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Change Their Opinion With An Argument by Joshua Gray
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Change Their Opinion With An Argument |
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Education
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I call this arguing within your argument, and I'll describe four straightforward steps to help you articulate effective arguments repeatedly. 1. Determine the scope of your position. Before launching into an argument, take a moment to create boundaries for yourself. How much territory can you cover with the data you possess? What is the breadth of the material you're about to address? In other words, as the author, recognize at what point your expertise ends and at what point speculation begins. For example, do you truly intend to argue that no school should dictate what a student can wear on its campus, or do you actually want to limit your scope to a particular school's rights to set these standards? Frame your argument, and then construct your argument within the confines of your scope. 2. Identify your main point. What is your thesis? What are you trying to prove? Know the problem before you set out to provide its remedy. In our above uniform example, your main point may be this: Y High School does not have the authority to dictate uniform wear of its students. 3. Organize your argument with supporting evidence, not simply opinion. String your points together, leading your reader from one point to the other without having to taking unnecessarily large leaps in faith. The gaps in your argument become assumptions the reader must make to fill the gap. The more assumptions you leave dangling, the more risk you introduce to your argument. If your argument relies too heavily on assumptions you've made as the author, you've made at least two errors. First, you've assumed the reader will make the connections you intend for them to make. Second, you've expected the reader to accept your assumptions at face value without justification. The more extreme the assumption, the more likely it is that you will lose your reader along the discourse. Since you want to provide your reader with a guided tour away from their opinion over to your main point, ensure you stay with the reader throughout your argument. Look for points on common ground. Get your reader to see that you, too, have an open mind and can see both sides of the issue. Address points at issue (i.e., points of disagreement) with support. Provide evidence and examples to illustrate the foundation of your comments. Demonstrate your point of view has merit and doesn't simply rely on conjecture. 4. Make a strong conclusion. Last, but not least, end your argument with a definitive position. Summarize the key points you made, along with highlights of the primary evidence you used to support your argument, without adding new material to consider. At best, the four steps above will persuade your audience to accept your position. At worst, your clearly presented argument may fail to persuade your audience, but you will have had a productive conversation about a difference of opinion. thesis
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