The following resources are available for this chapter through the “Resources” panel or by clicking on the “Browse Resources for this Unit” button:
5
Analyzing and Synthesizing Opposing Arguments
170
S hould people with kidney disease be allowed to buy someone else’s extra kidney? Should Americans be required to show a special ID to vote? Should college athletes be paid to play? Should candy-
171
Unlike other St. Martin’s Guide chapters, this one does not focus on a single genre but instead presents four interrelated genres on a single controversial topic:
Summary: A concise recap of one source’s main ideas
Annotated Bibliography: A list of sources with summaries and commentaries exploring how each source could be used
Report: An informative introduction, explaining the topic’s importance and the controversy surrounding it
Analysis of Opposing Arguments: A perceptive examination of the values underlying two (or more) opposing points of view on the topic
These genres give you the opportunity to practice the fundamental thinking and composing processes of analysis and synthesis that are required throughout the college curriculum and in most kinds of workplace writing.
Analysis and synthesis are processes that go hand in hand. When you analyze what people have said and written about a controversial issue, you take it apart, focusing on important elements — for example, why the topic is significant, what makes it controversial, and what the different points of view on the topic are. When you synthesize, you forge connections, showing how different points of view relate to one another, perhaps demonstrating where they agree and disagree or where they fit into a broader framework.
In this chapter, the main purpose of your analysis and synthesis is explanatory: to help your audience understand a controversial topic as well as the different points of view and the values on which they are based. In Chapters 6–10, you enter the debate to argue for
your own point of view on a topic (Chapter 6)
an alternative solution to a problem (Chapter 7)
your evaluation of some aspect of the topic (Chapter 8)
the cause or effect you think is most likely (Chapter 9)
your interpretation of a work of literature (Chapter 10)
The processes you will engage in for the writing projects in this chapter will be good preparation for writing a thoughtful argument, whether for a college course, for the wider community, or for an employer.
Each of the genres in this chapter—
You can use a summary to help you recall sources you’ve read and determine what’s important, help your audience decide if a text is worth reading, or demonstrate to an instructor that you have read and understood a source.
You can combine a summary with additional summaries of other sources on a topic, notes about how each of the sources will be used, and bibliographic citations to create an annotated bibliography.
You can remix the summary, using it, perhaps, in a research report that succinctly describes what various sources have said on a topic, or in an analysis to provide readers with an overview of the topic before delving into what drives a controversy.
172
Because this chapter covers four genres, the Guides to Reading and Writing in this chapter look different from those in other chapters. Whereas other chapters typically include four reading selections illustrating variations on a single genre, the selections in this chapter illustrate the four different genres. Furthermore, whereas the selections in other chapters are written by different authors, all of the examples in this chapter were composed by the same writer, student Maya Gomez. As you read Gomez’s writing, you will see how each genre serves as a part of a multi-
Analyzing Opposing Arguments
To get a sense of what’s involved in analyzing and synthesizing opposing arguments, get together with two or three students to explore how people typically argue about a topic.
Part 1. As a group, choose a controversial issue with which you are all familiar, such as whether there should be a community service requirement for graduation, whether college athletes should be paid, or whether a college education, like kindergarten through twelfth grade, should be free to everyone who qualifies.
Then make a list of several pro and con arguments people use to support their opposing views of the issue you’ve chosen. For example, a common argument is that student athletes should be paid because colleges gain financially from their hard work and expertise. A con argument against paying student athletes is that colleges already pay them indirectly through expensive coaching programs. (You do not need to have an opinion on this issue yourself; you simply need to recall or guess what others have said or would say.)
Part 2. Discuss what you learned about analyzing and synthesizing opposing arguments:
Was it easier to think of the pro or the con arguments? How did considering who benefits or whose interests are being served help you think of the opposing arguments?
Look back at the opposing arguments and try to identify the values driving them. How did you go about identifying an argument’s underlying values?