Developing a Formal Argument

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Developing a Formal Argument

• EH 1301
• Spring 2005

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Argumentation

• Defense of an opinion
• A position on an issue
• Supported by concrete evidence that is presented
  logically.
• Convincing others

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Persuasion

• Defense of an opinion
• A position on an issue
• Supported by concrete evidence that is presented
  logically.
• Appeals to the readers emotions, values, and
  self-interests.
• Gets the reader to react or act

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Argumentation

• Must be developed according to rules of evidence
  and logical reasoning.

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Decide on your purpose for argument.Gather
information related to your topic.Make a central
claim which you can defend.Add qualifiers to
round off the claim.Offer definitions for any
unclear terms.Use minor claims to support the
central claim.Use further evidence to reinforce
the support.Consider possible objections to your
claim.Make necessary concessions to the
strongest objections.Make clear rebuttals
against the weaker objections.Then refine your
central claimand reaffirm it.Finally, urge its
acceptance.
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Purpose

• Decide on your purpose for argument.
• Proposition (to put forth)
• To prove a point
• Affects word choice, tone, and evidence
• Consider audience

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Audience

• Friendly
• Already agrees with your position
• Neutral
• Has no opinion about the issue
• Hostile
• Disagrees with your position

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Appeals to audience

• Ethical Appeal (Ethos)
• rely on writers character
• Emotional Appeal (Pathos)
• appeal to the emotions of the audience
• Logical Appeal (Logos)
• rational methods logical reasoning

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Information

• Gather information related to your topic.
• Brainstorm
• Research
• Observation

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Claim

• Make a central claim which you can defend.
• Claims fall into three main groups
• Claims of fact
• Claims of value
• Claims of policy

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Claims of FACT

• assert that something is true or not true.
• If claims can be easily verified by observation
  or experiment, dont waste your time arguing
  about them.
• Larry has 32 teeth count em.
• The Patriots won Super Bowl XXXIX.

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Not all facts are clear-cut

• Some statements that look like facts may not
  necessarily be facts.
• Some facts are disputable
• Television violence causes violent behavior in
  children.
• Sugar is bad for your health.
• The Golden Gate Bridge will not last another 50
  years.

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Claims of VALUE

• assert that something has or does not have worth.
• are impossible to defend when they are based on
  private taste or unfounded opinion.
• McDonalds hamburgers taste better than Burger
  Kings.
• Alabama is better than Auburn.

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For a value claim to be strong

• they must say what something has value for.
• Nike has the best running shoe on the market
  today.
• Auburns defense is better than Alabamas
  defense.

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For a value claim to be strong

• they ought to be based on a set of relevant
  criteria.
• Shoe
• Cost
• Durability
• Style
• Alabama vs. Auburn
• Coaching strategies
• Types of plays/success
• Statistics

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Claims of POLICY

• assert that something ought to be done or not
  done.
• The Three Mile Island nuclear reactors ought to
  be dismantled.
• We need a law to prevent any more farmland from
  being turned into suburban housing tracts.
• Mrs. Anderson should receive the
  Teacher-of-the-Year Award.

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Qualifiers

• Add qualifiers to round off the claim.
• These are terms that make a claim more flexible.
• Note the difference between this claim
• ? Teachers ignore students excuses.
• And this one 
• ? Some teachers tend to ignore students
  excuses.

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Qualifiers

• Note the difference between this claim
• Teachers ignore students excuses.
• And this one 
• Some teachers tend to ignore students
  excuses.

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Qualifiers

• Almost
• Frequently
• Hardly
• In most cases
• Ifthen
• Likely
• May
• Maybe
• might

• Most
• Often
• Probably
• Sometimes
• To some extent
• Typically
• Usually
• very

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Definitions

• Offer definitions for any unclear terms.

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Support/Evidence

• Use minor claims to support the central claim.
• Your central claim will not stand up just because
  you make it.
• It needs evidence for support
• the more kinds of evidence you offer and the
  stronger the evidence, the sturdier your argument
  will be.

