Critical thinking and communication : the use of reason in argument

Relating common theoretical models to true-to-life examples from law, ethics, education, and business, Inch and Warnick stress the importance of argumentation in everyday life as they build reader competence and critical awareness. Critical Thinking and Communicationencourages readers to develop skills in both constructing and refuting arguments. Through exercises and examples, readers learn how to create individual arguments, extend argument cases, and understand how arguments are designed and how to interpret them. The text allow readers to conceptualize argumentation in the larger framework of verbal and written interaction, from public speaking and debating to interpersonal, intercultural, and small group communication.

Preface	p. xi
Section I Building A Conceptual Framework	p. 1
Chapter 1 Arguments, Argumentation, and Critical Thought	p. 2
The Process of Critical Thought	p. 5
Argumentation and Arguments	p. 8
Argument Contexts	p. 12
Summary	p. 24
Exercises	p. 25
Chapter 2 How Arguments Work: Developing a Co-Orientation	p. 30
Perspectives on Argumentation	p. 32
Arguer-Based Approaches	p. 35
Co-Orientational Approach	p. 44
Summary	p. 54
Exercises	p. 56
Chapter 3 Argument Analysis and Criticism	p. 62
Benefits of Argument Analysis	p. 63
An Approach for Analysis	p. 66
Understanding Fallacies	p. 78
Types of Fallacies	p. 81
Summary	p. 95
Exercises	p. 96
Section II Parsing Arguments	p. 101
Chapter 4 Argument Claims and Propositions	p. 102
The Nature of Claims and Propositions	p. 104
Formulating A Proposition	p. 109
Classification of Claims	p. 115
Summary	p. 124
Exercises	p. 125
Chapter 5 Evidence: The Foundation for Arguments	p. 129
The Nature of Evidence	p. 132
Types of Evidence	p. 133
Evaluating Fact and Opinion Evidence	p. 136
Evaluating Statistical Evidence	p. 141
Presenting Evidence	p. 143
Research Strategies for Locating Evidence	p. 146
Summary	p. 156
Exercises	p. 157
Chapter 6 Reasoning	p. 162
Formal Logic and Practical Reasoning	p. 165
Reasoning As Inference Making	p. 166
Summary	p. 184
Exercises	p. 186
Section III Arguing Extended Cases	p. 193
Chapter 7 Arguing about Facts and Case Construction	p. 194
Arguing About Facts, Values, and Policies	p. 197
Relating Facts, Values, and Policies	p. 199
Issue Mapping	p. 201
Principles of Case Construction	p. 203
Stock Issues in Fact-Based Cases	p. 208
The Issues Brief	p. 211
Principles of Refutation	p. 214
Summary	p. 217
Exercises	p. 218
Chapter 8 Arguing about Values	p. 223
Values and Value Systems	p. 225
The Process of Value Change	p. 230
Values and Argumentation	p. 231
Stock Issues for Value Arguments	p. 233
The Issues Brief	p. 237
Summary	p. 239
Exercises	p. 239
Chapter 9 Arguing about Policies	p. 245
Policy Arguments and Policy Systems	p. 248
Stock Issues in Policy Arguments	p. 250
The Issues Brief	p. 256
Alternative Formats for Arguing Policies	p. 261
Alternative Formats for Refuting Policy Arguments	p. 267
Summary	p. 269
Exercises	p. 271
Section IV Communicating Arguments	p. 275
Chapter 10 Culture and Language	p. 276
Culture and Argumentation	p. 278
Language and Argumentation	p. 288
Summary	p. 304
Exercises	p. 305
Chapter 11 Arguers, Recipients, and Ethics	p. 312
The Nature of Argument Recipients	p. 314
The Audience and Argumentation	p. 321
The Arguer and Argumentation	p. 328
Ethics and Argumentation	p. 334
Developing An Ethical Code	p. 339
Summary	p. 341
Exercises	p. 344
Appendix A Intercollegiate Debate	p. 353
Appendix B Answers to Selected Exercises	p. 371
Index	p. 381

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