We Search Project (aka, Search and Research)

Arrg! I need to do more research! This is really stressing me out!! So many of my sources contradict each other, but none of them are specific enough to be sure which is clearly right. If I had a week without any homework from my classes that would be great.

Ow...Brain Exploding

Wow. That was a lot to take in. “Why Write” is just crammed full of information (including the list of under-appreciated majors. I actually know a guy in one of those). I liked the Monte Python. The persuasive essays were interesting. The analogy almost made me wish I had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. I don't know. It was really cool. Logical fallacies are always fun to point out (unless, of course they happen to be yours). I liked the 5 types of arguments, and it was nice to get a review on kairos (that is a funky word). I must admit, though, what exactly would happen if a bunch of people protested just for the sake of protesting? Would they call it the “protesting club”, the “club of activists without any real cause”, or the Democratic Party (sorry, couldn't resist)? 

Anyway, I think that, beyond the review, the main things I learned were the 5 types of arguments and the names of the logical fallacies. Definitions try to prove that the item in question is also another item that is proven to be either bad or good (for example, drugs are poison, and since poison is bad, you shouldn't use drugs). Cause/Consequence tries to prove that the action in question causes something that is known to be either good or bad (for example, reading leads to literacy, which helps you in life. Therefore, we should encourage reading). Analogy/Resemblance compares the item or action in question to a similar item or action that is obviously good or bad (for example, cheating is like lying, and since lying is generally considered bad behavior, cheating must be bad). Evaluation tries to say that the item in question is a good or bad ______ (whatever it is that it is supposed to be) (for example, completely destroying our nuclear arsenal is not a good plan, because it allows us to be blackmailed by any country that has nukes without any chance at retaliation). Lastly, a Proposal is an argument that tries to say that we should or should not do something, for whatever reason (for example, we should serve others, because it helps us to meet new people and we will be likely to get help when we need it if more people are trying to help). Anyway, I hope that helped. Personally, I'm going to go lie down and wiat for my head to stop exploding.

Drafted, Drafty, and Daft

I liked that I wrote three drafts. That allowed me to improve significantly from my rather dismal first draft. It was also good because I was able to try and correct the mistakes in the first draft, and then go to the writing center and check my corrections/find more mistakes.

The Righting Process

While writing a paper is relatively easy, writing a good paper is rather difficult. I'm trying to remove the junk, write and rewrite my essay until it sounds good. Most of it's alright, but it just has a awkwardness to it that is not as good as it should be.

A Letter from A to Z

Martin Luther King does an excellent job of utilizing ethos, pathos, and logos to support his arguments in his “Letter from Birmingham Jail”. From the onset, he establishes his credibility (ethos) by laying out his credentials as the president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.

Next he begins his argument by logically (logos) answering the unspoken question of the Clergy whom he is addressing. Not only does Dr. King assert that he has a right to be there because he was invited, but he also makes the assertion that the country has become so interconnected that no American can be called an outsider in America. 

Continuing his appeal to logos, Dr. King tells the story of how he and the other African American leaders had attempted to use all other means at their disposal to affect positive change with negligible results. As Dr. King argues quite logically, they had no other options except to either protest through nonviolent means or let the injustice continue. And the latter, as he points out quite forcefully, is an option they cannot accept. 

Dr. King steps away from abstract logic to attack emotionally with both barrels. With such phrases as “when you have seen vicious mobs lynch your mothers and fathers and drown your sister and brothers at whim” and “when you have seen hate-filled policemen curse, kick and even kill your black brothers and sisters”, Dr. King dramatizes the plight of those he is fighting for. How can you deny the awfulness of the horribly true scene he is painting?

While utilizing pathos and logos to build and strengthen his argument, Dr. King continues to lay the groundwork which any argument inevitably rests on: the credibility of its author. By backing up his arguments with quotes from famous historical figures, Dr. King shows that his ideas are not as extreme as they sound. For instance, when Dr. King proposes that some laws are just and others unjust and that while the just ones should be obeyed the unjust ones should be intentionally broken, he quotes St. Augustine as saying “an unjust law is not law at all”. The fact that a prominent historical religious figure supports his idea makes the concept of blatantly breaking unjust laws sound not quite as extreme as it would if he was the only one suggesting it.

Back on the argument side, Dr. King makes a strong logical and emotional argument that moderates should support him as a fellow moderate who is standing in the middle between unending injustice and a national bloodbath. 

Later, when criticizing the inaction and even hostility of the church, Dr. King points out that he loves the church and is a minister himself, which gives him a certain amount of clout where the church is concerned. He isn't just some random person who hates religion; the very fact that he believes in the church is the reason he is so disappointed in it.

When responding to the claims that the policemen should be thanked for honorably and peacefully ending the demonstrations, Dr. King creates an emotional effect by comparing the cruelty of the policemen with the quite heroism of the demonstrators. By juxtaposing phrases such as “watch (the police) punch and curse old Negro women and young Negro girls” and “commended the Negro sit-inners and demonstrators of Birmingham for their sublime courage, their willingness to suffer and their amazing discipline in the midst of great provocation”, Dr. King points out who the real heroes and villains are. Just a hint: the heroes aren't the policemen.

In a final attempt to make his point and increase his credibility, Dr. King closes his letter with the words, “yours for the cause of peace and brotherhood, Martin Luther King Jr.”. One last time, he brings up the heart of what he is trying to accomplish and connects his name to such noble aspirations as peace and brotherhood. Thus ends a letter that seems to cover his arguments, his opponent's arguments, and the arguments of the guy down the street from A to Z.