CHAPTER 19
Persuading Others
When you read the previous chapter, it might have seemed an appropriate place to conclude the book. That is an understandable impression. The thinking process could reasonably be considered complete when a judgment has been made and put into words. Why, then, has this chapter been included? The simple answer is because thoughtful judgments deserve to be shared, and the way they are presented can strongly influence the way others react to them. By learning the principles of persuasion and applying them in your writing (and speaking), you will extend the benefits of your critical thinking beyond the confines of your own mind.
Persuasion means presenting your view so effectively that people who have no position on the issue will be inclined to agree with you and those who disagree with you will be motivated to reconsider their own view. This task is more difficult than it may seem. Those who are neutral will be open to suggestion, but only if you demonstrate the reasonableness of your view. Those who disagree with you will be disposed to reject your view for the obvious reason that it disputes theirs. To accept your view entails discarding their own, which they may have formed after considerable thought and with which their egos are intertwined.
To appreciate how difficult it can be to persuade others, you need only reflect on your own resistance to ideas that oppose yours. If you still have trouble giving such ideas a fair hearing even after a semester’s study of critical thinking, it is unreasonable to expect individuals who lack your training to respond more generously.
Guidelines for Persuasion
Here are eleven guidelines for persuasion. Each is designed to help you overcome a specific challenge. The more faithfully you follow these guidelines, the more effective you will be in demonstrating the merit of your ideas.
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GUIDELINE 1: RESPECT YOUR AUDIENCE
This guideline may sound idealistic, but it is eminently practical. If you believe the people you are trying to persuade are doltish or intellectually dishonest, you are bound to betray that belief, if not directly then indirectly in your tone or choice of words. Moreover, they will generally sense your disparaging view of them and feel hurt or resentful, hardly the kind of reaction that will make them open to persuasion.
But aren’t some people doltish or intellectually dishonest? Of course. The point is, you have no business thinking them so without clear and convincing evidence. If you have such evidence, don’t write for that audience. If you lack such evidence, as is usually the case, you should give your audience the benefit of the doubt. Ask yourself what might account for their disagreement with your view. Consider all the factors that can influence a person’s perspective, including age, gender, race, ethnicity, family background, religion, income level, political affiliation, degree of education, and personal experience. If one or more of these could account for the difference in viewpoint, you will have good reason for regarding their disagreement as thoughtful and honest.
A caution is in order here: Don’t feel you need to state your respect for your audience. Such statements have a way of sounding insincere. Work on acting respectfully; if you can accomplish that, there will be no need to state it. It will show.
GUIDELINE 2: UNDERSTAND YOUR AUDIENCE’S VIEWPOINT
Many people make the mistake of thinking that knowing their own viewpoint is all that is necessary to be persuasive. “What my readers think about the issue is really irrelevant,” they reason. “All that matters is what I’m going to get them to think.” In addition to being pompous, this attitude ignores two crucial points. First, people’s views matter very much to them, and when others refuse to acknowledge this fact they feel offended. Second, we must know where people stand before we can hope to reach them.
How can you determine what your readers think about the issue you are writing about? The answer depends on the particular circumstances. Here are the most common situations:
Situation 1: You are writing for a single reader who has presented his or her ideas in an article, book, speech, or conversation. Review what your reader said, noting not only the person’s position but also the reasoning that supports it. Determine both the strengths and the weaknesses of the person’s position.
Situation 2: You are writing for a single reader who has not, to your knowledge, expressed a view on the issue in question. Suppose, for example, you are writing a letter to the president of a company objecting to
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the company’s sponsorship of a controversial television series. You may not be sure the president disagrees with what you plan to say, but prudence suggests that you anticipate the worst case scenario—that he or she vigorously supports the sponsorship decision. Use your imagination to produce relevant questions: What might the president think about outsiders criticizing the company? That they have no right to criticize? That the company is answerable only to its stockholders? What might he or she think about the series in question—that is, about the characters, typical plot situations, and themes? (The more closely you have studied the series, the more meaningful your answer will be.) Might the president view outside criticism as a form of censorship? Why or why not?
Situation 3: You are writing not for a specific individual, but for all the people who hold an opposing view on the issue. This is the most commonly encountered situation in persuasive writing. Study what has been expressed by people who hold the opposing view. Look for frequently repeated arguments and themes. The more often a line of thought is expressed and the greater the number of people who express it, the more influential it is likely to have been in shaping people’s views. The most influential errors in thinking represent the greatest challenge to persuasion.
GUIDELINE 3: BEGIN FROM A POSITION YOU HAVE IN COMMON WITH YOUR READERS
Beginning from a position of agreement with your reader is not an arbitrary requirement or a matter of courtesy or good form. It is a simple matter of psychology. If you begin by saying—in effect, if not directly—”Look here, you are wrong, and I’m going to show you,” you push your readers to defensive if not outright hostile reactions. They are likely to read the rest of your paper thinking not of what you are saying but of ways to refute it, concerned with measuring only the weaknesses of your argument. And if they are unreasonable and unbalanced in their reading, the fault will be more yours than theirs.
