Today we are looking at arguments vs. explanations. In WLTC the authors state that arguments are persuasive and explanations provide information. When one looks at North Africa, one reporter I heard on KPFA last night said that the revolutions are rolling along (smile). In Libya the president is killing protesters, at least that's what we are hearing in the corporate media. Does this remind any of you of other cases in recent history where citizens esp. dissidents were massacred?
Look at two viewpoints on what the Libyan president is doing. Find an article where the writer uses mostly explanation and an another case where the opposite is true. Discuss in a freewrite the differences between the two. Do the audiences decide the approach to the writing task?
Compare to the writers in Exercise 3-F (pp. 72-75).
Post your responses here. Keep it to 250-300 words. Use paraphrase and direct citations in your commentary.
Here are a couple of sites with articles to consider:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12570279
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/af_libya;_ylt=AjzVatcX.aXWWI8tSm_6Rmqs0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTM4bGVwZ2I3BGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMTEwMjI0L2FmX2xpYnlhBGNjb2RlA21vc3Rwb3B1bGFyBGNwb3MDMQRwb3MDMgRwdANob21lX2Nva2UEc2VjA3luX3RvcF9zdG9yeQRzbGsDZ2FkaGFmaWZvcmNl
The first article is from BBC. It is about Ghaddafi arguing that Bin Laden is to blame for the unrest in Libya. The second is a report from the Associated Press. AP is usually a neutral(neither conservative or liberal) informative source.
Here are some other cites I visited. I found the interview with President Ghaddafi really interesting: http://blogs.aljazeera.net/africa/2011/02/23/live-blog-libya-feb-24
http://news.ph.msn.com/top-stories/article.aspx?cp-documentid=4666840
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20110221/wl_mideast_afp/libyapoliticsunrestfatwa_20110221212046
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/7543550.cms?prtpage=1
http://english.aljazeera.net/category/person/moamer-kadhafi
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Sandahl von Sydow
ReplyDeleteProfessor Sabir
English 5
February 24, 2011
An article on from BBC reports that Colonel Ghadafi is pinning the blame for Libya’s unrest on Osama Bin Laden. In the article, Ghadafi claims that “This is your country and it is up to you how to deal with it.” He states that “young people were being duped with drugs and alcohol to take part in "destruction and sabotage”.” The article doesn’t say he gives evidence to his conclusion. In fact there seem to be evidence to the contrary. BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner states in the article that blaming the uprising on al-Qaeda is a “cheap shot” since Islamist fundamentalist groups have been largely passive in the protests in the Middle East.
The chaos in Libya has had a very real effect on oil prices. This week oil prices hit $100 a barrel. The worst consequence of the protests have been the death tolls caused by Ghadafi’s desperate bid to quell the insurgency. As of the time this article was written, it is estimated that between seven hundred and one thousand people have been killed. Many foreigners are trying to flee the country. “Briton Helena Sheehan, arriving back in London, said: "The airport is like nothing I've ever seen in my whole life. It's absolute chaos. There's just thousands and thousands of people trying to get out.".”
Reference
"BBC News - Libya: Gaddafi Blames Osama Bin Laden for Protests." BBC - Homepage. 24 Feb. 2011. Web. 24 Feb. 2011. .
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110224/ap_on_re_af/af_libya
ReplyDeletein this particular article there are both arguments and explanations, some examples ofarguements in these are: that the cause of these uprisings are the fault of osama bin laden and that the youth are taking hallucinogenic pills that they consume in their Nescafe. That the youth are loyal to bin laden and there is no other cause for the uprising except bin laden. Finally that there were a number of confiscated documants, cell phones, and passports of eygptian rebels that were trying to help the revolt in lybia.
Some of the explanations are: that there are armed raiding parties that are going house to house to remove the protesters liquidating oppents of Gadhafi. The U.N. is considering a no fly zone over the country to protect and equalize the protesters. Finally, that the crackdown by Gadhafi’s men have helped him keep control of certain areas of the country.
This article mostly dealt with explanations.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12570279
this article is more argument based due to the fact that a lot of the reporting can not be confirmed until the unrest settles. There is also a lot to do with Gadfahi ‘s own veiws and his need to express the cause of this uprising.
Andre Tom
ReplyDeleteProfessor Sabir
English 5
2/23/11
Obviously the two articles are countries apart, literally and figuratively. In the BBC article, much more emphasis is put on chance guessing and quotes from a delusional military official, probably a bit to sway the audience a bit more. Most of the general public in America that will read the AP article will be indifferent anyway.
