The following appeared in a memo from a budget planner for the city of Grandview.
"When the Grandview Symphony was established ten years ago, the city of Grandview agreed to provide the symphony with annual funding until the symphony became self-sustaining. Two years ago, the symphony hired an internationally known conductor, who has been able to attract high-profile guest musicians to perform with the symphony. Since then, private contributions to the symphony have tripled and attendance at the symphony's outdoor summer concert series has reached record highs. Now that the symphony has succeeded in finding an audience, the city can eliminate its funding of the symphony."
Write a response in which you examine the stated and/or unstated assumptions of the argument. Be sure to explain how the argument depends on these assumptions and what the implications are for the argument if the assumptions prove unwarranted.
In this passage, the author recommends to cut off public funding for Grandview Symphony and predicts such elimination have nothing to do with its future financial-sustaining. Quite reasonable though such recommendation appears at first glance, the author's reasoning of the argument is unconvincing due to several unsubstantiated assumptions which, if proven unwarranted, will seriously challenge the author's conclusion.
To start off, the author's reasoning heavily relies on the assumption that the celebrated conductor would keep staying in this symphony after hiring. Based on the assumption the author therefore proposes that attraction for high-profile guest musicians to perform with the symphony could be guaranteed in the long term. However, such assumption is potentially problematic because none could ensure that this conductor won't receive any more appealing offer from other symphony. Nor do we know whether he/she is willing to stay in the same district for a long time. Moreover, we have no idea whether his/her family status could support his/her further professional life in Grandview symphony or not. If more engrossing offer is provided by any symphony, or he/she enjoy a more itinerate lifestyle to make more achievements within wider districts, or even his/her family exhorts him/her to make a change recently, we are inclined to believe that Grandview could still invite him/her for relatively longer time. In this case, properisty of audiences accompanying with this conductor would become in vain for the future.
Furthermore, by stating that private investment and attendance of outdoor concert increase drastically, the author believe that Grandview could easily grasp with sufficient funding beside public expenditure from the city. However, we need to re-examine the assumption that both of those two financial sources are sufficient to make Grandview Symphony independent from city funding. It is likely that amount of private contribution is relatively small compared with the total funding received by Grandview, despite the fact that increasing trending seems encouraging. Also, it is of equal probability that outdoor summer concert only comprise a very small percentage of its overall financial gain. Moreover, we can't even predict that both of two income sources would be robust as time goes by. If it turns out that private contribution only occupies a very small proportion of Grandview total financial revenue, or both of those trends are a fad which couldn't be sustained, the author's proposal of cutting of city financial support is tenuous.
Last but not least, while all of assumptions mentioned above prove warranted, the author's recommendation is still unnecessary due to the doubtful assumption regarding whether more participation of audience could convert into sufficient revenue. Claiming that immense profit could be grasped from more audience, the author seems too optimistic. It is unreasonable to assume that audiences are all paying for tickets by themselves and such financial incomes could overshadow the investment from the city. Also, the author hastily comes to the conclusion that public funding of the symphony could be eliminated, but does not discuss whether more cost could generate as a result of more performance caused by increasing audience. If audiences just get free tickets with no contribution for Grandview's finance, or such ticket incomes couldn't outdo those from public funding, or even more audience inversely increase cost of this symphony, then we can't simply believe that it is still the right time to stop city funding.
In summary, whether we should implement the author's recommendation heavily depends on the validity of the aforementioned assumptions. If those assumptions prove unwarranted, the author's recommendation could become little more than his/her wishful thinking and therefore we should consider other solutions to attract more audience and consequently decouple with public funding for the symphony.
