Chapter 16

This chapter from the book Everything’s an Argument was about what does and doesn’t count as proper evidence. People use all kinds of evidence to support a claim. It is often argued that the quality of evidence may not be accurate. The three important things to consider when looking at evidence is who collected it, how it was collected and for what purpose it was collected. Another important thing to look at when considering evidence is if the time and place of the information is relevant to what is being proved in your argument.

This idea of the accuracy of evidence brings me to the lesson I recently learned in my Human Development class. As we were discussing the topic of death and dying, we talked about the Kübler-Ross model. This model provides the Five Stages of Greif when someone finds out they, or someone they know is dying. These stages include denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. We learned how this method has not only been applied to death, but in today’s time, it has also been applied to many other aspects of life. It wasn’t until after we learned about this model that we learned that many other professionals of thanatology disagree with Kübler-Ross. Looking at her research, she never actually followed any specific personal through the entire cycle of the stages. And she could never prove that someone would experience these stages in any certain order, or even at all. This just goes to show how it is important to consider the source and research before including certain evidence in your argument because you want information that is concrete and that will support your ideas.

The book then goes on to talk about the various types of evidence. It talks about Firsthand Evidence and Research. These types of evidence include interviews, observations, surveys and questionnaires, experiments, and personal experiences. The various types of Secondhand Evidence include things like library sources, online sources, and other impersonal databases.

Chapter Nine

            Definitional arguments "don't just appear out of the blue; they evolve out of the occasions and conversations of daily life" is how the next section of our book describes this topic. Chapter Nine discusses arguments of definition. The book describes that because words have various definitions, there are multiple ways of writing arguments based on definitions. Formal definitions are the descriptions of words that can be found in the dictionary. Operational definitions identify something based on its functions or what conditions create it. Definitions by example are ways of defining something, like a class or species, by listing individual members. There are also other various types of definitions that aren’t considered to be part of such defining topics.

            The next part of this chapter begins to talk about how the first step in composing a definitional argument is formulating a claim. Basically, this means that you come up with your overall opinion on the word, and state your basic definition of that word. They used many examples such as defining volunteers and political bias.

            The paragraphs following the claim formulation go on to explain the formulation of an argument. People are always going to question what you believe, this means that it is really important to show your credibility and make them believe you. This is related to what we learned about in chapter three, and the importance of ethos.

            The last step in the process of forming definitional arguments is considering the design and visuals that will make the argument work. This can definitely add to your credibility and make the argument more powerful.

            This is what our second writing project was based off of. I did my writing project on defining the term “discrimination”. I reported a long history of how discrimination in America has come to be formed and how it is a consistently changing term, involving various issues that are constantly piling up.

This chapter was really helpful in teaching me about formulating a proper definitional argument, not only in my writing project, but in other aspects of my life, 

Chapter Three

            In the reading from chapter three, we learned about arguments based on character, pertaining to ethical appeals. These arguments are commonly known as based on "ethos". Because of the sense of trust that comes along with it, arguments require strong, ethical appeals. We often find appeals or arguments about character presented in three ways. 1. A person/group does/doesn’t have the authority to speak to this issue 2. A person/group is/isn’t trustworthy or credible on this issue 3. A person/group does/doesn’t have good motives for addressing this subject. These are the three most common ways we see character turn on claims.

            When reading, our book says we have the right to ponder the authority of the author. Our book then goes on to explain how a certain level of education or degree often grants people the necessary authority to be writing on such a subject. Another way of insisting you are credible is by mentioning occupation/employers and how many years of experience you have.

            Whether you are a renowned Nobel Prize winner or a bagger at Walmart, my opinion is… If you are going to make a claim, or comment, be able to back yourself up. This often comes up at my house during family discussions after holidays or gatherings. My family is full of big mouth New Yorkers who all want their opinion to be heard. Whether we are discussing politics, religion, or the appropriateness of my sister’s dress for mass, I believe if you are going to put your “two cents” in, I want to specifically know why, or how you come to that understanding. I have family members who barely have their high school degree, and then I have aunts and uncles who are doctors and lawyers. When it comes to certain discussions, I personally don’t care what level of degree you have, I care about how you are able to back up your claims, and where you are obtaining your information.After reading this chapter, the same can be said for any argument or claim that you are reading.

