In Everythings an Argument, chapter 2 is about emotional appeals. In this chapter it explains how emotional arguments work. Emotional appeal is when the writing appeals to a persons emotions, such as feeling empathy/sympathy, joy, anger, etc. Emotions also allow the writer to connect with the reader, which always makes the paper more persuasive and enjoyable to the reader. Sometimes people don't enjoy reading facts and statistics, but when you talk about something close to home to them, they are instantly more interested. Emotions also allow you to sustain an argument. Humor is also a great emotion to play, if you know where to draw the line. Some people are easily offended! Arguments may also be from the heart, good for when it is a more serious topic. I think emotional appeals are great to use, especially on sensitive topics, so people can connect with you. I also think it is good to use a variety of emotional appeals, not just concentrate on pure humor or pure sadness.
Chapter 3 is about characters. What I got from this chapter is that you have to use strong voice so your reader can identify who you are as a person and what your standards are from the first paragraph. It's important to use this same voice (character) throughout the entire paper so you don't come off flakey. The reader should know your credibility, authority, and your motives. I think it's sometimes hard to keep a strong voice through an entire paper, but it is neccessary to do so!
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3 comments:
One of the hardest things to predict is how people will react to what we write. I agree with you that we can write something intending to be funny, but some readers may take great offense. When we can't rely on body signals to get a message across, we have to be much more careful.
Kathy
I think you need to tread carefully when using emotional appeals on sensitive issues. The best use of emotional writing, I think, would be to use some carefully considered emotional appeal to get the readers hooked and then go into the fruits of your facts and research.
In your first paragraph you cited the readings as The Bedford Researcher, but it was Everything's an Argument.
It is definitely really important to keep the same voice throughout the entire paper, especially when you are not really a known-writer and you need all the creditability you can get!
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