Instructions: Toulmin argument.

This essay should be between 900 and 1000 words, excluding the required annotated bibliography.

The Toulmin essay will help you practice what you have learned so far in this course. First, you will choose a topic of interest. Make sure that you choose a topic with two opposing sides. Then, you need to research that topic in order to specify the topic’s scope, so it can be easily discussed in 1000 word essay.

This essay must include a minimum of five sources. Three should be peer-reviewed sources.

This video will hopefully clarify the term, “peer-reviewed”: http://youtu.be/rOCQZ7QnoN0. You may also use primary sources (interviews, statistics, etc); however, these primary sources should be obtained from experts within that field.

Note: Consider your audience as laymen in the field with only general knowledge of your topic.

Make sure to include the following sections in your essay:

an introduction and claim,
background,
body,
and a conclusion.

Within the body of your essay, make sure to include the following in any order:

support for your claim,
opposing or alternate views,
the strengths and weaknesses of your opponents’ claims,
and your rebuttals of their claims.

Please make sure your essay is written in third person.

The Annotated Bibliography

An annotated Bibliography (AB) is due with your Toulmin essay. Using the MLA guide, list each source as it will appear on the Works Cited page of your essay. Summarize each source in two or three grammatically-correct sentences. These short summaries are the “annotations.”