1. Review completed by:
jwood1
[jwood1]
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Uncle Sam And Aunt Samantha
It's Simple Fairness:
Women As Well As Men Should Be Required To Register For The Draft
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By Anna Quindlen | NEWSWEEK
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From the magazine issue dated Nov 5, 2001
One out of every five new recruits in the United States military is female. The Marines gave the
Combat Action Ribbon for service in the Persian Gulf to 23 women. Two female soldiers were
killed in the bombing of the USS Cole.
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The Selective Service registers for the draft all male citizens between the ages of 18 and 25.
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What's wrong with this picture?
As Americans read and realize that the lives of most women in this country are as different
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from those of Afghan women as a Cunard cruise is from maximum-security lockdown, there has
nonetheless been little attention paid to one persistent gender inequity in U.S. public policy. An
astonishing anachronism, really: while women are represented today in virtually all fields,
including the armed forces, only men are required to register for the military draft that would
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be used in the event of a national-security crisis.
Since the nation is as close to such a crisis as it has been in more than 60 years, it's a good
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moment to consider how the draft wound up in this particular time warp. It's not the time warp
of the Taliban, certainly, stuck in the worst part of the 13th century, forbidding women to
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attend school or hold jobs or even reveal their arms, forcing them into sex and marriage. Our
own time warp is several decades old. The last time the draft was considered seriously was 20
2. Uncle Sam And Aunt
Samantha
intro, thesis Despite the
Nineteenth Amendment being
ratified nearly a century ago
and women making various
social advances since, subtle
sexism still exists in the
United States. In Newsweek
magazine, award-winning
author, Anna Quindlen wrote
an article entitled "Uncle Sam
and Aunt Samantha", arguing
that women being required to
enlist in the draft is "simple
fairness." Quindlen believes
the law that only men are
required to register for a
military draft is not only unfair
to women, but men also.
Although Quindlen develops a
strong historical background
and even a personal tie with
this controversial issue, her
argument is weakened and
thus ineffective due to her
lack of current and cited facts
and evidence. [sydkerre]
3. Anna Quindlen
author info, person Anna
Qunidlen is an American
author who a column for the
New York Times, Public and
Private, won a Pulitzer Prize
in 1992. She was a full time
novelist and reporter for the
New York Post. The fact that
Quindlen has won a very
prestigious literary prize gives
her a lot of credibility.
[sydkerre]
years ago, when registration with the Selective Service was restored by Jimmy Carter after the
Soviet invasion of, yep, Afghanistan. The president, as well as the Army chief of staff, asked at
the time for the registration of women as well as men.
[note continued from right margin...]
have no way of determining whether or not they are creditable. In addition,
Qunidlen is an award winning author, and starting an article with a bunch of
statistics is a really easy way to do it and very cliche. [sydkerre]
6. What's wrong with this picture?
tricky Qunidlen asks her audience a rhetorical question. This is a really
good way to connect with her audience, because as a reader, you are
automatically asking yourself the same question. She does this to make the
reader think that there is something wrong with those statistics, even if you
are reading it and think there isn't. [sydkerre]
7. those of Afghan women as a Cunard...
Quindlen is using a simile to make a connection. It is a well known fact that
Afghan women are treated differently than American women, but Quindlen
wants to further illuminate this fact by comparing it to something most people
know about (a cruise if different from a lockdown because you are free to do
what you want). This makes the statement stand out more, which makes
sense because it is one of the basis' of her argument. [sydkerre]
-1-
4. Nov 5, 2001
The date has a lot to do with
the context of this essay; it
was about two months after
the 9/11 incident. It makes
sense that she would write
about this since war was in
the minds of a lot of citizens
during this time. [sydkerre]
5. One out of every five new
recruits...
logos Quindlen lists several
statistics here that would help
her argument, however she
gives no sources. It would
help her if she was somehow
famous in the military or help
some strong background, but
she doesn't. This use of logos
hurts her argument because if
the reader has no way of
knowing the sources, they
8. An astonishing anachronism, really:...
thesis This sentence is the thesis. She doesn't explicitly state
here that she believes women should be a part of the draft,
but it is implied from the title and preceding paragraph. She is
trying to make it look like it doesn't make sense that women
aren't represented in the draft, an extension oh her rhetorical
question. [sydkerre]
9. draft wound up in this particular...