EA Chapter Thirteen

            Chapter Three of Everything's an Argument is about the proper presentation and style that is used in an argument. It begins by saying every argument has its own style. From the basis of an argument, three basic styles of communication can be classified. The first of this is known as high (formal or ornate), the second one middle (understated and very clear) and low (every day or humorous).  

            The book then goes on to explain these three styles. It basically says that the high style in argument is severe, proper, and strict. This made me think of the arguments and debates done in the houses of congress. All of the people involved are highly educated about a certain topic and then defend their beliefs, or the beliefs of their constituents. There are strict rules about when and how someone is supposed to present their case.

            The middle style arguments are the most commonly recognized arguments. These are the everyday arguments had between a parent and a child. When a 16 year old walks down the stairs to go to school and she is wearing heavy eyeliner, a short skirt and her bellybutton piercing is showing, usually her mom is going to have something to say about that. The daughter might defend herself by saying “Everyone wears this” or “Things have changed since you’ve been in high school mom!”. The mother would then respond with her opinion and then tell her daughter to “Go back upstairs and change before you are late for school!!” This type of argument can be seen in many situations and we see it as the most common argument type.

            The low style argument is the most informal and is done for entertainment. This kind of argument is  most common for those who are trying to find humor. These are the “arguments” that take place after a big holiday dinner when your entire extended family is there and your overly-opinioned older sister wants to see how much she can make her uptight aunt cringe. There is often humor involved and opinions are flying around everywhere.

            The chapter then goes on to describe different ways to make an argument more effective. Style and word choice are important because if you are a member of congress who is trying to pass a bill, it is important to use proper language choices, and avoid slang and profanity. On the other hand, if you are at the dinner table after thanksgiving and a discussion about how horrible your favorite movie is, it’s important to use language appropriate for the context of that specific argument. Meaning, you want to use words and vocabulary that people will understand.

            The next point brought up in the chapter is about punctuation. It is important to make proper use of commas, periods, and exclamation points when making an argument because it makes it stronger and more effective. If you pause after a strong point, it often makes what you are trying to say more apparent and understandable as opposed to rambling on and on and speaking to fast for people to keep up with.

            This chapter was helpful for me to see how to structure a proper argument. It also allowed me to see some key components of what is important to keep in mind while formulating one of the three types of arguments.

Chapter 14 Post

In chapter 14, there was a section that discussed visual argument. In today's time, visual arguments are very common and used for a variety of things. One of the most common things visual arguments are known for are taking information from different campaign ads and transferring them to pie chart data. When making visual arguments, there are various factors that have to be considered. The most obvious factors include color, font, font size, and "logos". These are important because visual arguments must appeal to an audience's emotion or logic in order to seem legitimate. This chapter went on to compare an assignment turned in on two different      types of paper. One of the papers was neatly typed on straight, white paper, and used a proper font. The other paper was turned in on loose-leaf paper with messy handwriting. Comparing these two papers based on solely style, if I were to choose one to present to a group of people, I would choose the neat and organized one on computer paper. It is hard to admit, but appearance does play a major part in quality. It’s like if you went to a restaurant with an open kitchen. Would you want to see a chef with long and uncombed hair, an unshaved face, dirty clothes and bad teeth? Not to say this chef isn’t talented, but usually people prefer to see a chef with nice, clean-cut hair and good teeth in a nice chef’s outfit. Presentation is a bigger factor then most people like to admit, and this is true for visual arguments as well. Chapter 14 gave me a good insight when choosing a visual argument for my first writing project.

Writing Project One Ideas-

I really like animals, and I really respond to visual arguments that appeal to your emotions. Like the Sara McLaughlin ASPCA commercials get me every time. Other areas I am interested in might include poverty, or social issues like starvation or homelessness for children.