Controversial Essay About Creationism example essay topic

A controversial topic can always elicit strong opinions in a writer. With the right tools the writer may find that he or she can change the opinions of their readers. There are many tools that a writer can find success in using, such as appeals to logos, pathos, and ethos, the use of narration, refuting the opposite opinion, and comparing and contrasting the arguments. All of these techniques become very useful when trying to persuade a reader to believe in their own ideas. In Discovering Arguments: An Introduction to Critical Thinking and Writing With Readings, written and edited by Dean Memering and William Palmer, there are many chapters dedicated to making a writer understand how to use these techniques to change a reader's opinion to their own. Throughout this textbook there is a great deal of writings about many topics, one of which is the subject of Darwinism vs. Creationism, a very controversial topic indeed.

There are two articles in particular which make use of all the before mentioned forms of persuasive writing tools, "Creation Science: A Continuing Threat to Education", written by Eugenie C. Scott, and "Between God and Darwin", written by R.J. Berry. The other article, "Dr. Hovind's $250,000 Offer", written by Kent Hovind, is another controversial essay about creationism but lacks the essential writing elements to be persuasive enough to change the feelings of his readers. The first article by Kent Hovind does not persuade the reader to the extent of the other two on this topic because his essay does not include logos, the use of proper logic. In the second article, "Creation Science: A Continuing Threat to Education" by Eugenie C Scott, logos are used throughout her essay. For example, she writes, "The Kentucky parent wanted to know what she could do: the superintendent of education had recalled the fourth grade science books and glued together the pages on the Big Bang. The reason?

The books did not mention creationism as an "alternative" to science" (Scott, 137). This gives the reader hard evidence to think about while reading the article. However, Hovind's article does include weak appeals to pathos and ethos. An example of pathos is when he writes, "If you are convinced that evolution is an indisputable fact, may I suggest that you offer $250,000 for any empirical or historical evidence against the general theory of evolution" (Hovind, 137). Dr. Hovind would offer money to the reader to prove creationism wrong and he states anyone who disagrees with him should do the same. In the same article he uses ethos by saying, "It is my contention that evolutionism is a religious worldview that is not supported by science, Scripture, popular opinion, or common sense" (Hovind, 136).

This passage states his beliefs and gives the reader a sense of his morals. All of which make a reader believe the author's logic and make judgment more understanding. Narration is essential for a controversial topic essay. Anecdotes aid the reader in a better understanding of the writer's argument.

Author, Kent Hovind does not demonstrate usage of narration in his essay, "Dr. Hovind's $250,000 Offer". He gives useful, informative facts, but fails to deliver a visual story. Contrary to Hovind, author, Eugenie C. Scott uses very effective narration in the essay, "Creation Science: A Continuing Threat to Education". She describes an account of a teacher from Kansas, who helped write the Kansas Science Education Standards.

Eugenie C. Scott was later informed that some religiously conservative school board members had rewritten the standards with the help of creationists. Author, R.J. Berry, also uses narration when discussing the decision of the Kansas Board of Education to remove references to evolution from the State School curriculum in his essay, "Between God and Darwin". Through narration the reader develops a visual example of the problem the writer presents to him. Arguing by refutation can enrich your essay, and establish a more legitimate argument for the reader to understand. Hovind, in his essay, argues against evolution, but fails to support his argument with facts. Scott, on the other hand, effectively argues by refutation in his essay under subsection, Evolution Is Antireligious.

Berry states, "There is no reason a person cannot worship God and also believe Darwin was right about how the beak of finch evolved" (Berry 140). This contradicts his above-mentioned subsection, proving that evolution is in fact not antireligious. One of the most common strategies used when writing is to compare and contrast. It is extremely useful and natural; it points out and analyzes the similarities and differences in two subjects. Dr. Kent Hovind does not effectively use this technique in his essay, "Dr. Hovind's $250,000 Offer". He presents only one side of the argument without even mentioning the other ideas involved.

Hovind elaborates on why evolutionism is wrong and should be thought of as a religion, but he never goes into any detail about creationism. Dr. Hovind could have used comparing and contrasting effectively by pointing out why evolutionism is not a proven idea, and why an alternative to evolutionism is creationism. By doing this, Hovind might have convinced the readers to shift their view on evolution. Instead of offering the reader an alternative, he states that it is not proven and not to believe it. "If you are convinced that evolution is an indisputable fact, may I suggest that you offer $250,000 for any empirical or historical evidence against the general theory of evolution" (Hovind 137). Dr. Hovind does not tell us why he thinks evolution is wrong, he simply points out ways that the idea of evolution is presented and ways to prove evolution.

Eugenie C. Scott and R.J. Berry's essays are very effective, and both of them used compare and contrast as one of their strategies in writing. In Scott's Essay, he compares evolutionism and creationism and comes up with different reasons why teaching evolution and creation in school is okay. For example, he says, "we should be teaching students only good science... including evolution" (Scott 140). This way, questions the reader may think of are discussed in a way the reader can understand. Berry also writes about teaching both creationism and evolutionism in school. He also compares and contrasts the two subjects and gives explanations for his reasoning.

"Science and God, evolution and creation, aren't dueling alternatives. They " re complements" (Berry 142). Comparing and contrasting can be a very effective tool for writing when used the right way, as in Scott and Berry's essays. Strong persuasion techniques are a vital part of any essay.

All techniques used; appeals to logos, pathos, and ethos, the use of narration, refuting an argument, and comparing and contrasting, are extremely helpful in proving a writer's opinion. The use of logos helps the readers factual understand a subject, and the appeal of pathos affects the reader's emotions and gives the reader something to think about. Next, ethos shows the writer's character and gives questions about the reader's ethics. Narration includes anecdotes that help assist the reader in understanding the writer's argument visually.

The most common used strategy by a writer is comparing and contrasting. It is useful and helpful when stating similarities and differences. Kent Hovind failed to include these techniques; thus, his essay was not convincing. This goes to prove that good persuasion techniques are essential to any controversial essay.

Bibliography

Berry, R.J. "Between God and Darwin". Discovering Arguments: An Introduction to Critical Thinking and Writing With Readings. Eds. Dean Memering, and William Palmer. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2002.
140-142. Hovind, Kent. "Dr. Hovind's $250,000 Offer Formerly $10,000, Offered Since 1990".
Eds. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2002.
135-137. Scott, Eugenie C. "Creation Science: A Continuing Threat to Education". Eds. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2002.