刘文勇GRE写作Argument题库 Day 4

Day 4 Of the two leading real estate firms in our town—Adams Realty and Fitch Realty—Adams Realty is clearly superior

The following appeared in a letter from a homeowner to a friend.

“Of the two leading real estate firms in our town— Adams Realty and Fitch Realty— Adams Realty is clearly superior. Adams has 40 real estate agents; in contrast, Fitch has 25, many of whom work only part-time. Moreover, Adams' revenue last year was twice as high as that of Fitch and included home sales that averaged $168,000, compared to Fitch's $144,000. Homes listed with Adams sell faster as well: ten years ago I listed my home with Fitch, and it took more than four months to sell; last year, when I sold another home, I listed it with Adams, and it took only one month. Thus, if you want to sell your home quickly and at a good price, you should use Adams Realty.”

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.

五问：

（1）“Adams has 40 real estate agents; in contrast, Fitch has 25, many of whom work only part-time. Moreover, Adams' revenue last year was twice as high as that of Fitch and included home sales that averaged $168,000, compared to Fitch's $144,000”和“ten years ago I listed my home with Fitch, and it took more than four months to sell; last year, when I sold another home, I listed it with Adams, and it took only one month”是事实，“Thus, if you want to sell your home quickly and at a good price, you should use Adams Realty”是结论，值得反驳吗？

（2）数目和质量可以同等比较吗？数目越多，质量就一定越高吗？例如： Adams的 40个房地产代理的工作经验可能不及 Fitch的 25个代理的工作经验丰富。另外，正式员工的工作能力一定比兼职员工强吗？

（3）去年的售价高，今年的售价就一定高吗？平均值能在任何情况下都代表个体值吗？是否有可能 Fitch的销售量更多，从而拉低了平均售价呢？

（4）作者使用两个不同年份的房屋的售出速度来对比两家代理商的房屋售出速度，这样是正确的吗？是否犯了时间轴论证的错误？十年之后， Fitch公司是否可能也取得了发展？

（5）文中对两家代理商的对比，是否将所有方面都涵盖了？你能否罗列一两个可供比较的方面？例如：两家销售的房屋类型、地段等。