Which arguments were convincing

There is no premise that actually supports this conclusion. Where is the proof that right handed people can't paint as well? Was there a study? Did someone conduct painting experiments? The evidence used to prove the argument is basically the argument itself. Read the following sample response and point out why it is not a persuasive and overall terrible argument! Question: What is the atmosphere of the poem and how is it constructed through techniques?

The atmosphere of the poem is nostalgic because there is a lot of longing in it. This shows that he really wanted to go back to this time because it was very exciting for him.

The nostalgic atmosphere is created with techniques that show us his longing. Cover Icon made by Freepik from www. What is a "convincing argument"? Recent Posts See All. No matter the topic you eventually decide to discuss, there are a few things you need to think about before you begin the writing process. You will need to make sure your subject is: Significant. Is a discussion of this topic one that has the potential to contribute to a field of study?

Will it make an impact? This does not mean every discussion has to change lives, but it needs to be something relatively important. A less significant discussion would be if you were to try to convince your reader why one fast-food restaurant is better than another.

This means you need to focus on one subject. Using the fast-food restaurant example, if you were to focus on both the effects on the cardiovascular and endocrine system, the discussion would lose that singular focus and there would be too much for you to cover.

Similar to the point above, your topic needs to be narrow enough to allow for you to really discuss the topic within the essay parameters i. Many writers are afraid of getting too specific because they feel they will run out of things to say.

If you develop the idea completely and give thorough explanations and plenty of examples, the specificity should not be a problem. Does evidence for what you want to discuss actually exist? There is probably some form of evidence out there even for the most obscure topics or points of view.

However, you need to remember you should use credible sources. In previous chapters, you learned strategies for generating and narrowing a topic for a research paper. Review the list of general topics below. Also, think about which topics you feel very strongly. Freewrite for five minutes on one of the topics below. Remember, you will need to focus your ideas to a manageable size for a five — to seven — page research paper. You are also welcome to choose another topic; you may want to double-check with your instructor if it is suitable.

Since we have already discussed the death penalty as a form of punishment in the last chapter and already developed ideas, you should probably not choose this topic because your instructor wants you to demonstrate you have applied the process of critical thinking on another topic.

Identify the key words you will use in the next self — practice exercise to preliminary research to narrow down your topic. In forming a research question, you are setting a goal for your research.

Your main research question should be substantial enough to form the guiding principle of your paper, but focused enough to guide your research. A strong research question requires you not only to find information but also to put together different pieces of information, interpret and analyze them, and figure out what you think. As you consider potential research questions, ask yourself whether they would be too hard or too easy to answer.

To determine your research question, review the freewriting you completed earlier. Skim through books, articles, and websites and list the questions you have. You may wish to use the 5WH strategy to help you formulate questions.

Include simple, factual questions and more complex questions that require analysis and interpretation. Determine your main question—the primary focus of your paper—and several subquestions that you will need to research to answer that main question.

Here are the research questions Jorge will use to focus his research. Notice that his main research question has no obvious, straightforward answer. Jorge will need to research his subquestions, which address narrower topics, to answer his main question.

Using the ideas you came up with in Self — Practice Exercise This is something you will use to help guide you in your writing and to check back with to make sure you are answering that question along the way. Collaborate with a partner and share your questions.

Describe your topic and point of view and ask your partner if that question connects to that topic and point of view. Working with the topic you have identified, use the research skills you learned in previous chapters to locate approximately five potentially useful print or electronic sources of information about the topic. Organize your list of resources into primary and secondary sources.

What makes them either primary or secondary? Pick one primary source and one secondary source and write a sentence or two summarizing the information that each provide s. What type of primary source did you choose? Who wrote it, and why? Do you think this source provides accurate information, or is it biased in some way? Where did the information in the secondary source come from? Was the author citing an initial study, piece of literature, or work of art? Where could you find the primary source?

With the topic from Self — Practice Exercise Note that after reading Section How to B e Really Convincing Sometimes it can be very challenging to convince someone of your ideas and that your point of view is valid. If your reader has strong contrary views or has had emotional experiences in the past connected to that topic, your job in persuading will be more challenging.

However, if you consider your audience and tone as discussed in Section It will also help you make recognize how much and what kind of background information you need to provide your reader with context for your discussion. Look back at the two persuasive essay examples in Section With a partner, discuss the strengths and weaknesses of each example.

Look at the credibility, tone, appropriateness to audience, and completeness of the ideas presented. Collaboration: W ith your partner, discuss how you could make each of these arguments stronger. As you read in Chapter 10, Section When you do this, you are presenting a well-rounded and complete discussion to your reader that shows you have critically thought about the topic and have been selective in choosing your points.

As a result, there is a higher probably that you will convince your reader. The process of looking at multiple sides of a topic is called dialectics. Dialectics is the act of using logical reasoning to combine, juxtapose, or synthesize opposing ideas to arrive at a strong conclusion.

The Components of Dialectics To begin the dialectic process, you first need to come up with an idea of what topic will be discussed; this is the thesis behind the discussion. Once you have determined your thesis, through various methods the easiest being discussion with someone else , you will explore opposing sides to the topic, eventually discovering at least one antithesis.

Combining those two perspectives, you can then make your own conclusions. Maybe this process will result in you standing by the original thesis, or maybe the antithesis is incredibly convincing and you will switch sides of the argument, or maybe you still believe the original thesis but accept there are other conditions that have credibility as well.

This end result is called the synthesis : the blending of ideas. Essentially, the process would look like this:. Considering both your thesis and the discovered antithetical perspectives will help you to arrive at a wider view of a topic: one that has more credibility.

Looking back to the persuasive essay samples you read in Section How did they justify their opinions? Consider how integrating dialectics into each of those arguments to a greater degree would have strengthened their points of view, ultimately making their arguments more convincing. First complete the side of the table with ideas supporting the point of view you described in question 1.

Then, challenge yourself to come up with ideas you may need to do a little bit of research that would support the other side of the discussion.

Collaboration: D iscuss your answers with a partner. Do you both have the same ideas, or can you add to your list based on what your partner has come up with. After coming up with and considering the other perspective, has your point of view changed at all? Do you still stick by your same point of view percent?

Or do you concede that there are valid points from the other perspective? Using both the scratch outline and the working thesis you created in Self — Practice Exercise Once you have created that table with your thesis given, share your table and thesis with a classmate. Collaborate : Conduct a dialectic discussion on your topic and possible for and against the working thesis you presented.

Add any points to your original table. Remember to be aware of the process of synthesis you have gone through. Did your original point of view change at all? Is there anything you can make concessions on being valid? This may impact your thesis. Using one or two of the opposing ideas your partner helped you come up with, revise your scratch outline from Self — Practice Exercise For this section, you will need to refer back to Section Make an appointment.

Meet our consultants. Student resources. Bridge Test. SPEAK test. Faculty resources. Different types of arguments Modern American Five Part Essay As a teaching tool, these arguments are often about students learning to support claims with evidence.