八、Argument结尾段模式训练

Example 1: 上文的最后一段

Example 2:

The following appeared in a letter from a staff member in the office of admissions at Argent University.

   “The most recent nationwide surveys show that undergraduates choose their major field primarily based on their perception of job prospects in that field. At our university, economics is now the most popular major, so students must perceive this field as having the best job prospects. Therefore, we can increase our enrollment if we focus our advertising and recruiting on publicizing the accomplishments of our best-known economics professors and the success of our economics graduates in finding employment.”

Topic Sentence 1:  First, the argument is based on a gratuitous assumption that students throughout the country must perceive economics as having the best job prospects because economics is the most popular major at Argent University. 

Topic Sentence 2:  Second, the arguer overemphasizes the importance of economics major and ignores other possible factors that may contribute to the enrollment. 

Topic Sentence 3: Another assumption in short of legitimacy is the causal relationship claimed between publishing the accomplishments of Argent’s best-known economics professors as well as the success of its economics graduates in finding employment and the enrollment increase.

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（to continue）

    In conclusion, the argument is unconvincing because the arguer oversimplifies both the problem and its possible solutions. To strengthen the argument, the arguer would have to provide evidence that the economics is indeed the most attractive major for undergraduates all over the country. To better evaluate the argument, we would need more information about the present enrollment situation of both the economics field and other fields at Argent University as well as other possible effective means for promoting enrollment.

九、Argument小结

Part Two

十、是非问题例文分析

Case Study 1：

“People often complain that products are not made to last. They feet that making products that wear out fairly quickly wastes both natural and human resources. What they fail to see, however, is that such manufacturing practices keep costs down for the consumer and stimulate demand.”

    Which do you find more compelling the complaint about products that do not list or the response to it?  Explain your position using relevant reasons and/or examples drawn from your own experience, observations, or reading.

2分作文：

I find the response better than the complaint of people. The response seems to originate without much thought involved. It is more of an emotional complaint than one anchored in logic or thought. Yes, it is a waste of human resources but that is without consideration to the benefits: lower costs and stimulated demand. Thus, the response fails to recognize the benefits.

    The strength of the response is that it forces the reader to reconsider the complaint.  It adds a new dimension to the argument. It, however, fails to address the issue of wasting human resources. Does this mean the responder agrees with the notion of wasting resources.

    In all actuality both the response and complaint is ineffective. The complaint doesn’t recognize or address the benefits, like the response doesn’t address the issue of wasting resources. The response, however, does bring in a new dimension and thus weakens the argument of the complaint.

4分作文：

    I find the response to the complaint more compelling. Although the complaint is valid, it is most often the case the building a product to last forever will indeed cost more than the average consumer is willing to pay. Creating such a product would require more materials and/or more heavy-duty wear resistant materials which inherently are more expensive. Another factor that would drive costs up is the fact that demand for products would decrease. The demand would decrease since people do not have to replace old products with new products as often. With the increased variable costs for materials combined with a reduction in the production volume associated with lower demand, manufacturers must raise prices to break even or maintain the current level of profits.

    Although a few producers may make products to last, it is understandable how these companies can be driven out of existence. If a new competitor enters the market with a similar product that has a shorter life but a substantially lower price, then they will probably steal major portions of the other company's market share. The effects depend heavily upon the consumer’s perception of quality and what the customers requirements from the product actually are.

    For example, consumers may decide between two types of automobiles. One car may be built to last a long time but may not have the performance or be as comfortable as another car that is cheaper. So most consumers would purchase the cheaper car even though it may not last-as long as the heavy-duty car. Consumers may not realize that the more expensive car is of higher quality in the sense that it will last longer and will not be willing to pay the extra cost.

    Consumer decisions also depend on what consumers are actually looking for in a product. Consumers typically get tired of driving the same car for many years and want to buy new cars fairly often. This tendency forces producers to keep costs low enough to allow low enough prices for people to buy cars often. People don’t want cars to last forever.

    In conclusion, producers are in the situation that they're in due to external forces from the consumers.  Producers must compete and they have found the best way satisfy the majority of the consumers.

6分作文：

    Many people feel that products are not made to last, and correspondingly, many natural and human resources are wasted. On the other hand, it can be noted that such manufacturing practices keep costs down and hence stimulate demand. In this discussion, I shall present arguments favoring the former statement and refuting the latter statement.

    Products that are not made to last waste a great deal of natural and human resources. The exact amount of wasted natural resources depends on the specific product. For example in the automobile industry, the Yugo is the classic example of an underpriced vehicle that was not made to last. Considering that the average Yugo had (not “has” since they are no longer produced! ) a life expectancy of two years and 25, 000 miles, it was a terrible waste.

