English 101: Essay #4

INSTRUCTOR NAME: Alia Stearns CONTEXT FOR ASSIGNMENT: Globalization is one of the most important social forces in our lives today. More than ever before in human history, people all over the world are listening to the same kinds of music, eating the same kinds of food, wearing the same kinds of clothing. Many of the lifestyles and fashions that people worldwide are adopting originated in the worlds wealthiest countries, especially the United States. America has a huge influence on the culture of other places: just think of the places all over the globe where people eat McDonalds hamburgers and drink Cokes, where people wear Nike shoes and watch Hollywood movies. In an article in New York Times Magazine, Ethan Watters argues that America has another important export for the other countries of the world: our view of mental illness. According to Watters, Americans commonly assume that mental illnesses like depression are the same all over the world. However, Watters contends that these conditions are in fact culturally constructedthat is to say, different cultures view depression very differently. And, for better and worse, the American concept of what depression means has started to dominate the whole globe. American conceptions of mental illness are often deemed definitive, with some negative repercussions. Western attitudes are promoted in many ways, including the DSM IV, the pharmaceutical companies, and traumatologists. Rather than regarding mental illness in absolute terms, it is important to acknowledge the cultural relativity of attitudes toward, and treatment of, mental illness and to recognize efficacious forms of treatment in other cultures. DESCRIPTION OF ASSIGNMENT: For your final essay, Id like you to read Watters argument carefully. The name of the article is The Americanization of Mental Illness, and it appeared in New York Times Magazine on January 8, 2010. Once you have read the piece, Id like you to write an essay evaluating and responding to a claim Watters makes in the end of his article: Some philosophers and psychiatrists have suggested that we are investing our great wealth in researching and treating mental illness medicalizing ever larger swaths of human experience because we have rather suddenly lost older belief systems that once gave meaning and context to mental suffering. What does this claim mean? Is it true? What evidence does Watters produce to support it? Can you find evidence from other sources that also supports this claim (or that undercuts it?) The papers thesis must be arguable and the essay must build an argument to support the thesis. The paper must engage with The Americanization of Mental Illness reading in more than a touch and go fashion AUDIENCE FOR ASSIGNMENT: PROCESS: Read: Watters, Ethan. The Americanization of Mental Illness. The New York Times. 10 Jan. 2010. o http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/10/magazine/10psyche-t.html Write a summary (Please review the summary chapter of your textbook) Read the assignment and make note of any questions. Be sure to ask these until you feel clear upon what you are being asked to do.

Draft a thesis Using that thesis, create an outline for the paper you will write Revise your outline Use the outline to draft your paper Submit your draft for peer review Use peer commentary to revise Edit for surface errors and mechanics

LOGISTICS: Due date: o Outline with Thesis: /2013 o Rough Draft: /2013 o Final Draft: Finals Week Length of assignment: 5-6 pages Point Breakdown: o Final Draft 12.5% o Peer Review 6.25% o Preparatory Materials 6.25% Format: MLA Citations: MLA Sources: The paper should make use of 3-4 credible, college-level sources, including The Americanization of Mental Illness; students should be asked to adhere to this limit. They may use neither more nor less than this number. GRADING: These are the questions I will ask when assigning you a grade: Where does the paper fall in the grading assessment? Specific focus: Are you dealing specifically with the assignment given? Vivid presentation: Details can make your stories come to life. Show the reader what happened through specific, concrete details; help them to relive it with you. Strong analysis: Do not just tell stories or give us details for no reason; show the reader how and why these things illustrate your main focus. (Constantly ask yourself: so what?) An engaging and informative organizational plan: It should be clear that you have a plan for building your essay that your ideas are in a particular order for a reason and that you are working to use transitions to guide the reader from one idea to the next. Style and conventions: Is the essay free from error? Are the sentences varied and stylistically pleasing?

English 101 Essay Assessment for Common Final Assignment

An Exemplary Essay: Thesis and Focus SLO 3, 5
--asserts a clear, sophisticated, arguable thesis that can be reasonably developed in 1500-1800 words --remains focused on the thesis throughout in an immediately recognizable way --meets the assigned topic and purpose --thoroughly supports the thesis with a rich variety of evidence, using an appropriate and sophisticated argumentative strategy --significantly engages the assigned common reading --accurately and effectively summarizes, paraphrases, and quotes relevant source material and offers analysis of all source material --considers and convincingly responds to varying claims

A Skilled Essay:
--asserts a clear, arguable thesis that can be reasonably developed in 15001800 words --remains largely focused on the thesis --meets the assigned topic and purpose

A Developing Essay:
--states a thesis that may not be clear or arguable or that cannot be reasonably developed in 1500-1800 words --occasionally strays from the thesis --takes inappropriate liberties with the assigned topic and purpose --provides some evidence to support the thesis, but lacks variety or more is needed --includes but does not adequately engage the assigned common reading --summarizes, paraphrases, and quotes source material with some accuracy, though source material may not be entirely relevant or analyzed --does not adequately consider or respond to varying claims --relies on a progression of ideas that is not entirely logical and/or is not always related to the thesis --loses focus within some paragraphs --uses an introduction and conclusion, though one or both might be limited; might be missing a title --occasionally provides topic sentences and uses transitions inconsistently within and/or between paragraphs --breaks paragraphs in ways that may not always be logical to the reader --largely lacks clear signal phrasing --provides minimal framing of source material

