1
00:00:00,150 --> 00:00:01,230
- [David] All right, readers,

2
00:00:01,230 --> 00:00:03,360
I wanna talk about choosing text evidence

3
00:00:03,360 --> 00:00:04,683
to support a claim.

4
00:00:05,760 --> 00:00:07,680
Readers have to do this all the time.

5
00:00:07,680 --> 00:00:09,720
You come across a question that asks you

6
00:00:09,720 --> 00:00:12,930
for the best text
evidence to prove a point.

7
00:00:12,930 --> 00:00:14,340
You've got a passage in front of you.

8
00:00:14,340 --> 00:00:16,710
Maybe it's a thousand words,
maybe it's a paragraph,

9
00:00:16,710 --> 00:00:18,210
but you have to support a claim

10
00:00:18,210 --> 00:00:21,300
using the best text
evidence you can muster.

11
00:00:21,300 --> 00:00:24,365
Let's get to our main
example for this video,

12
00:00:24,365 --> 00:00:27,300
which let me just warn you up top

13
00:00:27,300 --> 00:00:30,150
is a pretty spicy topic, okay?

14
00:00:30,150 --> 00:00:32,790
A real friendship ender. You ready?

15
00:00:32,790 --> 00:00:34,740
Deep breath. Here we go.

16
00:00:34,740 --> 00:00:36,300
Defining question of our time.

17
00:00:36,300 --> 00:00:39,087
Is a tomato a fruit or a vegetable?

18
00:00:39,087 --> 00:00:41,850
It sounds silly, but this
fully went to the Supreme Court

19
00:00:41,850 --> 00:00:44,610
of the United States in 1893.

20
00:00:44,610 --> 00:00:48,480
Nix versus Hedden was the name
of the case. Some background.

21
00:00:48,480 --> 00:00:52,390
An 1883 law imposed
heavy taxes on vegetables

22
00:00:52,390 --> 00:00:55,350
imported from other
countries, but not fruit.

23
00:00:55,350 --> 00:00:57,988
Now, scientifically speaking,
tomatoes are fruits.

24
00:00:57,988 --> 00:00:59,430
They grow out of a flower

25
00:00:59,430 --> 00:01:01,230
and they've got seeds on the inside.

26
00:01:01,230 --> 00:01:04,080
This is the argument that
John Nix brought to the court.

27
00:01:04,080 --> 00:01:07,975
If a tomato is a fruit, you
can't tax it as a vegetable.

28
00:01:07,975 --> 00:01:09,660
Now in his decision,

29
00:01:09,660 --> 00:01:12,610
Supreme Court Justice Horace Gray wrote,

30
00:01:12,610 --> 00:01:16,050
"Botanically speaking, tomatoes
are the fruit of a vine

31
00:01:16,050 --> 00:01:19,350
just as are cucumbers
squashes, beans and peas.

32
00:01:19,350 --> 00:01:21,870
But in the common language of
the people, whether sellers

33
00:01:21,870 --> 00:01:23,520
or consumers of provisions,

34
00:01:23,520 --> 00:01:26,670
all these are vegetables which
are grown in kitchen gardens

35
00:01:26,670 --> 00:01:29,010
and which whether eaten cooked or raw,

36
00:01:29,010 --> 00:01:31,620
are like potatoes,
carrots, parsnips, turnips,

37
00:01:31,620 --> 00:01:33,960
beets, cauliflower, cabbage,
celery, and lettuce,

38
00:01:33,960 --> 00:01:37,860
usually served at dinner in
with or after the soup, fish

39
00:01:37,860 --> 00:01:40,590
or meats, which constitute the
principle part of the repast

40
00:01:40,590 --> 00:01:43,440
and not, like fruits
generally, as dessert."

41
00:01:43,440 --> 00:01:46,410
And what's a repast? It's an
old fashioned word for meal.

42
00:01:46,410 --> 00:01:49,293
So the principle part of a
repast is the main course

43
00:01:49,293 --> 00:01:50,670
of a meal.

44
00:01:50,670 --> 00:01:53,640
Which evidence from
this text best supports

45
00:01:53,640 --> 00:01:56,520
the court's claim that
tomatoes are vegetables?

46
00:01:56,520 --> 00:01:59,610
And we'll just make it easy,
pare it down to three choices.

47
00:01:59,610 --> 00:02:02,520
Which of these three
best supports that claim

48
00:02:02,520 --> 00:02:04,631
that tomatoes equal vegetables?

49
00:02:04,631 --> 00:02:09,393
Pause the video here and discuss. 3, 2, 1.

50
00:02:09,393 --> 00:02:11,976
(bright music)

51
00:02:23,340 --> 00:02:25,020
Okay, and we're back.

52
00:02:25,020 --> 00:02:27,030
Let's break down some of the evidence

53
00:02:27,030 --> 00:02:28,452
that Justice Gray uses.

