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Good Reasons with Contemporary Arguments and Handbook, 1st edition

Published by Pearson (January 3, 2013) © 2014

  • Lester Faigley University of Texas at Austin
  • Jack Selzer The Pennsylvania State University
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This rhetoric/reader combines a brief, accessible introduction to argument with an anthology of provocative readings on contemporary issues and a convenient grammar and mechanics reference.

By stressing the rhetorical situation and audience, this argument rhetoric/reader avoids complicated schemes and terminology in favor of providing students with the practical ways of finding "good reasons" to argue for the positions they take. Good Reasons with Contemporary Arguments and Handbook helps students read, analyze, and write various types of arguments, including visual, verbal, and written. Supporting the authors' instruction are readings by professional and student writers, including many of an academic nature that cite sources, and over 150 visuals.  Good Reasons with Contemporary Arguments and Handbook is distinctive for its discussion of why people write arguments, its coverage of rhetorical analysis and visual analysis in a brief format, its close attention to reading arguments, its thorough attention to research, and its emphasis on provocative topics in the reader section of the book. This new version also contains a concise handbook on grammar and mechanics, including “Common Errors” boxes that offer guidance on how to recognize, understand, and correct the most frequent errors.

  • One-stop guide to everything you need to know: Because students need to have instruction, examples, and writing help at their fingertips, this text combinesthree books in one: an accessible brief guide to argument (Parts 1-5), a topically organized anthology of readings (Part 6), and a handbook (Part 7)—everything they need in a course on argument in one book.
  • Explains why people take the time to write arguments in the first place–using nontechnical language–and provides students with practical ways of finding "good reasons" for writing arguments of their own.
  • Provides step-by-step guides to writing six kinds of arguments: definition, causal, evaluation, rebuttal, proposal, and, interestingly, narrative arguments (Chs. 8-13).
  • Provides a sensible organization that allows teachers to pick and choose what they want to cover:

            Part 1 covers reading arguments, finding topics, writing process, and opens with a unique discussion of why people write arguments.

            Part 2 covers rhetorical and visual analysis.

            Part 3 covers the kinds of arguments students are likely to be assigned (definition, evaluation, proposal, etc.)

            Part 4 covers oral arguments and document design.

            Part 5 covers research and documentation, with separate chapters for MLA and APA.

  • Part 6 contains seventy-seven engaging professional readings(in addition to the selections in Part 3) that address significant current issues and illustrate effective persuasive techniques for each type of argument to inspire students to mount their own arguments.  Included are sixteen examples of academic arguments (readings with citations) on topics such as sustainability, the effects of video games, and the costs of higher education.
  • Part 7 contains the grammar and mechanics chapters from the widely used Little Penguin Handbook along with the popular Common Errors feature.
  • Four chapters in Part Five offer extensive coverage of using sources in arguments (Ch.16 on planning research, Ch. 17 on finding sources, Ch. 18 on evaluating and tracking sources, and Ch.19 on writing the research project).
  • Finding Good Reasons assignments integrate reading visuals and writing. Each describes a current issue (such as surveillance technologies and policies, health and obesity, community activism), features a related visual, and provides questions designed to get students thinking and writing about issues.
  • An alternate table of contents organizes readings by type.
  • A glossary of terms helps students remember important concepts.
    • The difference between this version of the text, and the Faigley, Good Reasons with Contemporary Arguments, 5e (2012) is: some different readings and the addition of a handbook.  Rhetoric portion of the books are the same.

    Preface

     

    PART 1 Reading and Discovering Arguments

     

    Chapter 1: Making an Effective Argument

    What Exactly Is an Argument?

