To get started on this assignment, I’d like to imagine that you’re writing your individual blog to readers who are somewhat skeptical about the argument you’ll be making. They aren’t exactly hostile, but they certainly won’t automatically be in agreement with you. As you imagine these readers, try to identify a few groups of people who might fit this profile of a skeptical audience.
Now that you have this audience in mind, I’d like you to write a paragraph that explores the following: 1) Describe the larger debate that you are entering into and characterize the issue or the problem as you see it. 2) State as directly as you can (at this point) what you think your argument or your main claim will be. 3) Anticipate the counter arguments that your skeptical audience might state in response to your argument (or even in the way you’ve framed the debate). Identify two or three points that these readers might make against your argument. 4) Identify at least three rhetorical proofs that you could use to strengthen your argument in relation to these counter arguments. Explain how you would use each one as specifically as you can. (That is, don’t just write that you would appeal to pathos; instead, describe as precisely as you can what you would do to cultivate a certain emotional state within your reader and how you would use that emotional state to move them into agreement with your argument.)
The environment is important for every human beings health and lifestyle. Each time someone litters or a factory puts smoke in the air, the environment is getting dirtier and dirtier by the second. Not only is the environment important for humans health, it also effects the ozone layer, plants, animals, and the growth of food. Yes, sometimes littering happens on accident or there is no possible way for gas smoke and factory smoke to anywhere besides the air; but if it is decreased it will make a huge difference. Sometimes when the trash is getting picked up by the garbage men, the trash will fly out. This may not be any individuals fault but it needs to be prevented. Also the gas smoke that comes from cars can not be stopped since this is the worlds main use of transportation, but maybe there can be a way to limit the use of gas or a kind of gas that does not produce as much waste. Also the production of waste from factories smoke may be a necessity within the factory, but it should be stopped. The ozone layer is becoming thinner and thinner and it is getting dangerous for burns from the stronger sun. I could use pathos by using an example of someone getting sun poisoning or about how the chesapeake bay (where i live) is becoming unsafe for humans to swim in, and is killing off the sea life. I would use logos because trying to prevent environmental waste and prevention of the deterioration of the world logically makes sense. I would use statistics of how the environment has gotten worse over the years and the main threats that are making it do so. I would also use ethos by showing the audience how much the safety of the environment means to me. I would use examples of how I want to be able to live a life outdoors, produce self grown food, have my children swim in the ocean, and be able to see the animals I saw growing up.
ReplyDeleteMy particular focus on our paper is on global warming and its effects on the environment. Also I will talk about how global warming has become an issue and how people can use more "green" tactics to prevent it from becoming a bigger issue.
ReplyDeleteWe are entering to the debate of how the Colorado budget cuts will affect education. The problem is that when the public education system loses money, the quality of the education will go down and the future of Colorado might be at risk if its citizens are not educated as well as they could be. The problem is that education is one of the most important things a government can provide but right now it is being put at risk. I will be arguing about what will happen if these budget cuts actually occur and the affect it will have on the quality of education and what the definition of “quality” really is. Essentially, I will be evaluating the problem and looking at the choices. It is difficult to identify counter arguments because mine is more about the hypothetical situations, but people might argue that I am being pessimistic about the whole idea of it and I am not looking at it with the right attitude. They might argue that the cuts might not affect the quality as much as I am saying it will. In terms of rhetorical proofs, I could definitely mess with the emotions of the audience and make them feel sympathy about lack of education. For the poorer students, school might be the only place they can go outside of the home to get food. I could also use fear because without quality education, the structure of society in Colorado might slowly fall apart if people do not have the skills to work and keep the economy up and working. Also if I talk a lot about what is being taken away from the education system, readers could become angry with the fact that the government is ignoring the needs of the citizens.
ReplyDeleteThe larger debate that I am entering into is the economic effects that immigrants have on Colorado’s society. Even though immigrants do not pay taxes, they still have a huge positive effect on our economy. Because they are illegal they have more trouble getting jobs so they end up doing the jobs that no one in our society currently would do. They do live free of taxes but the work they give back to our society has a huge impact on our economic stability. The main counter argument that I will face is from those who completely disagree with the fact that they have any positive effect on society and think that these immigrants are merely free loaders. They will say that these people are illegal and not paying taxes so they are taking the jobs away from those who are unemployed. I would say to them that these people are maids, gardeners, dishwashers and any other job that other Americans would not want. They take on the domestic jobs that even the unemployed Americans wont take on.
