Engaging in argumentation is a difficult thing that most people do not know how to do. The problem is that most people who dont know how to argue well believe that they argue well. Its like someone who thinks that they sing well when in fact they sing very poorly: its difficult to convince them otherwise!

If were going to be critical thinkers, we have to be rational thinkers. Being rational means, in part, being able to support your beliefs with adequate reasons for their truth.

This essay exercise is to get you to see what an argument looks like and how you should strive to argue for your own beliefs. I will present an argument whose conclusion you may or may not agree with. It doesnt matter – the point of this exercise is for you to think about arguments and see how they are constructed.

Short Essay Assignment

Answer the following short essay questions.

1. The death penalty is punishment of death, executed by a government institution, of an individual that was legally found guilty of a heinous crime. State your position on the issue of whether or not the death penalty should be implemented. Next, provide your reasons to support your position.
2. Read the following essay: <death penalty essay>. Next answer the following questions:
  a. Explain in your own words how argument from the essay you just read. Dont look back – just do it as best you can from memory, as if you were explaining it to a friend.
  b. What struck you about the essay you just read about the death penalty?
  c. Did you find the argument itself powerfully constructed? Why or why not?
  d. What are your thoughts about your own argument compared to the argument that was given in the essay you just read?