The document discusses the nature of arguments, emphasizing their importance in human communication and the need to understand them for effective reading and writing. It outlines methods for analyzing and constructing arguments, including the use of emotional, ethical, and logical appeals, and describes various ways to structure arguments effectively. Additionally, it highlights strategies for supporting arguments with evidence and the role of style in reinforcing the message.

1. The centrality of argument
Comments on Everyone’s An Author Chapters 17-18
Opening Remarks
An argument refers to any way that human beings express
themselves to try to achieve a particular purpose – which, many
would say, means any way that people express themselves at all
The world is immersed in argument
You will be a better reader and writing of your own arguments
if you understand how they work
Arguments are both seductive and manipulative due to their
persuasive nature
Opening Remarks Cont.
Common purpose of argument:
To explore
To understand
To find consensus
To make decisions
To convince or persuade
Arguments are embedded in particular contexts
What works in one won’t work in another
It’s essential to understand how arguments so you can make
some effective arguments on your own
Pay close attention to your purpose, intended audience, and the
rest of your rhetorical situation
Chapter 17
Analyzing & Constructing Arguments: Those You Read, Those

2. You Write
Opening Remarks
Almost everything represents some kind of argument; therefore,
you must understanding them – both those you come across and
those you make
You need to understand the arguments that come from other
people
Arguments always exist in a larger context, involving more than
just one person or group
Arguments start as a response to another argument – statement,
event, image, or anything else
Where’s the argument coming from
Look at the source – where is the argument coming from
By looking at the source, we can determine how it affects the
argument and how willing we should be to accept what the
argument says
As an author, think hard about where you’re coming from in the
arguments you make
Consider your word choice (what you say and how you say it),
included images, and text design
Consider your attitude and stance toward the subject
What’s the claim?
The easiest claims to identify are those that are stated in an
explicit thesis statement
As an author, remember that a claim is more than a personal
opinion
A claim must be arguable (worth arguing) by taking a position
that is debatable; that others have a different opinion on
State arguable claims as a thesis statement that announces your
topic and main points so your readers can follow your thought

3. process
Qualify your thesis statement
Make your claims directly and get to the point quickly
Support your claim with evidence
What’s at stake?
Rhetoricians from ancient Rome have developed stasis theory as
a way to identify the crux of an argument by asking 4 questions:
What are the facts?
How can the issue be defined?
How much does it matter, and why?
What actions should be taken as a result?
As an author, use these questions to identify the main point you
want to make in an argument
These questions can also help decide the genre of argument you
wish to make
Means of persuasion: emotional, ethical, and logical appeals
Emotional appeals (Pathos)
Stir feels and invoke values that the audience is assumed to hold
As a reader, consider how emotional appeals support an author’s
claim
Are emotional appeals appropriate to your claim, purpose, and
audience?
Overuse can make an audience feel manipulated
Ethical Appeals (ethos)
Invoke credibility and good character of whoever makes the
argument
Cite scholarly positions and awards
Build common ground
Simple, everyday language
Establish mutual Interest in the Topic
Establish Trust with Author
Cite trustworthy sources, represent all positions fairly and

4. accurately, establish common ground
Means of persuasion: emotional, ethical, and logical appeals
Cont.
Logical appeals (Logos)
Humans are rational
Appeal through reasons and evidence
Facts and statistics
Surveys and questionnaires
Observations
Interviews
Testimony
Experiments
Personal experience
Charts, images, and other visuals
The medium affects the evidence you choose and how you
present it
Be wary of logical fallacies or faulty reasoning where your
reasoning is unfair, unsound, lazy, or simpleminded
Begging the question
Either-or Arguments
Ad Hominem
Faulty Causality
Bandwagon Appeals
Slippery Slope Arguments
Setting Up a Straw Man
Hasty generalization
Faulty Analogies
Are there any problems with the reasoning?
What About Other Perspectives?
It’s essential to consider perspectives other than those of the
author, especially the ones that do not support the claim or
would argue it differently