ReplyDelete-skeptical audience: people who do not identify with having problems after rape (victims and non-victims), those who don’t really acknowledge the problem of rape
ReplyDelete-larger debate: Does true awareness of rape exist?
-main claim: There need to be more comprehensive rape facilities that are more easily accessible (mentally and physically) for rape victims to find and utilize.
-counter arguments:
1- people should be smart enough to avoid the situation of rape, so if people were smarter, these places aren’t necessary
3- already paying taxes/donations to places like this, don’t need any more
-rhetorical proofs
1- pathos→ provide a story of a rape victim(s) who did not seek help and now experience chronic psychological problems
2- logos→ talk about different types of rape (partner esp)
3- kairos→ provide statistics of rape in Denver and US, note that these stats are only based on reported incidents. Find approximate statistic of those who do not report… still need a place to go for help even if they do not want to report the crime legally.
The topic of my group`s blog is immigration. The larger debate I will be entering into is the effects of the Arizona Immigration Law and the effects this law is now having on other states, specifically Colorado. This law “would make the failure to carry immigration documents a crime and give the police broad power to detain anyone suspected of being in the country illegally.” This bill has stirred up a lot of debate. I am going to make a stand against this law because I think it is wrong that police can pin point certain “types” of people as being illegal immigrants and question them randomly. I attended a small group lecture, “Immigration in a New Light” where two men spoke about their story of coming to the United States. One man came from Cuba and has been a U.S. citizen for some years now and the other man came to the U.S. from London and is currently a lawful permanent resident, therefore not yet a U.S. citizen. At the end of the lecture the man from Cuba said that because of this law, he would more likely be stopped by police thinking he is illegal rather than the man from London who is not yet a U.S. citizen, just based on what they look like. There are definitely a lot of people who could make counter arguments against my point by saying that these people are taking from the U.S. economy and they should not be allowed to stay here if they are not U.S. citizens. An appeal I would make to pathos would be by taking the angle that it is wrong to pin point people just because they look like they could be an illegal immigrant. I think this point could pull out an emotional response from some readers. This law creates a racial issue. To make an appeal to ethos and create a sense of creditability for my audience I will bring up points made by the men who spoke at the “Immigration in a New Light” lecture. This is an event I attended and have direct knowledge from them on this topic.
ReplyDeleteMy larger debate is about the homeless people in the society and I would focus on why do homeless people sleep outside instead of using the homeless shelters. Readers might think the service in denver did a good job, they might think there were not many homeless people do not access in the shelters. I would tell the reader how this issue really exist first, and then I would show the statistic to prove my argument. Readers might think the shelter is good enough, however it is not. Therefore, I would tell people how the shelter need to improve.
ReplyDeleteHickenlooper recently proposed massive budget cuts, some of the largest cuts in state history. So my issue is while there are cuts being made in education, I am on a quest to fix these solutions, or suggest where money can come from to fix the issue. My claim will be that education is the most, or one of the most important issues affecting our society today. So, instead of spending money on unnecessary things, such as renovating a building, save that money and put it into education. If a school closes, sell the building and reinvest that money into the community. Just an example. Readers could address many issues, such that money is tight and education may have to suffer. Also, they may say that if we give more money to the schools, there is less for state parks, or road work. This is a great kairos scenario; I can also touch people who have children in school, and much more.
ReplyDeleteWhen discussing oil drilling and its effects in Colorado, there are two different points of view. The one side of the argument consists of people who are against drilling for oil. The reasons that they might be against it is that they think that we need to decrease our dependency on fossil fuels in general. These opponents of drilling probably believe that fossil fuels are bad for the environment, and they realize that the use of them is also limited and will eventually result in our demise unless we create an alternative. The other side of the coin comes from advocates for oil drilling. These people probably depend on the drilling of oil for their livelihoods. They also are probably making serious money by drilling for oil.
ReplyDeleteI will approach the argument by coming with the opinion that we need to decrease our dependency on fossil fuels, and that oil drilling needs to be slowed, if not eventually ceased completely. People who will try to oppose me will say that the oil industry is imperative to Colorado’s economy. They might also say that the only reason why people want to stop the drilling of oil is environmental reasons, while these reasons are not valid. I will appeal to people’s emotion by finding some examples that show how the oil industry is ruining the environment and even specific people’s lives…
There have been recently proposed budget cuts in Colorado that will deeply affect education in particular. The majority of the budget cuts will be within the education system in Colorado. This will affect the quality of the education in this state, and ultimately hurt all levels of education including elementary, high school and college. I will be arguing and explaining the cause of the decision to direct the budget cuts towards education. I will explain the causes and the reasons why Hickenlooper has decided to make the majority of the cuts within the education system.
