General Topic: (Re)Defining “The American Dream” for the 21-st Century
What is a Synthesis?

If anything confuses a student when writing an essay like this, it is the actual term “synthesis.”

Don’t worry too much about the term; instead, see what you are doing as arguing a position with

a variety of sources to help you. What you want to do in this essay is show that you can sustain a

logical and persuasive argument, and control sources and their use to your persuasive end. Try to

have your secondary sources have a “dialogue” with each other in terms of what they do and do

not agree with in relation to your argued position(s).

The Assignment

General Topic: (Re)Defining “The American Dream” for the 21-st Century

Each of the four writers in this section addresses, even peripherally, even indirectly, something

to do with “The American Dream.” For this assignment, compose a 5-7-page essay—an

argumentative synthesis using a specific, arguable thesis that you construct on your own; it must

relate to the readings in the chapter that we have been reading (“Business and Economy”). You

may wish to extend the argument of one of the readings, or refute it, or build on it in a different

way. Do not simply argue that a certain reading or author is right and repeat how so; instead, use

the readings as a springboard for you to investigate a topic and put together ideas in new or

different ways.

Structural Notes

Your Introduction should mention the general topic and the purpose of your essay/what idea(s)

you plan to defend.

Rather than merely summarizing the textbook essays / outside sources in entirety, use these, as

necessary, to support and advance your own, original project / thesis / claim /set of claims.

1 Note: This assignment sheet is adapted from a similar project assigned by Dr. Rich Miller, Director of

Composition, Suffolk University Department of English.

Required Sources—at least 5 in total…

You should make use of 3 of the 4 sources in this unit:

Diaz, “The Money: Starting Out” (384-386)

Krugman, “The Death of Horatio Alger” (387-390)

Reich, “Why the Rich Are Getting Richer” (404-415)

Ehrenreich, “Nickel and Dimed” (395-402)

…and 2 outside sources. Note: these can be scholarly journal articles, book-length studies, or

reputable websites. Remember to test for accuracy, relevance, representation, and adequacy.

Using the Key Texts

SHOW and TELL!! Remember to use quoted material directly and appropriately. Use They

Say/I Say as a resource to this end…

The Internet

The Internet is a terrible place. If you must go there, don’t steal from it. If you would like to

conduct some “research,” plan to cite / give credit accordingly. A friendly reminder: if you

plagiarize in any way—especially by way of “copying and pasting” (without giving proper

credit)—you will receive a zero on this assignment and automatically fail this course. No

exceptions; don’t try me.

Paper Specifics

• Style: Thesis-Driven***

• Adhere to MLA Format

• Font: Times New Roman

• Size: 12 pt.

• 1” Margins All Around

• Double-Spaced Throughout

• Last Name and Page Number in Upper-Right-Hand Corner of Each Page

• Heading in Upper-Left-Hand Corner (*heading should be double-spaced, too):

• Name

• Prof. Scala

• WRI 102

• 17 October 2014

• An interesting title (not “Paper 2” or “Synthesis” or something equally boring)

• Include a Works Cited Page

• Length: about 5-7 pages (note: 250-300 words equals approx. 1 typewritten page)

[order_calculator]

Page Navigation