GENERAL COMPOSITION TIPS:
-as always, make sure to be specific in your responses…SHOW the reader rather than just TELL the reader! This especially comes into play if you select a prompt below that involves some amount of personal narrative, and many of them do. Make sure to be vivid and specific in relating your experiences.
-make sure you have a thesis to your presentation that gives it purpose and focus, and that makes an argument…what are you trying to prove to your reader with this discussion? Statements like “bad words offend a lot of people” or “racial slurs are common, but people shouldn’t use them” aren’t really thesis statements, because they’re pretty much common knowledge…what is your original thought on the matter that you are wishing to impress upon the reader, one that someone else could reasonably argue against/disagree with?
-focus your paragraphs; if you find yourself writing a huuuuuge paragraph, it’s not necessarily a bad thing, but more often than not it can lose a reader within its vastness; consider breaking up huge paragraphs into smaller, more focused ones; further, make sure all paragraphs work toward supporting your thesis!
WORKS CITED PAGE: Yes, you need one. Include a works cited page with this essay, much like you did with the last one; include your Exploring Language articles properly, as well as any sources that you look for on your own. YouTube videos should be cited as well. A guide on how to do so is here. No, the works cited page does not count for your number of pages.
CAN I USE “BAD WORDS?” Since we are talking about sensitive types of words and word use here, you may indeed type out “bad words” and racial slurs and so on in your paper if you wish. If you prefer to avoid direct use of such words, eliminating letters is fine too, but do make sure you are being pretty specific in your discussion and not relying entirely upon phrasing like “words that might offend people” or “a racist term I don’t want to say” all the way through; that’s pretty vague. Be more specific, at whatever your comfort level is for such discussions. You won’t offend me, honest.
USE OF SOURCES: As you respond to a writing prompt from below, you must use at least one of “my” sources as a significant part of your paper, and you must also look up one additional source (or more) of your own. I will not give you an arbitrary number of quotes you must use, but make sure you quote from sources in a meaningful way as you support and analyze your topic. Your choice of sources also comes into play in the section below this one. Read on!
Prompt – 2. Comment on the use of politically correct language, responding in part to Kakutani’s “The Word Police.” What do you feel is an appropriate level of politeness with language? When does politically correct language become too much? Do you agree with or disagree with the choices made by the test review board in “Language Police”? Have you ever struggled with politically correct language use? Have you been successful in using it? Do you refuse to use it? Note that none of our sources cover more modern politically correct terms that are out there now, such as “Latinx,” “womxn,” the use of gender neutral pronouns like “ze,” “sie,” “hir,” “co,” and “ey”…perhaps you wish to discuss these. You could even discuss terms some consider “speciesist,” such as ones PETA has recently posted. Argue a point about the use of politically correct language.
Make sure to use sources that I provided.
https://www.newsweek.com/mind-your-tongue-young-man-189680