argument53

蔓草菊UID: 2195399

Argument53
In this argument, the arguer claims that it is the increased levels of melatonin before birth that cause shyness during infancy and this shyness can continue into later life. However, ill-logical reasons teem with the argument, which render it wholly unpersuasive as it stands.
                    
To begin with, the arguer bases his conclusion on the study where 25 infants who showed signs of mild distress when exposed to unfamiliar stimuli 13 years ago and then the researcher discovered that these infants were more likely than other infants to have been conceived in early autumn. However, the arguer did not prove that infants conceived in other seasons, say, spring or summer did not show the same response when encountered unfamiliar stimuli. It is quite possible that infants conceived in other seasons will show distress as well as those conceived in early autumn because common sense tell us that infants usually feel distress even cry when facing unfamiliar environment such as an unusual odor or a strange person. So the signs of mild distress when exposed to strange surroundings are normal phenomena no matter when the infants are conceived. Even if the 25 infants conceived in autumn are shier than those conceived in other seasons when exposed to unfamiliar stimuli, the number of 25 may be too small to be representative of all the infants compared with the total number of infants conceived in autumn

Furthermore, the arguer unfairly assumes that the brain functions of infants are affected by a hormone-melatonin which is produced more by pregnant women in response to decreased daylight in early autumn. However, the arguer provides no evidence to substantiate that. Perhaps the melatonin secreted by pregnant women does not enter their babies’ bodies then has nothing to do with the brains of infants let along influence the brain functions of them. On the contrary, the melatonin may only affect the brain functions of pregnant women to adjust to the decreased daylight. Therefore, the arguer cannot convince us that melatonin does affect the brain functions of infants and cause them to shy.

Finally, even if the arguer can substantiate the foregoing assumptions, the follow study indicating that half of the 25 children-now teenagers- identified themselves as shy is still not reasonable. 13 years is a long period and lots of things during that time can change including the living environment of those children. Different living environment can shape different characters. Generally speaking, when living in a harsh and stressful environment one is likely to form a shy character. So the shyness of teenagers may be due to their changing living surroundings rather than their inborn character. Therefore, the conclusion that the shyness will continue into later life is ill-logical.

All in all, the argument is not credible and evidence in it lends little to support what the arguer want to maintain. To bolster the argument the arguer would have to offer more evidence that infants conceived in early autumn are shier than those conceived in other seasons and the melatonin does indeed influence the brain functions of infants. To assess the argument fairly we need more information about the living environment of those children in the process of growing up.