Business Letter Format

Your Return Address
Your City, CO zip

Date [write out either like June 4, 2013 or 4 June 2013]

First and Last Name of the Person to whom you are writing                                                             
(if appropriate, the person’s title)

(if their title was included, this next line should be the organization or company name)
Address
City, ST zip

Dear Mr./Ms. Person: [note the colon]

Times have changed, and indentations for paragraphs are usually not used because it is easier not to use them. The body paragraphs should be single spaced in a business letter.  Can you tell that business letters are in ELEVEN POINT font? They are. You should double space between paragraphs when your letter contains more than one paragraph.  Most business letters have a direct structure: your claim should appear early in the letter (right here at the end of the first paragraph is a good place).

In the second paragraph in a standard business letter, you will want to give specific examples. This is the main body paragraph of a business letter—it should prove your point. For the purpose of the proposal argument however, you will have a number of body paragraphs; each paragraph will prove its own supporting reason (thus building your argument).  When you use an outside source, introduce it in the body of your sentence:  The Purdue Online Writer’s Workshop argues that a good business letter will clearly make its points and support them. 

It is common practice to close your letter with a reiteration of your call to action. Be sure to thank him/her for his/her time and efforts on your behalf. This is a respectful way of closing your letter.

Sincerely,

[four-five spaces so that your signature may fit here; BE SURE TO SIGN THE FINAL DRAFT]

Sally Student

[NOTE: your name appears only at the end of the letter]

Sentence Combining #3

This is a two part exersise: first combine the following sentences (you may want to review the worksheet that defines and explains participal/appositive/absolute structures); then write an imitation of the sentence you produce using your own content but keeping the structure the same.  This is not designed to be practice making compound sentences (two complete sentences joined by a conjuction), it is an opportunity to rework language-- playing with it like a jig-saw puzzle.

1. He paused.  He was puffing noisily.

2.   Craig was calm now. He was at peace.

Now combine the following sentences into one by putting the underlined parts into the first sentence.  Decide where the parts fit most smoothly into the first sentence.  Add commas to punctuate the parts you insert into the first sentence.  Finally, write an imitation of the sentence you produce, using your own content but the structure of that sentence.

3.   Aunt Dorothy was waiting at the front door with her own small daughter.  Aunt             Dorothy was tall and bony.  Her daughter was Diane. (Robert Lipsyte, The Contender)

4.     There was a huge moulting stuffed moose head.  It was in the dining hall.  It was over the stone fireplace that was never used.  The moose head was something which looked somehow carnivorous.   (Margaret Atwood, Wilderness Tips)

5.     Perhaps an elderly gentleman lived there.  He lived there alone.  He was someone who had known her grandfather.  He was someone who had visited the Parrs in London.     (Joyce Carol Oates, The Doll)

6.     The lawyer lay on an old Army cot.  The cot was in the closed anteroom.  It was one he kept there for naps.  There was a newspaper folded over his face as though he were a corpse being protected from flies.        (Frank Bonham, Chief)

Major Essay #3

English 1010

Summer 2016

Major Essay Assignment 3: Proposal Argument

Word Requirement: approx. 1,000

Assignment

Take a position on a specific topic related to you.  Be sure to include the key features of proposal arguments from the readings; you must meet these objectives in order to satisfy the goals of this assignment.

For this paper, you will use business letter format and address your essay to a specific person, business or organization in order to effect change.  Make certain you are addressing an appropriate audience for your paper.  This audience must have the power to enact the change you are proposing!  Choose wisely. 

Your final draft in the portfolio must include a stamped, addressed envelope for mailing (or it will not meet this rubric and be returned to you). 

Sources

Your paper may include a citation that supports your argument.   

Because you are writing a letter, you will simply include the source within the sentence.  For example:

Craig R. Dean is quoted in Everything’s an Argument as stating, “Marriage is more than a piece of paper.”  Dean goes on to argue that the US should allow gay marriage.

Furthermore, if you use an outside source, you must create a Works Cited page for the grading copy of your essay.

