Page 6 Ch 6 Notes

Chapter 6: How Do We Support Arguments?

Evidence: Something you can observe

  • Empriical Data
  • Personal Experience
  • Textual Evidence

Verification: Something you can look up

  • Previous research
  • Law or precedence
  • Established theory

Illustration: Something you can imagine

  • Hypothetical example
  • Analogy or metaphor
  • Fictional narrative

Building Credibility:
1. Verification are trustworthy sources. It relies on "secondary sources" meaning someone else has already analyzed or interpreted the evidence before. We can assume that our audience will trust us only after we prove that we know what we're talking about.

2. Reputation, or what the audience already knows and thinks about the author before they start reading. Readers trust authors whom they recognize as experts. Thus, readers will trust the arguments that appear in respected publications even before reading.

3. Presentation, involves using a style that's suitable for your and audience and purpose. Consider different perspectives (including counterarguments) by acknowledging the weaknesses in our own argument, by treating sources respectfully (summarizing, quoting, and citing accurately).

Activating Reasoning or Logic with Evidence

  • Audience respond to evidence more reliably than they respond to credible and emotional appeals.

Quantitative Evidence vs. Qualitative Evidence
Quantitative Evidence: Scholars who engage in quantitative investigation use statistical analysis to test the quality of their results, which helps make statistics much more persuasive. Statistics seem more precise.

Qualitative Evidence: Use of quotations from a novel, or known biographical information about an author.

Linkages provide the bridge that connects the claim with the evidence

1. Relevance indicates quality of linkage.
2. Sufficiency reflects the quantitative strength of the linkage.

Most Important: help readers see the logical pathway that guides our thinking
Research Methods:

  • Interviews
  • Surveys
  • Observations

Graphically:

  • Line Charts
  • Pie Charts
  • Bubble Charts

Your claim can only be as strong as your evidence

Attempt to evoke your audience's emotions. Pathos

Triangle: Emotion/Credibility/Evidence

Page 7 Notes CH 7

Unless otherwise stated, the content of this page is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 License