5. If an argument doesn’t do that, question it because it is
untrustworthy
By acknowledging other perspectives, you’re establishing that
you’re fair and substantiating your credibility
Considering other positions will encourage you to qualify your
thesis statement
When addressing other perspectives, you acknowledge them
fairly and respectfully, sure to accommodate and refute them as
needed
Addressing other perspectives makes you smarter
Ways of structuring arguments
Several ways to write an argument
Can structure it slowly, building up to the end claim, waiting to
establish all the supporting evidence
Can start with the claim immediately, building support after
Can start by addressing what others have said about your topic
and then adding your own claim and ideas
Arguments are always social, involving two parties: author &
audience
Arguments have a purpose, debatable claim, reasons/evidence
from a variety of sources to support said claim, and rely on
assumptions that while not explicit are still implicit and agreed
upon between author and audience
Ways of structuring arguments cont.
Classical Arguments
Favored
Rely on the three appeals (ethical in the introduction with
logical/emotional anywhere)
Introduction to engage interest and attention
Body of argument providing necessary background information,
reason, and evidence

6. Conclusion summarizing your argument and making clear what
you want remembered.
Toulmin Arguments
Introduction to present a debatable claim
Body of argument to present good reasons/evidence, explain
assumptions, and acknowledge counterarguments
The conclusion restates the argument strongly and memorably
For a fuller breakdown, see pages 410-411
Ways of structuring arguments cont.
Rogerian Arguments
All about being respectful, establishing common ground,
encouraging discussion and open exchange of ideas, and seeking
a mutually beneficial compromise
Introduction identifies the issue and describes it fully and fairly
The body of argument discusses the various positions
respectfully and neutrally, presenting reasons/evidence to show
how each position is valid
Conclusion to propose resolution, including a compromise
invitational Arguments
Get people to work together toward understanding by listening
and demonstrating to your audience that you understand/respect
their position, setting the stage for discussion and collaboration
for the benefit of all
Introduction presenting topic and acknowledging various
position/perspectives
Body where each position/perspective is fairly and respectfully
Conclusion looking for common ground among each perspective
and asking each reader to make up their minds
Matters of style
The style reinforces its message as much as possible on all

7. levels: high, medium, and low
Look at the stylistic choices in an argument including the use of
words and figurative language, of personal pronouns (and not),
of vivid images (verbal and visual) and of design and format
Chapter 18
Strategies for supporting an argument
Arguments are only as strong as the evidence that supports
them!
Strategies for support cont.
Analogy
Analogies are comparisons that point out similarities between
things that are different
Create vivid pictures, making the abstract concrete
What is true in one case is true in another, though possibly more
complex
Cause / Effect
Goal: understand and explain why something happened
Can be tricky because nearly impossible to link a specific cause
to a specific effect
Qualify thesis statements
Can be understood in chart and graphs along with words
Strategies for support cont.
Classification
Group items into categories according to similarities
Organize and elaborate on a topic

8. Comparison / contrast
Comparing is focusing on similarities while contrasting is
focusing on the differences
Useful in developing an argument
Help explain unfamiliar things
Two ways of organization:
Block
Point by point
Strategies for support cont.
Definition
Heart of the argument
Rhetorical choices
Good definitions provide a clear explanation of word, concept,
or idea by listing characteristic features, noting distinguishing
details and providing examples or illustrations
Good definitions tell what something is as well as what
something is not
Description
Explain how it looks/sounds/smells/tastes/feels
Focus on distinctive features and concrete details
Establish dominant impression
Help readers/listeners imagine what you’re describing
Strategies for support cont.
Examples
Examples make abstract ideas more concrete and understandable
and provide specific instances to back up a claim
Personal experience counts so long as it is pertinent to your
point
humor
Can be used to good effect to support an argument so long as it
is appropriate to audience and context
Make sure your audience will understand the humor

9. Jokes are hard to translate
Strategies for support cont.
Narration
Good story engages your audience and helps to support an
argument
Any story you tell must support your point
Cannot be your only evidence or support
Open to argument
Gets attention and gets your audience interested
Problem /
Solution
Articulate a problem and offer a solution to address said
problem
Open with a statement of the problem
Infographics are helpful
Strategies for support cont.
Reiteration
Supports through emphasis

10. Repeating key word, phrase, image, or theme helps drive a point
home in memorable ways
Powerful in spoken texts
A little goes a long way