    Finding Good Reasons

    Writing Arguments in College

    Arguments as Turns in a Conversation

    A Case Study: The Microcredit Debate

    Think About Your Credibility

     

    Chapter 2: Reading Arguments

    Explore Controversies

    Read Critically

    Finding Good Reasons

    Recognize Fallacies

    Map and Summarize Arguments

     

    Chapter 3: Finding Arguments

    Find Arguments in Everyday Conversations

    Find a Topic

    What Is Not Arguable

    Finding Good Reasons

    Campus

    Community

    Nation World

    Explore Your Topic

    Read About Your Topic

    Find Good Reasons

    Find Evidence to Support Good Reasons

     

    Chapter 4: Drafting and Revising Arguments

    State and Evaluate Your Thesis

    Finding Good Reasons

    Think About Your Readers

    Organize Your Argument

    Write an Engaging Title and Introduction

    Write a Strong Conclusion

    Evaluate Your Draft

    Checklist for Evaluating Your Draft

    Respond to the Writing of Others

    Edit and Proofread Carefully

     

    PART 2 Analyzing Arguments

     

    Chapter 5: Analyzing Written Arguments

    What Is Rhetorical Analysis?

    Build a Rhetorical Analysis

    Analyze the Rhetorical Features

    Analyze the Rhetorical Context

    Write a Rhetorical Analysis

    STEPS TO WRITING A RHETORICAL ANALYSIS

    Barbara Jordan, Statement on the Articles of Impeachment

    Sample Student Rhetorical Analysis

    T. Jonathan Jackson,An Argument of Reason and Passion: Barbara Jordan’s “Statement on the Articles of Impeachment” 70

     

    Chapter 6: Analyzing Visual and Multimedia Arguments

    What Is a Visual Argument?

    What Is a Multimedia Argument?

    Analyze Visual Evidence

    Ask These Questions when you are Analyzing Charts and Graphs

    Build a Visual Analysis

    Write a Visual Analysis

    Sample Student Visual Analysis

    Chrissy Yao,“Use Only What You Need”: The Denver Water Conservation Campaign

     

    PART 3 Writing Arguments

     

    Chapter 7: Putting Good Reasons into Action

    Find a Purpose for Writing an Argument

    Finding Good Reasons

    Get Started Writing About Complex Issues

     

    Chapter 8: Definition Arguments

    Understand How Definition Arguments Work

    Recognize Kinds of Definitions

    Build a Definition Argument

    King’s Extended Definition Argument

    Finding Good Reasons

    STEPS TO WRITING A DEFINITION ARGUMENT

    Michael Pollan, Eat Food: Food Defined

    Sample Student Definition Argument

    Patrice Conley, Flagrant Foul: The NCAA’s Definition of Student Athletes as Amateurs

     

    Chapter 9: Causal Arguments

    Understand How Causal Arguments Work

    Find Causes

    Build a Causal Argument

    STEPS TO WRITING A CAUSAL ARGUMENT

    Finding Good Reasons

    Emily Raine,Why Should I Be Nice to You? Coffee Shops and the Politics of Good Service

    Sample Student Causal Argument

    Armadi Tansal,Modern Warfare:Video Game’ Link to Real-World Violence

     

    Chapter 10: Evaluation Arguments

    Understand How Evaluation Arguments Work

    Recognize Kinds of Evaluations

    Build an Evaluation Argument

    Finding Good Reasons

    STEPS TO WRITING AN EVALUATION ARGUMENT

    P. J.O’Rourke, The End of the Affair

    Sample Student Evaluation Argument

    Rashaun Giddens, Stop Loss or “Loss of Trust”

     

    Chapter 11: Narrative Arguments

    Understand How Narrative Arguments Work

    Recognize Kinds of Narrative Arguments

    Build a Narrative Argument

    Finding Good Reasons

    STEPS TO WRITING A NARRATIVE ARGUMENT

    Leslie Marmon Silko, The Border Patrol State

     

    Chapter 12: Rebuttal Arguments

    Understand How Rebuttal Arguments Work

    Recognize Kinds of Rebuttal Arguments

    Build a Rebuttal Argument

    Finding Good Reasons

    STEPS TO WRITING A REBUTTAL ARGUMENT

    Dan Stein, Crossing the Line

    Gregory Rodriguez, Illegal Immigrants–They’re Money

    Sample Student Rebuttal Argument

    Marta Ramos,Oversimplifying the Locavore Ethic

     

