Decorum, Style, and Needs

When we talk about designing arguments, it is nice to know where to start. According to chapter 8, the best place to start with is finding the decorum. Decorum is when you use the right kind of words and content with the right circumstances and audience. To do this, you have to make four decisions: the argument, identify your audience, medium, and what form. Medium is the choice of printed article, advertisement, photo essay, etc., and form is the layout aspect. A great example of decorum that the book used was one might cheer and holler at a baseball game, but they would not necessarily do that during an interview, but decorum is more than just picking the right things to say. Cicero separated decorum into three levels of style: grand, middle, or plain. Grand style is the most sophisticated. Middle is a little less than grand, and it takes more time to develop an argument. Plain style is closest to spoken language, and getting to the point in the simplest way. When we talk about decorum for an argument essay, the style is under grand or middle, depending on the audience. You also need to follow a format that includes a complete introduction with thesis, a transition predicting the argument, main points for the argument, and a conclusion. In addition, you need space for peer reviewers to write on, so they can edit your paper. Usually you need to double-space the writing, and have 1-inch margins on all sides. Page numbers and name in the upper right hand corner are necessary for the peer reviewers to keep track.