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Eighth Edition

John D. Ramage
Arizona State UniversitY

John C. Bean
Seattle UniversitY

June Johnson
Seattle UniversitY

Longman
New York San Francisco London Toronto SYdneY TokYo Munich Paris Cape Totrt N{exico City Boston

Singapore
Hong

Kong

Madrid Montrcal

ffiwffiw# ffimwruKmmffiru
Contents xi Preface xxv Supplements xxxv
Detailed

Acknowledgments xxxvii
Part $n*
1

$wsrvie*n of

Argnm*nt

Argument:Anlntroduction

Argument as lnquiry: Reading and

Exploring

24

Pa nrys
3

S$riting am Argum*nt fiS

The Core of an Argument: A Claim with The Logical Structure of Using Evidence

Reasons
73

60

4
5

Arguments EffectivelY 89

6
7

Moving Your Audience: Ethos, Pathos, and Responding to Objections and Alternative

Kairos 109 Views 124

Pirt Three

Ana$rzimg

Argum*nts

f 45

I I
hrt
Four 10

AnalyzingArgumentsRhetorically 146
Analyzing Visual

Arguments

165

Argum*mts in l!*pth: Five Type*

An lntroduction to the Types of

*f

{lmims
200

1g$

Claims

I1
12 13

DefinitionalArguments 210 CausalArguments 237

Resemblance

Arguments

264

14
15

EvaluationandEthicalArguments 284 ProposalArguments 310

The Researched

Fa Five
16
17

Argu*m*nt

348

Finding and Evaluating

Sources 344 Using, Citing, and Documenting Sources

368

tx

Brief Contents

Appendix*
1

4tll
401

lnformal

Fallacies

Small Group Strategies for Practicing Argument Skills

Credits

lndex

423 426

i,!jj.-+,:,,.:::::::

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ffiwmffiffiwffi ffitereffiffi%
Preface xxv
Supplements xxxv Acknowledgments xxxvii
Fart $me
1

,,!!t..1';::t:|1
.-a:::,.rr-1.1n:i:

&rrertrtew nf

&ngument

Argument: An

lntroduction 2
Argument?
2

What Do We Mean by

Argument Is Not a Fight or a Quarrel 2 Argument Is Not Pro-Con Debate 3

Argr-rments Can Be Explicit or

Implicit

touts w. sutllvAN,

M.D., "Let

the Facts Decide, Not fear: Ean AB

1108"

that A fotmer secretary of health and human seruices opposes a ban on a chemical soft and Jlexible. makes togs

The Defining Features of Argr-rment 10 Argrment Requires Justification of Its Claims 10

Argu.ment Is Both a Process and a Product 12 Argument Combines Truth Seeking and Persuasion 13

Argument and the Problem of

Truth

15

A Successful Process of Argumentation: The Well-Functioning

Committee

18

GORDON AOAMS {STUDENT),

"Petition to waive the university Mathematics

Requirement"
A
to be exemPted.

19

argues stud.ent accepted, to law school but delaged by a remaining math requirement

Conclusion

23

Argument as lnquiry: Reading and

Finding Issues to ExPlore 25 Do Some Initial Brainstorming 25
Be Open to the Issues All around

Exploring
25

24

You

Explore Ideas by Freewriting 29 Explore Ideas bY Idea MaPPing 29 Explore Ideas by Playing the Believing and Doubting

Game

30

xt

tffit

letailed Contents

Placing Texts in a Rhetorical

Genres

Context

32

32 Cultural Contexts: \Vho Writes Argumenh and Why? 32 Analyzing Rhetorical Context and Genre 37 Reading to Believe an Argument's

ofArgument

Claims

38
anti-immigratian groups to

JOHNKAVANAUCH,'Amnesty" 39
A Roman Cathokc priest and philosophy professor
asks see

the human face of undocumented immigrants and to support a palh to amestg.

Summary Writing as a Way of Reading to Believe 40 Practicing Belieng: Willing your Own Belief in the Writer,s

Views

43

Reading to

Doubt

44
45

Thinking

Dialectically
"Why Blame

Questions to Stimulate Dialectic

FRED REED,

Thinking
47

46

Mexitol',

A
a

conseruatiue freelance journalist uses irong to attack illegal immgration, calling "self-inflicted" crisis brought on bg Americans' loue o;f chiap tabol.

it

Three Ways to Foster Dialectic

Thinking

48

Conclusion

50

Writing Assignment: An Argument Summary or a Formal

Exploratory

Essay

50

Reading

52 the United States Grant Legal Status to

Sz

MICHAEI BANKS (STUDEtrlT), "Should

Undorumentedlmmigran{Wcrkers?,,

Examining articles and films, a student naTTates the chronological deuelopment idms as he searches for his own position on illegal mmigration.

of

his

Fart Tvrc

Wrltlng trn

*rg&merut

FE

The Core of an Argument: A Claim with

The Classical Strucfure of

Reasons
62

60

Argument

60

Classical Appeals and the Rhetorical

Tiiangle

Issue Questions as the Origrns of Argument 64 Difference between an Issue Question and an Information

Question

61

How to Identify an Issue Question 61 Difference between a Genuine Argument ad a pseuclo--\.gument 66 Pseudo-Arguments: Fanatical Believers and Faarical Skepocs 66 Another Source of Pseudo-Arguments: Lack of Shaerl ,\sumptions 66

Detailed

Contents xiii

Frame of an Argument: A Claim Supported by \Ahat Is a Reason? 68

Expressing Reasons in Because

Reasons

67

Clauses

Og

Conclusion
Thesis

70

Writing Assignment: An lssue Question and Working

Statements

7'l

The logical Structure of

of an

Arguments

lj

An Overwiew of Logos:\A4rat Do We Mean by the "Logical Shucture,,

Argument?

73

Logic 73 The Role of Assumptions 74 The Core of an Argument: The Enthymeme 74

Formal Logic versus Real-World

Adopting a Language for Describing Arguments: The Toulmin System 76

Using Toulmin s Schema to Determine a Strategy of

Support

80 84

The Power ofAudience-Based

Reasons

84

Difference between Writer-Based and Audience-Based

Reasons
g7

Conclusion

87

Writing Assignment: Plan of an Argument's

7

Details

Using Evidence

Effectively
Edence

89
89

The Persuasive Use of

Apply the STAR Criteria to Evidence 89 Use Sources That Your Reader Tiusts 91 Rhetorical Understanding of Evidence 91 Kinds of Evidence 91 Angle of Vision and the Selection and Framing of

Evidence
95 gg

94

Examining Visual Argumefits: Angle of

Rhetorical Strategies for Framing Special Strategies for Framing

Vision

Evidence 98 Statistical Evidence

101

Gathering

Evidence

101

Creating a Plan for Gathering Gathering Data lom

Edence Interviews 1Oz

Gathering Data from Surveys or

Questionnaires

103

Conclusion

103

xirInt

Detailed Contents

Argument Reading 105

Good for

Writing Assignment: A Microtheme or a Supporting-Reasons

104

CARMEN TIEU (STUDENT),

Girls"

"Why Violent Video Games Are

106
helps girls

A student argues that playng uiolent uideo games

male calture.

gain

insi.ght

into

Moving Your Audience: Ethos, Pathas,and

Ethos and Pathos as Persuasive Appeals: An

Kairos

I0g

Overview 109 How to Create an Effective Ethos:The Appeal to Credibility 111 How to Creafe Pathos,,The Appeal to Beliefs and Emotions 7lZ
Language 113 Illustrations Use Narratives Il4
Use Concrete Use Specific Examples and Use Words, Metaphors, and Analogies
113

with Appropriate
115

Connotations

115

Using Images for Emotional

Appeal

Kairos:The Timeliness and Fitness of

Arguments

116

Examining Visual Arguments: Lagos, Ethos, pathos, and How Audience-Based Reasons Enhance Logos, Ethos, and

Kairos I l r
pathos
119

Conclusion

122

writing Assignment: Revising a Draft for Ethos, pathos,and Audience-Based

Reasons

123

Responding to Objections and Alternative

One-Sided, Multisided, and Dialogic

Views
124

lZ4

Arguments

Determining Your Audience's Resistance to Your Appealing to a Supportive Audience: One-Sided

Views IZs Argument 127

128

Appealing to a Neutral or Undecided Audience: Classical Argument Summarizing Opposing Views 128 Refuting Opposing Views 129 Strategies for Rebutting Edence 131
Conceding to Opposing

Views

132

Example of a Student Essay Using Refutation

MARYBETH HAMtITON (STUDENT), From

Strategy

132

Children"

"First Pface: A Healing School for Homeless

133

A student who does uolunteer work in an alternati"*e

school .for honteless chldren refutes the arguments of those who uant to shut o/f the schoo! :.nding.

Detailed Contents

Appealing to a Resistant Audience: Dialogic

Argument

135

Delayed-ThesisArgument
ELtFFI cDMAN,

135

"Miilne8pa{is F*rnography

*rdi*ance" I3*

A nationallg syndicatid columnist reluctantlg disagrees with an antipornographg ordinance ProPosed bY femnists
138

Argument Conclusion 139

Rogerian

at writing Assignment: A Classical Argument or a Dialogic Argument Aimed

Conciliation
Reading

140

r40

for Fair tlAvlB LNGtrY f$TtlflENT!, "'Flslf-{r!*inals' sr [,lrb** thie{esl A FIec Treatment of Skctebearders" {A el*sscnl &rg*nne*t} 141
using the classical argument form, a shateboar,der argues that he and treaid unfairlg by potice, ciuic offlcials, and the general public
his

friends are
143

REBEKAH TAyLrlR {sTunENTi, 'R letter t* Jim" {A Rogerian actiuist suggests a using the strategtes of Rogerian argument,,a uegan and animal rights mtght take towardfair treatment of animals' smal step her meatmtinlfriend

Arg*r*ent}

P*rt Xt*ree

&remffi*xng&rg*mem$x

1S$
14'6

AnalyzingArgumentsRhetorically Thinking Rhetorically about a Text 146 Questions for Rhetorical Analysis I48 An Illustration of Rhetorical Analysis 148
KATHRY JffT\i IOPE , ,,Egg

FiCAdS"

5"I

bg new reproductiue argues"against th emerging practice of egg donation enabled technolog.

Writinginlgg|fortheconsensatiuemagazineNal|onalReview,KathtynJeanLopez

A Rhetorical Analysis of "Egg

Heads"

154

Conclusion I57
Writing Assignment: A Rhetorical

Analysis

158

Generating Ideas for Your Rhetorical Anaiysis 158 Organizing Your Rhetoricai Analysis 160

Reading

160

EttEFt 60$DMAN, "Wc$lb

f*r Rent*t*r * Sr*ee"

'Sf;

Itn*ot

the ethical Writing ten llmrs after Lopez' liberal columnist Ellen Goodman explores o*nct uhenfiist-worlcl couples "outsource" motherhood to third world

xaT

Detailed Contents

ZACHARY sTUMPS (sTU0ENT},

,A

Rhetori(al Analysis of Ellen Goodman,s

,Womb

|62 For Rent-tor a Astud'entanalgzesEllenGoodman'srhetoricalstrategiesin',Wombfor'Rent''' 'r*pnttril

nl* delaged
thesis

Price"'

stluchffe and her use of language with double

meanings.

Analyzing Visual
Use of

Arguments
167

165

Understanding Design Elements in Visual

Argument 166

T),?e

166

Use ofspace or Spatial Use of

LaYout

An Analysis of a Visual Argument Using Type and

Elements

168

Use of Images and GraPhics l7l An Analysis of a Visual Argument Using All the Design ComPonents 172

Color I7l

The Compositional Features of Photographs and Drawings An Analysis of a Visual Argument Using Images t77 The Genres of Visual

174

Argument 183 Fliers 184 Posters and

Public Affairs Advocacy Web

Advertisements 184

Carloons 186 Pages 187

Constr-ucting Your Own Visual

Argument 189

Using Information Graphics in Arguments 191 How Tables Contain a Variety of Stories 191 Using a Graph to Tell a Story 194 Incorporating Graphics into Your Argr'rment 196

Conclusion

198

WritingAssignment:AVisualArgumentRhetoricalAnalysis,aPoster

rgutlnt,
Fsnt

or a Microtheme Using Quantitative

Data

198

Fsllr

*rgaw*nts

im

S*Sh:

Fiwe T$p*s

rf lairus t$$

10

An lntroduction to the Types of

An Overview of the Types of

Claims
20O

200

Claims

Using Claim Types to Focus an Argument and Generate Ideas: An ExamPle 2Oz Making the LASIK Argument to Parents 2O3 2O4 Making the LASIK Argument to Insurance Companies

Detailed Contents

xvil

Hybrid Arguments: How Claim Types Work Together in

Some Examples of

Arguments

2O5

An Extended

Arguments 2O5 Example of a Hybrid Argument

Hybrid

2O7 208

AAR0N FRIEDMAN,

?ll

That Noise for

Nothing"

AmemberofaNewYorkCitgalternatiuetransportationaduocacygrouparguesinthis other methods for op-ed piece"that the city shoild ban car alnrms and explore
preuenting auto theft

11

DefinitionalArguments
An Overview of Arguments About
Same

210

Definition
213

2I7 teated
the

The Rule of Justice: Things in the Same Category Should Be

Way

2I2

Types of Definitional

Arguments

215 Examining Visuatr Arguments: A Definitisnal The Criteria-Match Structure of Definitional Arguments 216

Claim

DevelopingtheCriteria-MatchStructureforaDefinitionalArgument2T6
Toulmin Framework for a Definitional

Argument

217

Kinds of

Definitions

21'8

Aristotelian
Operational

Definitions Definitions

218
?,20

221 Conducting the Criteria Part of a Definitional Argument How Others Have Defined the Term 221 Approach 1: Research Approach 2'. CreaIe Your Own Extended Definition 222 Conducting the Match Part of a Definitional

Writing Assignment: A Definitional

Exploring

Argument Argument 225

224

\4rafs at Stake 226 Identilying Your Audience and Determining Organizing a Deflnitional Argument 227 Argument 227 Questioning and Critiquing a Definitional

Ideas

225

Readings
JNEFER

229

BoMlNGo (STUDENT), "Proteting Our Homes Can Lead to

Animal

(rueltY"

229

Astud'entdeuelopsad'efinitionofwhatconstih.ttesanimaloueltgandappliesittoan
inuasion of starlings

231 control KAIHY SUtLtvAN (STUDENI), "oncore, obsceni$, and the Liquor argues that a public control)ersg ouer photographs in a gag bar A student inuestigating theY are not PornograPhic.
DAVID ANDRIE5EN,

Board"

"What Defines a Sport?" 233

A spotfs writer

and asks, debates whether actiuities such as stacking cups are sports what are the cYiteria for a sPort?

Detailed Contents

12

CausalArguments
An Overview of Causal

237

Arguments 238

Kinds of Causal Arguments 239 Toulmin Framework for a Causal Argument 241 Two Methods for Arguing That One Event Causes Another 243 First Method: Explain the Causal Mechanism Directly 243

Examining Visual Arguments: A Causal

flaim

244

Second Method: Infer Causa] Links Using Inductive

Reasoning 246
247

Glossary of Terms Encountered in Causal

Arguments
249

Writing Assignment: A Causal

Exploring Ideas
Orgarrizing a Causal

Argument
251

249
251

Identifying Your Audience and Determining \44rat's at Stake

Argu.ment

Questioning and Critiquing a Causal

Argument

257

Readings
Was

254
"Why lawrence Summers

JUIEE CHRST|ANS0N (STUDENT],

Wrong: (ullure Rather Than Biology Explains the

Underrepresentation of Women in Science and Mathematics,, 254 A student uriter d.isagrees with Haruard president La-rence Summers's claim that women haue less innate talent for math and science than men'
oLlvlA JUDS0N, "Different but (Probably)

An euolutionary bologistlooks at gender differences it the anmol kingdom to explore in math and whether gendedffirlncu n humns-espeaallg the capaaty ra evel be attributed to nafure or nurture' science-can

Equal"

258

CARLOS MACIAS (STUDENT),

(redit "'The credit (ard company Made Me Do ltl'-The Card lndustry's Role in Causing Student Debt" 260 A stud.ent uriier examines the causes of college sttietts cred cartj debr and puts the
blame on the exploitiue practices of the credit card indtL'ir1

13

Resemblance

Arguments

264

An Overview of Resemblance Arguments 265

Toulmin Framework for a Resemblance

'\rgument

'i 5

Arguments bY AnalogY 267

Analogies 267 Using Extended Analogies 268 Arguments bY Precedent 269

Using UndeveloPed

Examining Visual Arguments: A Resemblance

Oaim
171

270

WritingAssignment:AResemblanceArgument

Detailed Contents

xtx

Exploring

Ideas

Z7I

Identifuing Your Audience and Determining \\{hat,s at

Organizing a Resemblance

Stake
Z7Z

272

Argument

Z7Z

Questioning and Critiquing a Resemblance

Argument

Readings

274

MEGAN MATTHFWS (STUDENT), ,,Whales Need In this letter to the editor, a student uses an openng whales hatmed by Naug sonar.
Ct

Silence"

274 analog to motiuate

concern

for

Ay BENNETT, 'ilust Emancipated" (editorial 275 A cartoonist uses an analog to make a point about gag marriage.

cartoon)

BETH REIS,

"Toon

Offensive'.

276

A rmder riticizes
In an

the anarog used bg ctay Bennett

in'lust Emancipated."

AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF UNIVERSIW PROFESSORS, "FOOIbAII COACh

excerpt

SAIATiCS,

276

from

its annual reporf, the

AAUP argues that coach salaries are too high.

SUSAN BRoWNM|LIER,

"Fram Against Our Will: Men, Women, and

Rape',

2g0

A feminist writer argues that pornographg is "antifemale propaganda" analogous to Nazi propaganda aganstJeus or blacks.

14

Evaluation and

EthicalArguments
Arguments Zgs

2g4

An Overview of Evaluaon

Criteria-Match Structure of Caiegorical

Evaluations Zgs

Toulmin Framework for an Evaluation Constructing a Categorical Evaluation

Developing Your

Argument 296 Argument 2g6

Criteria

ZBo

Making Your Match

Argument

288

Examining Visual Argaments: An Evaluation

Claim

2A9

An Overview of Ethical Arguments 291

Major Ethical

Systems

292

Consequences as the Base Principles as the Base of

ofEthics 292 Ethics 293

Constructing an Ethical

293 ConstructingaConsequences-BasedArgument 294

Constructing a Principles-Based

Argument 293 Argument

Common Problems in Making Evaluation

Arguments 255

Writing Assignment: An Evaluation or EthGl Exploring Ideas 296

Organizing an Evaluation

Argument

296 297

Identifuing Your Audience and Deterrnining \Ahat's at

Stake

Argument

297

Questioning and Critiquing a Categorical

Argument

297

Critiquing m Ethical

Argument

299

Readings
ihe
the

301

sAM |SAA(5ON {STUDENT},

GaY

"would Legalization of cay Marriage Be cood fof

301
the general publc' a student eualuates the gag communitg of legalizing same-sex marriage

CommunitY?"

Writing to a g(tY

ouirr,, rather than

poentiallripact upon

Tiffany Anderson {student),

Woman's View of

Hip-Hop"

304

p*n
A

Ayoungmiddle.classwhitewomanexplainshergrowingattractiontohip-hopmusic lA fU u*ale atlists such as Lauryn Hill and Eue' 308 Agn Rand Institute eualuates and approues

Dauid HolcberS, "Human Organs for

media research specalist

Salel"

market approach to the selling and buying of human organs

for

the

free

15

ProposalArguments
An Overview of Proposal

310

Arguments 311 The Shucture of Proposal Arguments 3I2 Toulmin Framework for a Proposal Argument 312 Special Concerns for Proposal Arguments 3I2 Developing a Proposal Argument 374 Convincing Your Readers That a Problem ExisLs 3I4 Showing the Specifics ofYour Proposal 315
TheJustif,cation:ConvincingYourReadersThatYourProposalShouldBe

Enacted

316

Proposal Arguments as Advocacy Posters or

Advertisements

316

318 Using the Claim-'Iypes Strategl to Develop a Proposal Argument 320 Using the "Stock Issues" Strategy to Develop a Proposal Argument

Examining Visuat Arguments: A Propasal

Clairn
323

3Zl

Writing Assignment: A Proposal

Exploring

Argument

Ideas

324

Identifuing Your Audience and Determining \Ahat's at Organizing a Proposal Argument 325

Stake

325

Desigmng a One-Page Advocacy Advertisement 325 Argument 327 Questioning and Critiquing a Proposal

Readings 328
for Hosts at tAUREt WlLsoN isTuDENT),'A Proposal to Prsvlde Tips 128 Stone's Afotmerhostessatapopularbrewpubdetailstheunfairpagreceit.edbghostsin rips. cimparison with setaers- and proposes a more just ray to handle

End"

Detailed

Contents xxi

JUAN vAzQuEz (STUDENT),

"ltllhy the United States Should Adopt trluclear Power"

{MlA-format research

paper)

332

:";Y:H;:ffithat
DONATD SHOUe "Gone

nuctear Power should be part of the nation's approach to

340 A professor of urban planning argues that cities should charge for anrb parking.

Parkin"'

h$ Fiue
1

The Rrseardred

Argumeffi
Question

343

Finding and Evaluating Source

Formulating a Research

s
345

344

Understanding Differences in the Kinds of

Books versus Periodicals versus Web Scholarly

Sources
349

346

Sites Books versus Trade Books 350

Scholarly Journals versus Magazines 350 Print Sources versus Cyberspace Sources 350

Finding Books: Searching Your Library's Online Finding Afticles: Searching a Licensed
What Is a Licensed
Key'word

Catalog
351

351

Database

Database? 352 Searching 353

Illustration of a Database

Search

353

Finding Cyberspace Sources: Searching the World Wide The Logic of the Internet 355 Using Web Search Engines 356 Determining Where You Are on the Web 357
Reading Your Sources

Web

355

Rhetorically

357 357

Reading with Your Own Goals in Reading with Rhetorical

Mind

Awareness 358
359

Ti*ing Effective
Evaluating Angle of
Degree

Notes
360

Sources

360
361

Vision

ofAdvocacy Reliability 363 Credibility 363

Understanding the Rhetoric of Web Sites 363 The Web as a Unique Rhetorical Enronment 363
Analyzrng the Purpose of a Site and Your Own Research Sorting Sites by Domain

Purpose

363

Criteria for Evaluating a Web

Type 364 Site 365

Conclusion

367

XXI

Detailed Contents

17

Using, Citing, and Documenting Sources

Using Sources for Your Ovm

Purposes

368

Creating Rhetorically Effective Aributive Tags 37O Using Atiributive Tgs to Separate Your Ideas from your Source,s S7O Creating Atfibutive Tgs to Shape Reader Response 371

Working Sources into Your Own Summarizing 372 Paraphrasing 372 Quoting 373

Prose

371

AvoidingPlagiarism 375
understandingParenthetical citationsystemswithBibliographies 376
Understanding MLA Style 377 The MLA Method of In:fbxt Citation 377 MLA Format for the "Works Cited" List 379 MLA "Works Cited" Citations 379
Student Example of an MLA-Sfyle Research

paper

386

Understanding APA Sffle 387 The APA Method of In-Text Citation 387 APA Fomat for the "References" List 388 APA "References" Citations 389

Conclusion 393
Student Example of an APA-Style Research

paper

393

MrcAN MATTHEWS iSTUDENT), "Scunding the.Alarm; Navy scnar a*d the suruiva! af Whales" iAPA-format research 394

paperi

A-student argues that preseruing marine mammals and ocean ecologl outweighs the Naug's need for a new sonar fltstem.

&ppemdixes
lnformal

4fiN

Fallacies

401
101

The Problem of Conclusiveness in an Argument

An Overview of Informal
Failacies of

Fallacies Pathos 403 Fallacies of Ethos 404 Fallacies of Logos 4O5

4Oz

Detailed Contents

xxllt

Small Group strategies for Practicing Argument Commr.rrutY 4Og

Avoiding Bad Habits of Group Behavior 4Og The Value of Group Work for Writers 4lO

skills

409

From conflict to consensus: How to Get the Most Out of the writing

4ll Forming Writing Communities: Skills and Working in Groups of Five to Seven People 471

Roles

Working in

Pairs

413

Group Project: Holding a "Norr,ring session" to Define "Good Argumentative 415

Writing"

"Bloody

lce"

417

"RSS Should Not Provide Dorm Room

Carpets"

4'18

"Sterling Hall Dorm

"ROTC

food"

419

(ourses Should Not Get College

Credit"

424

"LegalizationofProstitution" 422

Credits

423

Index

426

irS,"-,-",.-- ,'*,. -* r.':' -":**", .4 *io:"S ':.., 1 "s.d {r g.i. * Sy 'i. i

{ .,q

ThroughitslirstSeveneditions,WritingArgumentshasls]lb.lisheditselfastheleaddialogue in search y fo'cusing on aTgument as ing college rci""k; argom"ntutlon. and losers' Writlng * p;J-;;-;b;" wit winners iistead of solutions ,o ffi, "f as a means of persuasron' a p'ot"" of inqurry as well Argumentstreats argument as f,or teaching the critical thinkconsisiently pttt" ,n" look Users and ,"ri"iJ.!*rut" to analyze the- occasion for an argument; ing skills needed for writingargumentsihow audience; how th" ,rutt""r'* Ualft of the targeted how to ground an argument ln t l:'^tl,:* seniitivelv to objections to develop and elaborate an argume;i1irg* andalterrativeviews.Thetextisavailableinthreeversions_aregularedition,which ;iJt *, which offers ttre complete rhetoric includes an anrhology of readings; " withouttheanthology;andaconciseeditionwithfewerrearlinssandexamples-to support-""vi"""iionalapproath;;Jcoursedesigns'"uttpleasedthat while retaining the text's harr made ,nu.ry l*provements in this eighrh ;;;;;"
signature strengths'

TheBigPicture:What'sNewintheH'ighthHdition? as well as and pedagogy'

into argumentation theory Based on our continuing research improvements
that increase the text,s

in the eighth edition made si'gnincant on the advice of users,-we have to students' we have made flexibility f"r";;;?;* lo upp"ul

'Ttfiiilil?r-H';l.'ffirandincreas"d.ro"T"'T-":1::r*:T:"f f;ry,["* rtof the text has been greatly

,"'J"r+i."tiness the text. The interest level and ads' caro9ri* and by lhe Tany new photographs, creased by the new full-colo, strrents, encounters with thut deepen toons, drawings, and other suaLa:rgum",.t, po"' opens with a visual E'ach visual Arguments q,pe, ari;;i;"t an Examining case illusrraring the claim ufioottt, posters, and political feature that asks students ,o *afrJ "s,

p"""*i""'il:;;;''

clarmffi;;;;!'*

,-

fn;:,}'fl'ilY;"f;

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writer,sangleofvision,andtoevaluatetheargument'soveralleffectivenessfor a and New wiiting Assignment options both insider and outsider u.,ai"t""r. in planning maJor t"*tt l"xibrlity for instructors student example increase ttr"

XXVi

Preface

w Many concepts are now,displayed graphicalty, particurarry in the Toulmin Analysis charts, which help stualnts iee-the concptua fra-e,"o.k of an argu_ ment, and the organization plans for various typs of *g.o-"rrt , which help studenls outline heir own arguments. w simpler, shorter, and more accessibre craim-tpe chapters (part Four) through elimination of the.yyz temprates, through **pr"{ * tLo.,g.l, substantive tightening In the first s"rr"r, dido.r, of tr*ng,rrgu.,)ro, ""." *" "aX and y as prace_ holders in temprates to exprain a stasis: k this a i? or Does x cause yz ermough this
approach worked for some studen!. complained that certain passages in these chapters seemed like a math text. In Tany tne qrrtn'eaiuon, we t uu" this feature by adopting a simpler, more skaightfoTo "ti-irrut"d a"*". uffroach for explaining each claim tpe. we have also mad these chapters snorte.'J crisper and have used many new examples and new student essays.

*a

w An increased emphasis on rhetoricar anarysis within a new part rhree. our new chapter,B on analyzing written arguments is paired with an updated chapter 9 on anaryzing visual aiguments to create u rr* part Three explicitly devoted to rhetorical nalysis. Te backgrorrra r.rro.'r"g."-riua""rs need for rhetorical analysis is provided in part T\,io, where stuaenis learn about /ogos, ethos, and pathos, about audience-based reasons, u.ra uo.rt analysis of evi_
arguments. dence, identification of assumptions, and methods of treatrng-atternative views. In Part Three, students bring these anaryticar toors to tr"u. oi verbar and visual

w A significantly revised chapter 2, which prace.s the reading of arguments within a context of inquiry and exproration. our newry revise d Chapter z, 'lp"T"tl
as Inquiry: T-gg ana nxptoring," combines fearures of the sevenrh edition's chapters 2 a! s rtre chapter.orhl.,", to focus * r""ai"g arguments (summary writing, reading to believe *J m doubt), but praces greater emphasis on argument as inquiry and truth seeking. A nel writing.ri-igr-"rt, an ex_ ploratory essay, is illustrated with a student example, incre'usirrg the instructor,s options for course pranning and providing students with ; friauctive toor for

"writing an Argument,,, reflects the absorption of the seventh edition,s chapter s r,,riti"g Arguments,,) into Part Two, where a series of new examples illustrates a student writer,s process in producing an argument on women and video games. writing Assignments.rrow appea. in eLn chapter in part Two, ailowingoteachers to co_ ordinate students' reading of part Trno with th" a"rr"top-"? their own arguments. in addition, part Two introd.,"", u" writing of u new writing Assignment-a "supporting-reasons" argument-that focuses on reasons in support of the writer's.claim without re{uiring students to summarize artd, re_ spond
o? ea.rt Two,

An improved emphalis on writing throughout part rwo with writing Assignments. The
new titre

reading arguments and generating id"ur.

new

to opposing views.

xxvll

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with described in detail and illustrated

be#er exptain how to evalu-

pffiii

Preface

Part Two, Writing an Argument Palt TWo, which has absorbed the material on writing arguments foom the seventh edition's Chapter 3, places increased attention on the lrtrng process. Part TWo introduces the classical argument and leads students through u- t"ti"t of brief o*itittg assignments that help them plan and draft an argument. Each of the chapters in Pal-t TWo includes changes as follows:

w Chapter 3, "The Core of an Argument: A Claim with

Reasons," introduces the struiture of classical argument and the classical appeals of logos, ethos, and pathos

at the outset to frame the discussion of the principles of argument. A new Writing Assignment option asks students to frame an issue question and produce a work-

w hi Chapter 4, "The Logrcal Structure of Arguments," the explanation of the Toulmin system is clarified th examples in graphic form. A new Writing

ing thesis statement.

Assignment option asks students to use the Toulmin schema to plan details for an argument in progress. m Cliapter 5, "Usmg Evidence Effectively," expands its treatment of sual edence and includes new exercises on angle of vision and photographs. A new Writing Assignment option asks students to ltrite a "supporting-reasons" argument, which is illustrated by student writer Carmen Tieu's "\&/hy Violent Video Games Are Good for Girls."

w chapter 6, "Mong Your Audience'. Ethos, Pathos, and Kairos," has an improved ,".tion on how audience-based reasons enhance logos, ethos, utd pathos and
includes a new chart of questions for analyzing an audience. It also contains a new Examining Visual Arguments feature that asks students to analyze the appeals of a Toyota Prius ad. Its new Writing Assignment option asks studens to revise a draft for improved focus on ethos, pathos, and audience-based reasons' Chaptr 7, "Responding to Objections and Alternative Views," has been tightened. student example of a classical argument ('A Plea for Fair Thg seventh "dition'r Tieatment of Skateboarders") has been moved to this chapter, where the Writing Assignment options are to write either a classical argument or a dialogic argument aimed at conciliation.

Part Three, ,Analyzing Arguments Part Three includes a new chapter

8 on

analyzing written arguments along with Chapter 9 on analyzing suai alguments'

w Chapter 8, "Analyzing Arguments Rhetorically," prodes comprehensive

inshrrc-

tion to students on hbw to write a rhetorical analysis of an argument using the theory and principles of argument explained in PaIt Tw'o. As examples for analysis, ii presents two arguments about ethical issues in reproductive technology: Kathryn Jean Lopez's 'Egg Heads" and Ellen Goodman's "\vomb for Rent-For a Price.; The chapter provides our own analysis of Lopez's argument, a student analysis of Goodmanb, and a new Writing Assignment. a rhetorical analysis of an
argument.

w Chapter t

has been updated with new sual argument eramples and provides a new Writing Assignment option: to write a rhetoncal a-nall sis of a visual argument'

Preface

xxix

Part Four, Arguments

condensed, updated, templates. In each

.d;ht analysis of an argument "h"p'";, pinpoint the.elments of th argument' We have also with a chart to help students feature and a new
added in other local "a.t'' determinurfi what's at stake. Numerous section on identifying audie.rc" and changes include the following:

in Depth: Five.Tlpes of Claims f3rt Fo has XY the ; ;"d" simple, * r" accessible by elimination ofclarified been has
been

cta'm-'iJ;;;d;"'1T"s vi'"{A'sol'lP

wlnChapterl0,..AnlntroductiontotheTypesofClaims,',the'exampleofahybrid used stunts identiff the various claim-types argument is now *|o.u; to help
have simplified the vocabulary and . iltff #11, ,,Definirional ArgumelFi' *" arguments and what the seventh edi' definition eliminated tLr" diJ;;;n .t*""gn opens with a sual argu-

tion called

Lead to " Domingo trtta""tl,-'t"i"?tt"g OT Homes'Can Oavi ndriesen, "\&4rat Defines a Sport?" ,,CausJ Arguments," pens with a new visual case using global m Chapter 12, diagrams' and has an warming graphs, has s"everal new cause-and-effect E'xaminingVisualArgumentsfeatureSnalyzinganAdbustersad.ThechapterhasA
also been shortened and reorgan ized of u cuul argument new student

has an Examining visual Arguments feature ment case_a co".opriuip, ua-"* The chapter has t-wo new readings: Jenefer analyzing p"rt";;;il;; f*t'lAnimal Cruelty" and

,,simple categorical arguments." ThJchapter

toi"ptb
ii

new^visual m Chapter f g, "n"r"*iuoce Arguments"' opens wrth l American Association of University new examples of resemblanc argumenti 4n and a pro-gayprofessors *g"r";;; ;g;nst the igh salaries of football coaches in response' marriage cartoon with a letter to the editor wChapterf+,"gvuatlonandEthicalArgumentsj'openswithanewsualcase new Examining Visual argu(the ad ro, e nS *tn"i-a Mexrcan) * in.lrd"r a supporting w Chapter 15, "Proposal irgumenm''' opens with a visual argument an ML_4, includes two new readings: T. Boone pi.t"rrrli *irrd falrm propori and "\A4ry the united states Should fomat research pup", uy studintluan vazquez, "Gone Parkin''" Jopt Nuclear p."t," and Oonald Shoup' ments feature on the DailY Show'

"ru*pi" Summers Was Wrong'"

causal arguing T9t" -crisply' "\A4ry Lawrence ulee Christianson,

case and includes

PartFive.TheResearchedArgumentPartFivehasbeenupdatedtoreflectnew changes include the following: MLA and APA guidelines for citations. other local

w In Chapter

blogs 16i, "Finding and Evaluaiing Sources"' p"ti{St Vision i" u.s. Media and Think Tnks. added to Table 16.6, Argles of

have been

In addi-

updated, as well as the evaluation, many of the searchillustrations have been tion of a Web site'

Preface

m Chapter 17, "Using, Citing, and Documenting Sources," includes new MLA citations based on the new third edition of the MLA Stgle Manual and Guide to Scholarlg Publishing (2008), and updated APA documentation based on the APA Stgle Guide to Electronic References (2007).It also includes three source samplesWeb article, online database article, and blog posting.

What Hasn't Changed? The Distinguishing Features of Writing Arguments

Building on earlier success, we have preserved the signature features of earlier editions praised by students, instructors, and reviewers:

Focus throughout on rtriting arguments. Grounded in composition theory, this text combines explanaons of argument with class-tested discussion tasks, exploratory writing tasks, and sequenced writing assignments aimed at developing skills of writing and critical thinking. This text builds students' confidence in their ability to enter the argumentative conversations of our culture, understand diverse points of view, synthesize ideas, and create their own persuasive texts. Equal focus on argument as a rhetorical act, particularly on analyzing audience, on understanding the real-world occasions for argument, and on appreciating the rhetorical context and genre of arguments. Focusing on both the reading and the writing of arguments, the text emphasizes the critical thinking that underlies effective arguments, particularly the skills of critical reading, of believing and doubting, of empathic listening, of active queshoning, and of negotiating ambigulb/ and seeking synthesis.

m Integration of four different approaches to argument: The Toulmin system as a means of invention and analysis of arguments; the enthymeme as a logical structure rooted in the beliefs and values of the audience; the classical concepts of logos, pathos, and ethos as persuasive appeals; and stasis theory (called claim-types) as an aid to inventing and structuring arguments through understanding of generic argumentative moves associated with different categories of claims. ru Copious treatment of the research pnocess? including two student examples of documented research papers-one using the Ml,A system and one using the APA system. * Numerous "For Class Discussion" exercises, "Examining Visual Argument" features, and sequenced Writing Assignments designed to teach critical thinking and build argumentative skills. AII "For Class Discussion" exercises can be used either for whole-class discussions or for collaboratir.e group tasks. "- Numerous student and professional arguments to illustrate argumentative strategies and stimulate discussion, analysis, ard debate. Ntogether, the eighth edition contains 14 vntten arguments artd 40 visual arguments drawn from the
public and academic arenas and 16 student essavs and 2 student sual arguments.

Preface Xxxi

Our Approaches to Argumentation

thinking
students

our interest in argumentation grows out of our interest writingandthinking.whenwiting-alguments,writersareforcedtolaybaretheir the complex interplay
in the kinds of critical thinking that argument demands,

in the relationship between

p.";;;, L an unpara[1"d-*ay, grappling.wrth In an effort to engage and audience. between irrq"ir' *J p".rrruriorr, between iisue we draw on four
major approaches to argumentation:

l.TheenthlTnemeasarhetoricalandlogicalstru-cture'Thisconcept'especially with argument_as a ,r.tl rorffi*r;;,;elps studen6It"nutshell" anthem see how claim real-world also helps one or -or.'rrrpp.ting becauie clauses. in uniin assumptions granted by the audience rather than arguments u." .t"d
veisal and unchanging principles' etho,s, and pathos' These concepts 2. "fhethree classical types of appeal-logos, context focusing on audiencehelp students place their urgo-"ntr in a ihetorical voice and style. U*"a upf"itney utro help students create an effective

Toulmin's system 3. Toulminjs system of analyzing arguments' an enthymeme and develop approthe complete, implicit structure inat"underlies

helps students see

priategrounsanbackingtosupport?na.rg:lment,sleasonsandwarrants.Italso
nature of argument. irlgl-rtight, the rhetorical, scial, and dialectical

4.Stasistheoryconcerningtlpesofclaims.Thisapproachstressestheheunstic offor diiferent types of claims and value of learning different putt"rr'r, of support and full arguments' ten leads studerits to make surprisingly rich
Throughoutthetexttheseapproachesareintegratedandsynthesizedintogenerative
tools fr both producing and analyzing arguments'

Structure of the Text

Thetexthasfivemainparlsplustwoappendixes.Partoneglvesgn.overviewof seeking' These first
as rnquxy and huth argumentation with an iniiiat fous on stro.wng how argument helps writers two chapters ;r";;;; ;", philosophy of gument, tn" values and beliefs of a questioning clarify their *-'' m"f.-g and connect .iUt

*g""t

audience.tsyemphasizingargumentasacommunity'ssearchforthebestsolutiontoa problem,weintestudentstoenteralguments*q*open-mindratherthanWiththeir students to read alguments fi1t by summinds alreadv mua" .,p. chapter Two"teaches jiiu"rfgi *d then by systematicalty engaging with the writer's marizing *Jr"t*o
ideas through believing and doubting

Pafi Two teaches students hori, to write argqments a effective argument is a claim with chapters 3 through 5 show that the core of as enthymemes, the unstated premise reasons. These reasons are often stated the surfce and supported. In effective of which must sometimes be brought to

by applying.key principles'

arguments, the reasons are audience-based so that the argument proceeds from underlying beliefs, values, or assumptions held by the intended audience. Discussion of Touimin logic shows students how to discover both the stated and unstated premises of their arguments and how to provide audience-based structures of reasons and evidence to iupport them. Chapter 6 focuses on ethos, pathos, and kairos as means of persuasion, white Chapter 7 focuses on strategies for summarizing and responding io opposing views in order to accommodate different kinds of audiences from sym-

pathetic to neutral to hostile. Part Three focuses on analyzing arguments. Chapter 8 teaches students to do a rhetoncal analysis of a written argument. Chapter 9 focuses on the theory and practice of visual arguments-both images and quantitative data-ging students the tools for
analyzing visual arguments and for creating their own. Part Four discusses five different lypes of argument: definitional arguments, causal arguments, resemblance arguments, evaluation arguments including ethics, and propoial arguments. These chapters introduce students to recurring strategies of argument that cut across the different category types:
establishes criteria for making a judgment and argues whether a specific case does or does not meet those criteria w Causal arguing, in which the r,r,riter shows that one event or phenomenon can be Iinked to others in a causal chain m Resemblance arguing, in which the u,ryiter uses analogy or precedent to shape the writer's ew of a phenomenon m Proposal arguing, in which the writer identifies a problem, presents a proposed solution, and justifies that solution, often using a hybrid of criteria-match, causal, or resemblance strategies.

w Criteria-match arguing, in which the writer

Part Five shows students how to incorporate research into their arguments, including the skills of formulating a research question; understanding differences in the kinds of sources; conducting effective searches of online catalogs, eleckonic databases, and

the Web; reading sources rhetorically to understand context and bias; evaluating sources according to one's pulpose, audience, and genre; understanding the rhetoric of
Web sites; incorporating sources into the writer's own algument using summary, paraphrase, and judicious quotation; and documenting sources according to MLA or APA ionventions. Unlike standard treatments of the research paper, our discussion explains to students how the writer's meaning and purpose control the selection and shaping of source materials. The appendixes provide important supplementa.l information useful for courses in argument. Appendix 1 gives an overview of informal fallacies, while Appendi-x 2 shws students how to get the most out of collaborative groups ir-i an argument class. Appendix 2 also provides a sequence of collaborahve tasks that will help students learn to peer-critique their classmates' arguments in progress. The numerous For Class Discussion exercises within the text prode addihonal tasks fol group collaboration'

Preface xxxiii

Writing Assignments
The text provides a variety of sequenced Writing Assignments.
ur argument summary or an exploratory essay. m Part Two includes as options a "supporting-reasons" argument (with earlier scaffolding assignments), a classical argument, a delayed-thesis or Rogerian argument, and an advocacy ad. It also includes "microthemes" for practicing basic argumentative moves (for example, supporting a reason with edence). w In Part Three the Writing Assignment options are a rhetorical analysis of a written argument and a rhetorical analysis of a visual argument. w Each chapter in Part Four on claim types includes a writing Assignment option based on the claim type covered in the chapter. (Chapter 15 includes a practical proposal assignment, a researched policy proposal assignment, and an advocacy

m In Part One the Writing Assignment options are

poster.)

%mffiffi$*rcxa1:,
The Instructor's Manual
New The Instructor's Manual is written by Tim N. Taylor of Eastem Illinois University. are nine detailed sample writing assignments. In addition, the to the eighth edition Instructor's Manual has the following features:

m Discussion of plaming decisions

a.n insh-uctor

must make in designing an argument

claimcourse: for e*mple, how to use readings; how much to emphasize Tolilmin or much time to build into the course for invention, peer review of type theory; how t*r, **otLrer writing inshrrction; and how to select and sequence assignments' Three detailed syllabi-showing how Writing Arguments can suppott a variety of

course sh"uctures and emPhases:

freelance r scholarlyarguments) and focuses on students' choice of issues and claim types. F'or insh-uctors who include Toulmin, an independent, highly teachable introductory lesson on the Toulmin schema, and an additional exercise giving students practice using Toulmin to generate argument frames' *.r For new inshuctors, a helpful discussion of how to sequence writing assignments and how to use a variety f collaborative tasks in the classroom to promote active

syllabus #.f .. This cout"se emphasizes argumentative skills. and strategies, uses rJadings for rhetorical analyiis, and asks students to write on issues draun from their own interests and experiences' Sgllabus #2:Thismore rigorous course works intensely with the logical structu-re of argument, the clasiical appeals, the Toulmin schema, ald claim-type theory. It uses readings for rhetorical analysis and for an introduction to the argumentative controversies that students will address in their papers' sgltabus #3.. This course asks students to experiment with genres of argument (fr exampie, op-ed pieces, sual arguments, white paperc, and researched

learning and critical thinking.

Chaptei-by-chapter responses to the For Class Discussion exercises. w Nuerous teaching tips and suggestions placed strategically throughout the chapter material, rncludrng sveral ru-pt" qtizzes asking students to explain and apply argumentative concePts. w poi insuctors who ieach sual arguments, suggestions for encouraging students to explore how visual arguments have molded and continue to mold public thinking about issues and controversies. r*: Fo"r instructors who like to use student essays in class exercises and discussions, a number of new student essays showing how students responded to assignments in the text. Several of these student pieces exemplify stages of revision'

xxxv

xxxvi

Supplements

Helpful suggestions for using the exercises on critiquing readings in Part Four, 'Arguments in Depth: Five Types of Claims." By focusing on rhetorical context as rvell as on the strengths and weaknesses of these arguments, our suggestions will help students connect their reading of arguments to their writing of
arguments.

At the end of each claim-type chapter in Part Four, a list of anthology readings that employ the same claim type, either as a major claim or as a substantial porlion of the argument.

MyCompLab
ffi}p
The new MyComplab integrates the market-leading instruction, multimedia tutorials, and exercises for writing, grammar, and research that users have come to identify with the program with a new online

composing space and new assessment tools. The result is a revolutionary application

that offers a seamless and flexible teaching and learning environment built specifically for writers. Created after years of extensive research and in partnership with composition faculty and students across the country, the new MyComplab provides help for writers in the context of their writing, with instructor and peer commenting functionality; proven tutorials and exercises for writing, grammar, and research; an e-portfolio; an assignment builder; a bibliography tool; tutoring services; and a gradebook and course management organization created specifically for writing classes. Visit www.mycomplab.com for more information.

*l:;- i $$-s *'-, ; r:,;$.J:,i e -i;1i '' *'l

+1"."..q

teachers, and we are happy for this opportunity to give public thanks to the scholars, to composition and argument' lor lnis students who have inn rn.e ot up-p.ou.n of Houston for her edition, we owe special thanks to Tarnara Fish of the university She brought her expertise as a *run r.rr and rerrialiring work on the anthology. and reviewer of Writing composition instructor, h"er knowledge as a long-time user mentor of graduate student instructors to Arguments, and her experience as a veteran hei research, selection of readings' and presentation of the issues' their ideas' research' We want to thank our taleited students who contributed Banks for his researching and writing and time to this edition, especially, Michael dialoguing with us on about illegal immigration in cnapter 2; Mike Bowersox for to chapter 8; carmen,Tieu for her essay rhetorical"analysis and contributing ideas for her MLA research paper on women and violent video gamei; Julee Christianson women and mathematics; and Juan on the nature/nudur" "ontiou.rsy about Additionally' we are Yazqtez for his researched white paper on nuclear power. been privileged to teach in our writing grateful to all our students whom *" harre us to include their arguments in classes and to our other students who have enabled have inspired our ongoing study of this text. Their insighis and growth as writers

rhetoric and comPosition.

resion thank the following scholars and ieachers who reviewed this

improvements' Particularly we about our successes and offered helpful suggestions for

Wethanktoothemanyusersofourtextswhohavegivenusencoulagement

of writing

lgu rnt, in its vaous stages: JoAnn Dadisman, West Virginia University; Christine san Jose state university; caver, The university of Te"xas at san Antonio; Josh Gehl,

B' Matta' Mclennan Community J*"ph Jones, The University of Memphis; William 'C"[ig., Ann Spurlock, Mississippi 5s ni,rersity; Elizabeth M-etzger, University of University of South Florida; pat Tyrr, West'Texas A & M University; Sandy Jordan, & Technical college; Jeffrey Houston; Mary Anne Reiss, Elizabethtown community

Abdo, The university of schneider, st. Louis community college Meramec; Diana County College; Shavawn M' Berry' Texas at San Antonio; Gary S. Montan, Trrant and Technical college' Arizona state universrqr; c"arl Rturyon, owensboro community

KentuckyCommunity"andTechnicalCollegeSystem;{o'dTsanderson,Auburn niu"rriiy; Linda Gadden, University of South Florida; Laura Gray-Rosendale' and Brenda S' Northern AnzonaUniversity; Amy Toasi, Roger Williams lJniversity;
Martin, Kansas State UniversltY.

xxxvll

Xxxviii

Acknowledgrrents

\\e are especially graieful to our editor, Lauren Finn, whose keen understanding of the needs of argument instructors and whose commitment to producrng the most uselil texts has gurded us with her support and professional expertise. Finally, we owe our deepest thanks to Marion Castellucci, our development editor, without whom we
could not maintain the pace and quality of our textbook resions. Marion's invaluable mastery of both the big picture and specific dimensions of this work and her calmness, encouragement, and wit have shepherded this project at every point. As always, we want to conclude by thanking our families. John Bean thanks his wife, Kit, also a professional composition teacher, and his children, Matthew, Andrew, Stephen, and Sarah, who have grown to adulthood since he first began writing textbooks. June Johnson thanks her husband, Kenneth Bube, a mathematics professor and researcher, and her daughter, Jane Ellen Bube, now completing her high school experience. Ken and Janie have played major roles in the ongoing family analysis of argumentation in the public sphere and of specific arguments on wide-ranging issues. They have also made it possible for her to meet the demands and challenges of continuing to infuse new ideas and material into this text in each resion. John D. Ramage John C. Bean June Johnson

ffi#effireg &wffiwrewreffiw

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"

These stills from the film Under the Same Mootl l2O07J depict the painfuf separation and long:ng for

connection of an immigrant mother in the United States ancl her young son, Carlitos, left behind in Mexico. The telephone booth and the flrrtive, precious calls symbolize the plight of families divided by
economcs and immigraiion policy. The film's appeals to olrr emotions are discussed in Michael Banks'

exploratory essay in Chapter 2, pages 52-57.

&wgwrewm&x

&wre ffimKwm#wmffiffiffiffi

At the outset of a book on argument, we ought to explain what an argument is. Instead, we're going to explain why no universally accepted definition is possible. Over the centuries, philosophers and rhetoricians have disagreed about the meaning of the term and about the goals that arguers should set for themselves. This opening chapter introduces you to some of these controversies. Our goal is to show you various ways of thinking about argument as a way of helping you become a more powerful arguer yourself. We begin by asking what we mean by argument, suggesting what argument isn't as well as what it is. We then proceed to three defining features of argument: it requires writers or speakers to justifz their claims, it is both a product and a process, and it combines elements of truth seeking and
persuasion. Next, we explore more deeply the relationship between tr-uth seeking and persuasion by asking questions about the nature of "h-Lrth" that arguments seek. Finally, we give you an example of a successful arguing process.

& &m* Xlqs We

&,$emsx Xxpr

Argxxm?ex?f?

Let's begin by examinurg the uradequacies of two popular images of argumentfight and debate.

Argunaem{ }s

N*t a Fght *r a Qr"rar"re

To many, the word argument connotes anger and hostility, as when we say,

"I just got in a huge argument with my roommate," or "My mother and I argue all the time." \\4rat we picture here is heated disagreement, rising pulse rates, and an urge to slam doors. Argument imagined as fight conjures images of shouting talk-show guests, flaming e-mailers, or fistbanging speakers. But to our way of thinking, argument doesn't implv anger. In fact, arguing is often pleasurable. It is a creative and productir,e actit'i$ that engages us at high levels of inquiry and cntical thinking. often in conversation wth people we like and respect. For your primary image of zu'gument, we invite you to think not of a shouting match on cable ne-nr,s but of a small group of reasonable people seeking the best solution to a problem \\'e n'ill retum to this image throughout the chapter.

CHAPTER

Argument: An Introduction

Argument Is Not Pro-Con Debate

Another popular image of argument is debate-a presidential debate, perhaps, or a high school or college debate toumament. According to one popular dictronary, debate is "a formal contest of argumentation in which two opposing teams defend and attack a given proposition." Although forrnal debate can develop critical thinking, its weakness is that it can turn argument into a game of winners and losers rather than a
process of cooperative inquiry.

For an illustration of this weakness, consider one of our forrner students, a champion high school debater who spent his senior year debating the issue of prison reform. Throughout the year he argued for afid against propositions such as "The United States should build more prisons" and "Innovative altematives to prison should replace prison sentences for most crimes." We asked him, "\44:rat do you personally think is the best way to reform prisons?" He replied, "I don't know I haven't thought about what I would actually choose."
Here was a bright, articulate student who had studied prisons extensively for a year. Yet nothing in the atmosphere of pro-con debate had engaged him in truthseeking inquiry. He could argue for and against a proposition, but he hadn't experienced the wrenching process of clarifying his own values and taking a personal stand. As we explain throughout this text, argument entails a desire for truth; it aims to find the best solutions to complex problems. We don't mean that arguers don't passionately support their ov,ryr points of view or expose weaknesses in views they find faulty. Instead, we mean that their goal isn't to win a game but to find and promote the best belief or course of action.

Arguments Can Be Explicit or Implicit

Before proceeding to some defining features of argument, we should note also that argumenh can be either explicit or implicit. An explicit argument directly states its controversial claim and supports it with reasons and evidence. An implicit argument, in contrast, may not look like an argument at all. It may be a bumper sticker, a billboard, a poster, a photograph, a cartoon, a vanity license plate, a slogan on a T-shirt, an adverbisement, a poem, or a song lyric. But like an explicit argument, it persuades its audience toward a cefiain point of ew. Consider the striking photograph in Figure 1.1-a baby wearing a bib labeled "POISON." This photograph enters a conversation about the safety of toys and other baby products sold in the United States. In recent years, fears about toy safety have come mostly from two sources: the discovery that many toys imported from China used lead paint and the discovery that a substance used to make plastics pliable and soft-called phthalates (pronounced "thalates")-may be harmful. Phthalates have been shown to interfere with hormone production in rat fetuses and, based on other rodent studies, may produce some kmds of cancers and other ailments. Because many baby products contain phthalates-bibs. edges of cribs, rubber duckies, and

FIGURE 1.1 An implicit argument against phthalates

any number of other soft rubbery toys-parents worry that babies can ingest phthalates by chewing on these toys.

The photograph of the baby and bib makes the argumentative claim that baby products are poisonous; the photograph implicitly urges viewers to take action against phthalates. But this photograph is just one voice in a surprisingly complex conversation. Is the bib in fact poisonous? Such questions were debated during a recent campaign to ban the sale of toys containing phthalates in California. A legislative initiative (2007 California Assembly Bill 1108) sparked intense lobbying from both child-advocacy groups and representatives of the toy industry. At issue were a number of scientific questions about the risk posed by phthalates. To what extent do studies on rats apply to humans? How much exposure to phthalates should be considered dangerous? (Experiments on rats used large amounts of phthalates-amounts that, according to many scientists, far exceed anything a baby could absorb by chewing on a toy.) Also at issue is the level of health risks a free market society should be willing to tolerate. The European Union, operating on the "precautionary principle," and citing evrdence that such toys might be

$s-

f,i. \
EIi6

CHAPTER

Argument: An lntroduction

dangerous, has banned toys containing phthalates. The U.S. government sets less strict standards than does the European Union. A federal agency generally doesn't ban a substance unless it has been prouen harmful to humans, not merely suspected of being harmful. In defense of free markets, the toy and chemical indusiries accused opponents of phthalates of using 'Junk science" to produce scary but inaccurate data. Our point in summarizing the toxic toy controversy is to demonstrate the persuasive roles of both implicit and explicit arguments. \Aihat follows-a photograph and a short letter-provide examples. Figure 1.2 shows a speaker at a public hearing surrounded by implicit arguments that many toys are unsafe-a poster labeled "Trouble in Toyland" and potentially unsafe toys, many of them soft, pliable plastics using phthalates.

In contrast, Dr. Louis W. Sullivan, who was secretary of health and human services under the Clinton administration, makes an explicit argument in a letter to the governor of California. Sullivan opposes the bill banning phthalates, claiming that scientific agencies charged with public safety haven't found phthalates harmI. Instead, he supports an altemative "green chemistry initiative" that would make public policy decisions based on "facts, not fear."

FIGURE 1.2 Implicit arguments

(the toys and poster) against phthalates

PART

Overuew of Argument

Let the Facts Decide. Not Feur: Bcn AB I lS

LCUIS yt. suLtMH, ,I.D.

Dear Governor Schwarzenegger:

policy-sound

As a physician and public servant who has worked in the field of medicine and public health all my life, I am writing to urge your veto ofAB 1108, a bill that would ban the use of compounds used to make vinyl toys and childcare products soft and flexible. AB I l0g widely misses rhe mark on the most fundamental underpinning of all good publi.
science.

h;;th

Program, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. At a time when public officials are trying to deal with the serious issue of lead paint in toys imported from China, California lawmakers should not confuse the safety of these softening compounds in vinyl toys with that issue. Signing AB 1l0g will do nothirrg to resolve the lead paint in toys issue.

U.S. National Toxicology

AB I 108 ignores a recent, comprehensive review ofthe safefy ofvinyl toys conducted by the u.S. consumer product Safety commission. The cpsc iook a long, hard look at the primary softener used in children's toys and concluded that vinyl toys containing this compound are safe as used. In fact, its experts warned that using zubstitutes could make toys more brittle and less safe. The CPSC's conclrrsions are reinforced by the findings of many scientific bodies around the globe-including the European union's European cheicals Bureau, the

s I urge you to reject AB I 10g and allow your health and safety experts,
lators, to make judgments about the chemicals in our
fear. Sincerely.

Californialeeds public health policies based on science. That's why I resoundingly support your Green Chemistry Initiative. This is a coordinated, comprehensive ,trut"gy io,. addressing possible risk from products-in a holistic, science-basei fashion-that would serve the interests of California families and their children. not legis-

"rlironm"ntlbur"

nn facts, not

Louis W Sullivan, M.D.

U.S. Secretary of Health & Human Services lggg_1gg3 President Emeritus, Morehouse School of Medicine

I I ffi

FOR

CT

ASS DTSCUSSTON tmpticit and Expticit Arguments

1' Aoy argument, whether implicit or explicit, tries to influence the audience's stance on an issue, moving the audience toward the arguer's claim. Arguments work on us psychologically al well as cognitively, triggering emotions *"*"tt as thoughts
"and and ideas. How would you describe the differenc"r itr th" way that the poster toy display in Figure 1.2 andthe letter from Srilir-an .rvork on us,,?

CHAPTER

Argument: An tntroduction

2' Assume that you are explaining implicit argrments to an international exchange tu{9nt who is not yet familiar with u.s. politics and popular culture. Each of the implicit arg'ments in Figures 1.3-1.7 -ui"r a craim nlts audience, hying to get ewers to adopt the arguer's position, perspective, berief, or point of ew on an issue. For each argument, answer the fo[owing quesons ro. y* new international friend:
a.

what conversation
What is at stake?

does this argument join?

what is the issue or controversy?

belief. or position

b Y,hatis the argument's claim? That is, what value, perspective,

does the argument ask its viewers to adopt? against?

c. \4/hat is an opposing or altemative view? rrA4rat ews is the argument pushing

d. How does the argument

audience?

try to do its work on the brains or hearts of the

FIGURE 1.3

These colors don't run

PART

Overview of Argument

FIGURE 1.4 Tlese colors don't run the world

FIGURE 1.5 Assisted suicide isn'i "natural"

Argument: An lntroduction

'

FIGURE 1.6 Ethanol versus food

FIGURE 1.7 Airplane baggage dilemma

10

PART

Overuiew of Argument

The Defining Features of Argument

we turn now to examine arguments in more detail.
arguments. (Unless we say otherwise, by that attempt to supply rasons and evidence argumentwe mean explicit aiguments of such i'r.rpport their clais.) T section examine three defining features

Argument Requires Justification of Its Claims

to a humble but universal site of disagreement: way and in what the conflict between a parent and a teenager over r"ules. In what
To begin defining argument, Iet's tum

circumstances do such conflicts constitute arguments? Consider the following dialogue:

youNc

PERSON (racing

for

the

Bye. front door while putting coat on)'.

See you later.

PARENT: \44roal \44rat time are you planning on coming home? youNc pERSON (cooltg, hand, stitl on doorknob): I'm sure we discussed this earlier' I'll be home urorlnd 2 ..1r. (The second sentence, spoken uery rapidly, is barelg
audible.)
pARENT (mouth

tightening): we did nol discuss this earlier and you're

rzol staying out

till two in the morning. You'll be home at twelve'

exAt this point in the exchange, we have a quarrel, not an argument. Quarrelers any attempt to suppofi.them rationally' If the change antagonistic asserlions without a quarrel never gets past the "Yes-you-wil1/o-t-won't" stage, it either remains

dialogue

or degenerates into a fight. turn: L"et us say, howevei, that the dialogue takes the followng
YouNG PERSoN

(tragicallg): But I'm

sixteen gears old!

well-develNow we,re moving toward argument. Not, to be sure, a particularly an argument because one oped or cogent one, brit an argumnt all the same. It's now of curfew is satisoi th" qrru"lers has offered J r"uror', for her assertion. Her choice that depends on the factory, she says, because she is sixteen yearc old, an argument make decisions about unstad assuption that sixteen-year-olds are old enough to
such matters.

either advance the The parent can now respond in one of several ways that will *gu-"r.i or turn it back into a quarrel. The parent 9an. simglV.invoke parental authorrvhich iti(l aon't care-you're still coming home at twelve"), in ("You case argument ceases' will be home at twelve Or the parent can provide u r"*oi for his or her Vieiv case the arg'ment takes u'hich becaus your dad and I pay the bills around herel"). il a new tum.

CHAPTER

Argument: An Iniroductlon

So far we've established two necessary conditions that must be met before we're willing to call something an argument: (1) a set of two or more conflicting assertions the attempt to resolve the conflict through an appeal to reason. w-ra

But good argument demands more than meeting these two formal requirements. For the tgo*"it to be effective, an arguer is obligated to clari$ and support the reasons prented. For example, "But I'm sixteen years old!" is not yet a clear support for the assertion "I should be allowed to set my own curfew." On the surface, Young Person's argument seems absurd. Her parent, of all people, knows precisely how old she is. \&4rt makes it an argument is that behind her claim lies an unstated assumption-all sixteen-year-olds are old enough to set their own curfews. \\4rat Young Person needs to do now is to support that assumption.* In doing so, she must anticipate the sorts of questions the assumption will raise in the minds of her parent: Wfraf is the legal status of sixteen-year-olds? How psychologically mature, as opposed to chronologrally mature, is Young Person? What is the actual track record of "being young perso"n in responsible? and so fofth. Each of these questions will force Person to reexamine and clarify her assumptions about the proper degree of Youn[ autonlomy for sixteen-year-olds. And her response to those questions should in turn force the parents to reexamine their assumptions about the dependence of sixteenyear-olds n parental guidance and wisdom. (Likewise, the parents will need to show wtry "payingin" biltrround here" automatically gives them the right to set Young
Person's curfew.)

As the argument continues, Young Person and Parent may shift to a different line of reasoning. For example, Young Person might say: "I should be allowed to stay out until 2 A.M. because ali my fnends get to stay out that late." (Here the unstated assumption is that the mles in this family ought to be based on the rules in other famities.i ttre parent might in turn respond, "But I certainly never stayed out that late when I *, you, age"-an argument assuming that ihe rules in this family should

follow the rules of an earlier generation. As young Person and Parnt listen to each other's points of view (and begin realizing why thei initiat arguments have not persuaded their intended audience), both pJrti"r nna themselves in the uncomfortable position of having to examine their own Leliefs and to justifii assumptions that they have taken for granted. Here we encounter one of the earliest senses of the t".- to argue, which is "to clariff'" As an arguer begins to clarir her own position on an issue, she also begins to clarify her audience's might accommodate her [osition. Sun ctarincation helps the argr.rer see how she perhaps by adjusting her own position or by developing reasons audience's views, that appeal to her audience's values. Thus Young Person might suggest an argument like ihis:
trial basis because I need enough space to

I should be allowed to stay out until

tr'vo on a

demonstrate my maturity and show you I won't get into trouble'

*Later in this text we will call the assumption unclerlying a Line of reasoningits wanant (see Chapter 4).

12

PART

.1

Overview of Argumeni

The assumption underlying this argument is that it is good to give teenagers freedom to demonstrate their maturity. Because this reason is likely to appeal to her parent's own values (the parent wants to see his or her daughter grow in maturity) and because it is tempered by the qualifier "on a trial basis" (which reduces some of the threat of Young Person's initial demands), it may prompt productive discussion.

Whether or not Young Person and Parent can work out a best solution, the preceding scenario illustrates how argument leads people to clarifu their reasons and provide justifications that can be examined rationally. The scenario also illustrates two specific aspects of argument that we will explore in detail in the next sections: (1) Argument is both a process and a product. (2) Argument combines truth seeking
and persuasion.

