Analysis Of A First Amendment Billie By Susan Jacoby

A First Amendment Junkie’s Argument Pornography is basic human right, according to Susan Jacoby in her article “A First Amendment Junkie”. How does she present a persuasive argument? Well, a good argument requires four things to be successful; it must have logos, ethos, pathos, and a lack of rhetorical fallacies. Susan Jacoby’s argument in “A First Amendment Junkie” is considered successful by most of these standards. She appeals to the reader’s logic by giving evidence to back up her claims. She appeals to the reader’s ethics by having a knowledge of the subject and by showing fair mindedness throughout. She tries to appeal to the reader’s emotions by engaging the reader’s sense of patriotism. Not only that, her use of rhetorical fallacies is few and far in between. Susan Jacoby’s article has all the strengths of a decent argument. …show more content…
Logos is persuading one’s audience by using reasoning, such as with evidence, expert testimony, and common sense; Susan Jacoby uses every one of these to further her argument. One example is her use of the quote by Justice Hugo L. Black in which he stated “the Federal Government is without any power whatsoever under the Constitution to put any type of burden on free speech and expression of ideas of any kind (as distinguished from conduct)” (Jacoby 43). This quote is great evidence that the government supports Jacoby’s argument against controls on pornography, as it supports the “expression of ideas of any kind”. Another example is her use of polling women about their reaction to a picture in Penthouse magazine. With that, she had evidence that women’s opinions differ greatly on the vulgarity of