Argument Terms

This set of flashcards covers key terms and definitions related to argumentation, reasoning, rhetorical appeals, and logical fallacies.

Claim

An assertion of the truth of something, typically one that is disputed or in doubt.

Counterargument/Counterclaim

An argument or set of reasons put forward to oppose an idea or theory developed in another argument.

Concession

The act of yielding to or accepting a point or a fact in an argument, usually your opponent’s argument.

Refutation/Rebuttal

The action of providing evidence to show a statement or theory to be inaccurate or false.

Primary sources

Provides a first-hand account of an event or time period and is considered authoritative.

Secondary sources

Involves the analysis, synthesis, interpretation, or evaluation of primary sources.

The rhetorical situation

Consists of speaker, occasion/context, audience, purpose, subject/message.

Logos

Appeals to the audience’s sense of reasoning and logic by incorporating induction, deduction, facts, statistics, etc.

Ethos

Appeals to the speaker’s credibility, trustworthiness, and ethics.

Pathos

Appeals to the audience’s emotions.

Deduction

Reasoning that applies a rule or law to a specific case.

Syllogism

A three-part deductive argument that includes a major premise, minor premise, and conclusion.

Categorical Syllogism

An argument consisting of exactly three categorical propositions that establishes qualities of members of a category.

Hypothetical Syllogism

A two-premise deductive argument where at least one of the premises is a conditional statement.

Disjunctive Syllogism

If there are only two possibilities and one is ruled out, the other must take place.

Induction

Reasoning from specific cases or observations to a general conclusion.

Argument by analogy

Using similarities as a basis to infer further similarities that have yet to be observed.

Causation

An act produces a specific effect.

Correlation

Two or more things or events tend to occur about the same time and might be associated with one another.

Confirmation Bias

The tendency to search for, interpret, favor, and recall information that confirms or strengthens one’s prior beliefs.

Cherry-picking

Pointing to individual cases that seem to confirm a position while ignoring significant contradicting data.

Post hoc fallacy

Assuming a cause-effect relationship between two events that occur one after the other.

Hasty generalization

A mistaken use of induction that reaches a conclusion based on insufficient evidence.

False dichotomy/Either-or fallacy

An argument that presents only two choices when there are actually several options.

Ad hominem

Attacking or praising the person making the argument rather than addressing the argument itself.

Straw man

Exaggerating or oversimplifying your opponent’s argument to make it easier to refute.

Red herring

A deliberate attempt to change the subject or divert the argument from the real question at hand.

Bandwagon

Using the popularity of a belief or behavior to prove its validity.

Equivocation

Using a key term in an ambiguous way, with different meanings in different portions of the argument.