Argument Is Both a Process and a Product

As the preceding scenario revealed, argument can be viewed as a process in which two or more parties seek the best solution to a question or problem. Argument can also be viewed as a product, each product being any person's contribution to the conversation at a given moment. In an informal discusson, the products are usually short, whatever time a person uses during his or her turns in the conversation. Under more formal settings, an orally delivered product might be a short impromptu speech (say, during an open-mike discussion of a campus issue) or a longer, carefully prepared formal speech (as in a PowerPoint presentation at a business meeting or an argument at a public hearing for or against a proposed city project). Similar conversaons occur in writing. Roughly analogous to a small-group discussion is an exchange of the kind that occurs regularly through informal chat groups or professional e-mail discussion lists. In an online discussion, participants have more thinking time to shape their messages than they do in a real-time oral discussion. Nevertheless, messages are usually short and informal, making it possible over the course ofseveral days to see participants'ideas shift and evolve as conversants modifu

their initial views in response to others' views. Roughly equivalent to a formal speech would be a formal written argument, which may take the form of an academic argrment for a college course; a grant proposal; a guest column for the op-ed* section of a newspaper; a legal brief; a letter to a member of Congress; or an article for an organizahonal newsletter, popular magazine, or professional journal. In each of these instances, the written argrment

I
:r

*:;ft:

: -i;

*Op-edstands for "opposite-editorial." It is the generic name in joumalism for a signed argument that voices the writer's opinion on an issue, as opposed to a news story that supposed to repo events objectively, uncolored by the writer's personal views. Op-ed pieces appear in the edrtonal-opinon section of newspapers, which generally features editorials by the resident staff, opinion pieces bl sr-ndicated columnists, and letters to the editor from readers. The term op-ed often extended to smdtcated columns appearing in newsmagazines, advocacy Web sites, and online news services.

-a, t-

CHAPTER

Argument: An

Introduction

13

(a product) enters a conversation (a process)-in this case, a conversation of readers, many of whom will carry on the conversation by writing their own responses or by discussing the wyiter's ews with others. The goal of the community of writers and readers ls to nn the best solution to the problem or issue under discussion'

Argument Combines Truth Seeking and PersuasiCIn

In thinking about argument as a product, the writer will find herself continually moving back ir forttr bltween truth seeking and persuasion-that is, between questions
ence (\A4rat db my readers already believe or value? \\lhat reasons and evidence will most persuade thm?). Back and forth she'll weave, alternately absorbed in the subject of her argument and in the audience for that argument' Neiter of the two focuses is ever completely out of mind, but their relative importance shifts during different phases of the development of a paper' Moreover, difterent rhetorical situations place different emphases on tmth seeking versus persuasion. we could thus place arguments on a kind of continuum that measures audiab"out the subject matter (\A4rat is the best solution to this problem?) and about

ih" d"gr"" of attention a writer

audience. (See Figure t.S.) et the far truth-seeking end of the continuum might be an exploratory pice that lays out several alternative approaches to a problem and weighs the strengths and weaknesses of each with no concern for persuasion. At the other end of the continuum would be outright propaganda, such as a political campaign advertisement that reduces a complx issue to sound bites and distorts an opponent's position through out-of-context quotations or misleading use of data' (At its most ttut*t, propalanda obliterates truth seeking; it will do anything, including the knowing'us o bog.rr evidence, distorted assertions, and outright lies, to win over

gives

to subject matter versus

an audnce.) In te middle ranges of the continuum, writers shift their focuses back and forth between truth t"kittg and persuasion but with varying degrees of
emphasis.

As an example of a writer focusing primarily on truth seeking, consider the case of Kathleen, wn, in her college argument course, addressed the definitional question "Is American Sign Languag" iASl) a 'foreign language' for purposes of meeting the
Persuasion

Truth Seeking
a'.:!';j::':l ::':.
I

Exploratory

essay examining all sides of an issue

FIGURE 1.8

Argumentas
inquiry, asking audience to think out
issue with writer

Dialogic argument seeking common ground

a

Classical

One-sided

with resistant audience

argument aimed at a neutral or

possibly skePtical

argument aimed at a

Aggressive one-sided

Outright propaganda

arguments

friendly
audience (often for fund-raising or calls to action)

audience

Continuum of arguments from truth seeking to persuasion

PART

Overview of Argument

university's foreign language requirement?" Kathleen had taken two years of ASL at a community college. \\4ren she transfer-red to a four-year college, the chair of the foreign languages department at her new college would not allow her ASL proficiency to count for the foreign language requirement. ASL isn't a "language," the charr said summarily. "It's not equivalent to learning French, German, or Japanese." Kathleen disagreed, so she immersed herself in developing her argument. \Vhile doing research, she focused almost entirely on subject matter, searching for what linguists, neurologists, cogmtive psychologists, and sociologsts had saicl about the language of deaf people. Immersed in her subject matter, she was only tacitly concemed with her audience, whom she thought of primarily as her classmates and the professor of her argument class-people who were fliendly to her views and interested in her experiences with the deaf community. She wrote a well-documented paper, citing several scholarly articles, that made a good case to her classmates (and the professor) lhat ASL
is indeed a distinct language.

Proud ofthe big red A the professor had placed on her paper, Kathleen decided for a subsequent assignment to write a second paper on ASL-but this time aiming it directly at the chair of foreign languages and petitioning him to accept her ASi proficiency for the foreign language requirement. Now her writing task falls closer to the persuasive end of our continuum. Kathleen once again immersed herself in research, but this time focused not on subject matter (whether ASL is a distinct language) but on audience. she researched the history of the foreign language requirement at her college and discovered some of the politics behind lt (an oi foreign language requirement had been dropped in the 1970s and reinstituted in the 1990s, partly-a math professor told her-to boost enrollments in foreign language courses). She also interviewed foreign language teachers to find out whai they knew and didn't know about ASL. She discovered that many teachers thought ASL was "easy to learn," so that accepting ASL would allow students a Mickey Mouse way to avoid the rigors of a "real" foreign language class. Additionally, she learned ihat foreign language teachers valued immersing students in a foreign culture; in fact, the foreign language requirement was part of her college's effort to create a multicultural curiculum. This new understanding of her target audience helped Kathleen reconceptualize her argument. Her claim that ASL was a real larguage (the subject of her firsi paper) became only one section of her second paper, much condensed and abridge. bhe added sections showing the difficulty of learning ASL (to counter her audienc's belief that learning ASL was easy), showing how the deaf community fomed a distinct culture with its own customs and literature (to show how ASL met the goals of multiculturalism), and showing that the number of transfer students with ASL credits would be negligibly small (to allay fears that accepting ASL r'voulcl threaten enrollments in language classes). she ended her argument with an appeal to her college's public emphasis (declared boldly in its mission statement) on eraclicating social injustice and reaching out to the oppressed. She described the isolanon of deaf people in a world where almost no hearing people learn ASL, and she argued that th deaf community on her campus could be integrated more fully into canpus ljfe if more students could

CHAPTER

Argument: An

lntroduction

15

"talk" with them. Thus the ideas included in her new argument-the reasons selected, the evidence used, the arrangement and tone-all were determined by her primary
focus on persuasion.

Our point, then, is that all along the continuum writers attempt both to seek truth and to persuade, but not necessarily with equal balance. Kathleen could not have written her second paper, aimed specifically at persuading the chair of foreign languages, if she hadn't first immersed herself in truth-seeking research that convinced her that ASL is indeed a distinct language. Nor are we saying that her second argument was better than her first. Both fulfilled their puposes and met the needs of their intended audiences. Both involved huth seeking and persuasion, but the first focused primarily on subject matter whereas the second focused primarily
on audience.

Argument and the Problem of Truth

The tension that we have just examined between truth seeking and persuasion raises an ancient issue in the field of argument: Is the arguer's first obligation to truth or to winning the argument? And just what is the nature of the h-uth to which arguers are supposed to be obligated?

In Plato's famous dialogues fuom ancient Greek philosophy, these questions were at the heart of Socrates' disagreement with the Sophists. The Sophists were professional rhetoricians who specialized in training orators to win arguments. Socrates, who valued truth seeking over persuasion and believed that truth could be discovered through philosophic inquiry, opposed the Sophists. For Socrates, Truth resided in the ideal world of forrns, and through philosophic rigor humans could transcend the changing, shadowlike world of everyday reality to perceive the world of universals where Truth, Beaufy, and Goodness resided. Through his method of questioning his interlocutors, Socrates would gradually peel away layer after layer of false views until Tiuth was revealed. The good pelson's duty, Socrates believed, was not to win an argument but to pursue this higher Truth. Socrates distrusted rhetoricians because they were interested only in the temporal power and wealth that came from persuading auLet's apply Socrates' disagreement with the Sophists to a modern instance. Suppose your community is dided over the issue of raising enronmental staridards versus keeping open a job-producing factory that doesn't meet new guidelines for
waste discharge. The Sophists would train you to argue any side of this issue on behalf of arry lobbying group willing to pay for your services. If, however, you followed the spirit of Socrates, you would be inspired to listen to all sides of the dispute, peel away false arguments, discover the Truth through reasonable inquiry, and commit yourself to a Right Course of Action. But what is the nature of Truth or Right Action in a dispute between jobs and diences to l.he orator's ews.

the environment? The Sophists believed that truth was determined by those in thus they could enter an argument unconstrained by any transcendent

16

PART

Overuiew of Argument

talked beliefs or assumptions' \\rhen Socrates

couldreplyco,'temptoo',,ry'nu''n"'.werefictitiousconceptsinventedbytheweak the years, thg Sophists', relativist beliefs to protect themselves rrorJ tn" strong. over the lerm ophistry became synonymous with became so repugnant to people that

"l:"t

j"tti::

i^"11t1"'

the Sophists

"*?T;:r:i:ffi".x,;*

universal years the sophists, critique of .a {anscendent other thinkers who sociologists, and has been taken serioui;;;;;dr,l"rophers, arrive tnat arguments, properlyignducted, necessarily doubt Socrates, confident euer are often different defo, trr'soini.tt, there at a single Truth. Forin"rrtr-rmr."rr, ui From this of truths for different situations or cultures' grees of truth un ff"r""ikinds

rruth

perspective,*t't"r't*"'onsiderquestionsofinterpretationorvalue'wecannever scientific observation' not

is tn-re-nof through demonstrate that a belief or assumption to revelation' We get our beliefs' according ,tot through through reason, 'Lhgiot" particular cultures' t" shared assumptioni of our these contemporary ,'rrt "rr, o*

*a

Wearecondemned(orliberated)toliveinapluralistic,multiculturalworldwith
competing visions of truth' radical relativism,

Ifweacceptthispluralisticviewofth.lworld'dowethenendorsetheSophists' do we doggedly pursue

fr""il;^;;;

aryue any side of any issue? Or

truth? some modern equivalent of Socrates'

ourownsympathiesarewithSocrates,butweadmittoaviewoftruththatis moretentativ","u'tio','"*dconflictedthanhis'Forus,truthseekingdoesnotmean does it mean a valueless

,,Right errr\Vr,, to a disputed question, but neither finding the good' For us' truth seeking means taking relativism in lvhich utt *'*"" a "quulty "eit u*.e'" or "best solution" to the quesrion lor responsibility lor detelrnining the all taking into consideration the interests of the good of the whole'""ri""tqr when This more tenitt th" fut" of uncertainty' stakeholders. rt *""* -J"g huta decisions but you cannot use argument to 'prove" your claim, tative view of truth means that philosopher says claim' One contempomry only to make a ."ur""Jf" .are"fo, your to ideas, not absolutelv convince that argument ."" h;;;;;;l;-,,r"c.;:re,adherence" in a ideas. Even though you can't be certain, an audience or tt. ,rl""rrulry h-uth of available, you must the problem is the best one Socratic sense, that your solution to

ethicallytakeresponsibilityfortheconsequencesofyourclaimarrdyoumustseekjusmust, in other words, forge a p-ersonal tice for stakeholders;."J yourself. iou values of all the evidence and your articulation of stance based on yo* "*r-r-raiion public and defend'
that you can make

Toseektruth,then,meanstoseekthebestormostjustsolutiontoaproblem of with an pen mind to the views while observing all uru"frf" evidence,listening o*lt values and assumpto iustify all stakehold"rr, .fuiifyhg and attempting -y-o.ttt that truth seeking often tions, and taking ,",po'iiuty for your "t!"-!1t.i1fblio$'s pressure of alternative the means delaying cloiure on an isrue, ucinowledging to argue one,s mind. Seen in this *'av, learning views, and being *iili"; to "hurrg" effectivelyhasthedeepestsortofsocialvalue:Ithelpsconmunitiessettleconflicts inarationalandhumanewaybyfinding,throughtheclialecticexchangeofideas, or to other assertions of io the best solutions to problems without r"ror,ir'rg 'iolence
raw power.

CHAPTFR

Argument: An Introduction

II

?#

FOR CTASS DISCUSSION Role-Playing Arguments

of the complexity of living in a pluralhomogeneous culture istic culture. has fewer shared assumptions' choose one of the folraise questio.rr i" u society that members present lowing cases as the subjelt for a "simulation game" in which class the points of view of the people involved'

on any g,,,",' auy,

decided tfrut .o"f irr*, '"wspapersUL readily"..id"''"" in a completely

prwide

Gase

l:

Gollege Athletes Caught in Tangled Web

sites such as As the following newspaper excerpt shows, social networking web the reputations of ftlySpu"" and Ficeboot cieute .onfli"t" between free speech and popt" and institutions in the public domain'
for content they posted college students across the country have been cited or disciplined Facebook, including such things as on solcial networking Web sites such as MySpace and (at the University of Central Florida)' comcriticism of a studerit govemment candidte department (Cowley College in Kansas) or rulgar comments about plaints about the theate"r
a teaching assistant (SYracuse)'

*Co[Jge administrators are very nervous about this huge new fomm," said Greg Lukianoff,"presidentoftheForrndationforlndidua]RightsinEducation. whose studentThe most nelvous of those might be coaches and athletic directors, body and who under a more intense public spotlight than the general student athletes are and m-les- of conriuct one distasteusually are required to adhere to more stringent policies seen by anybody and ful picture of a prominent footbalt player on th Internet could be front page of newspaper' It's why t9-9. 1tll"li" departments have mignt ena .rp o.t th. indidual team mles' ,tr"il"te, policies about such tit.l * restrict usage as parl of

ofstudents'free speech Your task Imagine an open meeting on yorr campus on the_issue departments to ,ighO rr"tr* t".igntr'of yo*.["g"-or university and its attrlelc network pages. Hold a meeting in establish rules and monitor students'n[ne social

who has been warned to rewhich classmates play the following roles: (a) a student athlete beer at fratemity party; move from his Facebook profile a pnotograph of himself chugging institutionally imposed (b) students who are not n attrletic teams but are concerned about feels he has been libeled on a restrictions on students' freedom; (c) a facub member who forbids student former student's Myspace page; (d) a women's basketball coach who networking accounts; (e) a tennis athletes on her teams foom fr""g personal online social on students' sites; (f) the athletic coach who establishes clear teari policies for postings athletes' online social director, who is considering buying tracking tehnologt to,T9rut9r ;;;"rk"g pages; (g) u r"pi"r.trtrtiue of the American Civil Liberties Uruon, who supports "*a "t ,p"".h; and (h) the dean of students, who is concemed for the ." student rig'ht" who might be embar,"pl.rtutio""of the institltion and for the futLue well-being of students personal infomation' raised by current postings or endangered by disclosing too much

Gase2:HomelessHitthestreetstoProtestProposedBan
peaceful but vocal protest yesThe homeless stood up for themseives b}' silting clo$n in a terday in lname of citYl.

18

PART

Ovelview of Argument

About 50 people met at noon to criticize a proposed set of cily ordinances that would ban panhandlers from sitiing on sidewalks, put them in jail for repeatedly urinating in public, and crack down on "intimidating" street behavior'
attorneyJ who is pushing for the new laws. [.
..

"sitting is not a crime," read poster boards that feature mug shots of [the city

] "tnls

is city property; the police want to

a

tell us we can't sit here," yelled one man named R. C. as he sat cross{egged outside
pizza establishment.

your task: Imagine a public hearing seeking reactions to the proposed city ordinance. Hold a mock h;aring in which classmates play the following roles: (a) a homeless person; (b) an annoyed merchant; (c) a shopper who avoids places with homeless peopte; (d) a cittzen advocate for the homeless; (e) the city attortey'

rr::i

A Successful Process of Argumentation:

The Well-Functioning Committee
We have said that neither the fist-banging speaker nor the college debate team represents our ideal image of argument. The best image for us, as we have implied, is a well-functioning rrnJl group seeking a solution to a problem. In professional life such small groups usually take the fom of committees. W" .,J" the word committee in its broadest sense to indicate all sorts of important Independence is essentially a committee document with Thomas Jefferson as the chair.

work that grows out of group conversation and debate. The Declaration of

Simiiarly, the U.S. Supreme Court is in effect a committee of nine judges who rely heavily, as numerous books and articles have demonstrated, on small-group decisionmaking processes to reach their judgments and formulate their legal briefs. To illustrate our committee or small-group model for argument, let's briefly consider the workings of a university committee on which coauthor John Ramage once served, the Univ"ersity Stanaatdi Committee. The Arizona State Universrf (ASU) Standards Committee plays a role in university life analogous to that of the Supreme Court in civic life. It's the final court of appeal for ASU students seeking exceptions to various rules that govern their academic lives (such as registering under a different catalog, waiving a required course, or being allowed to retake a course for the third time)' The issues that regularly come before the committee draw forth all the argument types and skategies discussed throughout this text. For example, the different argumlnt claim typei discussed in Part Four regularly surface during commiee deliberations, as shown in the following list:

s
w

Definition issues: Is math anxiety a "learning disabilif" for purposes of exempting

a student from a math requirement? Cause/consequence issues: \&/hat were the causes of tllrs student's sudden poor performance during spring semester? What will be the consequences of approving or denying her appeal? Reiemblance issues: How is this case similar to a case from the same department

that we considered last semester?

CHAPTER

Argument: An lntroduction

19

w Evaluation

issues:

\\4lat cntena need to be met before we allow a student

to

graduate under a previotts catalog? *q Proposal issues: Should rve make it a policy to allow course X to substitute for course Y in the General Studies requirements? On any given day, the committee's deliberations show how dialogue can lead to clarioccasions, committee members' initial views shift as they f,cation of"tnking. tr ^-y specifics of indidual cases and listen to opposing arguments ffom their study the colleagues. 4rat allows this committee to function as well as it does is the fundamental civiliqiof its members and their collective concem that their decisions be just. Because of the importance of these decisions to students' lives, committee members are willing to concede a point to another member in the name of reaching a better decision and to view the deliberations as an ongoing process of negotiation rather than a series of win-lose debates' To give you firsthand experience at using argument as a process of clarification' *" .on.lrrd this chapter with an actual case that came before the Universtty Standards Committee in the early 1990s when Ramage was a member of the committee. We invite you to read the following letter, pretending that you are a member of the University Stund*dr Committee, and then proceed to the exercises that follow.

Petitiotx tc Waive the univensity Mcthemextics fi eqrxirerztent

Standards Committee Members,

I am a 43-year-old member of the Pawnee Tribe of Oklahoma and a very nontraditional student currently pursuing Justice Studies at the Arizona State University (ASU) College of Public Programs. I entered college as the first step toward completion of my goalbecoming legal counsel for my tribe, and statesman. I come before this committee in good faith to request that ASU suspend in my special the case, its mathematics requirement for undergraduate degree completion so I may enter Law during Fall 1993. The point I wish to make to this committee is this: I ASU college of do not need algebraic skills; I will never use algebra in my intended profession; and if with ASU's algebra requirement, I will be needlessly prevented from forced to "o*ply to enter law school next fall and face an idle academic year before my graduating in time next oppoitunis in 1994.I will address each of these points in turn, but a few words concerning my academic credentials are in order first' Two years ago, I made a vow of moral commitment to seek out and confront injustice. In Septmber of tggO, I enrolled in college. Although I had only the benefit of a ninth grade education, I took the General Equivalenc,"- Diploma (GED) examination and placed in the top ten percant of those, nationwide. rvho took the test. On the basis of this score

PART

Overview of Argument

I was accepted into Scottsdale community college (scc). This

step made me the

first in

During my first year at SCC my entire iamily, and practically in my tribe, to enter college. on the President's list twice, was active in the Honors I aintained a 4.0 GPA, I was placed program, received the Honors Award of Merit in English Humanities, and was conferred year of 199l-1992 which I an Honors Scholarship (see attached) for the Academic instead' declined, opting to enroll in ASU ASU. I chose to graduate At the beginning of the 199 I summer semester, I transferred to in American Indian studies, an important field igfrom ASU because of the courses offered but necessary to my commitment. At ASU I currently mainnored by most other Universities

taina3.6GPA'althoughmycumulativeGPAiscloserto3.g,lamamemberoftheHonors "appoint"d to the Dean's List, and awarded ASU's prestigious and Justice colleges, *as My academic standing is impeccable' I will enter the Maroon and Gold Scholarship twice. the Fall of 1993-if this petition ASU College of Law to studyindian and criminal law during
as tribal attorney and advisor' and become active in the administration of Pawnee tribal affairs

isapproved.Uponsuccessfulcompletionofmyjurisdoctoratelwillreturntooklahomato

vigorouslyprosecuteourrighttosovereigntybeforetheCongressofthel]nitedStates. schedule for the completion of When I began my "colllge experience," I set a rigid time schedule, founded in my belief that I have almy goal. By the terms of tat self-imposed months in which to ready wasted many productive years, I allowed myself thirty-five in Justice Studies, for indeed justice is my conachive my Bachelor of Science degree juris doctorate-summa cum cern, and another thirty-six months in which to eal my to all endeavors, I fell upon this task with zeal' Ihave laude. Consistent with y app.oa"h during fall' spring willingly assumed the burden of carrying substantial academic loads now lies in the fact that in order to satisfy the and summer semesters. My problem MAT-106 and MAT1l7' I subUniversity,s math requiremnito graduate I must still take are irrelevant to my goals, and present a barrier to my mit that these mathematics courses fall matriculation into law school. Why do I need college al. Upon consideration of my dilemma, the questions emerged: necessary for studying American Indian law? Will I geOra 6UAf-117)? Is colleg algebra gain or lose, from my algebra in my ctrosen field? What will the University r"

"oil"g" these questions. taking cilege algebtu-r not? I decided I should resolve question: "Why do I need college algebra (MAT1l7)?" I t ega' my inquiry with the of the Justice College and presented this question to him' He consulted Mr. Jim answer: I need college referred to the current-ASU catalog and delineated the following competency in my chosen field' and (2) to satisfy algebra (1) for a minimum level of math first answer is this: I thi u.riu"rrity math requirement in order to graduate. My reply to the practical and academic; and, I have no need for alalready porrl* ample math skills, both 1992 semester at ASU I g"U.u i., -y chosen field. How do I know this? During the spring algebra (MAT-077), scoring the highest class grade Lrccesrfuliy completed introductory is the fact that I was a on one test (see attached transcript and test). More notewothy fifteen years. I used geometry and algebra commonly machine and welding contractor fr of computer Asssted in the design of many welded structures. I am proficient in the use drawing all mr orvn blueprints for jobs' My blueDesign (CD) programs, designing and my printi and designs ur" ul*uy, uppioved by city planning deparrments. For example,

CHAPTER

Argument: An lntroduction

and installation of one linear most recent job consisted of the manufaclure, transportation on Maui, Hawaii' I apmile of anodized aluminum handrailing at a luxury resort condo the amount of raw materials to order, the logistics flied extensive use of math to caiculate materials from Mesa to Maui, the of mass production and transportation for both men and jobs of this job site installation itself, an cash flow. I have successfully completed many competency in my nature-all without a mathematical hitch. As to the application of math will not be a time in my practice of chosen field" I can guarantee this committee that there that I need algebra' I will Indian law that I will need algebra. If an occasion evel occurs engineering, or a surgeon if I hire a mathematician, just as i would an engineer if I need need an operation.

IthencontactedDr.-oftheASUMathematicsDepartmentandpresentedhim ftwhy do I need college algebra?" He replied: (1) for a well with the same question,

(3) to satisf,u the university math rounded education; (2) to deveiop creative thinking; and answer' I have a "well rounded requirement in order io graduate. Responding to the first education in justice and American Tndian law In fact' education." My need is fr a specific ofmy tribe, just the I do not really need the degree to practice Indian law as representative my creative thinking' It has knowledge. Regarding the*secon4 I do not need to develop as a steel contractor, I commonly been honed to a keen dg" tol. many years. For example, stnrctures from raw materials' Contracting is not my create huge, beautiful and intricate I have also-enjoyed the status of only experience in creative thinking. For twenty-five years of racebikes' Machines I have being one of this country's foremo-st designers and builders have topped some of Japan and designed and brought inio existence from my imagination in 1984 I rode a bike of my own EurJpe's best engineering efforts. To illustrate this point, over Honda, Suzuki, Laverda, BMW andYmaha. I have design to an inteinationaivictory

"*."-ll.datcreativethinkingmyentirelife-Icalleditsurvival. Expanding on the questioln oiwhy I need college algebra, I contacted

practicing utt-orn.yr.

few friends who are

'n.q.,

follows: "when you *h"or" law firm is in Tempe, answered my tvvo questions as -, which required algebra?" His response attended law school, were there any courses you took ..no.,, ..Have you ever needed itgeAraduring the many years of your practice?" Again, his was ".rol'Ail agreed there was not a single occasion when they had need for algebra
response

responded to my question in similar mannef. one, Mr.

Billy

*u,

in their professional careers. 10 Just to make sure of my position, I contacted the ASU College of Law, and among others, spoke to Ms. Sierra reply was, they knew of none' encounter in which I will need algebra?" The unanimous of credit hours I need for graduation be lowered. In I am not proposing that the nrrlb", or two in its place' I am not trying fact, I am more than itti.rg to substitute another course for that is certainly not my style' I am seeking to get out of ary.thing ha. o. distasteful, which will prevent me from enont], to dispose of a.rlrn r"cessary item in my studies, one

teringlawschoolthisfall-breakingmystride.solittleholdsupsomuch. that he needs algeI agree that a young adult directf out ofhigh school may not know not knos' rvhat his future holds-but I am not that braic skills. Understaidably, he dos
youngadult.Iclaimtheadvantage.Iknowprecisel'whatmyfutureholdsandthatfuture
irolds no possibility of my needing college algebra'

12

PART

Overuiew of Argumenl

Physically confronting injustice is my end. On reservations where government apathy allows rapacious pedophiles to pose as teachers; in a country where a million and a half American Indians are held hostage as second rate human beings whose despair results in a suicide, alcohol and drug abuse rate second to no other people; in prisons where helpless inmates are beaten like dogs by sadistic guards who should be the inmates-this is the realm of my chosen field-the disenfranchised. In this netherworld algebra and justice exist independently ofone another. In summary, I am convinced that I do not need college algebra for a minimum level of math competency in my chosen field. I do not need college algebra for a well rounded education, nor to develop my creative thinking. I do not need algebra to take the LSAT. I do not need algebra for any courses in law school, nor will I for any purpose in the practice of American Indian law. It remains only that I need college algebra in order to graduate. 15 I promise this committee that ASU's integrity will not be compromised in any way by approving this waiver. Moreover, I assure this committee that despite not having a formal accreditation in algebra, I will prove to be nothing less than an asset to this University and its Indian community, both to which I belong, and I will continue to set a standard for integrity, excellence and perseverance for all who follow. Therefore, I ask this committee, for all the reasons described above, to approve and initiate the waiver of my University
mathematics requirement.

[Signed] Gordon Adams

I! +

FOR CTASS DISCUSSION Responding to Adam's Argument

1. Before class discussion, decide how you would vote on this issue. Should this student be exempted from the math requirement? Write out the reasons for your
decision.

2. Working in small groups or as a whole class, pretend that you are the University Standards Committee, and arrive at a group decision on whether to exempt this student flom the math requirement. 3. After the discussion, write for five to ten minutes in a journal or notebook describing how your thinking evolved during the discussion. Did any of your classmates' views cause you to rethink your own? Class members should share with each other their descriptions of how the process of argument led to clarification of their own thinking.
We designed this exercise to help you experience argument as a clariffing process. But we had another puryose. We also designed the exercise to stimulate thinking about a problem we introduced at the beginning of this chapter: the difference between argument as clarification and argument as persuasion. Is a good argument necessarily a persuasive argument? In our opinion, this student's letter to the committee is a good argument. The student writes well, ta-kes a clear stand, offers good reasons for his position, and supports his reasons with effectrve er.idence. To what extent,

CHAPTER

Argument: An lntroduction

case? You know how you however, is the letter a persuasiue argument? Did it win its think the University and your classmates ,'td on this issue. But what do you its deliberations? Standards Committee at ASU actually declded during case again in Chapter 4' We will return to this

iriII

Ccnelusion
argument, showing you In this chapter we have explored some of the complexities of not of fist banging or of win-lose debate but why we believe that argurnent is a matter a problem or of finding, through u iro."., of rational inqurry, the best solution to rr^4rat is ou"r advice for you at the clos of this introductory chapter? Briefly, to issue. as persuasion. we suggest that see the p.rrpor" of argument as tmth seeking as well throughut

of argument you seek out a wide range of views' that you espethese views respectfully, cially welcom" ui"\M, different from your own, that you treat rationally defensible' (Hence you must look and that you see them as intelligent and carefully Lt th" ,.urons and evidence on which they are based') choose, you can Oui goal in this text is to help you learn skills of argument' If you any side of any issue. Yet we hope you won't' use these skills, like the Sophists, io *gu" seeking and that you will We hope Urut, iit e Socrat, you will ise argument for trulh some occasions, charrgrng your position on an conseque,,tly find yourselves, on at least process of arguing has compliissue while *g a rough draft (a sure sign that the skills of reason and inquiry developed through cated your ui"*r)lW" bJheve that the who you are' If our culthe writing of arguments can help you get a clearer sense of can help you take a stand, to say' "These ture sets you adilft in pluralism, argumnt posttion to take on things I believe." tn this text we will not pretend to tell you what you will often need to take a stand' to any given lrsrr". Brrt as a responsible being' choice A is better than choice B' not d""fin"e yorrrrelf, to say, "Here are the reasons that helps you base your commitments and actions just foime but for yu also." If this text tn reasonable grounds, then it will have been successful'

ih. pro."ri

i*Se;

t*flTTp

Hl H

For additional

writing reading; and research resources, g0 t0

www.mycomplab.com

&rgm.mwffi.. ffi$ ffimqmry

R**d*#Rg.

m*,#,,,W

*$xxg'

elicited the concern of many cultural critics, journalists, rhetoricians, scholars, and citizens. Journalist Matt Miller recentry posed the questions, ,,Is it possible in America today to convince anyone of anything he doesn,t already believe?...lAlre there enough places where this mingling of minds occurs to sustain a democracy?"* How can arg'ument's role as a communitz's search for the best answers to disputed questions be emphasized? How can arguers participate in a 'mingling of minds" and use argument productively to seek answers to problems? we believe that the best way to reinvigorate argument is to approach the reading and writing of arguments as an exploratory process. ro do so means to position ourselves as inquirers as wel as persuaders, engaging thoughtfully with alternative points of view, truly listening to other p"rrp"uu""r, "*u-i"l"g. our own values a-nd assumptions, and perhaps even changing our views. Rhetorician wayne Booth proposes that when we enter an argumentative conversation we should first ask, "w4ren should I change my mi"nd?,' rather than, "How can I change your mind?',f In this chapter, we present some practical strategies for reading and exploring arquments in an open-minded and sophisticated-way. you wiil jearn to play what rhetorician Peter Elbow calls the believing ana doubting game, in which a tlnrq systematically stretches her thinking by ,'iling n".stito believe positions that she finds threatening and to doubi positions that she instincdvely

environment is rich with these conversations-think of the oral, visual, print, and hypertext arguments that surround us-argument in the early twenty-first century is often degraded into tark-show shouting matches or antagonistic sound bites and "talking points." This reductive trend has

In the previous chapter we explained that argument is both a process and a product, both inquiry and persuasion. In this chapter, we focus on inquiry as the entry point into argumentative conversations. Although our social

Jrme twayne Booth raised these questions in a featurecl session $ith peter Elbow titled *Blind skepticism vs. the Rhetoric of Assent: Implications for Rhetonc. -\rgu'ent, and reaching,, presented at the CCCC annual convention, Chicago, illi.rois. ]larch 2002.

*Matt Miller, "Is Persuasion Dead?', New york Times,l

2005. A29.

24

CHAPTER

Argument as Inquiry

25

accepts.* The thinker's goal is to live rvith questions, to acknowledge uncertainty and complexity, and to resist settling for srmple or quick answers. In this chapter, we propose the following main exploratory shategies:

Placing a text in its rhetorical context Reading to believe an argument's claims :q Reading to doubt an argument's claims * Thinking dialectically

t*

Although we present ihese strategies separately here, as you become familiar with them you will use them automatically and often implement several at once. In this chapter, we show how one student, Michael Banks, jumped into the puzzltng, complex problem of illegal immigration and used these strategies to guide his thoughtful exploration of various ewpoints and texts.

Finding Issues to Explore

The mechanisms by which you enter a controversy will vary, but most likely they will include reflecting on your experiences or reading. Typically, the process goes like this: Through reading or talking with friends, you encounter a contested issue on which you e undecided or a viewpoint with which you disagree. Your curiosity, confusion, or concern then prompts you to learn more about the issue and to determine your own stance. In this section we examine some strategies you can use to find issues

worth exploring.

Do Some Initial Brainstorming

As a first step, make an inventory of issues that interest you. Many of the ideas you develop may become subject matter for argnments that you will write later in this course. The chart on page 26 will help you generate a productive list. Once you've made a list, add to it as new ideas strike you and return to it each
time you are given a new argumentative assignment.

Be 0pen to the Issues All around You

We are surounded by argumentative issues. You'll start noticing them everywhere once you get athrned to them. You will be inted into argumentative conversations by
posters, bumper stickers, blog sites, newspaper editorial pages, magazine articles, the sports section, moe reews, song lyncs. and so forth. \44ren you read or listen, watch for "hot spots"-passages or moments that evoke strong agreement, disagreement, or confusion. As an illustration of how arguments are all around us, try the following exercise on the issue of illegal immigrahon.
*Peter Elbow, Writing without Teachers (New York: Orford Lmlersrtr. Press, 1973), 147-90.

26

PART

Overuiew of Argument

Brainstorming Issues to ExPlore

\4hat You Can Do

!
How It Works
Because a.rguments arise out of disagreements within communities, you can often think of issues for argument

Make an inventory of the communities to which you belong. Consider classroom communities: clubs and
organiladons; residence hall, aparlrnent, neighborhood' or-family communities; church/synagogue or work communities; communities related to your hobbies or avocations; your city, state, region, nation, and world
communities.

by beginning with a list of the communities to which

you belong.

Identify controversies within those communities'

Think both big and small:

To stimulate thinking, use prompts such as these:

s #

#
R

Big issue in world community: \A4rat is the best way to prevent destruction of rain
forests?

People in this communi[i frequently disagree about Within my work communitY, Person X
.

Small issue

in

residence hail

community:

Should quiet hours be enforced?

-', s In a recent
m

believes me because

- however, this view troubles

residence hall meeting, I didn't know where I stood on could be improved if fne situation at

Narrow your list to a handful of problematic issues for whicl you don't have a position; share it with classmates. Identily a few issues at you would like to explore more deeply. \Vtren you share with classmates'
add their issues to Yours. Sharing your list with classmates stimulates more thinking and encourages conversations. The more you explore your views with others, the more ideas you will develop Good writing grows out of good talking.

Brainstorm a network of related issues' Any given

issue is always embedded

in a network of other issues'

To see how open-ended and fluid an argumentative conversation can be, try connecting one of your issues to a network of other issues including subissues and side issues.

Brainstorm questions that compel you to look at an issue in a varie[u of ways' For example, if you explored the controversy over whether toys with phthalates should be banned (see Chapter 1), you might generate questions
such as these about related issues:

ff
is

How dangerous are Phthalates?

Is the testing that has been done on rats adequate or accurate for detemining the effects on humans? Is the European "precautionary principle" a good principle for the United States to
fo11ow?

# .

To what extent are controversies over phthalates similar to controversies over steroids, geneticaliv modified foods, nitrites in cured meat. or

nlercun in dental fillings?

CHAPTER

Argument as lnqulry

27

ffi

Suppose, in your casual reading, you encounter some photos and political cartoons o11th" U.S. pioblems with illegai rmmigration (see Figures 2.I-2.4). Working individually or in smatt groups, generate exploratory responses to these questions: 1. What claim is each cartoon or photo making? 2. \\4rat background inforrnation about the problems of illegal immigration do these cartoons and Photos assume?

FOR CTASS DTSCUSSION Responding to Visual Arguments about lmmigration

3. What network of issues do these visual texts suggest? 4. \\4rat puzzlngquestions do these visual texts raise for you?

-tr
I

FIGURE 2.1

Protest Photo

FIGURE 2.2

Protest photo

PART

Overview of Argument

E^Y

Fruit

vft

No DifcHEs

r,F-r To

fo?ieK,

to Disl{ls

s,lDtul

rEfl

ri6r

wA6rt,,

oy'

GRi$60 AR Doi[6

ArLlhEM -fl{E

*-

ilARD, DiRfY lohg -llig,tsWE8,/,,,

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-rfF =cr5 (b.X

9-2

ry

FIGURE 2.3 Political cartoon 0n immigmtion and labor

ANTI. TIV1MIGRATION NATION :

HOIEI.S FUND ROBOTS T

RFPLACE MIGRANT HOUSFKESPERS

FIGURE 2.4 Political canoon 0n immigrant labor

-sf,l

tr

CHAPTER

Argument as lnquiry

29

Explore ldeas bY Freewriting

rrA4ren you free-wnte' you put finwnlnS process' Freewriting isusefirl at any sage of the. to ten minutes and wnte rpidly nonstop,usually five gers to keyboard fo, p""'to fiper) correctness' Your goal is to structure"gt*"**' at a stretch, without worrying about to edit your work. If you can't think aJpo"ssible without generate as many iaeus ?ioping ou"t until new ideas emerge' Here "l'm stuck" over d of any,thing to say, wnte ;"'1".'t or

:i

ishowMichaelBalrksdidafreewriteinresponsetothecartooninFigure2.3.

Michael's Freewrite
Atfustwhenllookedatthiscartoonldidn,tquitesgew.rr.atltmeant.I.lnderstoodthewall the wall' oK Now connect tile $20 minimum wage to keeping immigrants ilil;t raised the minimumwage to $2olhour' I see. The *g"*""iir'rhu, lflarr. u.,it.d States thenAmericanswou]dbewilngtodothejobthatMexicansnowdomuchcheaper'But
thatseemstoreallysidesteptheentireissuesuroundingimmrgrarrtJabor-sure,there,dbe and getting harder if they *"t! ."-ittg $20 an hour
benefits, but it isn't

* if t.'* than hire * i**gr}i**r..r,

lot more

n-".*,

*:Ulig-to

moti"""r to work for subshnard wages who's still ing someone to work, it's finding someon_e g*-*- Relax relax relax relax' I',m really puzzled vated to work hard and for long hours. lot growing yP i" S:"t|"* California that a by the immigratlon question' I Jan remember serwice group that took I i'* i" hlgh school or rhe low puy *orrlili';;;; ;;MF;*r take for work in front of i Ho-e Depot. They would ,".;;;;i;g free lunches t" like really nice people' \Vhy won't our any kind of job at re;il;il* puy' La.tf'"y,seemed jobs? Relax ur the United States iake these low pay homeless p.opr" o, ,riJrrriroiJ p"opr. it would be best to force imwith rhe cartoon that relax. I don,t rerny ;;;;;tr,.i r "g.". for legal U* I'm Tarrly certain that raising the minimum wage price of e migrants out of """""y, way to go about i'b"tu"" thJ would drive up the workers to $20.00 isn't the
"for goodssomuchnobodycoutaffor'tobuyanythingand.theeconomywouldcometoa m.tchle.t than the proposal in the cartoon' work, hard, Immigrants *.;ld;;

who'd rather pay that are a bulch of contactors out ttrere problem isn't f,ndthe table, for much cheaper.-The

*o.t

halt. They benefit by

".ki;;;;." -o.r"y efit by lower pr"";:;;;;;"

border or tn"

that are all about walling off the entire southern organizations lif<e ttle eo.", n".t." iroect like a really ineffective way to enforce the border'

benthanthey could make in Mexico and Americans of tne al raises concerns of mine-I',m aware oi

I wonder

"orrlt whose "crazy

y,

bJ i r""*,

fantasy" this cartoon really depicts'

Explore ldeas bY Idea MaPPing

Anothergoodtechniqueforexploringideasisideamapping'\Arhelyoumakeanidea (a broad topic' page and write to-" ttigg"t idea map, draw a circle in ihe centei of th of the circle. Then record your L.the center a question, o, *"rn',lr"ri, ,iu,.-."r) as you extending from the center. circle. As long

rrl

ideas on branches that But th";; k""p recording v"our ideas on the branch. backwhenforth pursue one train and "f your thoughts jump a ne* bran..brun line of thinking glves thoughts; you can see That's a major advantage of "picturing" your between branches. strings of unrelated ideas. desig.n rather than as

*; ;;;ches ;;r:;il

them as part of

"-.grrrg

PART

Overview of Argument

Have no rights
Exploits workers \ CheaD Medical care? Schools? Benefts \ | ' Do imPortant work I from legal citizens l"'' L---/ economy jobs ruot eltncal T, jobs away i1 Takes ical Takes \ I / /-,, \\ Il/-,. "".dirty" im Argumentsljainst hiring Bringing,tunches Arguments for hiring illegals / Bringng lunches to immigrants
I

Hard workers

Depresses wages

\\

authorities werc / /.7 They were afraid of autl My memories--=- Told bad stories about bosses Friendly \\ '
Practiced my Spanish

//

euitdtence
rair

emorover | \

Possible solutions

Do somethingtemporary? I \ \=.\\Donothing

Deport them

Give them ctizenshiP

FIGURE 2.5 Michael's idea map

Idea maps usually generate more ideas, though less well-developed ones, than freewrites. Figure 2.5 shows an idea map that student Michael Banks created on the issue of illegal immigration after class discussion of the photographs and caltoons in
Fignres 2.1-2.4.

Explore ldeas by Playing the Believing and Doubting Game

The believing and doubting game, a term coined by rhetorician Peter Elbow, is an excellent way to imagine ews different from your own and to anticipate responses to those ews.
,*r As a believer, your role is to be wholly sympathetic to an idea. You must listen carefully to the idea and suspend all disbelief. You must identiff all the ways in which tire idea may appeal to differeni audiences and all the reasons for believing the idea. The believing gtme can be difficult, even frightening, if you are asked to believe an idea that strikes you as false or threatening' ffi As a doubter, your role is to be judgmental and critical, finding fault with an idea. The doubting game is the opposite of the believing game. You do your best to find counterexamples and inconsistencies that undernine the idea you are

examining Again, want to believe.

it is can be threatening to

doubt ideas that you instinctively

\4/hen you play the believing and doubting game with an assertion, simply r'r'rite t, one chunk arguing for the assettion (the believing game) and two different "tt,tnt it (the doubting game). Freewrite both chunks, Ietting your ideas one chunk opposing flow without-."tttotittg. Or, altematively, make an idea map wrth belieng and doubting branches. Here is how student writer Michael Banks played the believing and aJrbting game with an assertion about stopping illegal rmmigration. "Employers of illegal immigrants should be jailed."

CHAPTER

Argument as lnquiry

Michael's Believing and Doubting Game

jail employgrs whoire Believe: If we really want to stop illegal immigration, then we should can make' so if the draws iltegal immigrants to this counfly is the money they illegals. \4rat then illegal immigration wortld govemmenr eliminatedlhese jos by jaiiinglhe employers of iilegal rmmigrants benefit by not having to pay stop. This would be just b."u.,i. "-ployers pay more they ot..t ao this hiring urder the table so that they don't a fair wage * *nufr and not providing ja,l By avoiding ta'res tares. They *" u..urd"g laws ar.d deserve to go to and it is not fair to law abidmedical insurance etc., tey cost every American taxpayer more,
Their acons can cause held accountab t. rn.y also lower the wages of American workers. who already troubled by an infiux of immigration. Like anybody else rifu in communities be jailed. If employers faced ..rrploy.r, of illgal rmmrgrltion- should suppofis U.g"f "ltl"ity, be much less of a market charges fo. liring ilegal i;rxgants, it sems [kely that there would I could see this being a more effective way to combat for the seruice, f u|--ig.*t workers. all' illegal immigration than building fences or kying to deporl them people from Doubt:'ailing employers oT negat immigration probably would stop some it would be a reliable long-terrn solution' hiring undolme"nted'immigrants, but I doubt likely be hard to Espelialy for people wtro o"nly hire a few immigrants at a time, it would I'm not connced there is anything necessarily wrong with the prsecut the. Iiesides, cannot enforce employer's actions in hiring undocumented immigrants. If the government forced to do so for them' Many busiits own immigration laws,lmployers shouldn't be in agnculture, bsolutety depend on good workers who will work long r"rr"r, "rp..iily to p"ick fruit and vegetatles. Employers can't possibly be expected to do hours in hot fiels weren't availbackground checks on every employ.". Mo..o,r"r, if undocumented workers to jail would mean to cause horable, the fr.uit wouldn't get picked. io send the employers The rible disruption to much o1 our food supply. We are lucky, to have these workers long history ofpeople capitalizing on good business opportunities when United States has a It does not make the opporlunity presenis itsett, antnt's just what illegal immigrants are. motivated labor. sense io jail p.opt. for taking advantage of cheap and
have nobody to be irg citlrerr. Emftoy"* at often expioit immigrant laborers, because they

he sees Although Michael sees the injustice of paying workers substandard wages, on this Cheap labor. Playing the believing and doubl that much of our economy depends complex terrns' ing game has helped him articulate his dilemma and see the issue in more

;+

Individual task: Choose one or more of the following controversial claims and play the believing and doubting game with it, through either freewriting or idea mapping. Group task] Working in p-airs, in small groups, or as a whole class, share your results with classmates.
1. A student should report a fellow student who is cheating on an exam or plagiarizing an essay.

Game FOR CIASS DISCUSSION Playirag he Eelieving and Doubting

2. Women
3.

assigned to combat dufi equaLly wth men' Athletes should be allowed to take steroLds and human growth hormone under a

should

be

doctor's superwision.

4. Illegal immigrants already living in the United States should be granted amnesty
and placed n a fast track to U.S.

citizensllp.

+g

PART

Overview of Argument

Placing Texts in a Rheto"ical Confext

In the preous section, we suggested strateges for findrng issues and entering argumentative conversations. Once you join a conversation, you will typically read a number of different arguments addressing your selected issue. The texts you read may be supplied for you in a textbook, anthology, or course pack, or you may find them yourself through library or Intemet research. In this section and the ones that follow, we tum to productive strategies for reading arguments. We begin by explaining the rmportance of analyzing a text's rhetorical context as a preliminary step prior to reading. In subsequent sections, we explain powerfi.r1 strategies for reading ari argument-reading to believe, reading to doubt, and placing texts in conversation with each other through dialechc thinking. As you read arguments on a controversy, hy to place each text within its rhetorical context. It is important to know for example, whether a blog that you are reading appears on Daily Kos (a liberal blog site) or on Little Green Footballs (a conservative blog site). In researching an issue, you may find that one arlicle is a formal policy proposal archived on the Web site of an economics research institute, whereas another is an op-ed piece by a nationally syndicated columnist or a letter to the editor written by someone living in your community. To help you reconstruct a reading's rhetorical context, you need to understand the genres of argument as well as the cultural and professional contexts that cause people to write arguments. We'll begin with the genres of argument.

Genres of Argument
To situate an argument rhetorically, you should know something about its gerre. A genre is a recuring type or pattem of argument such as a letter to the editor, a political cartoon, or the home page of an advocacy Web site. Genres are often categorized by recurring fea-

tures, formats, and style. The genre of any given argument helps determine its length, tone, sentence complexity, level of informality or formality, use of suals, kinds of edence, depth ofresearch, and the presence or absence ofdocumentation. \44ren you read arguments reprinted in a textbook such as this one, you lose clues about the argument's original genre. (You should therefore note the information about genre proded in our introductions to readings.) Likewise, you can lose clues about genre when you dowrdoad articles iom the lntemet or from licensed databases such as LexisNexis or ProQuest. (See Chapter 16 for explanations of these research tools.) \\4een you do your own research, you therefore need to be aware of the original genre of the text you are reading: was this piece originally a newspaper editorial, a blog, an organizational white pape a scholarly article, a student paper posted to a Web site, or something else? In the chart on pages 33-35, we identifii most of the genres of argument through which readers and writers carry on the conversations of a democracy.

Cultural Contexts: Who llbites Arguments and Wrtry?

A democratic society depends on the lively exchange of ideas-people with different points of ew creating arguments for their positions. \ou' that you know something about the genre of arguments, we ask you to consider rrho urites arguments and why.

CHAPTER

Argument as Inqulry

33

Genres of Argument
Genre

Explanation and ExamPles

Stylistic Features

Personal correspondence

iJ

Letters or e-mail messages

Oten sent to specific decision makers (comPlaint letter' request for an
action)

iil

Style can range lrom a formal business letter to an informai note Very shol1 (fewer than three hundred words) and time
sensive

Letters to the editor

:a, Published in newsPaPers and

I ; s

illr Prode

some magazine a for-um for citizens to volce

views on Public issues

Can be summaries of longer arguments. but often locus in

"sound bite" stYle on one Point

NewspaPer editorials and op-ed Pieces

n:

Published on the editorial or op-ed

("opPosite-editorial") Pages

Usually short (500-1,000

words)

s
ti

Editorials Promote views of the newspaper owners/editors Op-ed pieces, usually written by professional columnists or guest writers. range in bias lrom

. tl rr

ultraconservative to sociaiist (see Page 362 in ChaPter 16) r.l Often written in response to political news events or social problems in the

Vary lrom exPlicit thesisdriven arguments to imPlicit arguments with sfflistic flair Have a journalistic stYle (shofi ParagraPhs) without detailed evidence Sources usuallY not
documented

Articles in Public affairs or niche

magazines

:.* Usually written by staff writers or

'

freelancers

Often have a jourrralisttc style with inforrnal documentation

Frequendy include narrative elements rather than exPcit thesis-and-reasons organization Often provide well-reseached coverage of various PersPectives on a public issue

Appear in public alfairs magazines tn.tt ut National Reuiew or The jn niche magazines Progressiue or for special-interest groups such as Rolling Stone (PoPular culture)' Minoritg Business EntrePrenanr (business), or The Aduocafe (gay and

ii

i*

r1, Often reflect the political point of view of the magazine

lesbian issues)

Articles in scholarlY

journals

Peer-reviewed articles published by nonprofit academic journals subsidized by universilies or schoiarly

societies

;{ * *

Usually emPloY a fomal

academic stYle Include academic documentadon and bibliograPhies NIay reflect the biases'

Characterized b' scmpulous attenin rion to complelPns:q nd accuracy treatment of data

methods,

associated with a sPecific school of thought or theory

and

strategies

within a disciPline'
lContinued)

PART

Overview of Argument

Genre Legal trriefs and court decisions

Explanation and Examples

Stylistic Features

tr

Written by attorneys or judges

"Friend-of-the-court,' briefs are often published by stakeholders to influence appeals courts Couft decisions explain the reasoning ol justices on civic cases (and often include

itr

[5l]y written in legalese, but use a logical reasonsand-evidence structure Friend-of-the-cour1 briefs are sometimes aimed at

il

popular audiences

minorify opinions)

Orgazational white
papers

!:: {-h6ss documenls or powerpoint presentations aimed at influencing organizational policy or decisions or to give informed advice to clients
Sometimes

s q

tritten for

extemal audi_

ences to influence pubtic opinion

favorable to the organization

.f.i Extemal white papers are often posted

on Web sites or sent to legislators

Usually desktop or Web published Often include graphics and other visuals VaV in style from the dully bureaucraric (sarirized in Dilbert cartoons) to the
cogent and persuasive

Blogs and postings to chat rooms and electronic bulletin boards

Web-publishedcommentaries, usually on specific topics and often intended to influence public opinion ir1 Blogs (web logs) are gaining

l*

tri

Often blend sffles of journalism, personal narative, and formal argument Often dilficult to determine identity and credentials of

.t:
Public affairs
advocacy

influence as a.ltemative commen_ taries to the established media Reflect a wide range of perspectives
Published as posters, fliers, Web pages, or paid adveisements

blogger

Often provide hyperlinks to related sites on the Web

ii

:11 Use succinct "sound bite,'

advertisements

:. Condensed verbal/r,,isual arguments aimed at infl uencing public opinion # Often have explicit bias and ignore alternative views

style Employ document design, bulleted lists, and visual elements (graphics, photographs, or drawings)

fbr rhetorical effect

Advocacy Wet sites

e li

Usually identified by the extension ".org" in the Web site address Often created by well-financed advocacy groups such as the NRA (National Rifle Association) or

ttl

Often contain many layers

PETA (People for the Ethical Tieahnent of Animals) l'.i Reflect the bias of the site onner i* For further discussion of reading and evaluating Web sites, see Chapter 16, pages 363-367

with hlperlinks to other sites Use r.isuals and verbal text to create an immediate visceral
response favorable to the site owner's views Ethically responsible sites announce their bias ad

,,

pliryose in an 'About Us,,

or "\,Iission Statement', link on the home page

CHAPTER

Argumeni as Inquiry

35

Explanation and ExamPles Visual arguments gs Political ca:1oons, usually drawn by

Stylistic Features

ffi

syndicated cartoonists Other visual arguments (photographs' drawings, graPhics, ads), usuallY
accompanied bY verbal text

Make stong emotional appeals, often reducing complex issues to one Powelfirl perspective (see Chapter 9).

Speeches and

ffi

PowerPoint presentations

Political speeches, keynote speeches at professional meetings, informal speeches at hearings, intetwiews, business Presentations Often made available via transcription in newsPaPers or on Web sites

Usually organized clearlY with highlighted claim, supporting reasons, and

transitions

Accompanying PowerPoint
slides designed to highlight struchrre, disPlaY evidence in graphics, mark keY Points,

In business or government setLings, often accomPanied bY PowerPoint

slides

and

sometimes Provide

humor Documentary films

Forme nonfiction reporting, documentary films now range widelY from efforts to document realitY
objectively to efforts to Persuade viewerc to adoPt the f,lmmaker's perspective or take action Usually cost less to Produce than commercial fllms and lack sPecial effects

Oten use extended visual arguments, combined with interwiews and voice-overs, to influence as well as
infor"rn viewers

The filmmaker's angle of

sion may dominate. or his or her perspective and values may be more subtle.

ffi

ffi

Cover topics such as art, science, and economic, political, and miiitary
crises

any given writer In reconstructing the rhetorical context of an argument, consider fow to .lTg. the views of a i, spu*"d to wrrjte by a motivating occasion and by the desire return to our example of illegal immigration' furti",rtur audience. In this sectioir, we'lI trr" rouo*ing list identifies the wide range of wdters, cartoonists, filmmakers, and others who are otivated to enter the conversation about immigration.

Who Writes Arguments about lmmigration and Why? w Lobbgists and ad,uocqq groups. Lobbyists and advocacy groups commit themselves at to a cause, often wit [*rion, and produce avidly parlisan arguments aimed agencies, arrd other decision makers. persuading VoteIS, legislators, goYgmment ^ffr"y in newspapers ott"-n maintain;dvocac)r Web sites, buy advertising space

the immigrant adand magazines, and lobby legislators face to face. For example, "gto"p Federation for rights' whe19* La Raza "fJ"t immrgrant vocacy (FglR) fights to end illeg'al immigration and rallies Amec lmmigration Reform people to pressure businesses not to hfue undocumented workers'

t"

PART

Overview of Argument

regLegislators, political candidates, and gouernment officiak. \\henever new laws, policies are proposed, staffers do research and write white ulations, or government papers recomending positions ott att itt.t". Often these are available on the Web'

b" tn" perplexing p.ft"-

of illegal immigration, numerous staff researchers for

legislators, politiJJ candidates, and government officials have produced white pJp.r, on tire practicality of extending a wall along the U.S.- Mgxican border, of il"Ln"g up border patrol to increase national security, and of offering temporary
guest worker visas to immigrant laborers. "Business professionals, labor union leaders, and bankers. Business spokespeople often try to infiuence public opinion in ways that support corporate or business interests,

labor union offrcials support wage structures favorable to union members' Typically businesspeople produce "corporate image" adverlisements, send white pup"rc io legislators, oi.tit" op-ed pieces that frame issues from a business perspectiul, *n"." labor unions ptdu"e arguments favorable to workers. Professionals that could profit from undocumented labor (fruit growers, winema]<9rs, landscapers, construction companies, and so forth) or could be harmed by it (labor unions) are active participants in the public controversy.

*ir"r"".

oniudg"t.Immigration issues are f?equently entangledin legal matters. Lau.{rers wriie briefs supporting their clients' cases. Sometimes lawyers or legal not directly conncted to a case, particularly law professors, file "friend-of"*p"rb briefs aimed at influencing the decision of judges. Finally, judges write th-court" court opinions explaining their decisions on a case. As more illegal immigrants ale deported and oters diJ trying to ffoss the border, more legal professionals are
Lawgers

owiting about these

cases.

Med,iicommentators. Whenever immigration issues are in the news, media commentators (journalists, editorial writers, syndicated columnists, bloggers, political cartoonists) write articles and blogs or op-ed pieces on e issue or produce editorial cartoons, f,ltering their argrments through the perspective of their own political views. For example, conservative commentator Lou Dobbs is known for his strong stand on keeping illegal immigrants out of the country' ol ttoff writers. some of the most thoughtful analyses of pubProfesionat

fre"ton" lic issues are composed by freelance or staff writers for public forum magazines

such as Atlantic Monthtg, The lVation, Ms., The National Reuiew, The l{ew Yorker, and many others. Arguments about immigration policy reform and immigrants' integration into American society surface whenever the the topic seems timely to
magazine editors. Thlnk nnks. Because today many political, economic, and social issues are very complex, policy makers and commentators often rely on research institutions or think tanks to supply statistical studies and in-depth investigation of problems' These think tanks range aoss the political spech-um, from conservative (the Hoover Institute, the Heritage Foundation) or liberlarian (the Cato Institute) to the centrist or liberal (the Brookings Institution, the Pel' Foturdation, the Economic Policy Institute). They usually maintain many-layered \\'eb sites-that include backgtorltra on research writers, recent publications. and archives of past publications, Including policy statements and white papers. Recenth- the conseruative Center for

CHAPTER

Argument as lnquiry

47

t.

r
3

ImmigrationStudiespublishedarliclesolthecostoflegalandillegalimmigration progress, a liheral think tank, outlined the to Americans; the ceniter for American system' i*p""*, features for a reform of the U'S' immigrationrole. through their scholarly l play a fublic w scholars and acad.emls C;f;g" professors to.public debates' Scholarly research, contrfffi Juo,-ttiti"t, a"a'uttAyies argument rn its systematic attempt to research diff"r, .rruriLtially from advocacy n the full examination of relevant arrive at the best *;;;r io qu"stions bed paerns of immigrant particrpa{o.1 .in data. Much scholarshif investigates the
to raise th.

n L
!.

crime and immigration, possibilities American political m"h" relatinship between and serwices if the United States were of worker solidanty, d the cost of products ,"urt*tiary. scholarly research is usually published in

t
s.

joum rather than popular magazines' popularity of film w Independ,ent and, ,o*nilot plmmakers.'Tstying t thegrowing filmmakers often reflect on and its power r" i"*i;;Jpf" T issues, documntary often embed argrments within their issues of the auy, * .oio*"r"iul filmmakers
refereed academic

,o-i-r-;;"

dramatic rtoryt"ilirrg. as well. tu*y ,"""rr:i

$.

F
ts

" o".rir""t*v and dramatic films present the experience-" of immigrarrtsandundocumentedworkersandtheirstruggletofitintoAmerican For instance' e documentary film society *tlt" pr"r"-i,tf ine{ gltura] roots'
New a]la

it

perspectives gtouul film industry is adding international

immigrant day laborFarmingaille,showno"?gs, follows the antagonism_lmong the wn of Farmingville on Long island, ers, homeown"rr, *J oih"r residents of york, town debating the practicality of establishing a hiring

a"fi"tr

the

tr

rl
D,
-

site to remove day laborers from the streets' social policy through letters' conCizens and students.Engug"a citizens influence "w! ,it"r, guest editorials for newspapers, blogs, and tributions to advocacy fo*-r. students also write for university communities' present

,p"""rr", in public and influence public.opinion their work ut.r.ra"rgtu"ate research conferences, makers. For example, shrdents involved by writing to politicileaders and decision laborers might write to in a service r"u*i"g project tutoring children of immigrant rp*" their knowlJdge bf immigrants' educational needs'

Analyzing Rhetorical Context and Genre

Thebackgroundwehavejustprodedaboutthewritersandgenresofargumentwill \\4:ren you encounter any arguhelp you litout" *go-"nt, in iheir rhetorical context. or retrieved through your owrl library mentative text, whether t"pf"t"a in a textbook questions to analyze its rhetorical context: and Web research, ,rr" ,lrJ-totlowing guide and Genre Questions about Rhetorical Context

of that genre help determine js 1. \A4rat genre of argument this? How do the conventions ^ of the argument? . . ut" "[tn, complJ"ity, and even appearance and what is his or her invesnent 2. \Vho is the author? Vl/hat are t]'t" ttlot't credentials in the issue? 3. \\4rat audience is he or she writing for?

38

PART

Overview of Argument

4. \\4rat motivating occasion prompted the writing? The motivating occasion could be a current event, a crisis, pending legislation, a recently published altemative view, or another ongoing Problem. 5. \\4:rat is the author's purpose? The purpose could range fiom strong advocacy to inquiring huth seekerianalogous to the continuum from persuasion to huth seeking discussed in Chapter 1, pages 13-15). 6. \\4rat information about ine publication or source (magazrne, newspaper, advocacy web site) helps explain the writer's perspective or the structule and style 7. \44rat is the writels angle of sion? By angle of sion, we mean the filter, lens' or
of the argument?
ur selective seeing through which the uriter is approaching the issue. \A,4rat is left out this argument? \\4rat does this author not see? (chapter 5, pages 94-96, drscusses how aigle of vision operates in the selection and ffaming of edence.)

*"
ilffi

This rhetorical knowledge becomes importarrt in helping you select a diversity of voices and genres of argument when you are exploring an issue' Note how Michael Banks makes Jf nir u**"r"r, of rhetorical context in his exploratory paper on pages 52-57.
FOR CTASS DISCUSSION Placing Readirgs in Ygeir R.Eaei*rieaE

{*ntext

Find two recent arguments on the illegal immigration issue.* Your arguments should (1) represent differnt genres and (2) represent different kinds of alguers (syndicated ,r"*riup". columnists,"bloggers, fieelanie magazine writers, scholars' and so fofih)' You can find your arguments in any of these places:

r r r

In magazines: news commentary/public affairs magazines or niche magazines On th Web: on Web sites for think tanks, advocacy organizations, or blogs In newspaPers: local, regional, or national

For each argqment, answel the "Questions about Rhetorical Context and Genre" on pages 37-38. Then share your findings with classmates'

ffis

Reading to Believe an Argument's Claims

beOnce you have established the rhetorical context of an argument, you are ready to you read arguments in the spirit of the believing and gn relding. We suggest that

oubting

empathil listening. Empathic listening requires that you see the world through"the author'i eyes, temporarily adopt the author's beliefs and values, and sus"your skepticism and biases long enough to hear lvhat the author is saying. pend To illustrate what we mean by reading to believe, rve ruill continue with our example of illegal immigration. As you may have discovered through prior experience, reading, and Jxamining the cartoons and photos at the begrrmlg of this chapter, this issue Carl Ro[eis
caJls

gu*", uegtroing with "believing," in which you practice what psychologist

+For help on how to

find articles through Web or licensed databa-'e se:'ches. see Chapter 16'

CHAPTER

Argument as lnqulry

39

includesmanyrelatedissues:\\hydoryil'9:'offoreigners-risktheirlivestocomeilthe number of illegal H"'"'can the U"ill't#t reduce the lesallv to the United si"*'i the people- gunently living in
irn:mis.rants? rnry,ut

stote, o uout represented by U'S' ^Jrti"i", the workforce UnitJd States illegally? Does the "totolu ""ed'e-""rty?" by Roman catholic foilowing these undocumented *"rk;;rtThe in the March 10' j_ohn. F ?"t*"rgh. appeared #ilildtt priest and protessor "the onlv national ,l-'", "*,?u"s'iLell as )ooa, issue of n*rrro.;i;Jidtl."1i1l article careful$ in ilr"'unir"d st"t*" tl""se read this catholic weekly *"gulirrl'r; that follow' pt"p"t",l"" for"the ercises and examples

,to,riJ;h"

il;

AmnestY?
Let Us Be Vigilant and Churitable
JOHNF'KAVANAUGH

illegally-brought Let's call her Marla' She was States at the age-of 2' Now,27' irr,o-,ft. United and has three rfr. it vital member of her parish

They cannot comand their small rural communities' prort.""iru subsidized U'S' and Canadian so many to ;;rr. it is this phenomenon that drives

l"llil

to ..".n ".hildten. Mara was recently deported 6oo in the last 15 Years' ;:;;*,'-h"',

have been kidnapped'.raped' ;;;*;;.n she. was i.;;f "., ;;'ied in the desert' Luckil again ilStates'

mur-

United able to find a way into the

the. United ;;;h.tt-h.*.i*nd fo' a livelihood inanti-humane tr" bishops put it"'its ;;;;, ^ *-if. immigration Program" . .t :,-^ o1 c U.S. Ui"'ttop', witnessing. everhing ratds tn evictions in California to employment

;;i;

.o

. *i'

her children'

if

she is discovered

^r"."r."s,

"-t#1';;ii'p'" o"tl
ll
l.*."tLff

five vears in a

u'S'

federal
has oF

,"t;';;;';."pi'lLl M" "'''d manv others is aliens'" She .Jrfl-ii *i'lliot' "t"'dotumented who have illemasses
rypit"l of the ^", entered rhis counrry' Some' no doubt' orllv

Dick Vogt' Iesuit friend and neighbor'

have stirred the io"sciences their own' taken stands in conscience of ;;;;.t and of his pastors 10 il;rslrof"f Oklahoma Ciry and punitive state law professed dtfiance of a ir". "aid' assist' or'ffansport ",iUftiV ,rt"t itrr.* i.io,t' of all who of Missouri ,"1 un..r-ented person.'' The bishops over politicians "who vie to

of their

;;L ;;;;Jin.i'i"'*
see

are

!.

