Reasoning by Criteria

When studying the information in the link provided, I had the most trouble understanding reasoning by criteria. It took me longer to comprehend the concept mainly because of the terminology used. After researching it in other sources, it became easier to understand. To use this kind of reasoning, criteria by which you can associate a valid argument with a premise must be established. After researching this topic, it was easier to grasp the concept by having more examples to look at. Also, I learned that it using this reasoning in an argument may make an argument seem stronger. An example I came up with is when a basketball player is struggling with his jump shot. A coach would use reasoning by criteria by telling his player, "You're just not hitting those jumpers today. You should try to take some easier shots and get yourself in a rhythm and build your confidence." Rather than crucially criticizing that player, he used his reasoning to constructively criticize.

Reasoning

Examples:
1). Reasoning by Analogy - My brother doesn't get good grades, yet my parents bought him a car. I have great grades so I should get a car; maybe even a better one.
2). Sign Reasoning - It's been a month since he sprained his ankle during a game. He hasn't played since so it must still be bothering him.
3). Causal Reasoning - If she doesn't get any sleep, she'll be really cranky.
4). Reasoning by Criteria - My shoes make my feet hurt. I should probably buy new ones.
5). Reasoning by Example - I once took her class and found it pretty difficult at first. But once I stayed after class and asked her in depth questions, it became much easier. If you take her class, you should do the same.
6). Inductive - I didn't study at all for the last exam and got a bad grade. This time, I'll put time in to study so I can get a better grade.
7). Deductive - If he studies, he will pass the test. He studied thoroughly, so he will the test.

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 I'm sure we've all seen these Uncle Sam ads. These ads are an appeal to fear because of the intimidating figure essentially forcing people to enlist in the army. I don't think it's a good argument since all it does is make a person feel guilty. I understand that this country is worth fighting for, but we shouldn't have to feel like we are forced to fight. I won't argue against the effectiveness of this ad, but in hindsight, it probably wasn't the most appealing form of advertisement.

Appeal to Emotion

An appeal in emotion in an argument is a premise that suggests that one must believe or do something because he or she feels that way. An example of this is when television ads show pictures of needy children and animals. Those pictures are used to make people feel sympathy towards them and cause them to feel like they must do something to help. This was an example of appeal to pity which is the one that strikes me the most. It's the appeal that hits me most mainly because I'm the type of person that can sometimes care too much about someone or something. I realize that there are those who are less fortunate then most, so I help as much as I can. Seeing people or animals that are in need bring out this side of me that forces me to do something.

The Usefulness of the Second Assignment

Like the first assignment, this last essay has further improved my critical thinking and communication skills, as well as how to work better in a team environment. It was easier to talk to and communicate with my group mates the second time around, especially since we worked so well before.
While doing my part of the assignment, I noticed that the organization that we chose had their own claims and arguments embedded into their advertisements and messages. At first, I didn't think it would be easy to spot these claims and arguments. But after re-reading parts of the text and applying those concepts towards the organizations messages, it became easier to point out those claims that the organization uses to persuade people into supporting them. I would not necessarily call this a bad or deceptive behavior by the organization, but rather a clever and useful strategy.

General Claims and Generalities

General Claims
According to Epstein, a general claim is one "that asserts something in a general way about all or part of a collection." (Epstein, 394). Some of these claims may seem valid, but they cannot be assumed as strong or valid arguments mainly depending on the wording of the argument. For example, "All children like to play with toys. Allen likes to play with toys. Therefore, Allen is a child." The reason this is not true is because Allen may not be a child. Epstein explained how and when to use "all", "some", "no" and "only" in an argument. When using "all" in an argument, it means every single possibility, no exceptions, or every single possibility and there is at least one. "Some" is meant as "at least one" and sometimes "at least one, but not all."

Generalities
There are two kinds of generalities: precise and vague. Precise generalities involve a more black and white approach in the argument. An example of this "Less than 5% of the students in a chemistry class actually understand the material. Mary is in that chemistry class. So she does not understand the material. On the other hand, vague generalities use generic terms, such as most, many, and almost all.

Conditionals

Conditionals involve conclusions that depend on whether or not the premise(s) occur. Like counter-arguments, there are direct and indirect ways of reasoning. According to Epstein, the direct way states that if event A happens then event B will happen; event A happened, so event B will happen. For example, if Billy calls, he will meet Tim at the mall; Billy called, so he and Tim met up at the mall.

The indirect ways of reasoning with conditionals are quite opposite of the direct ways. Similar to the the direct way, if event A happens then event B will happen. However, here is where they differ. If event B does not occur, then event A did not occur prior to that. Using the same example as before let's say Billy and Tim did not meet at the mall. Therefore, Billy must not have called.