Please read the questions carefully before you begin to write your essay. You may refer to any textbooks or other information for help with the exam. However, you do not need to include a Works Cited page. Choose Option A, B, or C

 
Please read the questions carefully before you begin to write your essay. You may refer to any textbooks or other information for help with the exam. However, you do not need to include a Works Cited page. Choose Option A, B, or C (below). Your exam will be automatically checked for similarity using Turnitin.com once you submit it.
Regardless of which option you choose, your essay should be 500 to 1,000 words in length. Your essay needs five or more paragraphs (an opening paragraph, three or more supporting paragraphs, and a concluding paragraph). The essay must have a TITLE and a THESIS STATEMENT. You should support your thesis statement with direct quotations, paraphrase, examples, facts, and/or other evidence. You may wish to use one or more prewriting techniques to generate ideas before you begin. Good Luck!
OPTION A: Write a PERSUASIVE ESSAY on one of the following pieces from our reading list. Do you agree or disagree with the author’s thesis or theme? Why do you agree or disagree? Please use evidence from the essay itself to support your opinions. In addition to thesis or theme, you should mention two or more of the following elements in your essay: anecdote, hook, topic sentence, main point, support, appeal, and conclusion.
A. Shulman, “Love is a Fallacy” (Barnet 355-362)
B. Takaki, “The Harmful Myth of Asian Superiority” (Barnet 122-123)
C. Machiavelli, “From The Prince” (Barnet 643-649)
D. Brady, “I Want a Wife” (Barnet 729-731)
E. Orwell, “Shooting an Elephant” (Canvas)
F. King, “Letter from Birmingham Jail” (Canvas).
G. Wade, “Professors’ Pet Peeves” (handout)
OPTION B: Write a COMPARISON ESSAY in which you discuss the similarities between the two of the pieces listed above. How are the theses or themes (“implicit or recurrent ideas”) of these essays similar? In addition to thesis or theme, you must discuss two or more of the following ELEMENTS in your essay: anecdote, hook, topic sentence, main point, support, appeal, and conclusion.
OPTION C: Write an ANALYSIS ESSAY about one of the pieces listed above. What is the thesis or major theme (“implicit or recurrent idea”) of the essay? How does the author use the essay’s other elements to communicate this thesis or theme to the reader? Please use examples from the essay to support your points. In addition to thesis or theme, you must discuss two or more of the following ELEMENTS in your essay: anecdote, hook, topic sentence, main point, support, appeal, and conclusion.

 
Extra Credit Assignment (worth +5% added to your Midterm Exam grade):
Over 2,000 years ago the Greek philosopher Aristotle argued that there were three basic ways to persuade an audience of your position: ethos, logos, and pathos. After reading Emily Andrews’s essay “Why I Don’t Spare ‘Spare Change’” (Barnet 239-240), consider the ways in which she supports her arguments. Write examples of the ethos, logos, and/or pathos appeals (quoting directly from Andrews). Please write 1 or more sentences and indicate which paragraph you got each passage from. You may write your extra credit response in the same document as your Midterm Exam or upload it as a separate file.

Ethos: The Writer’s Character or Image：

 
Logos: Logical Arguments：

Pathos: The Emotions of the Audience：