It is always difficult to find any points of agreement with someone whose views you strongly disagree with. This was the case with the student who wrote his composition supporting the view that students who fail out of his college should be allowed to apply for readmission. His readers were administrators who had expressed the view that the students should not be allowed to do so. He began as follows:
I think students who fail out of this college should be allowed to apply for readmission because every student deserves a second chance. You have said that most readmits lack seriousness of purpose. But …
This student was probably quite sure that he and his readers could agree on nothing. So he began with a head-on collision that wrecked his
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chances to be persuasive. The readers’ reaction, conscious or unconscious, undoubtedly was “This student sees only his own biased position. He doesn’t understand the complexity of the problem, doesn’t consider the welfare of the total student body, apparently doesn’t appreciate that a college education is not a right at all, but a privilege.” Their reaction could be mistaken. The student might have been fully aware of all these considerations. But he failed to show his readers that he was. How much better an impression he would have made if he had begun like this:
No one benefits—neither teachers nor other students—from the presence on campus of students for whom college means merely fun, or a rest, or a chance to make social contacts. Such students take up precious time and space, and usually serve only to distract more serious students. They fail in most cases to realize that a college education is a privilege that they must continue to earn, not an inviolable right. I agree that this college has its share of such students.
The “but” would still appear. The student would still argue his point, but only after he had impressed his readers with the scope of his understanding of the issue and with his desire to be reasonable.
GUIDELINE 4: TAKE A POSITIVE APPROACH
Whenever possible, build your case rather than tearing down the opposing case. To say you should never expose the weaknesses of the opposing side of the issue would be an oversimplification, and a foolish one at that. There are times when examining such weaknesses is the only responsible course of action. Keep in mind, however, that direct criticism of the opposing view will always seem harsher than it is to people who share that view, a brief criticism will seem protracted, and the mere perception that you are being negative will make your readers defensive. The solution is not to be so timid that you don’t say anything meaningful but to be sensitive to your readers’ reactions.
Consider, for example, this situation. Someone writes an article attacking gun control legislation. Two responses are printed in the next issue of the magazine. In summary the article and responses read as follows:
Article
Responses to Article
Gun control legislation (a) penalizes the law-abiding more than the lawless, (b) denies citizens the most effective means of protecting self and property at a time when assaults on both are commonplace, (c) violates the U.S. Constitution.
1. Gun control legislation does not penalize the law-abiding more than the lawless. It does not deny citizens the most effective means of protection. It does not really violate the U.S. Constitution.
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2. Gun control legislation discourages crime by making the mere possession of a gun an offense of some gravity. It stresses the role of the police, rather than the individual, in law enforcement. It follows the spirit, if not the letter, of the U.S. Constitution.
Both responses disagree with the article on each of the three points it raised. But the first merely tears down the article’s position; the second builds another position. In effect, the first says to the writer, “You are wrong, you are wrong, you are wrong”; the second says, “Here is another view.” Whenever you can avoid direct refutation—that is, whenever you can effectively present and support your own views without direct reference to your reader’s opposing views—do so.
GUIDELINE 5: UNDERSTATE YOUR ARGUMENT WHENEVER POSSIBLE
The sharpest points of disagreement between you and your readers should always be approached most carefully. These points represent the greatest obstacle to persuasion. If you overstate your position, you are bound to reinforce your readers’ conviction about their position rather than dispose them to question their conviction. The student who wrote the following passage made this blunder:
Most colleges have a “cut system”—that is, they permit a student a few unexcused absences from class without penalty. This college permits no unexcused absences. Its system is harsh and uncompromising and may well cause students to develop inferiority complexes.
Here the readers, who in this case support the college’s “no-cut system,” are not only reinforced in their position by the “inferiority complex” overstatement but also provided with an excellent opportunity for a damaging rebuttal, such as this:
That this college’s “no-cut system” is demanding, I grant. But the suggestion that it causes students to “develop inferiority complexes” strains credibility. However, even if it were established that it does in fact cause such complexes, would we not be driven to the conclusion that students in such psychologically fragile condition need not fewer but more restrictions to prevent their breakdown?
The student who wrote the following passage made a similar mistake:
If others treat us with respect and admiration we will become more respectable and admirable.
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This student overstated the effect. The respect and admiration of others may encourage us to be respectable and admirable, but it will certainly not make us so automatically. The costliness of the mistake is measured by the fact that the readers, who would have tended to agree with understatement, are likely to reject the whole idea because of the writer’s careless use of force.
Consider the following two passages, particularly the italicized words. The first is the forceful statement the writer was tempted to make. The second is the statement the writer actually made. It is an understatement. Note that it does not compromise the writer’s position, but it does present the idea more effectively to readers who would be inclined to disagree.
1. If college students are not given opportunities to exercise responsibility and make their own choices while they are in college, they will have to adjust all at once when they leave college. And such adjustment will be extremely difficult.