I
h

for orher ?"i""J.rt.", -'ny a" inta'cetaredmos.t have .ri.*, ,n"n their immigrant smtus' But their lives .;;;;;.."t risk to th"ti' li"t'' because

'".t. "ft.ly to They *ani

t-lo
rrluar-v thar

at risk from poverty and dislla;m11t,

immigrants'" who can be tougher ott itltg'l on many famiCosnizant of tht etonmic pressures li.sl., rur^l Mexico, they call for a-more :om?asst:n ait and realistic reform of our immtgratton ",., i""ing educarion ad humanitarian xsis.tr,.* :*i'r.'"ut

make a living' frm a tamtly'

oF Mexico pointed

anct

5i.'il;ii.-ui't'opt

their families back home'

:l;:',;' il

to the bishops' There has been somt resisu-nce

:;ii?'*

regard to legal status"

out in

.,rooosals and some

.f*, t." ,*.' while benefiting

,..hnologi."lly advanced'

of immigration e "ttnt 'u'gt Free Tlade Agreement' American f the North

is a direcr

ref'orm btll'ra verY rvard last"year's immigration

lh.'ou,r"g.

"""t-tt"' directed by anti-immigrant

It

is reminiscent

of

groups tocondemned

the most.powerlul and

has threatened Poor farmers

t'ot"theless harsh measure that 'h"ty what they called amnesry' for proposing

Some of the resentment is understandable' There are householders, especially on the border, who have had their land and yards trashed. Residents of some

towns feel flooded with immigrants they cannot engage or manage. A few businesspersons who have i.ftr.d to hire undocumented or cheaper labor have lost sales and customers. But this does not explain the seething hostiliry that can be read in some nativist opinion columns

and popular books or heard on radio talk shows: "They are criminals, felons; and that's that." "They have broken the law." This is an interesting standard ofethics, justice or charity for a nation
tht

immigrants, and their homeland. So let us indeed pro,.., our borders (even though that will not solve the problem of those who enter legally and overstay theii visa). Let us also honestly face the multiple cause of illegal immigration. As an excellent position paper from the Center for Concern notes, illegal immigration involves many factors: trade negotiation, thJ governments involved, the immigrants who break the law by entering our country' employers who take advantage of them, corporate leaders who profit from them, and consumers who benefit from
lower food and service costs. \7e must devise ways to offer legal status to anyone who contributes to our common good,

puzzlng that we do not think of the Good Sa-"rin or of the "least of our brothers and sisters" in Matthew 25, or of the passage from Leviticus that the Missouri bishops quote: "The stranger who sojourns with you shall be to you as the native among you, and you shall love him as
yourself."

sees

itself

as

Judeo-Christian and humane' It is

As for making the law our boftom line, do

Christians know how many times Jesus was in trouble with the law? Do they know that the natural law tradition, aticulated in the work of Thomas Aquinas, holds an unjust law to be no law at all? Do they forget that ou nation was founded upon an aPp. ,o high.. law than positive law an appeal " ihared by the labor movement, by Martin Luther King Jr., and by Elizabeth Cady Santon and Susan
B. Anthony?

whether as a future citizen or a temPorary guest worker. If that means using the dirry word "amnesty," so be it. As to those who sojourn in our midst, let us be vigilant ifthey are threats and charitable ifthey are friends. It would be a good' if unusual, move if our legislators had the imagination to call fot citizen pels before which an illegal immigrant could relenienc and a path to citizenship q.r.r. "-.t.ra her contribution to the community, bas.d on his or
taxes, family need, and crime-free record.

solid employment record, faithful payment of

Instead of fearing some abstract horde of millions, we might see the faces of people like Mara and hear their stories. Ifwe turn them away, we will have to face the fact that we are not so much a nation of Judeo-Christian values as a Punitive and self-interested people hiding under the protection of lesser, human-made laws.

10 A nation

has every right to secure its borders' Unrestrained immigration will hurt our country the

Summary Writing as a Way of Reading to Believe

One way to show that you have listened well to an article is to summarize its argument in your t*n words. A summary (also called an abstract. a prcis, or a sgnopsis) presents oniy u text's major points and eliminates supporting detat-ls. \\ters often incorporate sumaries of other writer's views into their own argumet-rts. eier to support their own views or to represent alternative ews that they mtend to oppose. (When opposing

CHAPTER

Argument as lnqulry

rd
VE

ty
,le

'Although X contends that someone else's argument, writels often follow the template ."), Summaries can be any length, delsummary of X's argumentl, I argue puryose, but usually they range from several sentences to one penai"g fn the 'rritr'smainiain your own credibility, your summary should be as neut*o"parugtaphs. To

that

t.

)n iln,

tral and fair to that piece as posslble. steps: To help yor, *tit" an efiective summaty, we recommend the following

io
rfS

10

the tions aside; just foliow the-writer's meaning, trying to:9"-lh" issue from Try to adopt the writer's values and belief system' Walk in rriter's perspective. the writer's shoes' each Step 2: Reread, the at"ticle slowly, writing brief does and says statements for

Stepl:Readtheargumentforgeneralmeaning'Don'tjudgeltPutyourobjec-

d,
:st

rd
be
LIe

ir

identifies a pargraph (or group of closely cinnected paragraphs)' A dols statement view," "introduces a supp*ultupfr'r fuirctin,-such ai "summarizes an opposing portiirg'."u.on," "gives an example," or "uses statistics to support the preous point.; A sags staiement summarizes a paragraph's content. Your challenge in transwriting sags statements is to identify the main idea in each paragraph and it at the same time' late that idea into youl. own words, most likely condensing This process -uy " easier with an academic article that uses long developed journalispuragruph, headd by clear topic sentences than it is for more informal less developed paragraphs' tic articles such as kuuutru.rfh't that use shorter, of \4rat follow s are does and sags statements for the first six paragraphs
Kavanaugh's article:

11P

ry of
Lil-

ra
-ill

Does/Soys Analysis of Kavanaugh's Article Paragraph l: Does: uses a vivid example to introdce the injustice of the current treatment of illegal immigrants. Sags; The U.S. government is separating them, productive, long-term- illegal immigrants from their families, deporting conitiottt, and threatening them with felony exposing them to dangeus
charges.

nd
on

intertaParagraph 2: Does; Puts the problem of illegal immigrants in a larger

Although sme illegal immigrants are involved in criminal activin their own ities, most have ben pushed here by poverty and loss of opporlLurity and countries and have come to the Unitd Sttes seeking a better life for themselves their fames. Paragraph 3: Does;Further explores the reasons behind the increase in immigration iates. Says: Catholic bishops have spoken out against the North American their orsn trade Free Trade Agreement and corporate interests, which have sought benefits at th expense of poor fan-ners and r-'ral communities. Paragraph 4: Does: Presents a sketch of Catholic leaders protesting the recent recent punilive crackdowns on illegal immigrants. Says. U.S. bishops are protesting for "a more compassionate, fair, laws against illegi immigrnts and advocating " and realistic reform of our immigration sr-sterll

tionicontext.

Says.

42

PART

.l

Overview of Argument

Paragraplir. 5: Does: Sketches some opposing liews. Sogs: Antr-immigatron groups and others object to humane treatment of illegal immigrants, seeing it as
akin to amnesty. Paragraph 6: Does; Recognizes the validity of some opposing ews. ,says. The problems of some groups of Americans, including homeowners living on the border and businesses hying not to hire illegally, need to be heard.

K ,,., FOR CLASS DISCUSSI0N Writing

DaestsaysStatments
,i1.,

Working indiduatly or in small groups, wnte dtes and sags statements for the remaining paragraphs of Kavanaugh's arficle.

& ts

Step 3: Examine gour does and says statements to determine the major sections of the argument. Create a list of the major points (and subpoints) that must appear in a summary in order to represent that argument accurately. If you are visually oriented, you may prefer to make a diagram, flowchart, or scratch outline of the
sections of Kavanaugh's argument.

step 4: Turn gour list, outline, flowchart, or diagram into a prose summary. Typically, writers do this in one of two ways. Some start by joining all their says statements into a lengthy paragraph-by-paragraph summary and then prune it and streamline it. They combine ideas into sentences and then revise those sentences to make them clearer and more tightly structured. Others start with a one-sentence summary of the argument's thesis and major supporting reasons and then flesh it out with more supporting ideas. Your goal is to be as neutral and objective as possible by keeping your own response to the writer's ideas out of your summary. To be fair to the writer, you also need to cover all the writer's main points and give them the same emphasis as in the original
article.
gour summary until it is the desired length and is sufficientlg clear, conto spend your words wisely, making every word count. In a summary of several hundred words, you will often need transitions to indicate structure and create a coherent flow ofideas: "Kavanaugh's second point is that...," or "Kavanaugh concludes by " However, don't waste words withmeaningless transitions such as "Kavanaugh goes on to say.... " rr4/hen you incorporate a summary into your own essay, you must distinguish that author's views fiom your own by ustng attributiue tags (expressions such as "Kavanaugh asserts" or "according to Kavanaugh). You must also put any directly bonowed wording in quotation marks. Finally, you must cite the original author using appropriate conventions for documenting sources.
Reuise

Step 5:

cise, and complete. Your goal is

W4rat follows are two summaries of Kavanaugh's arlicle-a one-paragraph version and a one-sentence version-by student writer Michael Balks. N,{ichael's oneparagraph version illustrates the MLA documentation system in rrhich page numbers for irct

CHAPTER

Argument as lnqulry

43

com{1te bibliographic ina quotalions arc placd in parenthest'.*:'I." O'*109"'and the paper. see chapter 17 lor u ftorrc cited list at the end o[ formation is placed documentation svstems' ;;;;;t;pianation of the MLA and APA

of Kavanaugh's Argument Michael's One-Paragraph Summary

Inhisarticle.Amnestv?,,fromAmericamagazineJohnF.Kavanaugh'aJesuitpriestand
proressor or

',.:..aJ

'treatment of undocumented immigrants an are not (+0). He points outthat most immigrants muhiple causes of ,[.;;;rd;n" He attributes recent mcreases family-orientd people. criminals u.rt rutrr", ni;;;*, Agreement and the poverty it causes to tr''"o'ttt ','Jtitut' ree Trade in immigratiott U'S' bishops have tnut

pnlo""i'yv

"Jii";#i'-;l:""* ru:::;:'HT"i*H :,t'h!"1:i:'i l;t;

f<"tu"utgh t"po'tt"

"compassionate' fair' of i**tgiu"it and called foi protested tne groups' residents on mentions fhe anti-immigration and realistic refbrm,, (3g). He also treatment that *tto nu""l"'lti" tn" utops and any the border, and b;in;s;'owners "higher resembles..amnesty.,'Kavanaugh,spiececulminateswithhisargumentthatanationthat .,iudeo-Christian a1$ n rnlun"; tftould foltow biblical teaching' identifies itself as Martin Luther King, Jr., in challengot t"u"., ,.."t,, as Iaw,,, and the courageous example immigration would help nobody'

among rrrrut

,,antiiJmui"liir.ut*".t

ltt"itt']"'nlt"'

I'tt:Ttty"

ing unjust f"*,

t+"01.

rriitlirg that ,rrl."rt*in.

I
,

Kavanaughexhortsthecountrytomoveconstructivelytoward..legalstatusforanyone new solution to the goo" (o u"d t"gg&: a'radically who contribut., to"""t t""'t:-"'" legal status. He concludes bv
problem: u .ittr"r'i;"i;;;;-.-.*.1""-i--u*t's is an"immoral act motivated by ;;;;tt stating that turmng away undocumented
self-interest.

I
$

Kavanaugh, John F.

,Amne

sty?,,

with Readings'John D Longman, 2010 39-40' Print'

Work Cited writing Argumtnts: A Rhetoric America ro n4*. os' B. Rpt. in 8th ed New York: Pearson Ramage' John C' Bean' and June iohnson'

l" b
is

of Kavanaugh's Argument Michael's One-Sentence summary

F
P

of philosophy Joh" In his article tn America,Jesuit professor the Uniied States' argung of ,rndocumnted immigrants in t morality of U". positively to their community "t-.nf anyone *n" "rrrr..ri that in a Judeo-christian nation """*u".s
strout

| 1*TTel:"*ti:i:-t:

afforded some level of legal status'

PracticingBelieving:WillingYourownBeliefintheWritefsViews

listened of an argum"lt +oY: that you have Although writing an accurate summary mean that you summary **g by itself .do-esn't to it effectively and understood it' in the next section writer's *ord"*' efre we tum the have actively t i"a to belieng it' Rhetorician ""t"r to ,t'"rs ine importance of to doubng an argument, we want we.should trv to "dwell with" peter Elbow reminds us that before *. .#;;";text, "earn" our right ,dwell in,, the writer,s ideas-play th" ;;"-g gu-"-in order t and

44

PART

Overview of Argument

to criticize.* He asses, and we agree, that this use of the believing game to engage with strange, threatening, or unfamiliar views can lead to a deeper understanding and assumptions, and values. To -uy proui" u n.." ,r*iuge point on our own knowledge, elieve a writer and dweil with his or her ideas, find places in the text that resonate (however few), and positively for you, look for values and beliefs you hold in common search fr peisonal experiences and values that affirm his or her argument.

Reading to Borbt
After willing yourself to believe an argument, will yourself to doubt it' Turn your mental energies ioward raising objections, asking questions, expressing skepticism, and logrc, withholding your assent. \ l'r.tt you read as a doubter, you question the writert and the writer's strategies for developing the the writer's evidence and assumptions, the author argument. You also think about what is notinthe argument by noting what left out. You add a new layer of marginal notes, artichai glossed over, unexplained, or challenging the ulatl"ng what is bothering you, demanding proof, doubting edence, afid so forttr. Wting your own notes helps you read author's assumptions *Jud.r"t, author. a text actively, ttingitrg your own voice into conversation with the

Kffi

FOR CtASS DISCUSSION Raising #oubts *lo*t Kavas"aauglt's Argue'meart objecReturrr now to Kavanaugh's article and read it skeptically. Raise questions, offer groups, list all the tions, and express doub-"ts. Then, working as a class or in small ": doubts you hve about Kava-naugh's argument'

Now that you have doubted Kavanaugh's article, compale your questions and doubts to some raised by student writer Michael Banks'

Michael's Doubts about Kavanaugh's Article

is disturbing, Kavanaugh's introductory paragraph seems sensational. Maria's situation be "kidnapped, raped, murdered' but I doubt that every aprt"a immigrant is likely to and buried in the deserl" as he seems to be insinuating' oppoHis argument often seems to be based too much upon vague statements about the "some tov,rrs," "a few people," and "some hatesition. He talks about "some resenhnent," ful columns," but he doesn't provide specifics. He also doesn't prode any speciflc data provided. about the effects of NAFTA, which seems like something he realiy should have "is r.rot necessarily typical of the In his second paragraph, he says that Mara's story ''manv are incarcerated for other masses who have iff"g"ffy enteied" the U.S and that status." However, he never cousiders the rate of criminal crimes than their imigrant

to behaor of illegal immlgranm in fur1her detail. Are illegal imnigrants more likely commitcrimes?Thismightbethestartofanargumelltagau"rsthim.

-p*r. E1b"*
Cctllege

"B""grng the Rhetoric of Assent and e Belier itrs Grtt' Together-Into the Classroom " In English 674 (March 2005)' p. 389'

CHAPTER

Argument as

nquiry

45

11 His references to opinion columns and popular books and radio talk shows seem to suggest that the majorily of opposition to immigration reform is simplistic and ignorant. He niy pays lip service to a ferv "understandable" objections. There must be more to the oppositi,on than this. It would be pafticularly interesting to find an ethical justification for an anti-immigration stance.

Perhaps because he's a member of the Society of Jesus, he draws hardly any line at all between church and state. However, most U.S. citizens I know believe that government should be secular. This contrasts harshly with his notion that the U.S. self-identifies as 'Judeo-Christian" and limits his audience to people who would probably already agree with him. If we remove religion from the equation, the capitalistic values behind NAFTA and immigration policy seem much more understandable. I would need to investigate the economic impact of iilegal immigration. Who really benefits the most from it? \44ro's really harrned?

These are only some of the objections that might be raised against Kavanaugh's argument. The point here is that doubting as well as believing is a key part of the exploratory process * pu.pore. Bekeuinglakes you into the ews of others so that you can expand your views and perhaps see them differently and modiff or even change +Jtem. Doubting helps protect you from becoming overpowered by others' arguments and teaches you to stad back, consider, and weigh points carefully. It also leads you to new questions and points you might want to explore fui1her.

TE

Thinking Dialectically
This chapter's final strategr-thrnking dialectically to bring texts into conversation with each other-encompasses all the preous strategies and can have a powerful effect on your growth as a thjnker and arguer. The term dialectic is associated with the German phrlosopher Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, who postulated that each thesis prompts an
opposing thesis (which he calls an "antithesis") and that the conflict between these views can lead thinkers to a new claim (a "synthesis") at incorporates aspects of both r,rews.

Dialectic thinking is the philosophical underpinrring of the believing and doubting game, pushing us toward new and better ideas. As Peter Elbow puts it, "Because it's so hard to iet go of an idea we are holding (or more to the point, an idea that's holding us), our best hope for leverage in leanring to doubt such ideas s to take on dffirent ideas."* This is why expert thinkers actively seek out alterrrative views-not to shout them down but to listen to them. If you were an arbitrator, you wouldn't settle a dispute between A and B on the basis of As testimony only. You would also insist on hearing B's side of the story (and perhaps also C's and D's if they are stakeholders in the dispute)'

Dialectic thinking means playing ideas against each other, creating a tension that forces you to keep expanding your perspechve. It helps you achieve the "mingling of minds" that we discussed in the introduction to this chapter.

*Peter Elbow, "B.irgulg the Rhetoric of Assent and the Beherrg Game Together-Into the Classroom." In College English.674 (Nlarch 2005), p. 390.

46

PART

Overview of Argument

a-mong arAs you listen to differing ews, try to identiff sources of disagreement facts of the case go"rr, .hi.h often fall into two categories: (1) disagreement about the We saw these ,' tZl disagreement about underlying values, beliefs, or-assumptions' in children's toys' At disagreements in Chapter 1 in the onlersation about phthalates a baby might inthe level of facts, disputants disagreed about the amount of phthalates phthalate^s needed gest when chewing a rubber toy or about the quantity of ingested "the level of rr"t, disputants disagreed on the amount of risk that to be harmful. At should ban a must be present in a free market economy before a. government agency issue, consider what resubstance. As you try to determine your own position on an try to articulate your search you migtrt have to do to reslve questions of fact; also

own underlying values, beliefs, and assumptions'

Questions to Stimulate Dialectic Thinking

following questions As you consider multiple points of view on an issue, try using the to promote dialectic thinking:

Questions to Promote Dialectic Thinking 1. \Vhat would writer A say to writer B? after I read writer B, my thinking Z. AfterI read writer A, I tirought in these ways: on this issue had changed disagree about facts and interpretations writer B--' 3. To what extent do writer A and-;however,
4. To what extent do writer A and writer B disagree about underlying beliefs,
sumptions, and values? of facts?
as-

b. Can I find any areas of agreement, including shared values and beliefs, between writer A and writer B? 6. \\4rat new, significant questions do these texts raise for me? 7. After I have rirestled with the ideas in these two texts, what are my current ews
on this issue?
exResponding to questions Like these-either through class discussion or through your way into u plbl" controversy. Earlier in this ploratory r*itirig-"ut help you work pro-immigrant, anti-corchapter yor r"u John Kavanaugh's arcle expressrng a Catholic, an arlicle expressing a quite ditrelen! point of pot" "* of immigrarrts. Nor,i consider The ew "why Blame Mexico?" by freelance journalist Fred Reed' published ZOOS. We ask you to read the article and then use Amerban Conseruatiueon March tO, Reed. the preceding questions to stimulate dialectic thinking about Kavanaugh versus

I I ffi FOR CTASS DISCUSSION Practicing Dialectic Thinking with Two Articles questions, in- which questions.

Individual task: Freewrite your lesponses to the preceding whole class Kavanaugh is writer A and RLed is *iit". B. Group task: Working as a the dialectic or in sma-ll groups, share your responses to the hvo articles, guided by

ffi

t I

CHAPTER

Argument as lnquiry

47

W}*y Blcm* fflexis*?

FRg* RgfF

To grasp American immigration polic one only remember that the United States frowns on smoking while subsidizing tobacco
needs
growers.

In Jalisco, Mexico, where I live, crossing illegally

is regarded as casually as pirating music or smoking a joint and the coyotes who smuggle people across as a public utiliry like light rail. The smuggling is

'We

say

to

impoverished Mexicans, "See this

Dont cross it. If you do, we'll give you good jobs, drivers licenses, citizenship for your kids born here, school for said kids, public assistance, governmental documents in Spanish for your convenience, and a much better future. There is no penalry for getting caught. Now, don't cross this
river?

frequently done by bribing the border guards, who are notoriously corrupt. \7hy corrupt? Money. In the book De Los Maras a Los Zetas, by a Mexican journalist, I find an account ofa tunnel he knew ofthat could put 150 illegals a day across the border. (I cant confirm this.)

The price of

passage

is about

river, hear?" How smart is that? '!7eie baiting them. It's like putting out a salt lick and then complaining when deer come. Immigrant parents would be irresponsible not to cfoss. The problem of immigration, note, is entirely

That's $300,000 a da tax-free. t4rat does a border guard make? (And where can I find a shovel?)
The author estimated that perhaps 40 tunnels were active at any given time. Certainly some are. A woman I know says she came up in a restaurant

$Z,OOO

a person.

and just walked out the door. Let's hear

Homeland Security.

it

for

self-inflicted. The U.S. chose

to let them in. It didn't have to. They came to work. If

We have immigration because we want immigra-

There is much noise about whether to grant

amnesty. The question strikes me as cosmetic. \7e are not going to round up millions of people and physically throw them across the border.

Americans hadn't hired them, they would have

gone back.

tion. Liberais favor immigradon

because

it

makes

them feel warm and funy andfrom a genuine streak of decency. Conservative Republican businessmen favor immigration, frequently sotto uoce, because they want cheap labor that actually shows up and
rvorks.

Itt a story I ve heard many times-from

Mexicans." You could yell "Migral"
restaurants

landscaper, a construction firm, a junkyard owner, a group of plant nurserymen. "\7e need

\Thether we should doesn't matter. It's fantasy. Too many people want them here or don't care that they are here or don't want to uproot families who have established new lives here. Ethnic cleansing is ugly. Further, the legal Latino population is just starting to yote. A bumper crop of Mexican-American kids, possessed of cizenship, are growing headlong toward voting age. These people cannot be thrown out, even in
seal the borders. Huh? Mexico is a country, not a prison.

in a lot of principle. in \flashington, and the entire staff l0 People complain that Mexico doesn't

rvould disappear out the back door. Do we expect businessmen to vote themselves out of business? That's why we don't take the obvious steps to control immigration. (A $1,000 a day fine for hiring illegals, half to go anonymously to whoever informed on the employer would do the trick.)

has no obligation to enforce American laws that America declines to enforce. Then there was the uproar when some fast-food restaurant in the U.S. began accepting pesos. 'S7'hy? Mexican bor-

It

de towns accept dollars. Next came outrage

PART

Overview of Argument

against Mexico because its consulates were issuing ID cards to illegals, which they then used to

g.i dri r.tt

licenses.

\7hy

outrage?

A country

has

a demonstrable income of $1,000 a month. You are welcome to live in Mexico' but you are going to pay your own way. Sounds reasonable to me'

very right to issue IDs to its citizens. America doesn't h",r. to accePt them' If it does, whose problem is that? If you \Mant to see a reasonable immigration polic look to Mexico. You automatically get a 90-day tourist visa when you land. To get residency papers, you need rwo things apart from photogiaphs, passport, etc. First, a valid tourist visa to show that you entered the country legally. Mexico doesnt do illegal aliens. Second,

-"t, a Mexican passport? Mexico allows cidzenship. You (usually) have to be a resident dual
Vor,

for five years before applying. You also have to speak Spanish. Itt the national language' \lhat

,i.r.

do.. it make to have citizens who cant talk to

as

anybody?

adopted an unwise

polic continued it until.reverapproximately impossible, and now sal beca-e doesn't like the results. It must be Mexicot fault.

It looks to me

though America thoughtlessly

Three Ways to Foster Dialectic Thinking

In this concluding section, we suggest three ways to stimulate and sustain the process of dialectic thinkiig: Effective discussions in class, over coffee, or online; a reading log in which you make texts speak to each other; or a formal exploratory essay' We'll look briefly at each in turn.

Effective Discussions Good rich talk is one of the most powerful ways to stimulate dialectic thinking and foster a "mingling of minds." The key is to keep these discussions from being shouting matches or bully pulpits for those who like to dominate the airtime. Discussions are most productive if people are willing to express different points of view or to role-play those views for the purpose of advancing the conversation. Try Rogerian listening, in which you summarize
(See Chapter someone"else's position before you offer your own different position.

you see problems r weaknesses. Good discussions can occur in class, in late-night toffee rhopt, or in online chat rooms or on discussion boards' Reading

7 for more expianation of Rogerian listening.) Probe deeply to discover whether disagreements are primarily about facts and evidence or about underlying values and beliefs. Be respectful f other's views, but don't hesitate to point out where

in whic thy use freewriting and idea mapping to erplore their ideas as they encounter *ttipt" perspectivs on an issue. One part of a journal or reading log
should include summaries of each article you read -\nother part should focus on

Logs In our classes, we require

students to keep reading logs or journals

CHAPTER

Argument as lnqulry

You going o me,

..

your own dialectic thinking as you interactwith your sources while you are reading ihem. Adapt the questions for promoting dialectic thinking on page 46.

A Formal Exploratory Essay A

forrnal exploratory

e.ssly

allows

sident r\e to

V'trat
alk to
rdessly

way of intellectual journey. tt is uotn *uy of promoting dialectical thinking and a to negotiatl multiple views. The keys to writing successful narrating ore', struggte have an exploratory essays a.re (1) chosing an issue to explore on which you don't (or on which yu are open to changing your mind); (2) wrestling *i*"t or"positin diverse n'rth an isrue o1" problem by resisting quick, simple answers and by exploring (S) letting your thinking evolve and your own stance on the issue perspectives; *
grow out of this exPloration. Exploratory eisays can be powerful thinking and writing experiences in their o*r, ,ight, bui tney can also be a valuable precursor to- a formal argument'

-t91ls.

the story of

an

Iever-

now

Luit.

Many istructors assign a formal exploratory paper as the first.stage of a course (The second stage ,eser.h project--wliat we might cll a "thesis-seeking" stage. -argument that converts your exploratory thinking into a hierarchiis a formal cally organi t" urgu^"nt using reasons an evidence to support your claim.) be Altoug often use as part of research project, exploratory. essays can also piees narrating the evolution of a writer's thinking during a lowstaies reflective
class discussion.

An exploratory m The

essay includes these thinking moves and parts:

problemessay is opened and driven by the r,r,riter's issue question or research not a thesis. The introduction to the essay presents the question and shows why it interests the

writer, why it is significant, and why it is problematic rather than clear-cut or easy

to resolve. m The body of the essay shows the writer's inquiry pl.ocess. Tt demonstrates how on the writer has kept thL question open, sincerely wrestled with different views the question, accepted uncertainty and ambiguity, atd possibly redefined the

* ttr" body of the essay includes summaries of the different

to them.

question in the midst of his or her reading and reflection^on multiple perspectives' views or sources explored and often includes believing and doubting responses that the writer
essay's conclusion, the writer may clarifu his or her thinking and discover

w In the

be developed and supported in a subsequent argument. But the conclusion can also ,"-uin open because the writer may not have discovered his or her own position on the iisue and may acknowledge the need or desire for more
a thesis to

exploration.
paper' One of the o*ititrg assignment optiors for this chapter is a formal exploratory essay on pages 52-57 shows how he explored different Michael Barrks's explratory voices in the controversy over illegal immigration'

50

PART

Overview of Argument

Conelusion
of This chapter has focused on inquiry as a way to enrich your reading and writirrg five main strategies for deep reading: (1). Use a *go-"nl. This chapter has offlre (2) place readings in vaiiety of questions and prompts to find an issue to explore; () tea as a believer; (4) read as a doubter; and (5) think their rhetorical context;

arbicle and incordialectically. This chapter has also shown you how to summarize an writing, using atbributive tags to distinguish the.ideas porate summaries int your own conyou are summarizing fro- yo,-rt own. If has explained why a reading's rhetorical must be considered itt aty thoughtful response to iext (purpose, audieice, an genre) and has un *guent. Finally, it has -mphasized the importance of dialectic thinking a way to encourage wrestling with multiple perspecoffered the exploratory essay as tives rather than seeking early closure'

WRITING ASSIGNMENT An Argument Summary or a Formal ExploratorY EssaY

*4*
t

iill:1'i'ilx;l

a 25o-word summary of an argument the same arguseiected by your irstructor. Then write a one-sentence summary of of John Kavanaugh's argument on ment. Use as models Michael Banks' summaries immigration (page 43).

option

1: An Argument

summary write

'i'ir;il'iili
",i,ii'

your you narrate in first-person, chronoiogical order the evolution through time of isiue ol. problem. Rather than state a thesis or claim, begin with a inint ing about an your way questior or problem. Then describe your inquiry process as you worked different views. Follow the guidelines for an exploratory paper tirrougtmo,ri.., or to show on page 48-49. \44.ren you cite the sources you have considered, be sure that the ieader can distinguish between your own ideas and use attribuiirr" tug, so use MLA those of the sources you have summarized. If you use research_sources, citing ideas and quotations and for creating a Works Cited at the documentation for end (see Chapter l7).

option 2: A Formal Exploratory Essay write an exploratory

essay

in which

Explanation and Organization

An exploratory essay could grow out of class discussion, course readings, field work In all cases, the and interviewi, or simply the"writer's role-playing of altemative views. pup". is not to state and defend a thesis. Its purpose is tofrrpor" of an exploratory itirri A".tically about "ftlpf" perspectives, narrating the evolution through time of ^M*y students are insped by the open, "behind-thethe writer's thought process. the same intellectual scenes" feel of anl*pioratory essay. They enjoy takrng readerc on journey theyhave just traveled. A rypical organization plan for an exand emotional
ploratory essay is shown on the next page'

CHAPTER

Argument as lnqulry

51

Organization Plan for an Exploratory Essay

.
lntroduction (one to
several paragraphs)

Establish that your queston is complex, problematic,

and significant.

. .

Show whY You are interested in it Present relevant background on your issue'

end Begin with your question or build up to ii, using it to section. your introductory

it' lntroduce your first source and show why you started with Provide rhetorcal context and information about it' Summarjze the source's content and argument'

offer your response to this source, including both

Body section 1: First view or source

believing and doubting Points. Talk about what this source contributes to your understanding of your question: What did you learn? What value does ths source have for you? What is missing from this to go source that you want to consider? Where do you want

from here?

Repeat the process with a new source selected to advance

the inquirY.
Explain why you selected this source (to find an alternative view, pursue a sub-question, find more data, and so forth)'

Body section 2: Second view or source

Summarize the source's argument.

Responcl to the source's ideas. Look {or points of agreement and disagreement with other sources.

Show how your cumulative reading of sources is shaping your thinking or leading io more questions.

Body sections 3, 4, 5, etc.

Contnue exploring views or sources.

.
Conclusion

Wrap up your intellectual journey and explain where you are now in your thinking and how your understanding of your problem has changed.
Present your current answer to your question based on all that you have learned so far, or explain why you still can't answer your question or exptain what research you might

pursue further.

PART

Overview of Argument

subject of illegal immigraon' \Ahat follows is Michael Banks's exploratory essay on the and Reed that you have already rti, ,"r"*"n begins with the arlicles by Kavanaugh read and discussed' He then moves off in his own direction'

$houtd the United Ststes Grant legal Ststus to Undocumented Immigront Slorkers?
MICIIAEL BANKS {STUDEIVT}

Introduction shows ihe writer's interest and investment in the issue, which, in this case, began with personal exPerience.

of Having grown up in the California Bay Area, I have long been aware I volunteered through a school pfogram illegal immigration. In high school, jobs at popular to d'eliver fre lunches to Mexican workers waiting for day stores. one time we even went out to hiring sites such as local hardware
on"ofth"farmfieldstodeliverlunches,andsomeoftheworkersscattered
police or imwhen they saw us coming. Apparently they thought we were relationships were not deep or lasting' I migration officials' Although the nai tne opportunity to talk with some of the workers in my stumbling highexperiences school Spnish, and they would tell me about some of their bad pay them what was promised' They had no who wouldn't
such as

"roploy.r, program recourse to tlte a complaint because they lacked legal status' Our supervisoroftenstressedtheimportanceofrecognizingtheworkersas frilnds or equals rather than as charity cases. I often wondered how they
my could work with such low wages and still live a dignified life. However, me to consider deeply the reality of being an illeexperiences did not push gal immigrant.

Writer presents the problem he is going to investigate. He shows why the problem is comPlex, significant, and

I entered our class discussions sympathetic However, I also recognizedthat the cheap labor towards the immigrants. they provided allowed Americans to keep food prices affordable or to fini workers for any kind of hard day-labor job such as landscaping
With this background,

difficult to resolve.
The introduction shows his genuine perplexity.

Writer states his research question.

ordiggingupabackyardsepticsysfem.Iamstil]notsufewhethetilleAmeticans want, but I do of my college friends would not be willing to work know that I and most low-paying summer jobs picking tomatoes or weeding lettuce' For this essay, I wanted to look more deeply into this compli"*ptttoty and economic dilemma. I set for myself this question: cated ethical what is the best way for the united States to handle the problem of ille-

gal immigrants ate taking away jobs that

gal immigration?

CHAPTER

Argument as

Inquiry

53

Writer exPlains his starting Pont, introduces his first source, and gives some rhetorical context for it. Writer summarizes

ihe article.

F Kavanaugh' rvhol chss: "Amnesty?" from America magazine by John of philosophy at St. Louis university. In this artia Jesuit priest and professor of undoccle, Kaaugh quistions the morality of the current U.S. treatment points out that most immigrants are not criminals umented immigrants. He inbut rather hard-working, family-oriented people. He attributes recent the North American Free Trade Agreement and the creases in immigration io that anti-immipoverty it causes among rural Mexican farmers. He also notes hostility" (40) for these persons and strongly g*tion groups have a.(eething granting of amnesty or legal status. Kavanaugh disagrees with these
iesist a and hugroups, utgo*g tat a nationthat identifies itself as "Judeo-Christian teaching, "higher law," and the courageous exirarre,' should follow biblical

Myexplorationbeganwithanarticlethatourinstructorassignedtothe

ampleofleaderssuchasMarlinLutherKirtg,Jr.,inchallengingunjustlaws
1+O;.

nobody' Attirough admitting that unreshained immigration would help to give "legal status to anyone uo contributes i<u*urgf, exhorts the cunffy

Writer includes believing and cloubting Points as learned from this article and how it influenced his thinking on his
research question.

he discusses what he

be used to reto our coirmon good,' (a0). He recommends thatac,tizenpanel make recommendations for amnesty. view an immigrant's status and i found Kavanaugh's article to be quite persuasive. This article could paragreeing with ticularly inspire its Catholic readers, and I too had an easy time In fact, he reminded me of the director of my much of what Kavanaugh says.

highschooloutreachp.g'u-.Iliketheargumentthatpeoplewhocontribute inthe same to'the community should not be labeled as "illegal" as if they are
yet convinced that the category as thieves or welfare cheaters. But I wasn't were "unjust" in the same way that segregation laws"governing immigration to control who enlaws were unjust. It seems to me that a country has the right

tersthecountry,butdoesn,thavetherighttomakecertainpeoplesitinthe
Here the writer

doubts the article and challenges some of its ideas.

fighting unjust laws back of the bus. So the references to Martin Luther KingS I was still caught in the dilemma. Also, I saw didnl quite connect with me. So ,o*" oth", major problems with Kavanaugh's argument' First' it may-not be

fairtoapplyudeo-Cristianethicstoevefyoneinthecountry,especiallyconto relisiderinjour Constitutional separation ofchurch and state. His appeal to persuade christians to volunteer for a gious eefs may be appropriate
of having a Iause but not to change secular nation's laws. Also, his solution especially for handling the number of illegal citizen panel seemed impractical, side of this arimmigrants. Finally, Kavanaugh doesn't address the economic what the disadvantages would be to granting g,r_;. He didn'ihelp me see *tt.tty to millions of undocumented workers'

Writer moves to his

next source and provides some rhetorical context, Including information about the author.

My next article, which the class also read togethe4 was from The by Fred Reed' . American Conservative titled "Why Blame Mexico?"
AccordingtoReed'sbiographicalsketchontheWeb(..FredonEverything: and world Biograph|,,), Reed is un .*_.narirr., former scientist, wanderer columnist for the washington Times, and travter, io*", law_enforcement for his a freelance journalist currently living in Mexico' He is known

54

PART

Overview of Argumeni

Writer summarizes the article.

Writer shows his dialectical thinking, as he weighs the ideas of this source against those in his first article. He explores points of disagreemeni between these two
sources.

provocative columns. Reed's article was hard to summarize because it jumps around and is very sarcastic. His overall view is best exemplified by t ir,r".y first statement: "To grasp American immigration policy, one needs only rernember that the United States frowns on smoking while subsidizing tobacco growers" (47). Reed argues that illegal immigration occurs not mainly bcause there are millions of impoverished Mexicans in need of work, but because liberals feel good about tolerating them and because ..fc]onservative Republican businessmen favor immigration...because they want cheap labor that actually shows up and works" (47). Reed points orri thut Mexico itself is clear and consistent in its own immigration policies: Immigrants into Mexico must possess clear residency papers, must have regular monthly earnings, and must be fluent in Spanish. In contrast to Kavanaugh, who focuses on immigrants, Reed focuses on the Americans who hire them; withoutAmericans wanting cheap labor, immigrants would have no reason to cross the border. He takes it for granted that illegal immigrants should not be given legal status. Reed offers no solutions for the tangl.d *"rr of u.S. treatment of illegal immigrants, but underscores the fact that it is this country's self-created problem. Reed's article pulled me back away from Kavanaugh's call for amnesty' It made me see more clearly the entangled economic issues. Many American citizens want a source of cheap labor. Reed in contrast, wants to eliminate cheap labor. If we followed the logical path thal Reed seems to propose, we'start jailing employers in order to cut offthe job supply. At this point in my research, the status quo seemed to be a better situation. If cheap labor is so important to Americab economy and if a low paying job in the United States is better than no job, perhaps some kind of legal status other than
amnesty and citizenship would help resolve the situation. My head was spinning because I could picture all my classmates who would disagree with my last sentence! At this point, I felt I needed to explore other approaches to this controversy. The day after I read the Reed article, I was talking with a friend who suggested I watch a recent movie about immigration calledunder the same Mn. I figured it would be a fun diversion, if nothing e1se, and rented it.

Wriier shows how he is wrestling with

the ideas in this
source.

Writer explains his movement to his next source.

He summarizes the

The movie tells the tale of a nine-year-old boy, carlitos, who lives with his grandmother until she dies and then sets out to cross the border illegally to iin frir mother, who has been working several jobs at once as an undocu-

ploi of the film.

mented immigrant for four years in Los Angeles. The dramatic storyshown from the dual perspective of mother and son-highlights many of the dangers faced by the immigrants themselves: separation from family membeis and support networks, exploitatioa by border-crossing agencies, INS raids onjob sites, and dangerousjobs such as picking pesticide-coated tomatoes, just to name a few. The main characters' immigrant laborer status also draws attention to the undeniable humanity of immigrants'

CHAPTER

Argument as lnquiry

55

:'iter discusses and :ralyzes the ideas in

.',

:'-e film by

::eseniing believing

'':d

doubting Points.

,','lter mentions :'oblems the source ': ses for him'

riter exPlains his -- ice of another ' 'li.

,',

synpathy for illegal immigrants but This film works powerfu1ly to create p'ouiO"O by Kavanaugh' I cannot help without the explicit ,"ligi'o"; touting l--igra* rloikers who leave behind chilbut admire the sacrifices *l"lt pto'iid" a brighter tuture for their''l:ved dren and familv in "tdJ;;;;io are separated from their young children' ones. In cases where t;he$uite families more quickly and granting these parents l";fftatus;uld allowing comes with being separated. while could ease the great puin-tt''ut "o"tlife' On the other hand' families would them the opporlunity t" i"tg" ' great sympathy were sent back to Mexico' The also be reunited if trre parerits mean that granting amnesty I feel for illegal immig'uni' o"*n't necessarily inwhile the film evokes compassion for and citizenship is the u.ri,r",i*. problem' the magnitude of the dividual immigrants' it does not address about iegal immigration a1d. immia **U"t oifim, grants' experiences u"i t""tt to *one of the workers O l-t'":"]d l:-tli:: back to Blockbuster u" ustt" up with immigration' What I came wards a recent docum"itu'V-ot'iff"gal m*oct< documentary or "mockumentary)' was A Day Wthout o Un*i'on'a Latino complete disappearance of the entire The movie's plot imagines the grinds to a comThe state in Curiro*iu, uottr tegai and.111eea1'

I had heard about

continue with another

film'

so

i headed

r l'ief summary
:':pares for his

sct-tssion.

;;;il";

plete halt,

widespread;il:;cr;'

* !i.:t'

restaurants' supermarkets'

n
is

orchards,farms,schools,andconsfuctionservicesarecompletelydysfuncoitit" fim viciously sattize anti-immigrant tional. The story and t;;;" and waffling politicians' I the news media, the border patrol' curi,','r:er Presents some organizations, for rther information, as I was -'rnrtion about visited the movie,s w;;r" ,"'*arch hit; it took in saw this film as a
rhetorical : - -;iext of this film, - iruding statements -'--:r.n the directors .'-i details about - :','. it was first elved' =
"-

d
m

Latino audience ous about its reception' The in Southern uo"'uge the weekend it was released the second best per Cine' A Day of Televisa accorOinglo tht g";t'ut sales manager

try
s

California. thaf there is not only a broad Without a Mexican'st""t*J:t"erscores to see this film' but also a significant Hispanic audience *tto tu"t' and lead

'"'"""

crossover audience,"

ho ne

change add "we still believe we can actress/screenwrit"t, Yat"liLizmendi' ('Missing Jose Found") the world one screen at a time" -^^ ^ +L^+ a rorr qnrl and ox ofrice suggests to me that Arau ,n.

while the director' Sergio Arau'

*""Jtiffii'[T#J

it.
his

Arizmendi huu" ,"u"ui itte important

to ;u-

of
1v

comtc film makes california a uettei!l;;;' without immigrants is easy to believe' its image of a helpless'Citiio"tiu tfte rest of the country' Since California, and ptJt"-lufv new lmmlgramake very little sense to create iiwould lie in quo worse' Perhaps a solution might "rl"t-rgrnts, ";;" that made

tn"t Latino immigration rytftworks bv exaggeration' but

:11t:,::i?:ttt

ies,

red

tion policies of immigrants' as '4 Day Without a somehow recognizing the status quo of paying ii" Mexcansuggests l' i*t-t"tt'-*f 'rru*tu*ining moral dilemma remains' A them wages lorver thullq;;"u" 'tunu'ds justice' places economics above howeveq because this approach

tht;"*t ;"t'd

PART

Overview of Argument

Writer takes stock of his develoPing views, sorting out what he has learned so far and what he is currently thinking.

He explains whY he thinks he needs to

the ecolegal status, and evenfual citizenship. Another, based on our valuing benefits ofcheap labor, is to keep the status quo. Still another solunJnic tion is to get rid of illegal aliens altogether either by deporting them or by jailing their employers and thus eliminating their source of income. None of ihese options appealed to me. In search of another approach, I decided to sughead foi the library to do more research. A friendly reference librarian

I decided to review some of the possible "solutions" that I solution, had encounteied so far to the illegal immigration problem. One valuing the humanity of immigrants, is to offer them amnesty, based on our At this
stage,

continue exPloring the issue and expand the diversity of views he

examines. He narrates his research path and explains his

I start with a couple of overview articles ftom cQ Researcher. hese articles, which I just skimmed, provided some background informagested that

selection of sources. Writer introduces his next source and summarizes it.

tion, statistical data on immigration, and summaries of different bi1ls before I beCongress. I found my head swimming with so many little details that gan iosing the big picture about an actual direction I wanted to go. However, of ne idea that kept emerging from the CQ Researcher was the possibility guest worker programs. I decided I wanted to find out more about what these programs were. with the reference librarian's guidance, I used Academic search camplete to find a number of articles on guest worker programs. I also entered "guest worker program" into Google and found a number of bloggers supporting or attacking guest worker programs' I focused first on al editorial "That's Hospitality" from The Nau Republic, a news commentary magazine that is in the political center, neither domi-

nantly liberal nor conservative. The editorial opposes a congressional bill that would establish a guest worker program wherein businesses could hire foreigners as "guest workers" for up to six years. These workers would be granted temporary legal status, but they would have to return to their home country when the six years were up. Although supporters of the bill called it ..humane,, and ..compassionate," the editorial writer opposes it because it is ..un-American." No other group of immigrants, the editorial states, has been
treated this way-as second class transients who had no opportunify to make a full life in America. The article compares this proposed guest worker program

to similar programs in Europe after WWII where workers from

Writer responds to this source and explains the current siatus of his thinking about his research question. He looks for points of agreement among this source and others he has consulied.

Eastem Europe or Turkey came to countries like Germany or Netherlands and stayed but never assimilated. What the article supports instead is an alternative bill ,.temporary worker" status but allows workers to apply for a green that grants card after six years and for citizenship after five more years' This article excited me because it seemed to promote a compromise that tumed undocumented workers who were aflaid of getting caught and deporled hto persois with legal status and with the hope of eventually becoming citi,"nr. It shared the pro-immigrant spirit of Kavanaugh wtd under the same Moonbut didn't directly undermine the economic benefits provided by cheap labor. Rather than offering direct amnest.v. it specified a waiting period of at least eleven years before a person could appl' lor citizenship. Although this article did not speciff how the United States might manage the volume and rate

CHAPTER

Argument as lnquiry

57

. :i opposes his - :ceding one. He

.

,'.',ter decides to :- rtilrue exploring ' s qLrestion by _ -.king at a source

es informatlon

ofpeople seeking guest worker and then citizen status, I thought that this proposal would be the position I would like to argue for in a later persuasive paper. But I decided next to look at the negative side ofa guest worker program and was amazed at how many anti-immigration groups hated this bill. one
provocative blog "Guest worker Program Illusion" is by a freelance writer Frosty wooldridge, who maintains his own web site aimed at combating "overpopulation and immigration." According to his blog site he has wriften hundreds of articles for seventeen national and two international magazines and has been an invited speaker on environmental issues at many universities. wooldridge favors shict border enforcement and deportation of anyone who has illegally entered the country. He sees all forms of guest workerprogftrms as arffiesty that will lead to overpopulation and an increasing welfare burden on middle-class Americans who try to provide services for the guest workers. He also argues that the guest workers will suppress wages for American workers. His strategy is to point out all the problems that the guest worker program will open up: Can the guest worker bring his or her family? Will children born to guest workers automatically be u.S. citizens? Must the states provide tax-payer supported schools and hospital services for the guest workers? If so, must the schools be bilingual? will guest workers pay social security taxes and thus become eligible for social security? Will they be eligible for Workers compensation if they get hurt on the job? will their older children get in-state rates at public universities? will their younger children be covered by child labor laws? will they actually leave after six years or simply revert back to undocumented illegal status? All these problems raised by woolridge were never mentionedinthe New Republic editorial, and they severely dampened my spirits. As I end this exploratory paper, I still have a number of articles left to read and much reft to learn, but I think I have a pretty good grasp ofwhat the issues and disagreements are. I definitely think that the plan supporting a guest worker program with the chance of eventual citizenship is the best approach. But it has to be linked with other approaches also, including ways to improve the economies of Mexico and other Latin American countries so that poor people wouldn't have to come to the united states to find work. My hope is that many of the objections raised by woolridge are solvable. rhave reabzed from my inquiry that my heart is with the immigrants and that I don't share woolridge's desire to close America off from future immigration.

r--.ut ihe rhetorical

j, rrce. particularly ,-:iut the blogger.

- = sumrnarizes the -"=as in his blog.
,

-:rrext of this

'iier shows how

r s solrrce has

'

-':ortant questions
hir.rr.

:alienged the ideas ine preceding -:rce, complicated 'e issue, and raised

:lrough he has not v worked out his .15 >!r,cr to his ;ri'er [u r il>
sunrs Lrp how hs ':ir.,s have evolved.

=searCh question,

:= explains how his

=ac'ing and thinking ';'"'e deepened and - erified his views on

.

'

s issue,

-1. sketches a path -: might follow in

'-.:ther exploration

-'nis

question.

:
:--

Works Cited Wcrks Cited page

lists e sources

: MLA format

-rnsulted and
scussed in tlris

A Day Without a Mexican. Dir. Sergio Arau. Xenon pictures, 2004. DVD. Kavanaugh, John F. 'Amresfy?" Atnerica 10 March 2008: 8. print. "Missing Jose Found: Walks His tr/ay to Box Office Success Throughout Southern California." ADWAM Netus. A Day Without a Mexican, n.d.
Web. 12 July 2008.

:sSay.

58

PART

Overvew of Argument

Consettative Reed, Fred. "Why Blame Mexico?" The American 2008: 35. Print.

l0 March

"That's Hospitality." New Republic 17

April

2006: 1' Academic Search

Woolridge, 2 Dec. 20A5. Web. 22 MaY 2008'

Complete' Web' 30 August 2008' perf.AdrianAlonso, Kate del (Jnder the same Moon. Dir] patricia Riggen. 2O08' DVD' Castillo, Eugenio Derbez' Twentieth Century Fox' Newswithviqw s' c om' Frosiy. "Guest Worker Program Illusion'"

For additional

vwiting readin& and research resources, g0 t0

www.mycomplab.com

-.sil$ng. lvieendEtrcti\retyr.:,r,..''.,,....1,,,,, ray : .,r, A .frAwingmf*ud,ien ce: Et!]ggi F,o{k},s,:' a*:,Kaf ,':'7,.,Rsponding to,Obections d, Alternative'Views
..l
::

Lara croft engaged n one of .1.is still from lneTomb Roidervideo game series features main character .rer iyprcal combats with humans, beasts, or supernatufal creatures. Lara, an adventuref and archeologist'

violent video games are the focus :epresents lloth a sexualized ancl an empowereci wonlan. \./cmen ancl gender roles l student carmen Tieu's argument cleveloped in chapters 3-5; hcwever, carmen explores "nale" video game' Halo' jrom perspective of a woman playing a the

ffi?s'$ff# $#'
& Cla*x,tx

,w,**

ffi f #

e&$&ffi$,'.

In Pafi One we explained that argument combines kuth seeking with persuasron. Part One, by highlighting the importance of exploration and i"qu"y, emphasizes the truth-seeking dimension of argument. The suggested *itirg assignments in Part One included a variety of exploratory tasks: freewriting, pluyitg the believing and doubting game, and *iting a formal exploratory essay. In Part Two we show you how to convert your exploratory ideas rnto a thesis-govemed classical aqgument that uses effective reasons and edence to support its claims. Each chapter in Pafi Two focuses on a key skill or idea needed for responsible and
effective persuasion.

The Classical Structure of Argument

Classical argument is pattemed after the persuasive speeches of ancient Greek and Roman orators. In traditional Latin terminologr, the main parts of a persuasive speech are the uordium, in which the speaker gets the audience's attention;

the narratin, which prodes needed background; th'e propositio, which is the speaker's claim or thesis; the paio, which forecasts the maln parts of the speech; tJte confirmatio, which presents the speaker's arguments supporting the claim; the confutatio, which summarizes and rebuts opposing ews; and the peroratio, which concludes the speech by summing up the argument, calling for action, and leaving a strong, Iasting impression. (Of course, you don't need to remember these tongue-twisting Latin terms. We cite them only to assure you that in *itirg a classical argument you are joining a time-honored tradition that links back to the origins of democracy.) Let's go over the same territory again using more contemporary terms. We provide an organization plan showing the structure of a classical argument on page 61, which shows these typical sections:

w The introduction. Writers of classical

argument ffpically begin with an attention grabber such as a memorable scene, illustrative story, or startling statistic. They continue the introduction by focusing the issue-often by stating it directly as a question or b}, briefly summarizing opposing views-and providing needed background and context. They conclude the introduction by presenting their clarm (thesis statement) and forecasting the argument's shucture.

60

CHAPTER

The Core of an Argument

61

Organization Plan for an Argument with a Classical Structure

. Exordium .

Ngrrgtio . Propositio , Partitio

Introduction
(one to

several paragraphs)

. . . . . . .

Attention grabber (often a memorable scene) Explanation of issue and needed background Writer's thesis (claim)
Forecasting passage

j,
Main body of essay
Presents and supports each reason in turn Each reason is tied to a value or belief held by the audience

. Confirmotio

Presentation cf writer's

position

i; ,

Summaryof opposing
views
. Confutatio

Summary of views differing from writer's (should be fair and complete)

i
l;

Refutes or concedes to opposing views Shows weaknesses in opposing views

Response to opposing

views

j
',n

May concede to some strengths

Brings essay to closure

Often sums up argument

Peroratio

Conclusion

Leaves strong last impression

Often calls for action or relates topic to a larger context of issues

The presentation of the lwitet's position. The presentation of the writer's own
position is usually the longest part of a classical argument. Here writers present the reasons and evidence supporting their claims, typically choosing reasons that tie into their audience's values, beliefs, and assumptions. Usually each reason is developed in its ovn paragraph oI sequence of paragraphs. \&/hen a paragraph introduces a new reason, writers state the reason dit".fly and then suppolt it with evidence or a chain of ideas. Along the way, writers guide their readers with appropriate hnsitions.

The summary and critique of alternative ews. \\{hen summaruingand responding to opposing ews, writers have several options. If there are several opposing arguments, writers may summarize all of them together and then compose a single response, or they may summarize and respond to each argument in turn. As we will explain in Chapter 7, writers may respond to opposurg views either by refuting them or by conceding to their strengths and shifturg to a different field of values.

62

PART

Writing an Argument

#Theconclusion.Finally,intheirconclusion,writersSumuptheirargument,often callingro',o*"kindofacfon,therebycreatingasenseofclosureandleavinga
strong final imPression'

Inthisorganization'thebodyofaclassicalargumenthastwomajorsecons-the aland the Jther summarizing and critiquing one presentini the writer's own position the writer's own posihave ternative,t"*1j;;;;*J"li"i pr* *Jo,n discussion chapter 7 we consider the order. (In tol"""t tion coming first, but it is possible "tnat factors affecting this choice')

Forallitsstrengths,analgumentwithaclassicalstructuremaynotalways by desome cases' you may be more effective be your most persuasive strategy',In or by showing great views altogether, laying yo,r, ifi"rir, by ignorinf'altlrnative these cases' however' the 7)' u""'l sympathy fb;Ji;itg-"'i"*ti'""-Cttupter jts -- a thesis statement and a call for classical structure is a useful ptun.rirrg'tool. whole of your arguintroducion helps you ::: forecasting statement in the 'h"
need ates is a particularly persuasive undecided audience'

mentinminiature.Andbyrequiringyoutosummarizeandconsideropposing to the limits of your position and to the views, trr" .iu"itur structure "l;;?; show, the classical stmcture crefor further reasons and evidene. As we will

-J"

or or u.gument when you address a neutral

Triangle Classical Appeals and the Rhetorical

Besidesdevelopingatemplateorstructureforanargument,classicalrhetori rp"..'"t-persuadld their audiences' They cians analyzJ;;;r";iiiat effectiv" identifiedthreekindsofpersuaslv"upp.ur',*nicht]recalledlogos,ethos,and rhetorical context illustrated pathos.Th"r"";;;; "J u" ,rnt.iJtJ within a speaker, and audience (see by a triangr" *iir, p"i"ts labeled message, writer--or to all thre points on this rhetorical Figure 3.1). Effeciiv arguments p"y ui[r-n

"oo"{Jur*r"3.1
Persuasive aPPeals:

to one of the three shows, each point on the triangle corresponds

wtrogos(Greekfor..word,,)focusesattentiononthequalilyofthemessage_thatis,on logic of its reasons

trr"

w Ethos (Greek for

of the argument itself and on the is referred to as its logbal appeal' and support. The impact of logosr ",rl""nce ;character") attention on the writer's (or speaker's)

.t"*J."*irt"".v

and

clanf

character as it is projected i" th; "rrug". the tone and style of the mssage' writer. Ethos is often conveyed through alternative views' and through through ;;r;" with which ifr" r*it"tZonsiders

focuses

It

refers to the credibility of the

thewriter,sinvestmentinhisorherclaim,Insomecases,it'salsoafunctionof expertise rndependent of the message' trre *ritrt ,"prrorrn for honesty and to as its ethicql appeal or appeal rhe irrrpa"i or'ithoron an audiene is referted from uedibilitY

CHAPTER

The Core of an Argument

63

Message
LOCOS: How con I make the argument intern ally consistent on d logical ? How can I find the best reasons ond support them with the best evidence?

Audience
J

Writer or SPeaker
ETHOS: How can t Present mYself et'fectivelY? How can I enhonce mY cr edibtity and tr ustwo rthin ess ?

:
,I

PATHOS: How can I make the reoder open to mY message? How con I best aiippeol to mY readef s values and interests? How can Iengage mY reader emotonotly and imaginatvely?

FIGURE 3.1 The rhetorical triangle

the values and bea Pathos(Greek fbr "suffering" or "experience") focuses attention on associated with emotional appeal' Bl]if pathos It is often liefs of the intended audien"ce.
.J

;";" -or. ,p""ifi.uily to an uudi"rrce's imaginative sympathies;their capacity 'Ihj.rr, when we tum the abstractions feels and ,""r.

to

feel and see what tt e ,r.ite, story' we are making a pathetic apigr"ul discourse rnto a tangble and immediate cu'tfurther an audrence's intellectual assent ethos peal. \\rylereas upp"ufr to tgo, ^rd imagination and feelings, moving the audito our claim, upp"ur, iopo rio, "ngug"the significance' ence to a deepei appreclation of the argument's

of

s of logos, e,thos, and pathos' is A related rhetorical concept, connected to the appeal "right dm,; "t"uson," or "opportunity'" This that of kairos,from the G.""t *-d for persuasive, its timing must be effectively concept suggests that for an argument to b prportion or measure. Jou may have.had chosen and its torr" arrJ structre in right and then hesitating before clickthe experien." or .o-porirf * *go-"tative e-mail moment to send this message? Is my audience i"g ih;;t""a,, button. Is tni", tfr" ilht be more effective if I waited for a ready to hear what rrrrsuy-gz woit my argument I change its to19 and content? This couple of days? tt r s"niniso*"rrug" noiu, sould nat is meant by-kairos' W9 will return to this aftentiveness to ttre unfoli"g of dli" is more depth' in Chapter 6, when e consider ethos u:rd pathos in """."p, this background on the classical appeali, let's turn now to logos-the logic Given and structure of arguments'

64

PART

Wriiing an Argument

Issue Questions as the Origins of Argument

At the heart of any argument is an issue, which we can define as a controversial topic area such as "the labeling of biotech foods" or'racial profiling," that gives rise to differing points of ew and conflicting claims. A writer can usually focus an issue by asking an issue question that invites at least two altemative answers. Wittdn any complex issue-for example, the issue of abortion-there are usually a number of separate issue questions:
Should abortions be legal? Should the federal govemment authorize Medicaid payments for abortions? \\4ren does a fetus become a human being (at conception? at three months? at quickening? at birth?)? \44rat are the effects of legalizing aborlion? (One person might stress that legaltzed abortion leads to greater fleedom for women. Another person might respond that it lessens a society's respect for human life.)

Difference tretween an Issue Question and an Information Question

Of course, not all questions are issue questions that can be answered reasonably in two or more differing ways; thus not all questions can lead to effective arguments. Rhetoricians have traditionatly distingushed between upkcation, which is rwiting that sets out to inform or explain, and argumattation, which sets out to change a reader's mind. On the surface, at least, this seems like a useful distinction. If a reader is interested in a writer's question mainly to gain new knowledge about a subject, then the writer's essay could be considered explication rather than argument According to this eW the following questions about teenage pregnancy might be called information questions rather than issue questions:

lt

How does the teenage pregnancy rate in the United States compare \ dth the rate in
Sweden?

If the rates are different, why?

Although both questions seem to call for information rather than for argument, we believe that the second one would be an issue question if reasonable people disagreed on the answer. Thus, different writers might agree that the teenage pregnancy rate in the United States is seven times higher than the rate in Sweden. But they might disagree about why. One writer might emphasize Sweden's practical, secular sex-education courses, leading to more consistent use of contraceptives among Swedish teenagers. Another writer might point to the higher use of oral conhaceptives among teenage girls in Sweden huttly a result of Sweden's generous national health program) and to less reliance on condoms for preventing pregnancy. Another mrght argue that moral decay in the United States or a breakdown of the traditional family is at fault. Thus, undemeath the surface of what looks like a simple explication of the "huth" is really a controversy.

How to ldentify an Issue Question

You can generally tell whether a question is an issue question or an information question by examining your purpose in relationship to your audience. If your relationship to your audience is that of teacher to learner, so that vou audience hopes to gain new

CHAPTER

The Core of an Argument

your question is probinformation, knowledge, oI understanding that you possess, then is that of advoably an information question. But if your relationship to your audience or jury, so that your audience needs to make up its mind on cate to decision maker question you address is an somethlrrg and is weighing difietetrt points of view, then the
issue question. sue question in another. Let's look at the following examples:

oftenthesamequestioncanbeaninformationquestioninonecontextandanis-

question, beHow does a diesel engine work? (This is probably an information peopie who know about diesel engines will probably agree on cause reasonable 'quertlon would be posed by an audience. of new learners') how they *ork. ihi, fuel efficient than a gasoline engine? (This also seems w Why is a diesel engine-more the to be an informatlon question, because all experls will probably agree on seems to be new learners, perhaps students in answer. once again, th audience (This w \&4rat is the most cost-effective way to produce diesel fuel from crude oil? addressing new could be an infomation question if experts agree and you ale engineers and one engineer says process X is the learners. But ifyou are addiessing question is an issue most cost-effective and another *gut for process Y, then the an automotive class.)

a Should the present

question.)

highway tax on diesel fuel be increased? (This is certainly an isoffers a compromise') sue question. Orre peon ,uy, y"'; another says no; another

a a =,. FOR CTASS DIS(USSION lnformation Questions vefsus lssue Questions questions working as a class or in small $oups, try to decide whic\ of the following of them could be eiare information qrr"rtion, a"a ihicn ur" itt.t" questions. Many hypothetical conther, dependirrg ot the rhetorical context. For such questions, create
texts to show Your reasoning' failing? 1. \44rat percentage of public schools in the united states are public schools in the United States? 2. \44rat is the cause off'itittg 3. What is the effect of olent TV shows on children? 4. Is genetically modified corn safe for human consumption? with newly detected breast cancer opt for a radical mastectomy 5. Should u (complete removal of the bieast and surrounding lymph tissue) or a lumpectomy ffi (removal of the malignant lump without removat of th whole

***

breast)?

I I

Difference tletween a Genuine Argument and a Pseudo-Argument

answers, not every Although every argument features an issue question with altemative require two additional dispute orr"I. *r*r, is a rational argument. Rational arguments of reasonable factors: (1) reasonable participants who operate within the conventions starting place or behaor * iZ) poteniiatty sharable assumptions that can serve as a disagreements foundation fot tfr argumeni. Lacking one or both of these conditions,

remain stalled at the level of pseudo-arguments'

66

PART

Writing an Argument

pseudo-Arguments: Fanatical Believers and Fanatical

skeptics A reasonable disputants may modify their change; argument assumes ttr" p"*illty o{ Sr9u,'tfr and their ,ffttgth-t in an alternative ew or weaknesses in

ews as they acknowag" degenerates to pseudoown. such $owth beco'm", iripossible-and argument ,o their positions. Consider the disputants are fanatically committd

*gorn*t-*en

caie ofthe fanatical believer or the fanatical skeptic' true because they say so, p"log Fanatical believers believe that their claims are knee-jerk predictability' their often fanatical believers follow some parly line with not-to-be-disputed texts' Web ideological conuictiorrs often shaped Uy tftt favorite, their butions on global warming, sites, blogs, or radio shows. once you,ve pushed other issue' you can expect only welfare, abortion, gun control, gay marriag, or some Disagreeing with a fanatical believer is a banage of never-changi,,g p'"outtt"-"t crashing wave' ti ora?ring the surf to!"i".i down' The only respons"1:..Toth-"tproving anything' So of The fanatical skeptic, in contrast, dismissls th-e possibility proof that it will rise That's 1o what if the sun has rir"" L*ty day of recorded history? fanatical skeptics accept nothproof, *nch never exists, tomorrow. Short of adherence to "U*f"t" where the mst we can hope for is increased audience -g, r" a world logical demonstration of our our ideas, the fanaticJ rt"ptl" demands an ironclad, genuine arsrIn e presence of fanatical believers or skeptics, then'

;1"-,r rightness. ment is imPossible.

