Description

English 1102

Fall 2018

 

Location Critique Guidelines

 

Required length: 3-5 typed, double-spaced pages (not including the Works Cited page)

 

Format: 12 pt. / Times New Roman font, 1-inch margins, pages numbered in the upper-right                       corner with your last name and the page number, a heading on the first page that                  includes your name, the instructor’s name, English 1102, and the date; MLA citation                      style both in the text and the Works Cited page

 

NOTE: the MLA section of the Purdue OWL website includes a correctly-formatted                                 MLA style paper.

 

Due dates: Oct. 12 – completed essay draft due by 11:59 p.m. (upload to proper folder in Folio)

Oct. 15 – peer review (bring a copy of your essay to class)

Oct. 20 – feedback reflection due by 11:59 p.m. (upload to proper folder in Folio)

Oct. 26 – revised essay due by 11:59 p.m. (upload to proper folder in Folio)

 

**Your document must be a Microsoft Word (.doc or .docx) file.**

 

**As stated on the syllabus, I do not accept late or incomplete essay drafts. An incomplete essay is an essay that is not at least three FULL pages in length.

 

**Late essay revisions will be penalized one letter grade for each calendar day they are late. Thus, a revised essay submitted after 11:59 p.m. on Oct. 26 is technically one calendar day late.

 

Assignment

This assignment requires that you visit a museum, public library, mall, or community / recreation center of your choosing in either Hinesville, Richmond Hill, Savannah, or Statesboro (nearby cities such as Midway and Pooler can count as well). Your task is to note specific characteristics of your selected place (see below for details) and then compose a 3-5 page essay that analyzes the place and makes an argument about its utility (or usefulness / value) for its audience.

 

Your selected place may not be affiliated Georgia Southern University. If you are unsure as to whether your selected place will work, please ask me.

 

Visiting your selected place

A major key to success on this assignment is having detailed notes about the place you decide to visit. Thus, when visiting your selected place, you might consider some or all of the following issues:

• Atmosphere and aesthetics – is the place relatively peaceful and relaxing, or is it hectic? What about the noise level? Is the place aesthetically appealing, or is it not particularly attractive or welcoming? Does the place look clean or dirty? Does the staff appear friendly and enthusiastic about serving visitors?

• Clientele – who is using / visiting this place? Is the place family-friendly, or is it catered toward an adult audience? Are most of the visitors young? Old? Is the crowd more mixed? Is the crowd diverse in terms of race and gender? Do visitors appear friendly? Hostile? In a hurry? What are visitors doing in your selected place?
• Space / accessibility – is the place easy to navigate, or is it difficult to move around? Is there plenty of space, or is the venue cramped or crowded? Can individuals with wheelchairs, walkers, or crutches access the place? Is there adequate parking available? Can the place be accessed via public transportation? How do different components of the place contribute to its overall function?
• Priorities – based on your observations, what are the top priorities of your selected place?

 

Composing the essay

Your essay must include:

• An engaging opening paragraph that uses the first few sentences to draw readers into the paper, introduces the name of your selected place and its address, offers a brief overview of the place, and finishes with a clear, assertive, and contestable thesis statement about the place’s utility (or usefulness / value) for its audience.
• Some background information on (or history of) your selected place. Specifically, you will need to cite 1-2 reliable, primary sources about the place (i.e. brochures, pamphlets, information available on the location’s website). Do not use questionable sources like Wikipedia, TripAdvisor, or Yelp.
• A sustained analysis of your selected place—one that supports the claim you make in your thesis statement. In your analysis, you should go beyond only describing what you observed and discuss what is significant about your observations.
• A counterargument
• A conclusion that re-emphasizes your main argument and answers the “so what?” question.

 

Evaluation Criteria

Format and citations

• The document is correctly formatted as requested in the instructions (proper font/font size, proper heading, correctly-labeled pages, 1-inch margins, double-spaced).
• The essay fulfills the length requirement of 3-5 FULL pages.
• The essay features an interesting title (“Essay 2” or “Location Critique” is unacceptable).
• In-text citations are correctly documented in MLA style. The essay also includes an MLA-style Works Cited page with proper source citations.

 

Opening paragraph

• The essay offers an engaging opening paragraph that orients readers to the topic under discussion. This paragraph introduces the name and address of the author’s selected place.
• At the end of the opening paragraph, the author offers a clear, assertive, and contestable thesis statement about the place’s utility (or usefulness / value) for its audience

 

Analysis and argument

• The essay provides a sustained analysis of the author’s selected place—one that supports the claim the author makes in the thesis statement. The essay goes beyond only describing what the author observed and discusses what is significant about the author’s observations.
• The author successfully acknowledges and responds to a counterargument.
• The essay finishes with a concluding paragraph that briefly re-emphasizes the essay’s major argument/claims and also answers the “so what?” question: why should readers care about the argument you just advanced? Why is this analysis important?

 

Writing

• The essay exhibits a clear organization, structure, and coherent flow of ideas, including smooth transitions between paragraphs.
• Each paragraph begins with a topic sentence that articulates the main idea of the paragraph.
• The essay is well-edited. It is free of errors in grammar, spelling, syntax, and mechanics.
• The essay avoids empty words such as very, truly, and really.
• The essay is written from the third-person point of view.

 

Get Homework Help Now