The Structure Of Argument

by Annette T. Rottenberg; Donna Winchell Haisty

• ISBN13: 9780312431303
• ISBN10: 0312431309
• Edition: 5th
• Format: Trade Paper
• Copyright: 2005-07-12
• Publisher: Bedford/St. Martin's

Summary

"The Structure of Argument," comprising the text chapters of the all-time best-selling argument text and reader, "Elements of Argument," offers instructors a compact guide to critical thinking, argumentation, and research, with half of the readings in the longer book.

Table of Contents

PREFACE FOR INSTRUCTORS	iii
Part One The Structure of Argument	1	(370)
1. Understanding Argument	3	(22)
The Nature of Argument	3	(3)
Why Study Argument?	6	(2)
Why Write?	8	(1)
The Terms of Argument	9	(3)
The Audience	12	(10)
SAMPLE ANALYIS: The Declaration of Independence	16	(10)
THOMAS JEFFERSON
When revolutionaries resolved to throw off their king and form their own government, they turned to the eloquent Jefferson for a defense of their audacious plan.
Writer's Guide: Learning the Key Terms	22	(1)
Assignments for Understanding Argument	22	(3)
2. Responding to Argument	25	(37)
Responding as a Critical Reader	26	(4)
SAMPLE ANNOTATED ESSAY: The Pursuit of Whining: Affirmative Action circa 1776	27	(4)
JOHN PATRICK DIGGINS
A history teacher charges that affirmative action advocates have inherited a troubling emphasis on hereditary right and privilege from America's founding fathers.
Comprehending Arguments	30	(1)
Evaluating Arguments	31	(8)
SAMPLE ANALYSIS: The Gettysburg Address	33	(1)
ABRAHAM LINCOLN
The sixteenth American president gave this famous speech to dedicate the cemetery at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, where thousands died in a decisive battle in the Civil War.
SAMPLE ANALYSIS: Lincoln's Logic	34	(5)
CHARLES ADAMS
The author of When in the Course of Human Events: Arguing the Case for Southern Secession analyzes logical fallacies in Lincoln's famous Gettysburg Address.
Responding as a Writer	39	(5)
SAMPLE ANNOTATED ESSAY: No-Win Situations	39	(8)
ALFIE KOHN
The author of No Contest: The Case against Competition discusses the psychologically damaging effects of competitive sports and asserts that "recreation at its best does not require people to triumph over others."
Responding as a Critical Listener	44	(3)
Responding to a Visual Argument	47	(9)
SAMPLE ANALYSIS OF AN ADVERTISMENT: We Can Not Tell a Lie	50	(2)
SAMPLE ANALYSIS OF A WEB SITE: The Hungersite.com [Web site]	52	(4)
Responding Online	56	(2)
Documenting Your Sources	58	(2)
Writer's Guide: Documenting Use of Summary, Paraphrase, and Quotation	58	(2)
Assignments for Responding to Argument	60	(2)
3. Definition	62	(42)
The Purposes of Definition	62	(2)
Defining the Terms in Your Argument	64	(2)
Methods for Defining Terms	66	(5)
The Definition Essay	71	(31)
Writer's Guide: Writing a Definition Essay	71	(1)
SAMPLE ANNOTATED ESSAY: Cloning Misperceptions	72	(8)
LEE M. SILVER
An expert in behavioral genetics argues that there is little reason to fear human cloning because human personality is shaped by environment and cannot be genetically cloned. Thus, a clone would simply be a later-born twin.
READING FOR ANALYSIS: The Nature of Prejudice	80	(2)
GORDON ALLPORT
Identifying other people's prejudice is easy, observes a Harvard psychologist, but sometimes it takes a careful definition to help us spot our own.
READING FOR ANALYSIS: Race by the Numbers	82	(4)
ORLANDO PATTERSON
Using recent Census Bureau data, a prominent scholar of race relations in the United States disputes the widespread idea that the white population in America is fast on its way to becoming a minority.
READING FOR ANALYSIS: Family a Symbol of Love and Life, but Not Politics	86	(2)
ERIC ZORN
A columnist for the Chicago Tribune argues that "family" is too precious a concept to be the battleground on which political battles are fought.
READING FOR ANALYSIS: Don't Torture English to Soft-Pedal Abuse	88	(1)
GEOFFREY NUNBERG
A linguist examines the use of the term "torture" in the context of the abuses at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq.
The Great Satan has released a memo... [cartoon]	89	(2)
The more you smoke the more cool gear you'll earn. [advertisement]	91	(1)
DEBATE: IS THE DEFINITION OF MARRIEAGE CHANGING: Gay Marriage Shows Why We Need to Separate Church and State	92	(5)
HOWARD MOODY
The minister emeritus of Judson Memorial Church in New York City explains why he believes the gay-marriage debate is primarily about the relationship between church and state.