Assumptions A reasonable Another source of Pseudo-Aguments: lck of shared the participants share common assumptions on ffient is difficutt to conducunless
geomehy, these shared assumptions which the argument can be grounded. Like u"io-t in Consider the following conversation' in which serve as the starting p"-if"? the argument. Randall refi-ses to accept Rhondas assumptions: cancer' RHoNDA: Smoking should be banned because it causes that? RANDALL: So it causes cancer' \A4rat's so bad about

suffering and death' RHoNDA: Don't be perverse, Randy' Cancer causes suffering and death are just RANDATL: Rhonda, my dear girl, don't be such a twinkie' pafi of the human condition' they can be avoided' But that doesn't make them desirable, especially when RHONDA:

for a whjle, but in the long run' RANDALL: Perhaps in particular cases they're avoidable what's inevitable anyway? we all suffer urr *"'all die, so who cares if smoking causes

This,wewouldsuggest,isadoomedargument.Withoutarrysharedassumptions and death de(for example, ttrat canZJr is bad, that suffeng should be minimized *bottom" to this argument, endless regress of reasons based ust an iayed), thre,, no is a legitimate way to reasons. Although calling aisumptions into question on more unrvilLingness to accept any ascomplicate orlr understanding of an issue,

".p"n and

sumption makes argument impossible'

CHAPTER

The Core of an Argument

67

Lack of shared assumptions often dooms arguments about purely personal opinionsjs for example, someone's clarm that opera boring or that puzais better than nachos' Of might be possible if the disputants agreed on a course, a pizza-rrersus-nachos argument criterion such as the value of bJanced nutrition. For example, a nutritionist could argue nutrients per calorie. I)^rat pizzais better than nachos because it prodes more balanced "Nah, nachos are better than pizza because nachos But if one of the disputants responds, is better than your taste better," then h makes a different assumption-"My sense of taste personal standard, an assumption that others are urable sense of taste." This is a wholly to share.

f a",; FOR CTASS DISCUSSION Reasonable Arguments versus Pseudo-Arguments

The following questions can all be answered in alternative ways. However, not all of reathem will lead t reasonable arguments. Try to decide which questions will lead to sonable arguments and which will lead only to pseudo-arguments.
1. Are the Star Wars frlms good science fiction? 2. Is postmodern architecture beautiful? 3. Should cities subsidize professional sports venues? 4. Is this abstract oil painting by a monkey smearing paint on a canvas to"gu" ttuds 5. Are nose rings

hrre work of art?

*a

atfractive?

ffi

f I

Frame of an Argument: A Claim supported by Reasons

We said earlier that an argument originates n an issue question, which by definition is any question that prouok"t disagreement about the best answer. \Vhen you write un uigo-"nt, your tsk is to take a position on the issue and to support it with reasons nd evidnce. The claim of your essay is the position you want your audience to accept. To put it another way, your claim is your essay's thesis statement, a onesentence summary answer to yur issue question. Your task, then, is to make a claim and suppoft it with reasons.

\[&at Is a Reason?
A reason(also called a premise) is a claim used to support another claim' In speaking or rwiting, a reason is usually linked to the claim with connecting words such as because,
since,"for, so, thus, conseqiently, and therefore, indicating that the claim follows logically foom the reason. Let's take an example. In one of our recent classes a female naval ROTC student argued that women shuld be allowed to serve on submarines. A heated discussion qr-ickly followed, expanding into the more general issue of whether women should be

ulto* to join military

two alternative positions

"o-but issue: on that

units. Here are frameworks the class developed for

68

PART

Writing an Argument

:ffJt"#"men
nsason

1:

woln"r, for the most

joining mititary combat units. should be barred from or endurance for part don't iave the strength
bv introducing wourd hurt unit morale in close-knit combat units and wouldn't have the beel sociarized into fighters haven't

;Tlfi ;:t"t;,,'""
"Kill them with
a

l"#fi:-tr;men f"y"""t' spirit that men can get'

REASON4:Womenwoulduelessreliabletoacombatunitiftheybecamepregnant or small children' or had to care tor infants

AlternativeView units in the military' allowed io join combat cL{IM: Women should be nERsoNl:MillionsofwomenarlstrongerandmoreOll:tutt'fitthanmost

men;women'"i:;;ii";;;**"'vl3ilnuu'theitrengthandendurance
for the job.
nsRsoN 2:

would help society overas combat sold'iers The image of women

stereotypmg' :ome hannrul gencrer come harrriful gender "*'":"::::'

lraq war' effectiveness in the proven col already nr^\/en combat have Rg,son 3: Women o"ttt tl'1":^_, in there are no front lines' *fl"t" where ^re nnnorbr,rnities for career advancement h"Y: Kx'tuLr r' nsasox 4: women 1"]1d l:T":T-?i" unrts' could serve in combat the military if theY promotes equai righis' to ser-ve in combat units

|""^il|'il

';lil*"r.**"'

in narts In the Formulatingalistofreasonsinthis.waybreaksyourargrrmentativetaskintoa "'g"111t combat suggests ,, series or subtasks lor the uput"1'pp'ting y"t':l ]i example' il-'" f'u* *ti'"l^tight use all live nrevious ;;;;;irg a wriier tigLi'pltt".t;l reasons would most periive different tjnes "t atp*di;;;" which its own reasons or select otlv';;;;;'ltti*" tin*'ort"ur.""'i"g would be developedin u.r1 suade rhe intended "r#;;: ;;n;;X,i"i;ffil":ltr;if,fflJi* onl,se.cjion or your argument with the ro'owing

j;:T"_;;.'r;a.i*;il;;;'v*'

senre nce

: " wom en J;;11 "'uno*"

l*ii'r*:'ff
combar units.

r'' u Ja "' rransferred to f *,'"',",*:lttIrf ;#T":T'fJ'id;:iF in ti;Ro;;'ttrtt: "g'1'e assumptions oI rhe trnderlying combal, etfectivenesi'"i"i"""'"ted
n
a ss

: itl * :,lllnJT:T:""1i"J" lili Tr"':T.:::+:*"#xiru ::r*s;i,::il1Jf; ll':fiJl en'

"

umpt

ion

Lh a L w o m

(How';*';;;;i;tes

ancl

,iijpor,,

CHAPTER

The Core of an Argument

69

an argument will be developed in Chapter 4 when we discuss warrants and backing.) You would then proceed in the same way for each separate section of
your argument. To iummarize our point in this section, the frame of an argr-rment consists of a claim (the thesis statement of the essay), which is supported by one or more reasons, which are in turn supported by evidence or sequences of further reasons.

Expressing Reasons in Because Clauses

Chances are that when you were a child the word because contained magical explana-

tory powers:
DOROTHY: I want to go home now.

ToMMY: \44ty?
DOROTHY: Because.

ToMMY: Because why?

DORoTHY: Just because. Somehow becauseseemed decisive. It persuaded people to accept your view of the world; it changed people's minds. Later, as you got older, you discovered that because only introdu.a y-ort arguments and that it was the reasons following because thal mae the difference. Stlll, because introduced you to the powers potentially residing in the adult world of logic. Of course, there are many other ways to express the logical connection between a reason and a claim. Our language is rich in ways of stating because relationships:

to join combat units because they don't have the 'u Women shouldn't be allowed

rr Women don't have the sj *

* My

strength or endurance for combat roles. strength or endurance for combat roles. Therefore women should not be allowed to join combat units. Women don't have the strength or endurance for combat roles, so they should not be allowed to join combat units' One reason *ily *o-"n should not be allowed to join combat units is that they don't have the strength or endurance for combat roles'

argument that women should not be allowed to join combat units is bsed lainly on evidence that women don't have the strength or endurance

for combat roles.

Even though logical relationships can be stated in various ways, writing out one or more because clauses seems to be the most succinct and manageable way to clarify an argument for oneself. We therelore suggest that sometime in the writing process you create a working thesis statentent fhat summarizes your main reasons as

70

PART

Writing an Argument

Some-writers like to plan thesis statement depends largely on your writing process. oftett .o-pose their working thesis out their whole argument from the stad and rough drafts' Others disstatements with because clauses before they write their it is a combination of both' cover their arguments as they write. And sometimes

you compose your own working becauseclauses attached to your claim.* Just when

they might For these writers, an extendd working thesis statement is something a way of ordering their argument write halfway through the composi.tg pio""tt as Or they might compose when various branches seem t be giwing out of control' way of checking the unity of the fi a working thesis statement at the ve"ry end-as a
nal product. act of doing so can be \Arhenever you u,rite your extended thesis statement, the compo-s11g because clauses can be simultaneously irustrating and thought provoking. different kinds of arguments a powerful discovery tooi causing y,t io think of many wrestle your ideas into the because to support your claim. But it is o'ften difficult to for the complex network of clause'shape, which sometimes seems to be overly tidy trying to summarize your argument ideas you are trying to work with. Nevertheless, clearly what you have to do' u ,irrgt" claim wh reasons should help you see more

llll

IIE*iFoRclAssDlscussloNDevelopingClaimsandReasons

can be a discovery Try this group exercise to help you See how r,r,'riting because clauses groups. Each group member.should contribute an issue prcedui". oiviae into small issue at a time' help each that he or she would like to eiploie. Discussing tt" p"ttott't each reason as a member develop a claim supported by several .reasons. E,xpress

Then write o,ri ttte *oikitg thesis statement for each person's ar9utry to create because clauses ment by attaching ttle becauseclauses to the claim. Finally, select two or three in support of an ternative claim for each issue. Recorders should
because clause. as a whole' working thesis statements from the group to present to the class

I I

Conclusion
to the.rhetorical This chapter has introduced you to the structure of classical argument, audience) and to the classical appeals of logos' triangle 1-"rru!", writer or speaker, and in issue questions, how ethos, utd potor,.It has also shown how arguments originate

issuequestionsdifferfrominformationquestio"',Tghowargumentsdifferf|om

that the frame of an argupseudo-arguments. At the heart of this chapter we explained

mentisaclaimsupportedbyreasons.Asyougeneratereasonstosupportyourown clauses attached to the claim' arguments,,t i, ol""i'fr"lpful to articulate thLm as because
might look ltke this: women, ing re *o-.t th".i. .tutement for an argument opposing women i combat units strength, erLdurance, and'fighting spirit" needed the should not be allowed to join combat uit, brrouii th"ylack

make thetn unrelable for combat at a nxoment's in combat; because being pregnant or haDing smalt children uould contbat urzils. You might not put a bulky notice: ancl because women,s prrr"n , wouid hurt morate of tight-knt way your essay itself; raer, a working thesrs statement is a behind-the-scenes thesis statement like this into it irhole ad clear' see of summarizing you urg.ttrt"nt for yourself so that you can

CHAPTER

The Core of an Argument

71

In the next chapter we will see how to support a reason by examining its logical struchrre, uncovering its urstated assumptions, and planning a strategy of development.

WRITING ASSIGNMENT An Issue Question and Working Thesis Statements

Decide on an issue and a claim for a classical argument that you would like to write.

Write a one-sentence question that summarizes the controversial issue that your
claim addresses. Then draft a working thesis statement for your ploposed argument' Organize the thesis as a claim with bulleted because clauses for reasons. You should have at least two reasons, but it is okay to have three or four. Also include an opposing thesis statement-th is, a claim wlth because clauses for an alternative posi-

tion on your

issue.

Recall that in Part One we emphasized exploratory o*ititg as a way of resisting closure and helping you wrestle with multiple perspectives. Now we ask you to begin a process of closure by developing a thesis statement that condenses your argument into a *itft supporting reasons. However, as we emphasize throughout this text, drafting "tuim itself is ut exploratory process. Writers almost always discover new ideas when they urite

a first draft; as they take their ,*ititg project through multiple drafu, theil ews may change substantially. Often, in fact, honest writers can change positions on an issue by discovering that a counterargument is stronger than their own. So the working thesis statement that you submit for this assignment may evolve substantially once you begin

to draft. In this chapter, as well as in Chapters 4 and 5, we will follow the process of student writer Carmen Tieu as she constructed an argument on violent video games.

her prfessor had described video game playing as gendered behavior (overwhelmingly male). The professor indicated his dislike for such games, pointing to their antisocial, dehumanizing values. In her freewrite, Carnen described her own enjoyment of violent video games-particularly first-person-shooter games-and explored the pleasure that she derived from beating boys at Halo 2. She knew that she wanied to write an argument on this issue. W4rat follows is Carmen's submission for this assignment.

During earlier exploratory writing, she wrote about a classroom incident in which

Carmen's lssue Question and WorkingThesis Statements

Issue Question: should girls be encouraged to play first-person-shooter deo games? My claim: First-person-shooter (FPS) r4deo games are great activities for girls

I I r I

because beating guys at their own game is empowering for girls

because being skilled at FPS games frees guls from feminine stereotypes because they give girls a different u-a1' of bonding because they give girls new insights

with males

into

male subculture

72

PART

Writing an Argument

opposing claim: First-person shooter

gafnes are a bad activity

for anyone, especially girls,

r r r
PtcRSuN

because they promote antisocial values such as indiscriminate killing because they amplify the bad macho side of male stereotypes constructive because they waste valuabie time that could have been spent on something because FPS games could encourage women to see themselves as objects

r*r\ tr"g*hlH $'a LL'l I

ffi: iW

For additional

writin& readin& and research resources, g0 to

www.mycomplab.com

Tfuffi fuffiWffiffi&

S rsxs&

ffimm*s

In Chapter 3 you leamed that the core of an argument is a claim supported by reasons and that these reasons can often be stated as because clauses aitached to a claim. In the present chapter we examine the logical stmcture of arguments in more dePth.

An Oven'ier,r'of Logos: What Do We Nfean by the "Logical Structure" of an Angument?

As you will recall from our discussion of the rhetorical triangle' /ogos refers to the strength of an argument's suppod and its internal consistency. Logos is the urgo-"ri,, logical structure. But what do we mean by "logical structure"?

Formal Logic versus Real-Wbrld Logic

First of all, what we don't mean by logical structure is the kind of precise certanty you get in a philosophy class in formal logc. Logc classes deal with ry*oii. asiertions that are universal and unchanging, such as "If all ps are qs and if r s a p, then r is a q." This statement is logically cedain so long as p, q, and. r are pure abstractions. But in the real world, p, q, aJld r tum into actual ihitrgs, and the relationships among them suddenly become fuzzy. For exampte, p mignt be a class of actions called "Sexual Harassment," while q could be ine ctasJcatled 'Actions That Justifz Dismissal from a Job." If r is the class *Telling off-color stories," then the logic of our p-q-r statement suggests that telling off-color stories (r) is an instance of sexual harassment (p), which in turn is an action justiffing dismissal foom one's ob (A) Now, most of us would agree that sexual harassment is a serious offense that might well justify dismissaj from a job. In turn, we might agree that telling off-coloi stories, if the jokes are sufficiently raunchy and are inflicted on an unwilling audience, constitutes sexual harassment. But few of us would want to say categorically that all people who tell off-color stories are harassing their Iisteners and ought to be fired. Most of us rvould want to know the particulars of the case before making a final judgment. In the real world, then, it is difcult to sa1' that rs are always ps or that every instance of a p results in q. That is rtl-Lv rve discourage studenls fiom
73

74

PART

Writing an Argumeni

usingtheword'proueinclaimstheywriteforarguments(asin..Thispaperwillprove proue anytling' They can that eutharrasia is wrong"). Real-world *go-"tttt seldom more or less
is more or less strong' only make a good case fir something, a case that strengthen the resolve of those who pr'"[r". Oftin the U"ri y* can ho"pe for is to oppose you' igree with you or weaken the resistance of those who

The Role of AssumPtions A key difference, then, between forma] logic

we shall see, they

and real.world a.rgument is that real-

worldargr.rmentsare,'otg,o..''aedinabstract,universalstatements.Rather,as granted by the

U" giounded in beliefs' assumptions' or values difference is that in reJ-world arguments these beliefs' audience. A second t-il as writer and. audience share the assumptions, o, uut.r".'ur" often unstated. so long But if these underlying assumptions same assumptions, it,s fine to leave them unstated. aren't shared, the writer has a problem'

-.,rt

Toillustratetttenato,"ofthisproblem'consideroneoftheargumentsweintroduced in the last chaPter.

Womenshouldbeallowedtojoincombatunitsbecausetheimageofwomenincombat
would help eliminate gender stereotypes' is persuasive only if the on the face of it, this is a plausible argument. But the argument that it is a good thing to eliminate gender audience agrees with the'*titer', asstimption men as ;;""b,pd The writer assumes that gnder stereotyping (for example, seeingand that and childien back home) is harmfl are protecting the women

the fighters who gender roles. But whSt if Vou believed that society would be better off wirout such fixed divinely intended', or otherwise culturally essome gender ,ol"s u1." niotoglcalty based, these gender roles rather than dismiss sential and that ,o"i"ty ,nout'a strirre to maintain case, you mrght believe asla consequence that them as "stereotypes"i tf such were the ,rt fighters, and that some essential our culture sho'ld socialize women to be nurtLrerr, ,,womanhood" would be at risk if women served in combat' If these were your trait of

you would reject beliefs, the argument wouldn't work for you because .lb of reasoning, the writer wo'ld have to show persuade you wrtt, trris assumption. -tn. gender stereotypes but also why not only how women in ombat would help eliminate sociry would be better off without them. these sreot,pes are harmful and why

its underlying

The Core of an Argument: The Enthymeme to join combat The previous core argument ("women should be alloived

units would help eliminate gender stereotypes") is because the image of #omen in combat

anincompletelogicalstructurecalledanenthymeme.Itspersuasivenessdependson or belief that the urrdi"n.. must accept. To complete the an underlying "*"-p;; it effective, the audience mnst rrillingly supply a missing enthymeme an mai.e and should be eliminated' premise-in this case, that gender stereotypes are hamftrl

CHAPTER

The Logical Structure of

Arguments

75

The Greek philosopher Aristotle showed how successful enthymemes root the speaker's argrment in assumptions, beliefs, or values held by the audience. The word, enthymeme comes from the Greek en (meaning "in") and thumos (meaning "mind"). Listeners or readers must have "in mind" an assumption, beliel or value that lets them willingly supply the missing premise. If the audience is unwilling to
supply the missing premise, then the argument fails. Our point is that successful arguments depend both on what the alguer says and on what the audience already has "in mind." To clariff the concept of "enthymeme," let's go over this same territory again more slowly, examining what we mean by "incomplete logical structure." The sentence "Women should be allowed to join combat units because the image of women in combat would help eliminate gender stereotypes" is an enth''rneme' It combines a claim (women should be allowed to join combat units) with a reason expressed as a because clause (because the image of women in combat would help eliminate gender stereomust willingly supply Wpes). To render this enthymeme logically complete, the audience a missing assumption-that gender stereotypes are harmful and should be eliminated. If your audience accepts this assumption, then you have a starting place on which to build an effective argument. If your audience doesn't accept this assumption, then you must supply another argument to support it, and so on until you find common ground with your audience.
To sum up:

1. Claims are supported with reasons. You cari usually state a reason as a because clause attached to a claim (see Chapter 3). 2. A because clause attached to a claim is an incomplete logical structure called an enthymeme. To create a complete logical structure from an enthymeme, the underlying assumption (or assumptions) must be articulated. 3. To serve as an effective starting point for the argument, this underlying assumption should be a belief, value, or princrple that the audience grants. Let's illuskate this structure by putting the preous example into schematic form.

ENTHYMEME
CLAIM Women should be allowed to

join combat

units i
would i

n:l!-'l'1.'-'l-'_9":d.':T:.:"tvp:::
Audience must supply this ossumption

REASON because the image of women in combat

-.-.. -

-"i

------7

76

PARI

Wriiing an Argument

I I ffi

FOR CTASS DISCUSSION ldentifying Underlying Assumptions

Working individually or in small groups, identifi the unstated assumption that the audience must supply in order to make the following enthymemes persuasive.

Example
EnthJ'rneme: Rabbits make good pets because they are gentle.

Underlying assumption: Gentle animals make good pets.

1. We shouldn't elect Joe as committee chair because he is too bossy. 2. Drugs should not be legalized because legalization would greatly increase the

number of drug addicts. 3. Airport screeners should use racial prof,ling because doing so will increase the
odds of stopping terrorists.

4. Racial profiling should not be used by airport screeners because it violates a person's civil rights. 5. We should strengthen the Endangered Species Act because doing so will preserve genetic diversity on the Planet. 6. The Endangered Species Act is too stringent because it severely damages the economy.

ff#

I I

Adopting a Language for Describing Arguments: The Toulmin System

Understanding a new field usually requires us to learn a new vocabulary. For example, if you were taking biology for the first time, you'd have to memorize dozens and dolens of new terms. Luckily, the field of argument requires us to learn a mere handful of new terms. A particularly useful set of argument terms, one we'll be using occasionally throughout the rest of this text, comes from philosopher Stephen Toulmin. In the 19-50s, Toulmin rejected the prevailing models of argument based on forrnal logic in favor of a very audience-based courtroom model. Toulmin's courlroom model differs from formal logic in that it assumes that (1) all asserlions and assumptions are contestable by "opposing counsel" and that (2) all final "verdicts" about the persuasiveness of the opposing arguments will be rendered by a neutral third party, a judge or jury. As writers, keeping in mind the "opposing counsel" forces us to anticipate counterarguments and to question our assumptions. Kping in mind the judge and jury reminds us to answer opposing arguments fi.rlly, without rancor, and to present positive reasons for supporting our case as well as negative reasons for disbelieving the opposing case. Above all else, Toulmin's model reminds us not to consfluct an algument that appeals only to those who already agree with us. In short, it helps arguers tailor arguments to their audiences. The system we use for analyzing arguments combines Toulmin's language with Aristotle's concept of the enthymeme. It builds on the system you have already been

Grou

the rt

practicing. We simply need to add a few key terms from Toulmin. The first tern is Toulmin's warrant, the name we will now use for the r-rnclerlf ing assumption that tums an enthymeme into a complete logical structure as sho$I at the top of page 77. Toulmin derives his term warrantfromthe concept of "u-ananf" or "guarantee." The warrant is the value, belief, or princrple that the audience has to hold if the soundness of

CHAPTER

The Logical Structure of Arguments

77

ENTHYMEME
CLAIM Women should be allowed io

join combat units

REASON because the image of women in combat help eliminate gender stereotypes.
i:{r

would

:.e::-i,:it\:.:i:a.-.1- j:

similar use of this the argument is to be guaranteed or warranted. we sometimes make unwarranted conclusion," mearung word il ordinary l*goug" when we say, "That is an about that situation orre fra, leaped-florriinfrmation about a situation to a conclusion "warrant" at move. Thus the warrantwithout any sort of general principle to justify or

Ell

orr"" u"""pt"d by the audience-"guarantees" the soundness of the argument' are simply tsut argu.ments need more ran claims, reasons, and warrants. These not a developed argument' To one-sentence statements-the frame of an argument, we need what give body and weight to our arguments and make them convincing, "calls grounds. Grounds are the supportgrouids and, backiig. Let's start with T"i-i" facts, data, ing evidence at cause an audience to accept your reason. Grounds are blood and muscle that flesh sttistics, causal links, testimony, examples, anLcdotes-the grounds are "what out the skeletal frame of yod enthymeme. Toulmin suggests that point to and present before a yo., huu" to go on" in an argum"trt-ttt" stuff you can jury. Hete is ow grounds fit into our emerging argument schema'
I

],

ENTHYMEME units

i
i
'

i
I

,,'ti CLAIM Women should be allowed to join combat

i L^ -^-A^stereotypes' elimnate gender - ]- nfnSOru because the mage of women in combat would help

Grounds supPort
the eoson

.lr,txu*4er!{pwini

,:.,, sr

now the

imager:w-qen. inb..:j .pqd{t}c:ri,,{f !Vc:tu:K

hing, gun

from a toxrrore;,eii raoing,,rti.lterv .1'Ve4ri.'{o.qq!F hg;pfqqi, ,l,'

,. i

9tr.typeir.or'r{aman as soft and nqturing,r,,,,...,,.

r..,,,rqr

nshowthe rh*k

i*;r;i@*

*;

gender stereotyPes.

assumption behind the reason, and grounds. If the audice already accepts the unstated

claim, a In many cases, successfi-rl arguments require jrst these three components: a

unstated and reason'(the,al.rarrt), then the warrant .- iut t'remain in the background is a chance that the audience will question or doubt the warrant' unexamined. But if there Backingts lhe then the writer needs to back it up by providing an argument in its support ' or two sentences or argument that supports the warrant. It may require no mole than one

as much as a major-section in your argument. Its goal is to persuade the audience to accept the warant. Here is how backingis added b ur schema:

/,/ Cender stereotypes are harmful and should be liminatd. . ., , Backing supports the warrlnt :*#[:; .owing why gender stereotypes are harmrui. . \ . Macho mate steregtypes keep men:from devel_o)ping
:

.WARRANT

..

theil nurtuing side:

'
'

'

Girly'girr stereotyperhinder women from devetoping'power and

autonomy.

promoting equality between genders

Exampfes of benefits that would corne from eiiminaiing gender stereolypes such as

Toulmin's system next asks us to imagine how a resistant audience would try to refute our argument. Specifically, the advrsarial audience might challerg" or'. "uson and grounds by showing how letting women become .ombut soldie wouldn,t do much to end gender stereotyping. orine adversary might attack our warrant and backing by showing how some gerr", stereotypes u. *olh keeping. In the case of the argument supporting .-"n in combat, an ?dversary might offer one or more of the followirrg ,"buttulr,ENTHYMEME
CLAIM Women should be allowed to join combat units
REASON because the mage of women in combat would eliminate gender stereotypes.

Writer must anticipate these attocksfrom skeptics

CONDITIONS OF REBUTTAT
A skeptic cqn

attackthe reason and grounds

CROUNDS
. Examples showing how the image of women in comlrat gear packing a rifle. driving a tanlt firing a machine gun
from a foxhole, or radiong in artillery would counter the prevailing stereotypes of women as sofi and nurturjng. . Arguments showing how the shock impact of these combai images would help elimlnate gender stereoiypes

Arguments that letting women serve in combat wouldn't eliminate gender stereotypes

:-

t&l

. Few women would join combat units.

. Those who did would be considered freaks.

u
.}

:--.-

. Most girls would still dentify with Barbie

dolls, not women as combat solders.

WARRANT
Gendet Stereotypes are:harmful and,should be elminated.

A skeptic can attock the

BACKING
:,Argumelts showing why:gender stereotypes are harrnful

POSSIBLE CONDITIONS OF REBUTTAL worront ond bocking

. Macho rnale stefeqtypes keep men from deveopifig

their nurturing side

Arguments showing that it is important to mantan traditonal distinctons between men and women . These role differences are

biologically

I Grly.girl sterectypes hiner women from developing

power and autonomy

determined. divinely inspired, or otherwise important cuiturally.

I Examples of benefits thaf would come from eliminating

gender stereotypes such as,prmotng equality betwben genders

. Women s strength is in nurturing, not fighting. . \atrr-e of rvomanhood woufd be

sullied by

D-1;t'e r,onten n combat.

78

As this example shows, adversadal readers can question an argument's reasons and grounds or its warrant and backing or sometimes both. Conditions of rebuttal remind writers to look at their arguments lrom the perspective of skeptics. The same principle can be illustrated in the follorving analysis of an argument that cocaine and heroin should be legalized.

ENTHYMEME

legalized REASON because legalization would elimnate the black market in drugs.
CLAIM Cocaine and heroin should be

CONDITIONS OF REBUTTAL Attacking the reason and grounds

,

'
.
a

. Arguments showing that legalzing cocaine and heroin would not eliminate the black
market in drugs

. Perhaps taxes on the drugs woufd keep the GROUNDS

Statistjcal evidence and'arguments showing how legalimtion would end black market: 'r
costs above black market prices

. Perhaps new kinds of illegal designer drugs

would be developed and sold on the black
market

. Statisti(s and data showng the size of the current tllack market

. Exarnpies,'anecdotes; facts Showing how the btatA maket

works :eptics . Causal expfanation showing that selllng coqaine and heroin leglly in stale-controlled stors would lower price and eliminaie drug dealers

CONDITIONS OF REBUTTAL Attscking the utarrsnt and bocking

Arguments showing that ihe benefits of eliminating the black market are outweighed by the costs . The number of new drug users and addcts would be unacceptably high. . The health and economic cost of treating addiciion would be too high. . The social costs of selling drugs legally in liquor stores would bring harmful change to our cultural values.

nds
bat

WARRAIIIT:,
Elimina-tJng
th._e.

,blck

' ,',..' "':, . 'r n'drugs,ii,.' :r,, good maltgt

BACKING
statistics,and exmpls, about ihe.ifl:.effecis of :the blrk,nla{kFf . The high cost of the black market to crime viims . The high cost to taxpayers of waging the war aganst drugs

. The.h$fi eosf.olprjsoni to house incarcerated drug oeler,.

. vignce that, hgepifitqmke {rug'deafing:mor,attlactivq

than ordinary

jobi

.AL
1<ing

tn

riing.
ry

Toulmin's final term, used to limit the force of a claim and indicate the degree of its probable truth, is qualifier. The qualifier reminds us that real-world arguments almost never prove a claim. We may say things such as uery likelg, probablg, or maybe to indicate the strength of the claim we are willing to draw from our grounds and warrant. Thus if there are exceptions to your warrant or if your grounds are not very strong, you will have to qualify your claim. For example, you might say, "Except in rare cases, women should not be allon'ed tn combat units," or "With full awareness of the potential dangers, I suggest r,r'e consider the option of legalizing drugs as a way of ending the ill effects of the black market." In our future displays of the Toulmin scheme we will omit the quahfiers. but vou should always remember that no argument is 100 percent persuasive.

80

PART

Writing an Argumenl

ffi

'

FOR CTASS DISCUSSION evelop*;rg fimt"rrya*c,*rcs *",!th tlst 3h*!m: $eiema

Working individually or in small groups, imagine that you have to write arguments developing the six enthymemes listed in the For Class Discussion exercise on page 76. Use the Toulmin schema to help you determine what you need to consider when developing each enthymeme. We suggest that you try a four-box diagram structure as a way of visualizing the schema. We have applied the Toulmin schema to the first enthymeme: "We shouldn't elect Joe as committee chair because he is too bossy."
CONDITIONS OF REBUTTAL Attocktng the reason and grounds
Evidence that Joe is not bossy or is only occasionally bossy

ENTHYMEME
CLAIM We shouldn't elect Joe as committee chair REASON because he is too bossy.

GROUNDS
Evidence of Joe s bossiness

. Counterevidence showing his collaborative style

. Testimony from people who have liked Joe as a Ieader and claim he isn't bossy; testimony about his cooperativeness and kindness . Testimony that anecdotes about Joe's bossiness aren't typical

. Examples of the way he dominaies meeiings-doesn't call on people, talks too much . Testimony aboui his bossiness from people who have served wth him on committees
. Anecdotes about his abrasive style

WARRANT
Bossy people make bad committee chairs.

CONDITIONS OF REBUTTAT Attocking the warrant and backing . Arg,uments that bossiness can be a good trait . Sometimes bossy people make good chairpersons.
. Argument that this committee needs a bossy person who can make decisions and get things done. . Argument that Joe has other traits of good Ieadership that outweigh his bossiness

BACKING
Problems caused by bossy committee chairs

. Bossy people don't inspire cooperation and enthusiam . Bossy people make others angry. . Bossy people tend to make bad decisions because
they don't inmrporate advie from others

ffiN

{Jsixrg Tomlmil's $c}rerna

to tr}etermine
of

a Stratery of Suppoxt
So far we have seen that a claim, a reason, and a warrant form the frame for a line

reasoning in an argument. Most of the words in an argument. however, are devoted to grounds and backing. For an illushation of how a writer can use the Torlu-r schema to generate ideas for an argument, consider the following case ln \pri1 2005, the Texas house of

CHAPTER

The Logcal Structure of Arguments

81

Across the nation, representatives passed a bill barrring "sexually suggestive" cheerleading. nut at the bill, while newspaper editorialists debated t"l",ri"in show comics pota "ulning students, including its wisdom and constitutionaliqt. In one of our classes, however, several letter in competitive cheerleading, defended the one who had eamed a high scirool varsity cheerleading' In bill by contending that prvocative dance moves hurt the athletic image of ideas developed in class disryssion, we create a hythe following exrple, which draws on of the Texas bill' pothetical stirdent ririter (we'll call her Chandale) who argues in defense following enthyneme: thandale's argument is based on the

The cheerleading bill to ban suggestive dancing is good because

female cheerleaders as athletes rather than exotic dancers'

it

promotes a view of

her argument' Chandale used the Toulmin schema to brainstorm ideas for developing
Here are her notes:

Ghandale's Planning Notes Using the Toulmin Schema

it promotes Enth5nneme: The cheerleading bill to ban suggestive dancing is good because as athletes rather than exotic dancers. a ew of female cheerleaders Grounds: First, I've got to use edence to show that that cheerleaders are athletes'

ffi

and skill after Cheerleaders at my high school are carefully chosen for their stamina trYouts. exhausting two-week
ex-

m We begin all practices with a mile run and an hour of warm-up exercises-also

pectedio work out on our own for at least an hour on weekends and on days without
comperitive routines and stunts consisting of litu, tosses, flips, catches, and for hours gymnastic *ou.r. This requires athletic ability! We'd practice these stunts
each week. cheerleaders have to atiend practices, camps, and workshops to learn new routines and stunts. Our squad competed in competitions around the state'

. fil"ilfi.o
ons.

erson

ffi Throughout the year

& {*

eaa

sl

of Competitive cheerleading is a growing movement across the counhy-University it a varsity sport for women' Maryland has made making women eye Skimpy uniforms ald suggestive dance moves destroy this image by
candy like the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders'

warrant: It is a good thing to ew female

Backing: Now I need to make the
than as eye candY.
case

cheerleaders as athletes.

that it is good to see cheerleaders as athletes rather

#
w

Athiec competition builds self-esteem. inclependence, a powerful sense of achievementcontributes to health' strength, conditiontng' of both competitive cheerleading is one of the fe$ sporls where teams ale made up (Why is this good? Should I use this?) men and women.

82

PART

Writing an Argument

ffi The suggestive dalce ffi

moves turn women into sex objects whose function is to be gazed at by men-suggests that women's value is based on their beauty and sex appeal.

We are talking about HIGH SCHOOL cheerleading-very bad early influence on girls to model themselves on Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders or sexy MTV deos of rock stars.

s Junior high girls want to do what senior high girls do-suggestive dance moves promote sexuality way too early.

Conditions of Rebuttal: Would anybody try to rebut my reasons and grounds that cheerleading is an athletic actity?

ffi No. I think it is obous that cheerleading is an atlrletic actir,rty once they see my evidence. ffi However, they might not think of dreerleading as a sport. They might say that the

University of Maryland just declared it a sport as a cheap way to meet Title IX federal rules to have more women's sports. I'11 have to make sure that I show this is really a sport.

TheY also might say that competitive cheerleading shouldn't be encouraged because it is too dangerous-lots ofserious injuries including paralysis have been caused by mistakes in doing flips, lifu, and tosses. If I include this, maybe I could say that other sports are dangerous also-and it is in fact danger that makes this sport so exciting.

Would anyone doubt my walrant and backing that it is good to see female cheerleaders
as athletes?

Yes, all those people who laughed at the Texas legislature think that people are being too prudish and that banning suggestive dance moves violates free expression. I'I ned to make my case that it is bad for young girls to see themselves as ser objects too early.

of the case-the hard data she will use as edence to support her contention that cheerleading is an athletic actity. The paragraph that follows shows how this argument might look when placed into written form. First Part of Chandale's Argument Although evening telesion show comedians have made fun of the Texas legislature,s desire to ban "suggestive" dance moves ?om cheerleading routines, I applauJ this bill because it promotes a healthy view of female cheerleaders as athletes rather than showgrrls. I was lucky enough to attend a high school where cheerleading is a sport, and I

The information that Chandale lists under "grounds" is what she sees as the facts

earrred a varsity letier as a cheerleader. To get on my high school's cheerleadingsquad, students have to go through an exhausting two-week tryout of workouts and instruction in the basic routines; then they are chosen based on their stamina and skill. Once on the squad, cheerleaders begin ail practices with a mile run and an hour of grueling warrn-up exercises and are expected to exercise on their own on weekends. As a result of this regimen, cheerleaders achieve and maintain a top level of physical fihess. In addition, to get n the squad, students must be able to do handstands, cartwheels, handsprings, high jumps, and the splits. Each year the squad blds up to its complex routines and strurh .or.iirting of lifu, tosses, flips, catches, and gymnastic moves that only trained athletes can do. In tough competitions at the regional and state levels, the cheerleading squad demonstrates its athletic talnt. This

CHAPTER

The Logical Structure of Arguments

83

viewofcheerleadingasacompetitiv",!olisalsospreadingtocolleges.Asreported y of arytan has made cheerleading

if-'. "i".*t of this recently io u n,rmber'"*."p'qi"*. are ?"i*"g ,oit. Athl.ti. performance varsity spor1. and many oil1.i *iu.rriiies school g'ls often associate with hi'gh dancing. thal ;;t cauber is a far cry tro tne sexy routines. the Texas legislah'e

*.rg.in cheerleading. By b**.;';;gg"Jo". cheerleading' r;t tTn"""rt t" empniize the athleticism of oppo't'-t*tf creates

.n.tf.ahg

Asyoucansee,Chandalehasplentyofevidenceforarguingthatcompetitive sexy dani'rg' But how effective i, * utnilu|f,;bri,g. alfferent from Toulmin schema encourages all she needs? The is this argument as it ,Jrilrir"r support for their wartne inteneA audience-explicit writers to include-ir ""1J" rt national for rebuttal. Becauseihe overwhelming
cheerteading rants as well as

*"r-iic'le response to the Texas to expand her argument as follows: Chandate decides
as a sport 9r \Arhether we see cheerleading

"tt"rrd;;;;;;i*", i"*

the legislators' at the perceived prudishness of

Gontinuation of Chandale's Argument T

The erotic dan."

*;;;;;r*y f"g *hg"l "tt"d*d".r".tow incorporate intoon MTV' Our iiarl g1rr"vr cheerleadSl .or pop sta]S to liiile girls) show that they are ffi"d;. clothing marketed fthink of tri"'*d"$iu. already sexually lt wor'rld be far '";;;**; th"i, uutu. uy tt1?i, beauty and sex appeal' aihpushes girls *a *ori.i*tl .l**" cerleaders were identified as
dgh tthool

for women' ,"rry dancing is a1 important issue

their routines

healier, bo physrcally and psychologitdy 'f pride in team.orp.tltrve chee?teading can build sell-esleem, letes. For women *l-]"" uott,. strength' and fihress' as well as prmote health, work, and a powerlul sense of achievement, saying'that cheerleading isn't to-cgmqgtitive tn"JJ"*e by Some people might object -nuu" of makins cheerleadi-ng a vare'University of MarylanJ really a ,porf . So*. But anvJne who has watched as a sity sporl only 1i'ri t "qui'tnr' to o: high into the air' be [ke *'a
competibive

knowsinstinctivelythat-thisisasportindeed.tnfact.otherpersonsmightobjecl,tocompeti. injuries including dangeto"' JU" f*"ntial ior "-t: t:** grrntive cheerleading because it is too
paratysis. The danger nastics, diving, or tmmpoline. u-tl.t of what can make courage and training erotic dancers is the

i..*"4 ii ;;; ;;;;i;**,s ;;iJ ^ug*ti*h"t "r""noii!'

9:*

generate can use the Toulmin schema to Our example suggests how a writer on her personal exh*d"l" draws primarily ideas fbr * **,"",ii?;;;";.;, *a on n". knowiedge of pttnular culture' She periences u, u .t of ""rt"ud"r/u,H"," o"*rpup.r, anicls abour'the universiff a draws on her reading o[ several also rather than a varsity tfi* on - academic,paper Maryland's making ;;;;;";t"g through formal cita,"'*""f?"" to o.rrm"nt these sources can be supported newspaper "itoriA, depeld on research' mary tions.) Altho,rgft -uttf arguments so don't neglect the wealth of or in parr *"*ty"ffH;;;;;J;"p"""""r, wholly

including fooiball' .d*s-but so are many sports, is part of its appeal' Part * am.rrltv of the sport as . U"tt". tof. tn"deh for girls than cheerleaders * ;;;'."d.r, legislators success' of course' the Texas ,r""J. for u*". suggestive dancing' They mighi l.ra ,lrl.ri"J* i" **d #;;"v might not have models we set for or r".rrri"iat slake |i" me _t()t" only have been promobing their sion every time' over a Dallas cowboys cheerleader ;,it;;t'fr"rt'* "tir*e

Obri"*;;#I

84

PART

Writing an Argument

evidencefromyourownlifewhensearchingfordata.Amoredetaileddiscussion 5' of evidence in arguments occurs in Chapter

II:i+FoRctAssDls(UssloNReasons,Warrants,andConditionsofRebuttal use evidence to in small $oups, consider ways you could 1. Working -;;ilrily;r following paltial arguments. support"ttre stated rason in each of these a.Anotherreasontoopposeastatesalestaxisthatitissoannoying. b.Rapmusichasabadinfluenceonteenagersbecauseitpromotesdisrespect
for women'

c.Prof'essorXisanoutstandingteacherbecausehe(she)generouslyspends students with personal problems' so much time outside of class Jounseling in each of the partial argumenLs in 2. Now create arguments to support the warr;ts are stated below' exercise f . ff'E *utt*tt foiach of the arguments
taxes that are annoying' a. Support this warrant: We should oppose for women' b. Support this warrant: It is bad to promote disrespect

c.Supportthiswarrant:Timespentcorrnselingstudentswithpersonalproblemsis teachers' an important criterion for identi$ing outtanding the of rebual,-work out a strategy for refuting either 3. Using rori-lr', conditions of the p."amg arguments' stated reasons or the warrants o, uotn in each

fffi

I I

The Power of Audience-Based Reasons

and Toulmin's concept As we have seen, both Aristotle,s concept of the enthymeme create what we will now call "audienceof the warran; f;t on the arguer's '-t""d to a given piece of writing is persuasive' based reasonr.i !,*"u"'^ yoit ask whether "Persirasive to whom?" \44rat seems like a the immediat"'.qoirra". rftla always be, Finding audience-based reagood reason to you may not te a god reason to others. audience ll accept-that is' sons means #j|g uigu-"rrt ..ihor" warrants the and values. arguments effecnvty,Jot"a in your audience's beliefs

Difference tretween writer-Based and Audience-Based Reasons

audience-based reasons' consider the To illustrate the difference between writer-based and

followinghypotheticalcase.Supposeyoubelievedthatthegovemmentshorrldbuildadam by. several environmental groups' on the ,r"*uy nupia River-a iroject bitterly opposed ,se to address environmentalists? \\4rich of the following two argumnts might you
River because the only altema1. The govemment should build a dam on the Rapid

tiu"po*",,o',cesarecoal-firedornuclearplants,bothofwhichposegreaterrisk
to the environment than a hydroelectric dam'

2.T\egovernmentshouldbuildahydroelectric{amontheRapidRiverbecause
this area needs cheap power to attract healy indusr'

CHAPTER

The Logical Structure of Arguments

85

to the environment,) ir warrant of argument

the Clearly,thewarrantofargumentl(..Choosethesourceofpowerthatposesleastnsk of environmentalists' whereas

,'f;"**;r -i*uy '' g""d"l is likely to make smokesl"acks' and more means to'" tJng"'O-*'T?l: environmentalists. new indushy or to the business ffi;ffi:;;;;; t ft"*ito.lut *ag4e,il;"#1y1" p'*"'

r""i"f -

the values

*Ju"tl"rt

them wince' To

laborers may appeal Lo oitof *otL oolluhion. However, argument'2 more iobs and a boomins economv' n-"* indushy means are uru'gt'*"ntt and2 are both sourd' They From the pe"pettiu" of logic alone' will affect different they ternally consistent that the government should build Neither argument audrences very differeniiy' lor example' might "rr,ri.on*""Isb' any power plant at rhe dam; both are "O#1"';;jijioi."e*rionolt" why the S11--*'needs to build power counter argument 1 by asking would obviate the need for a new all. They could argue ,;""":rso "or-r""ution in ways unforehurts the environment plant. or they might ",9. thuL afgument 1 will nersuade environi*iL point. then. seen by dam supporr"rS. orrr p"rrua,iui than argument 2 o* poi* is ihat argument I willbe moreaudrence shares' mentalists. Rather. ;li;;r-;JrJi"r that the intended because ir is rooted student Gordon uy r"tu*itrg to chapter 1 and Let,s consider a second example as you h; -"in *""ement.-Gordon's centralInargument' terms' Adams,s petition ," Toulmin's would hurr" ,ro need for algebra' will reca', was that as a lawyer he this: Gordon's argument looks like

"td;;?ffid-t

;;;;

V:lI
ENTHYMEME

;;.ii;!i4

-!e+iP4",e+"J

Stated explcitly

in Gordon's argumenl

CLAIM:lshouldbeexemptedffomthealgebrarequirement have no need for algebra in my chosen field of law I will

REASON: because
""i i'''rei-:r':' 11-'e-'lt eli':::"'::i

".".:'i'-j:il::i:li:::

arqument Fully developed in Gordon's

GROUNDS
. Testimony,frofi1-r,"voy51r,

tlte'-{q

a e':s'

usel.gJ-qrl1 Left unstated in Gordon's argument

Missing Jrom Gordon's argument

generally vote to supwith students and faculty, students the Llniversity g"ne.aity*rroug"it;t it' And itt tatt' port Gordon,s request, *#;f""rlry into law school' ehyrng nls eltrv rejected Gordon's petirlon. rr,*

In our discussions of this

case

Standards comrruttee

diller because differ on this issuei IUarnty they \Mhy do faculty aiJ students should serve stugeneral_ education requirements faculty ieject Gordorr'r-r,Ju-*t-rfrat courses' ftl"U facult'believe thJt general education dents, individ,rA .*"". iii"t"*.

86

PART

Writing an Argument

including math, provide a base of common learning that links us to the past and
teaches us modes of understanding useful throughout life. Gordon's aqgument thus challenges one of college professors' most cherished beliefsthat the liberal arts and sciences are irurately valuable. Further, it threatens his immediate audience, the committee, with a possible flood of student requests to waive other general education requirements on the grounds of their irrelevance to a particular career choice. How might Gordon have created a more persuasive argument? In our view, Gordon

Cot

might have prevailed had he accepted the faculty's belief in the value of the math requirement and argued that he had fulfilled the "spirit" of that requirement through
altemative means. He could have based his argr-rment on an enthymeme like this: I should be exempted from the algebra requirement because my experience as a contractor and inventor has already proded me with equivalent mathematical knowledge. Following this audience-based approach, he would drop all references to algebra's
uselessness for lawyers and expand his discussion of the mathematical sawy he acquired

WR]

on the job. This argument would honor faculty values and reduce the faculty's fear of set-

ting a bad precedent. Few students are likely to have Gordon's background, and those who do could apply for a similar exemption without threatening the system. Again, this argument might not have won, but it would have gotten a more s1'rnpathetic hearing.

at'.

FOR cl_AsS

DlscussloN

Audience-Based Reasons

Working in groups, decide which of the two reasons offered in each instance would be more persuasive to the specified audience. Be prepared to explain your reasoning to the class. Write out the implied warrant for each because clause and decide whether the specific audience would likely grant it.
1. Audience: people who advocate a pass/fail grading system on the grounds that the present grading system is too competitive a. We should keep the present grading system because it prepares people for the dog-eat-dog pressures of the business world.

b. We should keep the present grading system because it tells students that certain
standards of excellence must be met if individuals are to reach their frrll potential.

2. Audience: young people

ages fifteen to twenty-five

a. You should become a vegetarian because an all-vegetable diet lower your cholesterol.

will help you

a vegetarian because doing so wiJl heip eliminate the suffering of animals raised in factory farrns. 3. Audience: conservative proponents of "family values"

b. You should become

a. same-sex marriages should be legalized because dorng so will promote public acceptance of homosexuality.

b. Same-sex marriages should be legalized because dorng so will make

for gay people to establish and sustain iong-term. stable

relationships.

it

easier
ii.{

I I

CHAPTER

The Logical Structure of

Arguments

87

Conclusion
that the chapters 3 and 4 have provided an anatomy of argument. They have shown reasons that usually can be summarized in one or core of an argument is claim with and more because clauses attached to the claim. Often, it is as important to articulate in your argumen]-lwarrants) as it is to support support the underlying assumptions your audience's the stated reasons b".u'nt" a successful argument should be rooted in audience-based argument strategy, alguers can beliefs and values. In order to plan an and backing use the Toulmin schema, whic helps writers discover grounds, warrants, through conditions of rebuttal' Finally' we for their arguments and to test them in showed how the use of audience-based reasons helps you keep your audience a plan for an argument' mind from the start whenever you design

WRITING ASSIGNMENT Plan of an Argument's Details

t'''...

,',

1"

,'

.'.,:, ,1.,''...,','1,

This assignment asks you to return to the working thesis statement that you created of for the bef writing assignment in Chapter 3. From that thesis statement extract one clauses). Write out the walrant with one of your because your enthym"*"r fuont "f'o. "laim yor,, Lnthymeme. Then use the Toulmin schema to brainstorm the details you into a might use (grounds, backing, conditions of rebuttal) to convert your enthymeme planning notes on pages 81-82' fl"h"d-o.ri"*g,.-ent. Use r yo.n model Chandale's Like the rief assignm"ni for Chapter 3, this is a process-oriented brainstorming You task aimed at helping fou generate ideas for one part of your classical argument' you compose the actual argument' may end up cfr*gt"gyoni id"ur substantially as
What follows is Carmen's submission for this assignment'

Carmen's Plan for Pa of an Argument

girls because Enth5nneme: First-person-shooter (FPS) video games are great activities for these games gives girls new insights into male subculture' playing Grounds: I,ve got to show the insights I learned into male subculture.

m The

guys who play these video games are intensely competitive'

mTheycanplayforhourswithoutstopping-intenseconcentration. m They don't multitask-no small taik during the games; total focus on playing. 6 They take delight in winning at all costs-they boast with every kitl; they call each

other losers.

The/ often seem homophobic or misogynist' m They put each other down by cailing opponents "faggot" and "wussy," or other
similar names that are totally obscene' ru They associate victory with being macho'

wamant: It

is beneficial

for a girl to get these hsights into male subculhrre.

II

Backing: How can I show these benefits?

88

PART

2 s
ffi ffi

Writing an Argument

Although I enjoy winning at FPS games, as a girl I feel alienated from this male subculture. I'm glad that I don't feel the need to put everyone else down' It was a good learning experience to see how grls'way of bonding is very different from that ofdoys; girls ten to be nicer to each other rather than insulting each other.

rH The game atmosphere tends to bring out these traits; guys don't talk this way so much when they are doing other things. w This experience helped me see rny men may progress faster than women in a competitive business environment-they seem programmed to crush each other and they devote enornous energy to the Process. ss \A,hat else can I say? I need to think about this fufther'

Conditions of Rebuttal: would anybody lry to rebut my reasons and grounds?

s: evidence is pretiy convincing that males put each other down, concentrate intensely, use homophobic or misogynist insults, etc' es However, some guys may say "Hey, I don't talk that way," etc'

I think my

s
ffi

Maybe people would say that my sample is biased'

Would anyone try to rebut my warrant and backing?

Skeptics may say that girls are just as mean to each other as guys are, but they display their meanness in a different way

For additional

writing, reading, and research resources, g0 t0

www.mycomplab.com

t$s*:mffi ffiwffi#wmcm

K##ffi wffi$

'

In Chapters 3 and 4 we introduced you to the concept of /ogos-the logical

structuie of reasons and edence in an argument-and showed you how an effective argument advances the writer's claim by linking its supporting reasons to one or more assumptions, beliefs, or values held by the intended audience. In this chapter, we tlrm to the uses of edence in argument. By "edence," we mean a the verifiable infonnation a writer might use as support for an argument, such as facts, observations, examples, cases, testimony, experimental findings, survey data, statistics, and so forth. In Toulmin's terms, evidence is palt of th "grounds" or "backing" of an argument in support of rea.sons or warrants. I" thlr chapter, ." rho* you how to use evidence effectively. We begtn by explaining r-. general principles for the persuasive use of edence. Next we d-escribe and illustrate various kinds of edence and then present a rhetorical way to think about evidence, particularly the way writers select and frame evidence to support the writer's reasons while simultaneously gurding and limiting what the reader sees. By understanding the rhetorical use of evidence, yorr"-ltt better understand how to use edence ethically, responsibly, and peisuasively in your own arguments. We conclude the chapter by suggesting straiegis to help you gather edence for your arguments, including adce on conducting interviews and using questionnaires'

The Persuasive [Jse of Evidence

Consider a target audience of educated, reasonable, and careful readers who approach an issue with healthy skepticism, open-minded but cautious. \44rat demands would such readers make on a writer's use of evidence? To begin to answer that question, let's look at some general principles for using evidence
persuasively.

Apply the STdR Criteria to Evidence

Our open-minded but skeptical audience rrould first of all expect the evidence to melt what rhetorician Richard Fulkerson calls the STAR criteria:*

-nt.fr*a e"ff.".-.,
of English, 1996),

Z aching

the Argument

44-53. In this

in Wrtrtg rLi'-::l:- IL: \ational Council of Teachers section, we are idebiel : :-enon's discussion.

89

PART

Writing an Argument

Sufficiency: Is there enough evidence?

Typicality: Is the chosen edence representative and tpical?

Accuracy: Is the edence accurate and up-to-date? Relevance: Is the edence relevant to the claim? Let's examine each in tum.

Sufficienry of Evidence How much edence you need is a fi.rnction of your rhetorical context. In a court trial, opposing attomeys often agree to waive edence for points that
aren't in doubt in order to concentrate on contested points. The more a claim is contested

or the more your audience is skeptical, the more evidence you may need to present. If

you prode too little edence, you may be accused of hasty generalization

(see

Appendix 1), a reasoning fallacy in which a person makes a sweeping conclusion based on only one or two instnces. On the other hand, if you provide too much evidence your argument may become overly long and tedious. You can guard against having too little or too much edence by appropriately quaiifring the claim your edence supports.
Strong claim: Working fulI time seriously harms a student's grade point average. (much data needed-probably a combination of examples and statistical studies) Qualified claim: Working full time oten harms a student's grade point average. (a few representative examples may be enough)

Rh

Typicality of Evidence \A/henever you select evidence, readers need to believe the evidence is typical and representative rather than extreme instances. Suppose that you want to argue that students can combine fuIl-time work with full-time
college and cite the case of your friend Pam who pulled a straight-A grade average while working forty hours per week as a night receptionist in a small hotel. Your audience might doubt the typicality of Pam's case since a night receptionist can often use work hours for studying. What about more typical jobs, they'll ask, where you can't study while you work?

Accuracy of Evidence Edence can't be used ethically unless it is accurate and up-todate, and it can't be persuasive udess the audience believes in the writer's credibility. As
a writer, you must be scrupulous in using the most recent and accurate edence you can

find. Faith in the accuracy of a writer's data is one fi.mction of ethos-the audience's
confidence in the writer's credibility and trustworthiness (see Chapter 6, page 111).

Relevance of Evidence Finally, edence will be percuasive only if the reader considers it relevant to the contested issue. Consider the following student argument: "I
deserve an A in this course because I worked exceptionally hard." The student then cites substantial edence of how hard he worked-a log of study hours, copies of multiple drafu of papers, testimony iom foiends, and so for1h. Such eridence is ample support for the clarm "I worked very hard" but is irrelevant to the claim "l deserve an A." Although some inshrrctors may give partial credit for effort, the critena for grades usually focus on the quality of the student's performance, not the student s time spent studying.

CHAPTER

Using Evidence

Effectively

91

Use Sources That Your Reader Trusts is to choose data' Another way to enhance the persuasiveness of your evidence questions *h.rr"rr"r pssible, from sources you think your readers will trust. Because certain sources' of of fact are often at issue in arguments, readers may be skeptical the conan issue, yr root get a sense ofwho the participants in \\4ren you research

the political biases of versation are and what their reputatios tend to be. Knowing personal investment in the sources and the extent to which a source has financial or that both you and outcome of a controversy will also help you locate data sources journal is often more peryour readers can trust. ltittg u peer-reviewed scholarly a c,onservative magazine suasive than citing an uduo.icy W. tit.. Similarty, citing audiences, just as citinq a such as t}Ie National Reuiew -uy U" unpersuasive to liberal (See Chapter 16 for Sierra Club publication may b unpersuasive to conservatives. perspective') discussion ofhow to evaluate research sources from a rhetorical further

Rhetorical Llnderstanding of Evidence

use of eviIn the previous section we presented some general principles for effective how evidence persuades by dence. We now want to d"pe.r your understanding of in which evidence operates' rf.it g you to consider -or" .lot"iy the rhetorical context you how first at the kinds of evidence used in arguments and then show

We,ll"lok writers select and frame evidence for persuasive effect'

Kinds of Evidence
can use in an argument, writers have numerous options for the kinds of evidence they research findings, and hypothetical examples' To including personal e*p"rien.e data, different kinds of explain ihfse options, we present a sele: of charts that categoize might be worked into an argument, and comment .rrid".r"", illustrate how each kind

on the strengths and limitations of each'

comes from Data from Personal Experience one powerful kind of edence
personal experience:
Example
Despite recent criticism that Ritalin is overprescribed for hyperactivity and atlention deficit disorder, it can oten seem like a miracle drug. My little brother is a perfect example. Before he was given Ritalin

Strengths and Limitations

Personal-experience examples help readers identifu with writer; theY show writer's personal connection to

the issue.

:.: \'ivid stories

h.

u terror in school.... lTell the "before" ar,d "after" story of your iittle brother'l

**

capture the imagination. r,': Skepfcs may sometimes argue that personal-experience examples are insufficient {uriter is gurlty of hasty generalization), not t1pica1, or not adequately scientific o r'erifiable.

92

PART

Writing an Argument

nr Field Research you can also develop edence by personally observing a phenomenon or by doing your ovm field research:
Example The intersection at Fifth and Montgomery is pariicularly dangerous because pedestrians almost never nd a comfortable break in the hear.y flow of cars. On Apnl 29, I watched fifty_seven peestrians cross the street. Not once clid cars stop in both directions before the pedestrian stepped off the sidewalk onto the street. lContinue ,,r.it]r observed data about danger.l Strengths and Limitations

Data from Observation

Field research gives the feeling ofscientific credibty.

database beyond example

itr It increases ffpicaiity by expanding

ofone

s {t

person.

It enhances ethos of the witer as personally invested and

reasonable. Skeptics may poinl to flaws in how obserwations were conducted, showing how data are insufficient, inaccurate. or nontypical.

euestionnaires, surveys you can also gather data by interviewing stakeholders in.a controv".ry, questionnaireq or doing surveys. (see pages 101 103 for advice "r"atirg on how t conduct*this kind of fi"la ."s"a.cn.) Example
Another reason to ban laptops from classrooms is the ertent to which laptop rsers dishrb other shrdents. In a questionnaire that I disfibuted to fifty stirdents
residence hall, a surprising 60 percent said that thev

Data from Interviews,

Strengths and Limitations

ffi

in my

were annoyed by fellow students'sending pying "_-uil, their bills, or surfing the Web while p."t"oaing tolt notes in class. Additionally, I interviewed five students, who gave me specific examples of how these distractions interfere with leaming. [Report the

.'

tr

Interviews, questionnaires, and srilveys enhance the sufficiencv anrj tifircalif of edence Uy the database beyond the ""p"rrai,rg experiences of one person.

Quantitative data |om questionnaires and survevs

examples.J

oten increase the sciendc feel of the argument. w Surveys and questionnaires often uncover loca-l or recent data not avail_ able in published reseach. b lnterviews can prode engaging per_ sona.l stories enhutcrtg pathos.
Skeptics can raise doubts about reseach methodology,

questionnaire design, or typicality of iten-ierv subjects.

research. Five of this text helps you conduct effective research and incorporate research sources into your arguments:

Data from Library or Internet Research For man- arguments, edence is derived lom reading, particularly foom library or Internet pat

CHAPTER

Using Evidence Effectively

93

)l-

Example
The belief that a high-carbohydratelow-fat diet is the best way to lose weight
has been challenged bY research conducted by Waiter Willeti and his

Strengths and L\r\a\\ons

Researched edence is often powerful, especially len sources are respected by your audience; l,nters can spotlight source's credentials through attributive tags (see Chapter 17, pages 370-371) Researched data may take the form of facts, examples, quotations, summaries of research studis, and so forlh (see Chapters 16 and 17)' Skeptics might doubt the accurary of facts, the credentials of a source, or the research design of a study. They might also cite studies with

ific

colleagues in the deparhnent ofnutrition in the Haward School of Public Health'

Willetts research suggests that complex

carbohydrates such
as pasta and potatoes

spike giucose levels, increasing the risk of abetes. Additionally, some fats-especially monoursahuated and polyursaturated fats

fourd in nuts, fuh, and most vegetable oilshelp lower "bad" cholesterol levels (45)'

different results. Skeptics might raise doubts about sufftciency' typicalify, or relevance of your research data'

Testimony writers frequently

"'. interuiews:
'o1'

use testimony when direct data are either unavailable

fr*nf'

iechnical or cilffe*lTestimonial

"rrid"tt."

can come from research or from

Example Although the Swedish economist Bjorn Lomborg claims that acid rain is not a significant problem, many environmentalists disagree. According to David Bellamany, president of the Conser-vation Foundation'

Strengths and Limitations By itsell testimony is generally less persuasrve than direct data. Persuasiveness can be increased if source has impressive credentials, which the writer can state through attributive tags introducing the testimony
(see Chapter 17, Pages

:rs.

;A.id..itt

does

kill forests and people

370-371)'

arormd the world, and it's still doing so in the most polluted places, such as Russia"

Skeptics might undermine testimonial evidence by qar"rtiottittg .tadendals of source, showing source's bias, or quoting a countersource'

(qtd.n BBC

News).

heavily on statistical data, Statistical Data Many contemporary arguments rely graphs' (See Chapter 9 t"ppf.*ented by graphia such as tables' pie charts' and "tt"" dission of the uie f graphics in argument') for a
Example Americans are delaying marriage at a surprising rate. In 1970, 85 percent of Americans between ages fifteen and tr,venty-nine were married. In 2000, however, only 54 percent were married
(U.S. Census Bureau).

Strengths and Limitations

Statistics can give powerfl snapshots of aggregate data from a wide database. They are often used in conjunction with graphics
(see pages 191-197). T-hey can be calculated and displayed rvays

in different to achieve different rhetorical effects, so the reader must be wary (see pages 99-100)'
Skeplics might question statistical methods, research design, and interpretation of data'
on system See ChaPter 17 for a

nved
helps ents:
full discussion of how to cite ad document sources

94

PART

Writing an Argument

hypothetical e*^ampres, cases,

Hpothetical Examnles, cases, and scenarios Argumenh occasionany

consequences of an event or to test philosophical

or

scenarios, particurarry

to illustrate conjectured " frypotfreier.

use

Example
Consider what might happen if we continue to use biotech soybeans that are resistant to herbicides. The resistant gene, through

Strengths and Limitations

H 6

pollination, might be transferrecl to an ordinary weed, creating an out-of_control

cross_

ffi A scenario narrative ffi

Scenarios have strong imaginative appeal. They are persuasive only ifthey seem plausible. often conveys a sense of

superweed that herbicides couldn,t kill. Such

a superweed could be an ecological disaster.

Skeptics might show the implausibilitv oT the scenario or offer an alternative scenait.

"inetability,,'even if the actual scenario is unlikely; hence rhetorical effect may be illogcal.

of ldeas sometimes aqguments are supported with a reasoned sequence of ideas mther than with concrete facts or other fonrs of empirical edence. The writer's concem is to support a point th.owh a logical progression of ideas. such arguments are conceptuar, supported by rinked idas, rater trr* EJ""dal. This kind of support occurs lequently in arguments and is often liaa"rrtiury

Reasoned sequence

int"r--g;th

support.

Example Embryonic stem cell research, despite its promise in fighting diseases, may have negative social
consequences. This research encourages us to place embryos in the category of mere celhilar rnutt.. tfrut can be manipulated at will. Currently we reduce to this category when we genetically alter them for human purposes, such *1"g.i"".r;g pig. to grow more humanlike heart valves for,rr"Irl

Strengths and Limitations

ff

to effects or in definitional or values argu_

These sequences are often used in causal arguments to show how causes are linked

6 g
m

T*qt

"

a claim is fourded.

ments to show links among ideas. They have great power to clarifu values and show the belief sh-ucture on which
connec_

greater knowledge and conhol involves a reclassifting of embryos that corlld potentially lead to a devaluing of human life.

will-m1y benefit society materially, but this quest for

Using human embryos in e same way_ as material that can be a.ltered and deshoved at

transplanh.

The! can sketch out ideas and

tions that woulcl otherwise remain latent. Their effectiveness depends on the audi_
ence's acceptance of each link in the sequence of ideas.
Skeptics might raise objections at any link in the sequence, often by pointing to different values or outlining djfferent consequences.

Angle of vision and the selection and Framing of Evidence

arguerc use edence-by becoming more aware of a lrnter's ,t ing edence to support a claim. \Aere stands on of our own criticar thinking i"q"t y, "u.r, ."r.r,-our search

You can increase your ability to use edence effech'ely-ald to analyze how other

*a

or*

;;;

etJcJ

r* t"'u"rt solution to a

choices when us_ pady a function

CHAPTER

Using Evidence Effectively

95

as people-our values and beliefs as nroblem. But it is also partly a function of $o we are as our family history, education, gender f our existence such we dont entet the arguorientation, age, class, and ethnicrry. ln oer words' and sexual at our claims through a value-free mentative arena like disembodied computers atti rittg values, and guiding assumptions' calculus. We enter th our own ideologres, beliefs, together to create a writer's These guiding assumptions, belieis, and.values work

ffi;;;p-"ili;

of 'angle of vision," we could also use other words or that our way "iririon."'1krrt"uh _"pho^ such as perspectiue, bi,lens, or filter-allterms that suggest beliefs.) A writer's angle of vision' of ,""irrg the world i, itrup"i by our values and "u"gi"

EXAM IN INC VISUAL ARCU M ENTS

Angle of Vision
Because of nationally reported iniuries and near.death experiences resutting

from stage diving and crowd surfing at rock concerts, many cities have tried to ban mosh pits. Critics of mosh pits have pointed to the injuries caused by crowd surfing and to the ensuing lawsuits against concert venues. Meanwhile, supporters cite the almost ecstatic enjoyment of crowd-surfing rock fans
"festival who seek out concerts wiih seating." These phoios display differeni angles of vision toward crowd surfing. Suppose

Crowd surfing in a mosh Pit

n rt i

you were writing a blog in support of crowd surfing. Which image would you include in your posting? Why? Suppose alternatively that you were blogging against mosh pits, perhaps urging local officlals to outlaw them. Which image

would you chobse? WhY?