Mechanics

All drafts must be typed in 11-point Times New Roman, with 1” margins, using business letter format.  Refer the business letter format for a template of  how your paper may look; bearing mind that although this is a one-page example, your letter will be at least two pages long.  Refer to the syllabus for “A Paper” criteria.   Papers with multiple mechanical errors may be returned without comments and with a grade of F. 

Grading Criteria

A well-constructed Proposal Argument will achieve the following:

·       Adhere to the assignment requirements as outlined on this page.

·       Contain the Key Features of Proposals outlined in the readings.

·       Take a position through a clearly-stated claim.

·       Consider the opposition’s viewpoint.

·       Present sufficient evidence.

·       Take a unique and fresh angle on the topic.

·       Establish your ethos

·       Evoke an emotional response

·       Be correctly formatted and exhibit few mechanical errors.

Proposal Readings

What example of a proposal do you remember from the readings?  What is its claim?  What were the reasons?  What are warrants?

Guide to Writing Proposals

A stong proposal will start by making a strong and clear claim; it will then go on to show that the proposal meets a need or solves a problem; it will further present good reasons why adopting the proposal will effectively address the need or problem; show that the proposal is feasible and should therefore be adopted.

Begin with a claim (what X or Y should do) followed by the reasons(s) why X or Y should act and the effects of adopting the proposal:

Claim        Communities should encourage the development of charter schools

Reason       because they are not burdened by the bureaucracy associated with most

                   public schooling, and

Effects        because instituting such schools will bring more effective educational

       progress to the community and offer a positive incentive to the public schools

       to improve their programs as well.

Having established a claim, you can explore its implications by drawing out the reasons, warrants, and evidence that can support it most effectively:

Claim      Congress should pass a bill legalizing the use of marijuana for medical

    purposes.

Reason     Medical marijuana is an effective pain reliever for millions suffering from

      cancer and AIDS.  

Warrant     The relief of intractable chronic pain is desirable.

Evidence    Nine states have already approved the use of cannabis for medical purposes,

     and referendums are planned in many others.  Evidence gathered in large

      double blind studies demonstrates that marijuana relives pain associated with      cancer and AIDS.

In this proposal argument the reason sets up the need for the proposal, whereas the warrant and evidence demonstrate that the proposal is just and could meet its objective.

Here are a couple of helpful hints as you start to think about your proposal topic:

• Establishing that the need or problem exists is one of the most important tasks the writer of a proposal argument faces.  You may choose to introduce the need or problem early as a way of leading up the your claim, or you may put the need right after your introduction as a major reason for adopting the proposal.  Regardless of the organization structure you choose, the task of establishing a need or problem calls on you to (a) paint a picture of the need/problem in a concrete way, (b) show how the need or problem affects the audience for the argument (and possibly the society at large), and (c) explain why the need or problem is significant.
• Showing that the proposal is workable is a critical part of a proposal.  Demonstrating workability calls on you to present more evidence—from similar cases, from personal experience, from observational data, internet, or other research.  It will help your case if you can show that what you propose can indeed be done (with the available resources).

Developing Proposals

Finding a Topic

Your everyday experience calls on you to make proposals all the time; for example, to spend the weekend snowboarding or doing some other much-loved sport, to change your academic major for some very important reason, or to add to the family income by starting a small, home-based business.  In addition, your community group work or your job may require you to make proposals—to the boss, a board of directors, the local school board, someone you want to impress—the list could go on and on.  Of course, you also have many opportunities to make proposals to online groups—with email one click away, the whole world could be an audience for your proposal.  In all these cases, you will be aiming to call for action: so why not make an informal list of proposals you’d like to explore in a number of different areas?  Or do some freewriting on a subject of great interest to you and see if it leads to a proposal? Either method of exploration is likely to turn up several possibilities for a good proposal argument.

