For Essay II, I am asking you to begin your research project by locating at least three (at most five)  pieces of informative or argumentative writing related to your topic.  The purpose of this essay is to synthesize the various views on your topic into a thesis.  You will then summarize, paraphrase and/or quote from the articles to support your synthesis thesis.  Although at its most basic level a synthesis involves combining two or more summaries, synthesis writing is more difficult than it might at first appear because this combining must be done in a meaningful way and the final essay you write must be thesis-driven.  In other words, a main point about your subject must emerge from the process of synthesizing your sources.

A good set of research questions to begin your project:

What do the various sources generally agree upon re: my topic?  Where are the points of disagreement?  How might I articulate the full complexity of the controversy surrounding my topic?

Your answer to one or more of these questions (depending upon your topic) should provide you with a thesis for Essay II.

All quotations and paraphrased references to sources must be cited in accordance with MLA (parenthetical citation).  Please keep quotations short and relevant (no longer than 3 lines of text).  Your final draft must contain a complete Works Cited page for all sources.

Your proposal should contain the Works Cited info. for the sources you will be synthesizing.  In addition, please write a short paragraph for each source explaining why you chose these particular works to include in your research project.

As with Essay I, this essay should be 750-1500 words and in MLA format.