Argument and Rhetoric OER/ZTC Resources

Argument is not inherently bad. In fact, as a number of great thinkers have described, conflict is necessary for growth, progress, and community cohesion. Through disagreement, we challenge our commonsense assumptions and seek compromise. The negative connotations surrounding ‘argument’ actually point to a failure in the way that we argue. (From EmpoWORD: A Student-Centered Anthology and Handbook for College Writers)

A cause is something that produces an event or condition; an effect is what results from an event or condition. The purpose of the cause-and-effect essay is to determine how various phenomena relate in terms of origins and results. (From Oregon Writes)

In an inductive argument the truth of the premises does not guarantee the truth of the conclusion. Nevertheless, there are logically strong inductive arguments, and our primary goal will be to learn how to distinguish these arguments from the logically weak ones. (From Arguments in Context)

Comparison in writing discusses elements that are similar, while contrast in writing discusses elements that are different. A compare-and-contrast essay, then, analyzes two subjects by comparing them, contrasting them, or both. (From Oregon Writes)

Critical Thinking in Academic Research will introduce students to the techniques and principles of critical thinking. However, a commitment to lifelong learning is required for critical thinking, it takes more than a single course or reading a book. In order for students to develop their own arguments, they need to find supporting evidence. This text provides guidance on developing research questions and finding resources to answer the questions.

Deductive arguments have maximal logical strength: the premises, if true, guarantee the truth of the conclusion. Although deductive arguments are not particularly common in everyday life, they have a number of distinctive features. Clarifying these features will not only help us understand deduction, but will give us a deeper understanding of argument evaluation more broadly. (From Arguments in Context)

First, we will develop a vocabulary for talking about argument evaluation. Second, we will consider a variety of common mistakes in argument evaluation, and thereby put ourselves in a position to avoid making them. Third, we will identify some useful techniques for evaluating arguments in specific contexts. As we will see, accurate evaluation often means asking the right questions... (From Arguments in Context)

A position argument includes these elements, which resemble those of Aristotle’s classical argument: introduce the issue and your position on the issue -- explain and describe the issue --
Address the opposition -- provide evidence to support your position -- offer your conclusion. (From Writing Guide with Handbook - OpenStax)

Toulmin views argument as it appears in a conversation, in a letter, or some other context because real arguments are much more complex than the syllogisms that make up the bulk of Aristotle’s logical program. Toulmin offers the contemporary writer/reader a way to map an argument. The result is a visualization of the argument process. This map comes complete with vocabulary for describing the parts of an argument. The vocabulary allows us to see the contours of the landscape—the winding rivers and gaping caverns. One way to think about a “good” argument is that it is a discussion that hangs together, a landscape that is cohesive (we can’t have glaciers in our desert valley). (From Informed Arguments: A Guide to Writing and Research.