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 : Farah Afiqah Binti Mohd Shuhaimi, UiTM #2011265206

          As to my opinion, the article is definitely a fun piece to read. It is far from the usual full of facts article. The seven points given by the author are definitely a must-try for those who wish to be cool. However, the article is imperfect due to the mere use of opinions and fallacies.

          Firstly, there is clearly the use of appeal to inappropriate authority. For example, the author wrote that the readers should closely follow the seven steps by the statement, "Because i am an adult and i know better...because i am 'The Guru of Cool' ". The question is, can we put our  sole trust in adults to advise us on the real definition of cool? Besides, there is also the use of a type of fallacy, which is slippery slope. It is obvious by the statement, "It makes your teeth go yellow and gives a pungent stench to your sweat". These are all the bad effects of smoking. Through the statement of "I know, i know, some of you are allowed to drink alcohol when you come of age", there is definitely a presence of appeal to tradition. It is a fact that a person is only allowed to consume alcohol after the age of majority.

          In a conclusion, the author deserves a clap as to the witty writing style which clearly grab my attention to read. However, fret not, the article still have lots of room for improvement starting by eliminating all the fallacies used.

(250 words)

Farah A