Sophia De Claro
ReplyDeleteProfessor Sabir
English 5
24 February 2011
Cyber free write:
I found an article on what is happening in Lybia. The people are blaming Osama bin Laden, saying he has been brain washing kids to misbehave.They are taking advantage of the young age of these people because they are not legally liable for punishment. They are also saying that they are giving youth hallucinogens, and they are complaining how the queen of England has been ruling longer than him (Moammar Gadhafi) and no one is asking her to step down.
The second article I found is that army units and militiamen loyal to Moammar Gadhafi struck back Thursday against Libyans who have risen up in cities close to the capital, attacking a mosque where many were holding an anti-government sit-in and battling others who seized control of an airport. Medical officials said 15 people were killed in the clashes.
Many of these articles are all from facts or from what the person writing knows. These two articles are different from one another because one is telling the readers about the military and the other is telling the readers about the people.
Ocean Beverly
ReplyDelete24, Feb 2011
Prof. Sabir
English 5
Often in the media writers and authors will project their personal opinion on their views, but there are many sources or articles that simply relay information for a non bias point of view. In the first article that I seen on bbc.co.uk Gadhafi was speaking about Bin Laden and the influence that his regime has had if the Libyan people. He is speaking with out a lot of emotion and depth and presenting his personal opinion as facts. He used his voice as an attention grabber and to capitates his audience. Although I am not the must aware of the Libyan situation I do believe that anytime you change from one dictator to the next the circumstances with not change much. Oppression is oppression. Gadhif’s argument is debatable; I believe that he as well as Bin Laden are to blame for the oppression in Libya. Democracy might now be the answer for everyone just like, what’s good for the goose is not always good for the gander, but people should have freedom by any means necessary. On the fox news site, the situation of the people is a little more explained. There’s also been a video posted showing some Libyans feeding the violence on their home land. Their explaining their situation and drawing you in to want to know more. On fox it also includes the affects that this conflict has on American society; I believe that this will make America become less dependent on foreign oil and foreign goods. And hopeful make us more aware of our position in conflicts around the world.
Andrea Giang
ReplyDeleteProfessor Sabir
English 5
24 February 2011
In the article in BBC News, the author focused on Col Muammar Gaddafi and how he blames Osama bin Laden for the turmoil in his country. He believes that young Libyans are influenced by Bin Laden and that it was up to their parents to control them, saying that “many of the protesters were underage and beyond the reach of the law.” This article focused more on Gaddafi’s reaction and response to the chaos. He is unwilling to admit that he did anything wrong even though his justice minister and his ambassador to Jordan have resigned and are urging him to step down.
In the article from the Associated Press, the author focused more on the fighting and the Libyan protestors rather than just on Gaddafi. The article mentioned the casualties at the airport due to a fight between the antigovernment side and the pro-government militiamen. The author also tells readers that “Gaddafi’s crackdown has so far helped him maintain control of Tripoli , home to about a third of Libya 's 6 million population.” This article includes more facts and statistics to support what they are saying, allowing readers to have a better understanding of what is happening.
I think when reading an argument, the writer’s stance is usually clear, and it is not up to the audience to decide where the writer stands in his or her writing. An argument usually takes one side of an issue and is supported by evidence. However, audiences know that there is another side to the argument. In exercise 3F, the writers take a side and show their opinions in their article, trying to persuade their audience to see their points. But the audience does not necessarily have to agree with what the writers’ believe.
Citations
“Libya: Gaddafi blames Osama Bin Laden for protests.” BBC News Africa. BBC News, 24 February 2011. Web. 24 February 2011.
El Deeb, Sarah and Scheem, Paul. “Gadhafi forces strike back at Libya uprising.” Yahoo News. Associated Press, 24 February 2011. Web. 24 February 2011.
Frena Zamudio
ReplyDeleteProfessor Sabir
English 5
27 February 2011
Freewrite:
I read an article talking about how Osama bin Laden is the main cause of the protests in Libya. The Libyan leader says that children/young people in his country were being duped with drugs and alcohol to contribute with the destruction and sabotage, the drugs and alcohol were given by bin Laden. They said that bin Laden decided to use young people because they if they get caught, the government/enforcers will not give them cruel punishments because that would be against the law.
I also read an article, a live blog in Libya, it is very informative and interesting to read because it consists of events every hour in Libya, like what has been going on for the past 24 hours, starting from the morning of February 24 until night of that same day, full of details and pictures, make people want to read more, great article along with interviews on different people. It is just sad seeing those sad, crazy pictures, I feel bad for the people there, so depressing at the same time I admire them for their braveness with handling this kind of situation.