Austin Peay State UniversityMW 9:05 and 11:15 AM; 12:20 PM
ENGL1010 Writing 1/Fall 2020Fridays—online assignments
Essay 4—Cause and Effect/Argument Due Friday, 13 November by D2L email
Essay 4 should be approximately four pages long (word processed papers are required). You may write more, if necessary, in order to develop your ideas and content more fully. Do the best you can to proofread and correct the paper before turning it in to be graded. Use Spell Check and Grammar Check but do not trust them completely—if necessary neat, clear last minute corrections of any errors or mistakes are acceptable.
How to Write Anything, chapter 5, describes cause and effect, a writing strategy that explains what did or might occur, discovering and laying out the connections as clearly and accurately. The paper can be a story of why something happened (the causes) or what is going to happen (the effects). Remember that a good essay must include details and information and that cause and effect may examine the past or the future, you are not limited to any particular sequence of events or time frame.
Cause and effect lends itself to writing an argument, an essay that makes a case for or against some idea or takes a position on a question or issue. TBR, chapter 3, gives an example of an argument essay on pages 70-76 and another on 92-95. This is not be a research paper—whatever you argue for or against is to be based on your own knowledge and experience. Although they are different, both essays have some points in common: both are organized and develop their thesis and evidence clearly ad logically. Use the format on the course syllabus or the MLA template.
Whatever your subject, think about the cause and effect or definition for a while before writing, or do a rough draft of the paper and then revise it.