Sunday, February 19, 2012
EA chapter 9
In chapter nine:Writing Arguments the text illustrates the different type of arguments which play crucial roles. First, the writer critiques the 2008 GOP campaign. It made a direct correlation to the visual argument I just made for WP1. On page 252 the writer says "..a term can be defined in many ways-by what it is, by what it isn't, by what it includes, by specific examples, by what authorities (such as Mark Twain) observe, and in this case, by feelings." He is explaining this, in context from the speech Barrack Obama gave in Missouri, when questioned about his patriotism. Include the term The Occupy Movement for which Im doing WP2. When following how a term can be defined, it is a non leader movement which includes the people and specific examples are all over both, Western and Eastern coast cities. It is a good way to approach terms that give you trouble because it creates an all around knowledge sense of the definition. The different kinds of definitions, as discussed in the text, are formal definitions, operational definitions and example definitions. Operational definitions intrigued me immensely. It creates the thought of not only being one solution to problems. There can be many ways to arrive at an desired outcome, so thinking there is only one is pretty ignorant. An example of operational definition is should Barry Bonds be allowed to keep his home run crown even though he is known to have used HGH (human growth hormone),which dramatically increases your muscle size but is not know to increase hand eye coordination. Although Barry Bonds does have the record for hitting the most home runs, he cheated, so therefore should not be granted that title even though he may not have been using during a majority of his home runs. Operational definitions always pertain to very sensitive topics and creates arguments which is why I have a good deal of interest invested in it.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I thought your discussion on understanding arguments before diving into them was right on the money. Many people have beliefs and positions on arguments simply because that is what they think they should feel about the topic, and not because they have thought about every piece of the argument and decided what is logical. I think the most common example of this is in politics. It is very common for teenagers and young adults to take their parents' political stance on a situation simply because they think that what their parents believe is probably right. This is ok when minors are forming their political leanings, but when it comes time to understand political situations and act on your beliefs, it is important that you know what those beliefs actually are.
ReplyDeleteHowever, understanding arguments thoroughly is also important in school. I have to write detailed and specific argumentative papers for one of my classes, and I often spend as much time mapping out the complex argument that I am going to be writing about as I do forming my own argument. Nothing is worse than getting half way through a paper and realizing that the side you are arguing against actually makes more sense to you than the one you’re arguing for. This often happens because the obvious support for an argument isn’t always the most persuasive, and there are many layers and facets that make an argument completely foolproof. Understanding these layers is the key to an effective argument.
Austin,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed rading your blog post about chapter nine, it was very enlightening. Especially, when you talk about Obama’s campaign slump and how he defined patriotism. I think that Obama was very right and justified when he talked about what is patriotism and how should it be defined. Words like patriotism have many types of definitions that people can argue. In this chapter it talks a lot about making claims and definitions. I think that you explain each one very well and make good points. I think that it depends on the experience one has that can give them the credibility to veto a definition and claim that their definition is more fitting. Simple words like nice, kind and cool can all mean a bunch of different things depending on the context in which the words are being used.
Your examples for the different types of definitions are very well thought out. I like the one about Barry Bonds and how he cheated and should not be guarantees the title. This states that there are different circumstances in which someone can lose the credibility or title because of underhanded situations like cheating. Barry Bonds cannot say he has one the title because he did cheat therefore, he did not.
But then there is the definition of cheating and was what he did really cheating if he “did not know about it.”
Altogether I enjoyed reading your blog.