Every parent(s) encountered an experience where their child becomes ruthless and act in a disorderly way. There are times when the child acts that way to gain attention from their parent(s) or because they “feel” like it and wants to be in control. For instance, let’s say you, who are the parent, decide to go to Wal-Mart with your child. While you are in Wal-Mart, your child comes across a toy that he/she wants badly. You already know you will not have enough money to buy the toy so you find a way to explain it in a way he/she will understand. You also make a promise to your child that you will buy it another time so they will not cry. All a sudden, your child becomes the “angel” from hell and begins to cry, scream, and grabbed other toys off the shelf to throw it on the floor and make a mess. Other customers begin to stare at you and start shaking their heads. You try your best to calm your child but he/she will not stop crying until he/she gets their way. STOP!! This is where the scenario ends. What would you, as the parent, do in this situation? Would you spoiled your child and buy them that toy after he/she completely embarrassed you and became disruptive? Or would you spank your child in the backside to show them who is in control and do not buy the toy? The main question here is: to spank or not to spank?
This leads to an editorial written by Miami Herald columnist, Leonard Pitts Jr. who is the author of “Spare the Rods, Spoil the Parenting.” In this essay, Pitts uses rhetorical tactics in his article to present his views on corporal punishment. The genre of this editorial is an op-ed (opinionated-editorial) piece. Pitts persuasively try to convince his audience, who are parents, to understand that disciplining a child i...
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...a personal anecdote to appeal more to his audience because it is simple to tell that he was passionate about this topic. The only downfall in the author’s essay is, he did not include much about pathos into his writing. This essay was more of an ethical and logical review and far less emotional. Even though his editorial is opinion based, his essay was effective because it was supported by Dr. Baumrind’s studied, which explores his logical proof to his readers. Also, Pitt’s personal touch adds interest in his writing. He wants to make sure his audience agrees and understand his argument and position of corporal punishments.
Works Cited
Pitts, Jr., Leonard. "Spare the Rod, Spoil the Parenting." Miami Herald Sept. 2001. Rpt. in The
Allyn & Bacon Guide to Writing. John D. Ramage, John C. Bean, and June Johnson.
5th ed. New York: Longman, 2009. 247-248. Print.
The idea of physical punishment has been visible throughout our nation’s history. The 30’s, 40’, 50’s all encouraged the use of strong physical discipline towards children, it wasn’t until the 60’s and 70’s that this idea became taboo. “Many of us in the room had been smacked, whipped, or beaten as children...
There is much controversy over the correct disciplinary actions for kids. If parents discipline their kids too little, they could turn out to be spoiled and entitled, but if they discipline them too much, the kids could become rebellious and act out more often. Experts do not have a specific answer as to which strategy is most effective when teaching a child right from wrong. Although, new studies have shown that numerous parents are very unknowledgable about how quickly their child develops, which can lead to disciplinary problems. In Belinda Luscombe’s article “Most Parents Who Spank Their Kids Say it Doesn’t Work” from June 8, 2016 Time Magazine, the author effectively uses logos for its appeal to reason, and pathos to further convey the information across as to why parents
Mel Robbins [ The Author ] deliberately blurs the lines between child abuse and discipline in her article “ Spanking isn’t parenting; it;s child abuse”. Not only does the author use personal experiences to connect her point with those in question, but she does not portray herself as professional writer, due to her tone and ignorance within her writing, despite her credible ethos. The authors deafening opinions in relation to the topic dull her ability to reason, thus making her use only Red Herrings to prove her points, also the author only states one side of the facts, deliberately uses worst case scenarios, and uses random
Reading, Richard. "Speak softly - and forget the stick: corporal punishment and physical abuse." Child: care, health and development (2009): 286-287. Academic Search Premier. Web. 23 April 2011.
On the CNN website, Ruben Navarrette wrote an article titled “Spanking Isn’t Child Abuse; It’s Common Sense” on the topic of how to educate children. The piece is targeted at parents who have little idea of what they should do to discipline their children. He stated that he is against child abuse, but he supports corporal punishment as a form of education. Ruben questioned the methods of “modern parents” by comparing their ways with the previous generation of parents.
Finally, we need to know more about the personal resources of parents that can lessen the incidence of spanking. It is found that spanking sharply decreases as the parent ages. Despite ideological motivations, parents can and should be trained to understand alternative strategies of discipline (Day 93).
Hyman, Irwin A. The Case Against Spanking: How to Discipline Your Children Without Hitting. San Fransico: Jossey-Bass, 1997. Print.
Miller, C & Swift, K. (1988) The Handbook of Nonsexist Writing: For writers, editors and speakers. 2nd edition. Harper & Row, New York.
Have you ever been spanked? We all have our own stories of how our parents disciplined us, we take them as funny stories and even joke about them. If you were born in the 70s, 80s, or 90s, you already know what I’m talking about and I bet many stories already ran over your minds just now. But as we grew up and time passed by, there has been this predicament about this method of parenting. “Parents feel mixed-up and uncomfortable about disciplining their children”.
Spanking. It is a hotly debated topic, and everyone who has an opinion seems to have a strong one. It is either child abuse or it is a fundamental form of discipline. It is traumatizing or it is character-building. It is repugnant or it is commendable. Many have difficulty removing their emotions from such a controversial topic. I, myself, struggle to consider objectively a situation I’ve always deemed moral and paramount to a child’s development, but with the cruciality of raising the next generation, objectivity is imperative. Because children are wayward and often misunderstand instructions, parents must decide early on how they will discipline their child. This raises the controversial question: Should parents use corporal punishment
Spanking is an important aspect of a child’s social development and should not be considered an evil form of abuse. In her argument, Debra Saunders says that there is an obvious difference between beating a child and spanking a child, and parents know the boundary. Spanking is the most effective form of discipline when a child knows doing something is wrong, but the child does it anyway. A child who is properly disciplined through spanking is being taught how to control her or his impulses and how to deal with all types of authorities in future environments. Parents can control their child’s future behavior by using spanking in early childhood, because if...
...ng about people’s stories of when they were spanked, do you think you can remember how you felt when you were spanked and how it affects you now. In the way you represent yourself as a person and represent your family as well. As a result, we students never knew spanking was an example of physical abuse, until we grew older. Back then, spanking was a sign of punishment not abuse. Now, that these students and myself know, we still believe it was a good idea and a good way to discipline us. This worked affectively for the parents and made their child learn to obey their elderly and have respect for others. “So what would you do? Would you have a child disobey you as young as they are? Or have a child respect you and know what you’re doing is out of discipline and love for the child, in trying to raise that child in knowing what is appropriate and what’s not.
With only three short paragraphs arguing why corporal punishment is ineffective, Jacoby dedicates the rest of his essay attacking and degrading the court and justice system. What Jacoby could have done to improve his essay is to write about why the corporal system failed to continue onto the 21st century and perhaps interview those who are more involved in the justice system; For example, words of those who are incarcerated for misdemeanors or even victims of prison rape could have improved his
In western society, there has been debate in recent years over the use of corporal punishment for children in general, and increased attention has been given to the concept of "positive parenting" where good behavior is encouraged and rewarded
Corporal punishment is the physical disciplinary method used by parents, teachers, and school administrators in an effort to correct a child’s undesirable behaviors. The use of physical force is one that is often times controversial and usually evokes very strong reactions. These feelings surface, and opposing views clash, when scandals surrounding corporal punishment hit the media and heated arguments in the comments section of articles emerge. While corporal punishment occasionally makes its way into the limelight, it is a decision all parents are faced with eventually and often times daily. For example, when a toddler is sprawled out on the grocery store floor kicking, hitting, and flinging