The Argumentative Essay

. . .a writer tries to persuade readers

to adopt his or her point of view
about a given issue.
. . .the underlying aim of
argumentative essays is to use words
to make a difference.
drawn from Section 7 of Scribner

A good persuasive argument. . .

. . .conveys a reasonable conclusion--often
called a thesis or a claim--about a
controversial topic.
. . .presents supporting evidence that is
always incorporated, explained and
documented clearly and precisely..

Furthermore, a good
Argumentative Essay. . .
. . .considers and often presents the
conflicting point of view about the
controversy.
. . .reflects thorough research

Things to consider:
Your audience
Why is this subject important?
Answer the position of the other side

refute
concede

Build your own position.

Think of your audience; you

do not want to invite your
you needopposition
to show a real or
concern
about how
readers'
hostility.

your readers might think about a given

subject
Also you need to consider how they might
react to the way you think about that subject.
All audiences within our western academic
culture respond to logic and reasonableness.

Logical Thinking
Using
inductive and deductive
reasoning

Inductive
Reasoning

. . .used to attribute causes to events or circumstances

rather than to determine the truth about them with absolute
certainty.
Your generalizations about causes may be right or wrong,
but you cannot be certain because inductive thinking
depends on probability.
Probability refers to the likelihood, rather than to an
absolute conviction, that something is true.
Errors in inductive reasoning typically involve

oversimplification.

An example of inductive
reasoning

If you break out in hives every time you eat

chocolate, you most likely will generalize from
those specific instances and reason that eating
chocolate caused the hives in you.
Be aware that observations need to be accurate:
You may consider whether you are allergic to
other things besides chocolate. (Did the pizza with
anchovies you ate before the chocolate dessert
have something to do with your reaction?)

Elements of Inductive Reasoning

begins with a specific observation
continues with additional specific observations
arrives at a general claim or a reasonable
conclusion that is based on available evidence
attributes causes to events or circumstances,
resulting in a hypothesis that can be tested
further (an educated guess).
offers probability rather than certainty

Deductive Reasoning
occurs when you take a general principle or
truth and apply it to a more specific instance.
Deductive thinking is syllogistic reasoning .

A syllogism is an argument arranged in three

parts:
a major premise,
a minor premise, and
a conclusion.

MAJOR PREMISE When Gabriele drinks coffee she

alwaysgets a headache. [Fact]
MINOR PREMISE Gabriele is drinking coffee. [Fact]
CONCLUSION
Gabriele will get a headache.

The premises can be facts or assumptions.

A major premise stipulates a general principle (e.g., that

all spiders have eight legs),

and a minor premise reflects a specific instance (e.g.,
that the creature on your desk has six legs).

A syllogism is valid when the conclusion follows

logically from the premises. When the conclusion does
not follow logically from the premises, a syllogism
(along with the argument it states) is invalid, even if the
premises are facts, as in the following example.
MAJOR PREMISE:

When Gabriele drinks coffee she

always gets a headache. [Fact]
MINOR PREMISE: Gabriele has a headache. [Fact]
CONCLUSION: Gabriele must have been drinking coffee.

When a premise is an assumption

rather than a fact, you must be able
to
support the premise with
MAJOR PREMISE If you wear Gap clothes to
school, you
evidence
. will be accepted by the school's most

popular group. [Assumption]

MINOR PREMISE Jose wears Gap clothes to
school. [Fact]
CONCLUSION Jose will be accepted by the
school's most popular group.

Since the major premise of this

example rests on a shaky
assumption (it cannot be
supported with evidence), the
In most instances, wearing Gap clothes (or
argument
isbrand
not ortrue
thedoes not
any other
type .of But
clothing)
ensure automatic popularity. Other factors,
structure
is
valid.
such as academic or athletic ability, sense of
humor, physical characteristics, friends, and
others, influence acceptance.

