Rebutal of "Against Love"

Laura Kipnis is the author of the piece "Against Love." In this piece she questions whether love really is as good as society says it is. She states facts and reasons to support her thesis that love is too highly looked upon in society.

Laura Kipnis claims that love especially in the historical times, for example 17th and 18th century, had no role in the union of a couple when two families chose their child’s spouse. Economic and politics played more of a role than love did. And though this is partially true that people of historical times were often forced into marriage not out of love but for money and power, love sometimes grew from these arranged marriages. We see that many of the people married through arranged marriages often grew a connection with their spouse after a while and this connection was love. This love was a spiritual and physical bond between both people that they mutually shared, which is what people of in today society believe love to be. So in fact people though technically not bound by love at first did find love in their unions later on.

Laura Kipnis also goes on to state facts that support her claims that love is not what it is said to be. For example she states the fact fifty percent of all people that marry will divorce. And she connects this rate of divorce to the rise of love as the emotional center of expression. She says that the due to society love is seen as “a state of couple permanence… uncoupling is experienced as crisis or inadequacy.” But if this image of love is a permanent coupling of two people then if those who divorce or have affairs with other people, are they really experiencing love? Love is a permanent coupling of two people, yet they do not feel this coupling or connection with their spouse. Obviously they are not in love.

She then lists reason why love is nearly unachievable. She talks about how mutuality plays a large role in love. She says that in order for couple to live with each other and to function as a couple they must “be willing to jettison whatever aspects of individuality might prove irritating while being simultaneously allowed to retain enough individuality to feel their autonomy is not being sacrificed.” But people must do this all the time for people like friends and family. Everyone has personal quarks that maybe irritating to others. And these quarks if they are irritating may be bad habits that ought to be lost. Why would you want to keep bad habbits? They should be replaced with a better and healthier habbits. She also goes on to add that love is hard to achieve because there is a long list of rules that consist of a dreaded word known as “can’t.” She lists many rules that she had obtained from interviews she had conducted. But in all reality many rules for society are often rules that are written as negatives. For example the commandments: thou shall “not” kill, thou shall “not” covet thighs neighbors’ wife, thou shall not take God’s name in vein, etc. Rules are made in the negative to show what should not be done so that you and others can live happily. Though love may have many rules containing the word “can’t” it is to help attain the happiness of both spouses.

Laura Kipnis questioning of whether love is really equal to the standards society has placed upon it is quite solid. She makes great points about how people of historical times married for money and power, many people claiming to be in love often divorce, and love consist of many negative rules. But she neglects other points like people in marriages in 1700s often found love in their arranged marriages in their later years. Or how these divorced couples may have not actually experienced love. Or love, consisting of negative rules, is to benefit both spouses for a happier and healthier relationship.

Outline on Rhetoric

I. An Example of Rhetoric From Literrature

• Rhetoric is not limited to just non-fiction but can be used in multiple types of writings like: poetry, drama, and fiction.
• Homer's story "The Illiad" is a great example of the use of rhetoric. In the story "The Illiad," Priam, the father of the dead prince of Troy, tries to get his son's body back from Achilles. Using rhetoric he manages to sway Achilles to return the body to him.
• Priam uses ethos to portray himself as a father figure who has reached an old age, relating himself to Achilles' father. He then uses pathos and uses his elderly age to evoke a sense of sorrow from Achilles for his loss (his son). Finally he uses logos by reminding him that he should he heed to the gods and return the body.

II. Arrangement

• How the text is organized can greatly effect the way the readers is affected by the speech or text. One way is classical model which consist of a five part structure.

Classical Model:

• Introduction or exordium (latin: beginning a web) is when the reader is introduced to the subject. The introduction is also used to draw the interst of the reader.
• Narration or narratio is where the author can lay the background information pertaining to the subject. The level of detail can vary due to the audience's knowledge on the subject. The narration often draws upon pathos because it evokes an emotional response on the thesis.
• Confrimation or confirmatio is the "major part of the text" (page 14) where details to make the author's point is given.
• Reutation or refutatio discusses the counter arguements and it is a way for the author to link the author's proof and conclusion.
• Conclusion or peroratio is one or multiple paragraphs that brings the essay to a conclusion. The conclusion unites all of the ideas and answers in the essay. It often appeals to pathos and reiterates the ethos established in the essay. In essence the conclusion is what the reader will most likely remember the most.
• The classical model can be seen in use in the piece written by Sandra Day O' Connor on the need to improve upon education for students to improve the youths' understanding in literature, math, government, and citizenship.
• In the introduction she uses two (that's right this time I actually wrote out the number) paragraphs to establish thesis. In the introduction she uses ethos to show that she is a reasonable person and a concerned citizen. And the use of words like "Fierce global competittion" shows an urgency, which draws the reader.
• In the next three paragraphs or the narration, she just lays out the back ground information relating to the subject. This part is mostly appealing to logos; although she does use words like "a healthy democracy" to draw upon the emotions of the reader.
• Paragraphs 7 to 12 was the "confirmation" which gave support for the thesis.
• Paragraph 13 is used to discuss any counter arguments.
• And the final paragraph or the conclusion appeals to pathos through the use of a very emotional description.

