Gray 1 Jackie Gray Professor Alicia Bolton ENG 101 1 October 2013 Argument Gone Wrong An argument is an exchange

of diverging or opposite views. Arguments are often used in essays to address controversial ideas. A good argument must have convincing evidence, an arguable position, and rhetorical appeals. Rhetorical appeals may be logos, ethos, or pathos. Hidden Intellectualism by Gerald Graff and Anti-Intellectionalism: Why We Hate the Smart Kids by Grant Penrod both demonstrate argumentative essays. Hidden Intellectualism argues that kids are often street smart but not intellectually smart. Teachers and schools are at fault because they do not attempt to interest students that are street smart in academics by using things they can relate to. He tells a story about his childhood and how he was interested in sports. He argues his belief that if teachers would have used sports or kids other interests to make them want to learn then students would be more enthused to becoming more intellectually smart. Meanwhile, Penrods Anti-Intellectualism: Why We Hate the Smart Kids, claims that the society thinks badly of the individuals that are well educated and are our progression to the future. He gives examples of how academics are not credited enough and argues that For the sake of the smart kids, we all need to lay off a little (Penrod 757). Both Graff and Penrod provide interesting claims and adequate reasoning, but Penrods essay is a more effective argument because of its use of ethos and effectiveness of establishing a clear and arguable position.

Gray 2 First, Penrods essay, Anti-Intellectualism: Why We Hate the Smart Kids, uses ethos to help establish credibility with the readers by demonstrating knowledge of his topic. He uses quotes throughout his essay to show the hatred some people have towards intelligent students. These quotes prove his point well because they relate to his main argument: society looks down on those individuals who help it to progress, ostracizing its best and brightest (757). He gives examples of people making fun of the so called nerds and saying how much they hate them. Penrod also uses famous people such as Sammy Sosa, for example, to demonstrate uneducated success. He earned eighteen million dollars in one year and is not considered well- educated. However, not only actors, singers, and sports athletes, but even the president shows nonintellectualism. The president represents this because he had a reputation of a C average student and his public speeches do not help his intellectual image either. Penrod argues that intellectualism loses the respect it deserves because of the uneducated people involved. The use of ethos in Graffs Hidden Intellectualism is not as effective as Penrods. Graff does use ethos by giving a few examples of his main argument: kids are often street smart but not intellectually smart. He argues that teachers and schools are at fault because they do not attempt to interest street smart kids in academics using things they relate to. He uses ethos by presenting examples of his childhood, but unlike Penrods essay, he talks a little too much about himself, going on about off subject things. He talks about the neighborhood kids and trying to fit in. Although he states that he was desperate for the approval of the hoods, . . . it was not all good to be book-smart (Graff 200), he does not stick to his main argument. In this statement he makes it seem as if peer pressure had something to do with him not wanting to be book smart when it is supposed to be teachers fault. He does well in his decision to use ethos throughout his essay to prove his point; however, he does not use them the correct way.

Gray 3 Another strength of Penrods essay is his effectiveness of establishing a clear and arguable position. The beginning paragraph sets up a good argument by telling how sports get more recognition than academics. He tells a story about a high school football team winning the state championship and was rewarded with much recognition by its school and town. Then he goes on to mention that the Science Bowl Team, the Speech and Debate Team, and the Academic Decathlon Team also won the state championship that year but were not rewarded with much recognition at all. This proves his argument that smart kids are not credited as much as athletes, for example. Also establishing Penrods arguable position, he then uses other examples such as famous singers and athletes to show that they do not need an education to make millions of dollars. He states that the image presented by modern celebrities suggests that intellectualism has no ties to success and social legitimacy (755). This makes society believe that intellectualism is unimportant; therefore, academics are not rewarded correctly. Penrods use of a clear and arguable position helps his argumentative essay more effective. Like Penrod, Graff attempts to show effectiveness of establishing a clear and arguable position. Graff claims: Everyone knows some young person who is impressively street smart but does poorly in school. What a waste, we think, that one who is so intelligent about so many things in life seems unable to apply that intelligence to academic work, what doesnt occur to us, though is that schools and colleges might be at fault for missing the opportunity to tap into such street smarts and channel them into good academic work. (198) This statement Graff makes sets up a good argument for his main point; however, he does not follow it the entire essay. He then begins talking about his own childhood example and talks about smart kids not fitting in. From that example, it seems as if he uses peer pressure as an

Gray 4 excuse. This takes a change in direction and steers away from Graffs main argument, causing confusion. Although he begins by establishing a clear and arguable position, he does not follow through with his idea. In conclusion, while both essays have good positions and points, Grant Penrods AntiIntellectualism: Why We Hate the Smart Kids has a more effective argument than Gerald Graffs Hidden Intellectualism. Penrod provides better ethos and more effectiveness of establishing a clear and arguable position. As Graffs essay would be good for providing students with an example for logical fallacies, Penrods would be a good example essay for students to study arguments.

Gray 5 Works Cited Graff, Gerald. Hidden Intellectualism. They Say I Say. 2nd ed. Ed. Gerald Graff, and Cathy Birkenstein. New York: Norton, 2010. 754-757. Print. Penrod, Grant. Anti-Intellectualism: Why We Hate the Smart Kids. The Norton Field Guide to Writing with Readings and Handbook. 3rd Ed. Marilyn Moller. New York: W.W. Norton & Co., 2013. 198-205. Print.