AP English Patterns book: Argumentative Essay elements

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What Is Argumentation?

The process of reasoning that asserts the sound of a debatable position, belief, or conclusion.

Thesis

After choosing a topic and you are ready to state the position you will argue it in a form of a _____.

Evidence

Facts and opinions in support of your position

Evidence

____ can be a fact or expert opinion

(1) Facts

(2) Opinions

______ are more convincing when they are supplemented by _______

Documentation of Evidence

helps you avoid plagiarism

Plagiarism

presenting ideas or words of others as if they were your own

Common Knowledge

Information you could easily find in several reference sources - can be presented without documentation, and so can your own ideas.

Refutation

Directly addressing objections in your essay to help convince readers that your own position is valid.

Refute

To disprove opposing arguments by showing that they are unsound.

Deductive Reasoning

Proceeding from a general premise or assumption to a specific conclusion.

Inductive Reasoning

Proceeds from individual observations to more general conclusions and uses no strict form.

Syllogism

Basic form of deductive argument, consists of a major premise, a minor premise, and conclusion.

Major premise

General statement

Minor premise

related but more specific statement

conclusion

drawn from both major and minor premises

Rogerian argument

Thinking of those who disagree with you as colleagues, not adversaries.

Hypothesis

A question to be answered

Inference

Statement about the unknown based on the known

Toulmin Logic

Argumentative strategies a writer uses lead readers to respond the way they do.

Claim

The _____ is the main point of the essay.

grounds

The _____ is the material a writer uses to support the claim - can be evidence (facts or expert opinion) or appeals to the emotions or values of the audience.

Warrant

The inference that connects the claim to the ground. Can be a belief that is taken for granted or an assumption that underlies the argument.

Fallacies

Illogical statements that may sound reasonable or true but are actually deception and dishonest.

Begging the Question

A logical fallacy that assumes that a statement is true when it actually requires proof. This tactic asks readers to agree that certain points are self-evident when in fact they are not.

Analogy

____ a form of comparison that explains something unfamiliar by comparing it to something familiar.

Personal Attack (Argument Ad Hominem)

This fallacy tries to divert attention from the facts of an argument by attacking the motives or character of the person making the argument.

Jumping to a Conclusion

Sometimes called a hasty or sweeping generalization, this fallacy occurs when a conclusion is reached on the basis of little to no evidence.

False Dilemma (Either/Or Fallacy)

This fallacy occurs when a writer suggests that only two alternatives exist even though there may be others.

Equivocation

This fallacy occurs when the meaning of a key term changes at some point in an argument. _________ makes it seem as if a conclusion follows from premises when it actually does not.

Non Sequitur (Does Not Follow)

Fallacy when a statement does not logically follow from a previous statement

(1) Transitional words

(2) phrases

_______ _____ and ________ are extremely important in argumentative essays.

Red Herring

This fallacy occurs when the focus of an argument is shifted to divert the audience from the actual issue.

You Also (Tu Quoque)

This fallacy asserts that an opponent’s argument has no value because the opponent does not follow his or her own advice.

Appeal to Doubtful Authority

The attempt to strengthen an argument with references to experts or famous people.

Misleading Statistics

Statistics that are misrepresented or distorted in an attempt to influence an audience.

Post Hoc, Ergo Propter Hoc (After This, Therefore Because Of This)

Fallacy known as post hoc reasoning, assumes that because two events occur close together in time, the first must be the cause of the second.