TOW #22- "Why Slaves' Graves Matter" Argument Tow

An article in the New York Times written by Sandra Arnold brings up what may be buried underneath a playground or park that you have been to.  She explains to her audience that many burial grounds for former enslaved Americans have been covered up by new developments in towns all over the country.  In the article she argues that the country should explore ways to preserve the public memory of enslaved Americans and recognize the places that they rest.  Her argument was made effective through her appeal to pathos.  She begins her article with an anecdote about her great grandfather who was a slave buried in a location that does not even recognize or memorialize his presence.  She talks about her distant relationship with a man she never knew before she discovered his grave.  Then she reveals her change in perspective after she realized where he had been buried and how strongly she felt for this man.  The personal relationship that Arnold has with the issue allows her audience to feel sympathy for her and also gives the audience an idea of what it is like for loved ones to be simply forgotten after death.  When the audience begins to think about this in relation to their loved ones or themselves, they are more likely to agree with Arnold's argument.  The author also appeals to ethos after her anecdote.  She lets her audience know that she has deeply researched this issue so the audience know that it is actually a nation-wide problem.  The author explains that she created the "National Burial Database of Enslaved Americans" in order to account for all of the times in which slaves were buried without recognition all over the country.  This is important to her argument so that the audience can understand the issue as one that occurs all over the country and also shows that the author knows the issue well.  I completely agreed with her argument and was easily persuaded by her article because of her appeals to ethos and pathos throughout the piece.  When I think about any of my family members being completely forgotten and covered up, it makes me feel just as frustrated as Sandra Arnold was.  Also, Arnold's arrangement of ideas in her article made the argument clear and persuasive.  Introducing the topic with an anecdote gave it meaning on a personal level for the audience and also gave us a basic understanding of what she was talking about.  Then, she moves into the numbers and statistics of the issue to get her audience to understand why it is such a big problem.  This arrangement was effective to me because of the way I could understand and follow the argument.  Overall, this article was very persuasive and the author's deep connection with the topic made her argument very agreeable.