Entry #1 (Magazine)

The 7 Steps of Highly Cool People

Submitted to: Airil Haimi Mohd Adnan, tutor

In partial requirement for BEL 313,

Introduction to Critical Thinking.

Test #2, semester 1 2013/2014,

Universiti Teknologi MARA, Seri

Iskandar Campus, Perak Darul Ridzuan.

Submitted by: Amanda Balqis Zain Bt Yahya, UiTM # 2011208376

This article is fun to read. There are some interesting input that I can bear in mind and maybe I should start practising them so that I might be as cool as the author. But, there are also some fallacies detected in this article.

For example, it is clearly an appeal to inappropriate authority when the author says “But to be certified as cool, you would actually need to memorise the ‘7 Points’ below by heart. Why? Because I am an adult and I know better.” The author uses an inappropriate authority to support his conclusion because being an adult does not guarantee perfection. Besides, I also found a fallacy in the claim by the author. “Even my friends tell me dancing is the best form of exercise, and it is definitely not a crime.” This statement is an example of weak analogy. Of course, dancing is not a crime but comparing dancing with clubbing is not relevant as clubbing is not a healthy way to exercise due to the unhealthy atmosphere filled with smoke and sweaty smelly people.

In contrast, I think the author is cool because of his first point is all about “smoking might kill you someday” and it shows that he is not a smoker. That point wins much because choosing not to be a smoker is the real definition of cool for me. Lastly, readers can enjoy reading the article but preferably not to follow the 7 steps one hundred percent due to some fallacy.

(250 words)

Amanda Balqis