DEBATE: Will It Be Marriage or Civil Union?	97	(7)
JO ANN CITRON
An attorney and member of the faculty at Wellesley College declares it "time for the gay community to turn its attention to winning all the rights, privileges, protections, and obligations of marriage."
Taking the Debate Online	102	(1)
Assignments for Understanding Definition	102	(2)
4. Claims	104	(53)
Claims of Fact	104	(9)
Writer's Guide: Defending a Claim of Fact	109	(1)
SAMPLE ANNOTATED ESSAY: CLAIM OF FACT: A Reassuring Scorecard for Affirmative Action	109	(4)
MICHAEL M. WEINSTEIN
This New York Times editorial explains why affirmative action has benefited not only women and minorities, but the economy as well.
Claims of Value	113	(9)
Writer's Guide: Defending a Claim of Value	115	(1)
SAMPLE ANNOTATED ESSAY: CLAIM OF VALUE: Kids in the Mall: Growing Up Controlled	116	(6)
WILLIAM SEVERINI KOWINSKI
A journalist evaluates the lessons teens learn in "universities of suburban materialism."
Claims of Policy	122	(32)
Writer's Guide: Defending a Claim of Policy	123	(1)
SAMPLE ANNOTATED ESSAY: CLAIM POLICY: Dependency or Death? Oregonians Make a Chilling Choice	124	(4)
WESLEY J. SMITH
The author of Culture of Death: The Assault on Medical Ethics in America looks at the consequences of Oregon's legalization of assisted suicide. He writes that it "is bad medicine and even worse public policy."
READING FOR ANALYSIS: Happiness Is a Warm Planet	128	(2)
THOMAS GALE MOORE
A senior fellow at the Hoover Institution contends that global warming would be beneficial to most Americans and most of humanity.
READING FOR ANALYSIS: A White Woman of Color	130	(7)
JULIA ALVAREZ
Warning Latinos not to adopt America's limiting racial paradigms, a noted author recounts her early years as a recent Dominican immigrant in the United States when some of her fellow countrymen refused to recognize her as a "real" Dominican because of her light skin.
READING FOR ANALYSIS: College Life versus My Moral Code	137	(2)
ELISHA DOV HACK
A student at Yale argues that the school's dorm-residency requirements threaten his religious way of life.
READING FOR ANALYSIS: Real Marriage, Real Life	139	(3)
E.J. GRAFF
A writer for American Prospect uses the recent string of reality shows about marriage to argue that those couples who are the best matches financially are the ones most likely to make a marriage work.
READING FOR ANALYSIS: Supersize Your Child?	142	(5)
RICHARD HAYES
The executive director of the Center for Genetics and Society warns of the dangers of letting genetic engineering evolve with little or no regulation.
Chance of reading on vacation...[advertisement]	147	(1)
DEBATE: WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE COLLEGE COST CRISIS?: Historical Perspective on College Cost Increases	148	(4)
JOHN A. BOEHNER AND HOWARD R "BUCK" McKEON
Two Republican Congressmen conclude that college tuition costs have reached crisis proportions because institutions of higher learning are not accountable enough to parents, students, and taxpayers—the consumers of higher education.
DEBATE: WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE COLLEGE COST CRISIS?: Colleges Caught in Vise	152	(27)
STANLEY FISH
In this essay from the New York Times, Stanley Fish, dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at the University of Illinois at Chicago, responds to Boehner and McKeon's report, The College Cost Crisis.
Taking the Debate Online	154	(1)
Assignments for Understanding Claims	155	(2)
5. Support	157	(63)
Types of Support: Evidence and Appeals to Needs and Values	157	(3)
Evidence	160	(6)
Evaluation of Evidence	166	(7)
Appeals to Needs and Values	173	(6)
Evaluation of Appeals to Needs and Values	179	(38)
Writer's Guide: Using Effective Support	179	(2)
SAMPLE ANNOTATED ESSAY: Single-Sex Education Benefits Men Too	181	(4)
CLAUDIUS E. WATTS III
The former president of the Citadel in South Carolina asserts that male students, like their female counterparts, deserve to reap the benefits of single-sex education.
SAMPLE ANALYSIS: The True Costs of SUVs	185	(4)
HAL R. VARIAN
A business professor from Berkeley compares car shopping to the arms race: "If other families buy bigger vehicles, then you will want to as well, if only in self-defense."
