Dialogue Essay: Next Steps

In our informal peer review today, we looked at the dialogues for the following qualities:

1) did we generate as many perspectives and sides to our chosen topic/idea as possible?

2) Did we distinguish between major ideas and supporting claims for those ideas in the dialogue?

3) Did we identify places where we could add supporting research (this will be in the form of footnotes)? In the final draft, the 'characters' will paraphrase the research in their speech, and each line that utilizes research will show evidence for it in the form of footnoted citation (you don't need a separate works cited page).

We noted how in the assignment description in Active Voice on page 61, Moffett says the idea isn't to eliminate contradictions in argument, but to embrace contradictions in argument. 

EXAMPLE

In class we came up with an example of a dialogue idea: legalizing marijuana.

One idea would be "economics" or the economics of legalization. Another idea would be "health effects" (both 'pro' and 'con'). Another idea would be 'the war on drugs.'

Each of these ideas comes with supporting ideas, or claims you make to expand on the idea in question. For instance, with economics we see related ideas around: taxes; small businesses; etc. For health, we see negative effects in: depression; dependence; cancer; but also: anti-depressant; mood stabilizing; and helpful to terminally ill patients. For the war on drugs, we could look at: consequences for prison population and corresponding correction officer employment; effects on community policing and ways of life; etc.