Abby Gervais
10/9/15
Rhetorical Analysis
Theories about why individuals commit crime haven’t changed in recent years. General strain theory, conflict theory and others have been the main focus in these studies and have been taught The article Crime-Event Criminology: An Overview by Pamela Wilcox and Brooke Gialopsos gives a wide variety of theories as to why some individuals offend while others do not. This article argues against these theories we assume today, some have been proven to not be correct in certain circumstances. With this purpose in mind, I think the authors argue the topic well and use techniques to keep the article straightforward and the reader interested. These two authors wrote in an argumentative voice because the purpose of the article is as Wilcox and Gialopsos said, “To attempt to reverse the criminogenic risk factors identified by traditional criminological theories”(Wilcox,4). Logos is very prevalent in the purpose, in supporting their argument. The authors use evidence from sociological studies on this particular study of why people commit crimes. They include specific details on how the evidence they used is relevant and accurate. The reasoning throughout the article makes it clear and logical. A basic principle of design Wilcox and Gialopsos used was consistency. Throughout the entire article they keep referring back to their main concern but demonstrates all the different ways as to why they may be correct. This helped contribute to the purpose of the article since we were provided with situations we could relate to, to help better understand the issue. Following that, evidence/proof specified was an example of writing strategy they used. Since it was argumentative, evidence and proof was necessary and this determined the strategy chosen by the two authors because it makes the most sense. The article is a broad subject that isn’t directed towards any type of audience. This could relate to anybody, anybody could be interested, and it shows that there are other thoughts on the subject. It would be a good way to teach a student the different side to the theories that we are taught in school. This gives sociologists a reason to study more on how crime has changed and could open many doors. Wilcox and Gialopsos express their argument well and managed to keep me interested throughout the reading. Their method of writing was effective and they took advantage of evidence and important topics that any individual could understand.
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