2. If college students are not given some opportunities to exercise responsibility and make their own choices while they are in college, they will have to adjust rather quickly when they leave college. And such adjustment will usually be more difficult.
GUIDELINE 6: CONCEDE WHERE THE OPPOSING SIDE HAS A POINT
The natural tendency of all of us to value our own position too highly makes it difficult for us to admit that opposing views may also have merit. Overcoming this tendency can be accomplished only by remembering that in most controversial issues no one side possesses the total truth. If you can approach controversial issues with this thought, you are likely to grasp more of the total truth and to attract reasonable readers to your position.
Total commitment to the truth obliges us, moreover, to concede not grudgingly, but gladly and without hesitation. This does not mean placing a single short sentence at the beginning of the composition that says, “Everyone is right in some degree; I suppose you are too,” and then launching into your own position. It means a specific and, if space permits, detailed explanation of where, how, and why the opposing viewpoint is correct.
Let’s say, for example, that the issue is whether a comprehensive sex education program from kindergarten through twelfth grade should be initiated in your hometown. Your argument is that it should be. You reason that, since a person’s whole life is affected by the quality of his understanding of sex, it is too important a subject to be learned in the street and that, since many parents neglect their responsibility to teach their children at home, the school must offer such a program. Your readers are opposed to the program because they believe classroom sex instruction does not meet two important requirements: individualized instruction at each child’s level of understanding and a moral-religious context.
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Any reasonable person would admit that the readers’ points are well taken. Therefore, you should concede that it is difficult to identify those students whose level of maturity is significantly below the rest of the class and that the presentation of material well beyond their grasp could be disturbing to them. Further, you should concede that, ideally, the home is the best place for the young to learn about sex and the school cannot provide the moral-religious context that many parents consider essential. These concessions will not undermine your position. You will still be able to argue that the program is necessary, although you will probably have to qualify your endorsement, acknowledging that the details of the program must be worked out in light of your concessions and that teachers should be selected with care. The concessions will actually enhance your argument by demonstrating your grasp of the larger dimensions of the question.
Remember that the readers are likely to be no more generous to you than you are to them. Only if you are open and honest in your concessions can you expect them to be so in theirs.
GUIDELINE 7: DON’T IGNORE ANY RELEVANT FACTS
In studying an issue, we sometimes uncover facts that support the opposing position rather than our own. The temptation is strong to ignore them, especially if the other person has apparently not discovered them. Using them, it would seem, could only weaken our position.
However, the purpose of argument is not to defeat others but, through the exchange of views, to discover the truth in all its complexity. When that happens, everyone wins. When any part of the truth is hidden, no one wins, even though it may appear that someone does. By presenting all the facts, even those that force you to modify your position, you impress your readers with your objectivity and honesty and invite them to show theirs.
Consider the following situation. You believe that the present federally directed antipoverty program is more beneficial to the poor than the proposed state-directed program would be. You are researching the subject further, preparing to write an article supporting your position for an audience of those who disagree with you. In researching the question you discover a not widely publicized report documenting serious inefficiency and waste in the present federal program. Moreover, it seems clear that these inefficiencies would be less likely to occur in the proposed program. You realize that your readers probably have not seen this report and that it would be damaging to your original position to mention it in your article. What should you do? If you have good reason to conclude that the report is not really relevant to the issue, it would be foolish to mention it. However, if you are convinced that it is relevant, honesty requires you to
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mention it, deal with the questions it raises, and modify your position accordingly.
GUIDELINE 8: DON’T OVERWHELM YOUR READERS WITH ARGUMENTS
In controversial matters, no paper under, say, 3,000 words is likely to be definitive. Moreover, no serious writer would attempt to convey the impression that it is. Of necessity it contains selected evidence. On the surface it would seem that this would give more reason to fill the paper to overflowing with evidence for one’s position, to make it as nearly definitive as possible. But on reflection it is clear that the readers’ impression must also be considered. What is the impression of those who read a composition that they know cannot possibly be definitive but is devoted to arguing one side of an issue, piling detail on detail, example on example, without even implying that there is another side to the issue? There is no question that they will regard such a composition as one-sided and unbalanced! The way to avoid such an unfavorable reader reaction is to present only those arguments and that evidence that you feel are most relevant and most persuasive.
There is one other related point. Even when you succeed in avoiding an unbalanced argument, you may get so taken up with your presentation that you push the reader, possibly concluding your paper like this:
I think I have proved in this paper that there is no alternative to the one suggested by Professor Jones.
or
The evidence I have presented seems irrefutable. There can be no question that the proposal is harmful.
or
No reasonable person will hesitate to endorse this view.
You cannot “prove” anything in a short paper. Although evidence may “seem irrefutable” to you and you may see “no question,” remember that it is wiser to permit readers to make their own judgment. And no reader enjoys feeling that agreement with the writer is required in order to be considered a “reasonable person.”
