argument37 欢迎拍文啊

Ocean~SprayUID: 2847693

TOPIC: ARGUMENT37 - Woven baskets characterized by a particular distinctive pattern have previously been found only in the immediate vicinity of the prehistoric village of Palea and therefore were believed to have been unique to the Palean people. Recently, however, archaeologists discovered such a "Palean" basket in Lithos, an ancient village across the Brim River from Palea. The Brim River is very deep and broad, and so the ancient Paleans could only have crossed it by boat, but there is no evidence that the Paleans had boats. And boats capable of carrying groups of people and cargo were not developed until thousands of years after the Palean people disappeared. Moreover, Paleans would have had no need to cross the river-the woods around Palea are full of nuts, berries, and small game. It follows that the so-called Palean baskets were not unique to Palea.
WORDS: 434
TIME: 00:30:00
DATE: 2010-7-20 20:21:11

In this argument, the arguer concludes that the so-called Palean baskets were not unique to Palea. To support his conclusion, he points out several evidence, facts, and discoveries. However, I doubt whether this argument is sound or not because of several logical flaws.

First and forth, the arguer claims his original opinion that the woven baskets were unique in the village of Palea because they have only been found in the immediate vicinity of Palea. The foundation lacks consideration that the baskets with characteristic may also adopted somewhere else, just the archaeologists have not discovered them. The baskets found there does not equate that they are unique there.

In addition, by stating that the Brim River is deep and broad and the Paleans could't make boats, the arguer deduced that the baskets could not be from Palea. However, his assumption that the only method to cross the deep and wide river is to take a boat is invalid. People have many various to cross a river, how can the arguer make sure that the Paleans cannot swim? It is entirely possible that the ancient people swim across the river, communicate experiences, and exchange skills. Without eliminating such possibilities, the conclusion is unreasoned.

What's more, the arguer asserts that Paleans had no need to cross the river since the woods around Palea are full of nuts, berries, and small game. Nevertheless, he fails to support that apart from eating fruits and play games, the Paleans have no other needs and reasons to go across the woods. There are many chances to cross the woods, including hunting and chasing animals, catching some fish in the river, and the like. The lack of details leads to the unpersuasive conclusion.

Finally, the author makes a mistake that the landscape remains the same after thousands of years. The Brim River is deep and wide now, but how do we know what it was like in the ancient times? What if it was merely a shallow river or even a stream that ancient people may easily cross? In this circumstance, it is likely that the woven baskets were exchanged from the other side of the river and thus they are still unique in Palea village.

To sum up, the arguer makes several logical errors, and his views are highly unacceptable. To strengthen the argument, he would have to prove that the Palea on earth were incapable to cross the Brim River and the river was as deep and broad as now. To further persuade us, he has to provide evidence that Paleans have sufficient reasons not to cross the river.