Project 2 Outline

I've completed my outline for Project 2 in pursuit of beginning a first draft.  While outlining, I had to take into account how to structure each paragraph, and what to include in the overall essay.

PublicDomainPictures. "Water Drop, Rain, Falling, Pouring."
2013 via Pixabay. Public Domain License.

Knowing that I couldn't cover everything in my essay may seem basic, but it was a good realization to start at.  It can be hard for me to narrow things down to a manageable amount, but I picked out the most important arguments and aspects of my article, as the thesis guidelines instructed.  First I had to just look what was effective and what wasn't effective.  I could tell these things kind of instinctively, without thinking about the strategies used.  As just an ordinary reader, I could figure out what was convincing and what wasn't, without thinking about why or how.  Based on that, I thought about what images/parts stuck with me, and decided to focus on those.

For my introduction, I used the advice of incorporating background information, because my topic is only somewhat popular.  Taking just a few sentences to explain the current water situation and CA's drought situation will help my readers orient themselves.  I also want to add some definitions to some basic terms and ideas.  With my thesis I mainly stuck with the one I had written before, changing it slightly to make sure it was clear what my stance was.

I evaluated whether my claim was debatable and supportable, as Writing Public Lives discussed.  I first had to look at the claim I was making, and then decide if someone could agree or disagree with it.  It was important to distinguish the facts from the rhetoric, because no one can argue that Lake Mead water levels are dropping: that's a fact.  Instead, I argue that Barnett was mostly effective in conveying what she intended to, but her argument was hindered by the fact she didn't connect water solutions to the reader.

For the body paragraphs, I had to decide how to organize and what to include in each paragraph.  I followed the chronological order of Barnett's article, building on top of previous arguments/strategies, because that made the most sense.  Like Writing Public Lives pointed out, as well as Student's Guide, having a paragraph devoted to only one type of appeal didn't form a very cohesive or logical essay.

The conclusion I actually found a little easier than I thought it would be.  It's easy to relate this article to the "real world" because the problems it discusses are very real issues we face today.  Writing convincing arguments that raise awareness about water resources and usage is crucial.  Writing Public Lives posed the question of whether the text would be persuasive in the past, or if it would continue to be persuasive, which is something I'll address in my conclusion.  Because we are coming closer and closer to running out of groundwater resources, the issue becomes more and more serious, and Barnett's article will continue to be persuasive.

You can view my full outline here.


REFLECTION

My outline was longer than both Grace's and Carrie Belle's, but that doesn't necessarily mean that their outlines weren't good.  They both seem to definitely have a grasp on what a rhetorical analysis should look like, which is obviously really important.  I personally wanted to spend more time outlining, because that's going to help me most in drafting.  I like to have everything all in one place, and I already wanted to begin pulling quotes from my article for my outline to make sure that my body paragraphs would be substantial enough, and correctly rooted in evidence.  Hopefully because I went in depth in my outline, the drafting process will be a little easier.