Analyze the visual features of these

lr
s)n
a

photographs in order to explain how they are constructed to create alternative angles of vision on mosh Pits.

An alternative view of a mosh Pit

PART

Wriiing an Argument

data-that is, what data are important or trivial, significant or irrelevant, worth focusing on or woflh ignoring. To illustrate the concept of selective seeing, we ask you to consider how two hypothetical speakers might select different data about homeless people when presenting speeches to their city council. The first speaker argues that the city shuld increase its services to the homeless. The second asks the city to promote tourism more aggressively. Their differing angles of vision will cause the two speakers to select different data about homeless people and to frame these data in different ways. (Our use of the word frame denves metaphorically from a window frame or the fiame of a camera's viewfinder. When you look through a frame, some part of your field of vi sion is blocked off, while the material appearing in the frame is emphasized. Through framing, a writer maximizes the reader's focus on some data, minimizes the readei's focus on other data, and otherwise guides the reader's vision and response.) Because the first speaker wants to increase the council's sympathy for the homeless, she frames homeless people positively by telling the story of one homeless man's struggle to find shelter and nutritious food. Her speech focuses primarily on the low number of tax dollars devoted to helping the homeless. In contrast, thl second speaker, using data about lost tourist income, might frame the homeless as 'panhandlers" by telling the story of obnoxious, urine-soaked winos who pester shoppers for handouts. As arguers, both speakers want their audience to se the homeless from their own angles of vision. Consequently, lost tourist dollars don't show up at all in the first speaker's argument, whereas the story of a homeless man's night in the cold doesn't show up in the second speaker's argument. As this example shows, one goal writers have in selecting and framing evidence is to bring the reader's view of the subject into alignment with the writert angle of vision. Th writer selects and frames evidence to limit and control what the reader sees. To help you better understand the concepts of selection and framing, we offer the following class discussion exercise to give you practice in a kind of controlled laboratory setling. As you do this exercise, we invite you to observe your own processes for
selecting and foaming edence.

like a lens or filter, helps determine what stands out for that writer in a field of

r r ffi FoR cl-Ass DlscussloN creating an Angle of vision by selecting Evidence

Suppose that your city has scheduled a public hearing on a proposed ordinance to ban

mosh pits at rock concerts. (See the Examining Visual Arguments feature on page g5, where we introduced this issue.) Among the possible data available to variousipuk".t

for edence are tn'e following:

r r

pit

some bands, such as Nine Inch Nails, specify festival seating that allows a mosh
area.

A female mosher writing on the Internet says: "l experience a shared energy that is like no other when I am in the pit with the croud. It is like we are all a bunch of
atoms bouncing off of each other. It's great. He1', some people get that feeling from basketball games. I get mine from the mosh pit."

CHAPTER

Using Evidence

Effectively

97

r r

on her campus who had attended A student conducted a survey of fifty_students Bb percent thought that

rock concerrs

mosh pits should be allowed included the following: Narrative comments o"ttt"'" questionnaires get an amazing rushvhgl crowd sur{ing' Mosh pits are a passion for me' I t,itn"g. But I love festival seating I don,t like to be in a mosh pit or do crowd pits-are part of the ambience of For me, mosh and like to watch the mosh pits.

- th"l;;;;onths."Of the respondents, at concerls'

I r

. ifiLiil'*r, . r r I

I have never had anv oroblems' they shouldle outlawecl. ftl"rtt plo ur" a*!lo"s and stupid' I think Nobody forces vou to go into a If you are afraid 3i mosh pits iust stay away' "" them tecause they are totally voluntary' They mosh pitl ft i, tJJo"' 'J shouldjustpostbigsignssaying..Cityassume,',.'po'''ibitityforaccidents

she'lt never do one again. But who was groped in a mosh pit, and

occurrilrg in mosh Pit area"' concert and memory loss at a 1998 Pearl Jam A teenage gi.f ,uf"*iU*i" damage h"di'l intended to body to her attmey' she in Rapid Ctty, S""th;'k;;' t"oti"g its fringe'" "g"t r".i.a in while rn" ** standing at surf or enter the #il; in the area closest ,".orded in 2001, most of them
Twenty-four concelt deaths *" tn" ttug. where people are packed

in'

r A twenty orr"_y"*_oia man suffered

;

m -1 ^ n,T^+ cardiac arrest at a Meiallica concert

;
I

l
e

indianaandisnowinapermanentvegetativestate.Becausehewasiammedinto he was in distress' the mosh pit area, nobody noticed nose on an elbow; another described In 2005, bl"gg*;;;';; bt"""*e:s having " blogger on th.e tq: ti!" described having his lip ring purii ot"' Anothei 78 r i"uutt guitar' The iqury required his tip nearty sticJd iit t'*"'"..

t-

rr

groups' complete the following tasks: Tasks: Working indidually or in small

stitches'InMay200s,fiftypeopleweretreatedatemergencyroomsformoshpit "*"ti"t ut Bambozle concert in New Jersey' ".q"i.d "

to ban supporting the proposed crty ordinance 1. Compose two short speeches' one i' up to you, but be able to yo., ..," h",".dutu mosh pits and one opposing it- How your i tne way you select and frame them' Share yot,

explain

n
5. rS

sPeeches

2.

sh

rat

of

lm

channel its rhetorical minimize lts importance,L oUtt"t-it" the two different angles of vision-one supporting 3. In the first task, we assigned you on a proIf you had to create your own argument ordinance * o"l "pf'?"-g i"t for foLirself a tmth-seetting goal-that is' findir posal to irosh pit danger, one-for which you would ing the best solutioi-ior rf.r" pioblemof use would you argue? How would vour argument take ethical ,"rp"irifray-lnat S the list of data we provided? \&4rat "l'e -ight"tou

that different speeches, gxplain the approaches Afteryou have ,t _of was used? If arguers n"r"J "**ples rn'n* principle of selection different "l*r-";;;;by"- ttreir positionr, ho* did the ryq" it' respond to it' cluded evidence ;;r;-i" effect?

'"u'on'l"g with classmates'

u* -ofipi['*

* y*

add?

I I

98

PART

Writing an Argument

Rhetorical Strategies for Framing Evidence

What we hope you learned foom the preceding exercise is that an arguer consciously
selects edence from a wide field of data and then foames these data through rhetorical strategies that emphasize some data, minimize others, and guide the reader's response. Now that you have a basic idea of what we mean by framing of evidence, here are some strategies writers can use to guide what the reader sees and feels.

Strategies for Framing Evdence

Controlling the space giuen to supporting Dersus contrary euidence: Depending on

their audience and pulpose, writers can devote most of their space to supporting evidence and minimal space to contrary evidence (or omit it entirely). Thus people arguing in favor of mosh pits may have used lots of evidence supporting mosh pits, including enthusiastic quotations lom concertgoers, while omitting (or summarizing very rapidly) the data about the dangers of mosh pits.

Emphasizing a detailed stoty uersus presenting lots of faas and statistics.' Often, writers can choose to support a point with a memorable individual case or with aggregate data such as statistics or lists of facts. A memorable story can have a strongly persuasive effect. For example, to create a negative ew of mosh pits, a nriter might

tell the hearhending story of a teenager suffering permanent brain damage from being dropped on a mosh pit floor. In contrast, a suppofter of mosh pits might tell the story of a happy music lover tumed on to the concert scene by the rush of crowd surdng. A different strategr is to use facts and statistics rather than case narrativesfor example, data about the frequency of mosh pit accidents, finaricial consequences
of lawsuits, and so forth. The single-narrative case oten has a more powerfirl rhetor-

ical effect, but it is always open to the charge that it is an insufficient or nonrepresentative example. Vid anecdotes make for interesting reading, but by themselves they may not be compelling logically. In contrast, aggregate data, often used in scholarly studies, can provide more compelling, logical edence but sometimes make the

prose wonkish and dense. Prouid,ing contextual and interpretiue comments when pruenting data:

When clfing

data, writers can add brief contextual or interpretive comments that act as lenses over the readers' eyes to help them see the data from the writer's perspective. Suppose you want to support mosh pits, but want to admit that mosh pits are dangerous. You could make that danger seem irrelevant or inconsequential by saying: "It is true that occasional mosh pit accidents happen, just as accidents happen in any kind of recreational actity such as swrmming or weekend softball games." The concluding phrase frames the danger of mosh pits by comparing them to other recreational accidents that don't require special laws or regulations. The implied argument is this: banning mosh pits because of an occasional accident would be as silly as banning recreational swimming because of occasional accidents. Putting contrary euidence in subordinate positiorn, Just as a photographer can place a flower at the center of a photograph or in the background, a writer can place a piece of data in a subordinate or main clatse of a sentence. Note how the structure of the following sentence minimizes emphasis on the rari{z of mosh pit accidents:

\
d

CHAPTER

Using Evidence Effectively

,,Although mosh pit accidents are IaIe, the danger to the crty of multimillion-dollar them for reasons of liability"lawsuits means that the city should nevereless ban
;11'

,rire-

lre

the writer's own briefly and tucked away in a subordinate atthough clause, while it receives grammatical emphasis' poritin is elaborated in ae main clause where occah *tit", with a different angle of sion might say, "Although some cities may

n,"ap'ua""ce.''Thefactualdatathatmoshpitaccidentsarg.Preissummarized

on
ing
eo-

rsh

ETS

Iate

Fr_tEht

from mosh pits are sionally be threatened with; lawsuit, serious accidents resulting of music fans to conduct con,o l.ut that cities shouldn't interfere with the desires certs as theY Please." of the most to data: Choosing nnt o"A names that guid.e the reader's response -One data is to choose labels and names subtle ways to control yorr r"ud"tt'response to pits, you might refer that prompt them to se the issue as you do. If you like mgsh as "festival seating, where conceltto the seaiing arangements in a concert venue pit." you don't like goers have iir" opp-orr,rrrity to create a free-flowing mosh ,If as "an accident-rnviting use irosh pits, yo., migirt ,efer io the seating arrangements ,p""" *"r" rowdies can crowd together, slam into.each other, and occaor connotations of "-pty ,.rraiy"prrr.ch and kick." The labels you "hoot", along with the your angle of sion' ttt" *ord, you select, urge your reader to share (photogrpis, drawings) to guid'e the reader's response to data'

mm

is to Anotier stlategy for"miving your udience toward your angle of vision

Utl"g

f*ig^

tell

l*d
es,CES

your perinclude a photograph or drawing that portrays a contested issue from mosh pit photographs that spective. io.,'uJ4r"udy tried yout ftu"a.at ieleciing

5Dr-

people agree ,rluk. urgo,,'ents through theii angle of vision. (See page 95.) Most mosh pits. The crowd looks that the first photo srippots a positive view of young woman huppy and reliled (rathr than rowdy or out of control)' and the relaxed, her arms extended' In lifted above the crowd smiles broadly, her body

f'

es

noll rire inng r-ies

The crowd seems relaxed woman) and threateni d*g". rather than harmony. g for a complete discussion of the on the verge of turning ugly. (see hapter

(rather than a smiling and contrast, the second photo emphasizs muscular men

- H;::r:;i;:,:^TffffiiLt
ass'me the

tarfjlg:

detetmines the writer,s setection and framing of dgta: the system of values Utimately, how a *ter selects and frames edence is linked to pits, you probably favor maxithat orgaile his or her argument. If you favor mosh letting moshers mizing"the pleasure of conrtgoers, promoting tndidyal choice,.and forbid mosh pits, you probably rjsk of their own "enarrir. If you want to

u-l

'The

er
p'ed

ht

as

individuals favor minimizing risl$,protecting the crty from lawsuits, and protecting you can foster conflom the dangei of their own out-of-control actions. Sometimes values that you nections with yout audience by openly addressing the underlying flame your selected data by statshares with yo"' Yo" can often hope your "rrdi"n." ing explicitly the values that guide your argument'

lirace

[ea
[:JIE

special strategies for Framing Statistical Evidence

this category of eNumbers and statistical data can be framed in so many ways that how writers frame numbers dence deserves its own separate treatment. B' recogntzing

Itnts:

100

PART

Writing an Argument

to support the story they want to tell, you will always be aware that other stories are also possible. Ethical use of numbers means that you use reputable sources for your basic data, that you don't invent or intentionally distort numbers for your own purposes, and that you don't ignore alternative points of ew Here are some of the
choices writers make when framing statistical data:

lt

Raw numbers uersus percentages. You can alter the rhetorical effect of a statistic by choosing between raw numbers or percentages. In the summer of 2002, marry American parents panicked over what seemed like an epidemic of child abductions. If you cited the raw number of these abductions reported in the national news, this number, although small, could seem scary. But if you computed the actual percentage of American children who were abducted, that percentage was so infinitesimally small as to seem insignificant. You can apply this framing option directly to the mosh pit case. To emphasize the danger of mosh pits, you can say that twenty-four deaths occurred at rock concerts in a given year. To minimize this statistic, you could compute the percentage of deaths by dividing this number by the totai number of people who attended rock concerts during the year, ceftainly a number in the several millions. From the perspective of percentages, the death rate at concerh is extremely low. Median uersus mean. Another way to alter the rhetorical effect of numbers is to choose between the median and the mean. The mean is the average of all num-

Gatl

bers on a list. The median is the middle number when all the numbers are arranged sequentially from high to low. In 2O06 the mean annual income for retired families in the United States was $41,928-not a wealthy amount but enough to live on comfortably if you owned your own home. However, the median income was only $27 ,798, a figure that gives a much more striking picture of income distribution among older Americans. This median figure means that half of all retired families in the United States had annual incomes of $27 ,798 or less. The much higher mean income indicates that many retired Americans are quite wealthy. This wealth raises the average of all incomes (the mean) but doesn't affect the median. w Unadjusted uersus adjusted numbers. Suppose your boss told you that you were getting a 5 percent raise. You might be happy-unless inflation rates were running at 6 percent. Economic data can be hard to interpret across time unless the dollar amounts are adjusted for inflation. This same problem occurs in other areas. For example, comparing grade point averages of college graduates in 1970 versus 2008 means little unless one can somehow compensate for grade inflation.

w Basepointforstatisticalcomparisons. In2008,thestockmarketwasinprecipi tous decline if one compared 2008 prices with 2007 prices. However, the market still seemed vigorous and healthy if one compared 2008 with ZOO2. One's choice of the base point for a comparison often makes a significant
rhetorical difference.

CHAPTER

Using Evidence Effectively

101

II

:i.r,i FOR CIASS DISCUSSION Using Strategies to Frame Statistical Evidence

A proposal to build a new bailpark in Seattle, Washington, yielded a wide range of statistical arguments. All of the following statements are reasonably faithful to the
same facts:

r r r
I
l

The ballpark would be paid for by raising the sales tax from 8.2 percent to 8.3 percent during a twenty-year period.
The sales tax increase is one-tenth of 1 percent. This increase represents an average of $7.50 per person per year-about the price of a moe ticket. This increase represents $750 per five-person family over the twenty-year period
of the tax. For a family building a new home in the Seattle area, this tax will increase build-

r r r

I
s

ing costs by $200. This is a $250 million tax increase for the residents of the Seattle area.

!
]'
h o
:e

How would you describe the costs of the proposed ballpark if you opposed the proposal?

How would you describe the costs if you supported the

proposal?

11i'!

I I

Gathering Evidence
We conclude this chapter with some brief adce on ways to gather evidence for your arguments. We begin with a list of brainstorming questions that may help you think of possible sources for edence. We then prode suggestions for conducting interews and creating surveys and questionnaires, since these powerful sources are often overlooked by students. For help in conducting library and Internet research-the most common sources of edence in arguments-see Part Five: "The Researched Argument."

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ti-

of

f
j.s.

te

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re

Creating a Plan for Gathering Evidence

As you begin contemplating an argument, you can use the following checklist to help you think of possible sources for edence.

n:SS

in
.es

br
pihe )2.

A Checklist for Brainstorming Sources of Evidence m \4/hat personal experiences have you had with this issue? \4/hat details from your life or the lives of your friends, acquaintances, or relatives might serve as examples or other kinds of evidence?

w What observational studies would be relevant to this issue? w ryVhat people could you interview to provide insights or expert knowledge
this issue?

on

mt

ru \4/hat questions about your issue could be addressed in a survey or questionnaire?

102

PART

Writing an Argument

What usefi.rl information on this issue might encyclopedias, specialized reference books, or the regular book collection in your university library prode? (See
Chapter
16.)

What edence might you seek on this issue using licensed database indexing sources in magazines, newspapers, and scholarly joumals? (See Chapter 16.) How might an Internet search engine help you research this issue? (See Chapter 16.) \A4rat evidence might you find on this issue from reliable statistical resources such as U.S. Census Bureau data, the Centers for Disease Control, or Statistical Abstract
of the United States? (See Chapter 16.)

Gathering Data freim Intenriews

Conducting interviews is a useful way not only to gather expert testimony and important data but also to learn about alternative views. To make interviews as productive as possible, we offer these suggesons.

w w

Determine Uour purpose. Think out why you are interviewing the person and what information he or she is uniquely able to prode. Do background reading. Find out as much as possible about the interwiewee before

the interview. Your knowledge of his or her background will help establish your credibility and build a bridge between you and your source. Also, equip yourself with a good foundational understanding of the issue so that you will sound informed and truly interested in the issue. e Formulate well-thoughtout questions but also be flexible. Write out beforehand the questions you intend to ask, making sure that every question is related to the purpose of your interview. However, be prepared to move in unexpected directions if the interview opens up new territory. Sometimes unplanned topics can end up being the most illuminating and usefirl. e Come well preparedfor the interainw. As part of your professional demeanor, be sure to have all the necessuy supplies (notepaper, pens, pencils, perhaps a tape recorder, if your interviewee is willing) with you. w Be prompt and courteous. It is important to be punctual and respectfil of your interewee's time. In most cases, it is best to present yourself as a listener seeking clarity on an issue rather than an advocate of a particular position or an opponent. During the inierview, play the believing role. Save the doubting role for later, when you are looking over your notes. w Thke brief but clear notes.Try to record the main ideas and be accurate with quotations. fuk for clarification of any points you don't understand. M Tianscribe Aour notes soon after the interuiew. Immediately after the interview, while your memory is still fresh, rewrite your notes more fully and completely. \Vhen you use interview data in your writing, put quotation marks around any direct quotations. In most cases, you should also identi[- vour source by name and indicate

Co

CHAPTER

Using Evidence

Effectively

1O3

his or her title or credentials-whatever will convince the reader that this person's remarks are to be taken seriouslY.

Gathering Data from Surveys or Questionnaires

A well-constructed survey or questionnaire can prode lively, current data that give
your audience a sense of the popularity and importance of your views. To be effective "*d ,"rponrible, howevet, a su*ey or questionnaire needs to be carefully prepared ar-rd administered, as we suggest in the following guidelines'

Include both closed-response questions and open-response questions. To give you useful information and void charges of bias, you will want to include a range of questions. Closed-response questions ask patticipants to check a box or number on a scale and yield quantitative data that you can report statistically, perhaps in tables or graphs. Open-response questions elicit varied responses and often short narratives tht alow participants to offer their own input. These may contribute new insights to your perspective on the issue. va Make golr surue7 or questionnaire clear and easg to complete. Think out the num-

ber, order, wording, and layout of the questions in your questionnaire. Your questions should b clear and easy to answer. The neatness and overall formal appearance of the questionnaire will also invite serious responses from your
participants. -Exptain
the

purpose of the quationnaire. Respondents are usually more willing to participate if tfrey know how the inforrnation gained from the questionnaire will benefii others. Therefore, it is a good idea to state at the beginning of the questionnaire how it will be used. Seek a random sample of respondents in gour distribution of the questionnaire. TYtrtk out where and how you will distribute and collect your questionnaire to ensure a random sampling of respondents. For example, if a questionnaire about the university library went only to dorm residents, then you wouldn't leam how commuting students felt. Conuert questionnaires into usable data bg tallging and summarizing responses. 'Iallying ihe results and formulating summary statements of the information you gathered will yield material that might be used as edence'

ffi

Conclusion
Effective use of evidence is an essential skill for arguers. In this chapter we introduced you to the STAR criteria and other strategies for making your data persuasive' We showed you various kinds of edence and then examined how a writer's angle of sion influences the selection and framing of evidence. We also described framing strategies for emphasizing evidence, de-emphasrzing it, and guiding your reader's rerporr to it. Finally we concluded with adce on how to gather edence, including the use of interuiews, surveys, and questionnaires'

104

PART

Writing an Argument

WRITING ASSIGNMENT A Microtheme or a Supporting-Reasons

';;;1

",",;; -,1;.;l

Argument
Option 1: A Microtheme Write a one- or two-paragraph argument in which you support one of the following enthymemes, using evidence from personal experit"tA observation, interviews, or data from a brief questionnaire or survey' "tt.L, of your microtheme should support the stated reason with evidence' Most However, also include a brief passage supporting the implied warrant. The opening sentence of your microtheme should be the enthymeme itself, which selves as the thesis statement for your argument. (Note: If you disagree with the enthymeme's argument, recast the claim or the reason to assert what you want to argue.)
1. Reading fashion magazines can be detrimental to teenage girls because such magazines can produce an unhealthy focus on beauty' 2. surfing the web might harm your studying because it causes you to waste time. 3. Service-learning courses are valuable because they allow you to test course concepts within re al-world contexts' 4. Summer interrrships in your field of interest, even without pay, ale the best use of your summer time bLcause they speed up your education and training for a 5. Any enthymeme (a claim with a because clause) of your choice that can be support"a without library or Internet research. (The goal of this microtheme is to
career.

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1;
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giu" yo., practice using data from personal experience or from brief field ieseaich.) You may *utrt to have your instructor approve your enthymeme in
advance.

Option 2: A Supporting-Reasons Argument Write an argument that uses at least tlvo reasons to support yur claim. Your argument should include all ihe features of a classical a.gomerrt excpt the section on summarizing and responding to opposing views, whi we will cover in Chapter 7. This assignment builds on the brief writing 4 assignments in Chapter 3 (create thesis statement for an argrment) and Chapter We now Toulmin schema)' ftrJurstorm supporLfor one of your enthymemes using the ask you to expand your argument frame into a complete essay' " A supporting-iroronr-orgrment is our term for a classical argument without a section tat summarizes and responds to opposing views' Even though alternative views aren't dealt with in detail, the writer usually summarizes an opposing view briefly in the introduction to provide background on the issue being addressed' Folloi the explanations and oiganization charl for a classical argument as shown on page ot, ut omit the section called "summary and critique of opposing views."
governed structure in which you state your claim at the end of the introduction' tegin body paragraphs with clearly stated reasons, and use effective transitions

'liie a complete classical argument, a supporting-reasons

argument has a thesis-

CHAPTER

Using Evidence

Effectively 105

throughout to keep your reader on track. In developing your own algument, place your ost importani, persuasive, or interesting reason last, where it will have the greatest impact or yo.tr readers. This kind of tightly organized structure is some-l

i,

l.
I.
S

iimes called a self-innouncing or closed-form structure because the writer states his or her claim befre beginning the body of the argument and forecasts the structure that is to follow. In contrast, an unfolding or open-form structure doesn't give away the writer's position until late in the essay. (We discuss delayed-thesis arguments in Chapter 7.) in writing a self-announcing argument, students often ask how much of the argument to summarize in the thesis statement. consider your options:

It

r
r r

You might announce only your claim: Women should be allowed to join combat units' You might forecast a series ofparallel reasons:

women should be allowed to join combat units for several reasons.

You might forecast the actual number of reasons: Women should be allowed to join combat units for f,ve reasons'

a )o

Or you might forecast the whole argument by including yottr because clauses with your claim:
Women should be allowed to ioin combat units because they are physically capable of doing the job; because the presence of women in combat units would weaken gender stereot.{"r; b."ut,re they are already seeing combat in Iraq; because opening combat units to women would expand their military career oppounities; ald because it would advance the cause of civil rights.

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d

rg rg

This last thesis statement forecasts not only the claim, but also the supporting reasons that will serve as topic sentences fol. key paragraphs throughout the body of the
paper.

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d. a)

No formula can tell you precisely how much of your argument to forecast in the introduction. However theseiuggestions can guide you. In writing a self-announcing argument, forecast only what is needed for clarity. In short arguments readers often ne"ed only your claim. in longer arguments, however, or in especially complex.ones, (claim readers appreciate your forecasting the complete structure of the argument

with reasons).

sn,
1S

Reading
\\4rat follows is Carmen Tieu's supporting-reasons argument. Carmen's earlier explorations for this assignment are shown at the end of Chapters 3 and 4 (page 71
and page B7).

106

PART

Writing an Argument

why violent video Gqmes.f;,re Goad for Girrs

CANME TISU {STTJDEIT

' ' i I I '

games often objectify women by portraying them as sexualized toys for men,s gratification. Although I understand these objecti*r, t urgu" thui ptuying first-person shooter games can actually be good for girls.

loT -t !u^, tug tlrut r am agay male, never a fbmale. The possibilitv thatram a girl is the tast-thlg rrr? L", righr.that girls seldom play first-person shooter gu."J. "" "." Girls are sociarized into activities that promote togetherness and talk, not high intensity competition involving anrir" shooting and killing' The violent nature of ih, gu-", t"n, io repulse girls. opponents of violent video games typically hold that these gLes u* ro gruphically viotentilr"airr.y will influ_ ence players to become amoral and saistic. reminiits arso argue that rrioienivideo

he-joins me in the pre-game room lobby. In the gameroo* tuoyiau the players ho will be participating in the match are chatting aggressively with other,.i'oh man, *";*^gorrnu own you guys so bad.,,when a "u. member of the opposing team notices.my gamer tai,,.embracingapathy,,,he begins to in_ sult me by calling me various degradini,"gay-ass-o?ated ou*"i i,nirilog apa-what? Man' it sounds so emo' Are you some f;gt i bet you want me so bad. you,re gonna get owned!" Players always assum

shooter games, usually Hato 3, on Xbox Live. in my mobiie familyb 42-irch flat screen HDTV I log onto "h"t;, front of my xbox tive. A small message in the bottom of the screen appears with the words "Krlpl-3r is online," alerting -" ,irur-orr" of my male friends is online and already playing. s ine gu-"-toudr, I send Krlp1-3r a game invite, and

It is ten o'clock P'M., game time. My entire family knows by now that when I am home on saturday nights, ten P.M. tt night wl_ien I pray my r"".* first-person -y_,g-rng "seated

-j";;. ,;ffi*

tLe and manual dexterity-skills that women possess in abundance. The adrenaline rush that I receive rrom u"utg a bunch of testosterone-driven guys at somethingfhey_supposedly excel at is exciting; I especially savor the look of horror on their fuces whenl "o-pr. destroy them. Since female video gamers are so rare, playing shoter games allows girls to be freed from feminine stereotvpes and increases irr.i ."iri",r... Erl*, ;;#t;;;rtrays f.e_ males as caring, nonviolent, and motherly b"id;;;; are not supposed to enjoy FpS games with their war themes and violent ultings. I u- no way rejecting these traditional female values since I myself am a compassionate. tree-hugging vegan. But
I also like to

ical strength isn't required just quick rection

are taller,fasteq and stronger than females' However, when it comes to video gamei girls can compete equally because phys-

will always have

male friends constantly put me down for .y ru"t iirtills, cJnstantlyi"ilirf-" rhat I was a girl, you're good." But it dldnl take much practice until t llarned to operate the two joy sticks with precision and with qui"t lnrtin.tual reactions. rit" guy, uno girls can play many physical games togethe., such as basketball or touch r*ruutt,

First' playing FPS games is surprisingly empowering because it gives girls the chance to beat guys at their own game- when iii.rt .g"r ftuying Hato i,I wis horrible. My

awful' "but for

the advantage

be.uur"-in uu"tug"-th"y

guy,

I
b

CHAPTER

Using Evidence

Effectively

1O7

break these stereotypes. Playing video games offers a great way for females to break the social mold of only doing "girly" things and introduces them to something that males commonly enjoy. Playing video games with sexist males has also helped me become more outspoken. Psychologically, i can stand up to aggressive males because I know that I can beat them at their own game. The confidence I've gotten from excelling at shooter games may have even carried over into the academic arena because I am majoring in chemical engineering and have no fear whatsoever of intruding into the male-dominated territory of math and science. Knowing that I can beat all the guys in my engineering classes at Halo gives me that little extra confidence boost during exams and labs. s Another reason for girls to play FPS games is that it gives us a different way of bonding with guys. Once when I was discussing my latest Halo J matches with one of my regular male friends, a guy whom I didnl know turned around and said "You play Halo? Wow, you just earned my respect." Although I was annoyed that this guy apparently didn't respect women in general, it is apparent that guys will talk to me differently now that I can play video games. From a guy's perspective I can also appreciate why males find video

games so addicting. You get joy from perfecting your skills so that your high-angle grenade kills become a thing of beauty. While all of these skills may seem trivial to some, the acknowledgment of my skills from other players leaves me with a pelverse sense of pride in knowing that I played the game better than everyone else. Since I have started playing, I have also noticed that it is much easier to talk to males about lots of different subjects. Talking video games with guys is a great ice-breaker that leads to different kinds of friendships outside the realm of romance and dating. Finally, playing violent video games can be valuable for girls because it gives them insights into a disturbngparf of male subculfure. When the testosterone stafs kicking in, guys become blatant$ homophobic and misogynistic. Any player, regardless of gender, who cannot play well (as measured by having a high number of kills and a low number of deaths) is made fun of by being called gay, a girl, or worse. Even when some guys finally meet a female player, they will also insult her by calling her a lesbian or an ugly fat chick that has no life. Their insults towards the girl will dramatically increase if she beats them because they feel so humiliated. In their eyes, playing worse than a girl is embarrassing because girls are supposed to be inept at FPS games. Whenever Iplay Halo better than my male friends, they often comment on how "it makes no sense that we're getting owned by Carmen." When males act like such sexist jerks it causes one to question if they are always like this. My answer is no because I know, first hand that when guys like that are having oneon-one conversations with a female, they show a softer side, and the macho side goes away. They don't talk about how girls should stay in the kitchen and make them dinner, but rather how they think it is cool that they share a fun, common interest with a girl. But when they are in a group of males their fake, offensive macho side comes out. I find this phenomenon troubling because it shows a real problem in the rvay boys are socialized. To be real "man" around other guys, they have to put down women and gays in activities involving aggressive behavior where men are supposed to excel. But they don't become macho and aggressive in activities. like reading and writing, which they think of as feminine. I've always known that

108

PART

Writing an Argument

playing violent video games I guys are more physically aggressive than women, but until and homophobia' Perhaps had never realized fro* ihll"uggression is related to misogyny but come out primarily in a competitive male enthese traits aren't deeply ingraiired in men and I'm glad that I learned more vironment. Whatever the carrse, it is an ugly phenomenon' me me a more confident woman while being about it. Beating g*ys at FPS games ttas

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In Chapters 4 and 5 we focused on /ogos-the logical stmcture of reasons and edence in argument. Even though we have treated lagos m its own chapters,
an effective guer's concern for logos is always corurected to ethos utd pathos (see the rhetorical hiangle introduced in Chapter 3, p. O3). By seeking audience-based reasons-so that arr arguer connects her message to the assumptions, values, and beliefs of her audience-she appeals also to ethos utd pathosby enhancing the reader's trust and by triggering the reader's sympathies arid imagination. In this chapter, we tum specifically to ethos utd pathos. We also introduce you to a related rhetorical concept, lzairos, which concerns the timeliness, fitness, and appropriateness of an argument for its occasion.

Ethas and Ps#rCIs as Fersuasive ,A,ppeals:

-{n Overview
At first, one may be tempted to think of logos, ethos, eatd pathos as "ingredients" in an essay, like spices you add to a casserole. But a more appropriate metaphor might be that of different lamps and filters used on theater spotlights to vary lighting effects on a stage. Thus if you switch on a pathos lamp (possibly through using more concrete language or vivid examples), the resultyou overlay an
ing image wrll engage the audience's sympathy and emotions more deeply. If ethos filter (perhaps by adopting a different tone toward your audience), ihe projected image of the writer as a person will be subtly altered. If you switch on a logos lamp (by adding, say, more data for edence), you

will draw the

reader's attention

to the

logical appeal

of the argument.

Depending on how you modulate the lamps and filters, you shape and color your readers' perception of you and your argument. Our metaphor is imperfect, of course, but our point is that logos, ethos, and pathos work together to create an tmpact on the reader. Consider, for example, the different impacts of the follonrng arguments, all hang roughly
the same logrcal appeal. 1. People should adopt a vegetarian diet because doing so will help prevent the cruelty to animals caused by facton, famring. 2. If you are planning to eat chicken tonight. please consider how much that

chicken suffered so that you could have

a tender and juicy meal. Commercia-l growers cram the chickens so rightly together into cages that
109

110

PART

Writing an Argument

beaks must be cut off to keep and ore pople to becom-e vegetarians' to prevent r,r"rt ,*ri}""gl' it -ot" J" no better than sadists who torture other sentient crea3. people who tyranny over othpreasure. unless you enjoy sadistic tures to enhance ,r*i, "*.r a vegetarian' tt, V"" have only one choice: become frre extent to which our love of eating 4. People committed :o":t9"t a modem chicken factory-where chickvrsrt to meat require, U,r" to spread their wings"go;i;""r-?fr.,e in tiny, darkened coops without room ers live their entire-lives such suffering on sentient creatures' .ignt to inflici might raise ""t, J"t just altemative' p;rr.rud"" us that vegetarianism is a more such

theyneverwalkontheirownlegs,seesunshine,orflaptheirwings.Infact,their one way them from pecking each other's eyes out'

eat;;;

;t;;,*

Indeed,

a,i;c

o*

logical core: Each argument has roughly the same

ENTHYMEME
diet CLAIM People should adopt a vegetarlan

doing so will help prevent cruelty to animals caused by factory the farming.
REASON because

GROUNDS
.

chleken Evidence of suffering in {ommerclal farms, whre chiekenstare crammed together andJash out:at one allotlrer

, .
''.

Evidenc that onty widespread doptin ,vegetariafijsm will end faclory farming

'

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t'r'.....-', 1rir ;-'';i:"''

r,.','. :,'

animals lf we have an altemative to making

gul.fgre.,sh'uj.$1{r,:-.:,.: ,,,::.

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2, most of our students

rr^/hereas Buttheimpactofeachargumentvaries.Thedifferencebetweenargumentslarrd argument 2'

to animals"'-argument 2 paints a argument 1 refers ""ryiil"."uqito:" ",*tlty prevent their pecking each other off io vid picture of chickeirs with their beaks cut (not necessarily a stronger argu;i*d ';g"-ent 2 makls a st onge, appgal lo pathos the heart and to the head' to ment), stirring feelings ii 'i-ulta"^"o"'ly pathos' Argument

repotlis the

gre.ater,.emotional power of

"pp"ig t utr 3 conems bo+Jt ethos and -tt]?o"gtt The djfference and highly charged rvords -such as- torttre' sadist' 3 appeals to U." "*otil' and most of our students reporl its".ttitet. tyranny.But argument *j* ty"lSttei,Jn 1

b"M;;g,r"t

notlikingthatwriterverymuch.Hisstancesseif-nghteousandinsulting'Ilcontrast'

CHAPTER

Moving Your Audience

111

his audience

argument4'sauthorestablishesamolepositivgl/ftos,'Heestablishesrapportbyassuming conditional terms ir.;.;;J to**i"" andby quali*ring his argulSnt with appeal to pathosproblem-an 19..h such as might andperhaps.Healso invitesi5..rnp",lry coops' description of chickens crammed into tiny by offering u.p""ifit 1 and t;;gu#nts is best? rn"y ar have appropriate uses. Arguments issue' \&4rich exploration of the "f 4 seem aimed at receptive audiences ronably op"" _to audiences or to rally a *gorn"rro z *ra s seem designed to shok c^omplacent
whereas

groupofTirreBelievers'Even-g*",'t3,whuchistooabusivetobeeffectiveinmost animal liberation actists'

at a cot\/e''ttion of instances, might work as a rallying speech aspects of the same is that"/ogs,^ ethos, and pathos ale.drfjerent Our point ,n", the light beam you.project onto the whole, different lenses for intensifying or'roruog writer affects in some way each of the three appeals' screen. Every choice you make as a choices in more detail' The rest of this chapter examines these

i*

How to create an Effective Ethos: The Appeal to CredibilitY

TheancientGreekandRoma-nrhetoriciansrecogrrizedthatanargrrmentwouldbe the speaker' Aristotle argued that such trust more persuasive if the audience -Lrsted

resideswithinthespeechitself,notinthepriorreputationofthespeaker'Inthe of reasons, in the

speaker,s manner

d"liu"ry, tone, word .hti.", urr tt*g"-ent sympathywlthwhichheorshetreatsalternativeviews,thespeakercreatesatrustwor-

*d

thypersona'Aristotlecalledtheimpactofthespeaker,scredibilitytheappealfrom ethos.Howdoesawritercreatecredibility?wesuggestthreeways:

*BeKnowledgeableaboutYourlssue.Thefirstwaytogaincredibilrt.vis|obe credible_thatis,toarguefiomastrongbaseoJknowledge,tohaveathandthe to statisics, and other empirical data needed

examples, personal experiences,

i*

makeasounclcase.Ifyo.'huuedoneyourhomework,youwillcommandthe attention of most audiences' , ,r ^-^- ^.^^*+^ r need to demonsfate fa]I-

your issue, you Be Fair. gd, being knowledgeable about where Because fine aryument Can occur only ness and courtesy to altemative views.

peoplemayreasonablydisagreewithonearrother,yowethoswillbestrengthenedif *it' otlt"t points of view' There ate that you uderstand and empathiz

yo' d"-oirt

nd
3as

are times, of course, when you *a t"y *o.tty times are

r*,

But these -ay approprit"ly..o* an opposing -view' to your predisposed o.* *n"" yo' udt"rt audiences

SA
ner gurent and

.,1e,'.n"-on,t'"utl,'g"*pumvtoaltemativeewsisgenerallythebest-shategl.' of establishing credibr]irv-bsi"g Build dftg" ; ?o.r",toiurr"". e u,roa means

" abridgetoyoulaudience-has.".,*u."atlengthinourearlierdiscrssionsof

audience-basedreasons.Bygroundingyouralgumentinsharedvaluesandassrrmp-

rort
nast,

tions,youdemonstrateyotugoodwil"andenhanceyorrrimageasatrustworthy personrespectfi.rlofyouraudience,sr,rerr,s.\\ementionaudience-basedreasonshere the reasons that are most rooted in to show ;; thb;p ect of logos-finding the of yorrr readers, \rews.
asa pe6on respectful audience,s va]ues_a]so affects your ethos

112

PART

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How to Creat e Pathos; The Appeal to Beliefs and Emotions

Before the federal government outlawed unsolicited telephone marketing, newspapers

published flurries of articles complaining about annoying telemarketers. Within this context, a United Parcel Service worker, Bobbi Buchanan, wanted to create sympathy for telemarketers. She wrote a IVew York Times op-ed piece entitled "Don't Hang Up, That's My Mom Calling," which begins as follows:
The next time an annoying sales call interrupts your dinner, think of my 71-year-old mother, LaVeme, who works as a part-time telemarketer to supplement her social security income. To those Americans who have signed up for the new national do-not-call list, my mother is a pest, a nuisance, an invader ofprivacy. To others, she'sjust another anonFnous voice on the other end of the line. But to those who know her, she's someone shuggling to make a buck, to feed herself and pay her utilities-someone who personifies the great American way.

The editorial continues with a heartwaming description of LaVerne. Buchanan's rhetorical aim is to transform the reader's anonymous, depersonalized image of telemarketers into the concrete image of her mother: a "hardworking, first generation
American; the daughter of a Pittsburgh steelworker; survivor of the Great Depression; the widow of a World War II veteran; a mother of seven, grandmother of eight, greaigrandmother of three.... " The intended effect is to alter our view of telemarketers through the positive emotions triggered by our identif,rcation with LaVerne. By urging readers to think of "my mother, LaVerne" instead of an anonymous telemarketer, Buchanan illustrates the power of pathos, an appeal to the reader's emotions. Arguers create pathetic appeals whenever they connect their claims to readers' values, thus triggering positive or negative emotions depending on whether these values are affirmed or transgressed. Pro-life proponents appeal lo pathos when they graphically describe the dismemberment of a fetus during an abortion. Proponents of improved women's health and status in Africa do so when they describe the helplessness of wives forced to have unprotected sex with husbands likely infected with HIV. Opponents of oil exploration in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) do so when they lovingly describe the calving grounds of caribou. Are such appeals legitimate? Our answer is yes, if they intensifu and deepen our response to an issue rather than divert our attention from it. Because understanding is a matter of feeling as well as perceiving, pathos can give access to nonlogical, but not necessarily nonrational, ways of knowing. Pathos helps us see what is deeply at stake in an issue, what matters to the whole person. Appeals to pathos help readers walk in the writer's shoes. That is why arguments are often rmproved through the use of stories that make issues come alive or sensory detarls that allow us to see, feel, and taste the reality of a problem. Appeals Lo pathos become illegrtimate, r.r'e believe, rvhen they confuse an issue rather than clarify it. Consider the case of a student n'ho argues that Professor Jones ought to raise his grade from a D to a C, lest he lose his scholarship and leave college, shatiering the dreams of his dear old grandmother. To the extent that students' grades

CHAPTER

Moving Your

Audience

11

dear old grandshould be based on performance or effort, the student's image of the from rational mother is an illegitimate appeal lo pathos because it diverts the reader motive for to irrational criteria. The wleping grandmother may provide a legitimate the student to study harder but not for the professor to change a grade. lom Although it is amcult to classify all the ways that writers can create appeals illustrapathos,*" i,'ilt focus on four strategiLs: concrete language; specific examples and iorrr; l-taouti r"s; and connotations of words, metaphors, and analogies' Each of these impact lends "presence" to an argument by creating immediacy and emotional
strategies

Use Concrete Language

increase the concrete language-one of the chief ways that writers achieve voice-can rr^/hen lsed in argument, liveliness, intre; level, and personality of a writer's prose. the differences concrete language typically eightens pathos. For example, consider firsi and second drafu of the following student argument: between the

First Draft
will increase the People who prefer dring a car to taking a bus think that taking the bus -daily the opposite is true. Not being able to find a parking spot commrite. Just stress of the the bus gives a when in a hurryrto be at work or school can cause a person stress. Taking person time to iead or sleep, etc. It could be used as a mental break'

Second Draft (Concrete Language Added)

else behind the Thking the bus cat be more relaxing than dring a car. Hang someone They can balance their wheel"gives people time to chat with friends or cram for an exam. get lost in a novel rather checkb"ooks, do homework, doze ofl read the daily newspaper, or for a parking space' than foam at the mouth looking

posIn this revision, specific details enliven the prose by creating images that trigger in a novel? lost itive feelings. Who wouldn't want some free time to doze off or to get

Use Specific Examples and lllustrations

They provide specific examples and illustrations serve two purposes in an argument. ihat supports your reasons; simultaneously, they glve ygur argument pres"d"rr." emotional l""rn*"". Note the flatness of the following draft arguing for the ence and value of multicultural studies in a university core curriculum:

First Draft
Arother advantage of a multicultural education
a broader p"rrp.itiu". If all we know is that

it will help us see our own culture in

is olr o\!'n heritage, we might not be inclined to see study bad about this heritage because r.r'e u'on't know anything else' But if we anyth*rg heritage. other heritages, we can see the costs and benefits of our own

Now note the increase in "presence" when the uriter adds a specific example:

114

PART

Writing an Argument

Second Draft (ExamPle Added)

Another advantage of multicultural education is that

it

raises questions about traditional

Westemvalues.Forexample,owningprivatepropertyGuc!asbuyingyorrrownhome)is of Amencan Indians' students part of the American r.. Ifo*"rr,^lrr studyurf the beliefs

areconfrontedwithaverydifferentviewofprivateproperty..ut"lft"U.S.government replied:
Sealth, he is alleged to have sought to buv land rr the 'acif,c Norlhwest lom Chief

ThepresidentinWashingtonsendswordsthathewishestobuyourlarrd.Buthowcan us. If we do not own the freshyou buy or sell the sky? frre land? The idea is strange to

can you buy them?l ' ]We are parl of ness of the air and thl sparkle of the water, how man oi us.t. . .1This we know: The earth does not belong to man, the ea'th and it is part

'

belongs to the earth.

our

class was shocked by the contrast between traditional was initiated by this quotation from Chief Sealth,s views. On of our best class discussions

Western views of property-and

values' never been led to question the "rightness" of Western

Chiefsealth.Hadwenotbeenexposedtoaviewfromanotherculture,wewouldhave

ew of private The writer begins his revision by evoking a-!radi-qo1a1.re:':to chief sealth's sion of land as open, propefy, which he"then questions uy_s-trittrng use of a specific example, the writer endless, and unobtainable as the sky. Thror.gh th"
of multicultural education' U.irrg, to life his preously abstraci point about the benefit

Use Narratives
either leads into your A particularly powerful way to evoke, pathos is to tell a story that feelings and imaginaclaim or embodies it r*prittlv and that appeals to you1. readers' particularly effective as opening tion. Brief narratives-wlieth", t u" or hypbihetical-are an introductory narrative (either a attention grabbers fbr an argument. To iiustrate how pathetic appeals, consider the following first paragraph Jrrrief scene) ,,rv

"* "i"ut" ". to an argument oPPosing jet skis:

I could see the sun shinI dove offthe dock into the lake, and as I approached the surface located my cousin a few feet away in a ing through the water. As my head popp"a out, I

to swim across the milerowboat waitrng to escott me as I, a twlve-year-old girl, attempted to our dock. I made it, and that glorious summer day is one of wide, pristine lake and back attempt that swim' Jet my most precious memories. Today, however, no one would dare many summers with my grandparents' skis have taken over this small lak where I spent it for swimming, flshing, canoeing' Dozens of whiningjet skis crisscross the lake, ruining jet skiing More stringent state laws are nee.ded to control rowboating, u.r eu"n waterskiing. very dangerous' because it interferes with other uses of lakes and is cumently

jet skis by winning our This narrative makes a case for a parlicular point of view toward that experience with identification wrth the writer's exierien.". Sh" intes us to relive experiences that while she also taps into our own treasured memories of summer

her

have been destroYed bY change' but they a].e also Opening narratives to eke pathos can be pori'edully effective, or even too dramatic risky. If they are too private, too self-indulgent, too sentimental,

CHAPTER

Moving Your Audience

115

-s

and forceful, they can backfire on you. If you have doubts about an opening narrative. read it to a sample audience before using it in your final draft.

Use Words, Metaphors, and Analogies with Appropriate

rt
1:

Connotations
Another way of appealing Io pathos is to select words, metaphors, or analogies with connotations that match your aim. We have already described this strategr in our discussion of the "fiaming" of edence (Chapter 5, pages 94-96). By using words with particular connotations, a writer guides readers to see the issue through the writer's angle of vision. Thus if you warrt to create positive feelings about a recent city council decision, you can call it "bold and decisive"; if you want to create negative feelings, you can call it 'haughty
gies to evoke different imaginative or emotional responses.

n
1-

lf
ll

rd nt

\e

and autocratic." Similarly, writers can use favorable or unfavorable metaphors and analoA tax bill might be ewed as a "potentially fatal poison pill" or as "unpleasant but necessary economic medicine." In each of these cases, the words create an emotional as well as intellechral response.

TC

In,

fI

er
)n.

.?-: FOR CTASS DISCUSSION lncorporatng Appeals to Pathos Outside class, rewrite the introduction to one of your previous papers (or a current draft) to include more appeals lo pathos. Use any of the strategies for giving your argument presence: concrete language, specific examples, naratives, metaphors, analogies,

UI
la-

and connotative words. Bring both your original and your rewritten introductions to class. In pairs or in groups, discuss the comparative effectiveness of these introductions iffi I in t ying to reach your intended audience.

ng
td

ph

Lsing Images for Emotional Appeal

One of the most powerfi-rl ways to engage an audience emotionally is to use photos or other images. (Chapter 9 focuses exclusively on sual rhetoric-the persuasive power of images.) Although many writien arguments do not lend themselves to sual illustrations, we suggest that when you conshrrct arguments you consider the potential of sual support. Imagine that your argument were to appea.r in a newspaper, in a magazine, or on a Web site where space would be provided for one or two suals. W4rat photographs or drawings might help persuade your audience toward your perspective? When images work well, they are atralogous to the verbal strategies of concrete language, specific illustrations, narratives, and connotative words. The challenge in using visuals is to find material that is straightfor"ward enough to be understood without elaborate explanations, that is timely and relevant, and that clearly adds impact to a specific part of your argument. As an example, suppose you are r,witing an argument supporting fund-raising efforts to help third-lr-orld countries. To add a powerful appeal to pathos, you might consider incorpora-ng into vour argument the photograph shov,rr in Figure 6.1, a Haitian woman walking on a ncketl bridge over a vast garbage heap in a Haitim slum. A photograph such as this one can create an almost immediate emotional and imaginative response.

l-

1a
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i
hat
so

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116

PART

Writing an Argument

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Working in small
questions:

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to the following

l.Howwouldyoudescribetheemotional/imaqinativeimpactofFigure6.l? starvcountr;s show pictures ol'big-bellied' 2. Many appeals r". r-l"rpi"g third-world to Figure 6'1 Africa' How is you"etpottse ing children d"t;;t'?Ii;;' o1t* of starving commonly encountered pictures the similar to or dif.f?rent from different from the of poverly
story uborlt th"-ruuages children? How is Figure 6.1's stories of starving children?

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Toincreaseyourargument'seffectiveness'youneedtoconsidernotonlyitsappealsto lor the is. is rinring. is appropriateness

k";;jh;t logos. ethos. and pothos,bur also itr language (in this wondei[]1"*otd'' adopted lrom anbther occasion. Kairosisone ol those m what it represents' In ;;il, }'ei po.retful case ancient Greek), that is imposrir"'to the "r"*t": ot "oipo,t',ttw'" it differs subtly from and Greek, kairos means,,right time," words "chronology" tt.," .t ol oiu" ordinary Cr"J-*"ra o. ti-", th;;;;' but you measure chronos by look'g 1t ].o": watch' "chronometer.;;;.; measure attentiveness to situation ;;gh psvologcal lmirosby sensing the opportun" d-;

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lncreasing sales of Toyota's Prius, a hybrid car that runs on both electricity and gasoline, confirm that American consumers are willing to switch from SUVs to more energy-efficient cars. As this advertisement for the Prius shows, energy efficient cars are connected io a constellation of issues, in-

cluding the need to decrease carbon emissions because of pollution-caused health problems and envronmental concern for cleaner energy. How cloes thls ad attempt to move its audience? Analtrze the ad's visual and verbal appeals to
logos. ethos. paLhos and kairos.

'l't7

118

PART

Writing an Argument

andmeaning.Tothinkkairoticatlgisto.beathrnedtothetotalt:l:ltofasituationin By arralogy, consider a skilled base to act in the right way at the right -ome,'t. order who senses the right

tJsteal J;;"J, a wise techer mnner who senses ur".igdLo-ent psvchotherapist J;fl;":;.,[l e.l*"", or a successf'' session' Kairos moment to praise in a counseling ", to talk *tn", trr- listen who senses the right ;;; but evolves as events unfold ,i*urior.r is not stab and fixed, that u rt
reminds us or as audrenc",

"tol'ur

are some examples

kairos: of insights contained by the t',rm hlve a one- or two-day 'm If you write a letter to the editor of a newspaper' yo-u "YltV ;t n"*r" and is no longer interesting' An becomes window before *g":1'lY " will be rejected' betau'" it is poorly-written out-of-date letter 't"'n '9t "ot timeliness occur ln of lost

and care' Here prv.rr"r"gr.uruur and flows of atlention

"*p"rl"'rru]" #;';-n"

t*!"

;;;";;

oent. (similar instances because it misses ott*'o"' huue you w3nted to contribute an idea to class discussions: On how many hand? When doesn't acowledge your raised class discussion' but the professor passed') ott, ih" kairoticmoment has to

r"*

fi""[y *" "uil which we used "Don't Hang Up' Th"'b My Mom C-attl5'''

Bobbi Buchanan's historical have "" i'o"" only during a brief illustrate pathos(page 112), could il" could have debated. Moreover. period when telemketurg was being fublicly

beenwrittenonlylateinthatperiodafternumerouswritershadattackedtelemarYorkTimesbecause the editor received th; keters. Th. it at the nght kairotic moment' pit".lirtg?"*ation' The due date w A sociology major is writing a senior capstone paper isn't at issue. But kairos is still for the pup", ir"ri"ii, ,;l" ,t-"g itr," *irt ir appropriate for such a paper' relevant. It urges the student to consider pup"t ut this.moment in the history u What is the "right way" to produce 'otiology leudig dgg_yersus trailing-edge questions of the discipli".i i;;;d;, whar ur" ,ro[ue?"\Aaiat research methods would in sociology? \A4rat theorists *" "o*'in a good capstone paper written in

pi""J;;;ilffiffi

lr*

uol*oil most impress a judging committee? decade earlier? 2010 diifer foo oe *tiu"tt a

Asyoucanseefoomtheseexamples,kairosconcer1sawholerangeofquestionscon- an a message within appropriatene's' u" proportions of nected to the timini l*t io ap you-determine ttle kairotic are ,ro"i.ri", evolving rhetorical'context. There you "read" your audibut being *n"Jro karos'nilhelp moment for your arg-rment, a dynamtc way' ence and rhetorical situation in

trffieFoRctAssDls(UssloNAnalyzingAnArgumentfromthePerspective

of Kairos, Logos, Ethos' and Pathos in small groups or as a your instr-r-rctor will select an *go-"it for analysis. workrng the ferspective of kairos and from whole class, utalyzethe assigned ";;;;{ili of-logos' ethos' and pathos' then fuom the perspectiv es

l.Asyouulalyzetheargumentfromtheperspectir,eofkairos,considerthefollow.
ing questions:

a.I41atisthemotivatingoccasionforthisargurrent?Thatis,whatcausesthis kel'board? writer to put pen to paper or fingers to

CHAPTER

Movng Your

Audience 119

this conb. What conve$ation is the writer joining? \\4ro are the other voices in add his or to versation? rrA4rat are these voices saying that compels the writer How was the stage set to create the kairotic moment for this her own voice?
argument? c. \&4ro is the rvriter's intended audience and why? trying to d. \\hat is the writer's purpose? Toward what view or action is the writer persuade his or her audience? e. To what extent can various features of the argument be explained understanding of its kairotic moment? pathos' How 2. Now anyze th same argument for its appeals to /ogos, ethos, and

by your

successfulisthisargument"inachievingitswriter'spurpose?{$lilll

How Audience-Based Reasons Enhance Iogos, Ethos, and Paffios

reasons that We conclude this chapter by returning to the concept of audience-based enhance logos because they are we introduced in chapter 4. Audience-based reasons But built on underlying aisumptions (warrants) that the audience is likely to accept' writer identifu with the audience' iney utso enhace"ethos d pathos by helping the audience, you can entring into their beliefs and values. To consider the needs of your ask yourself the following questions:

Questions for Analyzing Your Audience

\\tat

to Ask

\Vhy to Ask It
Your answer will help you think about audience-based
reasons.

1. Who is your audience?

,#

Are you writing to a single person, a committee, or the general readership of a newspaper, magazine, blog site, and so forth? tr Are your readers academics, professionals, fellow students, general citizens, or people with specialized background and interests? :* Can you expect your audience to be politically and culturally libera"l, middle of the road, conservative, or all over the map? What about their religious views? 5: Horv do you picture your audience in terms of social class. ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, age, and
culnLral idenht'?

To

rthat erlent does your audience share your own interests arcl cultlu'al position? Are you u'riting to insiders or
outsiders

rri

regard to your ortn values and beliefs?

(Continued)

120

PART

Wrting an Argument

lVhat to Ask
2. How much does your audience knou or care
about your issue?

\Vhy to Ask It
Your answer can especially affect your introduction and conclusion:

#i

Do your readers need background on your issue or are they alreadY in the conversation? If you are writing to specif,c decision makers' are they cunently aware of the problem you are addressing? If
not, how can You get their attention?
care? issue?

-& Does your audience care about your 3.I4hat

is gour audience's cut'rent attitude

If not' how

can you get them to Your answer will help you decide the stmcture and tone of your argument.

touard your issue?

Are your readers already supportive of your position?

Undecided? Skeptical? Strongly opposed?

.# \4rat other points of view besides your own will

4. What will
be

your audience's likelg objections

to gour argument?

your audience be weighing? Your answer will help detemine the content of your argument and will alert you to extra research you may need

ffi

\\4aat weaknesses 11 audience members find? \4/hat aspects of your position will be most threatening

5. What ualues, beliefs, or assumptions about the world do you and your audence share?

to them and whY? How are your basic assumptions, values, or beliefs different from Your audience's? Your answer will help you find common ground with your

audience.

& s

Despite different points of view on this issue, where can you find common links with your audience? How might you use these links to build bridges to your audience?

ethos utd pathos, supTo see how a concem for audience-based reasons can enhance than random selection) for determining r'r'hich pose that you support racial profiling kather . Suppose l[ther tlrat you are writing a guest i"opl" reeive ini"rsiue scr;ning ut ultpott newspaper and imagine readerc_repulsed by the notion for a liberal campus ip a from the profiling (as indeed yu are repuised too in most cases)' It's important the interests of those opposed to your positionstart that you unerstand and acknowlege profiling, will object to your racial Middle Eastem men, the most likely candldates for racial people of Arabic or Semitic appeamnce into the category all

-n,'' "i.*i-f
b"t""

stercotj,?ing, which lumps

of racial proIing trrorists." eai"* ,Arn".i.*t and Hispanics, frgq"*! c.nt to further extension of this hated practice' Also, most by police in u.s. cities, may object the racism pfiri.rf liberals, as well as many moderates and consen'atives, may object to for airport screening on the basis of ethnicity. inherent in selecting people

CHAPTER

Moving Your Audlence

121

those opposed to racial yorl use to build bridges to \A4rat shared values might your audience's fears t develop *;t"gy t reduce profiling at airports? " tr-ri"*i"g might go something like ths: irrli. uulrr"r. vo,-r, and to link yo,r ,"uro"J,o

Y;;t";

Problem:Howcanlcreateanargumentrootedinsharedvalues?Hou.can Ireducefearthatracialprofilinginthissituationendorsesracismorwtllleadto i.raft"t erosion of civil liberties? must Bridge-buildinggoals:lmusthltoshowthatmyargument'sgoalisl'oincrease like that it gittlot. Mv argumenL airline sarety by #il;;;ry"r^r I must also show n uJanJsemitlc peoples'
show my respect

;;;ffi";lio,
ftoming

my rejection or Possible

as normal police practice'

'utiuf

strategies: - - ^^'^+ people frnrn tr innocent ^^^^to from teronsm' m Stress the share'i value of protecting
...Showhowracialprofilingsignilica:rtlyincreasestheelficiencvolsecondary we waste time and (lf searches are perform"i ;i ;";;"m' then
searches'

resourcessearchingpeoplewhoare**.i."uyunlikelytobeterrorists') wArguethatarrports.,"*",,mustalsouseindicatorsothertharrracetoselect terronst)' rir", might indicate a domestic people ro, ,"uf,.liJr";;, "r
)o

Show mY respect for Islam' m Show sympathy for people *]:otd imporlance

ff

edgethatthi,,p,u.t.".wou]dnotmulyu.de"spicableexceptforlheexlreme personal liberhes in this case'

wshowmyrejectionofracialprofilinginsituationsotherthanairportscreening-for

l:l

and acknowlsearching via Scral profiling

",r#l#,".,-,

*t;n

oumd",

example'uop'i"gffticanmencaT'lo't'umtolationsmoreoflenthanwhites taIS fo' drugs or stolen goods' and then wPerhapsshowmysupportofaffirmativeaction,whichisakindofracialprofiling

in reverse' plan for your argument' you to develop the following These thinkrng notes allow random selection to racial pro"-t ux Aitport screeners should use -Tll:i^tnan intensive seemng determine which people undergo

'"*ffitit"tr

tLlp-

rich
uest

#becausedoingsowillmakemoreefficientuseofairportscreeners,time, thus lead.to greater airhn"

increase the odds of finding
consequences

tion
the
rion. acial
ool"v

"*u,-""d IWARRAiT:-increasedairl|nesafetyisgood;or'atadeeperlevel.Theposltlue ,i;"rsh racial-profiling outweigh the of increasing

:"f.:.ry:

ling most aism

n"goii" consequences) tbecauseracialprotilinginthisspecificcasecloesnotmeanallowrngitin ;ptv al""'p"tL lor Islam or for Middle .u"'vuv'lofit""ttj"itl?' ""' d;:;; in euerudag police Ror:iol proiling is unaccep.table Eastern niaies twARRANT: Eastern males')

"iru";';ii;

p'o'tt"' li'";;;;;'

'no*

aoii)'t"ro'

tTto* o' Mddle

122

PART

Writing an Argument

this plan shows, your skategy is to seek reasons whose warrants your audience will accept' First, you r.3ll arque that racial profiling will lead to greater airline safety, allowing you to stress that safe airlines benefit a[ pssengers. you? concern is the lives of hundreds of passengers as well as others who might e killed in a terrorist attack. Second' you plan to reduce adversaries'resistance to your proposal by showing that the consequences aren't as severe as they might fear. i'g ,".iJ;.oniirrg in aifoorts would not justifu using it in urban porice wo (a practice "yo,, n rj a"rpicabre) and it would not imply disrespect for Islam or Middle Eastem mies. As this example shows, your focus on audience-on the search for audience-based reasons-shapes the actual invention of your argument flom the start. As

r t ffi FoR cLAss DlscussloN Ptanning a^n Audience-Based

1' How does the preceding plan for an argument sup"porting racial profrng make appeal to ethos and pathos as well as to tlgofl 2' Working individually or in small groups,"plan an auclience-based arglmentative strategy for one or more of the following iur... Follow the thinking p?""r.""r"a by the writer of the racial-profiling arguent: (1) state several problems that the writer must solve to reach the uudi"n.e, and (2) develop possible solutions to
those problems.

Argumentative strategy

a' An argument for the right of software companies to continue making and selling olent deo games: aim the u.go-"ni at parents who oppose jnet ctrltdren's playing these games.

b' An argument to reverse grade inflation by limiting the number of As and Bs a professor can give in a course: aim the *gu-"nt students who fear g"nirrg
lower grades. c'
readers of Reader's Digest, a conservative magazine that supports war on drugs.

An argument suPPorting the legalization of cocaine: aim the argument at t" ".rr*rrt

j+,,l

r r

Conclusion
In this chapter, wehave explored' ways that writers can strengthen the persuasiveuv creating appears to ethos and patlts, by being uii"rr,iu" to kairos, and by building bridgei to-their readers thrugh audience-based reasons' Arguments are more persuasive if readers trust the redibility of the writer and if the argument appeals to readers' hearts and imaginations as well as to their intellects' sometimes images such as drawings o. pnoiog.uphs may reinforce the argument by evoking strong emotional i"rponr"r, "tnr^ enhncing pathos. Additionally, attentiveness to iairos keeps the writer attuned to the dyna'mi;, ;i" rhetorical situation in order to create the right message at the right ti*. pmurry, urr come together when the writJr explicirl"y focuses on finding audiencelT:",Try*
ness of their argumelF oased reasons.

CHAPTER

Moving Your Audience

123

WRITING ASSIGNMENT Revising a

' '
:
''

Draft for Ethas, Pathos,

and Audience-Based Reasons

Part 1: Choose an argurnent that you have preously written or that you are currently drafting. Rese the argument with explicit focus on increasing its appeals to ethos,
how you might improve ethos by building bridges to the audience or improve pathos through concrete language, specific examples, metaphors, or connotations of words.
Imagine also how you might include an effective photograph or image. Finally, consider the extent to which your reasons are audience-based.

Part2: Attach to your resion a reflective letter explaining the choices you made in your revision. Describe for your insh-uctor the changes you made and explain how or why these changes are intended to enhance your argument's effectiveness at mong
its audience.

For additional

writing reading and research resources, g0 t0

www.mycomplab.com

:::.

I,n the preous chapter we discussed strategies for moving yotr audience through appeals to ethos, pathos, and kairos.rnthis chapterre skategies ""a-ine for addressing opposing or altemative ews-whether to omit them, refute thm, concede to them, or incorporate them through compromise and conciliation. We show you how your choices about structure, content, and tone may differ depending on whether your audience is syrnpathetic, neutral, or resistant to your ews. The strategies explained in this chapter will increase your flexibility as an arguer and enhance your chance ofpersuading a wide variety of audiences.

One-Sided, Multisided, and Dialogic Argurnents

Arguments are said to be one-sided, multisided, or dialogic:

w A one'sided argument presents only the writer's position on the

without summarizing and responding to alternative viewpoints.
rizes and responds to possible objections and alternative views.

Dete
issue

w A multisided argument presents the writer's position, but also summaw A dalogic argument has a much stronger component of inquiry, in which the writer presents himself as uncertain or searching, the audience is considered a paftner in the dialogue, and the writer's purpose is to seek common ground perhaps leading to a consensual solution to a problem. (see our discussion in chapter 1 of argument as truth seeking versus persuasion, pages 13-15.) one-sided utd multisided arguments often take an adversarial stance in that the writer regards alternative views as flawed or wrong and supports his own claim with a strongly persuasive intent. Although multisided arguments can be adversarial, they can also be made to feel dialogc, depending on the way the

writer introduces and responds to altemative ews.

