Stephen King's Argument Analysis

Identifying Purpose of Argument There are many different kinds of arguments in the world. Some to persuade, some to inform or convince. Arguments can leave huge impacts on people’s lives depending on the seriousness. Most arguments are healthy though, and can end up causing important events to take place. These arguments can even be found in commencement speeches. One speech that sticks out to me is Stephen King’s commencement address to the 2005 graduating class at the University of Orono. His speech was put together well and he had a few different kinds of arguments. He also used different aspects of logos, ethos, and pathos to present these arguments to the audience. The main purpose of his speech was to convince the graduates to give back

Ways he backed up his argument using this include talking about Maine’s economy and government, and giving them his informed opinion on what to do with their lives. His argument was informing them about how Maine’s economy is in need of college graduates like his audience. He mentions the numerous job opportunities Maine offers in an attempt to convince the audience to stay here. Factual evidence is used when he talks about Maine having no pollution in the air unlike other huge cities such as; New York, Los Angeles, and Denver. Someone who previously spoke to the graduates gave them a list of 10 things to do after the graduation was over and what to do in general with their lives. Since King went to Orono and became a best-selling author, his opinion on this subject is very credible and informed. One of the 10 things was to get out of Orono. He knows there aren't many opportunities in the area so he tells them to leave and make something of themselves somewhere else, at least for a little while. Appealing to logos wasn't a huge part of King’s speech, but there were still aspects to support his argument to convince the people to stay in