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Aspen Kortmeyer

English 115

Professor Ditch

December 8, 2020

Argumentative Reflection Essay

Throughout this semester in English 115 we have covered a lot of information that has

helped us become successful writers. I learned how to strengthen my essays through the use

of rhetorical strategies, building a strong thesis statement, following the prompt throughout

my essay and giving credit where it is due. I have definitely become a stronger writer

throughout this semester and I see huge improvement in the areas I struggled most in which

included: forming a strong thesis statement and creating citations in order to avoid

plagiarism.

In the beginning of the Fall semester, we were assigned the Project Space Essay. The

purpose of this assignment was to write an analytical essay that demonstrated my ability to

understand and analyze. The essay I originally submitted lacked details within my thesis

statement but now that we have reached the end of the semester, going back to revise my

work I recognized tremendous improvement. Professor Ditch’s feedback stated that I needed

to “give detail as to how the author uses the rhetorical strategies” so with that being said I

entirely changed my thesis statement to: “I found the chapter “How Happy Are You and

Why”, which is from the book titled How of Happiness by Sonja Lyubomirsky, to present the

most effective argument. Lyubomirsky is not only extremely credible but she also used

pathos and logos strongly throughout the chapter by presenting a lot of research and sharing

stories that take an emotional appeal towards her audience” (Kortmeyer 1). This is evidence

that proves I understood how to give my thesis enough detail and structure. I was able to

transform it into a well done thesis statement that answers the question and gives more detail.
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Another place within my writing that I have improved immensely is citing my

evidence. I came into this class with little to no understanding of accidental plagiarism. I

found myself continuously losing points due to my lack of giving credit. On the Project Space

Essay, I was marked for plagiarism; so going back to revise I knew I needed to give credit

where it was due and I needed to cite all my evidence. From the beginning of the semester to

now, I have learned so much about in-text citations and creating a works cited page. In

previous essays, I would refer to the given text in my writing and not give the author credit

but I have learned to cite my sources. For example, I lacked in-text citations when I originally

implanted this information but after going back to revise I made sure to give credit, as

follows: “Lyubomirsky is a social psychologist, professor, and graduate of Stanford

University (Lyubomirsky 179).” (Kortmeyer 1). This proves that my ability to give credit has

improved, everything that was once a struggle for me comes naturally and is done to meet the

expectation.

One last example of improvement within my writing is my ability to deeply analyze

quotes and tie texts together. I have received feedback from my peers stating that I needed to

analyze and explain how the quotes I were bringing tied back with the essay prompt. A

perfect example is: “Lyubomirsky is a social psychologist, professor, and graduate of

Stanford University (Lyubomirsky 179). All of her knowledge and skill through both practice

and education make her an extremely credible source which is where the use of ethos came

in” (Kortmeyer 1). This text that I pulled from my Project Space Essay proves that I

understand that Lyubomirsky shows her credibility by sharing her professional background

but prior to me revising this essay, I had left her quote alone with nothing to explain its

importance or relevance to my essay.

In conclusion, despite this semester being a challenge, I know that I have truly grown

as a writer. After analyzing the first essay I did for English 115, I can see how much I have
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expanded my vocabulary and overall ability to write an essay that successfully meets all the

expectations. The evidence I shared proves that I have taken the feedback given to me by my

peers and Professor and I have implied it throughout my writing. I am able to form strong

thesis statements, a well structured essay and I am able to follow the prompt.
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Works Cited

Lyubomirsky, Sonja. “How Happy Are You and Why?” Pursuing Happiness, 2nd ed,

Matthew Parfitt, Dawn Skorczewski, pp. 179-197.