What Makes A Woman By Caitnor Burkett

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ARGUING FEMALE
On June 6, 2015, Elinor Burkett wrote a piece about how the transgender movement is affecting feminist movements in “What Makes a Woman?”. The article specifically targeted Caitlyn Jenner in response to the interview by Diane Sawyer, “I’m a Woman”. In the interview, Caitlyn Jenner speaks of her newfound womanhood and how she sees herself as a woman both in body and mind. Elinor Burkett, though, disagrees. In “What Makes a Woman?”, the author declares transgenderism does not equate feminism making a claim of definition on what feminism is. Elinor Burkett makes a strong claim with the use of an ethos argument, kairos and exigency, different types of supports and fallacies, and rhetoric in the article.
Elinor Burkett begins her …show more content…

Her main claim is how transgenders have no claim in feminism and lack the experience to claim otherwise. Caitlyn Jenner says, “My brain is much more female than it is male,” he told her, explaining how he knew that he was transgender”(Sawyer). Elinor Burkett disagrees and supports her claim by giving evidence of an established neuroscientist at Britain’s Aston University, Gina Rippon, who has concluded a study stating that it is not possible to know what kind of brain it is just by looking at it (Burkett). In fact, Elinor Burkett also includes a link to an article on this information in her article. Elinor Burkett uses Gina Rippon as a logos argument by establishing the neuroscientist’s ethos. the rhetor uses these argument to refute Caitlyn Jenner’s earlier claim. The use of ethos and logos are set to further convince the reader that Caitlyn Jenner and many transgender claims are deficient, but that is not the only thing that the rhetor uses. In the quote, she maintains the same words as the interviewer when they called Caitlyn Jenner using the pronoun “he”. Though small, she has made her ethos argument and dogmatism fallacy again. Elinor Burkett uses these pronouns as a way to implant the idea that Caitlyn Jenner is not female and is should be thought of as male. With those arguments, the rhetor endeavors to steer you into her way of

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