Researching Your Topic

Proposals often call for some research.  Even a sample one like “Let’s all paint the house this weekend” would raise questions that require some investigation: Who has the time for the job? What sort of paint will be the best? How much will the job cost?  A proposal that your university adopt an open-enrollment system would call for careful research into evidence supporting the use of such a system.    Where has it been effective, and why?  And for proposals about social issues (for example, that information on the Internet be freely accessible to everyone, even youngsters), extensive research would be necessary to provide sufficient support.  For many proposals, you can begin your research by consulting the following types of sources:

• Newspapers, magazines, reviews, an journals
• Online databases
• Government documents and reports
• Websites and listservs
• Books
• Experts in the field, some of whom might be right on campus
• Field research: survey of student opinion; interviews with well-informed people

Formulating a Claim

As you think about and explore your topic, begin formulating a claim about it.  To do so, come up with a clear and complete thesis that makes a proposal and states the reasons why this proposal should be followed.  To get started on formulating a claim, explore and respond to the following questions:

• What do I know about the proposal I am making?
• What reasons can I offer to support my proposal?
• What evidence do I have that implementing my proposal will lead to the results I want?

Preparing a Proposal

State the thesis of your proposal completely.  If you are having trouble doing so, tryk outlining it in terms of the following:

• Claim:
• Reasons:
• Warrants (statement, which could be expressed or implied,  that establishes the logical connection between the claim and its supporting reasons):

Explain why your proposal is important.  What is at stake in taking, or not taking , the action you propose?

Identify and describe those readers you most hope to reach with your proposal.  Why is this group of readers most appropriate for your proposal? What are their main interests in the subject?

Briefly discuss the major difficulties you foresee in preparing your argument.  Demonstrating that the action you propose is necessary?  Demonstrating that it is workable?  Moving the audience beyond agreement to action?  Something else?

List the research you need to do.  What kinds of sources do you expect to consult?

Note that the format of the assignment is a formal business letter.  What tone do you need for this genre?  Any special information?

Think about Organization

Proposals, which can take many forms, generally include the following elements:

• A clear and strong proposal, including the reasons for taking the action proposed and the effects that taking this action will have. Our neighborhood should establish a “Block Watch” program that will help reduce break-ins and vandalism, and involve our kids in building neighborhood pride.
• A clear connection between the proposal and a significant need or problem.  Break-ins and vandalism have been on the rise in our neighborhood for the last three years.
• A demonstration of ways in which the proposal addresses the need.  Block Watch establishes a rotating monitor system for the streets in a neighborhood and a voluntary plan to watch out for others’ homes.
• Evidence that the proposal will achieve the desired outcome.  Block Watch programs in three other local areas have significantly reduced break-ins and vandalism. 
• Consideration of alternative ways to achieve the desired outcome, and a discussion of why these are not preferable.  We could ask for additional police presence, but funding would be hard to get.
• A demonstration that the proposal is workable and practical.  Because Block Watch is voluntary, our own determination and commitment are all we need to make it work.

Short Essay #3

Short Essay #3

Audience Analysis

How do you write an effective proposal?  Recognizing what will appeal to your audience is the first step.  The key to a proposal argument is knowing the motivations of your audience.  In about 200 words identify who your audience of your proposal is and what their motivations are. 

Guidelines: For this one-page essay, pick apart your audience (this is an analysis!).  This audience should be an individual, not a vague group.  Think about what motivates this person, what will convince him or her to put your change into effect.  You could do a little research to find out some background information on them. Decide what parts of your argument will be most effective at making this audience take your side.

Think about these questions as you start to compose this one-page essay.    

• Who are they? (Really try to imagine this person—their daily routine, the people they are around all day, the types of requests they regularly see—and use this picture as a launching point for this analysis.)
• What tone will they respond to best (informal or formal? Obsequious? Concerned?) 
• Why would they want to affect the change you will propose? (For this paper, don’t focus on the proposal—that’s the major essay—think about what would influence this person to take your side. This short essay is talking about the person and their motivations, maybe their counter arguments.) 
• What counter arguments will they likely offer? Can you answer these?

After completing this short essay you should consider the following questions (before you begin drafting the major essay):  does your proposal still seem workable (that is, a change these people are likely to enact); can you change your proposal to meet their needs; can you predict the audience’s counter argument to your proposal?