Transcript The Toulmin Model of Argument

The Toulmin Model of Argument
White and Billings
Toulmin Basics
 Toulmin’s model is systematic in its
reasoning; at the same time, it
demands that this reasoning be
scrutinized for its ethical
underpinnings.
Toulmin Model
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Claim
Data
Warrant
Backing
Qualifier
Rebuttal
Claim
The assertion I shall try to persuade you to accept
as true with or without qualifiers
Data/Grounds
The facts and/or logical reasons
that demonstrate the truth of my claim
Warrant
Assurance that the data is based on solid principles,
thus contributing to the validity & trustworthiness of the claim
Backing
Assurance that the warrant is sound
Claim
 Suggests a thesis or assertion is
particularly open to challenge
 Cannot dispute taste
 Objective claim
 Assert that something actually exists and
present evidence that is demonstrably factual
 Subjective Claim
 Assert that something should exist and present
evidence derived from ethical, moral, or
aesthetic convictions.
Data (grounds)
 The supporting evidence fully
validates the claim
 Five kinds of data
 Legal
 Scientific
 Testimonial or experiential (clear
demonstrations)
 Scholarly or documentary
 Statistical
The Warrant and its Backing
 The assurance that the evidence brought in
to support the claim is completely reliable
and that it rests on sound principles or
values
 Logical or scientific
 Ethical or forensic-based
 Emotional or artistic based
 The backing is the assurance that the
warrant is sound
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Even if the warrant remains unstated, the writer should know what it is, in order
to determine if the reader shares those values
The Qualifier
 Claim may be valid in many circumstances
but not all
 used so that all readers would understand
how the writer is limiting its range
 Rebuttal
 Similar to Refutation, except
 Aims not to invalidate the claim but to show that
the claim may not be valid in certain situations
Exercise 4.1
 Question 1
Exercise 4.2
 Questions 1, 3, 4, 5
Exercise 4.3
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Claim
Data
Warrant
Backing
Qualifier?
Rebuttal?
Toulmin Essay
 Using the Toulmin model of argument
structure, write a 2 page position
paper on the following topic:
 Is the internet today’s solution or
tomorrow’s menace?
 Include prewriting of the: claim, data,
warrant, backing, qualifier, rebuttal
* I will not accept papers with triple-spacing,
large fonts, wrong margins, wrong fonts. The
papers will be returned and can be resubmitted
with a late-penalty as per the syllabus.