At

issue, then, is the writer's treatment of alternative ews. Does the

omii them (a one-sided argument), summarize them in order to rebut them (an adversarial kind of multisided argument), or summarize them in order to acknowledge their validity, value, and force (a more dialogrc kind of multisided argument)? Each of these approaches can be appropnate for certain occasions, depending on your purpose, your confidence in own stance, and your au'our dience's resistance to your ews.

writer

stronl

FIGU

t24

CHAPTER

Responding to Objections and Alternative

Views

125

Howcanonedeterminethekindofargumentthatwoulrtbemosteffectiveina is arguments occur commonly when an issue given case? A, ;;;;;J rule, one-sided to ntested, then one-sided arguments tend not highly .orrr"rr?. ir the issue ir t"ghly already in the writer's camp' but alienate strengthen tfre cn rlctions of those *I-ro'*" a multisided for those rnrtially opposed to a writer's claim, those who *"rr,t. l, "ont*t, has oth". ,ri"*, and thus reduces some initial argument shows that the writer
hostility.Anespeciallyinterestingeffectcanoccurwithneutralorundecidedaudiences' Intheshortrun'one-sidedargumentsareoftenpersuasivetoaneutralaudience,butin Neutral audiences who i'l"d arffients have more staying powel'
the long

"onfi"r.

-.tf altematend to change theirminds when they hear have heard only one side of an issue
tivearguments.Byanticrpatingandrebutlingopposingews'amultisidedargument from subsequeni counterarguments' If we move diminishes tt ,,ripJr" *a fJr"" of approache-s-even multisided ones-are " neukal t" hrgh;;"r;;;*l urdl.rr."s, adrrersarial

*n

seldomeffectivebecausetheyincreasehostility-dh*d"''thedifferencesbetlveen esapproaches have the best chance of writer and reader. In such cases, more dialogic

and consensus' tablishing common ground for inquiry rrro* vo" how your choice of writing one-sided' In the funciion of how you perceive your audience's multrsided, or dialogic arguments rs a in your own views' yow u*, ui well as your level of confidence

rest;ft1;;;;; *;*i

resistance to

to Your views Determining Your Audience's Resistance

Whenyouwriteanargument,you.mustalwaysconsir]eryouraudience,spointof ew.onewaytoimagineyo.,,,"tutio,,st'iptoyouraudienceistoplaceitonascale (see yu, position to strong opposition of resistance ranging fiom strong support'of r"uf" are lie-minded people who basically Figure 7.1) d;f;lAc"ord" eniof ifiir At the "Resistance" end aie those who strongly agree with your'fosition on the iss1e, becausg'thei1,l1alues' beliefs' or assumpdisagree *nt VJu p"tn"ps unconditionally' 'Accord" and. "Resistance" lies a range of tions sharply ff., i.o* your own..B;; less those leaning in your direction but with opinions. cl"r;;;;;; ;*rtrg" will be will be those basically resistance.-potlilott conviction than you have. Close to the

opposedtoyour,ewbutwillingtolistentoyourargumentandperhapswillingto people who are its strengthi. In the middie are those undecided acknowledge i-" "r feeling"s, ,."t lrrg additional information' and weighing the still sorting *-in"ll.
views' strengths a"nd weaknesses of alternative

undecided,/Neutral

Resistance

I
i

I I

strongly supportve supportive with conditions

FTGURE

ncerta

mostly oPPosed

strongly oPPosed

71

Scale of resistance

126

PART

Writing an Argument

of resisting views. consider the position of student w,riier sam, a gay man who wished to argue that gay and lesbiar p"_4" should actively r"ppo.t legislation to Iegalize same-sex marriage (see Figur" z.. Most argum"it, trr", support same_sex marriage hope to persuade conservative heterosexui audiences who iend to disafprove of homosexualitz and stress traditional family values. But Sam imagined

S": complexity Another kind occurs whn a wriier is positioned between two .of kinds
subsidy

* forth)' But these arguments were firelevant to those who wanted an open-air stadium, who opposed * categorically, or who objecied to pubc
oi-ittio.ruir"r.

haters, he or she courd skess the spinoff benets of a new ballpark (for &ample, ballpark would attract tourist trr"r.rr", renovate a deteriorating dor.mtor.m neighborhood, create jobs, make sports lovers more likely to vote for public iubsidies of the

Seldom, how_ever, will you encounter an issue in which the range of disagreement follows a simple line from accord to resistance. Often resistant ews fall into different categories so that no single line of argument appeals to all those whose views are dif'ferent from your own. You have to idntify not'nly your audience's resistance ;; y;,r'. ideas but also the causes ofthat resistance. Consider, for example, the issues surrounding publicly financed sports stadiums. In one city, a ballot initiative asked citizens to raise iales taxls to build new retractableroof stadium for its baseball team. Supporters of the initiative faced a complex ,*"v resisting ews (see Fiqule 7.2). opponents of the initiative "f could be ptaa into our categories' Some simply had no interest in sports, cared nothing about baseball, and saw no benefit rn buildinga huge publicly financed sports faciliflAnother gr""rpLr"d baseball and followed the home team passionately, but was philtsopnl"afry'opfis"a io subsidizing rich prayers and ouners with taxpayer money. ** g.o"o *gu"'tnut th. whole sporh indushy needed to be reshrrctured so that itadiums were paid for out of sports revenues. Still anothgr group was opposed to tax hikes ln generj It focused on the principle of reducing the sjze of government and of using tax revenues only for essential serwices..Finally, another powelful group supported "baseban ana ,uffirtea the notion of public funding of a new stadiubut oppor"a the kind of retractable-roof stadium specified in the initiative. This gtoup r,vant"d an old-fashionea, operr-ai,^ Jadium like Baltimore's camden yards or cleveiand's Jacobs Field. writers supporting the initiative fourd it impossible to address all of these resisting audiences at once. If a supporter of the initiative wanted to aim an argument at sports

::
FI

th;;;

it", *a

*r|*

Undecided/Neutral

Resistance

.\p, On

strong support for publicly funded stadium

uninformed or uncertain

opposition 1 lno interest in sports]

opposition 2 fopposed to public funding of sports] opposition 3 fopposed to rasng taxesl opposjtion 4 lopposed to retractable roof]

FIGURE

72

Scale of resistance, baseball siadium issue

CHAPTER

Views Responding to Objections and Alternative

127

HETEROSEXUAL AUDIENCE

GAY AUDIENCE

Resistance

Neutral

Sam's Position
,',
I

Neutral

Resistance

ll
I

Opposition from ProPonents of "familY values" unconditionallY oPPosed

Same-sex marriage should be legalized

Opposition from gaYs and lesbans skePtical of tradtional marriage as a model for gaY relationshiPs

to homosexualtY
same-sex marriage issue FIGURE 7.3 Scale 0f resistance for

fbragaymagazineSuchaSlheHaraardGagandLesbi.anReuieworTheAduocate,and who opposed tradiat riue"g6 un toi*.activists he wished to aim his argument traditional marriage rnis trtintters, critiquing tional marriag" ""'iir-r""tgror'dr. *-U*ltt the freedom of partners' argued that for the way it stereotypes gende*ot", gay community' gooa *oJ"t for relationships in the heterosexual marriage is not a from the conservative 180 degrees':T,"l"d These peopl" *,tii't" * u.'i".'"" moral and religious oppose same-sex marriage on proponents or ru-fy values who

o""#;*g

ences at orr.".

'1ieratlonist" gavs andiesbians imagined * Sam's ess-ay onpages 301-303') ""':i;;i*i;;* tu" (You develop u to"'J"i*go'oent' '9ua

orrryt'"r he biocked

his e arlv dratu' sam, w"' :ry'-=1

" ll T,:^"*::*, values" audience and o;,#";"ative "farnilv l:"fii:T: i:n""f to was he able

ThebaseballstadiumexamplearrdtheSame-Sexmarriaqeexarnpleillustratethe scale of resist; ;"dience's potiti"nt't on the your audience difficulty of adapting your argume"t of U"t*J" y" nlea 3 ]a!]e' vision ance. Yet doing so is important your argument' content' structure, and tone for
befbre yo.,

ur effective AsweshowedinChapter+,an"ffe.tiuecontentderivesfromchoosingaudience-

"uria","r*in!

basedreasonsthatappealtoyouraudience,svalues,assumptions'andbeliefs.Aswe of * "r..rlu" structule and tone are often a function show in the rest of thti chapt.r, next sections show how you
where

y"", uJi.rr." f",, " the scale tf

resistance. The

canadjustyourarguingStrates/a"p"'ai,'gonwhetheryouraudienceissupportive,
neutral. or hostile'

Appealing to a Supportive Audience: Oir^e-Sied Argument

\r4ren an issue is conone-sidedargumentscommonlyoccurwhenarrissueisn,thighlycontestedarrdthe u ,'r"i' o, different point of view' writer,s aim is merely to put forth

;portsl

of suppofiersare usecl -ait-rly to stir the passions tested, however, one-sided arguments

toconvertbeliefintoactionby-'pltl"guparq'melbertocntributetoasenator's seminar' t r-th .tp rt a change-vour-life weekend campaign o, u or" offrce wrker arguments ale Structffed as one-sided Tlpically, appeals to a supportiv. u.]di.,.."

Filled with reduce thern to "enemy" stereotypes' that either ignore opposing views or

128

PART

Writing an Argument

motivational language, these arguments list the benefits that will ensue from your One donations to the cause and the hrrors just around the comer if the other side wins' of the authors of this text recently received a fund-raising letter from an environmental

lobbying group declaring, "It's crunch time for the polluters and therl pals on Capitol F11." ffr""".o."r{orat" pollute" and "anti-envfuonment politicians," the letter continues, have "stepped up efforts to roll back our environmental protections-relying on large campaign .ont ibntiottt, slick PR firms and well-heeled lobbyists to get the job done before November's election." This letter makes the reader feel part of an in-group of good guys fighting the big business "polluters." Nothing in the letter examines enronmental issues fm ULinesst perspective or attempts to examine alternative views fairly. Because the intended audienie already believes in the cause, nothing in the letter intes readers to consider the issues more thoroughly. Rather, the goal is to solidify support, increase the feruor of beliel and irspire action. Most appeal aqguments make it easy to act, ending with an 800 phone number to call, a Web site to sit, a tear-out postcard to send in, or a congressperson's address to wdte to.

Appealing to a Neutral or Undecided Audience: Classical Argument

The in-group appeals that motivate an already supportive audience can repel a neutral or undecided audience. Because undecided audiences are like jurors weighing all sides of an issue, they dishust one-sided arguments that caricature other views. Generally the best strategy for appealing to undecided audiences is the classically shuctured *g,tment described in Chapter 3 (pages 60-62). r4rat characterizes the classical argument is the writer's willingness to summarize opposing views fairly and to respond to them openly-either by trying to refute them or by conceding to their strengths and then shifting to a different field of values. Let's look at these strategies in more depth.

Surnmarizing Opposing Views

The first step toward responding to opposing views in a classical argument is to summaize them fairly. Follow the princtple of charity, which obliges you to avoid loaded, biased, or "straw man" summaries that oversimplifu or distoft opposing arguments, making them easy to knock over. Consider the difference between an unfair and a farr summary of an argument. In the following example, a hypothetical supporter of genetically engineered foods intends to refute the argument of organic-food advocate Lisa Tmer, who opposes all forms of biotechnology.

Unfair Summary of Turne/s Argument

In a biased arlicle lacking scientific understanding of biotechnologr, nahral-foods hud<ster Lisa Tumer parrots the health food industry's pa$' line that genetically altered crops are Frankenstein's monsters run amok. She ignorantly claims that consumption of biotech foods will lead to worldwide destruction, disease, and death. igroring the wealth of scientific literahre

CHAPTER

Responding to Objections and Alternative

Vews
tachcs

129

attack are scare showing that genetically modjfied foods are safe. Her misinformed on overpriced 'health food" products to be purchased at boutique aimed at ,"1in! "o.rrrrem organic-food stores.

Fair Summary of TUrne/s Argument In an article appearing in a nutrition magazine, health fo^od- advocate Lisa Trner "our

warns

food today is genetically modifled using gene-level techniques readers that much of potential, unforethat differ completely from ordinary crossbreeding. She argues that the of genefic engineering offset the possible benefits of increasing seen, harmful .o.rr.q,r.rl.", value of foods' the fbod ,.rpply, reducing the ule of pestiides, and boosting the nutritional unpredictable, irreversible, Turner *r.#iu, g"r" engineering is imprecise, untested,

andalsouncontrollablebecauseofanimals,insects,andwinds.

In the unfair summary, the writer distorts and oversimplifies Trner's argument, it doesn't make the creating a straw -* urgo-"nt that is easy to knock over because iummary follows the 'principle of charity," oppont', best case. I contrast, a fair uito-i"g the strength of the opposing ew to come through clearly.

aa

between the two Working in small goups o, u, u whole class, analyze the differences
summaries.

FOR CLASS DISCUSSION Distinguishing Fair from lJnfair summaries

1. \&/hat makes the first summary unfair? How can you tell? opposing 2. In the unfair summary, what tttut"gi"t does the writer use to make the In the fair summary, how is the opposing ew made view seem weak and iawed? strong ard clear? creden3. In the unfair summary, how does the writer attack Tirl.l]er's motives and called an ad hominem argument ("against the pertials? This attack is smedmes 1 for a definition of this reasoning fallacy) in that it attacks the

son"-see Appendix differently in arguer ratni tnan the argument. How does the writer treat Trner the fair summarY? sum4. Do you agree with our ew that argrments are more persuasrve I f the writer ffi .athei than unfairly? Why? marizes opposing ews fairly

f I

Refuting OpPosing Views

or concede once you have summarized opposing views, you can either refute them to their strengths. In refuting^ n opposing view, you attempt to convince readers on erroneous that its argum"ent is logically lawed, inadequately supported, or based (1) the writer's stated reason assumptio"ns. In refuting an argument, you_can rebut (3) both. Put in less specialand grounds, (Z) tt'e *lt"r', arrant nd backing, or underized language, you can rebut a writer's reasons and evidence or the writer's this argument: lying asum"ptins. Suppose, for example, that I'ou wanted to refute
We shouldn't elect Joe as committee chair because he is too bossy'

we can clarify the structure of this argument bv showing it in Toulmin terms:

130

PART

Writing an Argument

ENTHYMEME
CLAIM We shouldn'i elect Joe as committee chair.
REASON because he is

too llossy.

one way to refute this argument is to rebut the stated reason that Joe is too bossy. Your rebuttal might go ,o-"flri.rg like this:
fact, Joe is very unbossy. He's a good listener who,s willing to compromise, and he invorves others in decisions. Th examprJyo,, fo, his being o&sy wasn't typical. It was a one-time circumstance that doesn't rR""i hi, nonnal behaor. [The writer could then prode examples of Joe,s cooperative nature.l

I disagree that Joe is bossy ln

J"

or you could concede

bossiness is a bad trait for committee chairs:"

that Joe is bossy but rebut the argument,s warrant that

I agree that loe is bossy' but in ihis circumstance bossiness just is the trait we need. This committee hasn't gotten any'thing done for six months and time il we need a deci_ sive person who can come in, get the committee organized, assign tasks, and get the job done.

"-"-f""t.

Let's now illustrate these strategres in a more complex situation. Consider the controversy inspired by a New y9( rtmes Magazinearticre^titled "Re.y.rhg Is Garbage.,, Its author, John Tiemey, argued qnat is not environmentaily sound and that it is rycycrin! cheaper.to bury garbage in a landfilliharr"to recycre-it. In criticiz'ing.."cyctirg, Tiemey that recycling wastes-money; he proded edence th"t {;;"ry time a sanitation lsuea department crew picks up a load oiottr and cans from the e. york city roses money." In Toulmin's terms, one of riemey's arguments "u.b, is skuctured as fbnows:

ENTHYMEME
CLAIM Recycting is bad policy
REASON because it costs more to recycle
:

material than to bury it in a landfill.

GROUNEs,,

": :': ':'

. Evidencerof the high.e651 sq,syrlihg:fTieney

. says csis.lewyork q g2Omira.pr.ron 11. for recyclables than trashJ

CHAPTER

Responding to Objections and Alternative Vews

131

A number of environmentalists responded angnly to Tiemey's argument, challenging

either his reason, his warrant, or both. Those refuting the reason offered counterevidence showing that recycling isn't as expensive as Tiemey claimed. Those refuting the warrant said that even if the costs of recycling are higher than burying wastes in a landfill, recycling still benefits the environment by reducing the amount of virgin materials taken from nature. These critics, in effect, offered a new warrant: We should dispose of garbage in the way that most saves the world's resources.

Strategies for Rebutting Evidence

.o

I
re

Whether you are rebutting an argument's reasons or its war-rant, you will frequently need to question a writer's use of evidence. Here are some strategies you can use:
Deng the truth of the data. Argoers can disagree about the facts of a case' If you have reasons to doubt a writer's facts, call them into question. Cite counterexamples and countertestimong.You can often rebut an argument based on examples or testimony by citing counterexamples or countertestimony that denies the conclusiveness of the original data. Cast doubt on the representatiueness or sfficiency of examples. Examples are powerful only if the audience feels them to be representative and sufficient. Many environmentalists complained that John Tierney's attack on recycling was based too largely on data from New York City and that it didn't accurately take into account the more positive experiences of other cities and states. rrA4ren data from outside New York City were examined, the cost-effectiveness and positive environmental impact of recycling seemed more apparent. Cast doubt on the releuance or recenq of the examples, statistics, or testimony. Tllre best edence is up-to-date. In a rapidly changing universe, data that are even a few years out-of-date are often ineffective. For example, as the demand for recycled goods increases, the cost of recycling will be reduced. Out-of-date statistics will skew any argument about the cost of recycling. Call into question the credibilitg of an authoritg.If an opposing argument is based on testi-o.ry, you can undermine its persuasiveness if you show that a person being cited lacks up-to-date or relevant erpertise in the field. (This procedure is different from the ad hominem fallacy discussed in Appendix 1 because it doesn't attack the personal character of the authority but only the authority's expertise on a specific matter.) Question the acanracy or context of quotations. Edence based on testimony is fre-

rt

1-

ie.

tts

is

t'
n

quently distorted by being either misquoted or taken out of context. Often scientists qualifz their findings heavily, but these qualifications are omitted by the popular media. You can thus attack the use of a quotation by putting it in its original context or by restoring the qualifications accompanying the quotation in its
original source.

732

PART

Writing an Argument

Quertion the wag statistical data were produced or interpreted, chapter 5 provides fuller treatment of how to question statistics. In general, you can rebut statistical evidence by calling into account how the dataiere gathered, treated mathematically, or interpreted. It can make a big differenEe, for example, whether you cite raw numbers or percentages or wether you choose turg o, small increments for the axes of graphs.

sometimes concede to an opposing argument rather than refute it. Sometimes you encounter poions of an argum"t tnu? you simply can't refute. For example, ruppoi" you support ihe legalization oIh*d d-g, such as cocaine and heroin. Adversaries argue that leg;h"tlrghararugs will increase te number of drug users.and addic-ts you mrght dispute the se of their numbers, but you reluctantly agree that they are right. your sateg, in this case is not to refute the oppo; argument but to conce* t: i, by adrmtting tht legalization of hard drugs will p.o-otE heroin and cocaine addicon. Having made that cncession, your task is then to show that the benefits of drug legalization still outweigh the costs you've just conceded. fu this example shows, the strategr of a cncessio" *g"-""1 is to switch lom the f,eld of values employed by the writer you disagree with to a=different field of values more f-avorablg to your position. You don't ky to refute the writers stated reason and grounds {U ar.sutnS that legalization will notlead to increased drug usage and addiction) or the writer's warrant (by arguing that increased d*g use aniaadiition is not a problem). Rather, you shift the argument to a new field of vues by introducing a new wanr-anl one you think your audience can share (that the benefits of legaia:tion-eliminating Jfat the black market and ending the crime, violence, and prison costs asiociated with procreirent of drugs-outwetgh th" costs of increased addiction). To the extent that opponents of legalization share your desire to stop drug-related crime, shifting to this new field of values is a good strategr. Although it may seem that you weaken yo.,i orn position by conceding to an opposing arglunent, you may actually strengthen liby rrc.easing your credibility nd gaining your audience's goodwill. Moreover, conceding to o.r" an opposing argument doesn't mean that you won,t refute other parts of that argunent.

Cnnceding to pposing Views In writing a classical argument, a writer must

p*iit

Exarnple nf a sfudent Essay using Refutation strategi

The following extract from a,student essay is the refutation section of a classical argument appealing to a neutral or undecided audience. In this essay, student wriTer Marybeth Hamilton argues for continued taxpayer suppo of First place, an alterna_ tive public school for homeless children that also p.ot'i"r job counseling and mental health services for families. Because running Firsi Place is costly and because it can

accommodate only 4 percent of her city's homeless children, ttlaryUetn recognizes that her audience may object to continued public fuiding. consequently, to reach the neu_ tral or skeptical members of her audience, she der otes the iollowing portion of her argument to summarizing and refuting opposing vien-s.

CHAPTER

Responding to Objections and Alternative Views

133

trt

Frorn "Fi'rst Pl<xce: A Heqling School for Homeless Children'"

MARYFETH HAMILTOH {fTUBET{T}

rt
F
e

...Asstatedearlier,thegoalofFirstPlaceistopreparestudentsforreturningtomainsfeam to continue operating an agency like First public schools. Although there are mafiy reasons that the school is too expen'piu.", tt.r" are some who woul argue against i1, one arsument is child than a mainstream school' I can,nderstand sive, costing many mofe O"pu'.tlU*Jper m First Place is as a preventative action by the ciq' this objection to cost, uut oni *uy to look at Place are at risk Because all the students at First reduce the future costs of crime and welfare. problems' a proabuse, or numerous other long-term lor educational failure, drug and alcohol before they start. In the long run, the city gram like First place ,*?rr, t" stop thg nrob]e1s

ll

Le

E
ls
re r).

re re

rt
'l
a

jail costs' ulut such as drug rehabilitation, welfare payments' or could be saving money the 'n some of its funding on social services for others might ciitrczeFirst Place for spending the city is it al1 on educational needs' When students and their families instead of spending providing a shelter for the families, why do they deserve already making welfare p"y-;t and child become educated and have ;;)^;;" easicatiy,'tt e "i "r ""v school is ro help atheir entire lamilies are in crisis. run deep, and social skills. At First Place, students, needs education just he child rhen the rest of ttre family is still suffenng? The What good is it to help helps parents poverly Therefore,.First.Place of only the child win not hetp the family out of supply help including assistance with rsums' They even look forjobs by p.ouloirgoU'rearch for expfesslng place also pides a parent support gr9u9 clothes to wear to an inte"rvie-. Fist helps parents deal with their struggles in a anxieties and leaming *t1g skil1s. This therapy take out their fiustration on their child' All productive way, reducingirt"'"rtun"" trtut they will ,,extras" are an attelmpt to help the family get back on its feet and become self-supporting' these Place like Firsi Place is that the short-term stay at First
Another objection

tolo ug..t.V

.o
Ld

doesnolong-termgoodfor-thestudent.However,intalkingwithMichaelsiptroth'a receive helps

teacher at First Place,

leamed that the individual attention the students

.r-

manyofthemcatch"pi'-.n""Lquitequickly.Hereportedthatsomesfudentsactually y"ur. This improvement definitely conmade a three_grade-level improvement in otrl especially in the area.of self-esteem' Also' tributes to the long-ter* goo of the student, pU"Jar" in desperate situati,ons. For most, any help is better than no the students at First
help. Thus First place

;;;tid"t

have to be extended day care for the children so they won't

unsupervisedathomewhiletheirparentsareworkingorlookingfor-work,Forexample, that is overrun

i,l-

3r
d-

Aurora Avenue, a major highway some homeless children live in moiels on play' Aurora Avenue is not a safe place for children to with fast cars, prostitut"r, u.t drugs. many of First Place's students' so the extended day care is important for

al m at
u-

removing students from mainstream Finally, opporr"n r'-iglr-t iuestion the value of

classrooms.Somemight*arguethatseparatingchildrenfromregularclassroomsisnot children' Also'

when the First Place child does the separation p"rio rnigi cuse additional alienation children at In reality, though. the effects are quite different. return to
a

good because

it t.tnJr rtlgririsnts ttr9lidifferences from the mainstream

,"tool.

er

mainstream

134

PART

Writing an Argument

First Place are sympathetic to each other. Perhaps for the first time in their lives, they do not have to be on the defensive because no one is going to make fun of them for being homeless; they are all homeless. The time spent at First Place is usually a time for catching up to the students in mainstream schools. When students catch up, they have one fewer reason to be seen as different from mainstream students. If the students stayed in the mainstream school and continued to fall behind they would only get teased more. s First Place is a program that merits the community's ongoing moral and financial support. With more funding, First Place could help many more homeless children and their families along the path toward self-sufficiency. While this school is not the ultimate answer to the problem of homelessness, it is a beginning. These children deserve a chance to build their own lives, free from the stigma of homelessness, and I, as a responsible citizen, feel a civic and moral duty to do all I can to help them.

I I ffi FOR CTASS DISCUSSION Refutation

Strategies

1. Indidually or in groups, analyze the refutation strategies that Marybeth employs in her argument. a. Summarize each of the opposing reasons that Marybeth anticipates foom her
audience.

b. How does she attempt to refute each line of reasoning in the opposing argument? Where does she refute her audience's stated reason? \Vhere does she refute a wamant? Where does she concede to an opposing argument but then
shift to a different field of values?
c. How effective is Marybeth's refutation? Would you as a city resident vote for allofing more public money for this school? \Vhy or why not? 2. Examine each of the following arguments, imagining how the enthymeme could be fleshed out with grounds and backing. Then attempt to refute each argument. Suggest ways to rebut the reason or the warrant or both, or to concede to the argument and then switch to a different field of values. a. Signing the Kyoto treaty (pledgfng that the United States will substantially lower its emission of greenhouse gases) is a bad idea because reducing greenhouse emissions will seriously harm the American economy.

b. Majoring in engineering is better than majoring in music because engineers

make more money than musicians. c. The United States should reinstitute the draft because doing so is the only way to maintain a large enough military to defend American interests in several different trouble spots in the world.

d. The United States should build more nuclear reactors because nuclear reactors will prode substantial electrical energy u'rthout emitting greenhouse gases.
e. People should be allowed to own handgr-rns because owning handguns helps them protect their homes against potenallv riolent

intmders.

ffri,

I I

CHAPTER

Responding to Objections and Alternative

Views

135

AppealingtoaResistantAudience:DialogicArgument
.r\4rereasclassicalargumentiseffectiveforneutralorundecidedaudiences,itisoftenless audiences the r,r,ryiter's ews. Because resistant effective for audiences strongly oppor"iio writer's, they are often
valuesladen issues such as abortion,

;;;ly drtr"t"nt lrom the hold values, assumprions, or beliefs on many which aL.r,r their worldview too directly' unswayed by ;t"r;i:J;gr-ent, or the role of religion in the gay rights,
g* ;"*"1,
publicsphere,thedistancebetweenu*,i*""q"'"tytaudiencecarrbesogreatthat goal may be simply to open dialogue
by seeking
uttt writer's dialogue seems impossible. In these "ur", ;r, uv n"rr"g nraies gr"r"d-tha!

.o--i"

wtrel

the writer and audience

agree.Forexample,gro-ch9i9ea1dpro-lifeadvocatesmaynevelagreeonawoman'sright

toarrabottion,buttheymightsharecornmongroundrrrwanjnstoreduceteenagepregagreement. words, for conversation, if not for nancy. There i. ;;;;;d"; the goal-of dialogic arguusJ"t"fs and values, Because of these differences in

mentisseldomtoconvertresistant,*.''tothewriter'sposition'Thebestawriterthe resistance, perhaps by increasing

can hope

f", i; ;;

reduce somewhat the level of

reader,swillinEresstolisten*p,"p*u,ionforfuturediatogue.Infact,oncedialogue15 each to each other and hve learrred to respect initiated, purtiE, who genuinely hsten A recent example of ,"^r"ri Jo shared problems' other,s views might begin finding for a commonLouisiana senator John Breaux's call
this process ground stratefr

.;;;'r;;

i"; ,;1u*g

rn formJr the u.s.

costs and -shows other' ""-u"rr""'t in which potltl.ul opponents shout at each ble news talk ,,hy a p-gru* ,i,ir"r. the moderator would inte people of asked in an interview, to address the health Ooutltt'- Brgaux hopes opposing philosophies to seek t:l;; com-

r-?

h;Jth care crisis ch atactenzed'by soaring objects to cae"r.ans without medical insurance' Breaux "\&4ry not"' he

medical

liberals care crisis by bringlng together

to find o""rrti""s, hospital managerc and nurses panies, ao.toJ, ?irrui11u.".rtl. for solutions' begin a dialogl: sealch colnmon ground o" *hith they can and this seition-the delayed-thesis strategr The dialogic strategies writer and a resistant

conservatiues, patients and insurance

*"
ut

Rogerian strategi-are audrence. Thev-work ews and

relect to djsarm n"rr:ty"rry rnowing te wrltgr.s

ui-"a

"rpfuin-ir. p-*{):tlng.*a"rc*ai",s

betrveen a

f11_{::"0*

b;J;;;J;;""

her own Vrews' with which the writer presents his or

Delayed-Thesis Argtrment
Inmanycasesyoucarrreacharesistantaudiencebyusingadelagedthesssfirrcturern arguargument to reveJ your thesis' classical which you wait until the end of your

mentasksyoutostateyourthesisintt-'"-t-...tlon,supportitwrthreasonsarrd it is opposing views. Riretorically, however'

refute

evidence, and then rumrirurir" and argut31:tJyh*e"you stand at the start of your not always uau*tug"ott' ;;;;ll t""t views' For resistant "rittLi*ly from alternative ment or to separare revelation of your own keep the issue open' delaying the audiences, it may b" bJ;;;;" " position until the end of the essay'

;;;;*ff

.:lIl

-n"-

S--------_-r"-,

g*ldrng Bipartisan Consensus on Heal-Care Solutrons"'

Seattle Times 14 July

2005' 88

136

PART

Writing an Argument

we To illustrate the drfferent effects of classical versus delayed-thesis arguments, Ellen invite you to read a delayed-thesis argument by nationallysyndicated columnist about Goodman. The article appeared ln t-ggS at the height of feminist arguments a pornography. The kairotic moment for Goodman's article was the nation's shock at on a ilrotaf"gg rape in New Bedford, Massachusetts, in which a woma-n was raped pool table by patrons of a local bar.*

Minneapclis Parnogrphy Ordinsnce

EN.LENGOtsMAF

that in which such events occur. As recently as last month, a study done by two university of wisconsin researchers by their suggested that even "normal" men, prescreened college students' were changed After just ten hours of viewing, reported researcher to violent pornography. "^p.rrr"Donnerstein, "the men were less likely to convict in a rape trial, less likely to Edward Pornography may see injury to a victim, more likely to see the victim as responsible." "but it maintains a lot of very callous attitudes. It justinot caus rape directly, he said fies aggression. It even says you are doing a favor to the victim'" If ivl can prove that ptrnography is harmful, then shouldn't the victims have legal is th theory behind a city ordinance that recently passed the rights? This, in u.ry "ur", Vetoed by the mayor last week, it is likely to be back before M-inneapolis City Council. What is the Council for an overriding vote, likely to appeat in other cities. other towns' is that for the first time it attacks pornography, unique about the Minneapolis approach women' not tecause of nudity or sexual explicitness, but because it degrades and harms of sex discrimination' It opposes pornography on the basis s nirr"rrity of tvtinnesota Law Professor Catherine MacKinnon, who co-authored the this tactic because ordinance with feminist writer Andrea Dworkin, says that they chose is central to "creating and maintaining the inequality of they believe that pornography the sexes. . . . Just being a woman means you are injured by pornography'"

crime' There magazine prilnted a photo feature that reads like a blueprint for the acfual Hustler and real life. ln Hustlet the woman enjoyed it' we ust two differences between In real life, the woman charged rape. the There is no evidence ttrat the four men charged with this crime had actually read that the spectators who yelled encouragement for two magazrne. Nor is there evidence growing sense hours had held previous ringside seats at pornographic events. But there is a being peddled in this country helps to create an atmosphere the violent pornog.uphy

Mass., Hustler Just a couple of months before the pool-table gang rape in New Bedfor4

*The rape was later the subject of an Academy Alvard-u'innhg nto-r-te'

The Accused'

starring Jodie Foster'

CHAPTER

Responding to Objections and Alternative

Views

137

'e

n rt
a
d

tr e
t.

They defined pornography carefully as, "the sexually explicit subordination of r'omen' graphially depicied whether in pictures or in words." To fit their legal definition it must u'omen ts itr"tu" one of nine conditions that show this subordination, like presenting pleasure in being raped or. . . mutilated. . . . " Under this law, it who "experience sexual a would be possible for a pool-table rape victim to sue Hustler. It would be possible for weie forced to act in a pornographic movie. Indeed since the law woman to sue if she woman to describes pornography as oppressive to all women, it would be possible for any in the stuff for violating her civil rights' sue those who traffic In many ways, the Minneapolis ordinance is an appealing attack on an appalling probwho have lem. The authors have tried to resolve a long and bubbling conflict among those to pornography and a deep loyalty to the value of free speech' "To both a deep aversion date," says Professor MacKinnon, "people have identified the pornographer's freedom with eveiybody's freedom. But we're saying that the freedom of the pornographer is the subordination of women. It means one has to take a side'" But the sides are not quite as clear as Professor MacKinnon describes them. Nor is the Even if we accept the argument that pornography is harmful to women-and I dothen we must also recognize that anti-Semitic literature is harmful to Jews and racist literature is harmful to blacks. For that mattef, Marxist literature may be harmful to government policy. It isn't just women vefsus pornographers. If women win the right to sue publishers and produce.s, then so could Jews, blacks, and a long list of people even who rnay b" able to prove they have been harmed by books, movies, speeches or murders, you may recall, were reportedly inspired by the The Manson
ordinance.

LC

e
.S

ir
)I

records.
Beatles.

10

)
i_

we might prefer a library or book store or lecture hall without Mein Kampf or the would Grand Whoevir of the Ku Klux Klan. But a growing list of harmful expressions
inevitably strangle freedom of speech' This ordinanae was carefully written to avoid problems of banning and prior restraint, just too broad' It seems but the right of any woman to claim damages from pornography is destined to lead to censorshiP. What the Minneapolis City Council has before it is a very attractive theory' What MacKinnon and Dworkin have written is a very persuasive and useful definition ofpornography. But they haven't yet resolved the conflict between the harm ofpornograof free speech. In its present form, this is still a shaky piece of law' phy and t=h"

it
1

'e
rs

i'.

l.
.e ,e

"utu"

rf

Consider now how this argument's rhetorical effect would be different if Ellen Goodman had revealed her ttresis in the introduction using the classical argument form. Here is how this introduction might have looked:

Goodman's Introduction Rewritten in Classical Form

pool-table ga]]g rape in New Bedford, Mass" HttstlermagaJnst a couple of months before the just rin" p.i.ri"a a photo feaflre that rads ke a blueprint for the actual crime' There were

138

PART

Writing an Argument

Hrctler u:rdreal life. In Hustler, the woman enjoyed it. In real life, the rape. Of course, there is no edence that the four men charged with this woman charged crime had actually read the magazine. Nor is there edence that the spectators who yelled encolragement for two hours had held preous ringside seats at pornographic events. But there is a growing sense that the olent pornography being peddled in this counhy helps to create an atmosphere in which such events occur. One crty is taking a unique approach to attack this problem. An ordinance recently passed by the Minneapolis City Council butlaws pomography not because it contains nudity or sexualiy explicit acts, but because it clegrades and harrns women. Unfortunately, despite the proponenfs' good intentions, the Minneapolis ordinance is a bad law because it has potentially dangerous consequences.
tr,vo differences betr,veen

Even though Goodman's position can be grasped morc qurckly in this classical form, our studnts generally find the original delayed-thesis version more effective.
\4/hy is this? Most people point to the greater sense of complexity and surprise in the delayedthesis veriion, a sense that comes largely from the delayed discovery of the writer's position. \Arhereas the classical version immediately labels the ordinance a "bad law," ihe original version withholds judgment, inviting the reader to examine the law more sympathetically and to identiff with the position of those who drafted it. Rather ihan d'istancing herself fuom those who see pomography as a violation of women's rights, Goodman shares with her readers her own struggles to think through these issues, thereby persuading us of her genuine sympathy for the ordinance and for its feminist proponentr. In the end, her delayed thesis renders her final rejection of the ordinafice not only more surprising but more conncing. Clearly, then, a writer's decision about when to reveal her thesis is critical. Revealing the thesis early makes the writer seem more hardnosed, more sure of her position,hore confident about how to divide the ground into friendly and hoshle

control. Delaying the thesis, in contrast, complicates the issues, increases reader sympathy for more than one ew, and heightens interest in the tension among alternative views and in the rwiter's struggle for clarity.

iu*pr, more in

Rogerian Argurnent
An even more powerful strategy for addressing resistant audiences is a conciliatory
strategr often called Rogerian argument, named after psychologist Carl Rogers, who used ihis strategy to help people resolve differences.* Rogerian argument emphasizes "empathic listening," which Rogers defined as the ability to see an issue sympathetically from anothei person's perspective. He trained people to withhold judgment of attentively to the other person, under-oth". person's idas until after they listened person's values, respected that person's appreciated that stood tht person's reasoning, humanity in short, walked in that person's shoes. \\4rat Carl Rogers understood is

fr

*See Carl Rogers's essay "Communication: Its Blocking and Its Facrlitalion" in his book On Becoming a Person (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1961), 329-37. For a fuller discussion ol Rogenan argument, see Richard Young, Alton Becker, and Kenneth P1ke, Rhetoric: Discouetg and Change (\ert \brk: Harcoufi Brace,1972)

CHAPTER

Responding to Objections and Alternative

Views

139

Because Rogerian arguthat traditional methods of argumentation are threatening.

of argument, and because ment stresses the psychologrcalL weil as logical dimensions an arg-rment, it iiempnasire. ,"d.r.ing thrJat and building triidges rathgr -tha1 winning laden issues' is particularly effectiv when dealing with emotionally strategy, the writer reduces the sense of threat in her arg,ment Under liogerian qud'ience share mang basic ualues' Instead of by showing ti mtn wnte" and resistant the audience's itucLlng tie audience as wrongheaded, the Rogerian writer respects before presentposition views and demonstrates an undlerstanding of the audience's Finally, the Rogerian.writer seldom asks the audience to capituirrg h", own position. By io the writer', ,ia"-.r.ito sffi somewhat toward the writer's views' iui. views, the writer "ntir"ty that she has ahedy shifted toward the audience's "JL""J"Aing for the audience to accept compromise. AII of this negotiation ideally makes it easier positionsIeads to a compromise between-or better, a synthesis of-the gqposing -. listening, is the ability The key to successful Rogerian argument, besides the art of For ur"* of agreeirent between the writer's and reader's positions' with to point arguing and you are example, if you support woman's right to choose abortion but opposed to abofuon, you're unlikely to conved your reader,

,o-"orr.

completely bysummarizing your you mrght reduce the ievel of resistance. You begin this process values. You might say, for reader,s position sympathetically, stressing youi shared treat yo,, Ar vatue babies; that you also are appalled by people who acceptance of "ru*pfe,'tf.rut io* of birth conkol; that you also worry that the easy abortion * u and that you also agree abortion diminishes the value society places on human life; Butlding thut u.."pting abortion lightly can lad to lack of sexual responsibility they will lisit more likely that bridges like th"ese between lou and your readers makes present your own posttron' ten to you when you has much in In its emphaiis on establishing common ground, Rogeri^an argument citcize classical common with recent feminist theries of argument. Marry feminists *g**""t as rooted in a male value system and tainted by metaphors of war and comare bai. Thus, classical arguments, with their emphasis on assefiion and refutation, "power:frrl" or "forceful." The writer "defends" his position typl"uly praised for bing and rea*a "uu*r" his "opponelnt's" position using facts and data as "ammunition" theorists, "Uto* away" his opponent's claim. According to some sons as "big guns" fo playlng viewing argument as war can lead to inauthenticity, posturing, and game distrust of classical argumentation oten find Rogerian Wt"ri who share this and accommodaargument appealing because it stresses self-examination, clarification' argument is more in hme with win-win negotiation tion rather than refutation. Rogerian
than with winlose debate' An example of a student's Rogenan argr,rment is shown on pages

t43-I44'

Conclusion
intending This chapter has explained strategies for addressing alternative views' \A4ren to engage supportive audiences-in a cause. $riters often compose one-sided arguto classical ments. Neutral or undecided audiences generallr- respond most favorably

140

PART

Writing an Argument

arguments that set out strong reasons in support of the writer's position yet openly address alternative ews, which are first summarized fairly and then either rebutted or conceded to. Strongly resistant audiences typically respond most favorably to dialogic strategies, such as delayed-thesis or Rogerian argument, which seek common

ground with an audience, aim at reducing hostility, arid take a more inquiring or
conciliatory stance.

.r

r'r.l'.:;,,t,,-.,,.j.,

WRITING ASSIGNMENT A Classical Argument or a Dialogic

t;1.i1;i:.1;11,,1;1;ii' 1: Classical Argument Write a classical argument following the explai{jl,,,ri';,','tii"'lli;;;ii nations in Chapter 3, pages 60-62, and using the guidelines for devel,oping such ' an argument throughout Chapters 3-7. Depending on your instructor's preferences, ,,'":i.,1.;ll, :,,r:j!;lll, ,' this argument could be on a new issue, or it could be a final stage of an argument ,1,, ,,-rill.'l', ii,-Ll ' in progress throughout ParL 2. This assignment expands the supporting-reasons as",.,-',1,','lii';iifl ll',:1lr:il']l,it;- signment from Chapter 5 by adding sections that summarize opposing views ',.f them through refutation or concession. For an example of a classical "',',,,t',',.',',.," and respond to "'Half-Criminals'or argument, see Urban Athletes? A Plea for Fair teatment of irt'',i"',,"' Skateboarders," by David Langley (page 141). t'u,r''
,l,n

ll,:::il;l;';lt.illiiu' Option A

Argument Aimed at Conciliation

Option 2: A Dialogic Argument Aimed at Conciliation Write a dialogic argument aimed at a highly resistant audience. A good approach is to argue against a popular cultural practice or belief that you think is \.^,Tong, or argue for an action or belief that you think is right even though it will be highly unpopular. Your claim, in other words, must be controversial-going against the grain of popular actions, values, and beliefs-so that you can anticipate considerable resistance to your views. This assignment invites you to stand up for something you believe in even though your view will be highly contested. Your goal is to persuade your audience toward your position or toward a conciliatory compromise. In writing and revising your argument, draw upon appropriate strategies from Chapters 6 and 7. From Chapter 6, consider strategies for increasing your appeals to ethos and pathos. From Chapter 7, consider strategies for appealing to highly resistant audiences through delayed-thesis or Rogerian approaches. Your instructor may ask you to attach to your argument a reflective letter explaining and justifuing the choices you made for appealing to your audience and accommodating their ews. For an example of a Rogerian argument written in response to this assignment, see Rebekah Tylor's "Letter to Jim" on page 143. a

Readings
Our first student essay illustrates a classical argument. This essay grew out of a class discussion about alterrrative sports, conflicts betrveen traditional sporh and newer sports (downhill skiing versus snowboarding), arld middle-age prejudices against groups ofyoung people.

CHAPTER

Responding to Objections and Alternative Views

141

"Hcxlf-Criminuls"' or Urbcn Athletes? A Plea for Fair Treatment of Skatebonrders

{A Classicul Argument)
T}AVID LAHGLEY {5TUDTNT}

For skateboarders, the campus of the University of California at San Diego is a wideopen, huge, geometric, obstacle-filled, stair-scattered cement paradise. The signs posted all over aampus read "No skateboarding, biking, or rollerblading on campus except on Saturday, Sunday, and holidays." I have always respected these signs at my local skateboarding spot. On the first day of 1999,I was skateboarding here with my hometown skate buddies and had just landed a trick when a police officer rushed out from behind a pillar, grabbed me, and yanked me offmy board. Because I didn't have my I.D. (I had emptied my pockets so I wouldn't bruise my legs if I fell-a little trick of the trade), the officer started treating me like a criminal. She told me to spread my legs and put my hands on my head. She frisked me and then called in my name to police headquarters. "What's the deal?" I asked. "The sign said skateboarding was legal on holidays." "The sign means that you can only roll on campus," she said. But that's not whaf the sign said. The police officer gave one friend and me a warning. Our third friend received a fifty-dollar ticket because it was his second citation in the last twelve months. s Like other skateboarders throughout cities, we have been bombarded with unfair treatrnent. We have been forced out of known skate spots in the city by storeovr'ners andpolice, kicked out of every parking garage in dormtov,n, compelled to skate at strange times of day and night, and herded into crowded skateboard parks. However. after I was searched by the police and detained for over twenty minutes in my own skating sanctuary the unreasonableness of the treatment of skateboarders struck me. Where are skateboarders supposed to go? Cities need to change their unfair treatrnent of skateboarders because skateboarders are not antisocial misfits as popularly believed, because the laws regulating skateboarding are ambiguous, and because skateboarders are not given enough legitimate space to practice their sport. Possibly because to the average eye most skateboarders look like misfits or delinquents, adults think of us as criminal types and associate our skateboards with antisocial behavior. But this view is Lrnfair. City dwellers should recognize that skateboards are a nafural reaction to the urban environment. If people are surrounded by cement, they are going to figure out a way to ride it. People's different environments have always produced transportation and sporls to suit the conditions: bikes, cars, skis, ice skates, boats, canoes, surfboards. Ifwe live on snow, we are going to develop skis or snowshoes to move around. Ifwe live in an environment that has flat panels of cement for ground with lots of curbs and stairs, we are going to invent an ingeniously designed flat board with wheels. Skateboards are as natural to cement as surfboards are to water or skis to snow. Moreove the resulting sport is as healthfiI, gracefuI, and athletic. A fair assessment of skateboarders should..rp""io* elegant, nonpouting means of transportation and sport, and not consider us hoodlums.

142

PART

Writing an Argument

is that the laws that regulate restrictive, ambiguous, and open to abusive skateboarding in public places are highly application by police officers. My being frisked on the UCSD campus is just one example. When I moved to Seattle to go to college, I found the laws in Washington to be

second way that skateboarders are treated unfairly

equally unclear. When a sign says "No Skateboarding," that generally means you will get tiketed if you are caught skateboarding in the area. But most areas aren't posted. The general rule then is that you can skateboard so long as you do so safely without being ieckless. But the definition of "reckless" is up to the whim of the police officer. I visited the front desk of the Seattle East Precinct and asked them exactly what the laws against reckless skateboarding meant. They said that skaters are allowed on the sidewalk as long as they travel at reasonable speed and the sidewalks aren't crowded. One of the officers explained that if he saw a skater sliding down a handrail with people all aroun4 he would definitely arrest the skater. What if there were no people around I asked? The officer admitted that he might arrest the lone skater anyway and not be questioned by his superiors. No wonder skateboarders feel unfairly treated. One way that cities have tried to treat skateboarders fairly is to build skateboard parks. Unforfunately, for the most par1 these parks are no solution at all. Most parks were designed by nonskaters who don't understand the momentum or gravity pull associated with the movement of skateboards. For example, City Skate, a park below the Space Needle in Seattle, is very appealing to the eye, but once you start to ride it you realize that the transitions and the vefticals are all off, making it unpleasant and even dangerous to skate there. The Skate Park in Issaquah, Washington, hosts about thirty to fifty skaters at a time. Collisions are frequent and close calls, many. There are simply too many people in a small area. The people who built the park in Redmond, Washington, decided to make a huge wall in it for graffiti artists "to tag Qt" legally. They apparently thought they ought to throw all us teenage "ha1f-criminals" in together. At this park, young teens are nervous about skating neaf a gangster "throwing up his piece," and skaters become dizzy as they take deep breaths from their workouts right next to four or five cans of spray paint expelling toxins in the air. Of course, many adults probably don't think skateboarders deserve to be treated fairly. I have heard the arguments against skateboarders for years from parents, storeowners, friends, police officers, and security guards. For one thing, skateboarding tears up public and private properly, people say. I can't deny that skating leaves marks on handrails and benches, and it does chip cement and granite. But in general skateboarders help the environment more than they hurt it. Skateboarding places are not littered or tagged up by skaters. Because skaters need smooth surfaces and because any small object of litter can lead to painful accidents, skaters actually keep the environment cleaner than the average citizen does. As for the population as a whole, skateboarders are keeping the air a lot cleaner than many other commuters and athletes such as boat drivers, car drivers, and skiers on ski lifts. In the bigger picture, infrequent repair ofcurbs and benches is cheaper
than attempts to heal the ozone. We skateboarders aren't going away, so cities are going to have to make room for us somewhere. Here is how cities can treat us farly. \1'e should be allowed to skate when

CHAPTER

Responding to Objections and Alternative

Vews

"143

others are present as long as we skate safely on the sidewalks. The rules and laws should be clearer so that skaters don't get put into nrlnerable positions that make them easy targets for tickets. I do support the opening of skate parks, but cities need to build more of them, need to situate them closer to where skateboarders live, and need to make them relatively wholesome environments. They should also be designed by skateboarders so that

they are skater-friendly and safe to ride. Instead of being treated as "ha1f-criminals,"
skaters should be accepted as urban citizens and admired as athletes; we are a clean population, and we are executing a challenging and graceful sport. As human beings groq we go from crawling to walking; some of us grow from strollers to skateboards.

To illustrate a conciliatory or Rogerian approach to an issue, we show you student writer Rebekah Taylor's argument written in response to this assignment. Rebekah chose to write a Rogerian argument in the form of a letter. An outspoken advocate for animal rights on her campus, Rebekah addressed her letter to an actual foiend, Jim, with whom she had had many long philosophical conversations when she attended a different college. Note how Rebekah "listens" empathically to her iiend's position on eating meat and proposes a compromise action.

S, tetter to lim {A Ro,gerian Argurreni}

NEBEKAII TAYLOR {STUDEF{T}

Dear Jim,

decided to write you a letter today because I miss our long talks. Now that I have transferred colleges, we haven't had nearly enough heated discussions to satisff either of us. I am writing now to again take up one of the issues we vehemently disagreed on in the past-meat-based diets. Jim, I do understand how your view that eating meat is normal differs from mine. In your family, you learned that humans eat animals, and this view was reinforced in school where the

idea of the food p1'ramid based on meat protein was taught and where most children had not even heard of vegetarian options. Also, your religious beliefs taught that God intended humans to have ultimate dominion over ail animals. For humans, eating meat is part of a planned cycle of nature. In short, you were raised in a family and community that accepted meat-based diets as normal, healthy, and ethically justifiable whereas I was raised in a family that cared very deeply for animals and attended a church that frequently entertained avegutas a guest speaker.

Let me now briefly reiterate for you my own basic beliefs about eating animals. As I have shared with you, my personal health is important to me, and I, along with other vegetarians and vegans, believe that a vegetarian diet is much more healthy than a meat diet. But my primary motivation is my deep respect for animals. I have always felt an

''44

PART

Writing an Argument

overpowering sense of compassion for animals and forceful sorrow and regret for the injuries that humans inflict upon them. I detest suffering, especially when it is forced upon creatures that cannot speak out against it. These deep feelings led me to become a vegetarian at the age of 5. While lying in bed one night, I looked up at the poster of a silky-white harbor seal that had always hung on my wall. As I looked at the face of that seal, I made a connection between that precious animal on my wall and the animals that had been killed for the food I ate every day. In the dim glow of my Strawberry Shortcake night light, I promised those large, dark seal eyes that I would never eat animals again. Seventeen years have passed now and that promise still holds true. Every day I feel more dedicated to the
cause of animal rights around the world.

I know very well that my personal convictions are not the same as yours. However, I believe that we might possibly agree on more aspects of this issue than we realize. Although we would not be considered by others as allies on the issue of eating meat, we do share a common enemy-factory farms. Although you eat animal products and I do not. we both share a basic common value that is threatened by today's factory farms. We both disapprove of the rnecessary suffering of animals. s Though we might disagree on the morality of using animals for food at all, we do agree that such animals should not be made to suffer. Yet at factory farms, billions of animals across the world are born, live, and die in horribly cramped, dark, and foul-smelling barns. None of these animals knows the feeling of fresh air, or of warm, blessed sunlight on their backs. Most do not move out of their tight. uncomlortable pens until the day that they are to be slaughtered. At these factory farms, animals are processed as if they were inanimate objects, with no regard for the fact that they do feel fear and pain. It is because of our shared opposition to animal suffering that I ask you t9 consider making an effor1 to buy meat from small, independent local farmers. I am told by friends that all supermarkets offer such meat options. This would be an easy and effective way to light lactory farms. I know that t could never convince you to stop eating meat. and I will never ffy to lorce my beliels on you. As your Friend I am grateful simply to be able to about my beliefs. I trust that regardless of what your ultimate write to you ,o "urridly is to this letter, you will thoughtfully consider what I have written, as I will reaction thoughtFully consider what you write in return.
Sincerely, Rebekah

For additional writing, reading, and research resources, g0 t0

www.mycomplab.c0m

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Thls advocary poster fuses three big Lontempordry public Lontroversie\ over

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environmentalism, sustainability, ancl

vegetarianism. What tactics does this poster use to appeal to viewers' emotions and

dramatize its claim that meai-eating is destroying the world? Chapters B and 9
provicle guidance for conducting rhetorical analyses of verbal and visual texts that work in a complex way, as this one does.

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composing your own arguments. Now in part Three we show you how to use your new rhetorical knowledge to conduct in-depth analyses of other people's arguments. To analyze an argument rhetorically means to examine closely how it is composed and what makes it an effective or ineffective piece of peisuasion. A rhetorical analysis identifies the text under scrutiny, summarizei its main ideas, presents some key points about the text's rhetorical strategies for persuading its audience, and elaborates on these points. Becoming skilled at analyzing arguments rhetorically will have multiple payoffs for you. Rhetorical analysis will help you develop your ability to read complex texts critically; speak back to texts from youi own insights; apply the strategies of effective argumentation to your own arguments; and prepare you as a citizen to distinguish sound, ethical arguments from manipulative, unreasonable ones. By themselves, rhetorical analyses are common assignments in courses in critical thinking and argument. Rhetorical analysis also plays a major role in consfiucting arguments. Writers often work into their own arguments summaries and rhetorica-l analyses of other people's arguments-particularly in sections dealing with opposing views. This chapter focuses on the rhetorical analysis of written argumenti, and the next one (Chapter 9) equips you to analyze visual arguments.

In Part Two of this book, we explained thinking and writing strategies for

l!

Thinking Khetorically about a Tex

rhetorical analysis of an argument selected by your inshuctor (sel p. 1bg). This section will help you get started by showing you what it means io think

The suggested writing assignment for this chapter is to write your own

rhetorically about a text. Before we turn directly to rhetorical analysis, we should reconsider the key word rhetoric, In popular usage, rhetoric often means empty or deceptive language, as in, "well, that's just rhetoric." Another .etata meaning of rhetoric is decorative or artificial language. The Greek Stoic philosophei Epictetus likened rhetoric to hairdressers fi-ring hair*-a view ihat iees
Rhetorics;

*chaim Perelman, "The New Rhetoric: A Theorr of practicrl Reasoning.,, rn professing the Neu A Sourcebook, eds. Theresa Enos ancl ir,arr C. tsroun (Englei,ooa Cliif, NJ: prentice Hall, 1994), 149.

t46

CHAPTER

Analyzing Arguments

Rhetorically 147

rhetoricians, however, adopt rhetoric as superficial decoration. Most contemporary Aristotle: the art of the larger view of rhetoric articulated by Greek philosopher Contemporary rhetorician determining what will be persuasive in very situation. rhetoric in aition as "the function of adjusting ideas Donald C. tsryant has desciibed meaning of rhetoto people u"a oi p"ople to ideas."* Focusing on this foundational

ric,thischapterwillshowyouhowtoana'Iyzeawriter,smotivation,purpose,and

for
use

rhetorical choices for persuading a targeted audience' an effective rhetorical Most of ,t" trro*t"age andskillslou will need to write You have beEn proded in Parts One and Two of the text' analysis h"t" ;;;;t (Chapter 2)' and from context aiready learned how to piace a text in its rhetorical familiar with such key rhetorical concepts as audiencechapters s-z yor ur" already of logos, ethos, the STAR critria for evidence, and the classical appeals
based reasons,

rie's
sely

andpathos,Thischapterpreparesyoutoapplytheseargrrmentconceptstothearguments You encounter.

perits ; for
:s

I I ,:

riple

!to
lhts; and
urip-

An Initial Exercise in Rhetorical Analysis perconsider the skategies used by_two different writers to In the following """r"ir",act against climate The first is from the opening parasuade their u.doi"rr.", to "-g". A Christian Enuironmental graphs of an editorial in the magazine creatlon care: club, an environmental action site of the sierra Quarterlg.The second is fuom the web passage and then proceed to the questions that follow' Please ,tody group.
FOR CTASS DISCUSSION

"uth

mon lvsis

Passage

into
p1e's

hapone

o\,\'n

r58).

hink r the
lcep-

to me over and over: "Now is As I sit down to rrrite this column, one thing keeps coming the time; now is the time." is kairos' It means "right or In the New 'lbstament the word used for this qpe of time time as measured in secoppo*.,rl" moment." It is contrasted wilh chronos, or chronological usually associated with decikairosis onds, days, months, or yeals. In the New Testament sive actin that brings about deliverace or salvation' me over and over is that I was The reason the phrase, "Now is the time" kept coming to moment' thinking of how to describe our cur-rent climate change problem of climate world has been plodding along in chronological time on the The change since around 1988. No more' -*ii-pf' put: the problem of climate change has entered kairos tnne lIs kairos moment of decisive action to bring about delivhas arrived. How iong rvill it endure? until the time opportunif for decisive action comes_or, more ominously, until the time when the
efance

tl*

purr.a us by. \\4rich will we choose? Because we do have a choice' _Rev.JimBa]l,Ph.D.,,,lI'sKarosTimeforClinrateChange:TimetoAct,,'CreationCare,. A Christian Enuironmentat Quaerlg (Summer 2008)' 28'

uing
rpher
SEES

\ew

sDonaid C. Bryant, "Rhetoric: Its Functions and Its Scope." In Pro,fessing the New Rhetorics: A Broll iEnq.ierrood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, Sourcebook, es. Theresa Enos and Stuat C'

=nlice

t994),282.

148

PART

Analyzing Arguments

Passage 2
lAnother action that Americans must take to combat global warming is to transition] to a clean energr economy in a just and equitable way. Global warming is among the greatest challenges of our time, but also presents extraordinary opporhrnities to harness home-grotrr clea:r energy sources and encourage technological innovation. These bold shifu toward a clean energy future can create hundreds of thousands of new jobs and generate biltons of dollars in capital inveshnent. But in order to maximize these benefits across all sectors of our society, comprehensive global wanning legislation must auction emission allowances to polluters and use these public assets for public benefit programs. Such programs include financial assistance to help low and moderate-income consumers and workers offset higher energy costs as well as programs that assist with adaptation efforts in communities r,'ulnerable to the effects of climate change. Revenue generated from emissions allowances should also aid the expansion of renewable and efflcient energy technologies that quickly, cleanly, cheaply, and safely reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and curb global warming. Lastly, it is absolutely tal that comprehensive global warming legislation not preempt state authority to cut greenhouse gas emissions more aggressively ihan mandated by federal legislation.
energlr / energypolicy /

-Sierra Club, "Global Warrning Policy Solutions," 2008, http://wr,r.w.sierraclub.orgl

.

Group task: Working in small groups or as a whole class, try to reach consensus
answers to the following questions:

1. How do the strategies of persuasion differ in these two passages? 2. How can you explain these differences in terms of targeted audience and original
genre?

3. How effective is each argument for its intended audience? 4. Would either a.rgument be effective for readers outside the intended audience? \\4ry or why not?

ffii

I I

Questions for Rhetorical Analysis

Conducting a rhetorical analysis asks you to bring to bear on an argument your knowledge of argument and your repertoire of reading strategies. The chart of questions for analysis on pages 149-150 can help you examine an argument in depth. Nthough a rhetorical analysis will not include answers to all of these questions. using some of these questions in your thinking stages can give you a thorough understanding of the argument while helping you generate insights for your own rhetorical analysis essay.

An lllustration of Rhetorieal Analysis

To illustrate rhetorical analysis in this section and rn the student example at the end of the chapter, we will use two articles on reproductive technology, a subject that continues to generate arguments in the public sphere. By reproductiue technolog1we mean scientific advances in the treatment of infertilify such as egg and sperm donation, artificial

insemination, in

tro fertilization, and surrogate motherhood. Our first arlicle, from

CHAPTER

Analyzing Arguments

Rhetorically

"149

.rlesrions for Rhetorical Analysis .oa

lest
)\\'Tl ilrri-nar

ro Focus on

Questions to Ask
\A/hat motivated the writer to produce this piece? \A4rat socia-l, cultural, polifcai, legal, or economic conversations does this argriment join?

Applying These Questions

-:'.: Is the

"\tt nsrotic
mrlr,f:,nt and

unier responding to a bill pending

da ;of
OLII

rr.l;r-s motivating urllslon

rol0n)ta-

s g

ur Congress. a sPeech bv a Polihcal leader, or a local event that provoked controversY? Is the vriter addressing cultural trends such as the impact of science or technology on values?
Is the writer uying to change readers' views by offering a new interpretation of a phenomenon, calling readers to action, or trying to muster votes or inspire fur-

led
m7

th*:,rorical context:

**

'ilr:fiers purpose
uc.] auence

tu-

s tr s

What is the writer's purpose?

\&4ro is the intended audience? \A.4rat assumptions, values, and beliefs would readers have to hold to find this argument persuasive? How well does the text suit its particular audience and purPose?
is his or her profession, background, and expertise? How does the writer's personal history,

nres-

ro/ Retorical context: \\ riterrs identity

angle 'ision
a-nd

ther investigations? *-* Does the audience share a political or religious orientation with the writer?

* \A/ho is e writer and what

fr
-c1i

ls re writer a scholar, researcher,

scientist, policy maker, politician, professional jourralist, or citizen blogger? Is the writer affiliated with conservative or liberal, religious or lay publications? Is the writer advocating a stance or adopting a more inquiry-based mode?

of

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education, gender, ethnicity, age, class, sexual orientation, and political leaning influence the angle of vision? \Vhat is emphasized and what is omitted in this text?

#
ffi

:el

How much does the writer's angle of

vision dominate the text?

:i#TI
Rhetorical context:

\Vhat points of view and pieces of edence are "not seen" by this writer?

,tne
,r'1-

* e

\\4rat is the argument's original genre? \\4rat is the original medium of publication? How does the genre and its place of
publication influence its content, stmcture, and style?

rs How popular or scholarly, informal or

forrnal is this genre? Does the genre allow for in-depth or only sketchy coverage of an issue? (See Chapter 2, pp. 32-37, for detailed
explanations of genre.)

[or

)a
of
he
t\. tr,:gos of the

# & #

gument

\A/hat is the argument's ciaim, either explicitly stated or implied? \\lhat are the main reasons in supporl of

{*

Is the core of the argument clear and soundly developed? Or do readers have to unearth or reconstmct

claim? Are the reasons audience-based?

How effective is the writer's use of evidence? How is the argumeni supported
and developed?

the argument? $-t Is the argument one-sided, multisided, or

dialogic? Does the argument depend on assumptions the audience may not share? :i1 \,\fif evidence does the writer employ? Does this evidence meet ihe STAR

of
in-

ii How well

has the argument recogrized

and responded to alternative vlet's?

ci-

criteria? (See pp. B9-90.)

(Continued)

iai

ta

150

PART

Analyzing Arguments

\Vhat to Focus On
Ethos of th.e

Questions to Ask

Applying These Questions

ffi

\Lrat eflzos does the

argument

$* How

writer project? does the writer try to seem credible and h"ustrvorthy to the intended audience?

ff

If you are impressed or won over by this

writer, what has earned your respect?

fti If you are filled with doubts or skepticism, what has caused you to question this writer? W How imporlant is the character of the writer in this argument?

itr How knowledgeable does the writer

seem in recognizing opposing or altemative views and how failv does e wter respond to them?

Pathos of the

$i

How effective is the r,rriter in using audience-based reasons?

argument

ffi How

does the writer use concrete lan-

word choice, narrative, examples, and analogies to tap readers' emotions,

guage, values, and imaginations?

ffi

ti$ \\4rat examples, connotative language, a:rd uses of narrative or analogy stand out for you in this argument?
Does this argument rely heavily on appeals to pathos? Or is it more brainy and logical?

Writels style

#
ffi

How do the writer's language choices

and sentence length and complexity contribute to the impact of the argument? How well does the writer's tone (attitude toward the subject) suit the argument?

s How readable is this argument? .s Is the argument formal, scholarly, jourffi

nalistic, infomal, or casual? Is the tone serious, mocking, humorous. exhortafional, confessional, urgent, or something else?
logrTI {vi:l lr:'

Design and visual elements

How do design elements-layout, font sizes and styles, and use of color-influence the effect of the argument? (See Chapter 9 for a detailed discussion of

iig Do design feahres contribute to the

is

cai or the emottond/imagnative appeals of the argument?

Tfu:

1,_:

iffi

these elements.) How do graphics and images contribute to the persuasiveness of the argument? \\4-rat features of this argument con-

How would this argument benefit fronr visua-ls and graphics or some differen.
document design?

;.:ri
tr:

f"

Overall
persuasiveness

a
of

ffi

lT-r| For example, are appeals to pathosle$hmate and suitable? Does the quality and quantity of the edence help build a strong case or fall shorl? What specifically would count as a strength for the target audience? Ifyou differ from the target audience, how do you differ and where does the argument derail for you? \Vhat gaps, confuadictions, or Lu-lanswered
quesons are you left with?

the argument

tribute most to making it persuasive or not persuasive for its target audience and for you yourselfl

'lfti:
:riii :: ,lt.: ll u,i

ffi

#
w

How would this argument be received by different audiences? \\4rat features contribute to the rhetorical complexity of this argument? \\hat is particularly memorable, disturbing, or problematic about this
argument?

s
ff

ic
i

s \{4'rat does this argument contribute to its kairotic moment and the argumenta-

tive controversy of which it is a part?

