Heymann's Expository Essay

My opposition to torture fall under the beliefs of the absolutist Kant, who states that no matter what the circumstance is, something that is wrong will always be wrong (Boothe 2006, 12). Therefore, concerning the issue of torture, in this world or any other world, torture is immoral. In this paper, I will employ the ethical frameworks of virtue, rights, and fairness to argue against torture when viewed from the perspective of the victim, the torturer, and any outside source. Furthermore, I will dismantle the ticking-bomb scenario by deducing the incapability to achieve full certainty deeming these scenarios unrealistic.

Pathos is used as an appeal to emotion, often to gain an audience’s investment for a specific purpose. Animal shelter advertisements, car commercials, and even magazines use this method to attract an audience and pull them in by their heartstrings. Rebecca Skloot’s contemporary biography The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks is no different, utilizing this method to maintain the audience’s attention and emotional investment in the story.

While analyzing “The Torture Myth” and “The Case for Torture”, it is very clear to see the type of rhetorical appeals used to persuade the audience. Anne Applebaum, the writer of “The Torture Myth” --in context of the decision of electing a new Attorney General--would argue that torture is very seldomly effective, violates a person’s rights, and should be outlawed due to the irrational need upon which physical torture is used. On the other hand, Michael Levin strongly argues that physical torture is crucial to solving every imminent danger to civilians. Levin claims that if you don’t physically torture someone, you are being weak and want to allow innocent people to die over something that could have been simply done.

In Michael Levin’s “The Case for Torture”, he uses many cases of emotional appeal to persuade the reader that torture is necessary in extreme cases. There are many terms/statements that stick with the reader throughout the essay so that they will have more attachment to what is being said. Levin is particularly leaning to an audience based in the United States because he uses an allusion to reference an event that happened within the states and will better relate to the people that were impacted by it. The emotional appeals used in this essay are used for the purpose of persuading the reader to agree that in extreme instances torture is necessary and the United States should begin considering it as a tactic for future cases of extremity.

“The case for torture” happens to be a notable work of Michael Levin, a philosophy professor of City University of New York. In many of his works, Levin has emphasized on philosophical aspects associated with science, logic and language. In the essay “The case for torture” the author tried to examine various circumstances to come to a conclusion that would indicate whether torture can be perceived as “just” in certain cases.

Mahatma Gandhi, the preeminent leader of the Indian independence movement states “You can chain me, you can torture me, you can even destroy this body, but you will never imprison my mind.” This is important because torture is brutal on the body and mind. The article “Torture’s Terrible Toll” by John McCain is more convincing then the article “The Case for Torture” by Michael Levin because McCain provides more logical reasoning, he adds his own personal experience of being a captured prisoner during the Vietnam War, and he creates an emotional bond with people around the world.

To quote Wilson Bentley, “No two snowflakes are alike.” Similarly no two articles or writings are alike. Every author has his or her own unique style and tone. Some authors make use of divine diction while others focus on sensational syntax. Furthermore no two articles are equal in content or caliber, theme or message, vocabulary or devices. With this in mind, Mr. Grant, I have determined based upon their individual writings how to divide up the $5000 between Michael Levin, Mike Ryoko, Marcia Clarke, and John F. Kennedy. All author displayed exceptional writing and made valid points. However, Michael Levin’s “The Case For Torture” is far and away the best essay among these authors and warrants a bonus of ___. In second comes John F. Kennedy’s inaugural speech earning a bonus of ____. Third is Marcia Clarke’s “Selling Your Organs: Should it be Legal? Do you own yourself?” with ____. Finally Mike Lyoko earns ___, for “A Noble Sacrifice for the right to bear AK-47s.”

There’s a Golden rule in society that states “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” Unfortunately, daily rudeness is on the rise, so much so there seems to be a revised Golden Rule: “Do unto others…whatever you think you can get away with.” According to the article in the Los Angeles Times by Anthony Russo, he explains to the Los Angeles readers that we are rude because “we are living in societies too big for our brains.” In his article he begins with a pathos appeal to present his argument, then briefly transitions to ethos to support his argument and, closes with logos as he discusses the resolve and its effects it could have on society.

In the article “Ignoring the Ignorant”, Henry I Miller effectively persuades the members of the executive branch of the federal government on the serious threat that ignorance poses to society when it is allowed to influence public policy. The author makes a strong case that conveys the message that ignorance poses a serious threat to scientific, social and economic development when it is allowed to drive public policy by using a concession and rhetorical strategies such as Satire, Ethos, Pathos, and Logos.

ever Wondered on how to get someone's attention? Maybe persuade them to listen to every single detail and give them another another perspective of the situation.

In 2017, many women began to come forward about sexual abuse and misconduct. Multiple Hollywood stars have been accused of some sort of sexual abuse or misconduct in the past year, including Harvey Weinstein. Weinstein is a big time Hollywood star that has been known to have a temper. Other Hollywood stars such as Angelina Jolie, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Rose McGowan, have all spoken out against Weinstein. An article by Janine Rubenstein that was published in People magazine tells of these horrifying events. Even though the article is more of an informative piece, Rubenstein’s credibility, appeal to pathos, strong logos, and choice of design elements all illustrate the rhetorical effectiveness of the article.

In Michael Levin's The Case for Torture, Levin provides an argument in which he discusses the significance of inflicting torture to perpetrators as a way of punishment. In his argument, he dispenses a critical approach into what he believes justifies torture in certain situations. Torture is assumed to be banned in our culture and the thought of it takes society back to the brutal ages. He argues that societies that are enlightened reject torture and the authoritative figure that engage in its application risk the displeasure of the United States. In his perspective, he provides instances in which wrongdoers put the lives of innocent people at risk and discusses the aspect of death and idealism. The author believes that the thoughts of enlightened societies are unwise and ascertains that there are situations whereby torture becomes morally mandatory in dealing with terrorists.

“Brown Note” Myth Busters. Discovery channel. Artarmon 16 Feb. 2005. Television. In this episode they test one way of torture. It was more based on mental resistance as it didn’t inflict physical pain. It shows that one mental health has a lot to do with how effective torture is. Somebody who is used to stress should be able to resist longer than somebody who isn’t.

In Christopher Hitchens, “Believe Me, Its Torture”, Hitchens describes his experience with waterboarding with the purpose of convincing society that this practice is indeed a torturous punishment. The maltreatment practice of “waterboarding” has been controversial for many years; therefore, in order to convince the audience that waterboarding is torturous, Christopher Hitchens undergoes this practice not only once, but twice. The author uses his personal experience to illustrate the mental, physical, and emotional stress he goes through during the process. In Christopher Hitchens, “Believe Me, Its Torture”, Hitchens effectively uses pathos and logos as well as many different rhetorical strategies to persuade society that waterboarding is not acceptable; that it is cruel and unusual punishment.

Torture is universally prohibited in both national and International law worldwide. It is a fundamental violation of human rights that cannot be derogated from. Essentially, torture is said to constitute any physical and mental act by which severe pain or suffering is intentionally inflicted upon a person ( UNCAT).Torture is mainly used for purposes that are set out to degraded, embarrass, and induce destruction in the person being subjected to torture and those in close relation to the person being tortured .Torture is a mechanism used by those in authoritative positions to preserve themselves in power (Power, 2006:2). Despite the universal prohibition on torture, its use has been widespread throughout history, and especially of late in the wake of September 11 2001 and other recent terrorist atrocities to combat the aforementioned heinous terrorist attacks. Torture is a topic that has come under intense scrutiny and debate regarding whether there are any circumstances in which it should be employed, and if its is absolute legal ban should not be protected and respected.