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John Tringas
Connie Douglas
English 112
9/14/14
Calling the Shots, is Autism Caused by Vaccinations?

I read opposing articles that debated the causes of autism related to the practice of
early childhood vaccinations. The authors of both articles start with strong sentences
stating their rhetorical situation. In 2011 Kelly King Heyworth of Detroit, MI states We
have to move forward and be willing to accept what science tells us: Vaccines do not cause
autism.(Heyworth) Michael Snyder of Farmintonhills, MI in 2014 says, The evidence
linking vaccines and autism continues to mount.(Snyder) Each writers intended audience
are parents, potential parents, researchers in the medical field and the vaccine movement.
Each author also mentions vaccinating in general, with Ms. Heyworth supporting the idea
that it is in order to protect the community. Mr. Snyder rejects vaccination, which he claims
is causing an autism epidemic by introducing mercury into the weak immune system of a
child.
Kelly Heyworth, claiming no connection between rising rate of autism and
vaccinations, writes the most agreeable article. The argument is written from both
viewpoints of doctors and parents. Her article is split into five sections opening with the
medical communities support of children being vaccinated. The article then refutes the
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claim that links autism to vaccination, supporting her statements with studies published
in distinguished medical journals. She follows with the message that vaccination is not
going to be one-hundred percent side effect free. The article also recognizes that Moms
want to eliminate even a remote chance that their child will experience side effects from a
vaccine and they may fear that multiple injections could overwhelm the immune system.
(Heyworth) Last of all the article goes back to supporting its first section, stating that
vaccinating your children you dont just protect them you help shield your entire
community. (Heyworth) The language of the article is concise and filled with supportive
facts giving the author an authoritative stance on the topic. The author continually talks to
parents recognizing that they are scared, appealing to the pathos of the reader. By
explaining to the reader the original claim, Heyworth gives the reader something to
understand and start with, which he or she can then disprove by the strong safety net of
supported facts to fall back on when confronted with their own decisions about which side
of the topic they are on. The author addresses the opposition by clearly noting that their
position on the topic doesnt mean that vaccines arent capable of causing adverse effects
beyond a sore arm and slight fever, (Heyworth) admitting that there is not a one-hundred
percent unaffected rate of vaccination for patients. The author closes the article by saying
that a vaccinated population is more beneficial, protecting children and the community.
Ms. Heyworths technical style is a little bit dense and hard to understand by anyone
new to the issue. However, a slow and careful read will allow the reader to best understand
the issue at hand. The strengths of the article are the strong refutation of the issue at hand,
and the attempt to broaden the readers perspective on vaccines to make them more likely
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to accept the main message of the article. Also personal messages from doctors

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throughout the article help the reader to feel connected.

To the contrary, in Mr. Snyders article, the content of the message that is least
agreeable is that vaccines cause autism and we are endangering our children by pumping
them full of mercury. The author, through five separate sections tries to logically persuade
the reader into believing that autism is directly linked to vaccination. The five separate
parts of the article are not very convincing because they just say that vaccines cause autism
without addressing the accurate statistics or refuting the opposition. The language is
accusatory and Mr. Snyder attempts to use overwhelmingly large statistics that are
misleading to veil the eyes of the reader, blinding them from the possibility of an opposing
view.
The articles opening points out that pharmaceutical companies will never ever,
ever, ever admit a link between vaccines and autism. (Snyder) The article then announces
the epidemic of rising autism rates punctuated with information noting the correlation
between when children are being vaccinated and begin to regress with autism. Continuing
with misleading, albeit true, information about mercury being proven to cause severely
impaired neurological development. Stories are then given of people who choose not to
vaccinate their children, and had them taken away by authorities. The articles final
statement is that vaccinating children is complete and utter madness.(Snyder)
Snyders article convincingly draws the reader into believing that vaccinating your
child is simply the worst thing you can do. Its main weakness is a lack of focused
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information. This sadly points to the articles strengths, its ability to use accurate
information to lead readers into inaccurate conclusions about the issue. Attempting to
prove that this correlation is the causation.
The author does not address the opposition research that could draw controversy to
their statements. The reader only reads about how the epidemic is at hand and that vaccine
companies with support from the government are not going to stop causing this epidemic
by pumping children full of toxic mercury.
Heyworth most successfully fulfills her intentions of convincing readers that
vaccines do not cause autism. She does so by letting the reader make up their own mind,
and giving good evidence of both sides of the vaccination issue. Snyders opposing article
does give you a good scare though. Being a potential parent, Snyders article foreshadows
lots of research when making medical decisions for a child. Keeping in mind its not always
what is best for each individual, sometimes what is best will benefit the whole community.

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Work Cited:
Heyworth, Kelley King. "Vaccines Do Not Cause Autism." Epidemics. Ed. David Haugen and
Susan Musser. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2011. Opposing Viewpoints. Rpt. from "Vaccines:
The Reality Behind the Debate." Parents (May 2010). Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 6
Sept. 2014.
Snyder, Michael. "Vaccines Cause Autism." Behavioral Disorders. Ed. Roman Espejo. Farmington
Hills, MI: Greenhaven Press, 2014. Opposing Viewpoints. Rpt. from "Vaccines and Autism: The
Secret That You Are Not Supposed To Know." The American Dream. 2012. Opposing
Viewpoints in Context. Web. 6 Sept. 2014.

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