Visual

I do believe that a visual argument is more persuasive then a written one. Visual arguments have the ability to tap into the viewers senses much quicker and have a much more lasting impression. If someone was trying to protest against the war in Iraq, writing information on it may sway some people, but showing pictures of dying solders would appeal to the senses of the audience and more then likely they would hold the image in their minds for much longer. It’s all to easy to read about something going on in the world and forget about it, but when pictures are presented that appeal to your emotions you could feel disturbed, inspired, or amazed for a long time, and feel the need to spread the word about the event. Pictures and videos make it easier to connect to the subjects in them quickly, and a lot of times, make a stronger connection.

Ethos//Pathos

I believe that all writers have a responsibility to utilize ethos, but not to the point where the reader is left without a unique or different thought in their head. Using ethos as a writer is a powerful and dangerous tool, the ability to sway ones audience is something to be cautious of. If an ethos argument relies on the reputation of the writer, then it could also be a factor of the readers relationship with the writer.
On the flip side, the usage of pathos is, in my opinion, more powerful then ethos. When you appeal to someone’s emotions the right way they become very easy to sway. Going back to ‘A Case for Torture’ that argument could be personalized to someone who lost a family member in 9/11, making the argument much more emotional, saying that ‘If torture could have saved _____ would you do it?’ making it nearly impossible for whomever the argument is directed at to say no.

Skateboarding

One of the most powerful pieces of this article are the real world examples that David Langley gives to the readers, showing how skateboarders have been treated by society not only helps tap into the emotional side, but also sends the emotion that he wants you to feel. This is very well backed up with personal stories and testimonies, which also play to the emotional side. David Langley also shows the positive side of skateboarding, it’s good exercise, and environmentally friendly. Compared to ‘A Case for Torture’, this argument is much better supported, and more convincing. ‘A Case for Torture’ is almost completely hypothetical, and the facts that are presented are weakly supported. Although ‘A Case for Torture’ does tap into the emotions of the reader, it does nothing to support the argument.

Arguments

It’s nearly impossible to prove any real world arguments because almost all arguments are based on opinion, and which opinion is right or wrong, we’ll never know because according to Aristotle, we can never know the truth. If we can never know the truth, we can never get a clear view of what’s right and wrong, so instead people interoperate the truth in different ways to come up with two sides of an argument. Learning a system like Toulmin’s at least helps us sort out what we define as the truth, and help us make our decisions based on them.

Pseduo-Argument

A pseudo argument is an argument based on opinions, arguments like this can be nearly impossible to win without evidence and statistics to back it up. Having an argument about what color is the best will get the people arguing no where, because the area of debate is too broad and has no support on either side.
An example of a pseudo-argument is the one I recently had with my mother. My side was that I should be aloud to go to the Laramie Project protest, her side was that I couldn’t. this is an example of a pseudo-argument because there is no real clear cut answer, because there are no set in stone facts of data to support it.

Labeling

In my opinion the consumer should be as informed as possible, case and point. Along those same lines, consumers should be able to have all the information they could possibly need on the label, to make sure that they know exactly what they are buying, and what is going into their bodies.
The labels on the cans could be regulated to prevent companies putting out things that only make them seem like the good guys, unbiased information on labeling will help consumers know what they are buying, where its coming from, how it's made, and what exactly they're eating.

Ads

The ad on page twenty-four is simple and direct, with a picture that captures the attention and is a quick and easy thing to read. On the flip side, the cartoon on page one captures the attention with a cute cartoon that people love reading, yet it still gets the point across. The advertisement on page twenty-four could be described as an explicit argument, because the point comes across directly, and very strongly, as well as giving the argument strait forward and up front. The picture presented on page one could easily be described as an implicit argument, because the information is presented without being direct and giving a bold statement.

Implicit Explicit

Explain the differences between implicit and explicit arguments. Use the picture and poem on p. 5-6 to support you.

Both explicit and implicit arguments are wonderful tools for a writing argument to be successful. An explicit argument is described as direct and harsh, throwing out controversial information to work with; witch is then supported by reasons and evidence. An implicit argument is the exact opposite; it looks nothing like an actual argument. The poem on pages five and six would be described as an implicit argument, because it subtly gives the information and makes an argument. Same with the picture on page five, not only is it implicit but different from the poem, it simply presents the information, without any real argument, which leaves the reader or viewer to make their own decisions about what’s going on based on the photograph given.

Memory

The park in my neighborhood was always a favorite for me and my mom to walk to in the summertime. The play equitment had just been re-painted bright florescent orange, and had a dog park right next to it, which to an eight year old, was the greatest thing in the world.

The walk to the park was a familiar one, out of the cul-de-sac to the main street in the neighborhood, and down a side street for about a block or two. We had just reached the end of the cul-de-sac and turned right down the road, passing my favorite tree of all time. It was a great big weeping willow that desperately needed its branches trimmed, but to me, it was a fort, a club house, an amazing hiding place. Right next to the tree, off the curb, there was a storm drain and most of the time it wasn't something that caused any interest. On this trip however a strange noise was coming from the drain, my mom said over and over again it sounded like a raccoon, but being a curious eight year old I had to get a closer look. I peered into the drain and staring right back at me was a white and gray kitten, one of the smallest I'd ever seen. No need to say eight year old girls plus a kitten involved means lots of squealing and excitement, though my mom was cynical about trying to get the kitten out, and tried to get me to press onward to the park.

However it quickly became my lucky day when our neighbors rode by on their bikes, when we showed them what we found they became just as determined as I was to set the kitten free. With the combined effort of my neighbors and my mom, the storm drain was lifted off and we were able to reach the kitten. The kitten however was skittish and wouldn't come to us, but my neighbors, who had a cat at home, left, and returned a few minutes later with soft cat food.

With the help of that, it took no effort to get the kitten to come to us, and to lift her out. After that we tried for a good hour or so to find someone in the neighborhood who had lost a kitten, but no one had. My mom agreed to let me take it home for the night and the next morning, gave me the okay to keep her.

Reflection

“Reflect on anything from class”. Such a wonderfully vague assignment. Thus far I think that class has gone basically how I expected it to, over analyze everything, move at a pace so fast you hardly realize what’s happening, and watch everyone test the limits of how goofy they can get in class without causing the teacher to throw things. Frankly I can’t wait to start getting into some of the novels we are going to be doing this year, and see what all of the previous ApEng juniors were talking about.