In my CTW class we had to read an article titled “Helping Students Use Textual Sources Persuasively” written by Margaret Kantz. The article discusses Kinneavy’s rhetorical triangle. This rhetorical triangle consists the Encoder, Decoder, and Reality. The Encoder is the speaker/writer (ethos), the Decoder is the audience/reader (pathos), and Reality is the topic or content (logos).

Kantz talks about the need for students to use this rhetorical triangle in creating researched arguments. In the article, she creates the example of a student named Shirley who, like many students, misunderstands and misuses sources. Kantz lists three common causes that give students difficulty in creating an original argument.

1. Many students misunderstand sources because they read them as stories.
2. Many students expect their sources to tell the truth.
3. Many students do not understand that facts are a kind of claim that can be used persuasively to create an impression.

Source: Parks and Recreation

Basically what Kantz is trying to say is that students like Shirley only know how to learn the content and find the main idea of a source which only allows them to agree or disagree. This is not enough to create a persuasive argument. Kantz believes that Shirley needs to develop a technique that allows her to say more than just agree or disagree. She needs to find a technique that will help her develop more complex understandings and representations of the text so that she can analyze and build her own original argument.

In the past, I have been a lot like Shirley. I often just restate or summarize a source rather than adding to the conversation and complicating the argument. However, after reading this article, I realize how important it is, when writing a research paper, to do more than just agree or disagree with a source. It is so important to understand the context of the sources you are reading. Kantz discusses ways for students to overcome this issues. For example, when you are reading, you should be asking yourself questions like “who is the author?”, “who is the authors intended audience?”, and “what are you saying to help me with the problem you assume I have?”. These questions will help you to better understand the source you are reading so that later on you can better analyze and then compose your argument.

What I got of this article that I think is very helpful is that when writing an argument paper, sources are meant to analyzed in a way that adds to and complicates your argument. Sources are not just meant to be summarized. As I soon begin my researched argument paper, I am going to make sure that I do not make this mistake. The most important thing to do when reading and analyzing a source is to ask yourself those questions that help you understand the role of the Encoder, Decoder, and Reality so that you can fully understand the intentions of the source.

It may seem like a lot, but if you do this your paper will be amazing!