SAMPLE ANALYSIS: The True Confusion about SUV Costs	189	(1)
BETHANY ROYCE
A business instructor provides a critique of Varian's use of evidence.
STUDENT ESSAY: Safer? Tastier? More Nutritious? The Dubious Merits of Organic Foods	190	(4)
KRISTEN WEINACKER
A student writer examines the claim that organic foods are more nutritious than conventionally grown ones.
READINGS FOR ANALYSIS: Connecting the Dots...to Terrorism	194	(8)
BERNARD GOLDBERG
A long-time television news reporter argues that television brings our nation together in moments of crisis, but that it should keep us better informed about where and why crises are developing.
READINGS FOR ANALYSIS: A New Look, an Old Battle	202	(3)
ANNA QUINDLEN
A Pulitzer Prize—winning journalist and best-selling novelist writes that those who oppose abortion may support beneficial but controversial stem-cell research, which uses cells taken from human embryos.
READINGS FOR ANALYSIS: Marriage-Plus	205	(8)
THEODORA OOMS
A senior policy analyst for the Center for Law and Social Policy argues that while it is advantageous for children to grow up in two-parent families, "much of what it takes to make marriage work for the benefit of spouses and children is not just moral but economic."
One Reason [advertisement]	213	(1)
DEBATE: Animal Research Saves Human Lives	214	(2)
HELOISA SABIN
The widow of Albert Sabin, who developed a polio vaccine, claims that without animal research "polio would still be claiming thousands of lives."
DEBATE: Why We Don't Need Animal Experimentation	216	(4)
PEGGY CARLSON
Animal research, says the research director of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, is costly, unreliable, and unnecessary.
Taking the Debate Online	217	(1)
Assignments for Understanding Support	218	(2)
6. Warrants	220	(49)
What Are Warrants?	220	(12)
SAMPLE ESSAY: Musical Reasoning	227	(5)
STUART GLENN
A student looks at the connection between musical training and spatial-temporal thought.
Types of Warrants	232	(33)
SAMPLE ANNOTATED ESSAY: The Case for Torture	234	(3)
MICHAEL LEVIN
A philosophy professor reasons that if torture is the only way to squeeze life-saving information from a kidnapper or terrorist, we should overcome our repugnance and apply the electrodes.
Writer's Guide: Recognizing Warrants	237	(1)
READING FOR ANALYSIS: A Proposal to Abolish Grading	238	(3)
PAUL GOODMAN
The author of Growing Up Absurd argues that if the goal of higher education is education, we should use tests that foster learning, not competition.
READING FOR ANALYSIS: An Unjust Sacrifice	241	(3)
ROBERT A. SIRICO
A Roman Catholic priest argues that the separation of conjoined twins—an operation that will result in the death of one of the babies—is wrong, and shows a dangerous way of measuring the value of a life.
READING FOR ANALYSIS: Computers and the Pursuit of Happiness	244	(9)
DAVID GELERNTER
A professor of computer science at Yale asks a simple question: Are computers good for mankind? His answer may surprise you.
Newman's Own 100% Grape Juice [advertisement]	253	(1)
READING FOR ANALYSIS: Do We Need the Census Race Question?	254	(9)
NATHAN GLAZER
An education and sociology professor makes a radical proposal about the census: Downplay the race issue.
DEBATE: ARE YOUR RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR OWN WEIGHT: Absolutely. Government Has No Business Interfering with What You Eat	263	(1)
RADLEY BALKO
A columnist and policy analyst argues that yes, you are responsible.
DEBATE: ARE YOUR RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR OWN WEIGHT: Not If Blaming the Victim Is Just an Excuse to Let Industry Off the Hook	264	(6)
KELLY BROWNELL AND MARION NESTLE
A psychologist and a nutritionist argue that the fast-food industry must bear some of the blame for our epidemic of obesity.
Taking the Debate Online	265	(1)
Assignments for Understanding Warrants	266	(3)
7. Induction, Deduction, and Logical Fallacies	269	(45)
Induction	270	(4)
SAMPLE ESSAY: AN INDUCTIVE ARGUMENT: True or False: Schools Fail Immigrants	271	(3)
RICHARD ROTHSTEIN
The national education columnist for the New York Times looks at the complex issues behind the question of whether public schooling has failed immigrants.
Deduction	274	(9)
SAMPLE ANNOTATED ESSAY: A DEDUCTIVE ARGUMENT: Divorce and Our National Values	279	(6)
PETER D. KRAMER
A clinical professor of psychiatry at Brown University affirms that our epidemic of divorce reflects the increased emphasis on the characteristic American virtue of autonomy, which has been a goal of our psychotherapy for the past fifty years.
