English 11

Writing an Argument

One of the Greatest Arguments Ever Made?

 St. Crispins’ Day Speech  Prince Harry in Henry V

A Model of Argument

 Definition of rhetoric  NOT the use of language to mislead or manipulate  IS the use of language as a symbolic means of inducing cooperation Definition of argument  NOT a contest between opposing verbal forces or contentious quarrel  IS a process of reasoned inquiry, of rational discourse seeking mutual ground

Argument

 Students need to:      Engage their audience, encouraging the reader to consider the positions they present Present as reasonable, arguments that are valuable, trustworthy, logical, and viable Appeal to logos, pathos, and ethos Anticipate objections to their opinions and respect the complexity of the argument See multiple perspectives of an issue

Argument

 Three types of argument    Argument of fact Argument of value Argument of policy

Arguments of Fact

 State that something is or is not the case    AP students do better in college.

Media is responsible for shortening the attention span.

Cigarette smoking causes cancer.

Arguments of Value

 State that something is or is not desirable    A novel or film is of significant merit.

Bill Clinton was a good president.

Abortion is a good way to eliminate unwanted babies.

Arguments of Policy

 State that something should or should not be done    The designated hitter should be eliminated from baseball.

Gay marriage should be legalized.

Smoking should be banned from public places.

Methods of Argument

        Claim Assertion Data Warrant Qualifier Counter Rebuttal Refutation

Claim

 Claim: The overall thesis for which the writer will argue.

 Example: Hybrid cars are an effective strategy to fight air pollution.

Assertion

 Assertion: The logical fallacy where someone tries to argue a point by merely

asserting

that it is true, regardless of contradiction.  Example: Pollution is bad.

Data

 Data: Evidence gathered to support the claim.

 Example: Driving a private car is our country’s most air polluting activity.

Warrant

 Warrant (also referred to as a bridge): Explanation of why or how the data supports the claim, the underlying assumption that connects your data to your claim.

 Example: Because cars are the largest source of private air pollution, switching to hybrid cars should have an impact on fighting pollution.

 Warrants may be based on logos, ethos or pathos, or values that are assumed to be shared with the listener.

Qualifier

 The qualifier indicates the strength of the leap from the data to the warrant and may limit how universally the claim applies. They include words such as: Most But Usually Except If While Sometimes When  While hybrid cars do require electrical charging, the production of electricity is far less polluting than the burning of fossil fuels.

Reservation

 Another variant is the may give the possibility of the claim being incorrect.

reservation

, which  Example: Unless a cleaner fuel source comes along, hybrids are by far the least polluting source of fuel we have.

 Qualifiers and reservations are much used by advertisers who are constrained not to lie. Thus they slip 'usually', 'virtually', 'unless' and so on into their claims.

Counter

 Counter: A claim that negates or disagrees with a claim.

 Example: Instead of focusing on cars, which still encourages a culture of driving even if it cuts down on pollution, the nation should focus on building and encouraging use of mass transit systems.

(Don't avoid the opposing side of an argument. Instead, include the opposing side as a counterclaim. Find out what the other side is saying and respond to it within your own argument - rebuttal)

Rebuttal/Refutation

 Rebuttal: Evidence that negates or disagrees with the counterclaim.

 Rebuttal: While mass transit is an environmentally sound idea that should be encouraged, it is not feasible in many rural and suburban areas, or for people who must commute to work; thus hybrid cars are a better solution for much of the nation's population.

Refutation vs Rebuttal

 To refute is argue against someone by showing that their argument is wrong or untrue. For example if someone said that science has shown climate change to be unfounded, you could refute this claim by showing scientific evidence which shows it does support climate change theories. To rebut is to assemble an argument where you do not disprove the other person’s claims, you simple provide an alternative argument which seems better. An example: you want to argue that people have a right to smoke. The person you are arguing with claims that smoking causes illness, a claim that is very difficult to refute. So you rebut the claim by bringing in the argument that people should have a free choice. If they want to smoke, as long as they do it behind closed doors, and they know the risk; then they should be allowed.