Thank You for Arguing: What Aristotle, Lincoln, and Homer Simpson Can Teach Us About the Art of Persuasion

Reading Check and Short Answer Questions on key points are designed for guided reading assignments, in-class review, formative assessment, quizzes, and more.

Parts 1-2, Chapters 1-4

Reading Check

1. According to Heinrichs, what are the two tools a persuader must have to shape the outcome of an argument, as described in Chapter 2?

2. What are the three “megatools” of rhetoric described by Aristotle, according to Heinrichs in Chapter 4?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. In Chapter 1, Heinrichs opens the book with a personal story about his teenage son (George) winning an argument with Heinrichs about a tube of toothpaste. What is the point of this anecdote?

2. Why does Heinrichs say it’s important to remember Little Orphan Annie when arguing in the future tense?

Paired Resource

“Who Was St. Augustine?”

• St. Augustine is held up by Heinrichs as an example of a man who devised successful rhetorical strategies for converting non-Christians to Christianity. This English Heritage article explores St. Augustine’s life and legacy.
• Connects to the theme of Persuasion Is Not About the Persuader
• Using the terminology of Thank You for Arguing, what were the two main tools St. Augustine used to persuade potential new followers to Christianity?

Part 2, Chapters 5-8

Reading Check

1. Heinrichs draws from what film in Chapter 5 to illustrate the role of decorum in creating an effective ethos?

2. Of the three essential qualities of a persuasive argument that employ character, what is it called when the audience believes that the persuader shares their values? 

3. What is the basic definition of phronesis, the second quality of persuasive ethos?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. Why does Heinrichs consider ethos to be the most important aspect of rhetoric? Name the three elements of ethos in your answer.

Part 2, Chapters 9-10

Reading Check

1. What is the tool that helps “calm down the passions”? (Chapter 10)

2. Heinrichs describes the brain as having two operating systems, System One and System Two. What is another word for System One?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. What is “The Aquinas Maneuver,” as Heinrichs describes it in Chapter 9?

2. Why is storytelling an important tool in pathos?

Paired Resource

“Pathos: The Most Emotional Rhetorical Appeal”

• Educator Tolentino drills down on the meaning of pathos, including some recent examples of pathos in modern arguments (for example, arguments from 2020 that utilize the COVID-19 pandemic).
• Connects to the theme of Argument Is Human Nature
• Building upon what is taught in this video and in Chapters 9-10 of the book, what are some other ways pathos can be deployed to make an argument related to the global COVID-19 pandemic?

Part 2, Chapters 11-14

Reading Check

1. As noted in Chapter 11, which “rhetorical mistake” does Heinrichs take to be the most “fatal”?

2. What are the two basic tools of logos, as described in Chapter 13?

3. What is the most persuasive tool that a persuader can use to sell their choice, a tool that comes from understanding what their audience needs or desires?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. How does framing/reframing work to help persuade a listener? Briefly describe (in 1-2 sentences) how it functions in creating an argument.

Part 3, Chapters 15-16

Reading Check

1. Heinrichs divides the “out-of-bounds” in deliberative argument into three different categories. What are the three categories?

2.  What is the eighth foul mentioned in Chapter 15, and which—in Heinrichs’ assessment—is the “foulest of the foul”?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. What are the “Seven Deadly Logical Sins” that are the focus of Chapter 15? Which of these does Heinrichs find to be one of the most “boring” of all seven fallacies, and why?

2. Briefly describe the difference between formal logic and rhetoric, citing Heinrichs’ explanation from the text in Chapters 15-16.

Paired Resource

“The Word—Truthiness”

• As Heinrichs explains in this section, the word “truthiness” originates with Stephen Colbert’s TV show “The Colbert Report,” which was a parody of right-wing news pundit programs. In this 2005 clip, the word “truthiness” makes its debut.
• Connects to theme of Rhetoric Is Morally Ambiguous
• What rhetorical strategies do you see Colbert deploying in this clip in order to appeal to his viewers? Does seeing the original clip give you any new insight into Heinrichs’ discussion of “truthiness”?

Part 3, Chapters 17-19

Reading Check

1. What are the three basic principles of ethos?

2. Which phrase should a trustworthy persuader, one with practical wisdom, use to demonstrate that they tailor their advice to the circumstance?

3. What are the four tools that Heinrichs offers to combat bullying?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. How does one apply “the needs test” in order to assess a person’s disinterest (Chapter 16)?

Part 4, Chapters 20-21

Reading Check

1. What are the three categories of figures that Heinrichs describes in Chapter 20?

2. What are the four categories of tropes that Heinrichs describes in Chapter 21?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. How do figures of speech help the persuader create an advanced offensive strategy in order to win an argument?

2. How do tropes help persuaders strengthen their arguments?

Paired Resource

“‘What Is a Synecdoche?’: A Literary Guide for English Students and Teachers”

• Focusing on synecdoche (one of the rhetorical figures discussed in this section of Thank You for Arguing), this video from Oregon State University provides a definition of the term and gives some common examples (“boots on the ground,” as one instance). 
• What are some common synecdochic phrases that you utilize in your own everyday speech, if any?

Part 4, Chapters 22-24

Reading Check

1. What is the definition of kairos?

2. What are the three factors to consider when the persuader is choosing a medium through which to deliver their argument?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. What are the five steps to help persuaders recover from mistakes and strengthen their ethos?

2. How is it possible to turn ethos liabilities into assets using kairos?

Part 5, Chapters 25-29

Reading Check

1. What is the general topic of the hypothetical short speech that Heinrichs writes in Chapter 25?

2. In his hypothetical speech in Chapter 25, what is Heinrichs’ goal?

3. In Chapter 26, Heinrichs writes that, in his presidential speeches, Donald Trump demonstrated the power of what?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. Why does Heinrichs lament the absence of rhetoric in the U.S. educational system?

Recommended Next Reads 

Rhetoric by Aristotle

• Rhetoric by Aristotle is the original, ancient foundation upon which Thank You for Arguing is built.
• Composed during the period of 367 BCE-322 BCE, Aristotle’s Rhetoric is a comprehensive treatise on the art of persuasive speech. Aristotle did not intend this work for wide publication; rather, it was a collection of works that either Aristotle himself or a subsequent editor combined.
• Rhetoric on SuperSummary.com

How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie

• First published in 1936, Dale Carnegie’s How to Win Friends and Influence People shares some key thematic similarities with Thank You for Arguing, including a focus on how best to persuade and “win over” people. 
• Carnegie asserts that success with other people depends on listening, showing appreciation, and empathizing with them—which is, essentially, another formulation of Heinrichs’ key lesson that Persuasion Is Not about the Persuader but about the audience.
• How to Win Friends and Influence People on SuperSummary.com