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Essay / Analysis of “Death and Justice: How Capital Punishment Affirms Life” by Edward Koch
Table of Contents Outline of Argumentative Essay on Death PenaltyIntroduction to the History of Capital Punishment in New YorkUse of ethos to establish credibilityUsing pathos to evoke emotionsLogical arguments and appeals to logosDeath Penalty Argumentative Essay ExampleDeath Penalty Argumentative Essay OutlineIntroduction to the History of Capital Punishment in New YorkHistorical Background of Capital Punishment in New YorkThe Edward I. Koch's tenure as mayor of New YorkUsing Ethos to Establish CredibilityKoch's Career and Experience in Public ServiceHis Commitment to the Issue of Capital PunishmentUsing Pathos to Evoke EmotionsExamples of Notorious Criminals and their crimesThe Kitty Genovese case and its emotional impactLogical arguments and appeals to logosStatistics and figures related to murder rates and crimeInterpretation of rights and responsibilities in the context of capital punishmentLogical fallacies and their impact on the argumentArgumentative essay example on the death penaltyEven though "The history of capital punishment in New York dates back to colonial times, with the second state in terms of executions between 1608 and 1972, after Virginia", "no executions have taken place place since that of Eddie Mays in 1963”. Meanwhile, during the period that Edward I. Koch worked as mayor of New York from 1978 to 1989, the number of murders was consistently high compared to other years from 1965 to 2016 and fluctuated between around 1,600 and around 2,300. Koch therefore decided to write "Death and Justice: How Capital Punishment Affirms Life" to take a position on the death penalty for the crimes of murder. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay I believe he productively employs the three techniques of ethos, pathos, and logos to support his argument in his essay. Although the technique of ethos does not appear much throughout his essay, the author uses it to establish and gain credibility from readers. Koch (1985) clearly notes his career status "as district leader, alderman, congressman, and mayor" as confirmation of his extensive knowledge of political issues, including capital punishment. Furthermore, he also tells readers about his experience “during my twenty-two years in public service”. This sentence indicates that Koch is competent in his job whose duty is to take into account the life of the citizen. Furthermore, he quotes: “I have carefully weighed the objections and still support the death penalty.” This shows that Koch seriously cares about the issue he advocates for. Based on the information provided, readers can place and develop trust in him, which helps him receive their approval more easily. Besides ethos, Koch appeals to emotion through the method of pathos in order to attract considerable sympathy from readers. First, the author mentioned two notable events, "Richard Biegenwald, known as the Thrill Killer" and Lemuel Smith "serving four life sentences for murder (plus two life sentences for kidnapping and robbery)" as examples of criminals who repeatedly reoffend. . However, the first criminal was not executed because “the State Supreme Court overturned the sentence twice”; “Because New York does not have a statue on the death penalty,” the other “even actually obtained a license to kill.” These unjust facts harbor readers' grievances against the lack of strict discipline for serious wrongdoing, particularly the absence of capital punishment as well ascompassion for the victims unjustly killed. Koch's successive use of the unearthed cases as evidence makes readers aware of the urgency and seriousness of the issues, increasing the effectiveness of his argument. Second, the author gives an example of the indirect crime of murder: “Kitty Genovese was attacked and murdered on a New York street. Dozens of neighbors heard her crying and helped her but did nothing to help her.” Reading this part, readers are furious at the thoughtlessness of these neighbors who may be afraid of murder and only think about their own safety. This event makes readers angry not only about the murders, but also about their negative influence on society. As a result, this makes readers approve of the idea of enacting the death penalty, which could act as a deterrent to criminals. Obviously, this part creates a link between the author and the readers so that the latter can understand and feel the same feeling as the first. Therefore, Koch effectively uses these examples to guide the readers' emotion on its emotional path; thus, they are gradually convinced by the author. Simultaneously, Koch takes advantage of the device of the logo to persuade readers to agree with his point of view using reasons and figures. Throughout the essay, the author begins with the opposing opinions and then presents his or her own counterarguments to each main idea. This method allows the reader to become aware of their inaccuracies and to convince them further. He continues with the huge numbers: "In America, the murder rate rose 122 percent between 1963 and 1980" and "During the same period, the murder rate in New York increased 400 percent." He then uses the result of a privileged university "a study at MIT" which shows "a greater risk of being assassinated in a major American city than of being killed in combat during World War II." With these public figures, the author describes the growing danger around the readers without the death penalty being imposed for the crimes of murder. Furthermore, he spends the next paragraph revealing a series of official statistics: "In 1981, ninety-one police officers were killed", "seventy percent of those arrested in solved cases had previously been arrested for murder and “In New York in 1976 and 1977, eighty-five people arrested for homicide had already been arrested for murder.” The figures given, which are detailed and linked to the issues surrounding the commission of the crimes, demonstrate that the level of danger to the public will be increasingly enormous unless the solution to the murder is resolved radically. Furthermore, Koch (1985) expresses well the premises against “the death penalty is state-sanctioned murder.” It uses the content of the law to interpret the rights and responsibilities of individuals and the state. According to him, enforcement is one of the rights that "the state has" and "is granted by the electorate", but "the individual does not have it". This helps readers understand the essence of capital punishment which is "the foundation of civilization itself", which makes them understand that the death penalty is legal and reasonable. All of the above views effectively encourage readers to be on the author's side, meaning they completely satisfy the author's expectations. However, there is a logical fallacy of appeal to authority in Koch's reasoning. He writes: “The greatest thinkers of the 19th century – Kant, Locke, Hobbes, Rousseau, Montesquieu and Mill agreed that natural law rightly authorizes the sovereign to take life to vindicate justice”, “Alexis de Tocqueville , who expressed deep respect.