I chose to take a look at chapter thirteen in the text book for this blog post on this wonderful Wednesday morning. The title of this chapter is style in arguments. So, pretty much this chapter explains the style and presentation of arguments. This chapter gives the reader an idea of what kind of word choice and vocabulary to use in an argument as well as how to use different special effects to enhance the argument. This chapter also gives the reader an idea of how to effectively use different punctuation marks in order to make an effective argument.
After reading this chapter, I was really interested in the section talking about special effects. Specifically, I was interested in this section when it talked about metaphors and similes. Everyone remembers their middle school and high school English teachers nagging about metaphors and similes and how important they are to literature. If you were like me, you didn't pay much attention to this. I mean isn't it enough to just know the difference between the two? Well, that is what I thought before I read this section. It is not only important to know the difference between the two but to also know how to use them in an argument. An example from the book of a metaphor is when it said "the product is like a weedwhacker for the web". This was being used to argue a new software that would filter advertisements from your computer. This metaphor gives the reader a better visual of what the author is arguing. An example from the book of a simile is when it mentioned Eminems's song, "Like Toy Soldiers". This is comparing human beings to toy soldiers. Both metaphors and similes allow the reader to view a comparison of the argument. From this, the reader can relate more to the topic of the argument due to the use of metaphors and similes. This is useful information to know because it can strengthen any argument you write about.
Monday, March 5, 2012
Monday, February 20, 2012
Chapter Seven
Chapter seven in everything's an argument, the book talks about structuring arguments. The chapter describes all the different types of arguments like classical oration, Rogerian arguments, and Toulmin arguments. It also talks about the different elements in an argument like the evidence and backing the evidence up to make an argument valid.
The section of this chapter that caught my eye was the section titled offering evidence: backing. In this section, the book states that the meat of any type of argument comes from the evidence and how one backs that evidence up. Unlike the claims and warrants, which are the skeleton of an essay, the evidence pushes the reader whether to believe or not believe the argument. Though the evidence is important, for it to be effective, it must follow the claims of the essay. For example, if you claim that eating raisins will boost ones health, you must have evidence to back it up. To back that claim up, you would put a personal or general statement that supports the claim like saying raisins help me have more energy. From there, you might list the nutritional facts about raisins or talk about clinical studies involving raisins. This would give the reader a clear and organized understanding of what the author is arguing. An example of a bad argument would be if an author used backing and evidence that didnt match his claims. For example, if an essay claims that Arizona State University is the best university it would be logical that the backing and evidence would support this claim. But if the author uses evidence that does not pertain to the claim, his or her argument will not be taken seriously.
This section is relevant to what I am learning now because of our next writing project. This section is helping me understand that arguments have to be strong and solidified in order to gain any ground. This will help me find a definition and base many arguments around it.
The section of this chapter that caught my eye was the section titled offering evidence: backing. In this section, the book states that the meat of any type of argument comes from the evidence and how one backs that evidence up. Unlike the claims and warrants, which are the skeleton of an essay, the evidence pushes the reader whether to believe or not believe the argument. Though the evidence is important, for it to be effective, it must follow the claims of the essay. For example, if you claim that eating raisins will boost ones health, you must have evidence to back it up. To back that claim up, you would put a personal or general statement that supports the claim like saying raisins help me have more energy. From there, you might list the nutritional facts about raisins or talk about clinical studies involving raisins. This would give the reader a clear and organized understanding of what the author is arguing. An example of a bad argument would be if an author used backing and evidence that didnt match his claims. For example, if an essay claims that Arizona State University is the best university it would be logical that the backing and evidence would support this claim. But if the author uses evidence that does not pertain to the claim, his or her argument will not be taken seriously.
This section is relevant to what I am learning now because of our next writing project. This section is helping me understand that arguments have to be strong and solidified in order to gain any ground. This will help me find a definition and base many arguments around it.
Monday, January 30, 2012
Chapter Two
Chapter two is about arguments based on pathos. Pathos is just a fancy word for emotions. This chapter explains how pathos in ads works and why it is so effective in advertising. One thing that stood out in my mind in this chapter was the section on using emotions to sustain an argument. If you think about it, some type of emotion is evoked in almost every advertisement we see today. The emotions that come from ads vary from humor to frustration to sympathy. What adds power and emotion to most ads and arguments is the use of images, real or fake. For example, I could argue that Miami Beach is the best spring break spot in the country. My argument wont attract many people because its plain and boring, but if I ad an image things might change.