A Note on the Syllogism and the Toulmin Model	283	(2)
Common Fallacies	285	(25)
Writer's Guide: Avoiding Logical Fallacies	295	(1)
READING ON ANALYSIS: On the Nation and Race	296	(5)
ADOLF HITLER
This excerpt from Mein Kampf expounds the principles of Nazi racist ideology.
Cheryl Silas had a highway collision...[advertisement]	301	(1)
READING ON ANALYSIS: Show Biz Encourages Looser Teen Sex Habits	302	(2)
SHERYL McCARTHY
An adult evaluates the current sex habits of teenagers and laments how things have changed since she herself was a teen.
READING ON ANALYSIS: Food for Thought (and for Credit)	304	(2)
JENNIFER GROSSMAN
The director of the Dole Nutrition Institute advocates returning to a modernized version of the old home economics course to teach young people to be more responsible consumers and better guardians of their health and that of their own children.
DEBATE: SHOULD THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT FUND EMBRYONIC STEM-CELL RESEARCH?: Use the Body's "Repair Kit": We Must Pursue Research on Embryonic Stem Cells	306	(2)
CHRISTOPHER REEVE
An actor, director, and quadriplegic advocates support of the stem-cell research that might make those like him walk again.
DEBATE: SHOULD THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT FUND EMBRYONIC STEM-CELL RESEARCH?: The Misleading Debate on Stem-Cell Research	308	(11)
MONA CHAREN
A syndicated columnist and mother of a child with juvenile diabetes weighs the hope of help for her child against the morality of stem-cell research.
Taking the Debate Online	310	(1)
Assignments for Understanding Induction, Deduction, and Logical Fallacies	310	(4)
8. Language and Thought	314	(57)
The Power of Words	314	(2)
Connotation	316	(3)
Slanting	319	(11)
Service with a Smile, and Plenty of Metal	321	(2)
DEBRA DARVICK
A writer on Jewish culture and family life wonders why some members of her children's generation have chosen piercings as their way of making a statement.
Debra Darvick Advocates Mutilating Babies: PS. She's Also a Bigot	323	(4)
SHANNON LARRATT
The editor and publisher of an online publication on body modification responds to Darvick.
More on Debra Darvick	327	(8)
"SNAILER"
A fan of Larratt's publication responds in an online forum to his attack on Darvick.
Picturesque Language	330	(1)
Concrete and Abstract Language	331	(4)
Short Cuts	335	(33)
SAMPLE ANNOTATED ESSAY: The Childswap Society	343	(3)
SANDRA FELDMAN
The president of the American Federation of Teachers maintains that if the United States were to adopt a childswap system, in which children were periodically and randomly redistributed to new parents, we and our lawmakers would quickly work to ensure that all children were provided with equal medical and educational opportunities.
Writer's Guide: Choosing Your Worlds Carefully	346	(1)
READING FOR ANALYSIS: Americans Entitled to Cheap Gas—Right?	346	(3)
JOAN RYAN
A journalist takes a sarcastic look at Americans' assumption that they deserve the best of everything—no matter what it costs.
READING FOR ANALYSIS: $hotgun Weddings	349	(2)
KATHA POLLITT
A journalist claims that marriage is all a matter of economics.
READING FOR ANALYSIS: The Speech the Graduates Didn't Hear	351	(2)
JACOB NEUSNER
A scholar's caustic commentary on student-faculty relations indicts college as a ludicrously inappropriate preparation for the unforgiving world outside.
READING FOR ANALYSIS: Tightening the Nuts and Bolts of Death by Electric Chair	353	(5)
A.C. SOUD JR., WITH TOM KUNTZ
Excerpts from a Florida judge's ruling provide chilling details of a botched execution by electric chair—but uphold the state's right to execute its citizens this way.
Cease Fire. [advertisement]	358	(1)
DEBATE: DOES THE GOVERNMENT HAVE THE RIGHT TO REGULATE GUNS?: The Right to Bear Arms	359	(3)
WARREN E. BURGER
A former chief justice of the United States examines the historical roots of the Second Amendment in order to construct an appeal for gun control.
DEBATE: DOES THE GOVERNMENT HAVE THE RIGHT TO REGULATE GUNS?: A God-Given Natural Right	362	(11)
ROGER D. McGRATH
A history professor and captain in the Naval Detachment of the California State Military Reserve argues that the Bill of Rights does not have to grant the right to bear arms but rather that it assumes that right already exists.