How does this a.rgument indicate that it engaged in a public conversation? Hor, does it "talk" to other arguments you have read on this issue?

'r'n

[1r ll

CHAPTER

Analyzing Arguments

Rhetorically

151

lons over by this r respect? or skeptiI question

acter

of

the

decade ago, springs foom the early and increasing popularity of these technologrcal options. Our second arficle-to be used in our later student example-responds to the recent globalization of this technology. At this point, please read the following article, "Egg Heads" by Kathryn Jean Lopez, and then proceed to the discussion questions that follow. Lopez's article was originally published in the September 1, 1998, issue of the biweekly conservative news commentary magaztne National Reuiew'

language,

ogy stand

EEg Hettds
KIITHRYH E*N IOPTI

l
il1' on

re brainy

nt?

larly, jourhumorous, rgent, or

Filling the waiting room to capacity and spilling -.'E into a nearby conference room, a group of ',''rle lvomn listen closely and follow the instruc:..ns: Complete the forms and return them, with just as in receptionist. Itt =: clipboard, to theThen they moveall downstairs' ;:-r..- medical office. "Everything will be ' here the doctor briefs them. normal," she explains. "\(/omen com::m'much :-in ofskin irritation in the local
area

doctor then surgically removes the eggs from the donor's ovary and fertilizes them with the designated sperm.

Although most programs require potential to undergo a series of medical tests and counseling, there is little indication that most of the young women know what they are getdng
donors
themselves into. They risk bleeding, infection, and scarring. \Mhen too many eggs are matured in one cycle, it can damage the ovaries and leave the donor

ofinjection

: to the logirive appeals

nd

bloating. You also might be a little emotional. 3ur, basically, itt really bad PMS."

with weeks of abdominal pain. (At worst, complications may leave her dead.) Longer term, the possibiliry of early menopause raises the prospect of fu-

benefit iom

me different

This is not just another medical ofiice. On a r:ry night in Jul these girls in their rwenties are ;rending an orientarion session for potential egg
--=rse-v

jonors at a NewJersey fertiliry clinic specializingin \Within the walls of IVF New -n-r'itro ferdlization.

ture regret. There is also some evidence of a connection between the fertiliry drugs used in the
process and ovarian cancer.

tathos legti-

quality and

rbuild a

rtasa
.ce?

and at least two hundred other clinics --lroughout the United States, young \Momen an:--e th call to give "the gift of life" to infertile ;auples. Egg donation is a quietly expanding inJustry changing the way we look at the family,
,-oung woment bodies, and human life itself'

rudience,
. does

But it's good money-and getting better. New Yorkt Brooklyn IVF raised its "donor compensatiori' from $2,500 to $5,000 per cycle earlier this year in order to keep pace with St' Barnabas Medical Center in nearby Livingston, New Jersey. Itt a bidding war. "Itt obvious why we had to do

the

rariswered
cate that

Unlike donation, which is over in less than an hour, -.erm -qg donation takes the donor some 56 hours and inis

It is not a pleasant way to make money.

it,"

says Susan Lobel, Brooklyn IVF's assistant director. Most New York-area IVF programs have

followed suit.
Some infertile couples and independent brokers
are offering even more

it

'ation?

How

nts you have

:iudes a battery of tests, ultrasound, self-administered injecdons, and retrieva.l. Once a donor is accepted into a program, she is given hormones to sdmulate *ie ovaries, changing the number of eggs matured om the usual one per month up to as many as fifty.

for "reproductive material."

The International Fertiliry Center in Indianapolis' Indiaa, for instance, places ads in the Daily Princetonian offering Princeton girls as much as

152

PART

Analyzing Arguments

$I,OOO per cycle. The National Fertility Registry which, like many egg brokerages, features an online

Bioethics,

this transaction is only "a

slightly

macabre version of adoption."

catalogue

for

couples

to

browse

in,

advertises

10 Not everyone is

$35,OOO to $50,000 for hy League eggs. While donors are normally paid a flat fee per cycle, there

enthusiastic about the "progress." Egg donation "represents another rather

have been reports of higher payments who produce more eggs.

to

donors

large step into turning procreation into manufacturing," says the University of Chicagot teon Kass. "It's the dehumanization of procreation." And as in

College girls are the perfect donors. Younger eggs are likelier to be health and the girls themselves frequently need money-college girls have iong been susceptible to classified ads offering to pay them for acting as guinea pigs in medical research. One 1998 graduate of the University of Colorado set up her own website to market her
eggs. She had watched a television show on egg donation and figured it "seemed like a good thing to do"-especially since she had spent her money dur-

manufacturing, there is qualiry control. "People dont want to say the word any more, but there is a strong eugenics issue inherent in the notion that you can have the best eggs your money can bu"

observes sociology professor Barbara K tz

Rothman of the Ciry University of New York. The demand side of the market comes mosdy from career-minded baby-boomers, the frontierswomen of feminism, who thought they could "have it all." Indeed rhey can have it all-with a litde help from some younger eggs. (Ironicall feminists are also among its strongest critics; The Nation's Katha Pollitt has pointed out that in egg donation and surrogacy once you remove the "delusion that they are making babies for other women," all you have left is "reproductive prosdtution. ") Unfortunatel the future looks bright for the
egg market. Earlier this year, a woman in Atlanta gave birth to twins after she was implanted with frozen donor eggs. The same technology has also been successful in Italy. This is just what the egg market needed, since it avoids the necessity of coordinating donors' cycles with recipients' cycles.

ing the past year to help secure a country-music record deal. "Egg donation would help me with my
school and music expenses while helping an infertile couple with a family." Classified ads scattered throughout cyberspace feature similar offers.

The market for "reproductive material" has been developing for a long time. It was twenty years ago this summer that the first test-tube baby, Louise Brown, was born. By 1995, when the latest tally was taken by the Centers for Disease Control, 15 percent of mothers in this country had made use of some form of assistedreproduction technology in conceiving their children. (More recently, women past menopause have begun to make use of this technology.) In

1991 the American Society for Reproductive

Medicine was aware of 63 IVF programs offering egg donation. That number had jumped to 189 by 1995 (the latest year for which numbers are
available). Defenders argue that itt only right that women are "compensated" for the inconvenience of egg do-

will infertile couples be able to choose from a wider variety of donor offerings, but in some cases donors won't even be needed. Young women will be able to freeze their own eggs and have them thawed and fertilized once
they are ready for the intrusion of children in their lives. There are human ovaries sitting in a freezer in Faifax, Virginia. The Genetics and IVF Institute offers to cut out and remove young women's ovaries and cryopreserve the egg-containing tissue for future implantation. Although
hope
the technology was originally designed to give the of fertility to young women undergoing

Soon, not only

nation. Brooklyn IVFt Dr. Lobel argues, "If it is unethical to accept payment for loving your neighbor, then we'll have to stop paying babysitters." As long as donors know the risks, says Glenn McGee of the Universiry of Pennsylvaniat Center for

CHAPTER

Analyzing Argumenis

Rhetorically 153

'a

slightly
the

:riatment for cancer, it is now starting to attract

bout

e healthy. "\fomen can wait to have children :nril they are well established in their careers and
littie bored, sometime in their forties or :t-;.rj' explains Professor Rothman' "Basicall rotherhood is being reduced to a good leisure:rrring
a

'rher rather

and decided that John is the legai father, making him responsible for child support. By contracting for a medical procedure resulting in the birth of a child, the court ruled, a couple incurs "the legal

, manufacLeon Kass.
"

And

as

in

::me acrivity."

status of parenthood." $ohn lost an appeai in May.) For Jayceet first three years on earth' these people have been wrangling over who her
parents afe.

rl.
lu

"People

there is a

rodon that

Early this summet headlines were made in tsiain, where the payment of egg donors is forbid:.n. when an infertile couple traveled to a
i-,lifornia clinic where the woman could be insemiwith an experimental hybrid egg. The egg was : ombination of the recipient's and a donor's eggs' lae cfnic in question gets its eggs from a Beverly niils brokerage, the Center for Surrogate Parenting ;-rd Egg Don'tion, run by Karen Synesiou and Bill :-iandel, a radio shock-iock in Los Angeles' Miss
r,red

In another case, Villiam

Kane left his girl-

'can bu"

rara
York.

Katz

nes mostly : frontiers:ould "have

a little help

:minists are ion's Katha

on and sur-

-:t she is "interested in redefining the

!'.:resiou recently told the London Sunday Times

family'

rat they are Lhave left is

lAart why I came to work here." ; The redefinition is already well under way' Btzzanca. After John -,nsider the case of Jaycee

friend, Deborah Hect, 15 vials of sperm before he killed himself in a Las Vegas hotel in 1991. His two adult children (represented by their mother' his ex-wife) contested Miss Hect's claim of ownership. A settlement agreement on Kane's will was eventually reached, giving his children 80 percent of his estate and Miss Hect 20 percent. Hence she was allowed three vials of his sperm. \lhen she did not succeed in conceiving on the first two tries, she filed a Petition for the other 12 vials' She won, and the judge who ruled in her favor

ght for the in Atlanta

anted with
'gy has also

r.1 Luanne Bttzzanca had tried for years to have a -:ild, an embryo was created for them, using
:erm and an egg from anonymous donors, and ,:rplanted in a surrogate moer. In March 1995, ,,,e *o.tth before the baby was born, John filed for tl','orce. Luanne wanted child support from John, :i; he refused-after all, het not the father'

wrote, "Neither this court nor the decedent's adult children possess reason or right to prevent Hect from implementing decedent's pre-eminent interest in realizing his 'fundamental right' to procreate with the woman of his choice." One i" do.tott may not even have to have lived' Researchers are experimenting with using aborted
female fetuses as a source of donor eggs. overseas couples

hat the egg

:ssity of co-

:nts' cycles. be able to r offerings, be needed. rheir own

nne argued that John is Jaycee's father legally' had agre-e{ -1,r this poittt the surrogate mother, who ::, carv a baby for a stable two-parent household, :;cided to sue for custody. "Nobody's Child" by the Jaycee was dubbed

And the market continues to zip along' For looking for donor eggs, Rill

would mail him frozen sperm of their

catalogue

Handel hat the scenario worked out. The couple

choice (presumably from the recipient husband); his clinic would use it to fertilize donor eggs, chosen from its

jlized once children in

n a freezer
and IVF
rove young re egg-conr. Although
I to give the

:redia when a California judge ruled that John ;q ,{ r}ot the legal father nor Luanne the legal :rorher (neither one was genetically related to l:'',-cee, and Luanne had not even borne her)' l:rte Erin Davidson, the egg donor, who claims

of offerings, and reply back within a month with a frozen embryo ready for implantation. (Although the sperm does not yet arrive by mail, Handel has sent out embryos to at least one
hundred international customers.) As for the young women at the New Jersey clinic, they are visibly upset by one aspect of the egg-donation process: t.y cant have sexual intercourse for several weeks after the retrieval. For making babies, of course' it's
aJready obsolete.

undergoing

without her permission. Not to =c egg was used e left out, th.e sperm donor jumped into the :-ng, saying that his sperm was used without his ,-i.tiott, a claim he later dropped' In March of -ris yea an appeals court gave Luanne custody

154

PART

AnalyzingArguments

r I ffi FoR ctAss DrscussroN rdentifying Rhetoricar Features

Working in groups, develop responses to the following questions:

1' How does Lopez appeal to logos? What is her main claim and what are her reasons? W4rat does she use for edence? What ideas would you have to include in
a short summary?

4. Choose an additional focus from the "Questions for Rhetrical Analysis" on pages 149-150 to apply to "Egg Heads." How does this question yorr. understanding of Lopez,s argument? ""purrd 5' \44rat strikes you as problematic, memorable, or disturbing in this argument?

suited to the conservative readers of the Nationat Reliew? 3' How would you- characteize Lopez's ethog Does she seem knowledgeable and credible? Does she seem fair to stakeholders in this controversy?

2' What appeals to pathos does Lopez make in this argument? How well are

these

ffi

f I

A Rhetorical Analysis of *Egg Heads,,

Now that you have identified some of the rhetorical features of ,,Egg Heads,', we offer our own notes for a rhetorical analysis of this argument.

moment for Lopez's article and motivated her to protest the increasing use of these procedures. (Egg donation, surrogate motherhood, and the potential deumanizingoi commercial reproduction continue to be troubling and unresolved controversies across many genres, as you will see when you read Ellen Goodman's op-ed piece at the end of this chapter and student zachary Stumps's rhetorical analysis r it.)

lumber of complex techniques to surmount the probleni" of inf"rtl[ty, includin[ fertilizing eggs in petri dishes and implanting them into women through s.,r$.i procedures. These procedures could use either a couple's o\ m eggs *J ,p".ri o. donated !99! and spenn. Ali these social and medical factors ated the kairotb

egg donaon rippled through college and public newspapers, popular journalism, web sites, and scholarly commentary. This debate had ben kick ni several couples placing ads in the newsp^apel: of the counhy's most prestigious "n coneges offering up to $50'000 for the eggs of brilliant, atLractive, athletic coilele -orn".rlCoincldinlg with these consumer demands, advances in reproductive techniogy proded an incrasing

Rhetorical Context As we began our analysis, we reconstructed the rhetorical context in which "Egg Heads" was published. Inihe late 1990s, a furious debate about

Genre and Writer When we considered the genre and writer of this article and its site of publication, we noted that this article appeared in the National Reuiew, wlich describes itself as "America's most widely read and influential magazine and Web site for Republican/conservative news, commentary, and oprrion.,, It ieaches .,an affluent, educated, and highly responsive audience oi .o.pot", financial elite, educators, joumalists' community and association leaders, as rvell as engaged actists all across America" http:/ /w'ww.nationalreew.com). According to our jniernet search, Kathryn JeNrLopez is knonm nationally for her conselative journalistic writing on social and

CHAPTER

Analyzing Arguments

Rhetorically 155

pubhshed political issues. currently the editor of National Reuiew online, she has also York Post, afid the Washinglon Times.,T\ts in the WalI Street Journal, the New home information told us that in her arlicle "Egg Heads," Lopez is definitely on audience' territory, aiming her article at a conservative

'-,4

4f

Lopez's argument, we decided that the logical is that egg strcture of Lopez's argumnt is clear throughout the article. Her^claim advances have harmful, long-reaching donation and its ur.oiiut.d reproductive reproductive consequences for society. Basically, she argues that egg donation and developments_ for society because they are technoiogy represent bad scientific lead to potentialiy harmru to the long-range health-of egg donors and because they sexuality. She states a version of this last point an unnatural dehumanizlng of human industry, at the end of the second p-aragraph: "Egg donation is a quickly expanding fu*iy, yo.,tg women's bodies, and human life changing the way we lok ui tn"

Logas Turning to the

logos

of

itsetf" (page 151).

supply son that egg donation endangers egg donors, Lopez lists the risks but doesn't of these problems: lamage to the ovaries, supportin{dence about the frequency p"rrirt""t"pui", early menopause, possible ovarian cancer, and even death. She suphave ports her taim uot "the xpanding industry" by showing how,the procedures popularity of these procedures as well as their t""o*" commercialized. To strow ttre vitro clinics' commercial value, she quotes a variety of expefts such as directors of in Society for Reproductive Medicine she fertility centers, bioethicists, and the American agree also cleverly bolsters her own case by showing that even liberal cultural critics questions raised by the reproductive-technology with her views about the big ethical numbers and business. In addition to quong experts, Lopez has sprinkled impressive her argument, which give her argument mod examples throughout the body of of mentum as it progresses foom the ptential harm to young egg donors to a number ethical problems. case studies tliat depict increasingly disturbing of the impact of this argument, we noted, comes from Lopez's appeals clinics, to pathos. By describing L a"tuit the waiting rooms for egg donors at fertility to move her audience to see the physical and Lopez relies heavily oripathetic appeals

rnl uiay of her arbicle elaborates on each of these reasons. In developing her rea-

Pathos Much

,oid dung"r, of egg donatio". Sfr" conveys the growing commercialism of

reproductivi technology by gving readers an inside look at the egg donation process u, th"r" young colleg"e *"n mbark on the multi-step process of donating their
"Egg Heads," are largely unawale eggs. These yorlng women, she suggests in her title,

o?ifr. pot.rrtial ihysical dangers-to

themselves and of the ethical implications and

of^thLir acts. Se asserts that they are driven largely by the desire-for "onr"q.,"n."s also appeals to pathos in her choice of emotionally loaded and often -or"y. Lopez cynic lan'guage thai^creates an angle of vision opposing reproductive technology: "iutning pr.rtion into manufacturing"; "reproductive prostitution"; "the intrusion of "aborted childrei ln their lives"; "motherhood.'.reduced to a leisure-time activity"; and intercourse as an "obsolete" way to female fetuses as a source of donor eggs";
make babies (pages 152, 153)'

156

PART

Analyzing Arguments

Audience Despite Lopez's

at spotlighting serious medical and ethical to alternative views and the alarrnism of her language quesons, her lack of attention caused us to wonder: \4/ho might find this argument persuasive and who would challenge it? \&/hat is noticeably missing from her argument-and apparently from her worldview-is the perspective of infertile couples hoping for a baby' Pursuing our question, we decided thut u plovocative feature of this argument-one worthy of
success is suited to its target it is for readers who do not share the assumptions, audience and yet how unpersuasive values, and beliefs of this primary audience. To Lopez's credit, she has athrned her reasons to the values and concerns of her conservative readers ol the National Reuiew who believe in traditionai families, gender differences, and gender roles. Opposed to feminism as they understand it, this audience sanctions careers for women only if women put their families first. Lopez's choice of evidence and her orchestrating of it are intended to play to her audience's fears that science has ncontrollably fallen into the hands of those who have little regard for the sanctity of the family or traditional motherhood. For example, in playing strongly to the vJues of her conservative readers, Lopez belabors the physical, social, and ethical dangers of egg donation, mentioning worst-case scenarios; however, these appeals to patios will mst Lkely strike other readers who do some investigation into reproductive technology as overblorn. She emphasizes the commercialism of the process as her argument moves from college girls as egg donors to a number of sensationalist case rtudi"r that depict intensifying ethical ambigutty. In other words, both the logos and pathos of her argument skillfully focus on details that tap her target audience's values and beliefs and feed that audience's fears and rer'rrlsion.

d""p"t analysis-is the disparity between how well this argument

Use of Evidence For a broader or skeptical audience, the alarmism of Lopez's appeals lo pathos, her use of atypical evidence, and her distortion of the facts *uk"n ttre logos and ethos of her argument. First, Lopez's use of evidence fails to measure up to the STAR criteria (that evidence should be sufficient, typical, accurate, artd relevant). She characterizes all egg donors as young women seeking money. But she provides little evidence that egg donors are only out to make a buck. She aiso paints these young women as shortsighted, uninformed, and foolish' Lopez weakens her ethos by not considering the young women who have researched the process and who may be motivated, at least in part, by compassion for couples who ian't conceive on their own. Lopez also misrepresents the people who are using egg donation, placing them all into two groups: (1) wealihy couples eugenically seeking designer babies with preordered special traits and (2) feminist career women' She direts much of her criticism toward this latter group: "The demand side of the market comes mostly from career-minded baby-boomers, the frontierswomen of feminism, who thought they could 'have it all"' (page 152). However, readers who do a little research on their own, as we did, wll learn that infertility affects one in seven couples; that it is often a male and female problem, sometimes caused by an incompatibility between the husband's and wife's reproductive material; and that most couples who take the big step of investing in these expensive efforts to have a baby have been trying to get pregnant for a number of years. Rather than being

CHAPTER

Anafyzng Arguments Rhetorically

157

ical

e
uld

ter
)ur

of
3et
ns,

rer

ler
diLat

50 percent overalr and involves u h.rg" investment of iime, money, u.rJ pnys"ur discomfort for women receiving donor eggs. Another way that Lopez iolates the ST,qn criteria is her choice of extreme cases. For readers ouhide}er target audience, her argument appears riddled with skaw man and slippery-slope fallacies. (See Appendix t,:T.rfo.mal'Failacies,', pages +gt_+os.) Her examples become more bizarr:i as her tone becomes more hysterical. Here are some specific instance of extreme, atypical cases:

they are often deeply desirous of children and depressed about their inabilify to conceive. In addition, foom being the sure thing and quick fix that Lopez suggests, reproductive technoiogy has a sucss rate of only

casual about having children,

f*

w her focus on career women

donors

casually and selfishly using the service of young egg

ne

to
:al

to
c-

ss the notorious case_ of Jaycee Buzzanca, dubbed ,,Nobody,s chfld,, because her adoptive parents who commissioned her creation divorced before she was born m the legal contest between a dead man's teen girlfriend and his ex-wife and adult children over his a_ls of spern w the idea of taking eggs from aborted female fetuses

ie
Ld -'5

5
o
I. i. z
e

By keeping invisible the vast of ordinary couples who come to fertility clinics _majority of last-hope desperation, Lopez uses extreme cus"i to create "brave 9ut a new world,, intended to evoke a vehement rqection of these reproductive advances. rnes" st epti"a readers would offer the altemative ew of the sa, orainary couples of all ages sitting week ater week in fertilrty clinics, hoping to conceive u .nia thrfugh ttre ,1flraclei of these reproductive advances and gtut"flrl to the young --"n who have contributed their eggs.

l
J

concluding Points In short, we conclude{ that Lopez's angle of vision, although effectively in sync with her conservative readers of the Natiolat Reiew, and distorts her case against these reproducve advances. "rug*.rur", Lopez's traditionjiralues and slanting of the edence undermin e her ethos,Iimit the value of url, *gu"ni fo. a wider audience, and compel that audience to seek out alternative views for a more complete ew of egg donation.

t l I
)

Conclusion
To analyze a text hetorically means to determine how it works: what effect it has on readers and how it achieves or fails to achieve ih persuasiveness. Assignments involving rhetorical analysis are present in couses across the curriculum, **ayrirrg.t"r*" rhetorically is a major step in constructing your own *go-"rrt . In this chapter, we showed you howto apply your understandlng of *g.,-";i"n."pt , such as the influence of genre and appeals to logos, ethos, uti patho"s, to examining the strength oirr".bal texts' We conclude with a student's rhetorical *atyris ,*itt"i for. tne isl*nment

I
I

in this chapter.

158

PART

AnalYzing Arguments

WRITING ASSIGNMENT A Rhetorical Analysis

jlil.l';'1'1-ll;i:ij;:: Wnte a thesis-driven rhetorical analysis essay in which you examine the rhetorical inskuctor. Unless otherwise stated direct tr i:ll. 'lllll,i;,' ,,,;: eff"ctiu"n"rs of an argument specifiedby yo of your classmates. In your introductio.n,^establish the 1l,l:.::ll;i,illiltl vo* unayrir to an udience
1,:,"1;

conversation to which this argument is contributing. Briefly summarize and present your thesis nighlighting two or more rhetorical features of ',',",:;j,ll::i ll;':l;,:;' UoE r.' ,,";"ill1r';;,1,1 Ur" ar[ument that you find central to the effectiveness or ineffectiveness of this argudevelop and support your own points, you will need to include textual ,1.r":'ilt,llii';' q-uotations from the argument. Use attribui','llr '."1),r,1,r,,'',"' ""i"""", in the form of examples or short your ideas from thoie of the writer of the article. Use MLA tiu" tug, to distinguish quotations in your essay and in a Works Cited list at to-cite pint"
i;'.tr',,;'i:l;'il

'rr*-"rtutirre

*go**t

llt;,lll;:' ,lit:l,it'' ',t,rl'

-"rr."f"

o.rr-""ntution -a the end. Think of youi rhetorical analysis as a way to shine a sgothgl-rt. on important and interesting for aspects of this argument and make th argument understandable paper written for this assignment is shovn_at the end of this your readers. A siudent
cbapter-Zachary Stumpis analysis of Ellen Goodman's "Womb for Rent."

Generating ldeas for Your Rhetorical Analysis To develop ideas for yo essay, you might follow these suggested
Stepl
Familiarize yourself with the article you are analyzing. Place the article in its rhetorical context. Summarize the article.

steps:

How to Do

It

Read your article several times. Divide it into sections to understand its structure' Follow the strategies in Chapter 2 and use the "Questions for Fhetorical Analysis" on pages 149-150'

Reread the article identifuing "hot spots."

Use the "Questions for Rhetorical Analysis" on

Follow the steps in Chapter 2 on pages 4l-42.You may warit to produce a longer sunmaq/ of 150-200 words as well as a shoft one-sentence summary. Note hot spots in the article-points that impress you, disturb you, confuse you, or puzzle you. Choose several of these questions and freewrite
responses to them. Choose several features of the article that you find particularly important and that you want to discuss

page 149. From your notes and freewriting, identifu the focus for your alalysis.

in

depth in your essay. Identiff points that will bring something new to your readers and that will help them see this article with new understanding. You may want to list your ideas and then look for ways to group them together around main points. Articulate your imporlant points in one or two sentences. setting up these points clearly for your
audience.

Write a thesis statement for your

essay.

In finding a meaningful focus for your rhetorical analysis essay, you will need to "This create a focu'sing thesis-statement tht avoids uishr.-rvashy fonnulas such as,

CHAPTER

Analyzing Arguments Rhetorically

"t59

a-rgument has some strengths and some weaknesses." To avoid a vapid thesis statement, focus on the complexity of the argument, the writer's strategies for persuading the target audience, and the features that might impede its persuasiveness for skeptics. These thesis statements articulate how their writers see the inner workings of these arguments as well as the arguments' contribution to their public conversations.
Lopez's angle of vision, although effectively in sync with her conserative readers of the National Review, exaggerates and distorls her case against these reproductive advances, weakening her ethos and the value of her argument for a wider audience. lThis is the thesis we would use if we were writing a stand-alone essay on Lopez.l

In his editorial, "\4hy Blame Mexico?" published tn The American Conseruatiue, Fred Reed's irony and hard-hitfing evidence undercut his desire to contrast the United States'h,pocriticai and flawed immigration policies with Mexico's successful ones.

In his editorial, "Amnesty?" in the Jesuit news commentary Amerca, John F. Kavanaugh makes a powerful argument for his Catholic and religious readers; however, his proposal based on ethical reasoning may fail to reach other readers.
To make your rhetorical analysis of your article persuasive, you will need to develop each of the points stated or implied in your thesis statement using textual evidence,

including short quotations. Your essay should show how you have listened carefully to the argument you are analyzing, summarized it fairly, and probed it deeply.

Organizing Your Rhetorical Analysis

A stand-alone rhetorical analysis can be organized as shown below

Organization Plan for a Rhetorical Analysis of an Argument

.
lntroduction

lntroduce the issue and set the context for the argument you are analyzing. Explain your interest in the argument if appropriateState your thesis.

. .
.,.i!,,,
'1,1+,

Summaryof Argument
.";li,

. .

Provide a brief summary of the argument to help readers undersiand your analysis.

rir

Develop your thesis by presenting and evaluating

Rhetorical Analysis

the rhetorical strategies used by the writer to appeal to his or her target audience in light of the author's
rhetorical context and purpose.

i. Conclusion

t!

Wrap up your analysis and comment on the signfcance of ihe argument. f appropriate.

160

PART

Analyzing Arguments

Readings
Our first reading is by journalist Ellen Goodman, whose columns are syndicated in u.s. newspapgT v the washington post writers Group. This corumn, which appeared in 2008, is analyzed rhetorically by student Zaciary Stumps in our second
reading.

Womb for

Fent-For s Frice
come medical tourists, searching for cheaper health care whether it's a new hip in Thailand or an IVF treatmenr in South Africa that comes with a photo safari thrown in fo the same price. \4ry not then rent a foreign wombi I don't make light of infertility. The primal desire to have a

ETLENGOCDMAN

BOSTON-By now we all a story about a job outsouced beyond our reach in the
have
global economy. My own favorite

delivery of a child, they will earn $l,OOO ro $Z,OOO, a decadet

worth of womenk wages in rural

India.

is about rhe California publisher who hired rwo reporrers in India to cover the Pasadena city govefnment. Really.
There are times
as

But even in America, some women, including Army wives,

are supplemenring their income by contracting out their wombs.

well when the

They have become

pract ice.

surrogare

offshoring oF jobs rakes on a quire literal meaning. tVhen the labor we are talking about is, well, labor.

mothers for weafthy couples from European counrries that ban the This globalization of baby-mak,

child underlies this

multinaone

tional Creation, Inc. On

In the last few months weve had a ftril nursery of internarional stories about surrogate mothers. Hundreds of couples are crossing borders in search of lower-cost ways to fill the family business. In rurn, theret a new coterie of international workers who are gesrating for a living. Many of the stories about the
globalization of baby production begin in India, where the government seems to regard this as, Iiterall a growth industry. In the little town of Anand, dubbed "The Cradle of the \7orld," 45 women
were recendy on the books ofa 1ocal clinic. For the production and
'

ing comes at Lhe peculiar inrersection of a high reproductive technology and a low-tech work force. The biotech business was created in rhe same petri dish as Baby Louise, the first I\T baby. But since then, we've seen conception outsourced to egg donors and sperm donors. \fleve had motherhood divided into its parts from

side, couples who choose surrogacy want a baby with at leasr half their own genes. On the

other side, surrogate mothers, who are rarely implanted with their own eggs, can believe that
the child they bear and deliver is

genetic morher ro gestational mother to binh mothe and now

contract mothe. \feve also seen rhe growth of an international economy. Fozen sperm is flown from one conrinenr to another. And patients har.e be-

not really theirs. As one woman put it, "\7e give them a baby and they give us much-needed money. Irk good for them and for us." A surrogare in Anand used the money to buy a hearr operarion for her son. Another raised a dowry for her daughter. And before we talk about the "exploitation" of the pregnant woman, consider her altenative in

CHAPTER

Analyzing Arguments

Rhetorically 161

Anand: a job crushing glass in factory for $25 a month.

ily that simply contracted for a child have to its birth mother?
What control do-should-contractors have over their "employees" lives while incubating "their" children? \(/hat will we tell the offspring of this international
tade?

not sell our children. But the surogacy business comes PerilouslY close to both of hese deals' Ard international surrogacy tips the
scales.

Nevertheless, there is-and there should be-something uncomfortable about a free market

approach
easier

to

baby-making. It's

So, these borders we

ones. They are ethical everyone

ae

to accept surrogacy when it's a gift from one woman to another. But we rarelY see a rich woman become a surrogate for a
poor family. Indeed, in Third torld countries, some women
:hing
er it's

crossing are not just geograPhic

ones.

"National boundaries are com-

Today the global economy sends

ing down," says bioethicist Lori Andews, "but we cant stoP human emodons. We are expanding families and dont even have terms

in search of

the

cheaper deal as if that were the single common good. But in the

rIVF
that
-rown

sign these contracts with a fingerprint because they are illiterate' For that matter, we have not yet had stories about the contract workers for whom PregnancY was a dangerous occupation, but we wiil. \)flhat obligation does a fam-

biological search, humanitY

is

to deal with it." It's the commercialism that is troubling. Some things we cannot

sell no matter how good "the deal." Ve cannot, for examPle,

sell ourselves into slavery.

economY and sacrificed becomes the Product. the person And, step by step, we come to a stunning place in our ancient

to the

creation story.
marketplace.

It's called the

\le

can-

,- not

:ertilave a

Critiquing "Womb for Rent*For a Frice"

1. \44rat is Goodman's main claim and what are her reasons? In other words, what ideas would you have to include in a short summary? 2. What appeals to pathos does Goodman make in this argument? How do these appeals function in the argument? 3. ihoose an additional focus from the "Questions for Rhetorical Analysis" to apply to "Womb to Rent-For a Price." How does this question affect your perspective of Goodman's argument?

Itinaone

;uIroleast

the

rhers,

rvith r that
rver is

4. \A4rat strikes yo., ur problematic, memorable, or disturbing in this argrment? Our second reading shows how student wnter Zachary Stumps analyzed the Ellen
Goodman article.

"\te

; give . It's s." A I the

ration

sed

rd be-

rloita)man,

ein

'*'

Pfrf *
L

In t-!

162

PART

AnalYzing Arguments

& Rhetaricul S.nclysls o Hllen Goodmn's "'EIornb {*r Rent*F*r Frice"'

r*{fi
lntroduction provides context and
poses issue to be addressed
AnY sTuililF5 {STttf{T}

..Womb for Rent-For a Price,,'published in the With her op-ed piece seattle Times-onApril 11, 2008 (and earlier inthe Boston Globe), syndi'

Provides background

on Goodman

Summarizes the op-ed piece

cated columnist Ellen Goodman enters the murky debate about reproductive technology gone global. Since Americans are outsourcing everything else, "Why not then rent a foreign womb?" (161) she asks' Goodman, a pulitzer Prize-winning columnist for the washington Post writers Group, is known for helping readers understand the "tumult of social change and its impact on families," and for shattering "the mold of men writing exclusively about politics" ("Ellen Goodman"). This op-ed piece continues her tradiiion of examining social change from the perspective of family issues. Goodman launches her short piece by asserting that one of the most recent and consequential'Jobs" to be outsourced is having babies. She explains how the "globalization of baby production" is thriving because it trings together the reproductive desires ofpeople in developed countries

of women in developing countries like India. Briefly tracing how both reproductive technology and medical tourism
and the bodily resoufces

have taken advantage of global possibilities, Goodman acknowledges that the thousands of dollars Indian women earn by carrying the babies of foreign couples represent a much larger income than these women could earn in any other available jobs. After appearing to legitimize this global exchange, however, Goodman shifts to her ethical concerns by raising some mora' questions that she says are not being addressed in this trade. She concludes with a full statement of her claim that this global surrogacy is encroaching on human respect and digniry exploiting business-based science, and turning babies into products' In this piece, Goodman's delay of her thesis has several rhetorical benefits: it gives Goodman space to present the perspective of poor women' enhanceJby her appeals to pathos, and it invites readers to join herjourney into the complex contexts of this issue; however, this strategy is also risky because it limits the development of her own argument' Instead of presenting her thesis up front, Goodman devotes much of the first part of her argument to looking at this issue from the perspective of foreign surrogate mothers. using the strategies of pathos to evoke sympa-

Thesis paragraPh

Develops first point in thesis: use of pathos in exPloring perspective of Poor women

thy for these women, she creates a compassionate and progressively

minded argument that highlights the benefits to foreign surrogate mothers. She cites iactual evidence showing that the average job for a woman in Anand India, yields a tiny "$25 a month" gotten through the hard work of "crushing glass in a factory," compared to the "$5,000 to $7,000" made

CHAPTER

Analyzing Arguments

Rhetorically 163

Develops second noint in thesis: the

lomptex contexts of this issuecutsourcing and medical iourism

carrying a baby to term (160). To carry a baby to term for a foreign coupie ,"pr"r"ttt "a decade's worth of women's wages in rural India" (160)' Deepening readers' understanding of these women, Goodman cites one anwoman who used her earnings to finance her son's heart operation and dowry. In her fair presentation of these other who paid for her daughter's women, Godman both builds her own positive ethos and adds a dialogic dimension to her argument by helping readers walk in the shoes of otherwise impoverished surrogate mothers. The second rhetodcal benefit of Goodman's delayed thesis is that she invites readers to explore this complex issue of global surrogacy with her before she declares her own view. To help readers understand and think through this issue, she relates it to two other familiar global topics: outsourcing and medical tourism. First, she introduces foreign surrogacy babyas one of the latest forms of outsourcing: "This globalizaton of intersection of a high reproductive techmaking comes at the peculiar notogy and a low-tech work force" (160)' Presenting these women as

rvo.["rr, she explains that women in India are getting paid for "the production and delivery of a child" ( 1 60) that is analogous to the production pheand delivery of sneakers or bicycle parts. Goodman also sets this medical tourism. If people can pursue nomenon in the context of global lower-cost treatment for illnesses and health conditions in other countries, why shouldn,t an infertile couple seeking to start a family not also have such access to these more affordable and newly available means?

Shows how the

delayed'thesis structure creates two

perspectives in

conflict

Restates the third poini in his thesis: lack of space limits development of

Coodman's argument

This reasoning provides a foundation for readers to begin understanding the many layers of the issue. ttre iesuit of Goodman's delayed-thesis strategy is that the first twothirds of this piece seem to justify outsourcing surrogate motherhood. Only after reading the whole op-ed piece can readers. see clearly that her Goodman has been dropping hints about her view all along through sees how outsourcing surrogacy choice of words. Although she clearly as can help poof women economically, her use of market language such a double meaning' On first "producti,on," "delivery," and "labor" catty is reading of this op-ed piece, readers don't know if Goodman's punning or serves another purpose' This meant to be catchy and entertaining other purpose becomes clear in the last third of the article when the Goodman forthdghtly asserts her criticism of the commercialism of searching for a "cheaper global marketplace that promotes worldwide ..humanity is sacrificed to the economy and the person becomes eal',: the product" (161). This is a bold and big claim, but does the final third ofher article supPort it? In the final five paragraphs of this op-ed piece, Goodman begins to develop the rational bsis of her argument; however, the brevity of the op-ed genie and her choice not to state her view openly initially have left she oodman with little space to deveiop her own claim. The result is that

164

PART

Analyzing Arguments

. . .
Discusses examples

presents some profound ideas very quickry. Some of the ethicarly comprex ideas she introduces but doesn,t explore ch are these: The idea that there are ethical limits on what can be ..sold,, The idea that surrogate motherhood might be .,dangerous work,, The idea that children born from this ,tnternational trade,,may be con_ fused about their identities.

of ideas raised by
Coodman but not developed

Conclusion

ine itouat urt"rprr.", towaid u proo.r.-t-i"na "onuJrrutioo of seeking a responsible, healthy, and ethical future. Her op-ed piece lures readers into contemplating deep, perplexing ethical and pro'i._, and lays a foundation for readers t create ai ".ooo*i" informed view ofthis issue.
raise aw.areness, and begin to direct the

Goodman simply has not reft herself enough space to develop these issues with questions rather than with changed views. t am particularly struck by several questions. Why have European cJuntries banned surrogacy in devel0ping countries and why has the unite States not banned this practice? Does Goodman intend to argue that the united States should fol_ low Europe's read? she could explore morl how this business orrinoinglniter_ ate women to bear children for the wealthy continues to exploit thiri world citizens much as sex tourism exploits women in the very salne corur-tries. It seems to perpetuate a tendllcy for the developed world to regard developing countries as a poor place of lawlessness where practices outlawed in the rest of th9 world (e.g. child prostitution, slave-like -orhng conditions) u.. ,o-"t otolerable' Goodman could have developed her arg,ment more to state explicitly that a womanwho accepts paymentfoi beanng ibuby b""o^es an indenfured servant to the family. yet another way to think rthi, irru" is to see that the old saying of "a bun in the oven" is more literar than metaphoric when a woman uses her womb as a factory to produce childreq a body business not too dissimilar to the commerciarism of prostitution. Goodmarronly teases ,"uio, y :mentioning these complexproblems withoutproducing an u.grr_"n . still, although Goodman does not punJ her criticism of " of human dignity andoutsourced sur_ rogate motherhood or expl0re the issues rights, this argument does introduce the debate on surrogacy in
and perhaps leaves readers

Works Cited
Uses MLA format to Iist sources cited in

the essay

May 19,2008. Goodman, Ellen' "womb for Rent-For a pice." Seattre Tmes 1l April 200g: 86. Rpt. in Writing Arguments. John D. Ramage" John C. Bean, and June Johnson. gth ed. New York: pearson Longman, 20 1 0. print.

"Ellen Goodman." postwritersgroup.com. washington post writer,s Group,200g. web.

PrARs(rN i :r i ;,, fYT

F,

u.

- ilWl ffii

3:

For additional

writing reading and research resources, go to

www.mycomplab,com

&mmffiWffi&ffireffi Wsase

&wgwwreww&ru

Toseehor,vimagescanmakepowerfularguments'considertherhetoricalpersmall town parade (Figure 9'1)' suasiveness of the 'polar beari marching in a

aqainst global,warrning' Sfor1ror"a by local environmcntalists advocating action from /ogos (drawing on audience knowledge that the polar bear uses arguments Ut: b9q:'r'ulnerabilrty)' climate change threatens pol ar bearc)l pathos.(evokittg of the citizens group) Delighting children and. ethos(coiveying the mmrtrnent environmental argument' and adults alike,-the bear created a memorable increa^sing your abiliqr to analyze sual argumenls This chapter is aimed at begin with some basic compoand use them rhetorically in your own work' We Wc then examine geffes of lrual argument nents of document and rrlr.t.ia"ttgn' can use I'rsufs in your own rangng from posters to Web pages, explain how you graphically. *g"-3"o, and conclude V t"mL how to splay numeric data

.fifrd iS iS

'1.

t_.

l.

Figure 9.1

A visual algument about climate change

165

166

PART3

AnalyzingArguments

Understanding Design Elements in visual Argument

To understand how sual images can produce an argument, you need to understand the design elements that work" together to create a*sual text. In this section we,ll explain and ilustrate the four basc components of visuar design: use of type, use of space and layout, use of color, and ,rr" of i_ug", g"pilr.

""a

{Jse of Type

fffJf#f,#il]t"t
Tbble

options. rrr" typefaces or fonts are and specialry"typ" s"librp" rrl, ,rnr" extensions on the "unr-rl.if, Ietters' (This text is set in serif type.) sans serif type d&s these extensions. specialty type includer r"tr,l w.iur symbors. rn itro' to iont style, type comes in different sizes. Ir is _lo"u measured points,,with 1 point i, an inch. Most text_ based arguments consisting -uinty oi'ooay *"r".L-ri^n",iTn r0_ to 12-point rype, whereas more image-bas" utguments may use a mture of type sizes that interact with the images for persuasive"effect. rype can u" i"rroted using bold, italics, ror emphasis. ratie g r "rr"
classified as serif,

i, typ", such as can direct a riaderb-att"rrtio., to an argument,s structure and highrrght main points. in urg.u-r"t, a"rr", specifically for sual impact, such as posters or advocacy adveftismeno, ,yp"l?^"ten used in eye_catching and meaningfuly,itr; In choosin! ", yo., need to consider the typeface or font style, the size of-the type, *a
roi-iung

Type is an important visual element of written argrments. variations size, boldface, ita-rics, or ail caps,

-J"

*g

"jia

;of

J"'";'
*

ortype-styres:'";;;i

The following basic principles for choosing type for visual arguments can help you achieve your overall goais of readability, ui.,ri upp"uf,

,oilnif4r.

9.1

Examples and Uses of Tpe Fonts

Font Name
Times New Roman

Font Stvle
Serif fonts

Example
Use type wisely.

Courier

New

Use

Bookman Old Style

Sans serif

type wisely.

Use type wisely.

Use type
Use

Easy to read: good for long documents. good for bod1

Iype. or lhe main verbal parls of a document

fonts

Arial

Ceniury Gothic

type

wisely. wisety.

Tiring to reacl lor

long sretches: good for displa.t tgpe such as headings, titles, slogans

Specialty

fonts

Zapf Cfinrcery
0n llT

I'sr

Ase rype zuke[y. hp rilrlr.

Difficult to read for long stretches; effective when usecl sparingly for playful or decorative effect

CHAPTER

Analyzing Visual

Arguments 167

d
11

)f

Visual Arguments Principles for Choosing Type for decjde adverdsement' you wrll need to 1. lf you are creating a poster o'..?guo:lt{ howmuchofyouiargumenttrxbdisplavedinwordsandhowmuchinimages. fonis for htles' tgp,e"(sans serif) or specialty For the text potionsl"noor" dispku passages of text'
headings, and slogans,

2. Make type

functioi;

il

and,

bodg ir.text tgpe (serif) for longer

three font styles per upp""aing uy'nring only two or

and

, *::T:l!enr patrerns of type (similar type styres, sizes, or different levels of importance' relationships *""g similar items structured combination of serif and
15

fo'-ats) to indicate

:S

al
rg

4. Choose lype to propct a specific i*pr"rtillu businesslltre impression; sans serif or sans serif type to ittut" u formal' '""ot'' i"fo;ul' or playtul impreision' and so forth)' a ta"'ul' and specialty typ" ;;';;;
Besidesthesegeneralprinciples'rhetoricalconsiderationsofgenreandaudience g;;,{ ;;;t"ion, ut out typ" relt;u514 argumenl.s in scholarly

nt
re
1e

exoecrarions should

tv
in
rt)e,

;lffi'"ffi :;";Jl'useoain,c-11'"TT:,t:H;.'Hl[Jil"":Ti,S:'tr;5;:

ia:ffi rr;::.ffJ5l1#1t'i1"""'#T;*go*""t""t'u'f aelherrc potential of tvpe'

;,;;
ua, .*ptoii the

oJ"''ni"''*

rct
CS, e11

Use tlf SPace tlr Layout

Asecondcomponentofvisualdesignis.layout'whichiscritigalforcreatingthevisual appealol'anargumentandlorconveyirrgmeaning.E'venvisual.algumentsthalare mean all purpor"fullt. y spacing anct layout we mainly textual should use space u.ry
of the following Points:

Page size and tYPe ofPaPer spaces

w PrPortion of text to white sPace

graphics et'p"ttion of text to image(s) and paragraphs' oiil"t "" fug. Gpu+, marglns, columns, size of m Aruangem"rrt paragraphs' jusrifiation of margins) between
ry. Use of

highlighJig 'aiJ;tLt;t

Use of headings

"r"no ;"-s

boxes such as buieted lists. tables' sidebars' text into sual elements of breaking

Inargumentsthatdon,tusevisualsdirectly'thewriter's'primaryvisualcon- a ol th" ;;;; ri*s Lo meet the conventions cern is documenr clesign. in which jntended audience' For example' Megan

; the genre and tt designed to meet the " "^p"t?"ti;t argument on pug;' 3g4-4OO' is Matthews's researched the e"y.nologicat As,sociation (APA)' Note document .onu"ntioi, oi-it,-" n."ri.un 1-inch (f".;;;;;"u?ing); double spacing and use of a plain, -"r""it""J^,r*t*." title page' marking'and notions); and special margins (to leave ;;;;iiltorial of readers familiar with headers, and page;;;; io.utio,-r, tm -.3t "rpectations the same)' APA documents-which all look exactly

168

PART

Analyzing Arguments

But in moving from verbal-only arguments to visual arguments that use visual elements for direct persuasive effect-for example, posters, i"rr, ot. advocacy adscreative use of layout is vital. Here are some ideas to help you think about the layout of a visual argument.

Principles for Laying Out parts of a Visual Text

1. Choose a layout that avoids clutter and confusion by limiting how much text and how many sual items you put on a page. 2. Focus on creating coherence and meaning with layout. 3' Develop an ordering or stmcturing principle that clarifies the relationships among the parts. 4. Use layout and spacing to indicate the importance of items and to emphasize key ideas. Because westem readers read from left to right and top to bottm, top an center are positions that readily draw readers' eyes.

and Spatial Elements

tu_ryulyris of a Visual Argument [_ising Type

reader's attention. The first few words at the top of the ad, pleasure, lull ""rrdirrg the reader with the congruence between the plasurable message u.ra tn" playfur type. soon, however, the reader encounters a dissonance beiween ttie ptayrut type and the meaning of the words: dehydrate, hailucinate, paranoid, and, dead name unpleasant ideas. By the end of the ad, readers realize they have been led through a downward progression of ideas beginning with the youth culture,s belief that Ecstasy creates wonderfuily positive eennis and ending with the ad,s thesis that Ecstasy leads to paranoia, epression, and eath. The playful informality_ of the font styles and the unevenly scattered layout of the type convey the seductiveness and unpredictability of the drug. Th ad concedes that the first "falling in love with the world" bui implies that what comes effects next is .are increasingly dark and dangerous. At the end of th ad, in the lines of type near the bottom, the message and typestyle are congruent again. The question ,,Does that sound harmless to you?" marks a shift in type "design and layout. The designer composed this section of the ad in conventional fo-nts centered on the page in a rational, businesslike fashion. This type design signals a metaphoric move from the euphoria of Ecstasy to the oraei struclure f everyday reality, where the reader can now consider rationally the drug,s harm. The information at the bottom of the ad identifies the ad's sponsors and gives both a web address and a telephone number to call for more information bout Ecstasy and other illegal drugs.

illegal drugs. This ad, warning about the dangers of the drug Ecstasy, uses different sizes of type and layout to present its argument. The huge word "cstasy" first catches the

To illustrate the persuasive power of type and layout, we ask you to consider Figure 9.1, which shows an advocary ad sponsored by a coalition of orgrizations aimed unghdrrg

CHAPTER

Analyzing Visual Arguments

169

lal

It

tr FoR

ut

Ads DISCUSSION (omparing the Rhetorical Appeal of Tvuo Advocacy by common This exercise asks you to examine Figure 9.2, an advocacy ad sponsored it to the ad in Figure 9'1. Figrue 9'2 a]so Sense for nrug Plicy, and to
CTASS

.o-[*"

ffiffi& &eesss# &www$wss w

Wwse?

Tltere ix a w!*le new g*n*reti*n nf ill*gel drus* o*t tfsr*' lsnT i time Yeu learn*d *b*ut th* risk*?

FIGURE 9.2 Advocacy adveisement warning against

Ecstasy

tlllhst We KnowAbout EcSory

Who| is Ecstasy?
MDMA,i is a scmi-s,rthetic drug patented b' Mcrck pharmaccutical Company in l9I4 ndabancloned for 60 years. In the late 1970s and early 1980s psychiatists and psychotherapists in th US usecl it to facilitate psychotherapy.r ln 1985 its grou ing recreational use crused the DEA to criminalize it.
Ecsta,sy,

Ecstasy's ellbcts last 3 to 6 houn. It. is a mood elevator that prodr-rces feeling,s of enrpathl', openness and well-being. People who take it at all night "rave" dances say they enjo' drmcing and f'eeling clos to otnrs. lt does not protluci vioience or physical addiction.l

Whal ore ffie greofesf risks from

Ecstasy?

Death is^a posibility when usingMDN44 According to coroner repofts, there \4eie nine Ecstasr-related deaths (dtee.ofthese.involved Ecstasy alone) in 1998.1 Some olthese deaths ae related to overheating. MO\4,A slightly raises body temperature. This is potentially lethal in hot environnents where there is viloros dancing and the lack ofadequate_fluid replacement.: Many ofthese tragic deaths werc preventable with"simple harm reduction techniques such as having fiee water available and rms rere people can rest and relx.

'

One olthe recent risks associated with Ecstas]' is the posibiliry* ofobtaining adulterated dugs that ma), be more toxic than MDMA. Some of the reported deaths a1tri6ed to cstasy are lilelv caused by o-ther, more'dangerous drugs.e Deathsliomadulteratcddrugs_areanotherconsequenceofazerotolernceapproach. Wtlilcrverlonot
encourage Ecstasy use, we recommend that the drug be tested fbr puriqr to minimize-tie risk ftorn aclulterated drugsbythosewhoconsumeit.T However,MDNIAitsellhasriski. Frexample,itraisesbloodpressureand heart rate. Pelsons with known cardiovascular or hearl disease shoLrld not take'MbMA.

Reccnt studics havc idicated that individuals who have used MDNIA ma1, have decreased perfomance iu rnemory tests conlpared t0 nonusers. These tP{fut g: presently controversial becuse they involved people rvho used a variety of other drugs. Furthennore, it is dil}lcult to ruie out possible pre-existing dilhrences b.**een ,.sear.h
subjects and controls.s

Whst is d r^/e?
pushing them underground and into less safe and responsible settings.
Raves are. all-night dance parties po.pular with 1'oLurg people that feature electronic music. A variety ol drug use, from alcohol to nicotine, and including ecstasy, occuri at raves. Hystena is ieading to criminaljzation of raies, tius

lefs deslwilh legal md illegcl drugs knowledgeubly, undersund lheil relstiye dongers, ad prudently und svoi fiyderio.
Ken
B. Zeese, Presidenr, common sense

for Drug poliq,3220 N srreer, Nw#141, woshington, Dc2o0o7 ww.csdp.org*www.DrugWorFocts.org*u/.AddictintheFomily.org*info@csdplorg

202-299-9780 * 202-518-4028 (fox)

l. -l & t tr(lh)lerFdiu\,\rrethampherr nc. 2 - crcer G and lolbe R., A verhod ofconducring tteraperic Scssios q,ih N,fDMA ln.Jounrat of P\lchuili\cDr1r9lo(loo8)4171.174 toresemhonthetherapeic;seolMDI\{Aseet *w*imaps.orp. -j-tseckJ.andl{osenbauM..t1Nujrof

l\'fccann:

R\\!rrl,\rphrhnrin<JerilativefbtalitiesinsourhAusmlia is-lr:x re.Jp.ie.i..ri."r".*"t Parholoql dqs i sepl lq{ l)i 2ol j 7 Drcesal pm,vides lering equipment md a rcsrirg ser"ic. ,itc .ar . uscj "iri.r.ffi.t*l ili e""u]r,.;il; *-t*"" ir. srrsbsl)ni<\'ForuE-1.oL/oui-Ma)r"^,t.o.'r*' .. 1-lu.h,rJ.i:\.pet. id...c:.t.r.k,n<n: Bri-i,il ..,..-l","*"ot,,,,. peno,n,-nce ,d'Ji-ri<e,ts(r,or ,e.reari^nJr e, ),vDM\Lb,.ro,,rr \e,, o r.," -r'.i -,,.i-;i.1.;;i",,.-r,\:.''l-';';,r,1 D cA- Ricaute: Menor] impahnent i abst;ent MDMA('Ecshsy-)

Suh,.,rc(A'.r nJ\y'enr,,Hedlr's.aie\ \J,r,ni.r"r, .f.p" I \4ar.tr'._000.r',,i ^-., r".,'l;;;,".:.i..1.n,,"1,i]',"ru",,, includcsdmsswherelherewereovcrl0deaths) 5 c.M.Mil;y:J.c.crark:AR\rrForesrp",r-s"ra-""1i,."-.i",.j,i^'1...,i".1-*a=". ofclinic"l Paolos\ vol 49 (1996) 149 I5l. 6 - l-abonton iu Anahsis prcsrarn. Dl*s"r. i,..rii,,ii,i^"".""."s"r...g. s<!so.B)rl.r
misuse JNmal

f.\1a..:lTML,\IAlrp(i<"ceAlbn\:\d.t.rcrior \euyur^pr.::.t,,qt. t-Dr!Aol*-Uirrqres"r,Ortc."o,,ii.o.,.i"..

ua.

b] \*rrog1 \t'r i1. Dcc 199s. r53r-i5i7.

FIGURE 9.3 Common Sense for Drug policy advocary ad

t70

CHAPTER

Analyzing Visual Arguments

17'l

its points' (This ad focuses on the drug Ecstasy and also uses type and layout to convey in groups, studJ' this in the lib"eral migatine The Progressiue.) Individually or

upp"ur"a

ud,ro.u"y ad and then answer the following questions' course of 1. What is the core argument of this ad? \Vhat ew of drug use and what you see between action is this ad promoting? \44rat similarities and differences do the argument about Ecstasy in this ad and the ad in Figure 9'1? 9'1 2. \\4:rat'are the main differences in the type and layout of the two ads in Figures and layout match and 9.3? To what extent do the ad mak"tt' choices about lype the argrments made in each ad? this 3. How irould you analyze the use of type and layout in Figure 9.3? How does and spacing? ad use typesiyles to ctnvey its argument? How does it use layout 4. Tlre aa in nig,,." g.2 appared i the weekly entertainment section of the Seattle Iimes, anewspaper wiih a large general readership, whereas the ad in Figure 9.3 appeared in liberal news commentary magazine. a!tig""a to reach its audience?

In what ways is each ad

fitl

I I

[Jse of Color
A thfud important element of sual design is use of color, which can contribute signifiimaginacantly to the visual appeal of an argument and move readers emotionally and by genre tively tn considering ctor in sual arguments, writers are especially conkolled popular conventions. For example, academic arguments use color minimally, whereas and the associamagazines oten use coior lastrly. The ppeal of colors to an audience instance, the psychedelic tion"s that colors have for an audience are also important. For poster argucolors of 1960s rock concert posters would probably not be effective in voters. Color choices in sual arguments often have ments directed toward "on "*tirr" when color cmcial importance, including the choice of making an image black-and-white makers of is possible. As you will ,"" ii o* discussions of color throughout this chapter, (using colors o"rual urgoments need to decide whether color will be primarily decorative to create"sual appeal), fi.inctional (for example, using colorc to indicate relationships), (for example, using colors that realistic (using coiors like a documentary photo), aesthetic of these' are soothing,'exciting, or disturbing), oI some intentional combination

Use of Images and GraPhics

The fourth design element includes images and graphics, which can powerf-rlly 9onadd depth' livedense information into striking and memorable visuals; clarify ideas; and using liness, a.nd emotion to your-arguments. A major point to keep in mind when

images is that

and image to work in ,rrrri"rom images. Other ky considerations are (1) how you intend an yrr, *go*"nt"(for exampl, to conveyn_idea illustrate a point, or evoke an emotional and (z) how yu will estabsh the relationship between the image or graphic * *r" verbal text. Beause using images ancl graphics effectively is especially challengcan ing, we devote the rest of this capter to explaining how images and graphics !e in the inEorporated into sual arguments.-We treat the r-rse of photographs and drawings next main section and the use of quantitative g?phics in the final section'

a few simpt. iug"r may be more powerful than complicated

ffi"ril

172

PART

Analyzing Arguments

An Analysis of a Visual Argument Using All the Design Components

Before we discuss the use of images and graphics in detail, we would like to illustrate how

all four of the design components-use of type, layout, color, and images-can reinforce and support each other to achieve a rhetorical effect. Consider the "Save the Children"
advocacy ad appearing as Figure 9.4. This advocacy ad combines type, Iayoul color, and image skillf,rlly and harmoniously through its dominant image complemented by verbal text that interprets and applies the ideas conveyed by the image. The layout of the ad divides the page into three main parts, giving central focus to the image of the mother standing and looking inio the eyes of the child she is holding in her arms. The blank top panel leads readers to look at the image. Two color panels, mauve behind the child and iose behind the mother, also higlrlight the two figr.res, isolate them in time and space, and concentrate the readers' attention on them. The large Wpe in the black borders ('SHE'S THE BEST QUALIFIED TEACHER FOR HER CHILDREN'' ANd "IMAGINE IF SHE F1AD AN EDUCATION") frames the image, atffacts readers' eyes, and plants the main idea in readers' minds: mothers should be equipped to teach their children. This advocacy ad, which appeared in Newsweek, skillfully blends familiar, universal ideas-a mother's love for her child and the tenderness and strength of this bondwith unfamiliar, foreign associations: a mother and child from a third-world country, wearing the traditional clothing of their country depicted by the head scarf the mother is wearing and the elaborate design on her sleeve. In addition to the familiar-

unfamiliar dynamic, a universal-particular dynamic also operates in this ad' This woman and baby are euery mother and child (after all, we don't know exactly where she is from), but they are also from some specific third-world country. The two figures have been posed to conjure up Western paintings and statues of the Madonna and Christ child. With this pose, the ad intends that readers will connect with this image of motherly love and devotion and respond by supporting the "Every Mother/Every Child" campaign. Color in this ad also accents the warm, cozy, hopeful impression of the image; pink in Western culture is a feminine color often associated with women and babies. In analyzing the photographic image, you should note what is nof shown: afry surroundings, any indication of housing oI scenery, any concrete sense of place or culture. The text of the ad interprets the image, prodes background information, and seeks to apply the ideas and feelings evoked by the image to urglng readers to action. The image, without either the large type or the smaller type, does convey an idea as well as elicit sympathy from readers, but the text adds meaning to the image
and builds on those impressions and applies them.

The ad designer could have focused on povedy, illiteracy, hunger, disease, and high mortality rates but instead has chosen to evoke positive feelings of identification and to convey hopeful ideas. \44rile acknowledgrng their cultural difference from this mother and child, readers recognize their common humanity and are moved to 'give mothers and children the best chance to survive and thnve." The large amounts of blank space in this ad help convey that the main points here are important, serious, elemental, but also simple-as if the ad has gotten to the heart of the matter. The bottom panel of the ad gives readers the logo and name of the organization "Save the Children" and a phone number and Web address to use to show their support.

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FIGURE 9.4
Save the Children advocaaT ad

173

174

PART

Analyzing Arguments

Thg Compositional Features of Photographs and Drawings

Now that we have introduced you to the four major elements of visual design-type, layout, color, and images-we turn to an in-depth discussion of photographic images and drawings. used with great shrewdness in product adveisements, photos and drawings can be used with equal shrewdness in posters, fliers, advocacy ads, and Web sites. rrA4ren an image is created specifically for an argument, almost nothing is left to chance. Although such images are often made to seem spontaneous and 'hatural," they are almost always composed: designers consciously select the details of staging and composition as well as manipulate camera techniques (filters, camera angle, Iighting) and digital or chemical development techniques (airbrushing, merging of images). Even news photography can have a co-pored- feel. For p"uti" "ru-pl", officials often try to control the effect of photographs by creating 'photo ops" (photographing opporhrnities), wherein reporters are allowed to photograph an event only during certain times and from certain angles. Political photographs appearing in newspapers are often press releases officially approved by the politician's staff. (See the campaign photographs later in this chapter on page 180.) To analyze a photograph or drawing, or to create visual images for your own arguments, you need to think both about the composition of the image and about the camera's relationship to the subject. Because drawings produce a perspective on a scene analogous to that of a camera, design considerations for photographs can be applied to drawings as well. The following list of questions can guide your analysis of any persuasive image.
Tupe of photograph or drawing:Is the image documentary-like (representing a real event), fictionlike (intended to tell a story or dramaize a scene), or conceptual (illustrating or symbolizing an idea or theme)? The two photos of mosh pits-a girl shown crowd surfing and an unruly, almost menacing mosh pit crowd (chapter 5, page 95)-are documentary photos capturing real events in action. In contrast, the drawing of the lizards in the Earthjustice ad in Figure 9.5 is both a fictional narrative telling a story and a conceptual drawing illustrating a theme. w Distance from the subject: Is the image a close-up, medium shot, or long shot? Close-ups tend to increase the intensity of the image and suggest the importance of the subject; long shots tend to blend the subject into the background. In the baby photograph opposing phthalates in children's toys (Chapter 1, page 4), the effect of the baby'r wearing a "poison" bib is intensified by the close-up shot without background. In contrast, the photograph of the young woman crossing the bridge in Haiti (chapter 6, page 117) is a long-range shot showing her blending into the poverty-stricken background, suggesting the devastating effect of pover{2. w orientation of the image and camera angle; ls the camera (or artist) positioned

in front of or behind the subject? Is it positioned below the subject, looking up (a low-angle shot)? Or is it above the subject, looking down (a highangle shot)? Front-view shots, such as those of carlitos and his mother in the stills from under the same Moon (page 1). tend to emphasize the persons being photographed. In contrast, rear-vierv shots often emphasize the scene

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On{e rJpon a time there rere Gver 00.000 g{izzly be"r$ in rhe tcleer 48 sries. Now there are less rhan * ihousand grizzly bears lefr. The helrh oF rhe grizzly s dependenr on vast. undisturbed. wild lands. When bea6 dsppedt orher spec,es wl follo\\: Bears arc such an imponnr pan of our wrlderness. lristory and o:llure rhar ir's hard to imqine a world withour rhern n f he picrurc.
Grrzzly beam arc thre(ened spmies. prorrorcd bv rhe Endangered Species cr. Bur some specil inreresls are pushing rhe U.5. Fsh and Wildlife Srvice to remove Yellow$one grizzles from he endangered species lisr. \{hy? They wat t open up w}d lands round Yejowsrone

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de{ructive l$gging, rniing, olf.rod vehicle use nd developmenl.

Y+u can help protecr o wildemes and grizly trears. Please take a ftornenf m cntacr SecrAry Bruce Babbifi. Sepafimnt of lnt*ror" 1B4t C 5r. Nw' Wshtn$on nC ?0240, or effiail Bruce*Babbitt@os.dci-gv * Tel hifi r k*ep gri?zly bars n Jhe Endangered spcies Lisr l}d rhar grizzly bears need rflor prtr{tion, n+[ less.

f;arthjustice Legl f,fense l--und i6 w4rkifig rimie$ly to Protect lhe tv.zly bea"s and rhe wiidernesr they srand fon lf rve all w<rk rgerher, rhe grily bears will live happrly ever a[{rr

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175

't76

PART3

AnalyzingArguments

compositionar speciar ,"ai. *t" r-ug" .r"* *J-."uiic? is any portion of it blurred? Is it brened "rrti." r""risticlr (a car ad rhar blends a city and adesert; u uoay "a"r u rotlo.r ,rr", -".g", a cactus)? Is the image an imitation of some ,mage s-uch ;-;lr"r. painting (as in parodies)? Both the Earthjustice ad.in ngu." g.lana trr" s"ruVUE ad later in this chapler on page r7g are conscious * Juxaposition of images. Are several iritation, "l lnir""lprcture boot s. different images ;*rufor, suggesring rera_ tionships between.them?,Juxtap"rid;;; suggest sequential or causal relation_ ships or can metaphoricaty transfer tn" ii""ur!""r o, background to the subject (as when " ,n* technique ",gth is lequentry used in pubric ."ruti't^ io ,rrup" figures as when Ba.ack obama *"r orr"L""ohea1i9.*- i".*ptions of poriticar beneat;;;g" Americari flag at a campaigr appearance (page 180) r" ."i was not'American . charges that he "i".

