Lesson 5

Respond to either photo of President Bush on p. 145 of Writing Arguments by telling what the argument is. Write a thesis statement for the photograph's argument. How did you figure out the claim being made?





On page 145 of Writing Arguments there are two pictures of President Bush. One is a picture of him clearing brush from a Texas ranch, and the other is one of him greeting a crowd. I will respond to the one of him in Figure 9.2.


The argument being made is that President Bush isn't afraid of getting his hands dirty. In the picture he's wearing a dirty and stained t-shirt and jeans, and he's wearing a cowboy hat and sunglasses to protect him from the sun. His hands are gloved because what he's carrying has the potential to hurt him. The set of his mouth gives the impression that the physical labor is difficult. The thesis of this picture is that President Bush is human and is a hard worker.


It seems that we forget that famous people are still human. They brush their teeth, they need at least 8 hours of sleep, they have "blonde moments" (and I'm allowed to say that because I am a blonde, so don't take offense if you're blonde), and like the picture states, they can perform difficult tasks.





Find another graphic, commercial, or video to analyze. Report on the argument being made. Attach a copy of the graphic element or explain how to find or view the graphic. Write a strong thesis statement for this argument.



In this photo, an anorexic is looking at her reflection in the mirror. The girl is quite thin, in fact she's malnourished and her bones are protruding, and yet she still sees herself as overweight. The picture may seem silly, but unfortunately it's not an uncommon conception.
Recent statistics show that

• Anorexia is the third most common chronic illness among adolescents.
  
• 40 – 60% of high school girls diet.
  
• 50% of girls between the ages of 13 and 15 believe they are overweight.
  
• 80% of 13 year old girls have dieted.
  
• 40% of 9 year old girls dieted.
  

The thesis for this photo is that anorexics have a skewed image of themselves. Instead of seeing themselves as unique and beautiful, when they look in the mirror they see something they hate. People should focus more on being healthy than being thin. That's not to say that trying to lose weight is always a bad thing, being too heavy puts a lot of stress on the heart and joints. But people who are trying to lose weight should look at a reasonable, healthy weight level, and should develop a health plan including proper nutrition and excercise.