Argumentative Analysis Essay Samples

Recently, the Washington Post and the British Broadcasting Corporation published the identity of a cockney-accented man who has appeared in numerous videos by the Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria (ISIS) executing prisoners. The man identified as Mohammed Emwazi appeared in videos beheading western journalists and aid workers captured in Syria. It has since been revealed that the 26-year-old was born in Kuwait but had lived the most of his adult life in the United Kingdom. In this news story, a charity called CAGE that had been in contact with, and assisted Emwazi, before he joined ISIS, argued that Mohammad was a model kid and kind but was radicalized by the British law enforcement agencies. According to a research director at CAGE that was personally acquainted with Mohammad, the harassment meted out to him alienated and drove him into the arms of Islamic extremism.
The evidence given to support this assertion include the fact that Mohammad was multiply profiled, arrested and subjected to aggressive interrogations. He was initially arrested in 2009 after he travelled to Tanzania on what he claims was a safari. He was detained on suspicion of attempting to join the Al-Shabaab militants in Somalia. He was then deported to Amsterdam where he claims he was aggressively interrogated by MI5 operatives. His fiancée was also interrogated by the intelligence authorities. Fed up of harassment, Mohammad moved to Kuwait, where he landed a job in a computer firm. A year later, he re-enters the UK twice, but on his return to Kuwait after his second visit, he was once again detained in the UK on suspicion of belonging to an extremist network.
The argument is helpful, but it is flawed on multiple levels. To begin with, I find it compelling that a perfectly normal and well-adjusted youth with an excellent education could have ended up as a ruthless terrorist. I think the argument by CAGE helps to make the point that constant harassment alienated and radicalized him. This is, however, not a sufficient to prove that anybody at all can be radicalized by a few run-ins with the law enforcement agencies. It is possible that a complex set of interlocking factors played a role in alienating Muhammad, indoctrinating and recruiting him into ISIS. Discrimination and prejudice by law enforcement agencies cannot be solely responsible for the radicalization. There is also no actual evidence that the M15 harassed Mohammad, and there is no evidence to prove this claim, not least because the law enforcement agencies were simply doing their job. Finally, this argument tends to excuse his actions by shifting the blame to law enforcement agencies, which is strange especially given the fact that he is an adult and had lived in the UK for most of his life.
This argument can be improved by firstly setting out clearly that Muhammad is an adult and fully responsible for his decisions, as well as pointing out the unacceptable cruelty of his actions. Further, the argument should pin the responsibility on him, including his maladjustment to the British society. After this is clear, then it can be argued that possible discrimination and prejudice may have played a role in driving Muhammad to the brink. Caution must be taken to make this argument as a minor contribution and a possible part of a pattern that contributed to the youth’s radicalization.