The Basic Argument
The concept of a basic argument consists of a simple claim with reasons or evidence. As you move forward in your studies in composition and argument, you will learn about the more advanced forms of argument, the Toulmin and Rogerian, which contain additional parts and will be discussed later in this chapter. For now let’s focus on just the basic structure of an argument of claim and evidence.
Part 1: THE CLAIM
At a minimum, in order for the reader to understand what you are doing, you must provide a claim/thesis which should consist of answers to the following questions:
- What are you examining? (2) Why are you looking at the issue? (3) How will you show the reader what you need to?
Once a claim has been established, the arguer now needs to add reasons why we should believe them which are the evidence portion of an argument.
Part 2: THE EVIDENCE
Evidence needs to be shown (give the evidence to the reader rather than just telling them about it) that supports the HOW or the reasons section of your argument. In this case the writer needs to produce information from credible (reliable, trustworthy, unbiased…etc) sources that shows the rising temperatures, shifting winds and higher water levels. Specifically the reader needs to know WHO is saying it? WHAT exactly are they saying? HOW does it relate to the claim?
Example: Dr. Indiana Jones, Phd in environmental sciences and instructor at Hogwarts University states in his report, “The rising temperatures documented from 1910 to present show a clear pattern of consistently increasing,” leading to crop damage due to heat and drought conditions.
In the example the reader is “SHOWN” the evidence which supports the authors claim. Note the direct correlation to the claim point and how the evidence helps support it. In addition there will usually be a topic and concluding sentence included with each paragraph. The writer would continue to produce evidence for the reader for every aspect stated in the claim or thesis.
PART 3: THE CONCLUSION
Any written work requires a conclusion and an argument is no different. The purpose in summarizing your argument by telling the reader what it was you set out to do. This is usually accomplished by restating your claim idea. Next would be a summary of the evidence and how it works toward proving your claim.
An example: (The Idea) Test taking has long been the measure by which we judge the intelligence and capability of people. Yet the question looms as to whether or not this is the most effective way in which to measure potential achievement. (Evidence) As shown through experience of students, the observation of researchers and other studies performed on this area, (Proved your claim) many will agree that the current system has problems in that one test does not always reflect a true measurement of ability of a person. We see much better performance when the stressful environment has been removed and student are allowed to interact and communicate freely with testers.
There may also be other required parts assigned by your instructor so make sure you check the assignment sheet.