College of the Canyons, Prof.

Rebecca Chmiel
English 103-24397 Mon/Wed 8:00-9:20 am

Unit 2 Paper:
Society and Heroes/Villains

Background: This unit were reading about heroes and villains to develop more critical thinking skills about the
way that social impulses influences the world you exist in. Here, semiotics will start to play a role as well as your
research skills. These ideas will culminate in this next paper.
Prompt: To complete this essay, you must first select a hero or villain to work with. This person can be real or
fictional, depending on your groups interest. Over the course of this unit, we will be building understanding of how
to conduct research about your chosen subject and applying it in written projects that are called observation
assignments. These assignments should lead into your essay, if you do them correctly and stay committed to your
subject, but if you choose to not use them that is fine as well. Finally, you will submit an essay of 1,500-1,750 words
following the guidelines laid out below.

The Collective vs. the Individual: Throughout this unit you will be working with a group about your chosen
subject(s). For the observation assignments, which are word-count oriented, you should complete group
submissions. It is the goal that you are able to overcome the difficulties of such assignments by working together.
Having said that, how you work through the group submissions is entirely your groups responsibility. I am not
going to get involved in group politics, similar to how your boss will not get involved in your office politics when
you go on to the real world. Please find a way to negotiate your problems together. Finally, while the observation
assignments are group-based, the essay is your own. You cannot write your essays together.

Submission Guidelines:
1. Write 1,500-1,750 words in the MLA format detailed below:
a. Double-spaced ONLY
i. To delete any extra spaces between the information in your heading or between your
paragraphs, go to Page Layout, then Spacing, then make sure the Before and After
settings are 0 pt.
b. Times New Roman 12-point font
c. 1 inch margins (unlike this paper)
d. Pagination with last name in top right-hand header
e. Identifying submission information in top left corner including your name, my name, our course
number with section number, and the date of submission
f. A relevant (and possible interesting) title
g. A Works Cited page following MLA format (does not count towards your word count)

Prompt Question: How is your chosen subject presented in and understood by

modern culture?
Supporting Questions (you dont need to include all of them, but you may find it helpful):
Why does this character connect (or not) with modern culture?
What does the general population seem most interested in with this character?
Why do people need characters like this in general?
What does this characters popularity (or lack of popularity) show about modern culture?
 Applying your Understanding: Throughout this second unit we are covering different research methods. You
must include these different methods in your essay as part of the evidence in support of your ideas. You should
include at least 3 observations of your subject in popular culture, the results from at least 10 surveys taken, and
the ideas from at least 3 different interviews. In the body of your paper, you are allowed to include only 1 image
and only 1 graph. Any further images or graphs you need to show should be in an appendix.

Building your Paper: Your paper should follow the structure of an academic paper. That is to say, you will
need an introductory paragraph, several body paragraphs which are each focused around 1 core idea, and a
concluding paragraph. You should identify for yourself how much space to dedicate to each idea so that they
support your thesis as best as possible. For the body paragraphs, please be sure to:
A. Begin with a clear, focused topic sentence that introduces the paragraphs main idea,
B. Include at least 1 relevant piece of evidence,
C. Cite your quotes following MLA guidelines, and
D. Analyze them fully.
a. I suggest 2-3 sentences of analysis for piece of evidence. Analysis of a quote is not
summary of the quote. Please answer questions like What does this show/illustrate? or
Key: How is this related to my greater argument? or Why is this good support for
L: Lecture my ideas?
&: Reading due b. If your quote is longer than your analysis, you will lose points for having
? WW: Writers workshop underdeveloped analysis.
M: Assignment due
Unit 1 Paper: Schedule of Readings, Workshops, and Deadlines
Mon. Wed. L: Unit 2 Introduction and Paper Prompt
3/13 3/15 M: UNIT 1 ESSAY DUE
Mon. L: Preparing to Succeed in this Unit Wed. L: What is a Hero? And What is a Villain?
3/20 &: Wonder Womans Strength is Her 3/22 &: Celebrating Inequality and The Lone Ranger
Compassion and pgs 58-66 ARQ Seals It with Visual Rhetoric and Literacy
? WW: Writing group contracts M: Observation Assignment #1 Due
Mon. L: The Hero/Villain in Common Knowledge and Wed. L: The Hero/Villain as a Mirror (with Semiotics)
3/27 Common Spaces 3/29 &: The Thematic Paradigm with Conducting
&: No Sympathy for the Devil and Against Surveys, Conducting Interviews and pgs 67-75
Antiheroes ? WW: Thesis Statements
M: Observation Assignment #2 Due M: Observation Assignment #3 Due
Mon. Wed.
4/3 Spring 4/5 Break
Mon. L: Negotiating through Information Wed. L: Critical Thinking & Critical Writing
4/10 &: Semiotics and Cultural Criticism and pgs 4/12 &: pgs 106-124 ARQ and Critical Thinking and
92-105 ARQ Writing
? WW: Peer review 1 in class ? WW: Peer review 2 in class, MLA citations and
M: Observation Assignment #4 Due format
Mon. L: Unit 2 Paper Due; Unit 3 Paper Prompt
4/17

