The Trend Paper
W131 Hannah-Hansen
Choice of topic (15 points): due Tuesday, February 5 (end of class)
Writing Plan (25 points): due Friday, February 8
Trend Analysis first draft (20 points): due February 15
You must have a FULL rough draft of 6 pages.
Trend Analysis final draft (200 points): due Friday, February 22
You will be held accountable for the assignments. Each assignment must be handed in, graded, and returned to you before you can turn in the next assignment. You will receive full credit for late work except for the Rough Draft and Final Draft. You must turn those in on time. If your rough draft is solid, you may not have to write a Final Draft. I will determine this at the time of your conference.
Students will be required to critically analyze a trend in contemporary American culture in order to come to a greater understanding of the meaning of the trend, what statement(s) this trend might be making about modern American culture, and how this trend reflects and/or refutes and/or creates myths, values, ideologies, etc. in modern American society. Students should be able to find visible manifestations (if possible) of the trend to share with class to verify its existence in modern culture. In addition, I will ask that students present their findings to the class in a 5 minute in-class presentation.
Trend: An established, significant change –as opposed to a fad or fluctuation, a short term, superficial change.
A fad can be considered part of a larger trend – for example an exercise craze about a new form of exercise – for instance tae bo – could be seen as part of the larger trend of health consciousness.
The Trend Analysis paper is a 6 page paper that does the following
investigates a current trend
investigates its possible causes
investigates the conditions that enable this trend to exist and continue
investigates the broader implications of the trend
explains the trend
demonstrates through evidence that it exists as a trend
documents and analyzes one or more of its possible causes through evidence and informed speculation
discusses the significance of the trend such as:
o
social,o
political,o
ethical,o
economic,o
individual,o
religious,o
environmental
The purpose of the paper is not to make an argument to do anything about the trend or its implications. The purpose of the paper is to provide an analysis to understand the trend, its causes, conditions, and its implications. You may find arguments in your sources to take some kind of action, but your task is NOT to write a persuasive paper to solve a problem related to the trend. Think of yourself as a social commentator or an objective analyst who wants to understand what’s under the surface of the trend, what it means that it has become a trend here and in this place.
As you plan the paper, be sure that you do not overweight the paper with any one section. Papers that focus exclusively on proving the trend exists and shortcut the analysis of its possible causes, the conditions that enable the trend to exist, or the analysis of its broader significance have lost sight of the whole assignment and fall short of the requirements. (200 points)
Sources (You do not have to do side-by-side entries.)
Topic readings: from 7 sources that you locate through research.
You are encouraged to use readings from a unit in WRAC if applicable.
You must use all your sources in your paper in order for them to qualify as sources.
In addition to books, magazines, newspapers, and journals, you may also use the internet for your sources. The internet sources, however, are limited to academic sources, which I must approve. Please review WA 328-330 for help in how to evaluate internet sources. If you do not get those sources approved, I will not count them or any material gleaned from them.
You must submit your papers to turnitin.com. Any person who does not do so will receive zero credit for the paper and will fail the course.
The work for the trend analysis paper includes three parts: choice of topic, the writing plan, and the trend analysis paper
Choice of Topic and Speculation: (1 page): In an informal, typed essay, name your trend clearly and explain why you believe it is an important trend in terms of its significance and speculate on its meaning. Next, speculate on the conditions that enable this trend to exist and continue. (Think of our trend reports and Becker’s machine model to help you write this informal essay)
In choosing the trend, you must distinguish between a trend and a fad. A trend is not simply a time line. It goes beyond a chain of events to affect social, economic, political, and personal contexts. If a trend exists in isolation, it isn’t a trend. Trends affect people, their lives, and their thinking. (For example, Pokemon is not a trend but a fad, but the influence of Asian culture on American children as manifested through Pokemon, YuGhi Yo playing cards and cartoons might be considered a trend. You can revisit the articles in the WRAC anthology and construct a trend topic from any of those readings. If you use material from WRAC, be aware that you will still need to do research in the library. 15 points
Writing Plan/Review of Sources (2-3 pages): The writing plan assignment has two parts: 1) a review of the sources you have examined thus far in preparation for writing the trend analysis paper, and 2) a discussion section explaining the connections you are making between your own evolving thinking about the trend and what you are finding in the sources you are reviewing. The parts of this paper are described below. 25 points
How many sources you need depends a great deal on what it will take to fulfill the paper requirements. (6-7 is the requirement) However, you need good sources, high quality think pieces: sources to help you prove the trend exists, others to point toward possible causes and conditions, and still others to help you speculate about the significance of the trend.
REVIEW OF SOURCES
Part One: Your review section should:
The review section draws upon you knowledge of summary as you summarize the key ideas you intend to use. Each summary should be no less than half a page.
Begin your summary with the information that you would put in the Works Cited.
3. Categorize the source as pertaining to an analysis of the trend or its causes. For
example: on the subject of plastic surgery for cosmetic reasons among young people, you might categorize your sources as: 1) feature articles on the changing body image; 2) articles in medical journals on the health risks; 3) interview with a local surgeon; 4) analyses by cultural critics or social commentators; 5) TV news magazine reports and news commentary shows, and 6) primary materials in the form of your own analysis of magazine advertisements.
Example: (for a trend that deals with eating disorders)
Seid, Roberta. "Too 'Close to the Bone.’" Feminist Perspectives on Eating
Disorders. Ed. Patricia Fallon, Melanie A. Katzman, and Susan C. Wooley.
n.p.: The Guilford Press, 1194. Rpt. in
the Curriculum.
York: Longman, 2005. 497-508
Category: Investigates why the trend continues
Summary: (I’m not doing it here, but just imagine a brilliantly written couple of paragraphs).
PART TWO: DISCUSSION SECTION
This section is a mini rough draft, almost of a summary of how you see your paper
developing.
Briefly provide some background on the trend you will be analyzing and how you can demonstrate that it is a trend
Discuss the causes and conditions you have identified and which of those you believe to be the more direct causes and most interesting conditions and why
Indicate what your analysis of and what the significance of the trend is at this point and how that makes use of and is connected to the data and ideas in your sources
State what questions still remain unanswered for you and what further research you might have to do.