Jocelyn Barajas Barajas 1

8 April 2019

Argumentative Reflection

The title of the assignment I utilized for the argumentative portion of my senior defense

is “Disobedience Promotes Social Progress”. This assignment was completed November 19th,

2017 in my AP English Language class. This assignment required us to write an argumentative

essay giving our opinion on the controversial topic of whether disobedience has promoted

social progress. For this assignment I had to choose whether I agreed or disagreed with the given

prompt and defend my position through writing. I supported my position that disobedience

promotes social progress by exemplifying that Rosa Parks advocated for equality. She disobeyed

by sitting in the back of the bus. This led to the supreme court banning discrimination on public

transportation in 1956. This helped support my argument that disobedience promotes social

progress. This assignment fits the argumentative category of my senior defense because I had to

pick a side of an argument and defend it using logical, emotional, and anecdotal pieces of

evidence.

One of the SLO’S I met in this assignment was effective communicator. I was an

effective communicator by creating a thesis that clearly expressed my opinion on the topic of

disobedience promoting social progress. I also had to properly structure my essay in a way that

communicated three major points. In my first body paragraph, I included evidence that appealed

to an audience's sense of logic. In the second body paragraph I wrote examples that appealed to

emotions. Lastly, in the last body paragraph I included an anecdote to support my thesis. I was
an effective communicator by conveying my thoughts clearly and effectively by using rhetorical

strategies.

Barajas 2

This assignment helped me improve my communication skills. It helped me properly

express my ideas in an essay. This is a skill I struggle with because many times I know what I

want to say, but I fail at effectively communicating my ideas. However, by planning my essay,

rewriting it multiple times, and asking for help, I was able to effectively express my ideas. This

is a skill that I will continue to use in the future because in college I will need to express or

argue points effectively in writing. Not only that, but it will also help me avoid

misunderstandings when expressing my ideas or opinions. I will be able to verbally argue and

defend my position or an idea. Although I have improved, I understand that I need to continue to

develop my communication skills.

Jocelyn Barajas

Mrs. Vanhill

AP English

19 November 2017

Disobedience Promotes Social Progress

Disobedience is many cases is seen as a bad thing, but can it also be beneficial to

disobey? Sometimes what is seen as right is not always right , so this being the case what should

one do ? The question remains if disobedience can promote social progress. Disobedience is a

valuable trait which promotes social progress, as seen in logical, emotional, and anecdotal pieces

of evidence.

Logical evidence of disobedience promoting social progress is seen through the

Revolutionary War. The Revolutionary War was a war fought for the independence of United

States. Approximately 25,000 troops died fighting for freedom of their country. John Adams,

former president of the United States, says,”You will never know how much it has cost my

generation to preserve your freedom. I hope you will make a good use of it”(Adams). This quote

means that in old times America was not a free country and it took many people sacrificing their

lives to obtain it. This quote is important because it demonstrates that the disobeying and

rebelling of troops caused the United States to gain freedom. This proves that disobedience can

help promote social progress. Another example of logic used to promote social progress is seen

through the civil rights activist Cesar Chavez. Cesar Chavez accomplished to gain better working

conditions for thousands of farm workers by standing up for what he believed in and going