About the Readings: You may begin writing your paper and decide you dont need to reference any of the
readings which is perfectly acceptable, or you may decide that these dont go into enough detail and you would like
more. You can, should you choose, do extra research to find support for your ideas. However, it must be from a
reputable source. A good call is to use the COC Database, which you can access from anywhere with the login
information below:

Username: Fish Password: Chips

 Unit 2 Essay: Society and Heroes/Villains (200 points)
Essay Components (-10 points for each one missing):
Pre-Writing Draft #1 with Draft #2 with 2 peer-review
Outline (formal) peer-review peer-review rubrics
Thesis Speed comments comments 1 self-review
Dating form rubric

MLA Format: Did the student submit the paper in Times New Roman, 12 point font, double-spaced with 1-inch
margins and a Works Cited page? (Pass/Fail)..Y/N

Score 40-30 Excellent
The essay is a cogent,
thesis-driven response to
the prompt.
Score 30-22.5 Excellent
The writer achieves a
depth of analysis that
supports their answer
fully.
Score 20-15 Excellent
The thesis is clear,
debatable, and engages
with key issues from the
unit.
The essay is organized in a
way that supports the
thesis. Ideas are given
enough space to develop.
The writer deciphers the
evidence collected in an
insightful way.
The writer uses strong
logical reasoning to
support their argument.
The students The students understanding
understanding of their
answer to the prompt is
clear in this essay.
Score 10-7.5 Excellent
Each body paragraph has a
strong topic sentence that
supports the thesis.
All quotes are correctly
cited following MLA format.
The use of English is
strong with only minimal
mistakes.
Comments:
30-20 Good
The essay is mostly cogent
but occasionally strays from
the thesis or lacks clear focus.
22.5-15 Good
The writer almost supports
their answer fully with
analysis, but misses a few
opportunities.
15-10 Good
The thesis is debatable and
engages with key issues from
the unit, but could be clearer.
The essay has some issues
with organization but they do
not necessarily detract from
the essay as a whole.
The writer works with the
evidence collected but misses
a few critical insights.
The writer sometimes uses
strong logical reasoning but
has a few logical fallacies or
flaws.
The students understanding
of their answer to the prompt
is almost there but needed
more depth, more
explanation, or more clarity.
7.5-5 Good
The author attempts strong
topic sentences, but they
sometimes dont fully support
the thesis.
Citations are mostly correct
but occasionally incorrect.
The use of English is good and
mistakes do not detract from
what the writer is saying.
20-10 Needs Improvement
The essay is somewhat
cogent but often strays
from the thesis or lacks
clear enough focus.
15-7.5 Needs Improvement
The writer attempts analysis
but, ultimately, does not
analyze enough.
10-5 Needs Improvement
The thesis somewhat
engaged with key issues but
needs more work.
The essay has many issues
with organization which
could have been avoided
with careful revisions.
The writer attempts to work
with their evidence but fails
to achieve true insight into
what it means.
The writer often has issues
with their logical reasoning.
of their answer is somewhat
there (or) some concepts
are clearly understood but
others are not.
5-2.5 Needs Improvement
The author sometimes
forgets to have topic
sentences or some are very
weak.
Most citations are incorrect
but clear attempts are being
made
The English usage has many
mistakes which occasionally
detract from what the writer
is saying
10-0 Poor
The essay lacks logic or
persuasion on a large
scale; it is unfocused as a
response.
7.5-0 Poor
Very little explanation or
analysis is given for the
ideas in the text.
5-1 Poor
The thesis is not
debatable, doesnt engage
with key issues, or
unclear.
The organization in the
essay is very confusing.
The writer does not make
attempts to work with their
evidence.
The writer has many
obvious issues with their
logical reasoning.
The student does not
engage with concepts
related to this essay at all.
2.5-0 Poor
The author doesnt achieve
topic sentences which
support the thesis.
The citations are all
incorrect. It is unclear if
the student is attempting
MLA.
The use of English is poor.
There are many mistakes
and they are distracting.