Insert a header into

your document (go

to view>header). Doe 1

John Doe

ECLT 102-3 Include your name,

course-section, essay-
Essay One, Final Draft draft, and date.

Oct. 7, 2003 Think of an

original title.
The Art of Persuasion: Women’s Oppression by Two Feminist Writers
Tab the
beginning Judy Syfers’ essay “I Want A Wife” introduces to an unmarried woman what married life
of each
paragraph. is all about and to raises consciousness of the subordinate role a woman will take after marriage.

The intended audience for this text is not academics or scholars. Syfers is more likely focusing

on unmarried women, and that is why she published her writing in Ms. Magazine. She

accomplishes her purpose by writing about all the tasks and roles of a wife. The second text is

“Liberation of Women: Sexual Repression and the Family” by Laurel Limpus. The intended

Articles audience for this text is everyone; all women and men. The purpose of her text is to try and get
are set off
with more people to join the Women’s Liberation Movement, which was taking place at that time.
quotation
marks. Limpus does so by writing about the oppression women went through at that period of time, and

she examined all the aspects and reasons as to why women were oppressed. “I Want A Wife” by

Judy Syfers is more convincing to its intended audience than “Liberation of Women” because it

is humorous, its language is accessible to the reader, and the author has authority as she relates to
The thesis statement (your general argument) is
her personal experience as a wife and mother. usually placed at the end of the introduction.

Humor is an important tool a writer should use to get and keep the reader’s attention.

Syfers successfully achieves this aspect in her writing. She uses irony and a witty, humorous tone
Topic
sentences to provide comic relief for her audience. Since the text is written to secretaries, students, and
begin
each single women in general (housewives might also be reading Ms. Magazine), its humor will catch Journals,
paragraph. magazines,
their attention because of their young age. The students do a lot of studying and the secretaries and books
are
italicized.
 Doe 2

are busy with their work. Therefore, Syfers’ text works best for them because they can read it

during a short break, and it will provide them with some comic relief. The humor in the text will

also cover up any insult housewives might feel because of the reality spoken about their
In addition
subordinate roles. Syfers’ humor, represented by the contradictory passage, “I want a wife who is
to proof-
reading, the
sensitive to my sexual needs, a wife who makes love passionately and eagerly when I feel like it,
essay is
grammar
a wife who makes sure that I am satisfied. And, of course, I want a wife who will not demand
and spell-
checked for
sexual attention when I am not in the mood for it,” made her text become widely spread all over
additional
accuracy.
the internet and in anthologies, while Laurel Limpus’ text can only be found in three websites,

with only one containing the whole text. In contrast to Syfers’ irony, Limpus’ text is too serious,

which is most likely going to be unappreciated by the audience the text is written to. Even from

the very first sentence of her text, Limpus writes, “This is an attempt to deal with some of the
Quotations are integrated smoothly,
and the author is identified. Limpus
theoretical problems of the liberation of women, particularly as they relate to sexuality and
also appears in the Works Cited.
sexual repression.” Although she moves right to the point of her text, she is more likely to repel

some of the audience she could have won had she not been as serious.

Not only does Syfers provide humor in her text, but she also uses simple, accessible

Topic language, which is a very important aspect of any piece of writing. When the language is
sentence
with simplified, the text’s audience broadens. Syfers uses easily understandable terminology and
transition.
. vocabulary and still gets her point through. Since her text is aimed at young students and

secretaries, who are not necessarily university graduates, the accessible language will make them

be able to easily understand what they are reading. Syfers uses simple phrases like, “Not too long

ago a male friend of mine appeared on the scene fresh from a recent divorce. He had one child,
If the
who is, of course, with his ex-wife. He is looking for another wife,” to clearly get her point source had
had page
through. Her text is not only interesting because of the humorous tone and simple language, but numbers,
you would
put them
after the
quotation
in
parentheses
 Doe 3

also because it is short and to the point. Since the text is aimed at reaching women, some of

whom do not have the time to read long articles, they (the audience) need a short text to read