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Kinds of Evidence

• Facts
• Judgments
• Testimony

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Kinds of Evidence

• Facts
• Cannot be debated
• Strongest kind of evidence you can have
• Records According to the latest reports from
  NASA
• Calculations It takes the solar wind X hours
  to reach the earth.

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Kinds of Evidence

• Judgments
• Conclusions inferred from facts
• Result from careful reasoning
• Doctor considers patients symptoms and reaches a
  tentative diagnosis
• Symptoms point to tuberculosis or a tumor
• Diagnosis based on knowledge of symptoms or facts
  about the two conditions.
• Patient does not have tuberculosis
• Judgment based on results of lab test.
• Patient has a tumor
• Judgment is inferred from facts of statements 1
  2.
• Patient does not have cancer
• Judgment is determined after surgery reveals
  tumor is benign.

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Kinds of Evidence

• Testimony
• Affirms or asserts facts
• Direct experience of subject (eyewitness)
• Developed expertise in subject (expert witness)
• Provide authority
• Eyewitness isnt always credible
• May distort truth by faulty observation or by
  biased opinion
• Expert in one field isnt expert in another

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Kinds of Evidence

• Testimony
• Expert testimony Carl Sagan says
• Observation I saw the northern lights twice
  last week.
• Expert Critique Siskel and Roper gave the movie
  two thumbs up.

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Evaluating Evidence

• Evidence should be
• Pertinent
• Is it relevant to the topic?
• Verifiable
• Can the evidence be proven?
• Reliable
• Are the sources of my evidence credible/believable
  ?

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Reinforce support

• Use further evidence to reinforce the support.
• Sometimes support itself needs to be supported.
• If you quote an authority, you may need to tell
  what his/her position is and his/her area of
  expertise.
• If your analysis needs to be clarified, give
  concrete examples and define key terms.

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Reinforce support

• Use further evidence to reinforce the support.
• Support An early curfew is in effect in the
  nearby town of Fairview and has not curbed the
  number of crimes perpetrated by teens.
• Reinforcement Just last week, twelve cases of
  burglary were reported to have been committed
  during school hours by a gang of 14-year-olds.

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Objections

• Consider possible objections to your claim.
• Some say that legalizing marijuana will
  eliminate much of the dangerous drug trafficking
  in South Florida.

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Concessions

• Make necessary concessions to the strongest
  objections.
• Concessions are points that you let the other
  side score.
• When your argument has some true weaknesses
  vagueness, incompleteness, lack of support it
  is best to admit the fact.
• Giving away points will not weaken your
  argument if it was not strong there to begin
  with.
• A crucial concession takes away the major weapon
  of the opposition.

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Concessions

• Admittedly
• Certainlybut
• Even though
• Granted
• I cannot argue with

• I concede that
• While it is true that
• Perhapsyet
• Undoubtedly
• It goes without saying that

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Concessions

• While it is true that there is no conclusive
• scientific evidence that smoking marijuana
• leads to the use of stronger drugs like heroin
• and cocaine,

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Rebuttal

• Make clear rebuttals against the weaker
  objections.
• an objection against your argument (or)
• a reply that points out a weakness in an
  objection
• (an objection to an objection)

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Rebuttal

• (Concession)
• While it is true that there is no conclusive
• scientific evidence that smoking marijuana
• leads to the use of stronger drugs like heroin
• and cocaine,
• (Rebuttal)
• most addicts admit that they began their drug
  habits with marijuana.

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Rebuttal

• To find the weakness in an objection, try to
  uncover its logical skeleton and pick it apart
  bone by bone, or syllogism by syllogism.

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Sometimes a rebuttal will

• flatly deny the assumption made in an objection.
  
• point out previously ignored information
• redefine basic terms
• interpret old evidence in a new way
• quote one authority who contradicts the other
• expose personal bias, or emotional slant, in an
  opponents argument

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Refine

• Then refine your central claim

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Reaffirm

• and reaffirm it.

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• Finally, urge its acceptance.