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Core, Structure, and Evidence Chapter 4: The Core of an Argument: A Claim with Reasons Consider all three aspects of the rhetorical triangle as you compose: message/writer/audience Note distinctions between issue questions (argumentative claims) and information questions (explicative). The first persuades, the second informs. In this class, we are interested in issue questions, as all our writing should be geared toward persuasion. Beware of "pseudo-arguments" by those who are fanatical believers or skeptics, or those with whom you share no assumptions. You can't have much of an argument without flexible participants, sharable assumptions, and the possibility for growth/change/movement in audience beliefs or sympathies. The frame of an argument is simply a claim supported by reasons. Here are its simplest parts. 1) claim: the stated position that you want your audience to accept (thesis) 2) reasons to support your claim (thesis); often a series of "because" statements A basic argument will use this structure explicitly; a more sophisticated argument will build upon this structure while retaining its basic form. Chapter 5: Logical Structure Experiment with relinquishing formal notions of logic as abstract and universal. At least for this class, entertain the notion that no arguments PROVE things absolutely. Instead, try to view arguments as suggesting courses of action and illuminating paths to follow. Many arguments are built from enthymemes, incomplete logical structures that depend on one or more unstated assumptions (beliefs, values) to complete them. These beliefs and values serve as the starting points of arguments. Aristotle claimed that the most successful (persuasive) enthymemes are rooted in audience beliefs/values. For definitions of enthymeme based arguments and examples, see p. 97-98. Toulmin notes these additional aspects of argumentative structure, built on a courtroom model: Warrants: unstated assumptions that logically complete enthymemes Grounds: supporting evidence (facts, statistics, testimony, examples) Backing: argument that supports the warrant To argue really well, you should always try to anticipate rebuttal and counter arguments. Imagine how you will offset these counter claims with reasons and evidence. Chapter 6: Evidence in Arguments Evidence is extremely important, as it provides the support for your claim. There are many kinds of evidence that you may employ, including: 1) Evidence from personal experience, such as examples, narratives, and observations. These tend to be engaging, establishing immediacy. 2) Evidence from interviews, surveys, and questionnaires, though these can be complex, forcing you to consider who to interview, what to ask, and how. 3) Evidence from reading, including facts, examples, summaries of research, and testimony. 4) Evidence from numerical data and statistics. Read charts/graphs rhetorically and critically, as charts can lie, and numbers can be arranged strategically. What type of evidence should you use? Let the following guidelines dictate:
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