Cover image for The purposeful argument : a practical guide
Title:
The purposeful argument : a practical guide
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Edition:
2nd ed.
Publication Information:
Stamford, CT : Cengage Learning, 2015
Physical Description:
xxv, 674 p. : ill. (some col.) ; 23 cm.
ISBN:
9781285438054
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30000010337436 PE1431 P45 2015 Open Access Book Book
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Summary

Summary

Emphasizing the practical and the local, THE PURPOSEFUL ARGUMENT: A PRACTICAL GUIDE, 2E effectively brings argument into real life with community-based writing activities, illustrating that the tools and skills of argument are critical to readers today-and wherever their careers take them. With a focus on accessibility, the text encourages students to argue in response to issues in a variety of environments-school, workplace, family, neighborhood, social-cultural, consumer, and concerned citizen-and learn how argument can become an essential negotiating skill in everyday life. It offers thorough treatments of Toulmin-based and Rogerian approaches to argument as well as teaches the value of fully understanding the opposition, the importance of aiming for the middle ground, and how to use a microhistory to forge an unconventional position. The only introduction to argument written with the today's diverse student body in mind, THE PURPOSEFUL ARGUMENT uses vivid explanations, detailed examples, and practical exercises to guide students step by step through the process of building an effective argument. In addition, a rich anthology of arguments covers a wide range of today's leading issues.


Table of Contents

Part I How To Approach Argument In Real Life
1 Argue with a Purpose
What Argument Is and What Argument Is Not
... Graduating Debtors ... by Thomas Frank
Recognize Where Argument Is Appropriate in Real Life
Argue About Issues that Matter to You
Establish Local Context for an Issue Through the Research Process
Recognize Why Arguments Break Down
Match Argument with Purpose
2 Explore an Issue that Matters to You
Determine What Matters to You and Why
Choose an Issue within a Topic
Pre-Think About Your Issue
Define and Target Your Audience
Stake, Defend, and Justify Your Claim
Vary the Support You Bring to an Argument
Working with a Target Audience: Two Examples
Argue at the Right Moment
Getting Started
Part II How To Establish Context Through Research
3 Develop a Research Plan
Use Reference Works, Encyclopedias, and Topic Overviews Profitably
Gather Search Terms
Use Search Engines to Find Internet Sources on the Surface Web and on the Deep Web
Perform Keyword Queries
Find News Sites and Use RSS Feeds to Receive Updates
Find and Use Databases in Libraries
Find and Use Primary Sources
Find and Use Government Sources
Find and Use Multimedia Sources
Find Books
4 Evaluate and Engage with Your Sources
Take Notes, Read Critically, and Evaluate Internet Sites
Take Notes, Read Critically, and Evaluate Articles
Take Notes and Read Books Critically
Take Notes and Evaluate Primary Sources
Introduce and Comment on Sources
Quote and Cite Quotations
Summarize and Cite Summaries
Paraphrase and Cite Paraphrases
Avoid Plagiarism
Documentation: Works Cited Page
5 Read Critically and Avoid Fallacies
Define Fallacies
Identify and Avoid Fallacies
Avoid Fallacies of Choice
Avoid Fallacies of Support
Avoid Fallacies of Emotion
Avoid Fallacies of Inconsistency
6 Work Fairly with the Opposition
Why the Opposition Matters
Resist Easy Generalizations
Listen to Local Voices
Summarize Other Voices Fairly
Value Expertise Over Advocacy
Avoid Bias When You Summarize
Find Points of Overlap
Respond to Other Views
Part III How To Plan, Structure And Deliver An Argument
7 Develop a Strategy
8 Consider Toulmin-Based Argument
9 Consider Middle Ground and Rogerian Argument, and Argument based on Microhistory
10 Build Arguments
11 Support an Argument with Fact (Logos), Credibility (Ethos), and Emotion (Pathos)
Part IV How To Take Ownership Of Your Argument: A Style Guide
12 Enhance Your Argument with Visuals and Humor
What Are Visual Arguments?
Read Visual Arguments
Use Humor in Your Argument
When Is Humor Appropriate?
12 Develop and Edit Argument Structure and Style
Part V An Anthology Of Arguments
Intersections: Contemporary Issues and Arguments
School/Academic Community
Workplace Community
Family/Household Community
Neighborhood Community
Social/Cultural Community
Consumer Community
Concerned Citizen Community
Classic American Arguments
Student-Authored Arguments
Linda Gonzalez, Driving to a Reasonable Solution
Blaine Schmidt, Red Light Cameras-Pursuing Profit Without Process Or Purpose
Ben Szany, Vouching for Our School System?