This document provides guidance on writing an outline for an argumentative research paper. It instructs the writer to include a thesis statement specifying the overall argument, as well as points and sources to prove the thesis. A sample outline structure is given consisting of an introduction with background and thesis, a literature review section organized by common themes from research sources, an argumentative section covering reasons to support the argument and citing sources, and a conclusion to summarize the paper. The outline only needs short sentences or paragraphs for each section, as the focus is on planning key elements of the paper rather than fully developing the essay.

1. write an outline. For this outline, you just need to specify your
thesis statement and the points you plan to cover in your paper.
Since your paper is an argumentative research paper, you will
need your outline to specify the points you plan to make that
prove your argument and the sources you plan to use for each
one. Remember that outlines are not like traditional essays, and
you only need to write a sentence or two for each point you
describe. However, everything you write should be your own
writing. There should be no plagiarism issues. Here is a sample
outline for you to follow for this assignment: Thesis Statement:
Create a draft thesis statement for your paper. Remember to be
specific and to convey your purpose to the reader. Introduction:
This is the first paragraph of your paper, and it may even need
to be two paragraphs depending on what your topic is. Introduce
your reader to the topic by providing background information
Present your thesis statement Body of Paper: This part of your
paper is going to contain a lot of information! Follow the
directions below. Literature Review This section of your paper
is an essay version of your annotated bibliography. Instead of
talking about your sources one a time, you will talk about them
all together as you would in an essay. This section is organized
by common themes you find in your research. Did all of your
research talk about one specific thing? This is where you write
about that specific thing and paraphrase your sources.
Argumentative Section This section of your paper covers the
different points you plan to make for your argument. Whenever
we want to persuade someone, we provide reasons for why they
should listen. You will talk about each of the reasons someone
should listen to you about your topic and cite your sources on
those reasons, too. Conclusion: This part of the paper can be 1-2
paragraphs. You will summarize everything you wrote. For the
purpose of this assignment though, you are not required to
provide anything about the conclusion. You can't conclude a
paper until it's written, right? So this will not need to be
included in your outline.