Taking the Debate Online	368	(1)
Assignments for Understanding Language and Thought	369	(2)
Part Two Writing, Researching, and Presenting Arguments	371	(110)
9. Writing and Argumentative Paper	373	(21)
Finding an Appropriate Topic	373	(3)
Invention Strategies	374	(1)
Evaluating Possible Topics	374	(1)
To This Point	375	(1)
Defining the Issues	376	(3)
Preparing an Initial Outline	376	(1)
Computers in the Outlining Process	376	(1)
Case Study: School Uniforms	377	(2)
Organizing the Material	379	(7)
Defending the Main Idea	380	(1)
Refuting the Opposing View	380	(1)
Finding the Middle Ground	381	(2)
Presenting the Stock Issues	383	(1)
Ordering Material for Emphasis	383	(1)
Considering Scope and Audience	384	(1)
To This Point	385	(1)
Writing	386	(5)
Beginning the Paper	386	(2)
Guidelines for Good Writing	388	(3)
Revising	391	(1)
Preparing the Manuscript	392	(2)
Writer's Guide: Checklist for Argumentative Papers	393	(1)
10. Researching an Argumentative Paper	394	(72)
Getting Started	394	(2)
Writer's Guide: Why Use Sources?	395	(1)
Mapping Research: A Sample Outline	396	(1)
Using Sources: Primary Research	396	(2)
Using Sources: Secondary Research	398	(7)
Selecting and Searching Databases	398	(2)
Types of Databases	400	(2)
Encyclopedias	402	(1)
Statistical Resources	402	(1)
Government Publications	403	(1)
Searching the Web	404	(1)
Evaluating Sources	405	(11)
Evaluating Print Sources	406	(1)
Evaluating Web Sources	407	(1)
Evaluating a Web Page: One Example	408	(8)
Working with Sources	416	(14)
Taking Notes	416	(3)
Quoting	419	(4)
Writer's Guide: Incorporating Quotations into Your Text	420	(3)
Paraphrasing	423	(1)
Summarizing	424	(2)
Avoiding Plagiarism	426	(2)
Including Visuals in Your Paper	428	(1)
Keeping Research under Control	428	(1)
To This Point	429	(2)
Writer's Guide: Checklist for Research Papers	429	(1)
Compiling an Annotated Bibliography	430	(1)
MLA System for Citing Publications	431	(22)
SAMPLE RESEARCH PAPER (MLA STYLE): When a Fairy Tale Is Not Just a Fairy Tale	439	(14)
SUSAN MIDDLETON
APA System for Citing Publications	453	(13)
SAMPLE RESEARCH PAPER (APA STYLE): Why Zoos Should Be Eliminated	459	(17)
AMANDA REPP
11. Presenting an Argument Orally	466	(15)
The Audience	468	(1)
Credibility	469	(1)
Organization	470	(3)
Language	473	(2)
Support	475	(1)
Presentation Aids	476	(7)
Charts, Graphs, Handouts	476	(1)
Audio	477	(1)
Video	477	(1)
Multimedia	478	(13)
SAMPLE PERSUASIVE SPEECH: Live Longer and Healthier: Stop Eating Meat!	479	(1)
C. RENZI STONE
Appendix: Classic Arguments	481	(56)
A Modest Proposal	483	(8)
JONATHAN SWIFT
An eighteenth-century satirist concocts a chilling, ironic solution to the problems of Irish poverty and overpopulation.
Civil Disobedience	491	(18)
HENRY DAVID THOREAU
The author of Walden explains why it is reasonable, and often imperative, to disobey laws that one believes to be unjust.
The Crisis	509	(12)
CARRIE CHAPMAN CATT
The founder of the League of Women Voters uses a 1916 speech to explore how World War I offered the potential to speed up the move toward women's suffrage.
Letter from Birmingham Jail	521	(16)
MARTIN LUTHER KING JR.
In 1963, the imprisoned civil rights leader argues that victims of unjust laws have the right to break those laws so long as they use nonviolent action.
Appendix: Arguing about Literature	537	(32)
The Elements of Fiction	538	(1)
The Elements of Drama	539	(1)
The Elements of Poetry	540	(2)
The Cultural Context	542	(1)
Choosing What to Write About	543	(1)
Guidelines for Writing the Paper	544	(25)
SAMPLE STORY AND ANALYSIS: The Use of Force	546	(4)
WILLIAM CARLOS WILLIAMS
SAMPLE STORY AND ANALYSIS: Conflicts in "The Use of Force	550	(3)
JENNIFER RAMPOLLA
SAMPLE PLAY: Trifles	553	(11)
SUSAN GLASPELL
SAMPLE POEM: To His Coy Mistress	564	(5)
ANDREW MARVELL
GLOSSARY	569	(4)
INDEX OF SUBJECTS	573	(3)
INDEX OF AUTHORS AND TITLES	576