GUIDELINE 9: FOCUS ON THE ARGUMENT BEST CALCULATED TO PERSUADE YOUR AUDIENCE
Different arguments appeal to different readers. Just as it is important to understand your readers’ viewpoints on the issue, it is important to use arguments that will appeal to them. To ignore their frames of reference and choose arguments that you yourself find persuasive is a mistake.
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Consider, for example, the issue of whether the United States should become involved in conflicts in other parts of the world. The following chart shows the various frames of reference and the arguments that are often made under each.
Frame of Reference
Arguments for U.S. Involvement
Arguments Against U.S. Involvement
Moral and/or religious
1. It is the moral obligation of the strong to protect the weak.
1. The Judeo-Christian tradition says to return good for evil, love for hate.
2. To stand by and do nothing while atrocities are committed is unethical.
2. Modern warfare punishes the victims as well as the perpetrators.
Political and/or practical
1. Because technology has shrunk our planet, no part of the world is outside our country’s interest.
1. Precisely because the world has grown smaller, we need to resist the urge to join other nations’ battles.
2. To refuse to stop tyranny is the same as encouraging it.
2. When we deplete our resources in foreign wars, we increase our own vulnerability.
Philosophic
A free nation has an obligation to stand up for freedom everywhere.
1. War corrupts all who engage in it.
Let’s say you are writing a persuasive paper on this issue and you personally believe that the most telling arguments are moral and/or religious but you know your readers would be more impressed with the political and/or practical or the philosophic arguments. Generally speaking, it would be foolish to follow your personal preference—doing so could defeat your purpose in writing.
GUIDELINE 10: NEVER USE AN ARGUMENT YOU DO NOT BELIEVE IS SOUND OR RELEVANT
This guideline should be understood as a qualification of the previous one. Sincerity and regard for the truth are among the most important characteristics of a writer. Without them there is no real persuasion, only
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clever presentation. Therefore, if you truly believe that only one argument is worthy of consideration, then by all means use only that argument. This dilemma, however, is not likely to arise very often. In most cases, you will be able to choose among a variety of arguments without compromising your integrity.
GUIDELINE 11: ALLOW TIME FOR YOUR VIEW TO GAIN ACCEPTANCE
It may be tempting to believe that when you present your view, your readers will immediately abandon their own and embrace yours. That expectation is unrealistic. Except in rare cases, the best you should hope for is that they will be moved to reconsider the issue in light of what you said and that your insights eventually will cause them to modify their view. The fact that “eventually” may turn out to be next week or next year rather than five minutes from now is not necessarily a comment on your skill in persuading others. It may merely reflect the reality that the bonds people form with their opinions are not easily broken.
Use the following summary of the guidelines for persuasion as a checklist whenever you wish to present your ideas persuasively:
1. Respect your audience.
2. Understand your audience’s viewpoint.
3. Begin from a position you have in common with your readers.
4. Take a positive approach.
5. Understate your argument whenever possible.
6. Concede where the opposing side has a point.
7. Don’t ignore any relevant facts.
8. Don’t overwhelm your readers with arguments.
9. Focus on the argument best calculated to persuade your audience.
10. Never use an argument you do not believe is sound or relevant.
11. Allow time for your view to gain acceptance.
Next we’ll compare a persuasive composition with an unpersuasive one to see how these guidelines apply.
An Unpersuasive Presentation
A student chose to write a letter pointing out his complaints about the quality of the campus dining hall food and service. His reader was the dining hall manager, his task to impress the reader with his reasonableness and dispose her to reevaluate the performance of her staff.
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Violates Guideline 3 Doesn’t begin on common ground
There is continuous discussion taking place on this campus about the dining hall. The students are disgusted with the poor quality of the food and service, and the dirty dishes and silverware. As a student, I would like to point out the reasons for complaining.
Violates Guideline 5
Sarcasm offends reader
First, let us consider the quality of the food. The meat is either undercooked or overcooked. It is of such low quality that one wonders how it ever got on the market to be sold. The vegetables are completely tasteless, but this is all right because few students bother to eat them. Some students receive bonuses in their meals—such as hair in their soup or dead flies in their potatoes. These are only a few examples of how poor the food is.
No examples offered to support charge
Another complaint of students is the inefficient service. Because of the slow service, students often sit down to a cold meal. Many students have to skip their meals because they don’t have time to wait. Some are driven to eat in local restaurants at extra expense.
Violates Guideline 1 Actually suggests bad intention (How can writer presume to know the intentions of staff when even the facts are in question?)
Sarcasm offends reader
Perhaps the most common complaint is the dirty dishes and silverware the students are forced to use. I suppose everything goes through a dishwasher, but by some strange coincidence few things come out clean. However, the work staff don’t worry about it—they just close their eyes to the dirt and pass the dishes and silverware on to the servers. Egg caked to the forks and pieces of meat stuck to the plate—it certainly raises a student’s spirits when he’s eating two meals for the price of one!
