5. Is it not the great defect of our education today . . . that although we often succeed in teaching our pupils “subjects,” we fail lamentably on the whole in teaching them how to think: they learn everything except the art of learning. It is as though we had taught a child mechanically and by rule of thumb to play “The Harmonious Blacksmith” upon the piano, but had never taught him the scale or how to read music; so that, having memorized “The Harmonious Blacksmith,” he still had not the faintest notion how to proceed from that to tackle “The Last Rose of Summer.”

Dorothy L. Sayers, “The Lost Tools of Learning,” National Review (January 19, 1979): 91. Diagram the above arguments using both the Toulmin Model and the Co-Orientational Model of argument. Then, based on what you know, criticize each argument.

What makes it strong? What makes it weak? For example:

Capital punishment for murderers is widely supported by the general population. A Harris Poll in 1975 reported 59 percent of the public was in favor of capital punishment, and that proportion reportedly was increasing. Another poll in 1978 asked the question, “Are you in favor of the death penalty for persons convicted of murder?” The results showed 66 percent of the populace in favor of the death penalty.

Criticism These polls are very outdated. Perhaps public opinion has shifted since the 1970s. Besides, just because the public supports something does not mean that it should be favored.