Blog 2 Texts/EHE Summary for P1

Part one:

As a college student in the 21^st century there seems to be a constant stream of information bombarding and pleading for our attention.  Being able to summarize and understand the general idea of a text and critically analyze this information will help keep the influx of information in order.  Being able to discern what is credible and valuable information and what is biased and manipulative information is becoming a necessary skill to be able to form valuable and accurate opinions on topics.  Texts can be traditional forms of writing such as articles or books or they can come in less traditional forms such as tweets or billboards.  It is important to realize that all forms of text are trying to communicate a message and are often trying to persuade.  Being able to summarize the message that a text is attempting to communicate will help people become more aware of what these texts are trying to persuade them of. 

http://www.jta.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Billboard.jpg

This billboard exemplifies how texts come in various forms.  The hard part about these very short texts is that they convey a strong message without much fact.  The message behind this billboard may be true or it may be untrue.  It is the responsibility of the reader to research the facts behind this statement before coming up with a strong opinion.

Another example of this can be seen in the article “Senate Legislation Targets Aggressive Recruiting of Veterans by For-Profit Colleges” by Chris Kirkham.  This is a more traditional text form but it is crucial to critically analyze this text and understand how the message is being communicated.  A quick glance at the text and it is clear that Kirkham uses a lot of statistics and facts.  However upon closer examination of the text it is clear that the statistics that Kirkham chooses to use statistics clearly in his favor.  While this is not bad, one must remember that there are statistics for the other side of the argument and the opposing statistics should be contemplated before creating a personal opinion on the topic. 

Being able critically analyze pathos within an article allows the reader to decide if using the pathos in this situation is appropriate.  For example Kirkham’s line “Unfortunately, I think military folks at this point are seen like a dollar sign wearing a uniform for many recruiters in a for-profit model” tends to evoke emotion in people as it creates a scenario that victimizes veterans (183).  However this quote fails to mention why it is bad that veterans are seen as dollar signs or an opportunity to make money.  A business will inherently view their customers as a source of money.  I am not arguing for or against for-profit colleges but am simply pointing out that this seems like an inappropriate and slightly manipulative form of pathos.  Logically analyzing a text will help readers to pick out the important details of the text.  This can help them create a summary, which is a powerful tool to figure out the true meaning behind a text.

Part two:

Seth Davis uses his article “Should College Athletes be Paid? Why They Already Are” as a text to persuade his readers that college athletes are compensated for their efforts and do not need more monetary compensation.  This text original was published in “Sports Illustrated” in April 2013.  This shows how the audience that Davis was writing for are likely sports fans and athletes.  This article was written in a time where some schools make tremendous amounts of money off of their athletic programs, especially football and basketball.  The opposing arguments against Davis are often centered on the fact that athletes generate lots of revenue for their schools and therefore deserve compensation. 

However Davis provides a solid argument and rebuttals for many of the opposing arguments.  His success is due to the fact that he successfully uses logos, ethos and pathos in his writing.   He uses lots of different approaches for his arguments, but the main idea behind his argument can be broken down into several pieces.  He first gives examples of how students are compensated for their efforts through scholarships, food, rent money and the overall experience of playing college sports.  He then gives the example that only 14 out of 120 programs in the Football Bowl Subdivision are profitable to highlight fact that most schools actually lose money from their athletic programs.  His final major point of attack is that if college athletes want to make money they can just join a professional league.  In other words no one is forcing them to be a college athlete and they are free to leave the team if they truly feel like they are being taken advantage of.  Davis is able to go into depth with each of these arguments to help convince his readers that what he is saying is backed up by facts and logic.  This article was well written and while it is not infallible it creates a convincing argument.