54
00:02:28,452 --> 00:02:30,157
In this first one here,

55
00:02:30,157 --> 00:02:33,420
"Tomatoes are the fruit of a
vine, just as are cucumbers,

56
00:02:33,420 --> 00:02:35,114
squashes, beans and peas."

57
00:02:35,114 --> 00:02:37,980
That sounds like it's
acknowledging the counterargument.

58
00:02:37,980 --> 00:02:40,050
That's saying, "Okay, technically

59
00:02:40,050 --> 00:02:42,990
tomatoes are botanically fruit."

60
00:02:42,990 --> 00:02:45,810
So while that may strengthen
the overall argument,

61
00:02:45,810 --> 00:02:48,030
because then you can swerve back around

62
00:02:48,030 --> 00:02:49,590
and say "That's true, but,

63
00:02:49,590 --> 00:02:51,000
there's this even stronger evidence."

64
00:02:51,000 --> 00:02:53,190
This evidence does not support the claim

65
00:02:53,190 --> 00:02:54,390
that tomatoes are vegetables.

66
00:02:54,390 --> 00:02:57,393
In fact, it says the opposite.
So let's cross that out.

67
00:02:58,470 --> 00:03:01,140
Second one, "In the common
language of the people,

68
00:03:01,140 --> 00:03:02,880
these are vegetables."

69
00:03:02,880 --> 00:03:05,640
That's kind of a "Because
I said so" argument.

70
00:03:05,640 --> 00:03:07,830
What's the data that undergirds that?

71
00:03:07,830 --> 00:03:09,510
Which people? How many people?

72
00:03:09,510 --> 00:03:10,343
And does the fact

73
00:03:10,343 --> 00:03:12,960
that people believe a thing make it true?

74
00:03:12,960 --> 00:03:14,400
People saying these plants are vegetables,

75
00:03:14,400 --> 00:03:17,550
doesn't really prove that
they're vegetables, right?

76
00:03:17,550 --> 00:03:20,400
Nevertheless, this is stronger
than "Tomatoes are fruit."

77
00:03:20,400 --> 00:03:21,930
I'd call this relevant evidence.

78
00:03:21,930 --> 00:03:24,210
It does provide some
support for the claim,

79
00:03:24,210 --> 00:03:26,760
but is it the best evidence?

80
00:03:26,760 --> 00:03:28,687
Let's look at the last piece.

81
00:03:28,687 --> 00:03:30,810
"Whether eaten cooked or raw,

82
00:03:30,810 --> 00:03:33,450
vegetables are usually served at dinner,

83
00:03:33,450 --> 00:03:36,180
and not like fruits
generally, as dessert."

84
00:03:36,180 --> 00:03:39,090
So this last one is all about
that big list of vegetables,

85
00:03:39,090 --> 00:03:41,160
including tomatoes that
are served for dinner

86
00:03:41,160 --> 00:03:43,440
and not for dessert like a fruit would be.

87
00:03:43,440 --> 00:03:45,780
This is a cultural
definition of a vegetable,

88
00:03:45,780 --> 00:03:47,713
a question of how the food item is used,

89
00:03:47,713 --> 00:03:51,780
which is even stronger than
what the food item is called.

90
00:03:51,780 --> 00:03:54,510
I think this is our best evidence.

91
00:03:54,510 --> 00:03:58,272
People use tomatoes like
vegetables when they eat them,

92
00:03:58,272 --> 00:04:00,440
so they're vegetables.

93
00:04:00,440 --> 00:04:01,980
Good job. Option three.

94
00:04:01,980 --> 00:04:03,900
You are the best.

95
00:04:03,900 --> 00:04:04,890
In your own writing,

96
00:04:04,890 --> 00:04:06,690
when you need to find supporting evidence

97
00:04:06,690 --> 00:04:08,250
for an argument that you're making,

98
00:04:08,250 --> 00:04:10,140
look for those strong examples

99
00:04:10,140 --> 00:04:12,990
that are directly linked
to the claim you're making.

100
00:04:12,990 --> 00:04:15,599
Keep it as brief and as direct as you can.

101
00:04:15,599 --> 00:04:20,310
Claim. My sister picked up a
package for me when I was out.

102
00:04:20,310 --> 00:04:23,615
Evidence. My doorbell camera
captured her doing that.

103
00:04:23,615 --> 00:04:25,920
I have every confidence
that you'll be able

104
00:04:25,920 --> 00:04:28,860
to find the best text
evidence for your claims.

105
00:04:28,860 --> 00:04:31,560
And my evidence for that
is you taking the time

106
00:04:31,560 --> 00:04:33,025
to learn With me today.

107
00:04:33,025 --> 00:04:34,980
You can learn anything.

108
00:04:34,980 --> 00:04:35,813
David, out.