1: Introduction - Why Study Argument?

Introduction

What is college about if not about ideas? How do we respond to others' ideas and form our own?

I am an engaged citizen, a partner, a writer, and a mother who feels good about many decisions I’ve made in my life, but I often don’t have my own ideas clear. Sometimes I feel a little despairing about how much I'm unsure of. I listen to the news or I read the voter booklet or I mull over a disagreement between colleagues and a million questions come into my head.

At other times I have a strong sense of my opinion but a hard time explaining it. When I try to write, I struggle. Every time, I hope that for once writing will come easy, and every time, I end up frustrated. I have to remind myself that I have been through this struggle many times before and that certain practices help. If I stick with the process, both my ideas and my writing get clearer. And I feel satisfaction in that increasing clarity. The aha moments bring relief and some sense of wonder.

In college, we are faced with so much pressure to perform and figure out our futures. It's easy to forget that academia also ensures that we are not alone. We don't have to do our thinking or our writing in isolation; it wouldn't make sense to try. Thinking and writing happen in conversation, in relationship. On almost any given topic, there is a rich, contentious community of ideas out there, ideas that build on and often contradict each other. We could start from scratch, but why? We contribute more if we find a way to enter the conversation.

This book is meant as a practical guide to help students join that conversation. Joining it means moving through a series of steps, from understanding and describing others' arguments, to deciding whether or to what extent we agree, to articulating our own points in response. These steps match up with the following typical college writing assignments:

• Summaries describe the ideas in an argument we have read.
• Assessments offer a judgment on how strong the argument is.
• Response papers make recommendations in response to the strengths or weaknesses of the argument.
• Research-based arguments describe and assess multiple sources in order to arrive at a new perspective.

The following chapters on argument follow what you have already learned about the skills of critical reading and writing for college-level assignments. In addition to preparing students to enter the academic conversation, these chapters aim to teach student writers how to write well and get ideas across clearly and succinctly to their readers. After all, the goal of writing is to share ideas that you consider important and meaningful with an audience of readers that can fully understand the points you are trying to make.

As writers, we all have to feel at times that we are struggling in the dark. My hope is that these chapters and assignments offer skill-building tasks and practical advise that will help students find their way. I hope it helps you all gain confidence about putting your own opinions into the academic conversation.

Introduction to Argument Assignment

Ted Talk Video Details: "Why You Think You're Right -- Even If You're Wrong"

Perspective is everything, especially when it comes to examining your beliefs. Are you a soldier, prone to defending your viewpoint at all costs — or a scout, spurred by curiosity? Julia Galef examines the motivations behind these two mindsets and how they shape the way we interpret information, interweaved with a compelling history lesson from 19th-century France. When your steadfast opinions are tested, Galef asks: "What do you most yearn for? Do you yearn to defend your own beliefs or do you yearn to see the world as clearly as you possibly can?"

Thumbnail: Image by Arek Socha from Pixabay