Self-Reflective Essay

            Before taking this class I had always envisioned an argument as two people yelling at each other. I couldn’t picture it as a calm and informative academic discussion, but that’s exactly what an informed argument is. One gives a commentary on an issue to be read by an audience who finds it valid and relevant to them. I’ve learned about so many various tools to use in my writing-from analyzing a piece of evidence I may use to using appeals to emotion and logic. Everything we worked on and discussed in class helped build to create my own informed argument. We were thrown into an academic conversation to sink or swim as we may. Research was done over a multitude of weeks to culminate the evidence for our individual arguments. The whole experience helped produce an argument I can be proud of because I know what I’m talking about and have wrapped previous arguments and ideas into my own. Throughout this essay, I will be discussing not only what I’ve learned about informed arguments and how it’s helped me, but also the idea of an informed argument on zombies.

            Who first imagined zombies? Is there any real evidence that they could exist? The most important first step in any argument is to have an interest in a particular subject and a desire to learn more about it. Asking questions is one of the most important things you can do, even before doing any actual research. Could zombies ever exist in the future? What would have to happen for them to emerge? Observation to how things are now is important, as well as examining alternatives to how things could be. For all we know, zombies could arise in an apocalyptic sense at any moment. I think the process of inquiry of the world around you is the most important step to formulating an informed argument. If you don’t question the world around you and look for what needs to or could change, there would be no need to write an informed argument. Questioning the world around us is the only way we find information or see what needs to change in the future.

            The next important step in creating an informed argument is research and analysis of various sources. It’s always important to check the validity and reliability of the author of an article or book. Even though someone may appear to be an “expert” on the subject, it isn’t always the case. For example, there are many apocalyptic extremists who will tell you the zombies are coming and they will take over the world. Though we can’t say at this moment if this has any truth to it, they rarely offer any evidence to back up their claims. Their credibility is questionable at best; these people are generally found to be an unreliable source when you come right down to it. One should always do research first before formulating their thesis and opinion on a particular subject. One must be open and receptive to ideas that vary from their own; one should always be respectful of other’s viewpoints and be flexible in their thinking. Annotation should be done on any research, including defining terms, responding to questions, asking questions, and formulating your own points based on the work. Once the research is collected, annotated, and the selections have been made, analysis is the next step. One should identify the writer’s reasoning for writing on the subject, their purpose in writing about it, their various claims, and the audience they are targeting their argument towards.

Zombies would be an easy idea to analyze, but not such an easy topic to research. Though there are many fictional pieces of work depicting zombies in their various forms, there is very scanty evidence to show their existence or traits as actual beings. One would be hard pressed to find reliable sources giving information on zombies as real entities because it’s impossible to experiment upon something that doesn’t exist in our world today.

            The next part of the process involves writing the actual argument and putting all the work into one paper. One should formulate a thesis to focus their paper on a specific topic and develop their argument throughout the argument to back up the thesis. One should generally formulate the introduction and conclusion first so the beginning and ending of the argument strongly support the topics in each paragraph. There should always be details and evidence to back up each and every one of your claims so your audience knows that it isn’t just an opinion. The opposing point of view should be included, as it will strengthen the argument if you are able to disprove or undermine it with your own view. If I had to write an entire informed argument on the progression of zombies I would include any logical facts as logos, any emotions as pathos, and my own credibility as ethos. I would have to do my research on what was known about zombies in a non-fictional sense, ask how one would feel if one of their loved ones turned into a zombie, and speak about my own place in the academic conversation.

Though it may seem a little silly to contemplate zombies coming to be, it is a logical example to show how an informed argument can arise. I’ve learned a lot from the experience of writing my own informed argument and it has definitely bettered me as a student and a writer. I used to just find a piece of evidence and trust what it said, regardless of whether or not it was an opinion rather than a fact. I’m now able to analyze various pieces of evidence in their entirety, and determine whether or not it’s a reliable source. I put work into my paper each week by using each assignment given to contribute into the argument. It made writing my argument so much more simple to build off the work I had already done. If I were to form an informed argument on zombies, I would start with asking questions without judgment. If I knew absolutely nothing about them, I would start from the bottom and build my way up. Even though I had some ideas about preventive care before I entered my own argument into the conversation, I decided early on not to make a judgment until I had seen all sides of the argument. This is one of the most important things you can do when formulating an informed argument. The key word is informed, not prematurely judgmental or biased on a topic; it involves becoming entirely informed about a topic and joining the argument from there. Though it took a lot of work, I was glad to be able to write such a long and informative paper that could maybe help someone in their own informed argument; maybe my research can contribute to someone else’s new ideas and opinions.