Project 3 Reflection

This last project, the argumentative essay, addressed one of the most difficult topics in

modern society: the moral controversy surrounding abortion, using a fetus’s personhood status as

the main backdrop for the arguments. I believe I skillfully handled the topic of abortion within

the paper’s parameters and used rational arguments to reach a logical conclusion. For the rough

draft, I decided to use the Rogerian-style argument because I believed that it perfectly displayed

the issue’s traditional, two-sided argument. I introduced the topic and its relevance in the first,

two paragraphs and outlined the pro-choice’s argument and background in the two paragraphs

that followed. After that, I presented the argument and background of my pro-life argument and

provided the benefits which follow that argument. I concluded the paper by reviewing the main

points of both arguments and showing, by logical precession, one argument as the victor. I

thought that the rough draft was one of the strongest that I had written: I was wrong. Through

peer reviewing, I learned that my conclusion, which tried to create a compromise between the

two arguments, was very weak, and needed a complete makeover. When I eventually had my

writing conference, my teacher informed me that one of the benefits for my pro-life argument

was not universally applicable, and therefore would be a weaker argument to include, especially

since it was in a paragraph that was intended to convince others to consider the pro-life stance.

He also informed me of many other issues; which included inefficient use of quotes, misused

terminology, irrelevant wordage, and a disregard for other, more ambiguous arguments. During

my own revision time I accepted all of the critiques and even made some of my own edits, and I

began to learn even more about myself as a writer. When it came to my final draft, I had made

major changes concerning the appeal to my audience (my focus), the rationale of my argument,

and the effectiveness. However, these changes made my paper stronger and more cohesive in the
end, and I felt confident with my final product. As I reflect on this writing process, the most

prevalent problem with my writing was that I tended to dismiss the other facets of a difficult

subject. I have learned now that if I start focusing on the more ambiguous aspects of an issue, I

can strengthen my point of view by showing that I can reasonably respond to harder scenarios in

an argument. I am glad that I have experienced this writing project and learned even more about

the way I handle information.