Paper #1 - Response Essay
Assignment: Plan, write, and revise a 500 word essay on the following topic:
Background Info: Eric Weiner's book, The Geography of Genius, argues that creative geniuses are not the product of genetics but rather culture.
In developing his thesis, he examines 7 famous "clusters" where geniuses have emerged.
In his conclusion, Weiner boils it down to three traits (the three D's) that are shared
by each of the clusters and that might assist us in enhancing our own creativity: disorder, diversity, and discernment.
Prompt: Choose one of his three D's, the one you think is the most important ingredient of a creative life, as the focus of your response. Write a paper in which you develop your own ideas about that ingredient. Bring your own experience, observations, or study to bear as you verify, modify, or contradict Weiner's thesis.
Specifics: Use the skills of paraphrasing, quoting, or summary as needed to represent Weiner's ideas. Limit your discussion of Weiner to approximately 25% of your paper. That means that approximately 75% of your paper develops your own thesis. Your paper should demonstrate mastery of Trimble's first five chapters.
Peer Editing: Bring 6 typewritten copies of your finished paper to class on Thursday, April 28. You will receive written and oral feedback from your classmates regarding strengths and weaknesses in your paper.
Submission: Using relevant feedback from your classmates, revise your paper once again. Upload your paper to our Turnitin.com account by 11:59pm Tuesday, May 3.
Paper Format: Be sure to use the MLA paper format and citations method. For details, see the OWL website. You might also find these short videos helpful.
Class ID#: 12545399
Password: paper4denny
75 points possible. A five-point late penalty will be imposed upon papers received after the deadline.