Academic argumentation is an opportunity to become a knowledge producer. While writing assignments in the college classroom often seem more like obstacles to be overcome on your way to a successful grade, essays are also—should be primarily—occasions to learn new information, to test information that we think we already know, and to grow as intellectuals and citizens. Despite the pile of woe attributed to the philosophes of the Enlightenment, their use of the phrase sapere aude, or “dare to know,” is an apt guiding star for essay writing. The term essay, in fact, derives from the French essai, meaning “to test” or “to attempt.” During this course, we will dare to know as we act as knowledge producers, essayists who explore the rhetorical approaches to argumentative writing, sharpen our awareness of mechanics and craft, deepen our approach to research, and indulge in the rigors and pleasures of essay reading, writing, and analysis.