Revision to Paper

Argument in the Everyday Life

To understand how to effectively present an argument in the form of a written language. I asked myself just how does arguments apply to our everyday life? Does it have any bearing to the argument when am I trying to write what I mean? To understand what an argument is in a piece of writing and how it can convey to its audience effectively, my research lead me to the studying  of Rhetoric — which is the study of persuasion in order to effectively speak or write— Making a point is one thing, but making a point that will evoke a response or an emotion is a skill that some may lack. Boyd explains “that choosing how to express your meaning is every bit as important as the message itself.” (2011, 87) Writing is no different, expressing the meaning in an argument is the ability to convey that message to its readers. What is the purpose of the message? How do you want the readers to react once the message has been reached? To better understand Rhetoric, let’s look at how it may tie into our every day events. My long time friend Bombe Lee, a captain of the United States Army, whom I haven’t spoken with since 2010 when he was deployed to Afghanistan as a Platoon Leader and Convoy Commander for 2nd Platoon of the 109th Quartermaster Company had contacted me as he visited back home. I knew that this was an opportunity to not only catch up with him about his life experience in the past 5 years, but to also to explore his writing and how it is being used for in his current position as a captain to make his arguments.

An argument begins when there is a establishing statement, it describes the who, what, where, when, and how. During my conversation with Bombe, I found out that he is currently applying for the MA program at John Hopkins University to further his knowledge and earn the title from the prestige college. In Bombe’s Statement of Purpose, he wrote to John Hopkins University about why he was interested in earning a MA in communication and how it will help advance his career in the army. In the document, Bombe wrote about his professional aspirations in the Army, that his goal is to become an Army Foreign Area Officer (FAO). This will allow him to advance his career overseas as a defense attache or as a political military planner for service headquarters, Joint Staff, or in other agencies in the Department of Defense in various locations around the globe. He mentions in the paper that the position is very limited and only a few will be selected. The Statement Bombe wrote establishes the who, what, and where. By knowing his audience, Bombe was able to focus his letter in an argument to persuade the university in selecting his application for the MA program. Lunsford stated “ In many situations, writers want not only to convince audiences but to move them to action…” (2012, 9) In this case, Bombe hopes that the university will put into action by admitting him into the MA program for communication. 

An argument must make an appeal to its audience, to provoke an emotion reaction, or simply just to evoke a response, or even just a thought. To appeal to his audience, Bombe talks about his experience in 2010 during his deployment to Afghanistan. It was an emotional moment for Bombe as he remembers on multiple occasions when he and his troops were engaged in direct enemy contacts which included complex attacks, ambushes, and improvised explosive device (IED) attacks, which resulted in over 24 combat action badges being awarded to him and the soldiers involved. Then he goes on to note that his experience was a frightening but an extremely rewarding one. The story resonates an emotional appeal, or pathos, to his audience. Lunsford agreed, “[by generating] emotions, the writer hopes will lead the audience to accept a claim.” he continues that it is important to make “an emotional appeal that can create a bond between writer and readers.” (2012, 27) The bond was created when Bombe wrote about his experience in Afghanistan, even though the subject matter is non-related, it clearly spoke volumes about Bombe as a person and that a respect is earned from his peers based on his actions. If I were to enter a photo contest right now about an image I created, will I be able to appeal to my audiences in writing a short piece about my work? Will the words I wrote have an emotional impact and connect to my audiences? There are many ways in which Bombe could appeal to his audience as to why he would be the perfect candidate for the MA program at John Hopkins University, the meaning of Rhetoric is define best from Burton “how one says something conveys meaning as much as what one says.” (Silva Rhetoric, rhetoric.byu.edu) I asked Bombe in his writings, how he thought about his approach to appeal to his audience, the simple answer was that he just wrote about his story, about how someone will get to know him better from reading about his experiences.

The use of Rhetoric is all around us, even in our everyday job. As a Captain, Bombe also runs the Logistics Division of the Army. As such, he is responsible for writing policies that describes the division that he runs. By examining his writings, the use of Rhetoric is clear as he lay out the course and a sense of expectations for the unit in his group. Bombe states “It is very important that I communicate information to my group” it is the basis of “mean what we say” and writing a policy is no differ. How does this help Bombe’s position? Logistics is important function of the Army. How does one deliver a tank to a base camp? Simply, how does something gets sent from one place to another and the time it takes to do so? what are the financial impact of sending it now than later but with better quality? These are just a few concerns that a logistics officer will encounter in an everyday situation. Reports are written to convince to superiors that certain methods might be more logical than others. Facts need to presented along with details of every possible solution that can be used for the assignment at hand. As such the use of Rhetoric to convey those meanings are essential to ensure the job gets done in the most effective way possible. Bombe recalls a situation where he needed to deliver supplies to the troops at another camp location. As he drafted up the proposed logistic information to the higher authorities, he made sure that he convey all of the possible routes, delivery times, cost, as well as safety. Through the facts he gathered, he made an argument with his commanding officer that even though the quickest route will be ideal, the safety of transportation is more important and the safest route is to wait it out until the days that are safest for travels. Bombe’s use of Rhetoric convinced his superiors that a delay in delivery time can ensure the safety of the troops. 

As I conclude my paper I’ve reached a better understanding with the use of Rhetoric in our arguments, that we practice it and it is all around us each and every day. Some times we don’t see the meaning behind it unless we stop for a second to think about what we wrote. I definitely see the importance of Rhetoric in my career with photography as I think it will allow me to better convey to my clients of the job at hand, using the most effective and logical way to create an image that fit the client’s needs.