Subclaim #1: her first point is that America is stuck in a time
warp, and people still believe that women should not be
required to fight, something she doesn't understand. She feels
that requiring women to enlist is eliminating all sources of
sexism. [sydkerre]
10. forcing them into sex and marriage.
bad, \, logos Quindlen is going back to her evidence about
Afghan women. She is trying to reveal how they don't have a
lot of simple freedoms, but it is irrelevant logic in this essay
because the US women in the draft has almost nothing to do
with Afghan women. Also, this is bad logic because it is not
necessarily true. It is a common act of Americans to throw all
Afghan women into this idea that they live a horrible life of
oppression and unhappiness, which is not necessarily true.
[sydkerre]
- 1 (cont) -
Amid a welter of arguments--women interfere with esprit de corps, women don't have the
physical strength, women prisoners could be sexually assaulted, women soldiers would distract
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male soldiers from their mission--Congress shot down the notion of gender-blind registration.
So did the Supreme Court, ruling that since women were forbidden to serve in combat positions
1. arguments--women
interfere with...
pathos, anger This is one of
her refutations. She is listing
several stereotypes about
women, and things that would
lead to them being
discriminated against. This is
pathos because she is
imposing emotion; anger. She
lists them all in a row to
convey her anger. [sydkerre]
and the purpose of the draft was to create a combat-ready force, it made sense not to register
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them.
But that was then, and this is now. Women have indeed served in combat positions, in the
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Balkans and the Middle East. More than 40,000 managed to serve in the Persian Gulf without
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destroying unit cohesion or failing because of upper-body strength. Some are even now taking
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out targets in Afghanistan from fighter jets, and apparently without any male soldier's falling
prey to some predicted excess of chivalry or lust.
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Talk about cognitive dissonance. All these military personnel, male and female alike, have come
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of age at a time when a significant level of parity was taken for granted. Yet they are supposed
to accept that only males will be required to defend their country in a time of national
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emergency. This is insulting to men. And it is insulting to women. Caroline Forell, an expert on
women's legal rights and a professor at the University of Oregon School of Law, puts it bluntly:
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"Failing to require this of women makes us lesser citizens."
Neither the left nor the right has been particularly inclined to consider this issue judiciously.
Many feminists came from the antiwar movement and have let their distaste for the military in
general and the draft in particular mute their response. In 1980 NOW released a resolution that
buried support for the registration of women beneath opposition to the draft, despite the fact
2. mission--Congress shot
down the...
logos, bad, history
Quindlen gives a massive
historical background, which
feeds into her logos appeal.
However, I find this relatively
innefective because the
audience doesn't need to
know this to be convinced.
Yes, a historical background
is important, but not multiple
paragraphs on it. It seems like
she is just using it as a filler to
make her argument look
longer and better than it
actually it. [sydkerre]
3. More than 40,000
managed to serve...
stat, not cited, ethos, logos,
bad A statistic without a
citation, something very
common in this article. Where
did Quindlen get this
information? The reader has
no idea, which not only
makes her logos invalid, it
also hurts her credibility
because she could literally be
making this up or messing
with numbers. [sydkerre]
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that the draft had been redesigned to eliminate the vexing inequities of Vietnam, when the
sons of the working class served and the sons of the Ivy League did not. Conservatives,
meanwhile, used an equal-opportunity draft as the linchpin of opposition to the Equal Rights
Amendment, along with the terrifying specter of unisex bathrooms. (I have seen the urinal, and
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it is benign.) The legislative director of the right-wing group Concerned Women for America
[note continued from right margin...]