An Undeveloped Essay:
--does not state a thesis or states a thesis that the writer later abandons --frequently strays from the thesis or discusses a different thesis entirely --may not meet the assigned topic and purpose

Reasoning and Support SLO 2, 4, 5, 6

--sufficiently supports the thesis using some variety of evidence --engages the assigned common reading --summarizes, paraphrases, and quotes relevant source material in a largely accurate way with some analysis --considers varying claims and offers some response

--provides insufficient evidence to support the thesis --does not include the assigned common reading --includes source material that is inaccurately represented or irrelevant to the argument --lacks analysis of source material --lacks consideration of varying claims

Organization SLO 5

--presents a logical progression of ideas based on the thesis --maintains focus within each paragraph --uses a highly effective title, introduction, and conclusion --provides clear and directive topic sentences and sophisticated transitions within and between paragraphs --includes logical paragraph breaks

--presents a largely logical progression of ideas based on the thesis --maintains focus within most paragraphs --uses a satisfactory title, introduction, and conclusion --mostly provides topic sentences and has basic transitions within and between paragraphs --includes largely logical paragraph breaks

--has a progression of ideas that is not logical and/or is not based on the thesis --does not maintain focus within paragraphs --might use a title, introduction, and/or conclusion though one or more might be limited or missing --largely fails to provide topic sentences and either does not use transitions or uses transitions that are ineffective --does not use logical paragraph breaks

Source Integration and MLA Citation

--thoroughly integrates source material with varied and effective signal phrasing --frames source material

--integrates most source material with signal phrasing --provides some framing of source

lacks signal phrasing --lacks framing of source material --includes weak or inadequate paraphrasing and/or

SLO 2

with the students own ideas --maintains strict ethical standards and avoids plagiarism through correct and precise paraphrasing, use of quotation marks, intext citations and an MLA works cited page --uses direct quotes sparingly and to good effect --effectively engages an academic audience --employs varied sentence structures for style and reader interest --exhibits a precise and sophisticated vocabulary

material --avoids plagiarism through competent paraphrasing and use of quotation marks, and mostly correct in-text citations and an MLA works cited page --relies somewhat too much on direct quotes

--includes some weak paraphrasing, errors in the use of quotation marks, and/or errors in the in-text citations or an MLA works cited page --uses direct quote where paraphrase or summary would be more appropriate

significant errors in the use of quotation marks --includes significant errors in the in-text citations and/or an MLA works cited page, or lacks one or both of these --might be unintentionally plagiarizing sources because of the above weaknesses --might use direct quotation to the exclusion of paraphrase and summary --lacks awareness of an academic audience --lacks control of sentence structures, relying on careless or received patterns --uses an imprecise and simplistic vocabulary that might also contain deceptive or inflammatory language and that might be heavily reliant on slang and clich

Voice & Style SLO 6, 7

--targets an academic audience --uses varied sentences, but may occasionally repeat certain structures and lengths --exhibits largely effective word choice though there may some misuse, ineffective repetition, and/or a minimal use of slang/clich.

--does not consistently engage an academic audience --exhibits some lack of control over sentence structures, possibly repeating a simple syntax or creating a needlessly complex syntax --may be limited by an inadequate vocabulary, with word choice that is imprecise, repetitive, and/or reliant on slang and clich --displays patterns of error that either distract or sometimes interfere with meaning --tends to stray from a consistent point of view and appropriate use of tense --approaches standard written English, but significant mistakes with syntax, grammar, and punctuation make meaning unclear at points --approaches the use of MLA standards for page layout

Conventions of Grammar, Mechanics, & Page Layout SLO 7

--does not display any serious patterns of error --maintains a consistent point of view and appropriate use of tense --contains very few mistakes with syntax, grammar, and punctuation, and none that interfere with meaning --correctly uses MLA standards for page layout

--may display patterns of error, which do not interfere with meaning --rarely strays from a consistent point of view and an appropriate use of tense --features occasional mistakes with syntax, grammar, and punctuation, but not enough to significantly interfere with meaning --largely uses MLA standards for page layout correctly with few mistakes

--displays serious patterns of error that substantially interfere with meaning --lacks control over point of view and tense --does not show mastery of the conventions of standard written English, and serious mistakes with syntax, grammar, and punctuation compromise clear communication --does not display knowledge of MLA standards for page layout

A students overall grade is determined by the balance of assessments; however, an Undeveloped assessment in one or more areas might lead to an overall failing assignment grade. .(For instance, if a student has intentionally or unintentionally plagiarized or if the submitted work does not meet the assigned topic and purpose, these issues alone could lead to a failing grade.)