. ir"lre camera or artist inside the scene as if the, phograffi"i o,^ artistr:s an actor in the ,""ne. crearins a subjective effect as in the drarilng w use of color" Is the image in color oith" Iir*dtm rrg"." .+r oi i.r lu"t atra whit"ii, iti, deterrnined by the restrictions orJhe m"rum,lr""rr "rroi"" * images designed to run in black_ and-white in newspapers) or is rt ttr" cioice ;?-rh" photographer or artist? Are the corors rearistic "orrrcious or ,"t"az Huu. ,p".iJ-rurliJ""" used (a photo made to look ord through the use oi .or' tints)? The bright corors in the and Goldilocks drawing in Figure g.b * in the forest r;;;;- the saturn lizard VUE ad later in this chapter on pa[e 178 ."s"mbr" ittust ations-irr"oot, for children. w

or setting. A low-angle perspective tends.to make the subject look superior and powerful. *n"r:1: u high-3ngle perspecl.ive .un ."dr"* ie ,ire_unA by impli_ carion' rhe imporrance-of r" *u"ir. A, rever The high-angre shor of rhe girr in "";i" ;;;, ro impry equariry. i',nort pir (page osr'.lr,pr,urizes the supe_ riority of the camea and hlrmressness of the mosh pit. In contrast, the low_ angle perspective of the lizards in the Earthjurti"" ui*"u.y ua in Figure 9.5 emphasizes the power of rhe rizards and the'infe;;;;;;" viewer. w Point of uiew; Does the camera o. *ti.t stand outsid" ih" ,."rr" and create an objective effect as rnthe Harti photograph on page i

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.r pug" rzs. l; ao how the figures in the ,,save the Children" ad are silhouette t ."-ou" all background. x settings' furnishings, props:_Is the phot o. a.a*l,rg an outdoor or indoor scene? \\4rat is in the backgro'nd and r*"gr"*r;z \\irrat fumishings and props, such as furniture' objects in a room, pets, and randscape features, help create the scene? \\4rat sociar associations ot.i*r,'*", JrJ g"na". *" uttuJia to these settings and props? Note' for exampre, how the "ogr,"., e-lJ"":, Army, tne army "r

children" advocacvd

Manipuration of images' Are staged images documentary-like? Aie images .Tud: to appear real, naturar, ult'"r" .'itt rru-shing?'il"' i,nug., achralry composites of a numbe. o1 image, (for instance, using images of different women's bodies ro.":"-3,*" on" pf".i moder - *;"";'ri.i-lz Are images cropped for emphasis? w4rat is Ift out? re i-ug", ao-rrrir"J or enlarged? For an example of a staged photo that is intended to look natural, see the *Save
the

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CHAPTER

Analyzing Visual Arguments

177

street fighhng scene video game, used a few simple props to create a gntty urban vehiile hull suggests the aftgrmat^h of days of street (trrg*i 9.12). The burned-out narrorv. desertigf,ti"g, whereas the telephone or power poles in the middle of a

e street suggest a poor crty in a third-world country' Ar_e the people ur characters,lltrr, orlonr. Des the photo or drawing tell a story? roles) or are the scene models? Are the models instrumental (acting out real-life (extra and included for sual or sex appeal)? \Ah1t- are the facial tny ""-utive the spatial relationships expressions, gestwes, and poses of the people? What are foreground, center, and background? \44ro is large of'the figurer"u 0n4ro is in the posi*J proiri""nt?) \44:rat social relaonships are implied by these poses andof the advocacy ad shown in Figure 9.4,l]r|e pose tions? In the "save the children" completely absorbed in adoration of the other-tells the

mother and child-each

story of the bonds of love between mothers and babies'

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composition of images:Are images separated fiom each other in a latger images large in proportion to verbal text? How are or connectedio euch other? Are the ;;g; labeled? How does the text relate to the image(s)? Does te image illushate the poster advocaL textDoes the text explain oI comment on the image? For example,.the

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(page 1a5) effectively juxtaposes words and images' The top is "anJ-i"*a uy u qrr"itin "Think you can be a meat-eating environmentalist?" The beneath the image swef' is the image of a world with a big bite taken out of it. The text if-ni* agaln . I' makes sense only after the ewer has interprcted the image' In conpage 000' hast, the"coat hanger hook dominates the advocacy ad on

An Analysis of a Visual Argument Using Images To show you how images can be analyzed, let's examine the

advertisement for a 9:6 At one level, the persuasive intent of Saturn VE sport-utilitf vehicle in Figuie

subtle level, this adverthis ad is to urge viewers to buy a Saturn VUE. But at a more debate about SUVs and the enronment' Ur"-"rrt partiJipates in an international more fuelwhereas Europeans and now many Americans also are buying smaller' SUVs that guzle gas like trucks' Among ,-" Americans *" rtill buying efficient worldwide symbol "*r, their opponents, SUVs-whether fairly oiunfairly-have become a for the environment. of Amricarrs' greed for oil and their disdain logical argument How do car manufacturers fight back? clearly, they can't make a (although some car companies are that owning an SUV is good for"the enronment psychological .o*-g out"with hybrid SUV' U,rut claim to be "green"). But they can usesentiments' so suvs with pro-enronment strategies that urge consumers to associate drawing, the adin this ad saturn turns to visual argument. usrng u "*ti,tty designed Utending into an "evergreen forest" scene' verlisement shows the Saturn VUE forest birds and Surrounded by a moose, a porcupine, a bear, squinel' and -9ther its forest home. The brilliance of the ad is the animals, the SUV seems to t"to"g in identified by name' The insert legend at the bottom left, were the forest creatures are the names of the forest animals-not just "bird" ad teach?s city dwellers who buy suvs "snowshoe Hare." (Because the ad but "Black-capped chickadee," not just "rabbit" but u-e had to reduce its size in Figure 9'5' spread. as a two-pag was designed

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CHAPTER

Analyzing Visual Arguments

179

making the animal names tiny. They are easily readable in the origmal.) The ad becomes a minilesson in identifiing and naming the "creatures of the evergreen forest"-creature number one, of course, being the Saturn VUE' To make the Saturn VUE blend harmoniously with the forest, this ad cleverly de-emphases the size of the vehicle, even though the dominant size of SUVs is part
of their appeal to urban consumers. To compensate for this choice, the fypical appeals of SUVs are rendered symbolically. For example, the VUE's power and agdify, hinted at in the brief copy at the bottom right of the ad, are conveyed metaphorically in the image of the puma, "poised" Iike the Saturn, crouching and oriented in the same dir""ti,on, like the car's guiding spirit. It enters the scene from the outside, the predator, silent and powerful-the main animal to be identified with the car itself. Other animals close to the car and facing the same direction as the car each stand for one of the car's attributes so that the VUE also possesses the speed of the hare, the brute size and strength of the bear, and the soaring freedom of the goshawk. The whole ad works by association. The slogan'At home in almost any environment" means literally that the car can go from city to country, from desert to mountains, from snow to tropic heat. But so can any car. The slogan's purpose is to associate the car with the words home and enuironment-words that connote all the warrn, fuzzy feelurgs that make you feel good about owning a Saturn VUE. In addition, the use of drawings and the identification of animals by numbers conjure up the delightful, instructive innocence of children's books: this car must be a good thing. And in its own special way, this ad has skillfully shifted consumers' attention away from global warming and enronmental degradation.

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FOR CTASS DISCUSSION Analyzing Photos Rhetorically

1. The techniques

for constructing photos come into play prominently in news photography. In this exercise, we ask you to examine four photographs bf American presidential campaigns. Working individually or in groups, study the four photos in Figures 9.7 through 9.10 , and then answer the following
questions: a. \&4:rat do you think is the dominant impression of each photo? In other words, what is each photo's implicit argument? b. \\4rat camera techniques and compositional features do you see in each photo?

c. \4/hat image of the candidates do these photographs attempt to create for citizens and voters? 2.Tree of these photographs (of Reagan, Clinton, and Obama)are mostly successful in promoting the image intended by their campaigns. But one of the photographJ (of Democratic candidate John Kerry in 1994, running against George W. Bush) is an example of a photograph that "backfired." Republicans reversed the intended impact of the photograph and used it to ridicule Kerry. a. \&/hat is the intended effect of the Kerry photograph, which is from a windsurfing video showing Kerry zigzaggsng across the rvater?

180

PART

Analyzing Arguments

FIGURE

9.7

Ronald Reagan at his Catifornia

FIGURE

9.8

Presidential candidate john Kerry

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FIGURE 9.9 lncumbent President Bill Clinton in a

FIGURE 9.10 Presidentiat candidate Banck

Obama making a speech

b. How might the Keny photograph (and the windsurfing deo) produce an

Dukakis tank photo.")

unintended effect that opens the candidate to rjdicule from the oppsing party? (Suggestion: Enter "Keny windsurfing photo" into your web searcir engine. nt. another example of a campaign photograph that backfired, search for ;Michael

3. The poster shown in Figure 9.10 is for the clocr-urentary film ,,wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Prices," produced in 2005 br- filmmalier and political activist Robert

High Cost of Low Prices" FIGURE 9.11 Posier for "Wal-Mart: The

181

FIGURE 9.12 Urban assauli

scene, America's Army video Same

FIGURE 9.13 Village

scene, America's Army video game

142

CHAPTER

Analyzing Visual Arguments

183

Greenwald.AccordingtoitsWebsite,themoviefeatur"'..t|."u:"0''-l::::"] sunr'e n fu-rti., and communities struggling to stories *u ;.fril;i;r;

Wal-Mart world'" questrons: groups' answer the following Working individually or in

a.\A4aatcompositionalfeaturesanddrawingtechniquesdoyouseeinthislmage? visual features?

made by this image? b. How would you state the argument
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c.Thiseff'ectofthisimagederivespartlyfromwhatculhrralanalystscall..intertextuality...Bythisterm.analyst,'*"unthewaythataewer.sreadingoIan of "connected" images-in this i-ug" a"pJrr',a;';;"f;'*rray *rh ; network tto- the 1950s as well as with f", ;;ill" fitms case, familiarity with posters

Wal-Marl,sconventional.-.,"otu'",mit"yra.".Howdoesthi'q'"*il::: to create an rmage of Godzillu uttd of smiley-faces l,rewers, ."r*rrl r.""*r"ge \&4ry does it have five monJ;-*"""g u ,rri
of wal_Marr? \A4ny is this ormorearms?\\4ayisthismnsterdest'"oyingasuburborhousingarea retain of conventional ,kyr.rup"rri'i" rn"", *riat oes it
rather than a crty of

Godziltaimages,whatdoesr;;;;;;,'and-why?.similarly'howisthe ,; ;;'d'tfi"rent from the traditional wal-Mart monster,s smiley face similar
4.

ThtTlr"Jgllturu"r", 9.12 and 9.13 are Army' pc action game America's Army, created by the u s site 'i*"'^ioand controversial from the web ao*tttou auThis ,,virtual soldiering,, g"-", .iui, to "provide plavers with ihe most http://www.americasarmy..o*,
thentic military experience available'"

popular screen captures from the very

a.IntheseScleencapturesfromthegame,whaJistheeffectofthecamerasdistance fromthesubjectandthecameras-pointofewontheviewer/player? images? affect the sual appeal of these b. How do color and composition

characters' and roles convey? c. 'rA4eat impressions do settings' this game has profrom the gu-9'*ly do you think d. Based on these two scenes H effective do you think this game rS u' voked heated public discussron?

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recruitment device?

The Genres of Visual Argument

examWehavealreadymentionedthatverbalargumentstodayaref|equentlyaccompanied appeai. .""*but; to the text,s persuasive in AtoicaFor be might by photograpr1,,o, **'.'gs that u'^to"" help AIDS victims of ple, a verbal Js";;;; p;o?9t-q 'o child'-However' some genres

qvi"c;;d*l-Jd accompanied " 3 elLm;nts. ln these genres, the visual design carries focusargumenr used inmaritv for labeling' for "r" most of the argumentative weight' describe we on the images. t""tnis section ing the urgo-!r,,,, claim, or foi"o-*"ntlr-tg of argument ,p?.ift.uff! these highly visual genres

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184

PART

Analyzing Arguments

Posters and Fliers

To persuade audiences, an arguer might create a poster designed for placement on walls or kiosks or a flier to be passed out on street corners. Posters dramatically affract and direct ewers' attention toward one subject or issue. They often seek to rally supporters, promote a strong stance on an issue, and call people to action. For example, during world war II, posters asked Americans to invest in war bonds and urged women to join the workforce to ?ee men for active combat. During the Vietnam War, famous posters used slogans such as "Make Love, Not war" or "Girls say yes to boys who say no" to increase national resistance to the war. The hallmark of an effective poster is the way it focuses and encodes a complex meaning in a verbal-sual text, oten with one or more striking images. These images are oten symbolic-for example, using children to symbolize family and home, a soaring bird to symbolize ieedom, or three firefighters raising the American flag over the world tade Center rubble on september 7l,2ool, to symbolize American heroism, patriotism, and resistance to terrorism. These s5,.rnbols derive potency from the values they share with their target audience. Posters tend to use words sparingly, either as slogans or as short, memorable directives. This terse verbal text augments the message encoded in an eye-catching, dominant image. As an example of a contemporary poster, consider the poster on page r45, which is a call to stop eating red meat in order to protect the Earth. This poster uses compositional special effects, depicting the Eath fuom outer space against the backdrop of the Milky Way. The grain, color, and texttre of pieces of red meat are superimposed over the continents of North and South America where ewers expect to see the famar greens and browns of Earth's surface. The impact of the poster is intensified by the big bite that has been taken out of Alask4 westem Canada, and the West Coast of the United States. The substitution of meat for land and the presence of the bitten-out piece of the Earth convey the message of immediate destruction. Framing this image of the Earth on the top and bottom are a question and an imperative phrased in casual but confrontational language: "Think you can be a meat-eating environmentalist? Think again." The summaqy caption of the poster urges readers to become vegetarians. As you can see, this poster tris to shock and push readers toward a more radical environmentalism-one without meat. Fliers and brochures often use visual elements similar to those in posters. An image might be the top and center atbraction of a flier or the main focus of the front cover of a brochure. However, unlike posters, fliers and brochures offer additional space for verbal arguments, which olen present the writer's claim supported with bulleted lists of reasons. Sometimes pertinent data and statistics, along with testimony lom supporters, are placed in boxes or sidebars.

Public Affairs Advocacy Advertisements

Public affairs advocacy adverlisements share with posters an emphasis on sual elements, but they are designed specifically for pubLcation in newspapers and magazines and, in their persuasive strategies, are directly analogous to product advertisements. Public affairs advocacy ads are usually sponsored bv a corporation or an advocacy organization and often have a more time-sensitir-e message than do posters and a

CHAPTER

Analyzing Visual Arguments

185

more immediate and defined target audience. Designed as condensed arguments

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aimed at influencing public opinion on civic issues, these ads are characterized bv their brety, audience-based appeals, and succinct "sound bite" style. Often, in order to sketch out their claim and reasons clearly and concisely, they employ headtngs and subheadings, bulleted lists, different sizes and styles of type, and a clever, pleasing 1ayout on the page. They usually have some attention-getbing slogan or headline like "MORE KIS ARE GETTINIG BRAIN CANCER. WHY?" or "STOP THE TAX REVOLT JUGGERNAUTI" And they usually include a call to action, whether it be a donation, a letter of protest to legislators, or an intation to join the advocacy group. The balance between verbal and visual elements in an advocacy advertisement varies. Some advocacy ads are verbal only, with visual concerns focused on document design (for example, an "open letter" from the president of a corporation appearing as a full-page newspaper ad). Other advocacy ads are primarily visual, using images and other design elements with the same shrewdness as advertisements. We have looked closely at advocacy ads in this chapter when we examined the Ecstasy ads (Figures 9.2 ana g.S) and the Save the Children ad (Figure 9.4), These use text and images in different ways to present their messages. As another example of a public affairs advocary ad, consider the ad in Chapter 15, page 3Tl,that attempts to counter the influence of the pro-life movement's growing campaign against aboion. fu you can see, this ad is dominated by one stark image: a question mark formed by the hook of a coat hanger. The shape of the hook draws the reader's eye to the concentrated tlpe centered below it. The hook caries most of the weight of the agument. simple, bold, and harsh, the image of the hanger, tapprng readers' knowldge, evokes the dangerous experience of illegal abortions perforued crudel by nonmediial people in the dark back sheets of cities. The ad wants viewers to think of the dangerom last resorts that desperate women would have to tum to if they could not obtain abortions legally. The hanger itself creates a visual pun: As a question mark, it conveys the ad's dilemma about what will happen if abortions are made illegal. As a coat hanger, it prodes the ad's frightening answer to the printed question-desperate women will return to back-street abortionists who use coat hangers as tools.

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FOR CTASS DISCUSSION Analyzing an Advocacy Ad Rhetorieally Reexamine the Earthjustice public affairs advocacy ad shown in Figure 9.5 on pagel75.

lai
uln)

This ad defends e presence of gnzzly bears in Yellowstone National Park as well as other wildemert a.eas in the Rocky Morurtains. In our classes, this ad has yielded rich discussion of its ingenuity and complexity. Working indidually or in groups, conduct your own examination of this ad using the following questions:
visual features of this ad immediately athact your eyes? \44rat principles for effective use of type, layout, color, and image does this ad exemplitu? 2. What is the core argument of this ad? 3. \4hy did Earthjustice use the theme of Goldilocks? How do the lizards function in this ad? \&4ry does the ad nothave any pictures of gnzzles or bears of any kind? 4. How would you design an advocary ad for the preservation of gu bears? \tVhat visuals would you use? Ater discussing e Earlhjustice advocacy ad, explore the 1.

\\hat

IeES

ts.

186

PART

Analyzing Arguments

rhetorical appeals of a product adverlisement such as the one that appean in Chapter 6 on page ll7. The designers of this Toyota ad have made key choices in the use of the main image, the woman with the face mask. How does this product ad work to convey its aqgument? Consider questions about its use of tpe, layout, and image, about the core of its argument, and about its appeals to ethos, pathos, and kairos.

ffilr

Cartoons
An especially charged kind of visual argument is the political cartoon. Although you are perhaps not Iikely to create your own political cartoons, it is useful to understand how cartoonists use visual arid verbal elements to convey their message. British cartoonist Maftin
Rowson calls himself 'a visual journalist" who employs 'humor to make a joumalistic point." Potical cartoons are often mini-narratives, porlraying an issue dramatically, compactly, and humorously. They employ images and a few well-chosen words to dramatize
conflicts and problems. Using caricahrre, exaggeration, and distorlion, cartoonists distill an
issue down to an image that boldly reveals the creators perspective and subsequent claim

on a cic issue. The purpose of political cartoons is usually satirical, or, as cartoonist Rowson says, "about afflicting the comfortable and comforting the afflicted." Because they are so condensed and often corrnected to current affairs, political cattoons are partiarlarly dependent on the audience's background knowledge of culturai and political events. \\{hen

lt!

FIGURE 9.14 Political cartoon protesting baseball players' use of steroids

Source: By permission of Steve Benson and Creators Syndicate, Inc.

M**-df

CHAPTER

Analyzing Visual Arguments

147

er

of
to
le,

political cartoons work well, through their perceptive combination of image and l'ords. they flash a brilliant, clariffing light on a perspective or open a new lens on an issue. often
giving readers a shock of insight. As an illustration, note the Benson cartoon in Figure 9.13, which first appeared in Lhe Arizona Republic, Tlne kairotic moment for this piece is the national debate about baseball players' using steroids to blast more home runs or add velocity to

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nae u1

their fastballs. Some athletes and sports commentators have accepted the use of steroids, seeing them as logical outcomes of other performance enhancers such as Ritalin for concentration or Botox for beauty. Others challenge the use of performance-enhancing drugs, citing health dangers to users, unfairness to nonusers, and loss of integrity to spods. In this wordless cartoon, Benson conjures up this controversy; the hefty batter and hypodermic needle substituting for a bat imply that this
tampering with drugs and the great American tradition of baseball is abnormal, dangerous, and scary.

m
ist

a ==

FOR CTASS DISCUSSION Analyzing a

(artoon Rhetorically

t;

1. Cartoons can often sum up a worldview in a single image. The political cartoons in Chapter 2 on page 28 show different perspectives on the United States' problems with illegal immigraon. The cartoon in Chapter 7 on page 9 responds to the problem of limited resoLtrces. \\hat mini-narrative does each convey? \&4rat is the cartoon arguing? How does the cartoon use caricature, exaggeration, or distortion to convey its perspective? 2. Cartoons can provide insight into how the public is lining up on issues. Choose a current issue such as the global economy, homeland security, dependence on foreign oil, refor"rning Social Security, U S. Anny recruitment, or stem cell research. Then, using a cartoon index on the Internet such as Daryl Cagle's Professional Cartoonists Index (http://www.cagle.com) or a Web search of your own, find several carloons that capture different perspectives on your issue. What is the mininarrative, the main claim, and the use of caricature, exaggeration, or distortion in each? How is kairos, or timeliness, important to each cartoon?

{,.#

I I

Wetr Pages
So far we have only hinted at the influence of the World Wide Web in accelerating the use of visual images in argument. The hypertext design of Web pages, along with its complex mix of text and image, has changed the way many writers think of

argument. The home page of an advocacy site, for example, often has many features of a poster argument with hypertext links to galleries of images on the one hand, and to verbal arguments on the other. These verbal arguments themselves often .contain photographs, drawings, and graphics. The strategies discussed in this chapter for analyzing and interpreting r.isual texts also apply to Web pages.

the 'AAS Goals" page for Athletes Against Steroids /v'rww.athletesagainststeroids.org /pgs/ aboutaas.shtml). This advocacy site announces its purpose in the black-and-red type in the center of the
Consider, example,

(Figure 9.15; http:/

for

188

PART

Analyzing Arguments

"Io help children make right chsices, lhey need g*od er$mFls. Athletics Flsy suh sfi mFsnnl 16l* in aur-socty. but. unfortunately, some in pr+fesironal sporis are not settiriq much 0f an example The use of performance'enhanring drugs lihe sleroids in basball, foothall and oiher spons s anaerous. and it sends the w[ong message - that therB r shd cuts t0 ccc0mplshment. and that perfai.nrance ls mor* imF0rtsnt than charcltr. $ tqnght I call nn leam r,wn*rs. unie representatiws, csches nd 'qf Flayers la lake thr led,10 send the dght sigral, trr gt lrgh and'te gel rid ster,lids no.w,"
George !Y, 8ush, Stste o{ lhe Ultion Address, January t0, ?004

Athletes Against $tersids Organiaation Launched To Fight Against Steroids

O*;rpl*n is te i?ghf ffieproblem througlr edusaffon, lnnfly ewste#eri sefe&frTic esearcfi, n{rfrtana
fi s,stnce,

Co

elferRefives, drS free efhlfe role nodejs, add'cfsn speatrrer's Sereau.

jisl in b*dybuilding. Young athletes everywhere

ii. The world has a HUGE stsraid prblm $r its hands - snd 0t are turning to peonnanc* nhncement drrgs playing st*rid rullt with theh live* in hrpes !f mrking il into the "brg leagues." Thev're falli-nq for lhe big lie thal these drugs are safe and okay to us, turrl why shouldnrt ttre-yr nner aii ar*n t 'iony 0ftherr falsrite sports heroes juicrng and getiing paid rnilliqn;f dollars a yeirfcr drring sol
Lst"s $ts by telling t lka t

Bui thr truth is th{t sl*roids aro KILLERS".. DE$TROYfRS... ilFE WRECKERS! Thsr,s whv this brand nw snli-staroid organzatidn hs hon formd clled Athletas ,4gainst stercids. The tn: main 0biecl$es.0flhe sr$anizati0n srE ta disc*uragB athlelns frsm using dng*rols b*dybuitding drugs and to hlF ths$s iahs have already drveloped a depend*n*y on trsa iharmac*uiiesls to quil using them.

*A$ has eet up the folloudng slx,potnt Flan ta hdp rchlsve thona oblctlyss:
ill Hducate amai$ur end Frsfessi0nal sthlets. sludnts, eqaches, prsinel trRinrs, sp$rls
raer*harc, nukitirt componixs, educatsr$.
maqa*in* publi*haru, Flc, sn the dongers af stereid*. B) Eecoma a clearinghouse 0f infamation on th8 dongers af steroid usage whrle oflenng safe snd Efgrlivs tFlirns in lruining, utrili$R, and
{4} Dev6lp AAS locel ehaptr suFpd groups to halp thoss sthleles who have grown dependBnt 0n these drugs ta step using them. ffr esBotion supps through a phoni-rn kne and lha internet for lhos areas where tha[ isfi't vl I lo*al *haptff,
{51 $1qrt a ntitnl $pcsk6l* bursu eompa*ed 0f A4$ nmher$ who are willing !o
--."r, -"...L, ]---i!r !nriJi "

FIGURE 9.15 "About Us" page from Athletes Against Steroids Web site

web page. The bottom half of the page briefly summarizes the problem with
steroids and then outlines the organization's objectives. The links on the left-hand side of the page announce the range, depth, and relevance of material on steroid use posted on this site. Under the masthead for the organization, the quotation from President Bush's 2OO4 State of ihe Union address conveys that steroid use is a national problem needing immediate attention. Each page on this Web site follows the same basic design with subtle variations. For erample, the "steroid Side Effects"

CHAPTER

Analyzing Visual Argumenis

189

)13nt role

:ple. The 'er11s.

'a
f

n:n ce

rathes and

page features a tombstone with a skull and crossbones in place of the organizational shield; the 'Are You Hooked on Steroids?" page has an ominous close-up of scattered pills and a steroid needle. As you examine this whole page, how do the layout and use of color support the ethos of this site and its appeal to pathos? AAS could have made the page much more dramatic with scary pictures, but they chose this more understated design. Do you agree with their choice? Because the Web is such an important tool in research, we have placed our main discussion of Web sites in Chapter 16, pages 344-367. On these pages you will find our explanations for reading, analyzing, and evaluating Web sites.

t
rnd

Constructing Your Own Visual Argument

The most common visual arguments you are likely to create are posters and fliers, public affairs advocacy ads, and possibly Web pages. You may also decide that in
longer verbal arguments, the use of visuals or graphics could clarify your points while adding visual variety to your paper. The following guidelines will help you apply your understanding of visual elements to the construction of your own visual arguments.

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Guidelines for Creating Visual Arguments

7. Genre: Deterunine where this sual argument is going to appear (bulletin board,
passed out as a flier, imagined as a one-page magazine or newspaper spread, or as a Web page). 2. Audience-based appeals; Deternine who your target audience is. e rl44rat values and background knowledge of your issue can you assume that your audience has?

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FI irng thm.
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,,
3.

What specifically do you want your audience to think or do after reading your visual argument? If you are promoting a specific course of action (sign a petition, send money, vote for or against a bill, attend a meeting), how can you make that request
clear and direct?

cne-in lin* there

will for:rn the core of your argument; decide whether this claim and these reasons will be explicitly stated or implicit in your visuals and slogans. !H How much verbal text will you use? m If the core of your argument will be largely implicit, how can you still make it readily apparent and clear for your audience? 4. Visual design: \44rat sual design and layout will grab your audience's attention
Core of gour argumen| Determine what clear claim and reasons

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and be persuasive? How can font sizes and styles, layout. and color be used in this argument to create a strong impression? m rrA4rat balance and harmony can you create between the visual and verbal elements of your argument? \\ ill vour verbal elements be a slogan,

express the core of the argument.

image(s)?

or summarize and comment on the

190

PART

Analyzing Arguments

Drink and Then Drive? Jeopardize My Future? . Arrest . Financial Problems (fines up to $8,125) . lncreased lnsurance Rates . License Suspension . Criminal Conviction . lncarceration . Serious lnjury or Death or Designate a Driver?

It's a no-brainer.
Join your Senior Class at Thirsty Thursday, but

designate a driver.
FIGURE 9.16 Student poster argument promoting the use of designated drivers

5.

Use of images: If your argument lends itself to images, what photo or drawing would support your claim or have emotional appeal? (If you want to use more

than one image, be careful that you don't clutter your page and confuse your message. Simplicity and clarity are important.) w What image would be memorable and meaningful to your audience? Would a photo image or a drawing be more effective?

CHAPTER

Analyzing Vjsual Arguments

191

# will your image(s) be used to provide evidence for your claim or illustrate
main idea, evoke emotions, or enhance

yo'r

credibility and authorih-?

created by a student, consider Leah .an ^po{eJ Johnson's poster in Fig-ure g.to. tnt"aed for bulretin bards *Jr.rorr., around her college campus, Johnson's work illustrates how a writer can use minimai but well_ chosen verbal text, layout, and images to convey_ a rhetoricany eff.ective argument. (That is Leah herself in rhe photograih In this aal tean i, ) u-,rut ona conversa_ tion about alcohol abuse on.colte[e cu-puses and. i. p-por-*;-rut" *uy of handling her universitv's

As

example

of a

argument

jo;;;

Notice how Leah in this-visual seeing the need to supply eviden"ce.

weekry socid gt-togetirer

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io, ot"i ,ro"rr, ,rnosf

focrrred on her claim and reasons without

Thursdays.,,

f f

,:..,: FOR CLASS

This exercise asks you to do the

DISCUSSION Developing ldeas for poster a Argument or .,rni.lers\

p\ae

o\lo\.c co\ee

as a wtlo\e c\ass, ctroose an issue that is controversial on

ihtri.; pi";il; alrtJ n"".", arsLrnaent to .\:e dis carnpus.\rlot\.ng srrrrN\ *.. *

or city), and follow the Guidelines for Creating Visual Arguments on pages t3g-tgO to ension the view you want to advocate on that issue. \44rat might the core of your argument be? \\4ro is your target audience? Are you representing a group, club, or other organization? \\4rat image(s) might be effective in attracting a.ra mving this audience? Possible topics for issues might be commuter parking; poor conditions in the computer lab; student reluctance to use the counseling center; problems with dorm life, financial aid programs, or intramural sporls; ways to improve orientation programs for new students, wrk-study programs, oi travel atroad opportunifies; or new initiatives such as study groups for the big lecture courses or new service{earrring opporhurities.

your campus (or in louitown

i]..l

I I

Using Information Graphies in Arguments

Besides images in the form of photographs and drawings, writers oten use quantitative graphics to support arguments using numbers. In Chapter b we introduced you to the use of quantitative data in arguments. We discussed the persuasiveness of numbers and showed you ways to use them responsibly in your arguments. With the advent of spreadsheet and presentation programs, today's writers often create and import quan-

titative graphics into their documents. These suals-such as tables, pie charts, and Iine or bar graphs-can have great rhetorical power by making numbers tell a story at a glance. In this section, we'll show you how quantitative graphics can make numbers speak. We'll also show you how to analyze graphics, incorporate them into your text,
ng
)re
es-

and reference them effectively.

How Tiables Contain a Variety of Stories

Data used in arguments usually have their ongms in raw numbers collected iom sur-

ild

veys, questionnaires, observational studies. scientic experiments, and so forth.

192

PART

Analyzing Arguments

Through a series of calculations, the numbers are combined, sorted, and arranged in a meaningful fashion, often in detailed tables. Some of the tables published by the U.S. Census Bureau, for example, contain dozens of pages. The more dense the table, the more their use is restricted to statistical experls who pore over them to analyze their meanings. More useful to the general public are midlevel tables contained on one or two pages that report data at a higher level of abstraction. Consider, for example, Table 9.2, published by the U.S. Census Brreau in its document "Arnerica's Families and Living Arrangements: Population Characteristics," based
on the 2000 census. This table shows the marital status of people age 15 and older, broken into gender and age groupings, in March 2000. It also prodes comparative data on the "never married" percentage of the population in March 2000 and March 1970. Take a few moments to pemse the table and be certain you know how to read it. You read tables in two directions: from top to bottom and from left to right. Always begin with the title, which tells you what the table contains and includes elements foom both the verlical and horizontal dimensions of the table. In this case the vertical dimension presents demographic categories for people "15 years and over": for both sexes, for males, and for females. Each of these gender categories is subdivided into age categories. The horizontal dimension prodes information about "marital status." Seven of the columns give total numbers (reported in thousands) for March 2000. The eighth column gives the 'percent never married" for March 2000, while the last column gives the "percent never married" for March 1970. To make sure you know how to read the table, pick a couple of rows at random and say to yourself what each number means. For example, the first row under "Both sexes" gives total figures for the entire population of the United States age 15 and older. In March 2000 there were 213,773,000 people age 15 and older (remember that the numbers are presented in thousands). Of these, 113,002,000 were married and living with their spouses. As you continue across the columns, you'll see that 2,730,000 people were married but not living with their spouses (a spouse may be stationed overseas or in prison; or a married couple may be maintaining a "commuter marnage" with separate households in different cities). Continuing across the columns, you'll see that 4,479,0OO people were separated from their spouses, 19,881,000 were divorced, and 13,665,000 were widowed, and an additional 60,016,000 were never married. In the next-to-last column, the number of never-married people is converted to a percentage: 28.1 percent. Finally, the last column shows the percentage of never-married people in 1970: 24.9o/o. These last two columns show us that the number of unmarried people in the United States rose 3.2 percentage points since 1970. Now that you know how to read the table, examine it carefully to see the kinds of stories it tells. \A/hat does the table show you, for example, about the percentage of married people age 25-29 in 1970 versus 2OOO? \\4rat does it show about different agerelated pattems of marriage in males and females? By showing you that Americans are waiting much later in life to get married, a table like this initiates many causal questions for analysis and argument. \Aihat has happened n American culture between 1970 and 2000 to explain the startling difference in the percentage of married people within, say, the 20-24 age bracket? In 2000 only 22 percent of people in this age bracket were

F\

married (we converted 'hnmarried"

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to

"marned" by subtracting 78.3 foom 100).

age bracket were married.

in 1970, 55 percent of people in this

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Analyzing Arguments

using a GraPh to Tell a StotiY

Tbleg.2,aswehaveseen,tellsthestoryofhowAmericansarepostponingmarriage' the dense columns of numbers' To focus However, one has to tease out the story irom you can create a graph' f."V tt"w * -J" it powerful$immediate'

"" " which you want to Bar Graphs Suppose you are wliting an argument 2O-Zg age bracket has in the -in show that tft" p"r."niug" of maried i"o-"" story through a bar graph significantly sin"ce 1970. You could tell this
dropped
(Figure 9.17)'

q"*U"t' As.with any graphic presentation' you must cally, to contrast t*o o, readers what is beof bar graphi' tille.: create a comprehensit" titi"' Lt th" tus" "iegends," which explain what the hav'e ing compare to wrral tuost bar graphs also each ,'prr"nt. Bars are typically distinguished from different features of crosshatching' The special patterns other by use of difl'erent-.lorr, shades, or quick comparisons' graphs i, tttut they can help reaers make bar

Bargraphsusebarsofvaryinglength'extendingeitherhorizontallyorverti-

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Married Females, 20-24 Married Females, 25-29

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2000
of married females ages

FIGURE 9.1

20-29 1970 and 2000

'

Survey' N4arch 2000 source: tJ.S.Census Bureau, Current Populaton

PieChartsAnothervidkindofgraphisapiechar-tgrcirclegraph,whichdepicts fo'm of slices' Pie charts are a favorite different percentages of-u-iotA (tfre lei in the dided up' Suppose' for example' that way of depicting tf"t" *af O*o * u.*h:I". are percentage of widows among women age notice |u,|d yo,i, ..ud"r, io .oJ the highpie chart Fig.o" 9.18)based on the data in 6b and order. To do ,o, ;; "."ut" g.2. As you can see, a p1e chart shws at a glance how the whole
the last row of Tble of pie charts diminishes as of something is divideJ irto"regm"nts Th effectiveness readers if you include more cas?s, you,ll begrn to confuse you add more slices. slices. than five or six

h;;l

CHAPTER

Analyzng Vsual Arguments

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Married, SPouse Absent

al FIGURE 9.18 Marital status 0f females age 65 and 01der,2000

N4arch Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Current Populotion Survey,

2000'

lts
ite rat
OP "

converts Line Graphs Another powerful quantitativg graphic is a line graph, which a grid and connects them to create flat, rising' numerical data into u ,"ri", of poin on the variables or falling lines. The result gives us a pictuie of the relationship between axes' .eptet"ttt"d on the horizontal and vefical separated/divorced Suppose you wanted to tell the story of the rising number of Table 9.2, you can calculatg the percentage of *o-"r, ," Utr U.S. population. Using separated Jemales separated/divorc"d't"-utes in 200"0 by adding the nul!91 of females (11,309,000) and diding that sum (z,oot,ooo) and the number of divorced percent' You can y the total number of females (110,660,000). The result is 12'6 1980, and 1970 by looking at u.s. census data -ak" tn" same calculations for 1990, or in your library). The resulting line graph is fro- ror" years (available on the Web shown in Figure 9.19. repreTo detennine what this graph is telting you, you need to clariff what's th horizontal axis of a graph contains the sented on the two axes. By Convention, call the "indepredictable, known variabie that has no surprises-what researchers axis represents the years 1970-2000 jendent variable." In this case the honzontal unpreitrung"a predictably in chronological order. The vertical axis contains the story-what researchers call the "dependent dictable variable that forrns the giaph's curwe tells variable"-in this case, the percetage of divrced females' The ascending

in
rle
AS

)re

the story at a glance. (and hence the rhetorical effect) Note that with line graphs the steepness of a slope hot.t] for e vertical axis. Figure 9'19 shows can be manipulated by tt" intervals by choosing verlical intervals of 2 percent The slope could be made less dramatic dramatic br- choosing intervals of 1 percent' intervals of, say, 10 percent and more

196

PART

Analyzing Arguments

Percent

1970

1980

1990

2000

FGURE 9.19 Percentage of females age 15 and older who are separaied or divorced, 1970-2000
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Current Populaton Survey, March 2000.

Incorporating Graphics into Your Argurnent

Today writers working with quantitative data usually use graphing software that automatically creates tables, graphs, or charh from data entered into the cells of a spreadsheet. For college papers, some instructors may allow you to make your graphs with pencil and ruler and paste them into your document.

Designing the Graphic When you design your graphic, your goal is to have a specific rhetorical effect on your readers, not to demonstrate all the bells and whistles available on your software. Adding extraneous data in the graph or chart or
using such features as a three-dimensional effect can often distract from the story you are trying to tell. Keep the graphic as uncluttered and simple as possible and design it so that it reinforces the point you are making.

In newspapers and popular in boxes or sidebars without specifically referring to them in the text itself. However, in academic or professional workplace
Numbering, Latreling, and Titling the Graphic
magazines, writers often include graphics

writing, graphics are always labeled, numbered, titled, and referred to directly in the
text. By convention, tables are listed as "Tbles," u'hereas line graphs, bar graphs, pie charh, or any other kinds of drawings or photographs are labeled as "Figures." Suppose you create a document that includes four graplucs-a table, a bar graph, a pie chart, and a photograph. The table would be labeled as Table 1. The rest would be labeled as Figure 1, Figure 2, and Figure 3.

CHAPTER

AnalYztng

Vlsl:

In addition to numbering and labeling, every graphic needs a compreh:r:s-- -"': e ::: -' '" 'r that explains lly what infonation is being displayed. Look b.ack.over inforrnation in the ::-': -- - ' ' figures in this ch-apter and compare their titles to the liie graph showing changes over time, for example, a typical title $i1 ,r1r:'r-.'' r-: 3a: infoaiion on both the hrizontal and veftical axes and the years co\-eretl -' -:::r' if necessary-. \\hell Lr '':1: a also have a "legend" explaining how the bars are coded ntle-ei'r a: - '' ' the graphic int your o"^ t""t, " consistent in where you place the
the graphic or below it.

ulters fr-Lll:i!\ Referencing the Graphic in Your Text Academic and professional The general rule is tll's: the referencing"conventin called. independent redundancg. the text; the text should be understandable $aphic shdd be understandable without iitiro.rt the graphic; the text should repeat the most imporlant informahon l e graphic. An example is shown in Figure 9.20'
Writet
Referettce: !i:: Retents tltt ^:: htfot llnt1.i1 :) the.ftgtu'e

P-::'t0

-r-:at auto-

Elderlywomenarelikelytoneedmoresocialservices]than men because they are more likel-y to live alone' As shown in Fiqure 1, only 41 percent of women oversixty-five live with their spouses, and 45 Percent of-l hromen are widowed. In contrast, 74 percent of men overf sixty-five live with their spouses while only 14 percent are widowed. These differences-caused largely by the longer life expectancy of women and by men's ten--l dency to marry women younger than themselves-mean that lL h/omen are more apt than men to face old age alone ' -l Fig. 1. Marltaf Status of Males and Females' Ages 65and Older, 2000
Males Females Never Married Separated
Divorced
8o/o

Cowtects tli,

inforntntoii poirtt

:: "

spread-

rlhs

with

Title

-, ro have ::lls ald

Never lvlarried

'-

:hart or :-ilry yo
lesign

separated
Divorced
7o/o

or

4o/o

or

4%

it

Widowed
L4o/o

Married Spo-s: Present Alrt

:
''"

popular

Married Spouse Absent

to/o

,r.cficallY
-rkplace :'; in the rrphs, pie '- rgures."

Married Spouse Present

7 4o/o

Married Spouse Absent

*::h. a pie
ruld be

Source "America's Families and Living Arrangements: Population U.S. census Bureau, 2000 characteristics, FIGURE 9.20 Example of
a student text

source

with a referenced graph

198

PART

Analyzing Arguments

Conclusion
Inthischapterwehaveexplainedthechallengeand-powerofusingvisualsinargulayout' color' of frsual dsign-use of type, we have examined u"" "o*poir*t in arments. cal be us"e.{{or persuasive effect images-* ,t o\N1] how these ;;;"* and tht depend on effectrve w" ;;;';ro escribed the Jrgumentalive seTes
guments. use of uir'r-iolrJ,

*J fil;r, advocaJy advertisements, cartoons' and Webyou that Finally, we showed or lflli"J and invited you to produce yorrr ".gu-*t aramatic wav' Parrrcularly we *a fu;;;lt:"q graphics can t;ll u and line graphs, and showed "l-"'lt'*'y - " rh""tu;;;"s of tabls, uo;upttr, p1e. charts,
explained prose' reference graphics in your own you how to i"to'ptute into and

pages-

li$*-n*
iririiiriiii'''
':,iii''""'

Rhetorical ASSIGNMENT A Visual Argument a Poster Argument' or a Microtheme Llsing Quantitative Data

Analysis'

effectiveness of 4::lli'liri,,.,, optionl:WritingaRhetoricalAnalysisofaVisualArgumentWriteathesis- a which you ou*ln" the rhtorical "o"" driven rhetorical anatysis essay in :l;; or one specified by ;li:l;li,r Jf *t" visui arguments in this text l;,i-,: visual argument, eier audience of your

an stated, dirJct your analy{s to your instructor. unless *il;ril to which establish the Lgumenttive conversation classmates. In your mkoduction, describe the visual argrment and

this argument l, .ort iurtirg Bleilv of the argument two or ore ,hetrical features text. present your thesis, hrghlighting argument' To deo. irrir".tlueness of this that you find central to th efiectiveness *U n""i to include sual features and details velop and supporr rorr"o* i"'ni-. V9" well as shoft quo(such as color.

,r**l"iti.

design.;;;;gle.

i"rion, from any ""tUut C)ntion2:APosterArgumentWorkingwiththeideaforaposterargumentthatyou concepts and prinon pages f gf , us" the sual-esign the explored in For Class f,.urrion y"* '"a"'',arrding of visual argument and thal" ciples present"a o,' pugo 189._19, argument

traming, and special etfects) as parts of the argumenL

pa"t a poster genre o[ posler arguments' and y*i:y.:^::"titity 'o crry' Try o$ th" draft of your o' i" yo"' can be displayed on your campus Based on these indit*g"t on pli'r" *rt *e part tr yo* preposl"er argument tn! .r"rty and impact of this visual argumenL'

io "i

duats. suggesons

;il;;;G

"*q"l:t

p*" u finilersion

of your poster argument'

option3:AMicrothemeUsingaQuantitativeGraphicWriteamicrothemethat table proftom t*t" .9'2 ot tooT,T:" other tells a story ur" o"'aliul""ia9'i at least one by you. Include in your microtheme vided by your instruct, .'to.at"d b* gt:p"-:lid whilh should be labeled quantitative graphic tt"f", f-" $upll'
andreferencedaccordingtostarrdard"o,,u",'tio,',.Useasamodeltheshortpiece tftt* in Figure 9'2O on Page 199' I
a'ARsrlN -+*

Ltltlly

rq flffi

s,=n

ffil ,Wi

For additional

g0 to writing reading and research res'urces,

www.mycomplab.com

Fc

'
t0,.An lntroduttion to ther Ty, pe.of,,C]ims 11 Definitional Arguments 12 Causal Arguments
13 ,Resemblnce

ArgumQllfg ': ': ":' :: ,:

''

.SIS-

14 Evaluation and EthicalArguments 15 ProposalArguments

_,f a

by'
,-)Ltr

lch
,'.ral
';l:i ti

:tlt
:1e.aLls -10-

: olr
t-lnrl-re

:tlat
'liLr
:rcli-

:tte1ti

inat
.tfo'111e

.ff
jii

-led
:ece

i:::..;::.,rj'

r:!1

A shortage of body organs ancl long waiting lists ha|e 1rr.1 public on billboards like this one. ln Chapter 14' a reaclrs

::: .lrre people to make personal appeals to the : - - f iirquing exertlse on pages 308-309 ask - ! L'r!tL,LL'5
q ::.=-:l:g:Ol :or organs and in the selling and

you to think about the evaluaiion and ethical issues ln''

'--

l3 t0

ading of body organs.

199

ffi $ex*,rm ff, *.ffiffi *ffi"

#W
In Parts one, Two, and rhree of this text, we showed how argument entails both inqurry and persuasion. we explained strategies for creating"a compelling structure of reasons and edence for your arguments (rogos), r* h"rd"g yo,, arguments to the beliefs and values of your audience (pathos), and for tablrrhi"g your credibility and trustlness (ethos). We also explarned how to do a rhetorical analysis of both verbal and sual texts. Now in Part Fou_r we examine arguments in depth by explaining five types of claims, each type having its own characteristic puu".^ of derretopment"and

all the theories have valuable components in common. In Part Four we present our own version of stasis theory, or, to use more ordrnary language, our own approach to argument based on the types of claims. understanding types of claims wilr pay off for you in two ways:

s/zzsrs, foom a Greek term meaning in "to take a stand on something." There a'e many competing theol ries of stasis, so no two rhetoricians discuss stasis in exactly th" ,u-. *uy. nrt

to an ancient rhetorical concept called

"stand," as

suppoft. Because almost all arguments use one or more of these fpei of claims as "moves" or building blocks, knowing how to clevelop each clai-type will ad_ vance your skills in argument. The claims we examine in part Four are related

t'

persuasively.

It will help you focus an argument, generate ideas for it, and structure it
as an arguer by showing you how most

*: It will increase your flexibility

arguments are hybrids of different claim types working iogether.

An v*rview ef he "fype$ $f Clmims

talks at cross-purposes,- each_ speakerb point urconn""t"d
To appreciate what a study of claim tl,pes can do, imagine one of those heated but fiustrating arguments in yhich the question at issuJkeeps shifting. Everyone

speaker's suppose your heated discussion is about use of steroids. you might get such a discussion back on track if one penson says: "Hold it for a moment. \A{hat .*",y" ?tuully arguing about here? Are we arguing about whether steroids are a health risk or whether steroids shourd be bared 'om sports? These are two dif_ ferent issues. we can't debate both at once." \\hether she recognizes it or not, this person is applying the concept of craim fpes to get the arfrrment focused.

to the

preous

200

CHAPTER

10

An lntroduction to the Types of

Claims

2O1

both
truc-

ryuhing rical ipes

and rims
ad-

To understand how clarm tpes wor( let's retum to the concept of stasis. A stasrs is al issue or question that focuses a point of disagreement. You and your audience ma\- agree on the answer to question A and so have nothing to argue about. Lrkewise )rou nlav agree on the answer to question B. But on question C you disagree. Question C corutitutes a stasis where you and your audience diverge. It is the place where disagreement begirx. uere as an arguer you take a stand against another view. Thus you and your audience may agree that steroids, if used carefi.rlly under a physician's supervision, pose few long-term health risks but still disagree on whether steroids should be banned ffom sports. This last issue constitutes a stasis, the point where you and your audience part company. Rhetoriciars have discovered that the krrds of questions that dide people have classifiable pattems. In this text we identify five broad tpes of claims-each type originating in a different kind of queson. The following chart gives you a quick overview of these five tpes of claims, each of which is developed in more detail in subsequent chapters in Part Four. It also shows you a typical structure for each tpe of argument. Note that the first three claim types concem questions of nuth or reality, whereas the last two concem questions of value. You'll appreciate the significance of this distinction as this chapter progresses.

lted
ring leoBut
rore

Claims about Reality, Truth, or the Way Things Are

r-laim TWe and Examples of Issue

tleneric Question arguments:

=inrtional
:--.'tng?

Questions
1z

TJpical Methods for Structuring an Argument

Create a definition that establishes critea for the category. Use examples to show how the contested case meets the criteria.

,::.or categorg does this thing

Is sleep deprivation torture? Is an expert deo game player an athlete?

;of eit

-:apter

11)

.'.sa1 arguments: What are

t \\4rat

rost

-.a

aalses or consequences
12)

are the causes of autism?

\Vhat might be the consequences of

requiring a national ID card?

Explain the links in a causal chain going

'iui.s phenomenon'?

rapter

from cause to effect. lorl

Speculate about causes (consequences) or propose a surprising cause (consequence).

ted
)ne

Ius get
hat

,-..;emblance arguments that is this thing similar?

:

-hapter

13)

Is opposition to gay marriage like opposition to inter"racial marriage? Is steroid use to improle strength similar to LASIK surgery

ea lifrot, ed.

to improve sion?

Let the analogy or precedent itself create the desired rhetoricaleffect. [or] Elaborate on the relevant similarifies betlveen the given case and the analogy or precedent.

2OZ

PART

Arguments in Depth

Claims about Values

Claim Tpe and Generic

euestion

Examples of Issue

Questioins

argumenb: Wat s the wortlt or ualue of this tttino? (Lhapter 14) Proposal axgaments Wha t

Eva.luation and ethical

ffi

itrerhods ro" an A4guement

3o::"
;s

siiililg
a

. ffi 6 * -

sports?

Is behavior modification a for anxiery? ,*^o.:o :heTlry Is it ethical o u.. ,t".iA, in

Estabfish the cnteria lor

good or

..ethical..

" *

actton slould we fuke) (Chapter 15)

the United Shk, enact a healrh care system? flgr1naer ro sotve the problem of prison
-s.ho,r/d

class or .ut"e;;. Use exaTples lo show irow me contested case meeh the

."i

h,

member

critena.

.<rvercrowding possession of

should we legalize
drugs?

: *

_* Yrk. rhe problem vivid. txplain your solution. /*qry your soludon by sowrg hg* ir is moivare bv Pnnciple, by goocl conse_'
a

quences, or by resemblance to

approves.

preoirs action the aucirence

I r ffi FOR CIAsS DlscusslnN ta^_t,

"fi

working -.ldenrving Types orcraims ", l"llt: or rn small gro which cjim "':'[t":'9N esti o ns o, r,fr i il i""i",J'^, :u :,,i ;:T'"-,i,T ""

* earthqua-ke ^ oi war) or rnore ,,r.111"kt 9 _Ho*;r#;;';;:"

,

vvere the "" " J-f5'tri#{x r. ;,1:o:.*,i temOrist of

i

3 ]: ? J: l,r.-g rncrease concenhat i' 3. Will *:;.;;'r-*,'^ro ^ffi?i1::T:1f"3:ffrtT"o

septembe

;?;ii{ii, rwo categori;;:':;d;" r shou,d ;; ;:l::,:l^T in ,!o park? l:'#,Jffi:: uc permtfted tui.i"g Add;.aJJ
'-'lvttts this state

an

d ecic, e

rtap or

[XTl:i
r

Jfl

T ." #

[f,

ll

I "u,nsz

(a natural

11. 2001.more rike pe: Harbor (an --rl acr

disasrer)?

i ftfi,'f: i Jfr *.ftr;,;:.dffiT ;;:" - "

couples who don't rrve together

i {'n::ff :tk ;::H:{,:'i"q fi :;,'.fl?r "'' "r"m sp.ft

?
"

*':

s ae nas

marriage more iikery to divorce than

$Hrl

rHt#,

f;tf;,mr:s

to Foeus an Argumenr and Generare

benelits of this
an ai"sumenr ence. \A4here

3:P

PloJlfed an overyrew of rhe rvpes of kowl_d;;;, J,_,^",,,yp"r, o clarms. rte now show Firsl or all"ru.,ra,t;;

doyou;J* d you.,,;;;;;';;:T j

v *mrn19l to et",mlnl*i'-l1*ttts

]j;|"il*"#Jg' some ofuhe *,, n",o

clarm rypes

:lffi $ffiT ##i Ll[*i,;

n"ri""rl

CHAPTER

10

An lntroduction to the Types of CIaims

203

issue? second, it will help you generate ideas for your argument by suggesting the kinds of reasons, examples, and edence you'll need. To illustrate, let's take a hypothetical case-one Isaac Charles Little (affectronately known as I. C. Little), who desires to chuck his contact lenses and undergo the ,,erg LASIK procedure to cure his nearsightedness. LASIK, or laser in-situ keratomileusis. is a surgical treatment for myopia. Somemes known as "flap and, zap" surgery, it trvolves using a laser to cut a thin layer of the cornea and thn flattening it. it's usually not covered by insurance and is quite expensive. I. c. Little has two different arguments he'd like to make: (1) he'd like to talk his parents into helping him pay for the procedure, and (z) he'd like to join with others who are trying to convince insurance companies that the LASIK procedure should be covered under standard medical insurance policies. In the discussions that follow, note how the five types of claims can help I. C. identifz points of disagreement for each audience and simultaneously suggest lines of argument for persuding each one. Note, too, how the questions at issue vary for each audience.

Making the TASIK Argument to Parents

First imagine what might be at stake in I. C.'s discussions with his parents. Here is how thinking about claim types will help him generate ideas:

w Defintion

rt

Causal argument: Both parents will question I. C.'s underlying motivation for seeking this surgery. "why do you want this LASIK procedure?; they will ask. (I. c.'s dad, who has worn eyeglasses all his life, will not be swayed by cosmetic desires. "If you don't like contacts," he will say, 'Just wear glasses.,,) Here I. C. needs to argue the good consequences of LASIK. Perma-nently correcng his nearsightedness will improve his quaiity of life and even his academic and professional options. I. C. decides to emphasize his desire for an active, outdoor life, and especially his passion for water sports, where his need for contacts is a serious handicap. He is even thinking of majoring in marine biology, so LASIK surgery would help him professionally. He says that wearing scuba eqtripment is easier without worrying about contact lenses or conective goggles. tx Resemblance argument: I. c. can't think of any resemblance questions at issue. 'w Eualuation argument; when the pluses and minuses are weighed, is LASIK a good way to treat nearsightedness? Is it also a good way for th parents to spend family money? would the resulh of the surgery be beneficial nough to justiff the cost and the risks? In terms of costs, I. C. might argue that trtougn trre

LASIK surgery, the first stasis for I. C.'s argument is a question about categoiies: Is LASIK a safe procedure? I. c.'s mom has read about serious complitions from LASIK and has also heard that ophthalmologists prefer patients to be at least in their midtwenties or older, so I. C. knows he will have to persuade her that the procedure is safe for twenty-year-olds.

argument;Because I. c.'s parents will be concerned about the safety of

"uen

204

PART

Arguments in Depth

procedure is initially expensive (from $1,000 to $4,000), over the by no1 ,,"eing gtasses years he or conracrs. The co camping

iliiffiTr .:i:ru,#

il"h:,:t#;?
Proposal

gl tm;*:'#;Tff l: ;:t1litdT
;-;" ;;''
"ntion
rh

w'l

ff fr

ff #Hiffi T::J#i1,",i::f

e r,r, -. "*ill,, " "" " orgrnrrt. Should t. .., p*"nt, pay for a LASIK nrncer,,*o ,^ *^_- ,,

ril:$"J]f

nrs

be

caus

*';";;"ioi"?i"i#ff"'iffi

.1he (causar argum enr).

This example shows that writers often need to argue issues order ro make craims uoori uJr"r. rrrt, pr*"r.".";:T:a. of reality and truth in vince his parenh,(l) wourd p.";"J*",ir'*j""?o*",;'"rgument), need ro con_ consequences of -th" (2) that the procedure w";ilr"

'::J:?:,*:;

t*,
r: I

,?lx"fil,ili;'jl-t
arguments in

addressingnnn*l"TL'.:r'*Trowei-orderil;'i.I;ol'trilrff

"r" '"'p"il"::,'i, p*"?u'ior,illin" shourd hav LAsrrc thil :iT:*t ]'"tp.(proposal'ltj' ],j; ;ii ;;

o"

;;; #ffi

n"n"n"rJ ,".'.J#onu'y una proflessionallv :nts ou r,""i!.r,. * r*" u arion urzu.n.ntj. " -rij

tl,:;ilJtrJij;

Making the L{SIK Argument to fnsrrrnnrp r-a*--__-.

wants to p"rru"a* inl

#:fr "J::T#HIy 1,rocused""o"'",oo,l1LT"ll"..,iffiffi types to idenlifu different

queslions u, companies to co-ver the LASIK

rur,on,.nr""tlrj;t'*t" a

irrrl.

,chaudiences.

L",.s suppose I. c. 0."."r*". He imagines

tlfi::t'ffi 'il:':#"#:f l.;:lh--J'::;::"fi l;r4im3-d;ffi1'frg:

c, "r"i-,r,"iTe.sri i::,::1: iklj;ff il,-:ffT:ltrfl: q:;;H;o"iii,,1,*"surgery,,(as .T:1!*:"":frXtr.:'::,,:l*1;lf,'"'f tends)?r,"a",,o,"r.q,,,"""',#tl{i:;".{lH,:fl*[1ji"*";
1l

!3finition (rhey shareJ

qrgument; For this audience

his audience thar LASIK

;",;*

r. . ilfi iiil;Til;Hiffi i; H H, #ji J J" il':" :::::';r;;T,*ryi;;ffiffi;'J;*,1o insurance companies and ro rhe ;::trilTt#'fHdiH'i^'3fr ffi :{i,fria:jf.n"f""n# .or eye contacts,
jusr
i ri

tirir"'rr,-r",y r..r"J"iry-;ustrriaute
:';3,i1#,y

surger..

ab, e- s u

cost of

insuran;",

exrms,

*a gf*r"ri ", _,

LASIK more leymttalce insurance) o. pirti" a faceJift (not covered surgery to repair u by .'"flt:t:tble 1 palate /cor.ered
by rnsurance.)?

qrgument..Does

happen to th

CHAPTER

10

An lntroduction to the Types of Ciaims

zo5

Eualuation argument:Would it be good for society as a whole if insurance companes

had to pay for LASIK? Proposal argument: Should insurance companies be required to cover LASIK?

As this analysis shows, the questions at issue change when you consider a different audience. Now the chief question at issue is definition: Is LASIK cosmetic surgery or medically justifiable surgery? I. C. does not need to argue that the surgery is safe (a major concern for his parents); instead he must establish criteria for "medically justifiable surgery" and then argue that LASIK meets these criteria. Again note how the higher-order issues of value depend on resolving one or more lower-order issues of reality and truth. Note also that any of the claim type examples just described could be used as the major focus of an argument. If I. C. were not concerned about a values issue (his proposal claims), he might tackle only a reality/fruth issue. He could, for example, focus an entire argument on a definition question about categories: "Is LASIK safe?" (an argument requiring him to research the medical literature). Likewise he could write a causal argument focusing on what might happen to optometrists and eyeglass manufacturers if the insurance industry decided to cover LASIK. The key insight here is that when you develop an argument, you may have to work through issues of reality and truth before you can tackle a values issue and argue for change or action. Before you embark on writing an evaluation or proposal argument, you must first consider whether you need to resolve a lower-order claim based on reality and truth.

Hybrid Arguments: How Claim Tlrpes Work Together in Argunnents

As the LASIK example shows, hybrid arguments can be built from different claim types. A writer might develop a proposal argument with a causal subargument in one
section, a resemblance subargument in another section, and an evaluation subargument in still another section. Although the overarching proposal argument follows the typical shrrcture of a proposal, each of the subsections follows a typical structure for its own claim type.

Some Examples of Hybrid Arguments

The examples on page 206 show how these combinations of claim types can play out

in actual arguments. (For more examples of these kinds of hybrid arguments, see Chapter 15, pages 318-320, where we e"plain hou' lon'er-order claims about reality and truth
can suppor"t higher-order claims about values.)

CHAPTER

10

An lntroduction to the Types o Claims

207

No.02-3010
ln the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuil
INTERACTIVE DIGITAL SOFTWARE ASS'N, et al.

Plaintiffs - Appellants,
V.

tms

ST. LOUIS COUNTY, et al.

Defendants - Appellees
BRIEF AMICI CURIAE OF THIRTY-THREE MEDIA SCHOLARS IN SUPPORT OF APPEIIANTS, AND SUPPORTING REVERSAT

CONTENTS
TABLE OF AUTHORITIES INTEREST OT THE AMICI CURIAE ,..

SUMMARY OF ARCUMENT ............. tms ARCUMENT

I. RESEARCH ON VIOLENT VIDEO CAMES HAS NOT DEMONSTRATED

REAL-WORLD HARM
II. MEDIA-EFFECTS RESEARCH OVERALL HAS NOT DEMONSTRATED

THAT VIOLENT ENTERTAINMENT CAUSES REAL-WORLD HARM ....,.,............. A. Most Studies Have Negative Results ..............
B. Occasional Positive Results Do Not Establish Real-World Harm .......... III. THE FUNCTIONS OF FANTASY VIOLENCE ......,., CONCLUSION

6 6 12

15
21

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APPENDIX: BIOCRAPHIES OF THE AM lcl

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An Extended Example of a Hybrid Argument

As the preous examples illustrate, different claim types often serve as building blocks for larger arguments. We ask you now to consider a more extended example. Read ihe following op-ed piece arguing the proposal claim that "New York City should bari car alarms." Note how the reasons are different claim-type subarguments that develop the overall proposal claim. As you can see, the thesis of Friedman's op-ed piece is a proposal claim, and the article follows the typical problem-solution structure of proposal arguments. Although the whole argument follows a proposal shape, the individual pieces-the various subarguments that suppod the maln argument-comprise different kinds of claim types with their own characteristic str-r-rctures.

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III

ntasy talnst

208

PART

Arguments in Depth

.*11

Thct Noise for Nothing

AARONFNIEOMN

Main proposal claim: Early next year, the NewYork City Council is supposed to hold a final City Council should hearing on legislation that would silence the most hated of urban noises: ban car alarms the car alarm. With similar measures having failed in the past, and with Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg withholding his support for the latest bill, tet's hope the Council does right by the citizens it represents. ousing sleePReason I'n definitional claim ers, disturbing readers, interrupting conversations and contributing to supported with quality-of-life concerns that propel many weary residents to abandon the examples: Car city for the suburbs. According to the Census Bureau, more New Yorkers alarms belong in the are now bothered by traffic noise, including car alarms, than by any other category of things aspect of city life, including crime or the condition of schools. that harass So there must be a compelling reason for us to endure all this aggtavaly, no. Many car manufacturers, criminologists and tion, right? When the nonprofit Highway Reason 2: An evaluation claim Loss Data Institute surveyed insurance-claims data from 73 million vehicles nationwide in 1997, they concluded that cars with alarms "show no overall reduction in theft losses" compared with cars without alarms. There are two reasons they don't Criteria and evidence supporting the set off by passing traffic, the jostling of blarine sirens are false al evaluation claim urban life or nothing at all. City dwellers quickly learn to disregard these cars crying wolf; a recent national survey by the Progressive Insurance Company found that fewer than 1 percent of respondents would call the police upon hearing an alarm. s In 1992, a car alarm industry spokesman, Darrell Issa (if you know his name that's because he would later spearhead the recall of Gov. Gray Davis in California), told the New York City Council that an alarm is effective "only in areas where the sound causes the dispatch ofthe police or attracts the owner's attention." In New York, this iust doesn't happen. Car alarms also fail for a second reason: they are easy to disable. Most
stolen cars are taken by professional car thieves, and they know how to deactivate an alarm injust a few seconds.

Reason 3: A causal claim developed

The

with causal Iinks

New York Police Departrnent, in its 1994 booklet "Police Strategy No. 5," explains how alarms (which "frequently go off for no apparent reason") can shatter the sense of civility that makes a community safe. As one of the "signs that no one cares," the department wrote, car alarms "invite both further disorder and serious crime." I've seen some of my neighbors in Washington Heights illustrate this by taking revenge on alarmed cars: puncfuring tires, even throwing a toaster

CHAPTER

10

An lntroduction to the Types of

Claims

2O9

Humorous resemblance claim jums up problem

oven through a windshield. False alarms enrage otherwise 1awful citizens. and alienate the very people car owners depend on to call the police. In clat deterring theft other words,

.,1ainproposal.lui*,asproposedbythesponsorsoftheCiry
'tstated as evalution Council legislation, John Liu and Eva Moskowitz. The police could simply

-ajtlandSUpported@Thiswouldbeagreatimprovementoverthe -.ihreecriteria + current laws, which include limiting audible alarms to three minutessomething that has proved to be

impossible to enforce. more than 50 car alarm installation shops throughout the city have already pledged to disable alarms at no cost, according to a survey by the Center for Automotive Security Innovation. is a viable alternative People worried about protecting their cars can buy what are called silent engine immobilizers. Many European cars and virtually every new General Motors and Ford vehicle use the technology, in which a computer chip in the ignition key communicates with the engine. Without the key, the only way to steal the car is to tow it away, something most thieves don't have the time for. In the meantime, the rest of us could finally get some sleep.

Thus writers enlist other claim-type subarguments in building main arguments. This knowledge can help you increase your flexibility and effectiveness as an arguer. It encourages you to become skilled at four different kinds of arguers' "moves": (1) providing examples and edence to support a simple categorical claim; (2) using a criteriamatch strategy to support a definition or evaluation claim; (3) showing links in a causal chain to support a cause/consequence claim; or (4) using analogies and precedents to
support a resemblance claim. In the following chapters in Part Four, we discuss each of the clarm types in more detail, showing you how they work and how you can develop skills and strategies for supporting each type of claim.

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