Write an analytical essay (800 words) that addresses the author’s or authors’ main argument and their use of evidence in a thoughtful and critical way.
Choose one of the three texts in Unit 3:
Jennifer Harrower, Jennifer Parker, and Martha Merson, “Species Loss: Exploring Opportunities with Art-Science,” Integrative and Comparative Biology 58, no. 1 (Spring 2018): 103-12.
Emily Eliza Scott, “Field Effects: Invisible-5’s Illumination of Peripheral Geographies,” Art Journal69, no. 4 (Winter 2010): 38-47.
Brooke Singer, “A Chronology of Tactics: Art Tackles Big Data and the Environment,” Big Data & Society 3, no. 2 (July-December 2016): 1-9.
** Note that these texts are each cited here as Chicago/Turabian style footnotes. **
As you read, make notes about the author’s or authors’ argument (not the topic, but what the author/s say about the topic). Think about and make notes on their approach and how they use evidence to support that argument (how did they complete this study? what types of evidence do they present? how do they evaluate that evidence?).
It is recommended to make several pages (about 500-1000 words) of notes before drafting your essay.
Organize your ideas with:
an introduction that clearly explains to your reader the subject of the essay you are writing (e.g. In this essay, I discuss a 2019 case study by Alexandra Crosby on design activism in Kandangan, Indonesia, as it relates to global design activism.)
multiple body paragraphs that each address and analyze different aspects of the text you are analyzing
a brief conclusion that synthesizes and considers the implications or importance of your analysis (Tips on Writing ConclusionsLinks to an external site.)
Revise, edit, and proofread your writing. Revision is about the structure of the whole text – make sure it is well organized and all parts support the main idea/argument. Editing is about sentence structures and clarity – review your phrasing to avoid overly long sentences, unclear referents (e.g. this isn’t that), incomplete sentence fragments, and other forms of confusion. Proofreading is a final step to check correct spelling, grammar, and punctuation.
 
Your essay should not be longer than 1000 words. If it is, you need to make hard choices about which parts are most essential to your argument.
 
This assignment requires also that you practice citation and quotation skills. Your essay must include at least one quotation and one paraphrase.
 
To quote: 
Always introduce the quote:
e.g. In her essay Jessica Horton writes, “Even as political art has gained critical momentum…” 
Always copy quoted text carefully, preserving spacing, punctuation, spelling, etc. Do not copy editorial markers, including footnotes or parenthetical citation in the original text.
Always explain how the quote relates to your own argument immediately after the quote:
e.g. Based on what Horton says here, it is clear that …
Always cite; for this class, use a footnote at the end of the sentence and cite with Chicago style formatting. Be sure that the page number is adjusted to the page you’re quoting (note that for web-published sources, this would be the web address/URL).
 
Grading:
Clear, original writing, with evidence of revision, editing, and proofreading.
Identification and analysis of the text’s main argument.
Identification and analysis of the text’s use of evidence.
Correct usage and formatting of quotation, paraphrasing, and footnotes.