Creates unfavorable impression on reader (judges administrators rashly) Shows disrespect toward reader (no admission that students occasionally do embellish facts)
The question is, what can be done to correct these problems? Students have already issued their complaints to administrative officials, but this has done no good. These people appear to have turned their heads from the problem. It is clear that something must be done. A lot of revising is needed. But will there be any? You know as well as I do. NO!
How should the student have approached his subject and reader? First, he should have realized that the dining hall manager must be either a dishonest person, caring little whether she runs the dining hall well or poorly, or a conscientious person, anxious to make the operation efficient and excellent. If the student is convinced that the manager is dishonest, he would be wise not to write the composition for that reader at all but perhaps for the administrator to whom the manager reports.
If, on the other hand, he is sure the manager is conscientious and experienced, he would have to acknowledge that (1) she is familiar with the frequency and exaggeration of student complaints that are almost a
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tradition on college campuses and (2) despite her efforts to find all the flaws in her operations, she is apparently unaware of several. If the student had examined carefully the complaints he thought were justified—the poor quality of the food, the dirt in the food, the slow service, and the dirty dishes and silverware—he would have realized that they embrace the entire operation. Mentioning all of them was saying that nothing about the dining hall is acceptable—and such a comprehensive statement would surely dispose the reader to reject the entire statement. Her natural (human) reluctance to see the faults in her operation would not be overcome but reinforced. She would think, “It’s not possible that I’ve failed to see all these problems. This student must just be a complainer.”
A Persuasive Presentation
A student skilled in persuasive writing would have anticipated all these reactions from his reader and written his letter in this manner:
What type of student constantly complains about the quality of food in the dining hall? Usually the one who’s been catered to by his mother and finds it difficult to adjust to anything but dotingly personal service. During the first term in college my roommate was just such a person. He moaned for an hour after every meal he ate here (and he went without more than a few meals). Hamburger steak was “unfit for human consumption” in his view. Chicken à la king was “slop.” And so on—there was an appropriately derogatory comment for every meal he forced himself to eat.
John stayed here for about a month. He enjoyed his courses and did well in them. He made quite a few friends. But he came to speak constantly of his mother’s cooking—two-inch steaks three times a week, lasagna, spaghetti with pork chops and meatballs and hot Italian sausage. So he left college to return to Utopia. Few students go as far as John did, of course, but judging by the frequency of the complaints I hear students make about the dining hall, he was not the only student hopelessly spoiled by his mother’s cooking.
The service and quality of the food in our dining hall are usually good. Sure, the meat is occasionally overcooked and the vegetables sometimes soggy, but that happened at home too (and my mother only cooked for five, not fifteen hundred). There are, in fact, only two things that I think might be improved.
The first is waiting in line. I usually have to wait at least fifteen minutes to be served in our dining hall, and I arrive quite early. I know from friends in other colleges that a fast-moving line is the exception rather than the rule, so perhaps nothing can be done about it. But if the management found some way to “stagger” the serving or speed up the line, at least one student would appreciate it. The second is dirty dishes and silverware. At most meals I find that I have to wipe dirt from at least one plate or piece of silverware. It may be that in the interests of efficiency the dishwashers are reluctant to wash dirty pieces a second time. Or they may be too busy to notice. But spotless dishes and silverware do help to make the food more appetizing.
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Neither improvement would satisfy students who, like John, are spoiled or who enjoy complaining. But they would help to make our dining hall an even better place to eat.
The difference between these two presentations should be obvious. The most conscientious, eager-to-please, dining hall manager could not help discounting the first as an exaggerated blast written by a chronic complainer or as a release of hostilities by a student angry not only with the dining hall staff but also with his girlfriend, his professors, his parents, and the world. But any reasonably conscientious dining hall manager could not help but regard the second letter as the work of a reasonable, understanding, mature student. It would make her want to improve the service. In other words, it would be persuasive.
Applications
This application section is somewhat different from earlier ones. It presents an extended list of contemporary issues. Each has been the subject of considerable public debate. Some have had long, complex histories. For most, a sizable amount of written interpretation and argument is available.
Examine the list carefully to find an issue that interests you. Then analyze it, applying what you have learned from this book, particularly the lessons of Part Three, “A Strategy,” which begins with Chapter 14. Keep in mind that the issues are identified here in a very general way. It is up to you not only to find and study the available information but also to select the particular aspects you will focus on. As you have seen, it is better to treat one or two aspects in depth than a larger number superficially.
Finally, write a persuasive composition. (On a separate sheet, specify your audience and explain the audience analysis that guided your composition.)
1. In February 1997 a landmark scientific achievement was announced. For the first time in history, a mammal had been cloned. Scientists had used the DNA from one sheep to produce another sheep, genetically identical to the first. Some scientists had predicted the feat would never be accomplished. Now most agreed that no real barriers exist to cloning human beings, though scientific difficulties would have to be worked out.1 The procedure would offer possibilities previously dreamt of only by science fiction writers. Here are just a few: (a) a couple who lost a beloved child in an accident could have another just like him or her; (b) fans could buy celebrities’ DNA and enjoy the ultimate in memorabilia; (c) dictators could ensure that their rule was passed on, not just through their children but, in a sense, through themselves; (d) wealthy people could produce clones to be used for spare parts should they contract a disease. As these examples suggest, human cloning poses difficult legal and ethical questions, all of them arising from a single awesome fact—the process would produce not robots but human beings! What is the wisest position for society to take on the issue of human cloning?
