Transcript remember argumentation?

ARGUMENT STRUCTURE
Claim (a.k.a. thesis)
Reasons / Grounds (a.k.a. supporting claims or subclaims)
Evidence/data
Warrant
Qualifier
Concession/counterargument
Refutation/rebuttal
CLAIM /THESIS
The claim is the conclusion, proposition, or
assertion an arguer wants another to
accept.
The claim answers the question, "So what
is your point?”
REASONS / SUB-CLAIMS / GROUNDS
Assertions or statements made to support the
claim, dividing it into smaller issues.
In a brief argument, these are “because”
statements that follow the claim.
In an essay, these are the topics of your
paragraphs.
Do not confuse reasons/grounds with evidence—
reasons/grounds are still ideas.
EVIDENCE/DATA
Evidence can consist of statistics, quotations,
reports, findings, physical evidence, or various
forms of reasoning.
Evidence is the support the arguer offers on
behalf of his/her claim. The grounds answer
questions such as:
 "What is your proof?“
 "How do you know?“
 "Why?”
MORE ABOUT EVIDENCE
Evidence can be based on:
facts: statistics, reports, or physical proof
source credibility: authorities, experts, celebrity
endorsers, a close friend, or someone's say-so
precedent—what’s been done before
Definitions
Examples and anecdotes
premises already held by the audience
PLEASE DISCUSS….
WHAT ABOUT APPEALS?
Evidence should be based on one or more of the
3 appeals.
Ideally, any claim or sub-claim/ground is
developed using all 3 appeals.
• Logical appeal
• Emotional Appeal
• Ethical Appeal
MORE ABOUT APPEALS
Logical appeals LOGOS
Emotional appeals
PATHOS
to convince an
To make the audience
audience by use of logic feel what the author
or reason
wants them to feel
•
•
•
•
•
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Facts
Examples
Definitions
Precedent
Analogy
Syllogisms
(deductive
arguments)
• Connotative
language
• Rhetorical devices
• Imagery
• Figurative language
• Anecdotes
• Humor
Ethical appeals ETHOS
to convince an
audience of the
author’s credibility or
character
• Citing trustworthy
sources
• Appropriate diction
for the audience and
topic
• fair and unbiased
tone
• expertise or
reputation
• correct grammar and
mechanics.
PLEASE DISCUSS
WARRANTS (THIS IS THE TOUGH ONE!)
The warrant is the inferential leap that connects
the claim with the evidence.
The warrant is typically implicit (unstated) and
requires the audience to recognize the
connection between the claim and evidence.
Weak warrants can lead to bad logic!
MORE ABOUT WARRANTS
 example: “Muffin is running a temperature (evidence).
I’ll bet she has an infection (claim).”
Warrant: sign reasoning—a fever is a reliable sign of a
fever
 example: "That dog is probably friendly (claim). It is a
Golden Retriever (evidence).”
Warrant: generalization—most Golden Retrievers
are known to be friendly
SAMPLE ARGUMENT 1
The Cougars are likely
to win the ballgame
tonight
They are playing
at home
Grounds
Claim
Warrant
(unstated) Generalization:
The home team enjoys an
advantage in baseball
SAMPLE ARGUMENT 2
It is nominated for
12 Academy
Awards
Lincoln is a wonderful
movie.
Grounds
Claim
Warrant
(unstated) Sign: a movie’s greatness can be
measured in the number of Oscar nominations it
receives
PLEASE DISCUSS…
QUALIFIER
•A statement about how strong the claim is.
• Words such as “most”, “usually”, “always” or
“sometimes”.
“Muffin is running a temperature. I’ll bet she has an
infection.”
"That dog is probably friendly. It is a Golden Retriever.”
CONCESSION AND REFUTATION
AKA COUNTERARGUMENT AND REBUTTAL
•acknowledging a point made by the opposition (concession) before
proving it wrong (refutation).
•serves as a defense against opposing arguments.
•indicates an understanding of exactly what causes the controversy
•demonstrates maturity in thinking by considering the issue from other
angles.
TRY IT OUT
Claim = My parents should allow me to go to my
friend’s party on Friday night.
Data = The parents of nearly all of the seniors at SCHS
have given their children permission to attend this
party.
Warrant = My parents should act in accordance with
the other parents of seniors at SCHS.
UH-OH, A POTENTIAL SNAG…
What if my parents don’t “buy” my warrant?
What if they don’t think they should
necessarily do what other parents are doing?
How can I still get permission to attend the
party? Or at least have a better chance of
getting permission?
TRY NEW DATA AND A NEW WARRANT.
What might be more convincing data for an
audience of parents?
What might be a warrant that most parents
will share?