ENGLISH REVIEWER

Lesson 1 : Argumentative Essay

Argumentative Essay

 Tries to change the reader’s mind by convincing the reader to agree with the writer’s
point of view.
 It attempts to be highly persuasive and logical.
 It usually assumes that the reader disagrees with the writer, but it should be noted that
the reader is no less intelligent than the writer. An argumentative essay should be
written objectively and logically.

Characteristics of an Argumentative Essay

 Presents and explains the issue or case

 Gives the reason and supports reasons to prove its point
 Refutes or proves the opposing arguments wrong

Parts of an Argumentative Essay

 Introduction – It introduces the problem and gives the background information needed
for the argument and thesis statement.
 Body – It contains the reason. Each paragraph talks about one reason.
 Conclusion – It restates the main claim and gives one or two general statements that
exactly summarizes the argument and support the main point.

Three specific types of questions:

 Question of fact – Are those that you ask to answer whether or not something is true.
These questions are always answered with either “Yes” or “No” and then you must
construct paragraphs to support the facts.
 Questions of Value – Adress the relative merit (goodness/badness) of something. Here,
you usually asked to choose between things, ideas, beliefs, or actions and explain why
you did so.
 Questions of Policy – Ask the writer to explain what they would do. The key word I these
topic is usally “should” as in “what should we do…?”. The problem question asks the
writer to make a plan of action to solve some sort of issue. The answer is a break
Lesson 2 : Use a Variation of Informative, Persuasive, and Argumenative writing techniques

How to persuade readers?

 To persuade readers to agree with your point of view, it’s essential to use the right
writing techniques for informative, argumentative, or persuasive essays.

Writing techniques

Informative Writing

 It explains a specific problem or topic.

 It maintains an objective, neutral tone; avoid arguing one side.
 The writer’s role is similar to a reporter, focus in stating facts without personal opinions.
 Biased information undermines informative writing; stick to facts
 Be specific and provide clear answers to the what, where, when, how, and why of the
topic.

Argument Writing

 This essay type asserts that your opinion or theory is more valid than others.
 List pros and cons before writing; focus on the most significant points.
 How to present your argument:
o Present your argument first, then counter arguments.
o Save the strongest points for last.
 Uses effective transition words to move between arguments.

Persuasive Writing

 This type of essay convince readers to adopt your viewpoint.

 Persuasive writing is a style that aims to convince the reader that the writer’s opinion is
correct.
 The selection of words is crucial; the reader should understand the writer’s message.
 Logical arguments and a strong closing argument is essential
 Understand who you are writing for; the message must be tailored accordingly.
Lesson 3 : Compose an independent critique of a chosen selection

 Critique
o A critique is an in-depth evaluation of a story, novel, film, or other
reading/viewing materials the purpose of giving the public an insight into text.
Although a critique shares the same root with the word "criticize," it does not
mean that the write- up merely points out the faults or flaws in a story or film
Instead, a critique seeks to shed light on the content of a "text" (the story, novel,
song, movie etc.) in order to help future readers or viewers understand better
the material that they are reading or viewing.
o Critique elements of narrative:
 Setting - is where and when a story or scene takes place. The where can
be a real place like the New York, or it can be an imagined location, like
Middle Earth in J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings. Similarly, the when
can be a real time period (past or present) or imagined (the future).
 Characterization - is the description of a character's physical traits (how a
chara looks), point of view, personality, private thoughts, and actions.
 Confllict and Plot - Conflict in a story is a struggle between opposing
forces. Man vs. Self. This type of conflict is usually caused by sorm
external but the battle itself takes place within.
 Man vs. Man
 Man vs. Nature
 Man vs. Society
 Man vs. Supernatural
 Theme - is a central, unifying ide It's the bigger issue that emerges the
characters pursue their goals.
 Style - in literature is the literary element that describes the ways that the
author use words the author's word choice, sentence structure, figurative
language, and sentence arrangement all work together to establish mood,
images, and meaning in the text.

Lesson 4 : Critique A Literary Selection Based On The Following Approaches

Structuralist / Formalist

 Structuralist critics analyzed material by examining underlying structures, such as

characterization or plot, and attempted to show how these patterns were universal and
could thus be used to develop general conclusions about both individual works and the
systems from which they emerged.. Structuralist critics believe that literature is a system
of signs that can be understood by examining the patterns and codes that govern it.

Moralist

 A moralist critique is an evaluative approach in literary, philosophical, or artistic analysis

that focuses primarily on the moral or ethical dimensions of a work. In this type of
critique, the emphasis is placed on how the work either promotes or undermines certain
moral values, social norms, or ethical teachings. The moralist examines the actions,
characters, and outcomes in a story, argument, or artwork through the lens of morality,
often questioning whether the work advocates for virtuous behavior or, conversely,
depicts immoral actions without consequences.

Marxist

 A Marxist literary critic, when analyzing a text, primarily focuses on identifying and
examining how the work reflects the social and economic power dynamics of the time
period it was written in, particularly focusing on class struggle, the relationship between
the working class and the ruling class, and how the text either reinforces or challenges
dominant ideologies related to these power structures; essentially looking at literature
as a product of its social context and analyzing how it portrays class issues within that
society.

Feminist

 When critiquing a literary selection through a feminist lens, a critic examines how the
text portrays female characters, explores gender stereotypes, analyzes power dynamics
between genders, and investigates whether the work reinforces or challenges patriarchal
structures, often highlighting the social and cultural context of the text to understand
how women are represented and marginalized within it.

Historical

 Using this theory requires that you apply to a text specific historical information about
the time during which an author wrote. Historical, in this case, refers to the social,
political, economic, cultural, and intellectual climate of the time. For example, William
Faulkner wrote many of his novels and stories during and after World War II, a fact that
 helps to explain the feelings of darkness, defeat, and struggle that pervade much of his
work.

Reader-response

 Is an approach to literary criticism and analysis that focuses on how readers are actively
engaged in the creation of meaning in a text. The implied reader is the reader that the
text expects to react to, pick up on, interpret and experience aspects of the text in a
certain way. Is a school of literary theory that focuses on the reader (or "audience") and
their experience of a literary work, in contrast to other schools and theories that focus
attention primarily on the author, content, or form of the work.