120977101_Response20Paper20232203321_1.docx

Response Paper #2

Due on Friday, February 19, 2016 BEFORE CLASS

What is the assignment?

Please respond to the following prompt using the assigned texts to date:

The only type of pilgrimage Muslims undertook was to the Ka’ba in Mecca. Argue for or against this claim.

This paper should be 2-3 pages long and double-spaced. It should be typed in Times New Roman, size 12-point font with 1-inch margins on the top, bottom, and both sides.

How do I start?
You have done the reading, we have talked about it in class, and now you are about to write a response paper. Ask yourself the following questions as you prepare to write. There is no need to explicitly answer these questions in the paper, but they can help you organize your thoughts and decide what angle you would like to take.

What is the text about? How does the text address the prompt to which I am responding? What are the main arguments of the text? Did the author do a decent job of making these arguments? Why or why not? What parts of the text did you like the most/least, and why? How does this text relate to your interests? What did you learn from it? If you did not learn much, why was that? What questions did this text leave you with? What would you like to learn more about?

What else should I keep in mind?

Your response paper can be well-written, but grammatical and style errors can decrease its effectiveness. Read through the response paper once you have finished writing it to check for
style and grammar
. Reading it aloud or asking a friend to read it often catches issues that we may otherwise miss. Please make sure to avoid merely summarizing the readings!

Make sure to
cite your sources
in parentheses. Since you do not need to consult outside sources (i.e. ones that were not assigned for the class) for this assignment, you do not need to include a Works Cited or Bibliography, but you should cite any direct quote or paraphrase from a source in parentheses in the following fashion (last name of author, page number) or any other fashion, as long as it is consistent. Here is an example: (Berkey, 45).

Please make sure what you write and submit are your own ideas and thoughts. Presenting someone else’s words or ideas as your own (intentionally or
unintentionally) is
plagiarism
and constitutes a serious offense. Students who are confused or unsure about the proper use and acknowledgment of sources for specific assignments should consult me before submitting an assignment, as plagiarism is grounds for failure of the course and disciplinary action.

What are the features of a good response paper?

Analysis
: A good response paper tells the reader not only what happened, but why it is significant. It contains more than a descriptive overview, and also goes into the significance of the facts presented in the text, and it considers their broader relevance to the context under study.

Organization
:
A good paper follows a basic structure. There is a clearly understandable progression
from one point to another in the body of the paper that your reader can follow.

Style
:
A good paper is clearly written, without run-on sentences or sentence fragments. It is
free of grammatical errors and is properly cited. It reads smoothly and uses its prose to clearly and vividly convey the main arguments. It adheres to the page length, line spacing, font, and margin guidelines.

How do I submit the paper?
Submit the response paper BEFORE THE START OF CLASS (i.e. BEFORE 2 p.m.) via D2L’s Dropbox feature and a paper copy to me at the beginning of class, if you’d like comments.

Please see me or visit the CU-Boulder Writing Center
if you have further questions about
writing a response paper.

1