Blogging the Lab

Should I refer to all three texts (one speech, two videos) in my in-class draft?


Yes, but only in your introduction. The second paragraph is an opportunity for you to focus on one aspect of the ideas contained in the speeches.


Do I have to incorporate all aspects of all three speeches?


No, use your judgement. The introduction should be dense with at least a reference and a main idea of each speech, and then that intro should transition into a tiny thesis statement (what is the most important idea and explain its significance).

So what then should I focus on in the second paragraph?


In the second paragraph, the most important thing is writing a topic sentence that connects to your thesis statement. This topic sentence will also organize that paragraph.

Basic Template

In Malcolm X's three speeches from the early 1960s, "The Bullet or the Ballot," "We are Living in a Police State," and "There is a Global Revolution," we can see several provocative ideas. In "Bullet," he speaks about...In "Police State," he talks about...In "Global Revolution," He talks about...The most significant idea in all his speeches is his idea of XXX because ABBA, DABBA, and DOO.


The idea of ABBA is important because...In the speech "Police State" where he talks about this idea, he says...He also says...While some might think that...., others could say...We must pay attention closely when he says "DABBY DABBY DOO" because...("Police State"). This is crucial because DABBA DABBY. It also connects to the idea from "Bullet or the Ballot" of...Taken together, we could think...or we could think...