    Chapter 13: Proposal Arguments

    Understand How Proposal Arguments Work

    Recognize Components of Proposal Arguments

    Build a Proposal Argument

    STEPS TO WRITING A PROPOSAL ARGUMENT

    Finding Good Reasons

    Glenn Loury, A Nation of Jailers

    Sample Student Proposal Argument

    Kim Lee, Let’s Make It a Real Melting Pot with Presidential Hopes for All

     

    PART 4 Designing and Presenting Arguments

     

    Chapter 14: Designing Multimedia Arguments

    Think About Which Media Will Reach Your Audience

    Know When to Use Visual Evidence

    Think About the Argument an Image Makes

    Design Arguments for Print

    Design Multimedia Arguments

     

    Chapter 15: Presenting Arguments

    Plan a Presentation

    Design Visuals for a Presentation

    Deliver an Effective Presentation

     

    PART 5 Researching Arguments

     

    Chapter 16: Planning Research

    Analyze the Research Task

    Find a Subject

    Ask a Research Question

    Gather Information About the Subject

    Draft a Working Thesis

     

    Chapter 17: Finding Sources

    Develop Strategies for Finding Sources

    Find Sources in Databases

    Find Sources on the Web

    Know the Limitations of Wikipedia

    Find Multimedia Sources

    Find Print Sources

     

    Chapter 18: Evaluating and Recording Sources

    Determine the Relevance of Sources

    Determine the Quality of Sources

    Evaluate Database and Print Sources

    Checklist for Evaluating Database and Print Sources

    Evaluate Web Sources

    Checklist for Evaluating Web Sources

    Keep Track of Sources

     

    Chapter 19: Writing the Research Project

    Review Your Goals and Plan Your Organization

    Avoid Plagiarism

    Plagiarism in College Writing

    Avoid Plagiarism When Quoting Sources

    Avoid Plagiarism When Summarizing and Paraphrasing

    Decide When to Quote and When to Paraphrase

    Write a Draft

     

    Chapter 20: Documenting Sources in MLA Style

    Elements of MLA Documentation

    MLA In-Text Citations

    MLA Works-Cited List: Books

    MLA Works-Cited List: Periodicals

    MLA Works-Cited List: Library Database Sources

    MLA Works-Cited List: Online Sources

    MLA Works-Cited List: Other Sources

    Sample MLA Paper

    Brian Witkowski,Need a Cure for Tribe Fever? How About a Dip in the Lake?

     

    Chapter 21: Documenting Sources in APA Style

    Elements of APA Documentation

    APA In-Text Citations

    APA References List: Books

    APA References List: Periodicals

    APA References List: Library Database Sources

    APA References List: Online Sources

    APA References List: Other Sources

     

    PART 6 Contemporary Arguments

     

    Chapter 22: Negotiating the Environment

    American Environmentalism

    Contemporary Arguments

    Rachel Carson, The Obligation to Endure

    Edward O. Wilson, The Conservation Ethic

    Sidebar: Aldo Leopold,  from The Land Ethic

    Chris Packham and Mark Wright, Should Pandas Be Left to Face Extinction?

    Wallace Stegner, A Wilderness Letter

    ISSUE IN FOCUS: SUSTAINABILITY

    High Moon, We’re Almost There (cartoon)

    Wendell E. Berry, “It All Turns on Affection”: 2012 Jefferson Lecture

    Kentucky Appalachian Ministry, Locally Grown … Heaven Sent Ad

    Jared Diamond, Will Big Business Save the Earth?