2. Handgun sales continue to rise, indicating that many people believe having a weapon will ensure their safety. But many people argue that the easy availability of handguns is a major cause of violence. They argue that the United States
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should follow the example of other countries and ban handguns. Which viewpoint is more reasonable?
3. Some people argue that we would have better government if members of Congress were limited to a certain number of terms, say two or three. Disagreement over this issue continues to be sharp and spirited. Do the advantages of term limits outweigh the disadvantages?
4. Reportedly, many people are ignoring the dangers of unprotected sex. How can this casual attitude toward disease be explained in light of the spread of HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases? What is the best approach for public health officials and educators to take in solving this problem?
5. From the 1960s to the mid-1970s, the time allotted for serious television news coverage dropped dramatically. A typical analysis segment ran twenty-five minutes in 1960 but only seven minutes in 1976,2 and it has shrunk still further since then. What caused the shrinking of analysis time? Was the time allotted for analysis in the 1960s too long? Is the time now allotted too short? What, if anything, should be done about this situation, and who should do it?
6. The TV rating system was designed to help parents distinguish shows that are appropriate for their children from those that are not. Yet many parents say that the system does not provide enough information about program content for them to make an informed judgment. Are these parents mistaken, or is a change in the rating system necessary? If a change is needed, what should it consist of?
7. In 1982, in a 5–4 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that current and former presidents enjoy “absolute immunity” from lawsuits seeking monetary damages for misconduct in office. Justice Byron White, one of the four justices who opposed the decision, wrote this dissenting opinion: “[As a result of this decision] a president acting within the outer boundaries of what presidents normally do may, without liability, deliberately cause injury to any number of citizens even though he knows his conduct violates a statute or tramples on the constitutional rights of those who are injured.” Do you share Justice White’s opposition to the decision?
8. National Basketball Association rules forbid players from wagering on basketball games and discourage their wagering on other sports. Is this rule fair, or should it be revised? If you believe it should be revised, specify the revision you have in mind.
9. Over the years, television information programs have sent undercover reporters to apply for jobs or purchase automobiles and other products to determine whether women applicants/consumers are treated differently from men. The general conclusion has been that many employers and salespeople harbor negative stereotypes of women—for example, that they are less intelligent than men, less able to understand complex matters, less interested in matters of substance, and less qualified to perform work assignments that are more demanding than answering a telephone or carrying out simple tasks. Is the behavior depicted in such reports typical of society’s treatment of women, or is it a dramatic exception to the rule?
10. In recent years debate has continued, sometimes heatedly, over “family values.” The principal issues have been whether America has lost them, who has been responsible for the loss (if, indeed, there has been one), and who can best
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restore them. Many debaters seem to have taken for granted that the term itself has one meaning that everyone understands. Is their assumption warranted? Investigate and determine the meanings of “family values.” If you find significant differences in people’s definitions, build a reasonable composite, explain it thoroughly, and answer the objections critics might raise about it.
11. “What people view on television or in films can’t affect their thinking and actions,” argue many in the artistic community. Those who disagree point out that the same artistic community creates public service messages aimed at changing people’s minds about drinking and driving, having sex without condoms, and abusing the environment. These critics reason that if a medium has the power to help, it also has the power to harm, and they urge artists and programmers to take an honest look at the messages they put on the screen. Which point of view is more insightful?
12. In Asian cultures marriages traditionally have been arranged for young people. In our culture young people are free to choose their own spouses. Might it be a good idea, with our divorce rate soaring and so many families in disarray, for our culture to follow the Asian custom?
13. Since television became a major entertainment medium in the late 1940s and early 1950s, the TV commercial has become as familiar as the newspaper. Yet few people know very much about commercials. How much do they cost? Who really pays for them? What effects do they have on our lives? Would commercial-free, pay TV be more desirable?
14. Animal intelligence has been a matter of scientific interest since at least the time of Darwin. Can animals “think” in any meaningful sense of the term? Can they form categories (friend, master, my species, and so on)? Are they aware of themselves and their activities? Do they have a sense of past and future, or do they perceive only the present moment? What is the most reasonable view of such issues?
15. Interscholastic and intercollegiate sports competition is as American as apple pie. To many people the mere suggestion that these programs should be abolished is the ultimate heresy. But should they be so sacred? Where did the idea of varsity sports originate? Is it older than intramural competition? What are its good and bad points?
16. Proponents of a guaranteed annual wage argue that by giving every adult person an assured amount of money, we would not only eliminate poverty and its terrible effects but also eliminate an entire bureaucracy—the giant welfare system—and perhaps even save money. Opponents see more harmful effects. What are some of those effects? Might they outweigh the benefits?