Comments
e-rater score report
Attribute Value Ideal
Final score: 4.0 out of 6
Category: Good Excellent
No. of Grammatical Errors: 0 2
No. of Spelling Errors: 0 2
No. of Sentences: 22 15
No. of Words: 617 350
No. of Characters: 3338 1500
No. of Different Words: 281 200
Fourth Root of Number of Words: 4.984 4.7
Average Word Length: 5.41 4.6
Word Length SD: 2.958 2.4
No. of Words greater than 5 chars: 262 100
No. of Words greater than 6 chars: 213 80
No. of Words greater than 7 chars: 149 40
No. of Words greater than 8 chars: 103 20
Use of Passive Voice (%): 0 0
Avg. Sentence Length: 28.045 21.0
Sentence Length SD: 10.007 7.5
Use of Discourse Markers (%): 0.682 0.12
Sentence-Text Coherence: 0.335 0.35
Sentence-Para Coherence: 0.534 0.50
Sentence-Sentence Coherence: 0.171 0.07
Number of Paragraphs: 5 5
Grammar and spelling errors:
Line 1, column 29, Rule ID: ADMIT_ENJOY_VB[1]
Message: This verb is used with the gerund form: 'recommends cutting'.
Suggestion: recommends cutting
In this passage, the author recommends to cut off public funding for Grandview Sympho...
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Line 1, column 401, Rule ID: POSSESIVE_APOSTROPHE[2]
Message: Possible typo: apostrophe is missing. Did you mean 'authors'' or 'author's'?
Suggestion: authors'; author's
...warranted, will seriously challenge the authors conclusion. To start off, the author...
^^^^^^^
Line 3, column 762, Rule ID: HE_VERB_AGR[1]
Message: The pronoun 'she' must be used with a third-person verb: 'enjoys'.
Suggestion: enjoys
... is provided by any symphony, or he/she enjoy a more itinerate lifestyle to make more...
^^^^^
Line 3, column 983, Rule ID: WHITESPACE_RULE
Message: Possible typo: you repeated a whitespace
Suggestion:
...Grandview could still invite him/her for relatively longer time. In this case, pr...
^^
Line 5, column 711, Rule ID: CANT[1]
Message: Did you mean 'can't' or 'cannot'?
Suggestion: can't; cannot
...ts overall financial gain. Moreover, we cant even predict that both of two income so...
^^^^
Line 5, column 952, Rule ID: EN_CONTRACTION_SPELLING
Message: Possible spelling mistake found
Suggestion: couldn't
...or both of those trends are a fad which couldnt be sustained, the authors proposal of c...
^^^^^^^
Line 5, column 978, Rule ID: POSSESIVE_APOSTROPHE[1]
Message: Possible typo: apostrophe is missing. Did you mean 'authors'' or 'author's'?
Suggestion: authors'; author's
...e a fad which couldnt be sustained, the authors proposal of cutting of city financial s...
^^^^^^^
Line 7, column 83, Rule ID: POSSESIVE_APOSTROPHE[1]
Message: Possible typo: apostrophe is missing. Did you mean 'authors'' or 'author's'?
Suggestion: authors'; author's
...ns mentioned above prove warranted, the authors recommendation is still unnecessary due...
^^^^^^^
Line 7, column 830, Rule ID: EN_CONTRACTION_SPELLING
Message: Possible spelling mistake found
Suggestion: couldn't
...ndviews finance, or such ticket incomes couldnt outdo those from public funding, or eve...
^^^^^^^
Line 7, column 943, Rule ID: CANT[1]
Message: Did you mean 'can't' or 'cannot'?
Suggestion: can't; cannot
...increase cost of this symphony, then we cant simply believe that it is still the rig...
^^^^
Line 9, column 45, Rule ID: POSSESIVE_APOSTROPHE[1]
Message: Possible typo: apostrophe is missing. Did you mean 'authors'' or 'author's'?
Suggestion: authors'; author's
...ummary, whether we should implement the authors recommendation heavily depends on the v...
^^^^^^^
Line 9, column 179, Rule ID: POSSESIVE_APOSTROPHE[1]
Message: Possible typo: apostrophe is missing. Did you mean 'authors'' or 'author's'?
Suggestion: authors'; author's
...hose assumptions prove unwarranted, the authors recommendation could become little more...