ReplyDeleteI plan to focus on the implementation of solar panels and wind farms in the Denver area as well as surrounding areas. My argument will hone in on the debate that solar and wind energy are good for our society and environment. The costs associated with building these new methods of powering Denver are worth it and will be very beneficial in the long run. We do not have endless natural resources and we must find ways to preserve the minimal resources we do have in order to prolong their existence. There is a massive push for “green” methods in offices, schools, homes, and other places. These energy producing techniques are revolutionizing our dependency on fossil fuels. Possible counter arguments for my topic consist of people against the costs of creating these systems, those who are in favor of the oil industry creating jobs, and taking away from our current economy. Also, we do not have the supply to create the panels or turbines and they will not provide a rapid change.
ReplyDeleteMy argument is the emission of carbon needs to limit. I will include the current situation about, how it effect and some methods could be down to reduce the emission of carbon and also why these are effective.
ReplyDeleteThe larger debate I am entering into is the debate of immigration and its effect on education, specifically in Colorado. The potential problem is that immigrants are taking money from Americans for a higher education. I think overall my argument would be that immigrants have a negative effect on education. I would explain this by referring to the Dream Act. The Dream Act would provide conditional permanent residency to certain illegal and deportable alien students who graduate from US high schools. In response to my argument, I think people will disagree and say that immigrants should not suffer the actions of their parents. Even though these kids were brought over here because of their parents, not by choice, they are still immigrants. While it may not be fair, they will have to suffer the consequences of their parents at some point in their lives. In the New York Times article, the author argues that it is only fair to give immigrants in-state tuition. He is also refuting himself by saying immigrants deserve fairness whereas they are denying out of state documented citizens in-state tuition for college. I am following the strict respect the law attitude. It is unfair to give illegal immigrants an opportunity we deny legal citizens. It would be more difficult to appeal to pathos, because while I am saying that it is hard for immigrants to suffer the effects of their parents, I am also saying that it is the law and they have to live with it.
ReplyDelete• Larger Debate
ReplyDeleteo Drug Rehab Centers
What are the procedures within?
Are they effective?
• Do we have enough of them in order to be effective?
Can those that need the help get it?
• Main Claim
o Drug Rehab Centers
We need Drug Rehab centers to be effective
• Why else would they be there?
Those that need the help should get the help
• Not all are willing
o “I don’t have a problem”
• $?
• Can’t get the help for reasons other than money
o No rehab centers in their area
o No way to get to the rehab center
• Counter Arguments
o We don’t need drug rehab centers
They aren’t effective
• Not many get “cured” of their addiction
Not realistic for people to get “cured”
People will be how they’re going to be
• Those that are addicted are faint at heart
o People made the mistake
We shouldn’t have to clean up their mishap
• Tough love complex
o Drug rehab centers are too expensive
Especially if ineffective
Tax $
• Don’t want to pay more taxes
• Rhetorical Proofs
o Pathos
Enaergia
• Scene with a heavily addicted individual
o Commonplaces
Want to be happy
Want to be successful
How can we do that when addicted?
o Kairos
In order to make our society on top, we need everyone to be on board and well.
• How can they be this way when their addicted?
o Their lives may revolve around their addiction, not the public good and advancing the nation
We are about to embark on an age where technology is going to be at the forefront of communication and transportation. Having said that, we need to make sure we keep what is most important and what is most valuable in mind; the earth. As this country and the world gets more and more technologically advanced we need to be more and more conscious of the environment and how we are affecting it. As we make these advancements towards our technology, I don't understand how simultaneously we cant make advances in these technologies that are better for the environment. I'm sure if we have engineers that can make flat screen tv's, ipods, and cars, we have engineers that can gear these pieces of equipment towards an environmental incentive. America is responsible for 30 % of the worlds waste, this is unacceptable. If we are the ones pushing for more environmental advances, then we need to have the least amount of harmful gasses emitted and the most alternative energy sources. We need to set and example for the rest of the world so that our word gets heard and taken into account. Before we know it, we can loose everything. We have to take advantage of what we still have some control over.
ReplyDelete