English 312- RA for Paper A

Paper A- "Mosque in New York City: Not the LDS Church's Problem?"

1. The argument of this paper is that the NYC mosque because it will significantly improve the future growth of the LDS Church.

2. The audience of this paper is the LDS Public Affairs Department who is not making any public statement concerning the mosque being built in NYC.

3. The goal of this paper is to persuade the LDS Public Affairs department to publicly support the building of the NYC mosque.

4. I attempt to persuade my audience of my argument through several elements of rhetoric including:

Ethos- I raise the credibility of my argument by inserting quotes from authoritative figures such as President Packer and President Hinckley, talking about the need for positive Muslim-LDS relations. By quoting this respectable individuals, I appeal to my LDS audience, and thus my argument gains more credibility.

Logos- I use logic to validate counterarguments, and yet refute them with simple logic. An example of this is when I state that the Church does like to remain politically neutral; however, in their LDS Newsroom statement it says they will make a stand on issues that affect the Church or basic morals. I give examples of previous times the Church has made a public stand on an issue, such as in the case of illegal drug use with Peyote Indians, and the Church making a stand on Proposition 8. I use logic to explain how supporting the building of the NYC mosque is an issue that could be of just as much importance because it could make the difference in the Church's growth in the Middle East. Through my use of examples and logic, I attempt to persuade my audience to achieve my goal of supporting the mosque.

Relevant- The material that I use including quotes, past examples, and logic are all extremely relevant to my audience. I really focused my argument to fit my audience, and used examples and quotes that would be relevant to them. The topic of the building of the mosque is also a hot topic right now, and one that the LDS Church would be concerned with.

Sufficient- My paper contained sufficient evidence to prove my point. I recognized several valid counterarguments such as the concern of Islamic values in a Christian society, sensitivity issues surround the location of the building site, and the Church's concern to make a public stance. I backed every one of these arguments up with evidence including quotes, past examples and even pathos to emotionally awake my audience's senses to my claim.

5. Due to my use of ethos, logos, and my relevant and sufficient evidence, I would say that my paper is successful in attempting my goal (although, I might be a little bias :) ). I feel that it is well structured, organized, and I have plenty of evidence to support my claim. However; in reality it would be hard to approach my actual audience and present this point because there are higher authorities the LDS Public Affairs Department responds to such as the First Presidency.