Persuasive Essay On Dodgeball In Physical Education

Persuasive techniques, such as Ethos, Pathos, and Logos, are exceptional tools for authors to use to strengthen and support their argumentative claims. In the articles “Position on Dodgeball in Physical Education,” by The National Association for Sport and Physical Education (NASPE), and “The Weak Shall Inherit the Gym,” by Rick Reilly, both authors focus on using persuasive techniques to make claims about the relevance of dodgeball in physical education. Throughout the article “Position on Dodgeball in Physical Education”, the NASPE uses both Ethos and Logos to support their claims that dodgeball is not fit for physical education programs in schools. To begin, when outlining the basis of the article, the text states, “NASPE (National Association

Basically, this quote presents the belief that the organization, the NASPE, does not accept the notion that schools should allow dodgeball in gym classes. By saying this, the reader is shown how the author of this article leverages the credibility behind their organization and the use of authority to support their claim about dodgeball. Moreover, the use of the phrase “not an appropriate activity” forces the reader to consider the possible negatives of dodgeball since it is referred to as inappropriate. To add on, when describing the lack of students and adolescents who are active outside of school, the text states, “61.5% of children aged 9-13 years do not participate in any organized physical activity during their non-school hours and 22.6% do not engage in any free-time physical activity.” (986). This is really saying that large percentages of students do not engage in enough physical activity outside of school hours. Through the use of statistics and logic, the author suggests to readers that many students need to get adequate physical activity within school hours since they are not active outside of school.

As a counterargument, the text states that it’s good to figure out if you’re tough or not by saying, “You mean there’s weak in the world? There’s strong? Of course there is, and dodgeball is one of the first opportunities in life to figure out which one you are and how you’re going to deal with it.” (1,008). In other words, the author believes that when playing dodgeball, you figure out how you’re going to survive in the world and be tough. By explaining that, the reader starts to feel intimidated but also empowered because the use of emotional appeal in the quote helps the reader to see Reilly’s side of the argument, enforcing his claims. To support, when Reilly is posing an advantage of dodgeball, he states, “Dodgeball is one of the few times in life when you get to let out your aggressions, no questions asked. We don’t need less dodgeball in schools, we need more.” (1,010). What the author is really saying is that dodgeball is good for someone to shake off the stress of a school day and dodgeball is actually good for students in that way. Reilly is alluding to the positives of dodgeball through his emotion-provoking way of speech, causing readers to choose his side and agree with his claims. After all, Reilly clearly urges the reader that we need more, not less, dodgeball. Obviously,