saying they are not distracted by women. Overall, her sarcastic tone hurts her
credibility. [sydkerre]
6. Talk about cognitive dissonance.
random, interesting This phrase I had to look up, and about.com defined it
as the internal struggle of holding two conflicting beliefs. The two conflicting
beliefs here are that women have fought for years to be socially, politically,
and economically equal with men, yes the fact that women aren't required to
register for the draft goes completely against that. [sydkerre]
7. parity
"Parity" means equality, and I am not 100% sure what she is talking about
here. Most people that are on the front lines are relatively young, so she is
saying that these women have always experienced gender equality, but they
don't in the army. [sydkerre]
8. This is insulting to men. And it...
subclaim, 2 Subclaim #2. Qunidlen believes that women not being required
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4. destroying unit cohesion
or failing...
Qui ndlen is standing up for
women, and also including
some of her concession here.
It is a little sarcastic, but she
stated earlier that people
thought women couldn't be on
the front lines because they
lacked upper body strength,
when evidently they didn't in
all the years they fought in the
war. The only downside to
this is that there is no source
listed. [sydkerre]
5. apparently
ethos, tone, sarcasm
"apparently" is used
sarcastically here. Her goal is
to help women, but she is
being rude to previous
statements. Conversely, she
is doing men a favor by
to enlist in the draft is not only an insult to them, but also to
men. This subclaim would be good, but she doesn't support it
or say why it's insulting to men. [sydkerre]
9. Caroline Forell, an expert on women's...
logos, ethos, how, why Claps for Quindlen! This is the one
and only asset of her argument that actually includes a
source. She says that this women, an "expert" says that
failing to require this of women makes us lesser citizens, and
my question is HOW?? It does not explain how in it's
paragraph, nor in the next paragraph. To make her argument
better, I think Quindlen definitely should have included how
this makes women lesser citizens, because coming from a
completely unbiased point of view, I don't see how.
[sydkerre]
10. In 1980 NOW released a resolution...
Quindlen uses this historical fact to show that women are
often times against war, and that might be why they are not
required to fight. Even though NOW advocated for women's
rights, they didn't want women fighting. [sydkerre]
11. terrifying specter of unisex bathrooms....
Qunidlen uses sarcasm here to make a connection with the
audience and be funny. She is saying that there isn't much of
a difference between men and women, and people need to
stop viewing them so differently. [sydkerre]
- 2 (cont) -
once defended the existing regulations by saying that most women "don't want to be included
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in the draft." All those young men who went to Canada during Vietnam and those who today
register with fear and trembling in the face of the Trade Center devastation might be amazed to
1. women "don't want to be
included...
source??, bad, logic, no
Hurt her logical appeal and
her ethos appeal due to the
lack of a source here. She is
throwing in some quotation
marks and not saying where
she got this quote.
[sydkerre]
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discover that lack of desire is an affirmative defense.
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Parents face a series of unique new challenges in this more egalitarian world, not the least of
which would be sending a daughter off to war. But parents all over this country are doing that
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right now, with daughters who enlisted; some have even expressed surprise that young
women, in this day and age, are not required to register alongside their brothers and friends.
While all involved in this debate over the years have invoked the assumed opposition of the
people, even 10 years ago more than half of all Americans polled believed women should be
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made eligible for the draft. Besides, this is not about comfort but about fairness. My son has to
register with the Selective Service this year, and if his sister does not when she turns 18, it
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makes a mockery not only of the standards of this household but of the standards of this
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nation.
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It is possible in Afghanistan for women to be treated like little more than fecund pack animals
precisely because gender fear and ignorance and hatred have been codified and permitted to
hold sway. In this country, largely because of the concerted efforts of those allied with the
women's movement over a century of struggle, much of that bigotry has been beaten back,
2. lack of desire is an
affirmative...
