Prompt 1
Is cheerleading a sport? How about skateboarding? What about a video game, such as League of Legends? For this topic, choose an activity that some people consider a sport and argue whether or not that activity counts as a sport.
Prompt 2
Many fans of independent music are saddened when their favorite musicians sign to major record labels, appear on radio or TV, or become widely popular. They call these musicians “sell-outs.” What is a sell-out? Should musicians (or artists, scholars, scientists, or politicians) “sell out”?
Prompt 3
Cult films have been around for a long time, but what exactly makes a film a cult film? Define what the term “cult” means in reference to films and use a film as an example to support the criteria that make up your definition.
Prompt 4
As scientists continue to study plants and animals, it becomes more and more likely that human beings are not the only living beings to communicate, think, and feel. Some animals, like dolphins and orca whales, have complex languages, evidence of culture, and even self-awareness. Plants, too, have been discovered to have complex systems for communication and fit some scientists’ qualifications for consciousness. Some people propose designating dolphins and other advanced animals as “non-human people” and giving them rights similar to those we recognize for humans. What makes someone, or something, a person? Could a dolphin meet the criteria? How about a whale? Dog? Gorilla? A redwood tree? Do some research and argue whether or not an animal or plant fits the category “person.”
Prompt 5
Each of the readings in Unit 2 defines a term to make an argument. Clinton defines women’s rights, Wiesel discusses indifference, and Emerson elaborates on self-reliance. This final prompt is more open-ended; to write your essay, choose a term or concept you believe is essential to maintaining a free, just, and ethical society, do some research, and write an essay that makes an definition or evaluation argument to explain what makes that term or concept essential.