Saundra Johnson
Christy Vance
English 102
16 October 2009

Argument Reading Response

The author of The Curious Writer, Bruce Ballenger, depicts diverse ways of cultivating an argument paper. He even describes the differences between the Eastern and Western philosophy about political debating in public which I found interesting. His lesson discusses the different modes of essays, such as the Op Eds, academic, and informal, and how to best formulate a cohesive thesis statement with validation.
Op Eds are short, influential compositions with a decisive theme to the author's thought. The academic dissertation is longer and formal in its approach. An informal argument paper is generally shorter on length and has the writer's personality shining throughout the topic. Ballenger further expands our knowledge base by giving the 10 common mistakes that the novice writer produces in their composition.
I found his tutorial beneficial in keeping my information on track while mounting my evidence in a cohesive manner. Using his list of common fallacies will help me to remain focused and on track. Ballenger's lesson will be a wonderful reference source to double check my argument paper.