17. Historically in this country, high school and college athletic budgets have been divided unevenly, with men’s teams getting a larger share than women’s. Many object to this unequal treatment; others believe it is justified because men’s teams traditionally have demonstrated a higher level of skill. Which view is more reasonable? What changes, if any, should be made in the distribution of funds?
18. Compulsory education is so common today that we tend to forget it is a fairly recent historical development. However, some social critics are not only aware of its recency but also convinced it is no longer a sound idea. In their view children, even as young as six or eight, should be permitted a free choice of
whether they will study or not and, if they decide to do so, of what and where they will study. Among the important questions to be considered are these: Why was compulsory education begun? Was it a good idea then? Have the social conditions changed significantly since that time?
19. Yale University’s Dr. José Delgado dramatized the effectiveness of electrical stimulation of the brain (ESB) as a means of controlling behavior. He demonstrated that by “wiring” the brain of a fighting bull and merely pushing a button that transmits an electrical charge to the animal’s brain, he can stop it in the middle of an enraged charge. He also established that repeated electrical stimulation diminishes a bull’s natural aggressiveness. Similar experiments have shown that chemical stimulation of the brain (CSB) by the strategic placement of tiny tubes of time-released substances is similarly effective. Some people believe it would be desirable to use these techniques on criminals or mental patients or students with certain impediments to learning. Others see any such use as an Orwellian nightmare. What might be the dangers of the use of such techniques on humans? Might their use be regulated to minimize abuses?
20. Some argue that the parents of students who attend private and parochial schools should be allowed to deduct tuition expenses on their federal income tax forms. For several decades advocates of the idea have argued that fairness demands it because such parents already support the public schools through taxes and must at present bear an additional financial burden for exercising free choice over their children’s education. Opponents argue that the proposal violates the principle of separation of church and state (at least in the case of parochial schools) and would harm the public school system. Which viewpoint is more reasonable?
21. The 1990s witnessed the beginning of a new phenomenon—children divorcing their parents. What possible effects could this phenomenon have on the relationship between children and parents? Between government and families? Which of these effects are most likely to occur? Are they desirable or undesirable?
22. Top executives of large corporations often earn millions of dollars a year in salaries, bonuses, and benefits while the vast majority of people who work for them earn modest wages, sometimes no more than the minimum hourly amount required by law. Some people believe that an economic system that permits such disparity to exist is wrong and should be changed. Others argue that no change is possible without stifling human initiative. How might the economic system be changed? Should it be changed?
23. Because journalists serve the important function of collecting information for public dissemination, they traditionally have claimed the right to keep their sources of information confidential, even from the courts. That claim has been challenged many times in the courts, and reporters have on occasion been held in contempt of court and sent to jail for refusing to divulge their sources. In taking such action, judges have not denied the basic principle of confidentiality; they have merely asserted that it has definite limits. Do you agree with them?
24. Some people claim that video games are harmful to young minds. Others, including some psychologists and educators, believe that, far from being harmful to children, video games are in some ways helpful. What benefits and/or drawbacks are there in video games?
25. One of the causes of the antisocial behavior so prevalent today, according to some analysts, is the fact that the old-fashioned hero has been largely replaced
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by the antihero. If the media offered more wholesome, virtuous individuals for young people to model their lives after, these analysts reason, crimes of violence would decrease. Do you agree?
26. Some believe that adults should be held financially responsible for their elderly parents when the parents are too poor or ill to care for themselves. Is this a reasonable view?
27. In the past couple of decades, student evaluations of teachers have become one common measure of teacher effectiveness. Typically, students are given an opportunity, toward the end of the term, to fill out a questionnaire and rate their teachers. The overall ratings are then compiled and become one criterion for salary raises, promotion, and tenure. Not all teachers approve of students’ evaluating them, however. Some argue that students are not trained evaluators and can too easily confuse popularity with effective teaching and punish the very teachers who are serving them best. What is your view?
28. Suppose that a single woman becomes pregnant, has the baby, and then decides to give it up for adoption. Suppose, too, that the biological father learns of her adoption decision. Under what circumstances, if any, should he be able to block the adoption and claim the baby as his own?
29. Some people argue that wealthy people have an obligation to share their riches with poor people. Do you agree? Does your answer depend on whether their wealth was honestly or dishonestly obtained (by themselves or their ancestors)? If they do have such an obligation, how should it be enforced if they choose not to honor it? Do rich countries have a similar obligation to poor countries?
30. Most computer software carries a warning against copying, yet many people feel the warning is unreasonable. They believe that if they buy a program, it is theirs to do with as they wish, and that includes giving or selling a copy to someone else. Are they right?
