Sample 0
The lecturer and the author of the article both agree that honesty is a virtue. They differ in opinion when it comes to the importance of that virtue in the grand scheme of things. The article claims that honesty must be maintained in every situation. The lecturer makes the counter argument that there are situations in which secrecy or even dishonesty are necessary for the greater good.
First of all, while the article argues that “full disclosure” is the best operating principal, the lecturer gives several examples for why that is not the case. Governments cannot always be honest with their citizen and still protect their safety. Also, sometimes new friends should wait until they get to know each other before discussing their opinions on contentious issues.
Secondly, the article’s author also makes the claim that lies are never acceptable, and that they can never be forgiven. The lecturer provides an example of a good time to lie. When a person’s feelings are at stake, as in the case of an insecure girlfriend or boyfriend, lying is often the nicest thing to do. In these cases, the lecturer argues, a lie will be more easily forgiven than cruel honesty.
While neither party believes that honesty is unimportant, the lecturer contends that sometimes there are other issues at hand. Sometimes the ends justify the means.
Sample 1
The lecturer and the writer disagree on the merits of online education. The write believes that online education is detrimental; stating that organizational issues, lack of social interaction and limited oversight will lead to a less robust education. The lecturer feels that online education is a positive revolution which will improve regulation of student progress, enhance online communication skills, and more efficiently monitor cheating.
The author believes that online course organization will differ greatly from traditional education. This will lead to problems in evaluation such as efficiently monitoring student progress, graduation rates, and student satisfaction among others. The lecturer counters this idea by claiming online courses actually provide more clear and defined tools to evaluate student progress and class engagement. The lecturer proceeds to attack another of the writer’s claims that online education limits in-person social
interaction. Instead the lecturer believes online courses enhances the web savvy of students and encourages more modern forms of communication such as email and message boards.
Lastly the writer claims that online courses allow for more dishonesty and cheating amongst students due to the inability to oversee homework and test. The lecturer disagrees and states that the internet actually controls cheaters by monitoring work environments more closely and forcing students to be more accountable. Overall the lecturer feels that online education provides many benefits to traditional education.
Sample 2
The lecturer and author disagree on the credibility of explorer Robert Peary’s expedition to the North Pole in 1909. The author claims that Peary was the first person to reach the North Pole based on verification of historical evidence provided by outside parties. The lecture sets out to discredit these institutions and paint Peary as a fame hungry liar.
The author argues that the National Geographic Society checked the evidence of Peary’s journey and concluded that his claims were true. The lecturer attempts to discredit this conclusion by attacking the credibility of the society, claiming that they consisted of Peary’s supporters who had a vested interest in verifying the expedition. Though the author discusses photographic evidence of the expedition, the lecturer goes further in stating that Peary’s original photographs were never released for independent verification. In addition he attacks the low quality of the faded photos and the loss of the original camera in attributing to unverifiable claims.
The author cites that in 2005 explorer Tom Avery took the same route as Peary using similar equipment in roughly the same amount of time. The lecturer argues that Avery took a much shorter route than Peary and had more favorable weather conditions. Overall the lecturer attack the credibility of the writer’s sources in order to disprove that Peary was the first man to the North Pole.
