Chapter 13

Chapter 13 was about style in arguments.  Arguments can come in many styles and the type of vocabulary one uses can help define its style.  For instance, the book gives an example of a CEO who must defines his argument by using a serious formal tone of voice and compares this argument and style to a student’s memorable language argument used to depict a stereotype.  These examples show how a different style or vocabulary is needed for different types of argument.  Other factors also play in defining an argument such as punctuation, figurative language, and tropes.  The book uses Clint Eastwood as a source of credibility that punctuation is key in argument by quoting, “You can show a lot with a look… It’s punctuation.”  It uses the semicolon as an example of how arguments can be read.  The semicolon is a strong “pause” than the comma but is a weaker pause than the period.  Figurative language can help define an argument by “drawing parallels between an unknown and a known.” (p. 426) Examples given are Microsoft word processing system made understandable by comparing it to an office and DNA being compared to a helix or zipper.  Tropes such as metaphors and similes can also aid an argument by comparing two things and clarifying arguments.

            A particular section that was interesting in the chapter was sentence structure.  I found this part interesting because sentence structure is probably the hardest to “accomplish” in aiding one’s use in developing a strong argument.  I also feel it is the strongest in ways to develop an argument.  Though reason is needed to back up an argument, sentence structure can make certain parts of your argument stand out or hide certain parts within it.  For instance, in many speeches, sentence structure is used make particular phrases stand out and be memorable in developing an argument such as one of John F. Kennedy’s speech, “Ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country.”  The writing device he uses here is known as antimetabole.  This is sort of sentence structure.  It is the repetition of words in successive clauses but in transposed grammatical order.  This style of sentence structure greatly helped his the argument and inspired patriotism.  I feel sentence structure is one of the device to truly master in an argument.  I know I am horrible at sentence structure and argument.  Though I may try to make parts of my argument stand out, I mainly just write simple sentences or awkward confusing sentences to portray my thoughts.