Your task in this essay is to summarize and synthesize the three readings in your assigned week:
you should provide a detailed explanation of each reading in the essay by devoting
about 2 paragraphs to each reading (i.e., approximately 3 pages of summary). Your summary
should include an overview of main points of the reading, the author’s aims, their conclusions,
and any key quotes/insights from the reading.
after summarizing the individual readings, you should discuss how the readings are in
conversation with one another by synthesizing 2-3 themes that have emerged from all of the
readings. Each theme should consist of about 2 paragraphs (i.e., approximately 2-3 pages of
synthesis). Each theme should incorporate two, if not all three readings, and all of the readings
must be represented somewhere in your synthesis sections.
Summary is not synthesis. To synthesize readings, you should ask yourself: Where do the
arguments of each reading overlap? Where do they diverge? Are they agreeing with each
other? Disagreeing? What theories and concepts do they draw on, and are those theories
similar in some way? Are they opposed to each other? How does one reading enhance
your understanding of the other readings when taken together?
The synthesis section of your essay should be organized by theme, not reading-byreading.
Indeed, a sign of synthesis is when all three readings have been incorporated into
a paragraph discussing how they are similar/dissimilar, or where they connect.
READINGS AND COURSE CONTENT The primary requirement of this essay is that you incorporate all three readings for your assigned section. These readings may, however, connect with course content and other articles from the class. If your synthesis of the three readings takes you in a direction where you feel it is logical to include some other course readings, concepts, or theories, then you may incorporate them into your discussion (although, this is of secondary importance to synthesizing the three main readings). You may not use outside sources for this assignment, as the point is to work with course texts.
GRADING Your essay will be graded on the quality of your writing, the organization of the essay, the accuracy of your summaries, and the insightfulness of your synthesis. Traditional essay elements such as thesis statement, introduction and conclusion, word choice, topic and transition sentences, and essay flow will all be considered when determining your grade.
FORMATTING
Formatting details should be followed precisely, and points will be deducted for papers that do not adhere to the following guidelines:
that your paper is not long enough, simply write more. Also, if you think you will need more
than 6 pages to write this essay, please check with me ahead of time.
the date, and the title of your paper, all single-spaced. Your header should not take up too much
“white space” at the top of the first page.
are indented within the paragraph itself, single-spaced, justified margins, and in 10 or 11-point
font
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