Now that I have this image of five very attractive women on the beach, my argument holds more power and will attract more people. People might believe me when I say Miami Beach is the best spring break spot in the country. Not all advertisements always use good and happy emotions like this one. Often, some of the most effective ads use images that create a sense of grief and sadness and even anger. If you think back, what advertisements do you remember the most. In my case, I remember ads that make me laugh and ads that display a message that makes me want to cry. The ads that make you feel sad often make you agree with what the ad is arguing and can sometimes persuade the viewer to do something about it. One of the famous examples of this is the commercials of poor and starving third world children who can be saved by just donating ten cents. During the commercial a slow sobering song is played while a narrator with a strong low voice talks about the children in the commercial and how they can be saved. These commercials get me very time and make me want to do something about the problem. This shows how powerful emotions can be in an advertisement. Here is a link to a commercial that I just described.
Friday, January 27, 2012
Visual Arguments
Chapter fourteen in our text book is about the use and power of visual arguments. The use of images to convey an idea or argument is pretty amazing. Most visual adds and arguments have certain elements such as an appeal to emotion or character to target a certain audience. In other words, the creator of the image is trying to get a particular group to not only listen to their message but remember it and take a stand on the issue. A section in this chapter that really caught my eye was the section about emotional power of images and the appeal to emotion in visual arguments. The emotions someone feels after seeing a photo or video often relate to how they remember that ad. In my own experience, I remember images that are funny and at the same time I remember images that evoke a sad feeling. For example, I've came across an ad for pro life and it showed a picture of fetus with chemical burns all over it and a rose right next to it. The only words on the ad were "A baby died". This image made my stomach turn but because of that I'll always remember this argument and have started to take a position on this subject. Another example of a visual argument that had emotional power was this image below.
You might say this image doesn't have any emotional power because it is a cartoon but it has a lot of emotional power. I find this image extremely hilarious. The character in the image is a parody of Joe Camel. Joe Camel was a popular image for the Camel cigarette company and now he is Joe Chemo after smoking all those cigarettes. This image portrays a very serious message through use of humor which is why many will remember this argument. After thinking about this writing project and looking at several visual arguments, I am leaning on using an anti-smoking ad as my visual argument. Here are a few that I might use for my project.
You might say this image doesn't have any emotional power because it is a cartoon but it has a lot of emotional power. I find this image extremely hilarious. The character in the image is a parody of Joe Camel. Joe Camel was a popular image for the Camel cigarette company and now he is Joe Chemo after smoking all those cigarettes. This image portrays a very serious message through use of humor which is why many will remember this argument. After thinking about this writing project and looking at several visual arguments, I am leaning on using an anti-smoking ad as my visual argument. Here are a few that I might use for my project.
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
About me
Well my name is Andrew Villareal. I am a freshman here at ASU and I am from Albuquerque, New Mexico. I have a little brother who is 13 years old and a little sister who is 16 years old. They are both quite annoying but I still love them and miss them both. I am the first of anyone in my family to leave the great state of New Mexico for college. This adds a little more pressure on me to succeed here at ASU but I have a lot of support from everyone back home. I am determined to obtain a degree in mechanical engineering and hopefully work for the Department of Defense someday. In the meantime, I am really enjoying my time here at ASU so far. My favorite sports to watch are baseball and football. Even though I enjoy sports in general, baseball is my true love and passion. My favorite teams are the Texas Rangers in Baseball and the Pittsburgh Steelers in football. My favorite food would have to be green chile enchiladas. My grandma makes the best in the state of New Mexico. My favorite movie of all time is Top Gun. I can watch this movie hundreds of times and it will never get old. My favorite musical artists are Wale and Kid Cudi. Their music is so chill that I can listen to them at any time no matter the mood I am in. Besides playing and watching sports, I really enjoy hanging out with friends. I miss all of my friends from back home and wish they could be here making more memories with me but instead I have made a lot of new friends here and a lot of new memories. On a lighter and final note, I am not to sure if I did this blog right since I've never done this blog thing before.
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