Automobile industry standards today create vehicles that are warranted for about five years and 50, 000 miles. By producing cheap Yugos that last less than half as long as most cars are warranted, the Yugo producer is wasting valuable natural resources. These same resources could be used by Ford or Toyota to produce an Escort or Tercel that will last twice as long, thereby reducing the usage of natural resources by a factor of two.

    Human resources in this example are also wasteful. On the production side, manufacturers of a poor quality automobile, like the Yugo, get no personal or profession satisfaction from the fact that their product is the worst automobile in the United States. This knowledge adversely affects the productivity of the Yugo workers.

    Conversely, the workers at the Saturn plants constantly receive positive feedback on their successful products. Saturn prides itself with its reputation for quality and innovation as is seen in its recent massive recall to fix a defect. This recall was handled so well that Saturn's image was actually bolstered. Had a recall occurred at a Yugo plant, the bad situation would have become even worse.

    Another factor in the human resources area is the reaction by the consumer.  A great deal of human resources have been wasted by Yugo owners waiting for the dreaded tow truck to show up to haul away the Yugo carcass. Any vehicle owner who is uncertain of his/her vehicle's performance at 7 AM as he/she is about to drive to work, senses a great deal of despair.  This is a great waste of human resources for the consumer.

    While the consumer senses the waste of natural and human resources in a poor quality product, so does the manufacturer. People who argue that low quality manufacturing processes keep costs low for the consumer and hence stimulate demand should look at the Yugo example. In the mid-1998’s the Yugo was by far the cheapest car in the United States at $ 3995. By 1991, the Yugo was no longer sold here and was synonymous with the word “lemon.”

Case Study 2：

“The best way to give advice to other people is to find out what they want and then advise them how to attain it.”

Discuss the extent to which you agree or disagree with the opinion expressed above. Support your point of view with reasons and/or examples from your own experiences, observations, or reading.

Student Essay

   When I was in Senior Middle School, I was an excellent student. And all my teachers believed that I would enter into a first-class university and would have a splendid future. Unfortunately, just before the Entrance Examination, l met an accident and laid down in bed for several months. At last, I was only admitted by a second-class university. With great disappointment, I felt that my future was nothing but darkness. And also I was afraid of being blamed by my patents.

   Mother saw through my thoughts. She borrowed several instructive books for me and seldom mentioned the exams. For the first time, my parents asked for several days off and took me to Qingdao--the most famous scenic spot of China --for vacation. Along the seaside, Mother talked with me for many times. I can still clearly remember what she said: “The ways to success are different. If you keep positive and make efforts continuously, I believe that you will be no less excellent than those from first-class universities.”  At last, eternity? Ask yourself what are you going to be in the future. Try your best, and you will reach your goal. "

For so many years, Mother' s words seems to have inscribed in my heart and lead me to gain successes one after another. From this personal experience, I fully understand and agree that the best way to give advice to other people is to find out what they want and then advise them how to attain it.

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Revised Essay

   What is the best way to give advice to other people? The arguer claims that the best way is to find out what other people want and then advise them how to attain it. While I admit that many people do give advice by catering to other people’s desires, I maintain that this method oversimplifies the issue and often proves both harmful and ineffective.

   In the first place, people very often have no clear idea of what they really want. My personal experience is a case in point. When I was in Senior Middle School, I was an excellent student. Moreover, all my teachers believed that I would enter a first-class university and would have a splendid future. Unfortunately, just before the Entrance Examination, I had an accident and had to lie in bed for several months. As a result, I was admitted only by a second-class university, which pushed me to the brink of despair. At this decisive moment of my life, my mother came to my rescue. By recommending to me instructive books on life, by talking with me heart to heart, by taking me on a trip to the beach, mother convinced me that the goal of my life was to live a successful and happy life rather than to go to a famous university, and that the ways to success are various. In this way my mother saved me out of the crisis of my life not simply by finding out what I wanted and then advising me how to attain it, but by patiently enlightening me on the essential meaning and purpose of life, making me realize that what I took for granted as my aim of life was not what I really needed.

   In the second place, more often than not what people want is not what is best for them. A naive child may want to quit school; a patient suffering from TB may want to smoke; a jobless young man may want to commit suicide----this list can go on and on. In all these situations, should we simply find out what they want and advise them how to attain it? Obviously not.

  Admittedly, it would be unwise to ignore the simple fact that people are different.  As we know, excessive interference with other people’s life tends to threaten their freedom and independence, causing hostility and confrontation. Therefore, when offering advice to other people, we should be very sensitive to their unique feelings and desires, knowing that individual human beings have the inalienable right to make choices in their life and that they themselves will be responsible for the results of their decision-making.

   In conclusion, I do not agree that the best way to advise people is simply to find out what they desire and help them achieve it. In my estimation, the pitfalls of such a technique outweigh its potential advantages. To be a responsible advisor, we should take into account far more intricate factors relevant to the person to be advised.

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