Exploring Controversial Issues: Extending, Complicating, Qualifying, Challenging, and Illustrating Arguments
Dive into various controversial topics, from celebrity controversies to social issues like Black Lives Matter and abortion. Explore the central arguments around Batman as a superhero and the importance of media literacy in today's digital age, discussing the extension, complication, qualification, challenge, and illustration of different viewpoints.
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EXTEND, COMPLICATE, QUALIFY, CHALLENGE, ILLUSTRATE Tuesday , 10/6
TUESDAY, 10/6 Please pass your Annotated Bibliographies to the front of the class. Controversial Issues you wrote about. Batman, Boyd and Extending, Complicating, Qualifying, Challenging and Illustrating arguments. Video. In-class activity. BRIEF Body Paragraph Structure Overview/Example. Homework.
CONTROVERSIAL TOPICS YOU WROTE ABOUT Kylie Jenner (celebrities and online harassment/judgement) Adoption for gay couples Black Lives Matter (Sandra Bland/police brutality) Defending The Patriots in DeflateGate Abortion (pro-life and pro-choice) Legalizing Marijuana De-forestation Caitlin Jenner winning over Noah Galloway for Arthur Ashe Courage Award. Mt. Soledad Cross Jail System corruption/mistreatment of the mentally ill Gender Identity Disorder Poaching endangered animals Date rape prevention nail polish GMOs Gay Marriage The Bullet Train in California Tougher Sentencing in Juvenile Hall Pro-plastic surgery
THE ARGUMENT OR MAIN CLAIM We begin with a simple argument or claim from our original text (source 1). Claim from source 1: Batman is the best superhero ever depicted in popular literature because he relies on intelligence instead of super powers. Film adaptations help establish his superiority. Use Source 1 to develop & analyze this claim. How can we do this with Boyd? What is Boyd s argument/main claim? And then we put it in conversation with other texts claims.
EXTEND Claims (from Additional Source) that extend do the following: they advance or extend the claims (from source 1). They work together in the same direction, but go farther than either could go alone. Main claim from (Source 1) is that Batman is the best superhero because he uses his brain instead of superpowers, and the movie depictions help establish his superiority. Example that extends: Additional Source claims that the movie depictions of Batman and Bruce Wayne establish him as more likeable than other superheroes. This is the how part: Orphan Vigilante but one with a heart Reviles killing Good-looking actors
BOYDS ARGUMENT/MAIN CLAIM Boyd argues (Source 1): Both adults and youth need to develop media literacy and technological skills to be active participants in our information society (198). Additional Source that extends : What responsibility do educators/engineers/companies play in empowering people to be active participants in our information society? What role does brain chemistry play in how people interact with digital media? What specific challenges influence and reinforce digital inequality? What are the repercussions of digital illiteracy? These claims are what They Say/I Say classifies as Yes responses because they agree with Boyd and take her argument further. They are agreeing with a difference that makes them unique.
COMPLICATE Claims (from Additional Source) that complicate claims (from source 1) introduce information that is at odds with or contradicts the information in claims from the first source. Example from Additional Source : Because the Batsuits look so ridiculous, no criminal would ever be afraid of Batman. How intelligent can he be if he dresses like this?
BACK TO BOYDS PIECE Boyd argues (Source 1): Today s youth don t know as much as adults assume they do about technology; adults need to support them to learn media literacy. Additional Source that complicates: If most adults are digitally illiterate themselves, how are they supposed to fully support students in learning digital literacy? If companies are primarily interested in making a profit, what motivation do they have in encouraging digital literacy? Perhaps policy makers need to step in to make a change. If the majority of employees that work for digital companies are white and male, what are we teaching the youth of today by re-enforcing the importance of this biased and under-presented pool of information? These claims contradict Boyd s Argument/Main Claim, and are what They Say/I Say classifies as a No response for that reason.
QUALIFY Claims (from Additional Source) that qualify do the following: they limit the scope or extent of the main argument/claim (from source 1). They suggest that the author of the original (Source 1) claim went too far in his/her assertion. Main claim from (Source 1) is that Batman is the best superhero and that film adaptations help cement this theory. Qualifying claim: Not all of the film adaptation were successful: Batman is intelligent and appealing in only a few of the movies; in others, he s the butt of jokes.
BACK TO BOYD Boyd argues (Source 1): It is more and more important that youth learn how to critically evaluate media (which is increasingly hard to navigate). Additional Source that qualifies: While digital literacy is a key skill for youth to develop in evaluating online media, Boyd fails to fully explore the responsibly companies share in manipulating online information. These claims limit Boyd s Argument/Main Claim, and is what They Say/I Say classifies as an Okay, but rhetorical move.
CHALLENGE Claims (from Additional Source) that challenge disagree outright with the main argument/claim (from source 1). They suggest that the author of the original (Source 1) claim is just wrong. Main claim from (Source 1) is that Batman is the best superhero and that film adaptations help cement this theory. Example of Challenging Claims from Additional Source : The use of the term superhero requires the presence of superpowers thus, Batman is not even a superhero. Batman films depict a brooding, sulky, anti-hero bent on revenge and should not be part of the superhero canon.
