argument14 永不言弃小组第六次作业（补上）by 花生 1号

花生peanutUID: 2487804

14. The following appeared in a memo from the owner of Green Thumb
Gardening Center, a small business serving a suburban town.

"There is evidence that consumers are becoming more and more interested in
growing their own vegetables. A national survey conducted last month
indicated that many consumers were dissatisfied with the quality of fresh
vegetables available in supermarkets. And locally, the gardening magazine
Great Gardens has sold out at the Village News stand three months in a
row. Thus, we at Green Thumb Gardening Center can increase our profits by
greatly expanding the variety of vegetable seeds we stock for gardeners
this coming spring."

提纲：

攻击顺序：两条主线，

第一条：杂志卖的好不一定等于大家是对种菜感兴趣，即买去是为了种菜----》即使买去的人是对种菜感兴趣，即为了种菜，没提供具体销量，不能说明很多人感兴趣。

第二条：全国调查结果显示对超市菜不满意，不能说明该城郊对超市菜不满意---》即使该城郊对菜也不满意，不能说明会去种菜----》即使会去种菜，也不能说明会去买该中心的菜种子----》即使会去该中心买菜种子，不能得出扩大种类就可以盈利。

1.概念差异问题：农艺杂志卖的好，不一定说明买去的人是为了种蔬菜。（实际上农艺杂志的内容是什么，论者没有告诉我们，买这本杂志的人目的是什么，是为种菜吗？还是为了美化自己的花园去种花？如果杂志里有关种蔬菜的内容非常少，就不足以说明人们对于自己种蔬菜感趣）

即 Different concepts: One problem with the argument is that it simply equates the popularity of gardening magazine with the preference t to growing vegetables.

2. 就算买农艺杂志的人是为了种蔬菜，但是没有提供这份杂志的具体销量，不能得出很多人对种菜感兴趣。仅说它很快卖光。要知道，杂志发行量若很小的话，不需要有很多人对它感兴趣也能有这样的效果

3.全国的调查结果不能说明一个城郊地区的状况。（很有可能这份全国性的调查主要集中在大城市，被调查的人也都是住市中心的人，在那里超市可能是他们购买蔬菜的最主要途径。但这显然与一个城郊地区的特征不符，这里的人很可能比城市里的人更容易买到新鲜、好的蔬菜，而且他们也不像城市里那样依赖超市，还有杂货店甚至是农场）

即The survey lacks credibility because it was conducted in the whole country; therefore, it may be not true in the suburban town.

4.对于超市里的蔬菜不满意，也不必然带来自己种菜（这将花费人们大量的时间和精力，论断没有说这份调查是否表明不满意超市蔬菜的人都想自己种菜。）

5. 扩充种子种类不等于就会带来盈利。（如果说种类多顾客挑选余地大，更容易更多地购买，那么其中的成本问题论者没有提供。是不是具体多几种肯定会有市场的种类会更好一些？扩充种类必然会增加成本，那么相应的赢利就会被抵销）

即The author assumes that simply expanding the variety of vegetable seeds will increase profits. (costs)

6.结论：要想让人们接受他的建议，论者还需要提供关于愿意自己种蔬菜的人有多少，他们为什么这么做，并对市场有更进一步的了解，究意什么样的种类更吸引人。

TOPIC: ARGUMENT14 - The following appeared in a memo from the owner of Green Thumb Gardening Center, a small business serving a suburban town.

"There is evidence that consumers are becoming more and more interested in growing their own vegetables. A national survey conducted last month indicated that many consumers were dissatisfied with the quality of fresh vegetables available in supermarkets. And locally, the gardening magazine Great Gardens has sold out at the Village News stand three months in a row. Thus, we at Green Thumb Gardening Center can increase our profits by greatly expanding the variety of vegetable seeds we stock for gardeners this coming spring."

WORDS: 759

DATE: 2009-2-12 12:54:33

This argument is well-present, but not thoroughly well-reasoned. Through citing a national investigation on satisfaction of vegetables in supermarkets and a well-sold gardening magazine, then together with pointing out that more and more people are interesting in growing vegetables. The argument for expanding the variety of vegetable seeds stocked for gardeners this coming spring in order to increase profits seems logical. However, a careful examination of this argument would reveal how groundless the conclusion is.

First of all, one problem with the argument is that it simply equates the popularity of gardening magazine with the preference to growing vegetables. The arguer fails to provide no information about the contents of the gardening magazine Great Gardens and the people's purpose of buying this magazine. It is entirely possible that the contents in this magazine is mainly about teaching people how to grow and clip flowers or trees, rather than growing vegetables. Therefore, people may buy the magazine to grow flowers and trees in their back yard. Besides, the little contents about growing vegetables in the magazine, if so, cannot indicate that people prefer to grow vegetables.

Even if people buy the magazine for growing vegetables, the specific sales of the magazine were not provided to conclude that many people have interests in growing vegetables. The arguer only points out that the gardening magazine has sold ot at the Village News stand three months in a row. It is quite possible that Great Gardens is just a small magazine, so the number of magazine's publication may be small as well as . Thus, even though the magazine has sold out soon, the arguer cannot assume that the majority of people are interest in gardening magazine, then interest in growing vegetables.

Secondly, the national wide survey showing clear trends that many consumers were dissatisfied with the quality of fresh vegetables available in supermarkets does not necessarily apply to the suburban town. For example, perhaps the national survey is conducted in certain metropolis where the main way to buy vegetables may be in the supermarkets. However, by contrast the residents in the suburban town would be more convenient to buy vegetables. Because they can not only buy vegetables in local supermarkets where vegetables may be more flesh than in the metropolis supermarkets, but also in grocery or local farm. Residents of the suburban town probably enjoy flesh vegetables everyday while citizens in metropolis always complain the quality of vegetables in supermarkets. Therefore, the national wide trends that the argument cites amount to scant evidence suburban town residents would be dissatisfied with the quality of fresh vegetables available in supermarkets.

Thirdly, even if residents in the suburban town were dissatisfied with the quality of fresh vegetables available in local supermarkets, the arguer provides no testimony that residents would grow their own vegetables. Given growing vegetables is a time-consuming work, perhaps people in the suburban town, coerced by their busy work, were not able to afford the time to grow vegetables themselves. What's more, the national survey have not yet show that whoever dissatisfy with vegetables in supermarkets want to grow his/her own vegetables, let
alone residents in suburban town who were convenient to buy fresh vegetables would do this.

In addition, the arguer fails to consider other alternatives to increasing the profits after expanding the variety of vegetable seeds. Even if residents would grow vegetables themselves due to the dissatisfaction with vegetables in supermarkets, they may not choose to buy vegetable seeds in Green Thumb Gardening Center. In other words, they are free to buy seeds wherever seeds seem to be better; at least they think so, in the market. Expanding the variety of vegetable just means that it would increase the possibility for gardeners to choose and buy seeds, but the cost, at the same time, would increase as well as. Thus, the profits may be decreasing together with the increasing cost. Without considering the demand of the market and ruling out other alternatives to decreasing the profits, the arguer cannot give such recommendation based on these facts.

To sum up, the argument is not as convincing as it stands. In order to make it more persuasive, the owner of Green Thumb Gardening Center would better make a survey about how many people would grow vegetables themselves. Also, to better evaluate the argument, we need more information about the demand of the market and what kinds of seeds will attract more people to buy. Without a analysis of these factors, the profits would increase after expanding the variety of vegetable seeds seems unreasonable.