Problem Analysis

The purpose of this essay is to identify and analyze a significant cultural or societal problem. First, you will explore and consider various viewpoints on an issue question through reading, researching, and writing. This exploration will include three elements: your perspective, your classmates’ perspectives, and the perspectives of various authors of articles you have read. Then you will craft a specific thesis in regard to the issue question, utilizing academic resources to support your position and to explore various perspectives of the issue. Finally, you will propose a possible solution or solutions to the problem.

Topic: Poverty
Issue Questions/Focus Points:The word poverty’ usually creates imagines of unkempt individuals with no jobs sleeping on city streets or living in homeless shelters. However, many American families who struggle to survive financially each month as they stretch low incomes to cover their food, housing, and daily expenses are also classified as living in poverty. With that in mind, what circumstances, such as economical, ethnographic, or educational, might contribute to a family falling into poverty? What effects does poverty have on certain populations, such as children or women? Can you identify any actions individuals, groups, or the American government could take to alleviate poverty in communities? You should not try to answer all of these questions in your essay. Choose one area on which to focus your paper on poverty and craft your thesis statement.

Characteristics of the Problem Analysis Essay

A successful essay
€¢ provides an engaging introduction that offers the reader some background information on this problem.
€¢ presents a thesis that offers a sophisticated and nuanced understanding of this problem.
€¢ supports the thesis through well-developed paragraphs that are organized strategically.
€¢ presents an objective stance by the use of third-person voice.
€¢ includes specific details and evidence with regard to the problem.
€¢ correctly integrates quotations and conforms to MLA documentation and format guidelines.

Process

Reading and Pre-Writing
Much of your work in writing this essay will take place before you begin writing a first draft. The very first thing to do is to engage a sense of whole literacy by combining reading and writing in order to explore your initial feelings/views regarding a potential topic. Follow this plan:

€¢ Read and annotate Chapter 32, 318-322, Analyzing Causes and Effects and Chapter 46, 457-461, Synthesizing Ideas in The Norton Field Guide to Writing (NFGW). As you read, make summary and critical notes.

€¢ Read Peter Singer, The Singer Solution to World Poverty, 902-908, and Eleanor Bader, Homeless on Campus, 693-697.As you read, make summary and critical notes, write down interesting quotes, and be on the lookout for interesting points from the texts which you might address in your essay. Label these Reading Notes. Note: For further readings on the topic of poverty, check out Diana George, Changing the Face of Poverty, 667-676 and Joseph Stiglitz, Of the 1%, by the 1%, for the 1%, 746-757.

€¢ Once you have settled on a topic, write for at least five minutes about your related viewpoints, biases, observations, and experiences; this might help you begin to find a focus question. Label this free-writing My View.

Researching
Locate, read, evaluate, and take notes on at least two secondary sources for developing your argument, including one source accessed from the TCC Library.

Drafting
Using your above notes, try to write a rough draft of your essay. Read Chapter 25, Drafting 266-268, in NFGW.

Important Due Dates
1) Meet in the library, Room 265, on Wednesday, February 19, during class time, to work on finding sources for this paper.
2) Submit a summary of your sources, Friday, February 21. Continue to draft. Various paragraphs due between February 21 and March 7.
3) Rough draft due on Friday, March 7. Bring a typed copy of your rough draft for peer review.
4) Final draft due Friday, March 21.

Your essay should be a minimum of 1000 words, typed, double-spaced, 12 pt font, written in Times New Roman with 1-inch margins. You must cite all sources in-text and on a Works Cited page, using MLA format. If you have any questions please feel free to email me! You must submit your paper to Safe Assign on the day the paper is due.