NC 1102 The Position Paper

For this assignment, you are to write a position paper. The position paper requires you to establish a clear claim. You are to “draw a line in the

sand” and state your position. In your introduction, you should establish the problem or the importance of the issue by providing some

background information about the topic. Also, you should identify the people who are negatively impacted by this problem or issue. Towards

the end of your introduction you should establish a clear claim—your position. As you make your argument, you should consider your

opponent’s position, but your goal is to establish a claim and argue your point.

Select a topic from the below list:

1. Should state government ban capital punishment? 2. Should teenagers under the age of eighteen be allowed to play adult rated video games? 3. Should couples live together before marriage? 4. Should the U.S. government subsidize the newspaper industry? 5. Should local governments be allowed to use surveillance cameras in public areas? 6. Should convicted felons who have served their time have the right to vote in local, state, and national elections? 7. Should public schools be allowed to refuse admission to students who are not vaccinated? 8. Should police departments be defunded? 9. Should colleges and universities consider standardized test scores as part of the admission process? 10. Should all citizens be required to serve in the military for at least two years? 11. Should the identity of those arrested for felonious or heinous crimes remain anonymous until found guilty? 12. Should members of Congress have term limits? 13. Should the government ban breastfeeding in public places? 14. Should faculty and students be required to wear masks and other personal protective equipment (PPE) on a college campus? 15. Should American citizens receive free tuition to attend a public college or university? 16. Should federal elections be made a national holiday? 17. Should the government provide subsidies to encourage people to purchase electric cars? 18. Should trophy hunting be banned?

Research Component: I do want you to research at least four (4) sources (i.e., articles from magazines, scholarly journals, edited collections,

book chapters, official reports) for this assignment. Your sources should provide you with enough information about both sides of the

argument. Please locate at least two (2) of your sources via the TCC database. (No Wikipedia sources!)

http://tcc.fl.libguides.com/databases

*** Make sure your sources are credible and relevant to the topic.

MAKE SURE YOUR PAPER HAS A TITLE. YOUR TITLE IS NOT THE REWORDING OF THE PROMPT. YOUR TITLE SHOULD REFLECT YOUR THESIS,

OR THE PREMISE OF YOUR ESSAY!!!!!!!

Length: 3-5 pages

Other reminders: Font Times Roman / Size 12; Double Spaced; Include Page Numbers (top right corner of page); and NO COVER PAGE. Your first

page should look like this:

(Top left, some teachers might ask you to place it on top right and double space) Jane Doe (Your name) ENC 1102.Ref # (the class and the reference) K. Thompkins (my name) May 30, 2016 (Date the paper is due)

“If You Want to Feel Funky, Feel Free. But Please Don’t Spread that Funk on Me: Social Commentary in Today’s Comedy Routines” (Title of paper)

The beginning of your paper

http://tcc.fl.libguides.com/databases
Outline of a Position Essay

Below is a very general skeleton of what you should aim for in this argumentative essay:

Introduction (Remember, every essay should have some type of introduction) [1 to 3 Paragraphs]

• Your objective in this introduction is to grab your reader’s attention. In other words, encourage them to want to read your essay.

Please refer to the writing multiple leads handout.

• You should provide the historical significance of the debate.

• You should establish the context for your position by clearly defining the debate / conflict. Consider who is negatively impacted by

this problem.

• You should allude to the values or principles that form the basis of your position.

• Also, you should establish that there are different sides to this debate.

• Of course, you should establish your claim—STATE YOUR POSITION!

Body (Remember, I hate teaching formulaic writing, so I will give you a general outline of how one of your main points / grounds might be

argued.) [4 to 6 Paragraphs]

Main Point / Ground (What you do for this ground should be done for each ground you establish):

• You should be prepared to establish a ground and explain to your reader the significance of this ground as it relates to your claim

(position).

• You should be prepared to provide details (i.e., logical reasoning, evidence, data, and/or scholarship) to support the assertions you

make in each ground.

• You should use your research—those secondary sources—for better backing.

Conclusion [1 to 2 Paragraphs]

• Bring closure to your discussion.

• You might offer an alternative way to view your issue.

• You might reiterate what is wrong with your opponent’s position and what is right about yours.

Opposition’s Perspective

Because there are several ways you can introduce the opposition’s perspective in your essay, I will simply remind you to present the other

side somewhere in your essay. It’s very important that you discuss what your opponent says about the issue. Now, you can do this in each

ground section, you can present your opponent’s side in one paragraph after the introduction and proceed to argue your claim based on

your grounds, or you can present your opponent’s side near the end of your essay and provide a rebuttal and closing remarks in your

conclusion section.

Again, please include a Works Cited section at the end of the paper.Submission:i have already typed out a intro/thesis for this essay, i need 3 body paragraphs and a conclusion. The topic i chose was should trophy hunting be banned. 

the document named (position essay thesis) is attached below, feel free if you need to make any changes to the thesis if needed. This full final draft is due on the 5th but tonight july 2, i need at least the first paragraph to turn in to show my teacher im working on it for a grade. Also the file named (Position Essay) are the intructions, no need to choose a topic as i have already chosen one.