Quindlen keeps a good
balance of advocating for
both women and men in her
argument. It is true that most
women do not have the
desire to fight, while more
men do. Here, she is saying
that she really doesn't care
about that and that women
should be required to
anyways. This makes her
male audience agree with her
more. [sydkerre]
3. Parents face a series of
unique...
pathos, parents, kids
Qunidlen is trying to make a
connection with someone in
this essay, so she turns to the
softest of all, parents. Talking
to parents about what is best
for their kids with surely
trigger emotion,so this
paragraph is Qunidlen's (only)
pathos appeal. [sydkerre]
even buried. Yet in improbable places the creaky old ways surface, the ways suggesting that we
women were made of finer stuff. The finer stuff was usually porcelain, decorative and on the
shelf, suitable for meals and show. Happily, the finer stuff has been transmuted into the right
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stuff. But with rights come responsibilities, as teachers like to tell their students. This is a
responsibility that should fall equally upon all, male and female alike. If the empirical evidence
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is considered rationally, if the decision is divested of outmoded stereotypes, that's the only
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possible conclusion to be reached.
Find this article at http://www.newsweek.com/id/76320
© 2001
[note continued from right margin...]
that someone did. [sydkerre]
6. fairness. My son has to register...
weak, 3, subclaim Subclaim #3. She is saying how it is a disgrace in family
and American values to not enlist in the military, which is less of a fact and
more of an opinion, making this subclaim particularly weak. [sydkerre]
7. the standards of this household
Honestly, I think this hurts Qunidlen's credibility because it's honestly kind of
mean. She is trying to build the connection with the parents, but she just
sounds like a strict, super conservative NRA mom who won't accept her
daughter if she decides not to enlist in the military draft. [sydkerre]
8. fecund pack animals
rude I get that she is trying to speak figuratively and all, but I just think this is
rude. Not only to afghan women, but also to men. Not all men are horrible to
afghan women, like I said before, it's a common misconception. I just think
calling someone an animal, even in their defense, would hurt her credibility
-3-
4. some have even
expressed
logic, bad, some, no
"Some"???? who is some???
Quindlen falls into her pattern
of not citing sources, and now
not even specifying who she
is talking about exactly. She
is using "some" to build
credibility on her argument,
when it is infact doing the
exact opposite because know
one knows whos he is talking
about, and for all we know
she could be making it up.
[sydkerre]
5. even 10 years ago more
than half...
logic, bad, history,
source?? A would-be-goodstatistic, but no source is
included so it's just about
worthless. Also, 10 years ago
was fresh after the 9/11
attacks, so it makes sense
that the majority of US
citizens had war and revenge
on their mind, and really didn't
care about who fought, just
because it just sounds rude/ [sydkerre]
9. surface, the ways suggesting that...
stuff, why Honestly, these few sentences are just stupid.
First off, it doesn't even make sense. Why would a
professional writer use the word "stuff" in a persuasive essay?
It sounds really unprofessional. She could have used such
simple diction to relate with her audience, but it does the
opposite because I read this at least five times and I still have
no idea what she is trying to say. It also doesn't fit in with the
literary style in the rest of the essay. [sydkerre]
10. If the empirical evidence is considered...
arrogant "empirical evidence"???? what eimprical evidence?
Certainly not something found in this essay because there is
literally nothing here that would convince anyone of anything.
This hurts Quindlen's credibility also because she is talking up
her own essay, and sounds arrogant. [sydkerre]
11. conclusion to be reached.
conclusion Quindlen presents a very interesting argument
promoting women to fight for the "simple fairness" to be
required to enlist in the draft. Although she does back up her
claims with a lot of historical information, it is irrelevant and
does not help her case. Her subclaims are weak because
they lack information, and her ethical appeals more often than
not backfire, making her sound less credible despite her
credentials. Due to a disorganized and evidence-lacking
argument, Qunidlen's essay is ineffective. [sydkerre]
- 3 (cont) -