Straughn
Prof. Ian Straughn
ARGUMENTS and INTRODUCTIONS
Argument (Thesis)
An argument responds to a particular problem. (The problem often derives from some sort of tension, conflict, contradiction.)
Within the introduction, articulate this problem and state a solution. This solution becomes the mainclaim of the argument. (The solution often provides the writer's response as to the role or reason for the problem, or a more detailed, complex understanding of the problem.)
eg. The T-shirt, as the quintessential item of American youth fashion, defies easy representation as part of a museum display because of the infinite permutations of slogans, colors, fabrics and treatments it can accommodate. From the hippie’s tie-die to the fashion-plates brand name logos, from the simple pocket-T to the little-league team jerseys the omnipresent T-shirt is something of a blank medium for cultural expression. [problem] However, I propose that a display which highlights both the variation and ubiquity of the T-shirt can be accomplished through a mixture of contextualized and in situ strategies which can draw the viewer to an understanding of the cult of individuality so central to American identity. [claim]
The rest of the paper works to support this claim by offering clear examples of how such display strategies draw out these aspects of American culture. Of course it will be extremely important to define in your own words the theoretical terms that you use (e.g. in situ and in context).
Elements of an Introduction
-engage the reader and hook them so that they want to read on (be a little creative)
-provides the necessary background for understanding the claim
-lays a general framework/direction for the development of the argument
-should state claim of argument, frequently located at the end of the introduction (for a short essay, often the last sentence of the introductory paragraph)
-avoid generalizing introductions with universal claims - instead focus on specifics
-sometimes your best introduction is your conclusion – remember to save some time to revise your papers
Paragraph Structure
1. The paragraphs between the introduction and conclusion should be used to explore and develop the questions/themes/issues raised in the introduction. Each paragraph (or group of paragraphs, depending on the length of the paper) should have a particular focus. This should not be used solely for listing facts or summarizing texts. This type of information should be oriented around a specific issue or theme - even if the paper follows a chronological structure.
2. Each paragraph should look to raise an issue that is related to the evidence that you will present as part of your argument. This issue serves as a conceptual basis from which the reader will be able to interpret the information that you provide in the remainder of the paragraph. You want to search for an issue that is not generic but does some interpretive work.
e.g. The display of artifacts in the Egyptian collection at the field museum draws the viewer’s attention through a variety of techniques. (generic, bland, does not give the reader much to go on)
The display of artifacts in the Egyptian collection at the FieldMuseum draws the viewer’s attention not only through ______, but more importantly by ______.
3. In developing the issue in a paragraph (which essentially means what you are going to talk about) you want to make a point about that issue. This point is what gives purpose to the paragraph, it is the nucleus of what you want to say around which the rest of the paragraph will elaborate. Two things to keep in mind about the point is that it must be visible on the page (there is no such thing as an implicit point), and everything in the paragraph must relate to that point.
e.g. These strategies of attention grabbing demonstrate how the museum is more interested in putting on a good show, rather than providing an accurate representation of this much misunderstood ancient culture.
Note: The last sentence is often a good place to emphasize the main point of the paragraph, as it can draw upon and connect the information and ideas presented throughout the paragraph.
What’s wrong with the following paragraph?
The new mass cultural form of the postcard spread so quickly owing to changes in the international postal regulations. In 1899 British postal regulations permitted the standard-sized card already used in Europe to circulate freely, and a special postal rate of one halfpenny for domestic delivery encouraged Edwardians to send postcards on the slightest pretext: “Hope to be in time for tea this afternoon!” Just as journals arose around the poster phenomenon, so monthly publications such as The Picture Postcard & Collector’s Chronicle sprung up to serve the needs of avid collectors. “During the quarter of a century that preceded the Great War in 1914,: according to one historian of the postcard, “it would have been hard to find anyone who did not buy postcards from genuine pleasure. People preserved them carefully in their albums, or they posted them to their friends or relations, in the expectation of receiving others in return.” Royalty was more cautious yet not immune: Queen Victoria asked a relative to compile and album for her.
Arguments and Evidence: Supporting your claims with warrants
In making an argument, or at least the kinds of academic arguments that we are working to construct in this course, the question of evidence is crucial. In order to persuade the reader that your claims are valid you must offer some form of support. This evidence may be in the form of a series of observations in a laboratory, or a geometrical proof, but for most of your papers it will be in the form of a quotation which you have taken from your reading. One of the most difficult aspects of argumentation is knowing what evidence to provide the reader and how to demonstrate that that piece of evidence logically functions as a demonstration of the author’s claims.
Step 1: Am I making a Legitimate Claim?
The first step is to know if, in fact, you need evidence to support a particular claim. You need to know whether you are in an argument to being with. If what you think is a claim is not a matter of doubt for the reader then any evidence that you offer will be extraneous. Similarly, and more common, is when you don’t realize that you make a statement that your reader will call into question for which you have not provided any evidence to support it.
The important point is that you will know that you are in an argument when there is a certain kind of doubt that demands grounds for why someone should agree with the claim that you have made.
Take for example the claim: Museums have become centers of entertainment on par with the pool hall and video arcade, except that they are more socially acceptable.
Step 2: Supporting your Claim – Finding a Reason
In order to begin to support this claim we need to offer the reader a reason as to its validity.
e.g. The trend among the majority of museums is to offer visitors a kind of escapism that transports them to new cultures and time periods, all the while treating them as tourists who consume intellectually, socially and materially.
Step 3: Warranting your reason
One question we need to ask then is whether this is a good reason. To do this we must think about the warrant used to ground the claim in this particular reason. The warrant is in essence a conditional statement: If the reason is established then the claim is true.
e.g. Claim: It is a beautiful day. Reason: The sun is shining. Warrant: If the sun is shining then it is a beautiful day.
What is the warrant that links the reason above to the claim made about the museum?
Note: Warrants can be implicit, but often they need to be made explicit since they themselves they might be claims that the reader might doubt.
Step 4: Marshaling your Evidence
But even if we have a valid reason for our claim that is sanctioned by a warrant that would not be objected to by the reader, we still have to provide the evidence that to support that reason.
For the above example what kind of evidence might we draw upon to show that museums do treat visitors like tourists and provide for them an escapist experience?
Here again we need to think about the question of warrants. Suppose we want to use as evidence the fact that in a particular museum they use tour guides or head sets. What kind of warrant would this imply? If a museum uses tour guides and headsets then it creates a touristic feeling and sense of escapism. Does this sound reasonable? Now we are getting into the complexities of the logic of argumentation.
Warrant exercises:
A. Theologians have argued over the free will vs. determinism dispute for many years. But both positions have some validity, because both are supported by passages in Scripture.
Whenever______, then ______.
Does this warrant require a certain set of beliefs on the part of the audience in order for it to be a justified argument?
B. Archaeologists should not stand on the balk. When more than 50lbs of pressure is applied to the standard balk it runs the risk of collapsing into the trench.
Whenever______, then ______.
What kind of prior knowledge does the author assume as the justification of her warrant.
C. King Lear was justified in banishing his daughter Cordelia because Cordelia refused to say that she loved him.
Whenever______, then ______.
In this last example think about how the warrant can be given at different levels of generalization that might make it more or less acceptable to the reader that the reason and claim be linked together in an argument.
- 1 -