Entering the Academic Arena The Elements of Argument Judy Kahalas for Roxbury Community College

Opposing Viewpoints As you enter the academic arena, you will sometimes find yourself disagreeing with what someone says or with what someone writes. The desired outcome of education is to develop the ability to think analytically and critically, rejecting old arguments, integrating parts of them, or constructing new ones that propel a society to grow.

The Art of Argumentation You are sitting in class discussing a controversial essay and its thesis. One of your classmates states, “The author is totally right! Women haven’t made any progress in the last 50 years. We are still way below men!” You disagree. But let’s analyze her statement. What proof did she offer to back up her argument? How can you best formulate an argument to prove your point? Will you argue from a domestic or a global perspective?

Learning to Argue your Point Oral Argumentation In discussion, it is especially important to listen carefully to what someone else states. You will not have a valid point if you misinterpret, fail to listen closely, or interrupt what your classmate or professor is saying. One way you can make sure that you have understood someone else’s point of view is by restating the argument. For example, begin your response as follows:

Oral Argumentation If I am correct, you stated that women have not achieved any progress in the last 50 years. However, I disagree with that statement because...

Developing your Argument Strong arguments follow certain guidelines: They do not attack, play on emotions, exaggerate, or represent an unsubstantiated opinion They consider opposing points of view They are rational, logically developed, and use reliable sources to make them credible.

Beware of the pitfalls Don’t be a wimp and use words like “may,” “might,” “maybe,” or “I believe.” Avoid religious or personal beliefs that are unable to be debated through a system of logic. Don’t state obvious facts. Don’t make sweeping or hasty generalizations.

Specific Pitfalls Sweeping generalizations: All college students drink alcohol. Hasty conclusions: The Taliban was responsible for the terrorism of 9/11. All acts of terrorism after that time have been the work of the Taliban. Causal Fallacy: Because Bush is in office, the separation of church and state has become almost non-existent.

Specific Pitfalls Ad hominem: We can’t listen to anything our class president says because her political ideology is different than ours. Appeal to emotions: We must fight terrorism on whatever soil to show the world how brave and patriotic we are as Americans. False dilemmas: Using arguments that rely on only two options (either this or that) reduces critical analysis and minimizes the argument.

Toulmin’s Four Questions In Keys for Writers, Raimes quotes from Stephen Toulmin’s The Uses of Arguments: What is your point? What do you have to go on? How do you get there? What could prevent you from getting there? (do you need qualifiers such as “if, unless, but, usually, often, several, mostly,” etc.?)

Setting up your Argument: Deductive and Inductive Reasoning Starting with a generalization, moving towards specific points, and reaching a certain conclusion is called deductive reasoning. Developing a series of details that lead to a probable conclusion is inductive reasoning.

Effective and Ineffective Methods As a college student, you need to learn as much as you can about the art of argumentation. Follow the link below to learn how to construct valid, educated, and well-constructed arguments. ral/gl_logic.html

Works Cited Raimes, Ann. Keys for Writers. Fourth Edition. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2005.