ARGUMENT140 【Aero小组】第9次作业

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TOPIC: ARGUMENT140 - The following appeared in a report of the Committee on Faculty Promotions and Salaries at Elm City University.

"During her seventeen years as a professor of botany, Professor Thomas has proved herself to be well worth her annual salary of $50,000. Her classes are among the largest at the university, demonstrating her popularity among students. Moreover, the money she has brought to the university in research grants has exceeded her salary in each of the last two years. Therefore, in consideration of Professor Thomas' demonstrated teaching and research abilities, we recommend that she receive a $10,000 raise and a promotion to Department Chairperson; without such a raise and promotion, we fear that Professor Thomas will leave Elm City University for another college."
WORDS: 311(362)          TIME: 00:27:00          DATE: 2008-1-25 16:19:44

The arguer concludes Thomas is worth of her position and recommends raising her salary to $10000 and a promotion to Department Chairperson in order to avoid her leave their university. To justify it, the arguer gives much evidence to prove her best performance. However, the argument is weak for many reasoning problems and fallacies.

Firstly, the arguer cites a evidence that the professor has the largest classes at university and concludes that it demonstrate her popularity among students. However, it may not be the case since many other reasons could explain it. It is possible that the lesson is compulsory courses that all students must choose her class to get the scores. Or it also possible that the number of their student in her major is the most of the university, thus her classes have more students study. If so, the arguer could not draw the conclusion that her classes are popularity in the university.

Secondly, the arguer unfairly assumes that her grants more than her salary illustrate that her possess better research abilities. As we all know that the research abilities is illustrated by that how many the program the professor does and how many rewards she does gain from the country or the society. The grants do not represents that her have better research abilities. It is entire possible that other professor bring more grants than her. Without ruling out these possibilities and providing other professor's rewards, the arguer's conclusion is unconvincing.

Thirdly, even if Thomas has better teaching and research abilities, it is also unfair to raise her money and promotion for fearing that she may leave the university. That might not the case. We do not know other professors' salary and performance. Maybe her salary is very higher than that of others. Therefore the recommendation is unwarranted because she may not leave the university.

In sum, the argument is unconvincing for illogical reasoning. To improve it, the arguer should prove more evidence that Tomas really do a better job than other professor and her salary is lower than that of others'. I also need to know whether she could stay in the university with a raise and promotion.
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