Research Paper Critique

Good: I liked when the writer provided real-life testimonies on pages four and five. I thought this made the issue more real to the reader and it demonstrated research in an interesting, personal way. The imagery is very vivid, and it fits really nicely into the paper.

I also really like the variety of sources the authors used. In consulting the list of Works Cited, I discovered that the author used a documentary film, an article from the New York Times, and several internet sites. The variety of sources, especially his use of film, a visual medium, made his paper more interesting and greatly strengthened his paper though the use of concrete facts and examples.

Bad: Overall, there was way too much emotion and personal opinion in this paper. A research paper is not persuasive writing, and it is not appropriate for a writer to enter his or her own opinion into their paper. In regards to the papers we analyzed in class, I think both writers had opinions about their topics but never did they explicitly state how they felt on the issue and how they thought their readers should feel. Sentences like "They should take responsibility for their mistakes and aid these individuals with everything they can," were very bothering to me. Absolutely no research was used in formulating this author's opinion, ergo, he should have left it out of the paper.

Nowhere in the paper could I find a thesis. I thought the organization was lacking, and the paper in its entirety seemed like it was written in the author's stream of consciousness where the author just relayed his thoughts on 9/11 and pollution as they came to him.