Contemporary and Classic Arguments: A Portable Anthology

This book is, as it says, a two-part anthology of written argument. Most probably, the book can serve as a resource for political/social science/literature classes at the college level. Part One contains contemporary arguments, providing at least one pro and one con argument on some of the hot button issues of today, including affirmative action, gay marriage, gun control, drugs, cell phone use while driving, sexual harassment, and torture. This should be the most applicable section to the political science field. Articles by such greats as Ed Koch, Milton Friedman, Andrew Sullivan, Alan Dershowitz, and many others are included. While a couple of sections are merely for informational purposes, these texts are fascinating examples of exquisitely crafted persuasive writing. Part Two features critical examples of persuasive writing from history, including those by Plato, Thomas More, Jonathan Swift, George Orwell, MLK, and Peter Singer. These selections, of course, represent a wide swath of opinions and subjects. What is amazing is how well almost all of these texts hold up today (Plato has the help of a surprisingly conversational translation). College students in several fields would do well to read and study these great texts here. In-depth questions after each article may help teachers formulate effective assignments from the reading. My only pet peeve is that there are some spelling errors, and several email responses to Nadine Strossen's article on privacy are left with no editing (or even a [sic]). Other than that, this is a great resource for teachers.