Assignment task:
Step: Annotate the Argument
1. The title:
Annotation: Put a box around the title. To ensure that you understand its meaning in relation to the op-ed, provide two alternate titles for the piece.
2. The thesis:
Annotation: Identify the thesis. Put a two-lined box around the first sentence in the op-ed that that captures the writer's primary argument.
3. The tip-off words:
Annotation: Circle all verbs, adverbs, and adjectives that imply or explicitly convey the writer's attitude to the subject being discussed. Briefly summarize the attitude conveyed by those words, paying special attention to groups of words that seem to carry a similar tone.
4. The opening and closing paragraphs:
Annotation: In a few words, summarize in the margin how the opening paragraph relates to the argument of the editorial. Then turn to the closing paragraph: what does it accomplish for the writer?
5. Unfamiliar words:
Annotation: Write the definitions of unfamiliar words next to the words themselves.
6. Unfamiliar and half-familiar references:
Annotation: Briefly indicate in the margin what a reference means and how the reference clarifies and supports the writer's argument.
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