AP English Language / Writing the Essays
Lesson
Argument and synthesis: you still have to lead
Sources are guests. They should not take over the house.
Learning goals
- Write an argument thesis that takes a position and hints at a line of reasoning.
- Use sources in synthesis as voices you agree with, complicate, or resist.
Explanation
On an argument task, the claim is yours. Personal experience can count if you treat it as one kind of evidence, not as a trump card. Hypotheticals should stay honest: a possible case is not a proof. Define key terms when a prompt is slippery.
Synthesis asks you to enter a conversation already in progress. You still need a thesis. Quote or paraphrase a source, then put it to work—support, complicate, or counter. A paragraph that is only “Source A says, Source B says” is a summary braid, not synthesis.
Key terms
- Synthesis. Building your own claim by putting sources in relation to one another and to your reasoning.
- Position. The stance an argument essay takes on the given issue.
Common mistakes
- Letting sources appear in order without a governing claim.
- Writing only personal narrative when the prompt asked for an argument with reasons.
Practice
Original Marlow Works items. Check the answer explanation after you try.
A city engineer writes an open letter to residents arguing that a proposed bike lane will "cut crash injuries on this corridor, not just add paint to the curb." The phrase most clearly functions to do which of the following?
Original Marlow Works item — not a College Board question.
Take your time—this is practice, not a test.
Answer explanation
In synthesis, what is the difference between citing two sources and putting them in conversation?
Answer. Conversation says how they agree, clash, or fill each other’s gaps, and uses that relation to advance your claim.
Citation alone is listing. Synthesis is relation plus a thesis.
Related resources
External links with reuse status. Marlow Works is independent and does not copy restricted exam or textbook material.
Official / link only
AP English Language and Composition course page
Official skills framework for rhetoric, argument, and synthesis.
College Board · All rights reserved · accessed 2026-10-01
Open sourceCC BY — attribution required
English Composition: Connect, Collaborate, Communicate
Open composition text for writing process, argument, and revision.
Open Textbook Library listing · CC BY · accessed 2026-10-01
Open source