    Joy of Tech, Look on the Bright Side (cartoon)

    National Association of Scholars, Fixing Sustainability and Sustaining Liberal Education

    Nicolette Hahn Niman, The Carnivore’s Dilemma

    Mark Bittman, Eating Food That’s Better for You, Organic or Not

    David B. Resnik, Urban Sprawl, Smart Growth, and Deliberative Democracy

    From Reading to Writing

     

    Chapter 23: Education

    Education in American Society

    Contemporary Arguments

    Ralph Waldo Emerson, The American Scholar

    W.E.B. Dubois, The Talented Tenth

    Joe Heller, My Kid Went to College … (cartoon)

    Garry B. Trudeau, Doonesbury: Teaching Is Dead (cartoon)

    Margaret Spellings, Remarks at the 2006 No Child Left Behind Summit

    Gerald W. Bracey, The Condition of Public Education

    David Horsey, Come Away from the Window! (cartoon)

    David Brooks, Sam Spade at Starbucks

    John Gatto, Against Education: How Public Education Cripples Our Kids, and Why

    ISSUE IN FOCUS: IS COLLEGE WORTH THE PRICE?

    Anthony P. Carvenale, College Is Still Worth It

    Richard Vedder, For Many, College Isn’t Worth It

    Jim Borgman, College Loan Debt (cartoon)

    Clive Crook, A Matter of Degrees: Why College Is Not an Economic Cure-All

    Gregory Kristof, On the Ground with a “Gap Year”

    From Reading to Writing

     

    Chapter 24: Globalization: Importing and Exporting America

    America’s Place in the World—and the World’s Place in America

    Contemporary Arguments

    Todd Gitlin, Under the Sign of Mickey Mouse & Co.

    Aislin, Ain’t Globalization Grand? (cartoon)    

    Laura Carlsen, WalMart vs. Pyramids    

    Thomas Friedman, Why the World Is Flat

    Sidebar: The 10 Great Levelers

    Richard Florida, The World Is Spiky

    Chappatte, Our Outsourced World (cartoon)

    Robyn Meredith and Suzanne Hoppough, Why Globalization Is Good

    Sadanand Dhume, Slumdog Paradox

    ISSUE IN FOCUS: IMMIGRATION   

    Roy Beck, A Nation of (Too Many) Immigrants?

    Wiley Miller, What’s the Worst That Can Happen? (cartoon)

    Mae M. Ngai, No Human Being Is Illegal

    Lance Morrow, Cowboys and Immigrants

    Sidebar: Emma Lazarus, The New Colossus

    Sidebar: Thomas Bailey Aldrich, The Unguarded Gates  000

    From Reading to Writing

     

     Chapter 25: Science and Ethics

    The Ethics of Science and Technology

    Contemporary Arguments

    Doug Savage, At Last! (cartoon)

    Bill Joy, Why the Future Doesn’t Need Us

    Ralph C. Merkle, Nanotechnology: Designs for the Future

    Bill Gates, A Robot in Every Home

    Paul Marks, Armchair Warlords and Robot Hordes

    Sally Satel, Organs for Sale

    Ron Reagan, Speech at the Democratic National Convention, July 27, 2004

    Richard M. Doerflinger, Don’t Clone Ron Reagan’s Agenda

    Ed Fischer, Good News (cartoon)

    ISSUE IN FOCUS: IS GENETICALLY MODIFIED FOOD A BOON OR A RISK?

    Mark Anslow, Ten Reasons Why GM Won’t Feed the World

    James Freeman, You’re Eating Genetically Modified Food

    Jeffrey Smith, Another Reason for Schools to Ban Genetically Engineered Foods

    James E. McWilliams, The Green Monster: Could Frankenfoods Be Good for the Environment?

    Ben Burkett, Green Revolution a Failure in Africa    

    Gregory Jaffe, Lessen the Fear of Genetically Engineered Crops

    From Reading to Writing

     

    Chapter 26: Privacy

    New Challenges to Personal Privacy

    Contemporary Arguments

    Adam Penenberg, The Surveillance Society

    Mike Luckovich, I’m Glad Facebook’s Taking Privacy Issues Seriously (cartoon)

    Robert X. Cringely, Facebook Puts Your Privacy on Parade

    Jonathan Locker, OnStar: Big Brother’s Eye in the Sky

    Dahlia Lithwick, Teens, Nude Photos and the Law

    Jay Stanley, ACLU Opposes Body Cavity Searches for Airline Passengers

    Adam Cohen, A Casualty of the Technology Revolution: “Locational Privacy”

