ARGUMENTATION IN SPOKEN DISCOURSE

KEYNOTE ADVANCED introduce you to TED Talks which are influential videos from expert
speakers on education, business, science, tech and creativity. Interestingly, all of them include
argumentation.

Please have a look at the basics of argumentation in the following extract and find the key parts that
are essential and common in all TED Talks to help you structure ideas. This exercise will help you to
make headway with listening comprehension.

QUIZZ

Argumentation may be defined the act or process of forming reasons and of drawing conclusions and
applying them to a case in discussion. Putting forward an argument means building a case. When
speaking, the following segments are more or less used or present, depending on circumstances and
the flow of conversation:

1. Introduction
2. Credentials
3. Positions/Solution/Summary
4. Background of the problem
5. Argument for position or solution

Now, match each of the segments above (1-5) with their corresponding details below (a-e):

a. As you are now in the core part of your talk, signal it by specifying minutely the criterion for
judgement. This is highly important, as it will direct the audience’s attention to the aspects you want
to highlight and give them the opportunity to assess properly if you have presented and supported
your thesis well.

b. This is where the elaboration on the problem begins. To give it a proper depth, you need to present
your audience with the background of the problem, its origins, reasons for occurrence, how it has
been solved so far. Again, it is recommended to relate the audience with the issue by restating how it
concerns them.

c. This starts the next section of your talk with a brief summary of your thesis and the proposed
solution. It is of an equal importance to provide your reasons for advocating that particular solution.

d. This serves to state clearly why you speak with authority on the subject. The reasons here may be
infinitely varied. You may be an expert in the field, or you may have seen something intriguing on
TV. You just need to identify your sources.

e. This helps to direct the attention of the audience towards the problem, why it concerns them, of
what relevance it is.

(Key: 1-e, 2-d, 3-c, 4-b, 5-a)