Structuring Arguments

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Structuring Arguments

• EH 1302
• Ch. 8

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Toulmin Method

• Effective way of analyzing or dissecting
  arguments that allows us to make judgments on how
  well the different parts work together.

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Why the Toulmin Method?

• Method of detailed analysis
• break an argument into its various parts
• decide how effectively those parts participate in
  the overall whole
• Identify the arguments
• claim,
• reasons
• evidence
• evaluate the effectiveness of each

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REMEMBER

• Although Toulmin works somewhat like a formula,
  it has its limitations.

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Parts of an Argument

• The claim
• The reasons
• The warrants
• The evidence

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The CLAIM

• Statements of belief or truth
• Position on the issue point of the argument
• Like the umbrella statement that all other parts
  of an argument have to fall under.
• Cinderella Man is an excellent motion picture.
• All handguns should be banned.
• The U.S. should go to war with Iraq.

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Qualifiers

• Make writing more precise and honest.
• Words like few, some, most, many, in general,
  usually, typically, etc.
• Terms and conditions that limit your claims and
  warrants.
• Cinderella Man is a film people will enjoy.
• Cinderella Man is a film many people will enjoy.

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REASONS

• Statement that offers evidence to support a
  claim.
• Good argument should have at least 2 or 3
  reasons.
• Enthymeme claim reason
• Logical propositions that everyone makes

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Reasons

• Must determine if reason is
• Relevant
• Effective

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Relevance of Reasons

• Claim
• Argumentation is an important skill to learn.
• Reason
• People are dropping out of college at an
  alarming rate. (irrelevant to claim)
• On the university level, argument is valued by
  professors of various disciplines who say that
  they would like for their students to be able to
  take a strong position and support it with ample
  reasons and evidence. (relevant)

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Effectiveness of the Reasons

• Claim
• Argumentation is an important skill to learn.
• Reason
• No other type of writing requires a great deal
  of thought. (not effective since many would not
  agree or value this idea)
• If you look at writing assignments given in
  various disciplines of the university, you will
  find that many of them include elements that are
  related in some way to argument. (more
  supportable)

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WARRANTS

• Idea that connects the support to your claim.
• May be a simple reason or complex line of
  reasoning.
• Often unstated or assumed

reason
claim
warrant
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Authoritative Warrants

• Rely on expert testimony to justify a claim.
• Claim Smoking is bad for your health.
• Support The surgeon general says so.
• Warrant The surgeon general has access to the
  best available research.

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SubstantiveWarrants

• Resemble more traditional forms of logical
  reasoning
• Claim No life exists on Mars.
• Support Space photographs show a planet too dry
  to support life.
• Warrants (1)The photographs are of excellent
  resolution (2) they show all of Mars (3) we
  know of no life forms that can live without
  water.

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Motivational Warrants

• Rely on appeals to audiences convictions,
  virtues, and values
• Claim Many books by Dickens are fun to read.
• Support Adolescents have been reading and
  enjoying his stories for years as part of their
  secondary school curriculum.
• Warrants Parents value wholesome reading
  provided by their school systems.

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Warrants

• Claim Grades in college should be abolished.
• Support I dont like grades.
• Warrant What I dont like should be abolished.

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EVIDENCE (backing)

• The support material that supports the warrant in
  the argument.
• Can help audience understand the reasoning used
  in the warrant.
• If evidence is unstable or absent, neither of the
  two levels it supports (reasons and claims) can
  be effective.

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Evidence

• Can include any type of support material.
• Statistics
• Use numbers to quantify information
• Examples
• Concrete instances or situations that illustrate
  the warrant
• Testimony
• Involves use of expert opinion or personal
  experience

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EVIDENCE

• To be believable and convincing, evidence should
  satisfy three conditions.
• It should be
• Sufficient
• Credible
• Accurate

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Sufficient Evidence

• If you look at writing assignments given in
  various disciplines of the university, you will
  find that many of them include elements that are
  related in some way to argument.
• one Criminal Justice assignment
• would most likely be insufficient,
• several CJ assignments
• more varied range of situations in which the
  stated reason holds true

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Credibility of Evidence

• On the university level, argument is valued by
  professors of various disciplines who say that
  they would like for their students to be able to
  take a strong position and support it with ample
  reasons and evidence.
• statistics
• The National Inquirer
• Less credible
• The Journal of Higher Education
• More credible

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Objections and Rebuttals

• Potential objections are called conditions of
  rebuttal
• Understanding and reacting to the conditions of
  rebuttal are essential to support your own claims
  when they are weak.
• Helps understand the objections of people who see
  the world differently.

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Anticipated Objections

• On the university level, argument is valued by
  professors of various disciplines who say that
  they would like for their students to be able to
  take a strong position and support it with ample
  reasons and evidence.
• Objection
• Many students argue that fields like Engineering
  and Math have no use for argumentation skills.

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Rebuttals

• Once a writer identifies counter-arguments
  opponents might make, it would be self-defeating
  to announce those counter-arguments and not argue
  against them.
• After stating the objections of opponents, most
  writers will refute or rebut the objections.

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Rebuttals

• Good rebuttal usually requires evidence, so don't
  forget to look for support for the rebuttal
  position in that part of an argument.
• Rebuttal evidence should be
• sufficient
• accurate
• credible.

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Rebuttals

• Many students argue that fields like Engineering
  and Math have no use for argumentation skills.
• rebuttal evidence,
• However, a recent study appearing in journal,
  Language and Learning Across the Disciplines
  indicates that