Assignment #5: Revision Assignment

DUE: Thurs., Dec. 4

20% of final grade
Your final paper will be a thesis-driven revision of any of the four previous assignments. You
can choose to revise, revisit, and/or refine your thesis, and/or to add data, research, points to back
up your argument; and respond to counterarguments. Revision is a rare opportunity to rethink
your previous assumptions.
The paper will be 6-7 pages (1400-1700 words), not including the Works Cited page, and will
draw evidence from at least five sources. If the original version of your essay did not include or
cite sources, much of your revision work might include research. These sources will be
adequately and appropriately documented in the MLA style.
Here are some questions to consider as you research and revise:

What is the question at issue that my thesis is answering?

Am I interested in this issue/topic? If not, choose another paper to revise, or revise the
paper so that you are interested in it.
Am I addressing an issue that my audience is likely to be passionate about? If not, can I
use that to my advantage in making my arument?
Is my audience most likely to agree or disagree with my research question and thesis?
How can I adjust the tone of my paper to anticipate or respond to my audiences
reaction?

Things to remember:

Include a Works Cited page in MLA format (look at the OWL page on Joule for tips)
EA is full of useful information about researching (395-416) and about how to make
different types of arguments. If youre revising the rhetorical analysis paper, for example,
look again at the section of EA that describes rhetorical analysis.
This is due very soon!

Revising your previous work can include:

Revising, reconsidering, and/or reworking your thesis in a broader or different context.

Considering more closely any questions that came up for you as you wrote your previous
paper. You might not know the answer to these questions, but thats what research and
paper-writing is all about.
Questioning some of the assumptions your previous paper makes.
Moving past personal opinion and into a social claim.
Moving past making a social/political claim and examining your own assumptions