31. The goal of embryonic stem cell (ESC) research is to develop techniques for replacing damaged cells and thus provide hope for people with numerous diseases, particularly neurological diseases. Stem cells can be harvested in three ways: (1) from one’s own body—these cells are the most difficult to obtain but have zero chance of being rejected; (2) from umbilical cords—these cells are easier to obtain but are more likely to be rejected when used outside kinship lines; and (3) from embryos—these cells are subject to the same likelihood of rejection as those from umbilical cords. Of the three sources of stem cells, only the third is controversial. Those who oppose the use of ESCs for research argue that human life begins at conception and that therefore, an embryo is a human being whose dignity must be respected. Those who favor using ESCs in research believe that such use serves humankind and should be not only permitted but encouraged. Should the use of embryonic stem cells (ESCs) in research receive federal support?
32. Lawyers often defend clients who are guilty of the charges against them. Is this practice morally right? Does your answer depend on the seriousness of the offense? For example, would your answer be the same for driving while intoxicated as it would be for murder?
33. Assisting a person to commit suicide is against the law in most states. Should the law be changed? Why or why not?
34. Fear of contracting HIV/AIDS has caused people to behave in untypical ways. For example, many refuse to have any social contact with a friend who has
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contracted the disease. Dentists and doctors have refused to work on patients with the disease. Undertakers have refused to embalm victims. Is such behavior justifiable?
35. To some people the Asian practice of acupuncture is pure superstition; to others it produces a real anesthetic or curative effect. Which view is correct?
36. For many years it was believed that children who receive early formal education have an advantage over those who start school at age 5 or 6. Today, some educators challenge that view. They speculate that intellectual and emotional harm can result from putting very young children into structured learning situations. Which view is the more reasonable one for parents to accept?
37. The increase in violence in this country (and a number of other Western countries) in recent years has given new currency to an old issue. Are human beings naturally, instinctively aggressive, or is aggression learned behavior?
38. Many people believe that parents should be held legally responsible for the acts of their children. This would mean that whenever criminal charges are filed against a child, the parents would be listed as co-defendants. Is this a fair and reasonable approach to the problem of juvenile crime?
39. The term tenure means “permanent appointment.” Once teachers receive tenure, they can be fired only for serious cause. Tenure originally was designed to ensure that teachers would enjoy the right to teach their subject without fear of punishment for having unpopular views or taking an unorthodox approach to their subject. This right is known as “academic freedom.” Over the past few decades, the tenure system has become controversial. Those who oppose it claim that its principal feature today is no longer the guarantee of academic freedom but, instead, protection of the mediocre and the incompetent. Those who support tenure argue that the need for academic freedom has never been greater and that, far from diminishing the quality of education, tenure increases it. Does the tenure system help or hinder the process of education?
40. Some people believe that English should be declared the official language of the United States. They believe that this would encourage assimilation, foster understanding among citizens, increase citizens’ participation in democratic processes, and save resources in education and in government. Opponents of the idea argue that one’s native language is a defining characteristic of a person’s individuality and therefore that linguistic diversity should be encouraged. In their view, declaring English the official language of the United States would be an insult to everyone who speaks another language and a source of disharmony among U.S. citizens of different backgrounds. Should English be declared the official language of the United States?
NOTES:
CHAPTER 9: ERRORS OF PERSPECTIVE
1. H. L. Gee, Five Hundred Tales to Tell Again (New York: Roy Publishers/Epworth Press, 1955), p. 56.
2. David Hackett Fischer, Historians’ Fallacies: Toward a Logic of Historical Thought (New York: HarperPerennial, 1970), pp. 9–10.
3. Solomon Asch, cited in Carole Wade and Carol Tavris, Psychology, 2d ed. (New York: HarperCollins, 1990), p. 669.
4. Nat Hentoff, Speaking Freely: A Memoir (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1998).
5. Reported on Hannity & Colmes, Fox News Network, April 3, 2006.
6. Reported in George Will, Suddenly (New York: Free Press, 1992), p. 405.
7. Thomas A. Harris, I’m OK—You’re OK: A Practical Guide to Transactional Analysis (New York: Harper & Row, 1969), pp. 22–23.
8. “Anna Freud, Psychoanalyst, Dies at 86,” New York Times, October 10, 1982, p. 46.
9. Rona and Laurence Cherry, “The Horney Heresy,” New York Times Magazine, August 26, 1973, p. 12ff.
10. “Liberation Lawn,” New York Times, May 23, 1982, sec. 4, p. 11.
11. This approach was used in the 1982 California primary and reported in “Game Show Prizes Entice CA Voters,” (Oneonta, New York) Star, June 4, 1982, p. 1.
12. This idea was tested by an education researcher, Eileen Bayer. It proved successful. Fred M. Hechinger, “Grandpa Goes to Kindergarten,” New York Times, October 29, 1972, sec. 4, p. 11.
13. The Reagan administration discussed this plan and indicated it was not opposed to it. “U.S. Considering National ID Cards,” (Oneonta, New York) Star, May 21, 1982, p. 1.
14. Harry Atkins, “Football, Hockey Are X-Rated,” Binghamton (New York) Press, December 19, 1982, p. 60.