Untitled Flashcards Set

Argument

A logical way of demonstrating that the writer’s claim, belief, position, or conclusion is reasonable and worth considering, including a claim, premises, qualifiers, support, analysis, counterclaims, and rebuttals.

Conclusion/Claim

The main point or idea that the argument is trying to establish, often used to promote a specific belief or point of view.

Factual Claims

Statements that assert a condition or phenomenon exists, has existed, or will exist and can be verified or falsified through evidence.

Value Claims

Statements that evaluate or judge something as good or bad, right or wrong, or more or less valuable, often based on personal or societal values.

Policy Claims

Statements advocating for or against a particular course of action or policy, suggesting what should or should not be done.

Definitional Claims

Statements asserting the meaning or classification of a term or concept, often involving arguments over interpretation.

Comparative Claims

Statements that compare two or more items or ideas to establish a relationship of superiority, equality, or difference.

Interpretative Claims

Statements that provide an interpretation or explanation of a text, artwork, event, or phenomenon, often used in literary analysis.

Moral or Ethical Claims

Statements asserting what is morally right or wrong based on ethical principles or moral philosophies.

Existential Claims

Statements that assert the existence or non-existence of something.

Anecdotal Claims

Statements based on personal experience or isolated examples rather than scientific evidence.

Premises/Contentions

Statements that support or justify a conclusion in an argument, often your reason or rationale for your conclusion.

Evidence

Support for the reasons offered that helps compel audiences to accept claims.

Quantitative Evidence

Evidence that can be measured, counted, or expressed in numerical values, like statistics or survey results.

Qualitative Evidence

Descriptive, non-numerical data based on observations, experiences, or interpretations, often presented as quotes or anecdotes.

Examples/Generalizations

Involves supporting a claim by providing specific instances that illustrate the point being made.

Analogies

A type of argument where similarities between two things are used to infer a new similarity.

Authority

A form of evidence where the opinion of an authority figure is used to support an argument.

Causality

An argument that aims to establish a cause-and-effect relationship between two events.

Warrants/Impact/Analysis/Commentary

Reasons or justifications for why the evidence supports and is important to your argument.

Impact Chain

A structured way of presenting reasoning that shows how one action leads to another, culminating in a significant impact.

Backing

Additional evidence to support your impact.

Counterclaim

The opposing argument to the writer's position in an argumentative essay.

Acknowledgement

Recognizing and responding to different points of view in an argument to strengthen credibility.

Concession

An argumentative strategy where a writer acknowledges a portion of the opposition's argument.

Rebuttal

A response that aims to contradict or weaken an opposing argument with evidence or reasoning.

Qualifier

A word or phrase that limits a claim in an argument, indicating that it might not be universally true.