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See Techniques of Persuasion: turn your short answers into prose.
For example:
Exercise 19: Doing their best (p. 30) Typical answers and then rework the paragraph
1. How does Mr Jay Fadal present his story and what is its purpose?
Mr Jay Fadal presents his view from an eyewitness perspective to give a first-hand account of the police shooting.
He seeks to defend the police’s actions and describes the situation as very tense and chaotic. The public was worried and “terrified” because the young boy was “flashing” knives. He supports the police’s version that the boy failed to follow “warnings”.
2. What does Mr Jay Fadal’s story prove?
Mr Jay Fadal’s story proves that it was a stressful situation and no one knew if Jim had guns. Had he been armed the situation could have spiralled out of control and he could have caused a lot of damage.
3. What emotions does Mr Jay Fadal seek to arouse and how do they support his argument?
Mr Jay Fadal seeks to instil a sense of fear in members of the public by comparing the incident to the “Virginia Tech Massacre” to show how serious it was. Therefore, the police acted correctly and decisively. He also seeks to reassure members of the public about safety issues.
Prose passage (p. 30)
Mr Fadal relies on personal experience to (purpose) . His tone is (give examples) when he states that they “acted according to the rules”. Mr Fadal justifies/defends the police’s actions by characterising Mr Cassidy as (descriptions) . The fact that he was “acting in chaotic manner” reinforces the fact that (purpose) . (Technique, p. 36) He compares this incident with (give example) to (purpose) . The comparison reinforces the fact that such (purpose) . The question, “what if he had a gun?” also highlights the fact that (specific purpose) . As a means of reassuring members of the public, Mr Fadal appeals to (give examples – p.51 – and state their purpose) . Finally, Mr Fadal attacks “armchair critics”; this phrase carries negative connotations and implies that (specific purpose) . (p. 30)
See Further Examples of Exercise 28: Killer dog on the loose
Exercise 28: p. 39; On the Attack: “Killer dog on loose!”
Here are your typical answers to the questions on “methods of attack”: Don’t forget to revise the vocabulary associated with “on the attack”.
1. Questions his moral standards: Jay criticises owners because they are irresponsible and do not provide sufficient care or heed the government’s strict regulations. He asks rhetorically, “How does a man’s pit bull terrier end up in the front room of the house down the road?”
2. Questions a person’s motives: Jay also discredits the owners by implying that the owners think that the dogs will give them a feeling of power. “They represent a symbol of power.”
3. The author questions the government’s motives and intelligence: Jay also attacks the government’s rules and regulations, which he believes are inadequate because there are too many attacks and the fines of $4,500 are inadequate. “Evidently the government is not doing enough.”
Now write a paragraph outlining the author’s views, tone, techniques, words and their impact. Use this paragraph as a guide: (p. 39)
Paragraph sample: (Who, what, how and why: views/ tone/ techniques and purpose)
Mr Samson emphatically contends that (viewpoint) . (Technique) He uses anecdotal evidence relating to the death of Sammie Hol to (purpose) . Jay depicts the owners as (description) ; their (adjective) actions left the community “at the mercy of an unruly dog”. These comments are designed to (purpose) . (Technique) He asks rhetorically, “How does a man’s pit bull terrier end up in the front room of the house down the road?” in order to draw attention to the owner’s lack of care. (Technique/attack) Jay further discredits the owners by implying that (view and purpose) . “They (the dogs) represent a symbol of power.” Again, readers are likely to feel (impact: be specific) (refer to the appeal to safety: “toying with our safety”). Finally, Jay also discredits the government’s rules and regulations, which he believes are (view and purpose). (p. 39)
Exercise 30, p. 41
Extension exercise for Mr Treeton: What evidence does the author rely on? How does it link to the author’s views? What point does it prove? What is its impact?
Techniques and purpose:
- Appeal to moral values: Mr Treeton characterises the parents as selfish and/or ignorant in order to shame them.
- Appeal to the common good and public safety/ duty of care and responsibility: Parents should be more responsible in the home. The government should set appropriate standards.
- Mr Treeton makes an analogy with other rules and regulations relating to domestic affairs to show that there is a precedence. This anticipates Ms Fit’s attack (and seeks to overturn the preconceived notion) that the government should not interfere in the home.
- He uses a real-life example referring to Sabina and her asthmatic condition to prove that parents are ignorant of the damage they are causing to their children.
- His argument also relies on statistics to show that there are a lot of children who are suffering unnecessarily from passive smoke. This enhances the author’s authority as well as the degree of trust among his target audience –parents who smoke.
- Repetition (parallel rhetorical questions): “Don’t they read… Don’t they see…?” to question their degree of ignorance and selfishness.
Sample paragraph:
View and topic sentence: Mr Treeton maintains that parents should not smoke in the home because they are jeopardising / compromising their family’s health. The author refers to the anecdotal evidence regarding two year old Sabina’s ill-health to prove that controls are needed to stop parents smoking in the home. This is because smoking has a detrimental effect on children’s health and many are unaware of the dangers.
Mr Treeton also refers to the expert opinion of Professor Simon Chapman, who is a trustworthy and credible source. He believes that we need greater regulations in the home in order to protect the vulnerable children. He justifies the regulations by stating that there are also other building regulations that protect people’s lives and ensure safety in the home.
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- Return to Red Workbook Tasks: an overview
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