4 ms·
+1 There is a reason schools teach students to write using a specific template: Thesis Argument Conclusion This here is just a collection of random points. I
by omonra 13y ago
+1
There is a reason schools teach students to write using a specific template:
Thesis
Argument
Conclusion
This here is just a collection of random points. I imagine the author has a point he is looking to make but unless the article is edited it will elude most readers.
- kiba 13y agoI understand his points. I am not sure why you guys are having difficult to understanding what he's saying?
- omonra 13y agoBecause he doesn't bother to make a coherent argument and I have plenty of better use of my time than try and parse what he is trying to say. If you understand his argument - can you make an outline for us?
- peterashford 13y agoThat terrorist groups are most about providing a sense of belonging for it's members than achieving political aims as evidenced by the fact that they routine achieve the former and almost never the latter.
- omonra 13y agoThank you - so that's his thesis. I guess it sounds a lot like gangs.
- Jach 13y agoWhat is that reason, exactly? [1] It is easier to create a rubric for grading... It's not necessarily easier to understand what the author is saying or even as a better way of organizing and finding truth or arguments or data, or changing your mind halfway through, or any of the other things that happen in the process between when you decide to write about something outside of a classroom and when (and after nowadays) you fixate it somewhere to be read. [1] PG argues it's because that structure mimics a courtroom argument, and such structure has no place in real essays, which are attempts rather than legal documents and need not always be "take a position, defend it" in content: http://www.paulgraham.com/essay.html http://www.paulgraham.com/essay.html Edit: Also, the author does have a point. It's in the highlighted section at the very top -- typically called an abstract.
- rfergie 13y agoI value Gwern's style because it corresponds to the process of discovery. I think his essays are a narrative of how he comes to his conclusion. So the conclusion is less important than the journey