Understanding and

Evaluating
Arguments
 What is the main purpose of
an argument?
• “To persuade or influence (another), as
by presenting reasons”

(Dictionary. com , retrieved Nov., 16, 2006)

 How do we argue?
There are two techniques generally used to
achieve the argument’s purpose:
•To state opinion and support it (expository)
•To state opinion, opposing point of view and
the writer’s response to it (refutation)
 What is at heart of any
argument?

The argument’s core lies in the writer’s

opinion, belief or claim (main idea or thesis
statement)
 Supporting an Argument

To be taken seriously, writers realize that

their opinions only are not enough.
To be persuasive, writers have to provide
readers with support, which should be
recognized and evaluated by critical
readers.
Four Common Types of Support
A. Reasons
B. Examples and Illustrations
C. Expert Opinions
D. Research Results
 Flawed Arguments:
are ones that appear to the reader to be sound
arguments where in fact they are weak because they are
based on invalid support which are:
A. Irrelevant reasons
B. Circular reasoning
C. Hasty Generalization
D. Unidentified Experts
E. Inappropriate Experts
F. Unidentified Research
G. Dated Research
 Types
of
Support

Expert Research
Reasons Examples
Opinion Results
Possible Possible
Possible Possible
Errors Errors
Errors Errors

Hasty Unident- Inapprop- Unidenti-

Irrelevant Circular Dated
Gener- -ified -riate -fied
Reasons Reasoning Research
-alizations Experts Experts Resaerch