Javar Allen Boyd

First period P2

January 26, 2018

Hard Working Women

During the 1800’s women were having a hard time working in factories. In the novel “Lyddie”

by Katherine Paterson, the main character Lyddie has to face hard conditions. There is a petition that

is being passed around, that Lyddie has to make a decision around if she wants to sign it or

not. Lyddie should sign the petition because she is working too hard, she got harassed by her boss

and the factory is not a safe environment.

One reason Lyddie should sign the petition is because she is working too hard. In chapter 12,

Lyddie works 12-13 hours a day. That is mostly the whole day and she wants more free time. In the

novel it says “Time is more precious than money, Lyddie girl. If only I had two more free hours of an

evening-what I wouldn't do.” This shows that she should sign the petition because if she has the

amount of free time she wanted, she could have time to spend the amount of money she worked for.

In “Lyddie” the text states, “When I started in the spinning room, I could do a thirteen-hour day and to

spare. But in those days I had a hundred thirty spindles to tend to. Now I’ve twice that many at a

speed that would make the devil curse.” This shows that since she has more machines to tend to she

doesn’t have enough free time. Signing the petition about working too hard is a good decision.

Another reason Lyddie should sign the petition is because she got harassed by her boss. In

chapter 16 Lyddie gets sexually assaulted by her boss. Her boss’ name is Mr. Marsden. Mr. Marsden

is in charge of the whole mill factory. In the novel it says, “He was bringing his strange little mouth

closer and closer to her fiery face.” This shows that Mr. Marsden is trying to kiss Lyddie. This is a

distraction to Lyddie doing her work. If Lyddie doesn't sign the petition a lot of more things can

happen to her. In the novel it says “She did not go to work the next day or for many days thereafter.”

This shows that she is nervous to go back to work because she dont know what can happen next.
This is important because you want to know her feelings. Signing the petition about harassment is a

good decision because you shouldn't want it to happen again.

A final reason Lyddie should sign the petition is because the factory is not a safe environment.

In chapter 12 when she was working in the mill, the air was really dusty. In the novel it says “She

began coughing, a dry, painful cough through the night that kept both Betsy and Amelia awake,

though not Lyddie.” This shows that the health in the workplace is bad. In the novel it says “She

coughed, trying to free her throat and lungs for breath.” This shows that the factory is not a safe

environment because you might lose your breath and it can never come back. Signing the petition

about not safe environment is a good decision because you do not want to get sick.

Although some people believe Lyddie shouldn’t sign the petition because she may lose her job

and get blacklisted. People may think she shouldn't but she should because her personal health and

environment is not safe. Lyddie should sign the petition because she is working too hard, she got

harrassed and the factory is not a safe environment.

 7th Grade Argument Writing Rubric TOTAL SCORE: 15.45/ 16

Criteria 4 3
CLAIM AND - clearly introduce the text
and the claim in a manner
REASONS: that is compelling and
the extent to which the follows logically
essay conveys - claim and reasons
complex ideas and demonstrate insightful
information clearly and analysis of the text(s)
accurately in - acknowledges
order to logically counterclaim(s) skillfully and
support the author’s smoothly 3.9
claim.
- develop
COMMAND OF
the claim with relevant, well-
EVIDENCE: chosen facts, concrete
the extent to which details, quotations, or
examples from the text(s)
the essay presents
- sustain the use of varied,
evidence from the
relevant evidence
provided texts to
- skillfully explain how
support argument evidence supports ideas
COHERENCE, exhibit clear organization, with
the skillful use of appropriate
ORGANIZATION, and varied transitions to create
AND STYLE: the a unified/ enhance meaning.
extent to which the establish/maintain a formal style,
using grade-appropriate,
essay logically
stylistically sophisticated
organizes complex language and domain-specific
ideas, concepts, vocabulary.
and information provide a concluding statement
or section that is compelling and
using formal style follows clearly from the claim
and precise and reasons presented 4
language
CONTROL OF demonstrate grade-
appropriate command of
CONVENTIONS: the conventions, with few errors
extent to which the essay
demonstrates command 3.8
of capitalization,
punctuation, and spelling
Javar it is amazing to see you continue to grow in your writing. Your analysis now demonstrates your ability to truly explain how
your evidence supports your claim, and not simply stating so. Great work!
clearly introduce the text
and the claim in a
manner that follows from
the task and purpose
- claim and reasons
demonstrate grade-
appropriate analysis of
the text(s)
- acknowledges
counterclaim(s)
appropriately
- develop the claim with
relevant facts, details,
quotations, or other
examples from the text(s)
- sustain the use of
relevant evidence, with
some lack of variety
- logically explain how
evidence supports ideas
3.75
exhibit clear organization,
with the use of appropriate
transitions to create a
unified whole
establish and maintain a
formal style using precise
language and domain-
specific vocabulary
provide a concluding
statement or section that
follows from the claim and
reasons presented
demonstrate grade-
appropriate command
of conventions, with
occasional errors that do
not hinder
comprehension
2 1
- introduce the text and
the claim in a manner that
follows generally from the
task and purpose
- claim and reasons
demonstrate a literal
comprehension of the
text(s)
- acknowledges
counterclaim(s) awkwardly
- partially develop the
claim of the essay with the
use of some textual
evidence, some of which
may be irrelevant
- use relevant evidence
inconsistently
sometimes logically explain
how evidence supports
ideas
exhibit some attempt at
organization, with
inconsistent use of transitions
establish but fail to maintain
a formal style, with
inconsistent use of language
and domain-specific
vocabulary
provide a concluding
statement or section that
follows generally the claim
and reasons presented
demonstrate emerging
command of conventions,
with some errors that may
hinder comprehension
- introduce the text and the
claim in a manner that does
not logically follow from the
task and purpose
- claim and reasons
demonstrate little
understanding of the text(s)
- does not acknowledge
counterclaim(s)
- demonstrate an attempt to
use evidence, but only
develop ideas with minimal,
occasional evidence that is
generally invalid or irrelevant
- attempt to explain how
evidence supports ideas
exhibit little attempt at
organization, or attempts to
organize are irrelevant to the
task
lack a formal style, using
language that is imprecise or
inappropriate for the text(s) and
task
provide a concluding statement
or section that is illogical or
unrelated to the claim and
reasons presented
demonstrate a lack of
command of conventions,
with frequent errors that hinder
comprehension
0
- claim and reasons
demonstrate a lack of
comprehension of the
text(s) or task
- provide no evidence
or provide evidence
that is completely
irrelevant
- does not explain how
evidence supports
ideas
exhibit no evidence of
organization
use language that is
predominantly
incoherent or copied
directly from the text(s)
do not provide a
concluding statement or
section
are minimal, making
assessment of
conventions unreliable