Essay #2:
A Summary-Response Essay on Income Equality
Assignment Overview:
Economic inequality is a multifaceted issue that affects various aspects of society, including race, class, health, education, and overall well being. This assignment asks you to engage critically with multiple sources on the topic of economic inequality. You will write a summary-response essay that summarizes and responds to arguments from three of the following sources: Robert Reich’s documentary Inequality for All, Richard Wilkinson’s Ted Talk, Radiolab’s “Busted: America’s Poverty Myths,” Isabel Wilkerson’s “It’s More Than Racism” (Fresh Air), or Raj Chetty’s research. Your essay should provide a summary of the main points from three of the above-mentioned sources and include a thoughtful response that reflects on their implications and interconnections having to do with income inequality and the causes.
Sources for Unit Two:
Inequality for All: The film is available in this unit.
Richard Wilkinson: “How Inequality Harms Societies”: Click HereLinks to an external site.
Links to an external site.Isabel Wilkerson: “It’s More than Racism: Isabel Wilkerson Explains America’s ‘Caste’ System”:Click HereLinks to an external site.
On the Media: “Busted: America’s Poverty Myths”: Click HereLinks to an external site.
Raj Chetty’s “Reviving the American Dream”: Click HereLinks to an external site.
Ideas for Format:
Introduction:
Introduce the topic of income inequality to your reader, state the sources you plan to work with in the essay, and provide a thesis stating your overall reaction to them.
Body Paragraphs:
You will need to summarize three sources, making sure to give a clear overview of each source. You will have a separate paragraph for each summary.
Template for the summary:Click HereLinks to an external site..
Please use the template for the first summary and then vary it for the following two summaries.
Use a quote from the source in each summary.
After the summary paragraphs, you will write 2-3 paragraphs responding to the sources. Discuss the connections between the sources and your personal reflections on the topic. Some ideas to develop:
Do the speakers have similar ideas about why this inequality exists? And what do you think? Do you agree/disagree? Do you have a personal experience that relates?
Are the authors bringing up points about the United States that people often do not think about our realize? What are those points and what is your reaction?
What are the most important points that we should be concerned about in your view having to do with this income inequality? What are the impacts on the people who live here?
Conclusion:
You can restate your points here and reflect on the importance of understanding economic inequality for our society.
Here are more tips for format from another page in this unit (Thesis/Outline):Click Here.
Requirements:
This essay should be approximately 3 pages long. In my class, if you are shooting for an A, you should go above and beyond the call of duty, so to speak, and stretch out to a little more than 3 pages for this paper.
This essay should include quotes from at least three of the sources you are working with.
You do not need any outside sources for this essay.
All sources must be documented following MLA guidelines (See info on quotations, in-text citations, quote integration later on in this unit).
This paper needs a works cited page. Please review the works cited information (This will come later in the unit).
According to MLA guidelines, your paper should be double-spaced and in Times New Roman (12 font).
