Unit 7: Lesson 3: Activity 2

Developing an Effective Argument

The Kennedy-Nixon debates not only had a major impact on the election’s outcome, but ushered in a new era in which crafting a public image and taking advantage of media exposure became essential ingredients of a successful political campaign. They also heralded the central role television has continued to play in the democratic process.^[2] They are an example of how creating effective arguments can help create cultural change.

Standards:

11.5.6.6

Determine an author’s point of view or purpose in a text in which the rhetoric is particularly effective, analyzing how style and content contribute to the power, persuasiveness, or beauty of the text.

11.9.3.3

Evaluate a speaker’s point of view, reasoning, intended audience, and use of evidence and rhetoric, assessing the stance, premises, links among ideas, word choice, points of emphasis, and tone used.

Learning Target:

I can summarize an author’s point of view, reasoning, audience, and evidence, analyze how style and content contribute to those aspects, and evaluate the effectiveness of the piece. (5.6.6, 9.3.3)

Essential Question:

How does an author in the modernist and/or postmodernist literary period create an effective text that represents points-of-view and purposes relevant to its cultural landscape and ideas of the American Dream?

Summary:

In this activity, you will learn about constructing an effective argument and then apply those techniques to a famous quote about the American dream.

You Will Need:

Internet access

One 50-minute class period

Activity Instructions:

Step 1:

Read this article about effective argument development^[3].

Step 2:

Choose one of these quotes to respond to:

“America is not so much a nightmare as a non-dream. The American non-dream is precisely a move to wipe the dream out of existence. The dream is a spontaneous happening and therefore dangerous to a control system set up by the non-dreamers.” -William S. Burroughs^[4]

“Now, I say to you today my friends, even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream. I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: -- we hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.” -Martin Luther King, Jr.^[5]

“The road to success is not easy to navigate, but with hard work, drive and passion, it's possible to achieve the American dream.” -Tommy Hilfiger^[6]

“I have spent my life judging the distance between American reality and the American dream.” -Bruce Springsteen^[7]

“The American Dream is still alive out there, and hard work will get you there. You don't necessarily need to have an Ivy League education or to have millions of dollars startup money. It can be done with an idea, hard work and determination.” -Bill Rancic^[8]

“I am the American Dream. I am the epitome of what the American Dream basically said. It said you could come from anywhere and be anything you want in this country. That's exactly what I've done.” -Whoopi Goldberg^[9]

“The American Dream is a phrase we'll have to wrestle with all of our lives. It means a lot of things to different people. I think we're redefining it now.” -Rita Dive^[10]

“In a way, J.F.K. was the high point of the American dream. In order to go to the moon and back, all we did was say we could - and we did.” -Richard Dreyfus^[11]

Step 3:

Using these guidelines established by the Purdue Writing Center^[12], answer these questions:

Which assertion did you choose? Why?
What is your response to this quote? How do you understand its message about the American dream?
List 5 reasons for your opinion about the quote.
Choose one of your reasons and build an effective argument for that reason. Your argument should include a claim, evidence, bridge, foundation, counterclaim, and rebuttal.