Patterns of Developement

• Another method to arrange the writing is according to purpose. For example is the purpose to comapre and contrast, to narrate an event, to define a term.
• Narration can be used to organize your writing. Narrations can be based off prior experiences or knowledge. Chronology dictates narration giving it concrete details, a point of view, and sometime dialogue.
• Description which is similar to narration is a depiction of how something looks, sounds, smells, tastes, or feels. It is used to convey the mood. Description rarely used in an entire essay but it is used to make a persuasive argument.
• Process Analysis is the explanation of the workings of a system. Self help books are books written entirely as process analysis. The key to process analysis is to explain "a subject clearly and logically, with transitions that mark the sequence of major steps, stages, or phases of the process."
• Exemplification is a group of examples such as facts, specific cases, or instances. Aristotle said that examples are proofs that are called induction.
• Comparison and Contrast is the juxtaposing of two things that bring to light the similarities and differences.
• Classification and division is organization of a writing into major categories that maybe given to you or categories that you must create for a group of things.
• Definition is the definingof important terms that relate to the thesis. It is the first step in a debate or disagreement.
• Cause and Effect are often powerful foundations for an arguement. If you are analyzing something it is important to make a chain of causes and effects and to see the contributing factors.

The o so Rhetorical Darcy

Ethos

"You have said quite enough, madam. I perfectly comprehend your feelings, and hove now only to be ashamed of what my own have been. Forgive me for having taken up so much of your time, and accept my best wishes for your health and happiness."

Logos

"And this is your opinion of me! This the estimation in which hold me! I thank you for explaining it so fully. My faults, according to this calculation, are heavy indeed! But perhapsthese offenses might have been over looked, had not your pride been hurt by my honest confession of the scruples that had long prevented my forming any serious design. These bitter accusations might have been suppressed, had I with greater policy concealed my stuggles, and flattered you into the belief of my being impelled by unqulified, unalloyed inclination; by reason, by reflection, by everything. But disguise of every shot is my abhorrence. Nor am I ashamed of the feeling I related. They were natural and just. Could you expect me to rejoice in the inferiority of your connections? To congratulate myself on the hope of relations whose condition in life is so decidedly beneath my own?"

Pathos

"In vain have I struggled. It will not do. My feelings will not be repressed. You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you."

The Art of Rhetoric

Ethos

Ghandi one of the most influential men in history was not only known for his peaceful protests but he was known for his famous speeches with the use of Ethos. They had great morals and character that he wanted all of his people to have in their move to independence.

Logos

Benjamin Franklin, one of the founding fathers of our nation was a great speaker. He gave short speeches that contained logos. These speeches were very logical and powerful which helped unite a nation.

Pathos

Jesus one of the greatest orators of all time was an expert on the use of pathos in his speeches. He used metaphors that portrayed good morals and lessons creating one of the largest religions known in history.

Comparison of Fast Food Nation and The Great Gatsby

There are many parallels and differences between "Fast Food Nation" and "The Great Gatsby." Some differences between "Fast Food Nation" and "The Great Gatsby" is that Fast Food Nation is a Non-Fiction while the Great Gatsby is a Fiction book. Also "The Great Gatsby" is written as a book narrated from somebody looking on the past; while "Fast Food Nation" was written as a factual documentation. Some parallels among both stories is that they both show a moral corruption present in our society. For example in "The Great Gatsby" we see corruption in Gatsby dream, which was Daisy. He held Daisy upon high standards that she did not even come close to fulfilling. This forshadows the corruption of what people strived for in the 1920s. While in "Fast Food Nation" the author draws us to the conclusion of how fast food restaurants have become corrupt by use of minimum wage, anti labor unions, and lack of benefits for employess.

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