Chapter 16:

The focus on this chapter is evidence. It talks about the importance of relevance in a rhetorical situation, and how big of a factor this can be. Using data or facts that are outdated for example is not a good way to gain ethos or kairos in an argument. There are two types of ways to get evidence, or research firsthand and secondhand.


Firsthand evidence or research:

• observations
• interviews
• surveys/questionares
• experiments
• personal experience

Secondhand evidence or research:

• library sources
• online sources 

Something important to keep in mind when conduction research or gathering evidence is to make sure that your sources are credible. For example, Wikipedia is not always the best source because it can be edited by anyone. also making sure that the sources are up to date is important because like I said earlier, out of date information can ruin your credibility or kairos. Another thing to keep in mind is the audience. Setting up evidence in a way that works with your argument while also is understanding to the listener or reader is very crucial.

 When I think of evidence, the first thing that comes to mind is court. This is a big place of evidence and it must be chosen carefully and wisely. Evidence in a trial can be life or death for someone. I have never been on trial so I can't exactly relate to this, but I have seen enough CSI and have a grandpa who was a judge and two lawyer uncles. Because of this, I know that evidence is extremely important. 

Ch. 13: Style and Presentation in Arguments

This chapter describes and explains the different ways of styling an argument. 
A classical orator showed that arguments can be broken down into three different categories. 

1. High (formal and ornate)
2. Middle (understated but clear)
3. Low (everyday or humorous) 

These categories can be defined by many different factors. Small changes or tweaks to an argument can change the entire meaning. It can make it stronger, or weaker. Some as follows:

• Font choice
• Sentence Structure
• Word Choice
• Punctuation?
• Style and design

Something I thought was interesting was the section about figures of speech. Figures of speech were described as something that "differs from the ordinary." It is said that any word really could be argued one way or another, so technically everything is a figure of speech right? Not quite. Figures of speech have an obvious double meaning. For example, the book uses "smile factory" as a description of Disneyland. This is saying that many smiles are "manufactured" there. Another example of a figure of speech that is very common is "it's raining cats and dogs." Now this does really mean that cats and dogs are falling out of the sky, it is an exaggeration for more dramatic effect. Using a phrase like these can alter someone's argument because it makes the comparison or argument more memorable and strong. There are two types of figures of Speech:

1. Tropes: change in the meaning of a word
2. Schemes: a special arrangement of a word

This can be relevant to real life in many ways. It is useful when talking in a casual (low) way to say a close friend. This could be describing a crazy event, or explaining why your choice of something was better. Also in a formal argumentative essay trying to convince your teacher your position is the one to take. Using a figure of speech can be a way to show seriousness and even exaggeration. It can also be a way to make an audience relate to what is being argued by using a memorable descriptions.