Eng. essay need help

In his essay “Propaganda in a Democratic Society,” Aldous Huxley explains that:

[A citizen’s ability to arrive at an informed and reasoned conclusion] is much more difficult in the fields of politics and religion and ethics. Here the relevant facts often elude us. As for the meaning of the facts, that of course depends upon the particular system of ideas, in terms of which you choose to interpret them. And these are not the only difficulties that confront the rational truth-seeker. In public and in private life, it often happens that there is simply no time to collect the relevant facts or to weigh their significance. We are forced to act on insufficient evidence and by a light considerably less steady than that of logic. With the best will in the world, we cannot always be completely truthful or consistently rational. All that is in our power is to be as truthful and rational as circumstances permit us to be, and to respond as well as we can to the limited truth and imperfect reasoning offered for our consideration by others.

In an argument between 1,000 and 1,200 words, introduce your response to Aldous Huxley’s claim (above) and establish your position as a novice (or experienced) observer of national, political issues. Select an issue and introduce and sources. Does Huxley’s essay provide you with enough information to identify rational or non-rational propaganda in your sources? Using Huxley’s definitions of propaganda, examine and analyze examples from your source texts. As a novice to national politics, can you arrive at an informed and reasoned conclusion from your research? Is the information you’ve gathered enough information “to respond as well as we can to the limited truth and imperfect reasoning offered for our consideration by others”?

Keep in mind that Huxley was writing about our society in the mid 20th Century when there was no internet, cell phones, satellite communications, cable TV, or any of the instantaneous sources of media and information.

Required Sources:

• Issue statements from your Congressional Representative and Congressional Senator’s home page.

• Two opinion/editorials from major national, or local news sources. For example, The San Diego Union is the only major, local newspaper, but it would not be considered a national news organization. The paper influences local politics and local opinions about national issues, and it buys stories and commentaries from national news syndicates and newspapers. These are distinctions you need to point out in your argument.

Assumptions:

• Assume your reader has read Huxley’s essay and understands the terms “rational propaganda,” “non-rational propaganda,” and “irrelevant information.”

Essay Criteria:

• You are writing a personal argument. Review Richard Marius’ discussion about writing a good argument.

• Include a brief summary of each source that includes the main idea/argument and supporting evidence.

• Identify an example(s) of propaganda in each source and determine whether it is rational or non-rational propaganda, or irrelevant information.