while eating a meal or shopping in the supermarket or during a break from work. Syfers’ Notice how
the
accessible language, combined with her humor and the text’s shortness makes the reader able and paragraphs
are pro-
willing to read it at anytime and more than once. On the other hand, Laurel Limpus’ text is veryportionately
balanced in
long – almost fifteen pages. That is in addition to her very difficult and complicated language. length. The
essay doesn’t
Limpus uses phrases such as, “One of the most pervading conceptions in the present ideology isappear
lopsided.
that the family is a natural, inevitable phenomenon . . . because of the apparent universality of

the family, women are relegated . . . .” This narrows down the audience that Limpus could have

obtained if her text were shorter and more simplified.

In addition to humor, accessible language, and shortness, Syfers’ text contains authority.

The authority of a writer is determined by his or her personal experience in the field he/she is
Topic
Sentence
relating to in the text. In her text, Syfers talks about wives and their roles. She has authority
again.
because she herself is “a wife. And, not altogether incidentally, . . . a mother.” Syfers, therefore,
Ellipses
Quotes can relate to her personal experience of being a mother and wife, and therefore, the reader (any represent
blend in omitted
with the reader, no matter who the intended audience is) can trust what she says. However, some people words.
grammar
of your like to take into consideration the dangers of personal experience making a text too subjective
sentence.
and biased. This is true in a lot of cases, but Syfers’ text is not biased because it talks about the

actual reality of married life at that period of time. The wives’ roles she writes about are the

actual roles of all wives at that time. Therefore, Syfers does not present her opinion or her

inference about the roles of wives at that time. Rather, she speaks facts and reality. On the

contrary, Limpus does not have authority, and that is because she doesn’t speak from personal

experience. Limpus writes about wives and women’s oppression during her years as a university
 Doe 4

Margins student, showing that she hasn’t experienced what she writes about. Her point of view is shown
are 1 inch
wide on The font is
weak when she says, “The myth that childbearing and rearing is the fulfillment of a woman’s
all sides Times New
(2.5 Roman 12
destiny is by far, in my opinion, the most damaging and destructive myth that imprisons her.”
centimete point.
rs if Not only did she not demonstrate her point of view with authority by using phrases like “in my
you’re
using the opinion”, but she speaks of childbearing and rearing while she is but a university student or very
metric
system). recent graduate. What does she know about childbearing, rearing, or even being a wife?

Therefore, the reader is not likely to easily believe everything Limpus writes about.

Humor, accessible and simplified language, and authority through personal experience

make “I Want A Wife” by Judy Syfers a more convincing text to its intended audience than

Articles Limpus’ “Liberation of Women: Sexual Repression and the Family.” Syfers combines many
and
essays are important writing variables to achieve popularity for her text. That is why her text is found all
put in
quotation over the internet while Laurel Limpus’ text is very rarely found or even heard of. Judy Syfers
marks.
has, without a doubt, convinced her audience through her well written text.
The conclusion briefly recapitulates the
argument and either ends on a memorable
thought, closing insight, interesting
quotation, lasting image, or call to action.
Each author or source that appeared in Doe 5
the essay is documented on the Works Include a Works Cited page to
Cited page in alphabetical order. document the sources you cite. This
Works Cited section appears on its own page.
Limpus, Laurel. “Liberation of Women: Sexual Repression and the Family, section 1.”

(Pamphlet.) New England Free Press: Boston, no date—early 1970s. Marxists.org,

Internet Archive. Aug 2002. 10 Sep 2003.

<http://www.marxists.org/subject/women/authors/limpus/liberation.htm>

Syfers, Judy. “I Want A Wife.” Ms. Spring 1972: 144. The CWLU Herstory Website Archive. 10

Sep 2003. http://www.cwluherstory.com/CWLUArchive/wantawife.html

The second and third MLA style prescribes a specific format for each entry.
lines of each entry are For an internet site, the format is: Last name, First
indented 5 spaces with a name. “Title.” Source. Date of Publication. Date of
hanging indent. The Access. <URL>. Databases have different formats.
entries are also double
spaced.