    ISSUE IN FOCUS: BIOMETRICS: MEASURING THE BODY FOR IDENTITY

    Steven C. Bennett, Privacy Implications of Biometrics

    Paul Saffo, A Trail of DNA and Data

    FBI, Using Technology to Catch Criminals

    Sidebar: Voice Verification for Transactions

    Ben Goldacre, Now for ID Cards—and the Biometric Blues

    From Reading to Writing

     

    Chapter 27: Regulating Substances, Regulating Bodies

    Private Bodies, Public Controls

    Contemporary Arguments

    Joe Klein, Why Legalizing Marijuana Makes Sense

    Bernadine Healy, Legalize Marijuana? Obama Was Right to Say No

    Bill James, Cooperstown and the ’Roids

    Terrence Rafferty, Kate Winslet, Please Save Us!

    Rebecca Traister, “Real Beauty”—Or Really Smart Marketing?

    Consumer Freedom, Obesity Ads

    David Edelstein, Up in Smoke: Give Movies with Tobacco an Automatic ‘R’

    Tony Newman, Criminalizing Smoking Is Not the Answer: Bans on Cloves and Outdoor Smoking Will Backfire!

    New York State Department of Health, “Skip” Legault Antismoking Ad

    Garry Trudeau, Doonesbury: The Sin Lobby Gins Up for Another Year (cartoon)

    Jordan Rubin, Beware of Saturday Morning Cartoons

    Jeffrey Friedman, The Real Cause of Obesity

    Consumer Freedom, The Nanny Ad

    New York City Department of Health, Are You Pouring on the Pounds? Ad

    Patrick Johnson, Obesity: Epidemic or Myth?

    ISSUE IN FOCUS: DRINKING ON COLLEGE CAMPUSES    

    Jeff Keacher, Accomplishments As … (cartoon)

    John McCardell, A Drinking Age of 21 Doesn’t Work

    Morris E. Chafetz, The 21-Year-Old Drinking Age: I Voted for It; It Doesn’t Work

    Toben F. Nelson, Traci L. Toomey, and co-authors, The Drinking Age of 21 Saves Lives

    James Hibberd, Barhopping with the Bud Girls

    Mothers Against Drunk Driving, Last Round with My Buddies Ad

    Sidebar: Some Signs that Substance Use Is a Problem

    From Reading to Writing

     

    Chapter 28: New Media

    Personal Space in Cyberspace

    Contemporary Arguments

    Andrew Keen, Is Google’s Data Grinder Dangerous?

    Sidebar: John Perry Barlow, A Declaration of the Independence of Cyberspace

    John Seigenthaler, A False Wikipedia “Biography”

    Walt Handelsman, Information Superhighway (cartoon)

    Michael Gerson, Where the Avatars Roam

    Daniel Okrent, The Death of Print?

    David Fitzsimmons, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah (cartoon)

    David Carr, Why Twitter Will Endure

    Neil Richards, The Perils of Social Reading

    ISSUE IN FOCUS: ARE VIDEOGAMES GOOD FOR YOU?   

    John C. Beck and Mitchell Wade, How the Gamer Revolution Is Reshaping Business Forever (excerpt)

    James Paul Gee, Games, Not Schools, Are Teaching Kids to Think

    Kevin Moss, The Enemy of My Irony Is My Friend

    Clay Shirky, Gin, Television, and Social Surplus–A Speech, April 26, 2008

    From Reading to Writing    

     

    PART 7 Handbook

      1        Fragments, Run-ons, and Comma Splices

      2        Subject—Verb Agreement

      3        Verbs

      4        Pronouns

      5        Shifts

      6        Modifiers

      7        Grammar for Multilingual Writers

      8        Commas 

      9        Semicolons and Colons

    10        Dashes and Parentheses

    11        Apostrophes

    12        Quotation Marks

    13        Other Punctuation Marks

    14        Capitalization, Italics, Abbreviations, Numbers

     

    Glossary of Grammatical Terms and Usage

    Glossary

    Credits

    Index for Handbook

    Index

    Revision Guide

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