Assignments

1. Trial Balloon: In calling for reducing the drinking age, Barrett Seaman’s “How Bingeing Became the New College Sport” offers a solution to alcohol abuse that some might call “politically incorrect” — lowering the drinking age. Indeed, many politicians or school officials would probably be reluctant to support such a proposal — even if it might make people more responsible. Choose an issue that you think needs as radical a rethinking as college-age drinking and write a research-based proposal of your own. Like Seaman, be sure to offer your ideas in language calm and persuasive enough to make responsible adults at least consider them.
2. Manifesto: You probably identify with at least some of the issues Katelyn Vincent presents in “Technology Time-Out” and with the manifesto she enunciates in her final paragraphs. Look for a problem that others might similarly recognize, describe the issue in enough detail to explain why adjustments may be necessary or desirable, and then make a compelling call for change.
3. Visual Proposal: Both editorial cartoonists in this chapter — Nate Beeler and Jen Sorensen — offer enough “data” in their drawings to lead readers to perceive problems and draw their own conclusions. But it’s not as easy as it looks. Try your hand at creating a visual proposal of your own that accomplishes the same.
4. Your Choice: Proposals are usually practical documents, serving a specific need. Identify such a need in your life and address it through a clear, fact-based proposal. For example, you might write to your academic adviser or dean suggesting that a service-learning experience would be a better senior project for you than a traditional written thesis — given your talents and interests. Or perhaps you might write to a banker (or wealthy relative) explaining why loaning you money to open a barbecue restaurant would make sound fiscal sense, especially since no one else in town serves decent brisket and ribs. In other words, write a paper to make your life better.