So what is argumentation?
MODES/TYPES
of writing
Narrative
Expository
Good Writing
=
Multiple Modes
Persuasive
METHODS
FORMS
Analytical
Technical
ARGUMENTATIVE
METHOD
Characteristics :
•Clear position
established
•All ideas are strongly
related to position
•Controlled, specific
reasons and evidence
•Writer recognizes
opposing or alternate
points of view
•Persuasive tone
throughout
Example One:
Which is more important: what a
person thinks or what a person does
Forms:
Advertisements
Editorials
Letters to the editor
Persuasive essays
Persuasive speeches
Propaganda (primarily political)
Reviews (books, movies, products)
Rhetoric
is the power of
language and its effects
Essence
of rhetoric is built
upon Aristotle’s
Rhetorical Triangle
Occasion
Tone
ETHOS
LOGOS
L
PURPOSE
PATHOS
Tone

Writing well means entering into a conversation
with others

The underlying structure of effective academic
writing – and of responsible public discourse – resides
not just in stating our own ideas, but in listening
closely to others around us, summarizing their views
in a way that they will recognize, and responding
with our own ideas in kind
What others are saying and thinking motivates
our writing and gives it reason for being
 As a student and a writer you need to enter
conversations and debates that surround you

 Effective
persuasive writers do more than
make well-supported claims (“I say”); they
also map those claims relative to the claims
of others (“They say”)

Writing asks students not simply to keep proving
and reasserting what they already believe, but
to stretch what they believe by putting it up
against the beliefs of our increasingly diverse,
global society, to engage in the reciprocal
exchange that characterizes true democracy.

Gerald Graff & Cathy Birkenstein
 It
is a mode of writing intended to gain a
reader’s agreement using the powers of
reasoning and logic.
 Arguments must be supported by evidence.

Evidence may include examples, personal,
experience, statistics, research, expert
testimony.
 An
argument can be spoken, written or visual
as long as it expresses a point of view

Point of view is often termed the
assertion/claim/thesis.

Introduction:



Concession:


Must state your assertion/claim/point of view/thesis
Introduce the ideas that motivate your response (“They say”)
Recognize and acknowledge in more depth the opposing point of view
Reasons
Why do you believe what you believe?
 Support each reason with evidence


Confirmation/Evidence:


Research, personal experience, examples, statistics, expert testimony
Conclusion (summation):
Restate your assertion in response to the ideas of others that motivated
you to write your response
 Amplify your best ideas
 Offer a solution/compromise (where applicable)

 The
ability to enter complex, many-sided
conversations has taken on a special urgency
in today’s diverse, post 9/11 world, where
the future for all of us may depend on our
ability to put ourselves in the shoes of those
who think very differently from us.
 Therefore, we should learn to carefully and
effectively listen to others, including those
that disagree with us, and then engage with
them thoughtfully and respectfully.
 An
ethical or value-based appeal
•How to recognize Ethos
•Language appropriate to audience
•Sincere, fair minded presentation
•Correct grammar
•The Effect
Shows the speaker as a reliable, respectful
source through the speaker’s respect for the
audience’s values
 An
appeal to emotions
• How to recognize Pathos
•Emotionally loaded language
•Emotional tone
•Personal stories
•Vivid description
•
The Effect

Creates an emotional, impulsive response
 An
appeal to logic
•How to recognize Logos
•Factual data and statistics
•Definitions
•Quotations
•Opinions of an expert or authority

The Effect

Creates a rational, reasonable, logical response
 What
are some examples of ethos that you
found?
 What
are some examples of pathos that you
found?
 What
are some examples of logos that you
found?
 What
is the primary appeal that is made?
 What
are some examples of ethos that you
found?
 What
are some examples of pathos that you
found?
 What
are some examples of logos that you
found?
 What
is the primary appeal that is made?
 What
are some examples of ethos that you
found?
 What
are some examples of pathos that you
found?
 What
are some examples of logos that you
found?
 What
is the primary appeal that is made?
 “They
Say” “I Say” by Gerald Graff & Cathy
Birkenstein
 Argumentation – Basic Training by Elizabeth
Villarreal
Occasion
Tone
ETHOS
LOGOS
L
PURPOSE
PATHOS
Tone