Overview
The ability to critically and objectively analyze and evaluate arguments is an important part of the rhetorical process. Throughout the semester we've been learning different tools to make our own arguments more effective, but we've also applied those tools to other examples of rhetoric in order to examine their strengths and weaknesses. For this extra credit assignment you will be doing that again. Please watch the following sample debate - which has been broken into two parts - featuring two students from our award-winning speech and debate team. Be sure to take notes while watching. The topic of their debate is on the legalization of sex work.
After you've finished watching the debate, write a two page paper analyzing what you saw. You'll want to do 3 things:
1. Summarize the key arguments both debaters made.
2. Evaluate those arguments using the theories and concepts you've learned in class.
3. Tell me who you think won the debate and why.
This assignment will be worth 10 points of extra credit.
down also is the subject we learned in class
1/14: Intro to Class / Rhetoric
1/16: The Rhetorical Situation
1/21:
1/23: The Audience Explored
1/28: The Toulmin Model
1/30: The Office / Different Types of Rhetoric
Homework: Position Paper 1
2/4: Logos
2/6: Ethos
Homework: Position Paper 2
2/11: Pathos
2/13: Enthymeme / Lifeboat Exercise
Homework: Position Paper 3
2/18: No School
2/20: Reasoning and Fallacies
Homework: Position Paper 4
2/25: Fallacies (continued)
2/27: Rhetorical Analysis Propaganda
3/4: Communication Ethics, Part 1
3/6: Communication Ethics, Part 2
3/11: Midterm Review
3:13: Midterm
3/18: Spring Break
3/20: Spring Break
3/25: The Toulmin Pyramid
3/27: Intro to Debate
4/1: Refutation
4/3: Assign Debate Topics