Arguments And Effectiveness

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David Tamrazi Professor Nichols English 104 23 April 2012 Arguments and Effectiveness The effectiveness of an essay is based on the reader’s willingness to believe it. Controversial essays, no matter how effective, fail to be effective when readers do not wish to believe it. The matter of effectiveness is based on opinion, and the standard idea of what should be an effective essay. Furthermore, the effectiveness of an essay is based on who writes the essay. Barack Obama can write an amateur essay, yet readers are more prone to believing it than if it were written by someone unknown. The essay “A Desensitized Society Drenched in Sleaze” by Jeff Jacoby, argues X-Rated movies harm society. Jacoby argues X-rated films will desensitize and demoralize society. He explains his story of when he saw his first dirty movie, and sets a stage for the reader to refer from. “I literally couldn’t take it. I bolted the theater and tumbled down the steps” Jacoby explains. His first argument, “coming from such an environment, who wouldn’t recoil from “Cry for Cindy” or feel repelled by what it put on that screen”, is a matter of opinion. Plenty of people enjoy these kinds of movies. His second argument is, “And if a decade and a half of being exposed to this stuff can leave me jaded -- with my background, my religious schooling, my disciplined origins -- what impact does it have on kids and young adults who have never been sheltered from anything?”. The answer is, Jacoby failed the test and was the only one who became jaded. It cannot be inferred children will gain access to these things in the first place, and especially if the can become jaded like Jacoby did. Next he argues, “If sex- and violence-drenched entertainment can desensitize me, it can desensitize anyone. It can desensitize a whole society” (. Here, Jacoby is very selfish and highly arrogant. If it can desensitize
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