ANALYSIS OF A PERSUASIVE TEXT Tarihmen, year 12 (work sheet)

1- Identify the author's main strategy of persuasion  _____________________

2- Describe the argumentative structure in the text following this strategy 

A successive negative ________________ and positive ___________________ is used in this text

PART 1 (ll ....- ….) Negative …………………….of technology optimism vs technology pessimism

* Influential scientists < > quit their career (ll. 4-5)

* Social ills < > ………………………… (l. 6)

* Science fiction < > ……………………. ( l. 15)

* ………………………… < > And in fact it‘s going to be even worse ( ll. 14/15)

…………………….. words such as

* getting serious < > go rogue (l. 1-2)

* robots/technology < > …………………, jobless (l. 11)

* bleak < > …………….. (l. 10)

* ………………….. < > dangerous, doom humanity (l. 13)

* advances < > ……………………. , atom bomb (l. 13-14)

resulting in a negative conclusion (dim point of view, dangers of technology, humanity under threat,
paranoia as towards the atom bomb)
Part 2 ( ll. …. – ….) Positive ……………………. of the past vs. the present

* While there always have been and always will be those who fear technology < > most of the time
technology has inspired optimism (ll. 20-21)

Positive images such as

* set imaginations afire (l. 22)
* ……………………………. (l. 23)
* celebrated automation (l. ….)
* ………………………………. (l. ….)
* …………………………… (l. ….)
* …………………………… (l. ….)
* ……………………………… (l. ….)
* ……………………………….. (l. ….)
* hope, ……………………………. (l. ….)

resulting in a positive conclusion (got people excited, hopeful, joyful, the good guys)

Part 3 ( ll. …. – ….) Negative ………………………… of the past vs. the present

* Negative words such as AI is hurting ( l. 33)

* Negative content such as  unemployment, ………………………………..,

………………………………………., contradiction between knowledge and handiwork,
………………………………….. ( ll. 33–38)

* Negative exemplifying… (ll. …. - ….)

* Negative description of the present and the future prospect

……………………………………………........................................................................ (ll. …. - ….)

resulting in a negative conclusion (mood change to the negative, AI damaging people economically,
unemployment as advancing danger, stagnating wages, widening gap between the rich and the poor, AI
replacing brainwork successfully, only few people becoming rich and sharing it with only few people)
Part 4 (ll. …. - ….) Positive ………………………… of the past vs. the present-future

another change to optimism in places in the text such as 

* doomsayers might be horrendously wrong (l. 46)

* modified crops can support … 8 billion (l. ….)

* ………………………………………< > suppresses middle class earnings. (ll. …. - ….)

* free stuff < > ……………………………………….. (ll. …. - ….)

resulting in a positive conclusion (likeliness of the pessimists' false predictions, most probable necessity of
new technologies in order to face the growing demands of our growing world, clues on new technologies'
contribution to the enhancement of standards of living despite negative financial consequences for the middle-
class, availability and affordability of new technologies for everybody and appraisement of the things
achievable with their help)
STYLE:

STYLISTIC TECHNIQUE NR. 1- _____________________ style on language and content levels as

the major stylistic technique of the author / examples from the text: see above

STYLISTIC TECHNIQUE NR. 2- _____________________ style / examples from the text:

"At an outdoor café on a sunny day in NYC, I sat across the table from Kentaro Toyama…" (ll. 3-4)

"_______________________________________________________________________" (ll. … - …)
STYLISTIC TECHNIQUE NR. 3- ______________________ & _____________________ style /
examples from the text:
"…a Silicon Valley Software guy recently published the bleak Rise of the Robots: Technology and the
Threat of a Jobless Future." (ll. 10-11)
"…Look at history: In 1851 … like stores and travel agents." (ll. 22-28)
"…The mood changed within the past year or so: … far fewer employees. (ll. 32-39)

STYLISTIC TECHNIQUE NR. 4- ____________________ style / examples from the text:

"…career technologists go rogue" (ll. 1-2);
"…as shocking as if a cat published a book called Why Dogs Are Better." (ll. … - …);
"…____________________________________________________________________" (ll. … - …);
"… ____________________________________________________________________" (ll. … - …);
"…____________________________________________________________________" (ll. … - …);
"…____________________________________________________________________" (ll. … - …);
"… _________________________________________________________________________"(l. …);
"…______________________________________________________________________(ll. … - …)

IMPACT ON THE READER:

STYLISTIC TECHNIQUE NR. 1- stimulates ____________making and ____________ building /
can have a ____________ effect / can ___________ the pensiveness (Nachdenklichkeit) of the reader.
STYLISTIC TECHNIQUE NR. 2- raises _____________________ during the reading process.
STYLISTIC TECHNIQUE NR. 3- raises the degree of visualization (with the help of
______________ _________________) / ________________ the issue in hand on the readers‘ minds.
STYLISTIC TECHNIQUE NR. 4- can ____________________ the plot more for the reader.
Notenstufe gut 

analysis mainly focused on contrasting features, the argumentative structure most of the time correctly
identified (see above: structure), the author's style widely seen through and documented thoroughly (see
above: style) with apt line reference; the impact of the contrasting aspects on the reader described often in a
detailed way (see above: impact on the reader). The text is well structured. Quotation rules have been almost
continuously and correctly applied.