

Philosophical theories

Analogies to scientific principles

Sports figures, political figures

Personal

examples

Literature

(Hester Prynne, Jay Gatsby, Hawthorne)Slide6

Hints

Don’t force using evidence from literature. It’s not necessary.

Don’t hesitate to use a personal example if it makes argument more convincing.

Present both sides of the argument.

Confidently

defend your position.

Think of your audience. (Adults from across the nation)Slide7

Homework

Two significant historical events (Not Nazi Germany)

Two historical figures (Not Hitler or Martin Luther King Jr.)

Two current events

Two

sports

figure/artist/ or musician

Who is Freud?/Jung?/Skinner?/Carl Rogers?

DO NOT USE IMMATURE OR COMMON EXAMPLES unless the prompt lends itself to pop culture references.Slide8

Thesis Sentences

Although society can be stifling, individuals must dwell within the web of relationships or communities will inevitably break down.

Societies depend on each individual to do his part because people need each other to help during a crisis, to maintain a fair democracy, and to maintain order and propriety.Slide9

Topic Sentences—Make a Claim

Individual members of a community help each other in a times of crisis.

Societies are oppressive and often keep individuals from having original thoughts.Slide10

The Best Paragraphs

Topic Sentence that makes a claim.

Example.

Explanation of example and how it proved the claim or topic.

Another Example.

Explanation of second example.

Commentary which ties back to the thesis sentence.Slide11

Let’s Practice

Question 3

(Suggested time—40 minutes. This question counts for one-third of the total essay section score.)

American essayist and social critic H. L. Mencken (1880–1956) wrote, “The average man does not want to be free. He simply wants to be safe.” In a well-written essay, examine the extent to which Mencken’s observation applies to contemporary society, supporting your position with appropriate evidence.Slide12

Body Paragraph using literature as evidence

It is true there exists drifters who when given the opportunity will take full advantage of the absence of familiarity and responsibility attached to their identity. We read and hear instances practically every week of a “stranger” or “unknown person” who seemed altogether trustworthy and decent but was found out too late to have ulterior motives. A famous, or infamous, example of this is recounted in Truman Capote’s

In Cold Blood

, the story of the murder of an entire well-to-do family by a couple of friendly, run-of-the-mill drifters. It is a concept unsettling enough to not shake the minuscule town of Holcomb, Kansas but also the country as a whole. There is something profoundly frightening in the unknown—in it lies the potential for unimaginable harm and irreversible damage to the balance of security. An individual can rob an entire town of its harmony and delicate web of trust, leaving it spiraling into the chaos of uncertainty and fear. Slide13

Good use of reasoning from a student

Despite that, in today’s society it is easily noticed that a special group of travelers known as tourists, found almost anywhere in the world, will act significantly different to the locale demographic, even to the point of appearing obnoxious. They have no care to take up residence or to hold and uphold a permanent status of high regard that they might at home. Strangers who judge will become nothing more than strangers whose judgments are forgotten, or deemed not-applicable, as human egotism likes to do. Being an independent traveler, an individual without ties to society, can invoke an almost perverse sense of utter freedom and unleash a disregard for all others. Nineteenth century German write Franz Kafka wrote, “You are free and that is why you are lost.” Being anonymous makes people more willing to do risky things. For example, or many examples really, take the Internet. People are more willing to be

outspoken,to

make snide remarks, to express what they feel they cannot express to the physical people around them. Many therefore choose to live more in the Blogosphere than in their physical setting. The anonymous mask lets them free themselves from the collective conscious that society has enforced.Slide14

How it is scored

9 -- convincing to an audience of educated adults

7 – effective

6 – adequate (good for high school)

5 – limited or uneven (not enough evidence/argument is not fully developed/ errors in logic)

4 – inadequate for a person who wants to be exempt from taking a college writing course (not logical, no evidence)

GOOD PAPERS RECOGNIZE COMPLEXITY OF THE ISSUE!Slide15

Grammar—Indefinite Pronoun

Singular: another, anybody, anyone, anything, each, either, everybody, everyone, everything, little, much, neither, nobody, no one, nothing, one, other, somebody, someone, something

Plural: both, few, many, others, several

Example: Everyone needs to bring his or her book tomorrow.

Example: Each person is responsible for his own actions.Slide16

Common Errors

Logic is too narrow. (Discussions about high school life, using common examples, and prejudice weaken argument.)

Heavy only on evidence (not enough logic/explanations)

Pronoun errors (You? One? Mixing them up.)

No examples or evidence (Use some

capital letters!)

Misreading the prompt (The prompt could date before 1900s. Remember this is essentially a reading test! Can you read the prompt and understand the question?)