Example Of Argument Argumentative Essay

One example of a good persuasive argument is the 2015 State of the Union speech by Barack Obama. The reason it was effective is because of Obama’s use of ethos, pathos, and logos. He successfully established his credibility early on in this speech by stating the good things he has accomplished. He mentioned how the economy has improved, wars ended, and a start at oil independence. Furthermore, he was able to identify with the American people (pathos) because he called for an increase in bipartisanship within the Congress. The American people currently have a low opinion of Congress, so in dedicating so much of his speech to this, Obama is appealing to the audience to show he wants more changes and policies to help the middle class. Finally, Obama made a logical (logos) case for why his ideas are best for the nation. He included many items that will help the middle class, like free community college, child care support, and tax breaks for middle income families. Altogether, Obama showed how to effectively use rhetorical tools (Obama 2015).
An example of an article ineffectively using rhetorical tools would be a blog post written by Matt Walsh against the use of birth control. He gives five reasons why birth control is harmful, the worst of them being that they cause confusion and divorce. The reason this article is not effective is because Walsh has no credibility on scientific issues. He is uneducated about birth control, as he has no expertise in this field. Furthermore, he lacks a use of a logical argument, as many of his reasons, such as the confusion and divorce example, are not well thought out. He would have been better served doing more research, examining both sides of the issue (Walsh 2015).
In conclusion, effective use of rhetorical tools includes establishing credibility. You must show why you are knowledgeable about a certain topic. Then, you have to get the audience on your side by appealing to interests directly related to them, and get them to elicit some type of emotional response in favor of what you are persuading them to do. Finally, research and logical thinking must be used in order to fully argue the issue. Failure to do any of these things will result in ineffective persuasion.

Works Cited

Obama, Barack. "President Obama’s 2015 State of the Union Address: FULL TRANSCRIPT." Mediaite, 20 Jan. 2015. Web. 13 Feb. 2015. <http://www.mediaite.com/online/president-obamas-2015-state-of-the-union-address-full-transcript/>
Walsh, Matt. "Birth Control Pills: Men Get Free Sex, Women Could Get Cancer." The Blaze, 3 Feb. 2015. Web. 13 Feb. 2015. <http://www.theblaze.com/contributions/birth-control-pills-men-get-free-sex-women-get-cancer/>.