Elements of Deductive
Reasoning

DEDUCTIVE REASONING
begins with a general idea or major
premise
continues with an additional minor
premise applied to a particular case
concludes with a specific statement
derived from the premise

Further Elements of Deductive

Reasoning

DEDUCTIVE ARGUMENTS
can be true or false, depending on how
true or false the premise is
can be valid or invalid, depending on the
structureof their syllogisms
when true, provides certainty rather than
probability

Checklist of Common Logical

Fallacies
Non sequitor: A statement that does not follow
logically from another.
Hasty generalization: A conclusion based on
insufficient evidence.
Stereotyping: Assuming without sufficient evidence
that members of a group think or behave alike.
Either-or thinking: Limiting possible explanations
to two.

Post hoc, ergo propter hoc: Assuming that an event is caused

by another simply because one event occurs after the other.
Begging the question: Assuming as true what needs to be
proven.
Circular reasoning: Asserting the same point in different
words.
Special pleading: Arguing without considering opposing
viewpoints.
Red herring: Introducing an irrelevant or distracting
consideration into an argument.

Appeal to ignorance: Assuming something is

true because the contrary cannot be proven.
Ad populum: Appealing to the prejudices of an
audience.
Ad hominem: Attacking a person's character
rather than addressing the issue at hand.
False analogy: Making an illogical connection
based on irrelevant similarities.

Audiences respond if you adopt a

fair-minded and reasonable tone in
your arguments. Therefore avoid. . .

. . .exaggeration and anger

For example, never use name-calling as a tactic

(you should not refer to your opposition as

stupid or ludicrous).

. . .wording that sounds pompous or

borrowed.
. . .wording that overstates your case and
thereby distorts the truth.

Be thorough. . .
Look at the whole controversy so that you do not
overlook important evidence.
Jumping to conclusions tends to lead to using
evidence that supports preliminary and, perhaps,
unfounded bias for a particular solution.
Ignoring other points of view can only weaken
your argument by suggesting to readers that you
have considered no other position except your
own.

A thesis should reflect

thoughtfulness:
The topic, in this example, is how best to use a high
school's library budget. One special interest group
in the community wants to build new storage space
for books that few people consult; the other group
wants to weed out the older books and spend most
of the money for new books. These two groups are
locked in a standoff, recognizing no middle ground.

The library must create additional space so that its

collection can be supplemented .

Although our local library has a significant

problem with dwindling storage space, gaps in
the social studies, science, and fiction
collections make it imperative that additional
books be purchased. Placing low-circulation
books into secondary storage at an alternative
location and a concerted effort by the librarian
to replace bulky periodicals with microfilm can
create sufficient space for supplementing the
collection for five more years.

Guidelines for Developing an

Argumentative
Essay
Select a controversial
subject that interests you.

Consider other points of view. Be fair to all

sides of the argument during research by doing
the following:
As your evidence begins to lead you to a particular

conclusion, search for contradictory evidence .

Question your own evidence just as you question
other investigators' conclusions .

 Avoid jumping to conclusions, and never be satisfied d if your

evidence leads to only one way of seeing your topic.

Try to imagine how your audience will interpret your evidence.
Let the principles of logic guide your effort.

Write a short account explaining what you have

discovered about your controversy. Sketch out the various
points of view.
Based on the evidence you have gathered formulate a
tentative thesis, one that you will reconsider and modify
as you do more reading, writing, and analysis.

Make a tentative outline of how you think you will develop

your argument, listing the major and support ideas, or
premises, and the order in which you will present them.
Keep in mind that the way you organize your evidence will
help determine just how convincing your argument will be.
Write a draft beginning, and then develop the middle of
your essay. Write an ending.
Present your argument to your work group or to another
classmate. Ask your readers to resist your argument and to
indicate weak spots

A Review of the main

Features of the Argumentative Essay
It presents supporting evidence that is
always incorporated, explained, and
documented clearly and precisely.
It presents the conflicting points of view.
It reflects thorough research.
It conveys a reasonable conclusion.