CHALLENGE CLAIM FROM ADDITIONAL SOURCE: SUPERMAN IS THE ONLY TRUE SUPERHERO.
BACK TO BOYD Boyd argues (Source 1): It is more and more important that youth learn how to critically evaluate media (which is increasingly hard to navigate). Additional Source that challenges: Digital literacy is not an integral skill for today s youth. Basic critical thinking skills that are learned the old fashioned way are most important. This claim contradicts Boyd s whole argument, and is what They Say/I Say classifies as a No response for that reason.
ILLUSTRATE YOUR POSITION Claims (from Additional Source) that illustrate give additional examples and/or evidence that correspond to a given argument. These claims also Extend the claim in question. Examples that illustrate: Additional Source illustrates that many characters good and bad in Gotham are normal people without superpowers: Joker, Catwoman, Robin, Riddler, etc. Additional Source demonstrates how Bruce Wayne s intelligence enables him to devise cool gadgets and toys. Additional Source exemplifies mass appeal of Batman by showing sales reports of all Batman-related merchandise, in contrast with some other superhero.
Illustrate the Counter-Argument: Additional Source revealsSuperman s supremacy if the two were to ever fight it out but that would never happen, right?
BACK TO BOYD. Additional Source illustrates the importance of digital literacy with personal stories from actual students Additional Source explicates the debate between lobbyists on both sides in Congress (consumer rights vs. big business rights) Additional Source illuminates the lack of diversity in most digital media companies.
CHALLENGING THE CONVERSATION Batman is cool, if you re into Good over Evil Superman is cool, if you like your superheroes square...
CHALLENGING THE CONVERSATION Choose a thesis for your own paper that you can subscribe to or be prepared to do some mental gymnastics which is, of course, much more impressive. Research topics that appeal to you: How race, gender and/or socio-economics factor into digital literacy/digital inequality. How psychology factors into digital behavior. How capitalism influences access to information/representation. How digital media/technology is affecting youth for the worse. Digital Literacy and issues in public education.
SELECT A VIDEO TO ANALYZE 1. Gun control with John Oliver: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mVuspKSjfgA 2. Is College Worth it? With the Vlog brothers (John): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_N7MAr98CI 3. Psychology behind popular memes with CGP Grey (loosely related to Boyd): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rE3j_RHkqJc 4. Gender Violence with Jackson Katz (TED talk 20min): http://www.ted.com/talks/jackson_katz_violence_against_women_it_s_a_men_s_i ssue
IN-CLASS ACTIVITY Take notes on the video. To the best of your ability, write down (on a separate sheet of paper with your name) what you identify as the core ideas/support for the argument presented: think about P.A.C.E.S. (Project, Argument, Claims, Evidence, Strategies). Break up into 5 groups of 4 or 5 people. Extend, Complicate, Qualify, Challenge, Illustrate the main argument/claims in one or two sentences (use your imagination).
BODY PARAGRAPH STRUCTURE Topic Main claim or Sub-claim from Boyd s text. Quote Boyd. Outside Source Author, short bio, title of work. Action illustrate, extend, complicate, challenge or qualify. Quote correct citation, no more than 4 lines (2 lines of analysis for every 1 line of quote). Analysis Consider and explain what the connection is, illustrate HOW they are connected in that way, and discuss the significance of their connection (the WHY). What evidence does each author provide to back up their point? *ANALYSIS IS KEY You should have several paragraphs interpreting evidence/claims/connections from each outside source (6-8 pages total).
Additionally, Boyd argues that Wikipedia is a beneficial instrument for seeking knowledge, primarily for educators. Boyds frame of thinking goes against the popular conception that Wikipedia is damaging because it operates as a platform that encapsulates inaccurate information. Her argument is quite radical in the face of popular beliefs because she argues that Wikipedia is a valuable source for crowd sourcing information. Boyd explains, Wikipedia can be a phenomenal educational tool, but few educators I met knew how to use it constructively (188). Similar to Boyd s sentiment on the use of Wikipedia, the biologist and science journalist from Harvard University, John Bohannon, extends Boyd s claim that Wikipedia is actually an important resource that educators can utilize. In his article, Google Books, Wikipedia, and the Future of Culturomics, Bohannon asserts that, Several efforts are under way to improve Wikipedia as a teaching and research tool, including one by the Association for Psychological Science (135). Bohannon describes a meeting with scholars at the American Historical Association where the discussion regarding the effective use of Wikipedia as an educational tool surfaced. Not only does Bohannon support Boyd in regards to the educational use of Wikipedia and the limited knowledge teachers have about its effectiveness in the classroom, but he goes beyond his argument by showing how psychologists and experts in the sciences plan to apply Wikipedia to their educational efforts. Such an action will not only put Wikipedia to educational use, but it will elucidate educators from all areas on the effectiveness of using Wikipedia as an educational device.
HOMEWORK Re-read Boyd s chapter and fill out an Argument Map for Boyd s text as well as a separate Argument Map for at least one of your three outside sources (bring to class Thursday 10/8). Extension on Essay #2 Due Date