^^^^^^^
Transition Words or Phrases used:
also, but, consequently, first, furthermore, however, if, moreover, regarding, so, still, then, therefore, while, in summary, such as, as a result
Attributes: Values AverageValues Percentages(Values/AverageValues)% => Comments
Performance on Part of Speech:
To be verbs : 20.0 19.6327345309 102% => OK
Auxiliary verbs: 18.0 12.9520958084 139% => OK
Conjunction : 14.0 11.1786427146 125% => OK
Relative clauses : 18.0 13.6137724551 132% => OK
Pronoun: 58.0 28.8173652695 201% => Less pronouns wanted
Preposition: 75.0 55.5748502994 135% => OK
Nominalization: 28.0 16.3942115768 171% => OK
Performance on vocabulary words:
No of characters: 3398.0 2260.96107784 150% => OK
No of words: 606.0 441.139720559 137% => Less content wanted.
Chars per words: 5.60726072607 5.12650576532 109% => OK
Fourth root words length: 4.96155895361 4.56307096286 109% => OK
Word Length SD: 3.00207242878 2.78398813304 108% => OK
Unique words: 291.0 204.123752495 143% => OK
Unique words percentage: 0.480198019802 0.468620217663 102% => OK
syllable_count: 1050.3 705.55239521 149% => OK
avg_syllables_per_word: 1.7 1.59920159681 106% => OK
A sentence (or a clause, phrase) starts by:
Pronoun: 7.0 4.96107784431 141% => OK
Article: 9.0 8.76447105788 103% => OK
Subordination: 6.0 2.70958083832 221% => Less adverbial clause wanted.
Conjunction: 7.0 1.67365269461 418% => Less conjunction wanted as sentence beginning.
Preposition: 6.0 4.22255489022 142% => OK
Performance on sentences:
How many sentences: 22.0 19.7664670659 111% => OK
Sentence length: 27.0 22.8473053892 118% => OK
Sentence length SD: 63.6927185532 57.8364921388 110% => OK
Chars per sentence: 154.454545455 119.503703932 129% => OK
Words per sentence: 27.5454545455 23.324526521 118% => OK
Discourse Markers: 6.63636363636 5.70786347227 116% => OK
Paragraphs: 5.0 5.15768463074 97% => OK
Language errors: 12.0 5.25449101796 228% => Less language errors wanted.
Sentences with positive sentiment : 12.0 8.20758483034 146% => OK
Sentences with negative sentiment : 5.0 6.88822355289 73% => OK
Sentences with neutral sentiment: 5.0 4.67664670659 107% => OK
What are sentences with positive/Negative/neutral sentiment?
Coherence and Cohesion:
Essay topic to essay body coherence: 0.180467184934 0.218282227539 83% => OK
Sentence topic coherence: 0.060827394744 0.0743258471296 82% => OK
Sentence topic coherence SD: 0.0537934642768 0.0701772020484 77% => OK
Paragraph topic coherence: 0.10765425849 0.128457276422 84% => OK
Paragraph topic coherence SD: 0.0442141281655 0.0628817314937 70% => OK
Essay readability:
automated_readability_index: 18.8 14.3799401198 131% => OK
flesch_reading_ease: 35.61 48.3550499002 74% => OK
smog_index: 8.8 7.1628742515 123% => OK
flesch_kincaid_grade: 15.0 12.197005988 123% => OK
coleman_liau_index: 15.55 12.5979740519 123% => OK
dale_chall_readability_score: 9.12 8.32208582834 110% => OK
difficult_words: 159.0 98.500998004 161% => OK
linsear_write_formula: 15.0 12.3882235529 121% => OK
gunning_fog: 12.8 11.1389221557 115% => OK
text_standard: 15.0 11.9071856287 126% => OK
What are above readability scores?
---------------------
Write the essay in 30 minutes.
Rates: 66.67 out of 100
Scores by essay e-grader: 4.0 Out of 6
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Note: the e-grader does NOT examine the meaning of words and ideas. VIP users will receive further evaluations by advanced module of e-grader and human graders.