The Argumentative Essay The Argument’s Best Friends - PowerPoint Presentation

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The Argumentative Essay

The Argument’s Best Friends

Ethos, Logos, and Pathos

Ethos (Ethical)

This appeal involves convincing your audience that you are intelligent and

can be trusted

. Writers cannot simply say to their audience "I can be trusted because I'm smart and a good person." This appeal is perhaps the most difficult to establish; you have to prove yourself by demonstrating that you understand what you are arguing -

Ethical because

You are providing

personal experience or

know someone else who has personal experience,

You are using expert support

through extensive research,

through up-to-date research

through recognized authorities in the field (this will also help to prevent your appeal from seeming too personal),

You are using appropriate writing style

by means of professional and strong words that carry appropriate connotations be sure that you don't sound emotional.

By using third person. (only use first person when providing a specific personal experience (uncommon))

You are treating your audience with respect by

establishing some common ground in a refutation section.

Find some mutual ground for both sides of the argument by acknowledging that your opinion and the opinion of the opposite side agree on at least one aspect. This is essential in establishing your ethos (or credibility) and your ability to treat the topic fairly.

Logos (Logical)

You appeal to logic when you rely on your audience’s intelligence and when you offer credible evidence to support your argument. That evidence includes:

FACTS- These are valuable because they are not debatable; they represent the truth

EXAMPLES- These include events or circumstances that your audience can relate to their life

PRECEDENTS- These are specific examples (historical and personal) from the past

AUTHORITY- The authority must be timely (not outdated), and it must be qualified to judge the topic

DEDUCTIVE/INDUCTIVE- Deductive reasoning is when you pick apart evidence to reach conclusions, and inductive reasoning is when you add logical pieces to the evidence to reach conclusions.

Because:

You are using appropriate writing style

by means of professional and strong words that carry appropriate connotations be sure that you don't sound overly emotional.

By using third person.

You are treating your audience with respect by

establishing some common ground in a refutation section.

Find some mutual ground for both sides of the argument by acknowledging that your opinion and the opinion of the opposite side agree on at least one aspect. This is essential in establishing your ethos (or credibility) and your ability to treat the topic fairly.

You are using appropriate writing style

by means of professional and strong words that carry appropriate connotations be sure that you don't sound emotional.

By using third person. (only use first person when providing a specific personal experience (uncommon))

You are treating your audience with respect by

establishing some common ground in a refutation section.

Find some mutual ground for both sides of the argument by acknowledging that your opinion and the opinion of the opposite side agree on at least one aspect. This is essential in establishing your ethos (or credibility) and your ability to treat the topic fairly.

Pathos ( Passionate)

This kind of appeal can be very effective if it’s not over-done, especially if your topic is an emotional one. Because your audience has emotions as well as intellect, your argument must seek to engage the audience emotionally. However, using emotional appeal alone is not as effective as when it is used in conjunction with logical and/or ethical appeals.

Often, Pathos is only a piece of the argument. It is incorporated into an argument based on Ethos or Logos.

The BEST way to incorporate pathos (or emotional) appeals is by using words that carry appropriate connotations.

Denotative vs. Connotative Words

Denotation refers to the dictionary definition of a word. Connotation on the other hand refers to words that carry secondary meanings, undertones, and implications. For example, if you were to ask a person how they'd like to be described from the following list of words, what do you think their answer would be?

Slender................................Thin................................Scrawny

The answer is most likely the word

slender

.

While the words carry the same denotation

,

they all mean lean, and not fat

. S

lender

carries positive

undertones. A slender woman is graceful, elegant, and even sexy.

Thin

,

on the other hand

,

is a neutral word

.

Finally, the word

,

scrawny

,

connotates

an

unhealthy, overly thin, or bony person

.

A scrawny man would be weak and lacking muscle. Generally, most people

do not want to be described in this manner. Overtime, words

’

connotative meanings

shift

, and writers

must stay

up-to-date on the current connotations of a word.

What is an Argumentative Essay?

The purpose of an argumentative essay is to persuade the reader to accept—or seriously consider--your opinion on a controversial issue

An argumentative essay still is in the five paragraph format.

It has five parts: Thesis (Claim), Reasons, Evidence, Counterclaim, Rebuttal

Consider your Audience

Whom are you trying to reach?

What do they already know about your topic?

What is your relationship with your audience and how does it impact your word choice and tone?

What your Essay looks like:

Paragraph 1. Introduction w/Thesis

Paragraph 2. Reason 1 w/Evidence

Paragraph 3. Reason 2 w/Evidence

Paragraph 4. Counter Claim/Rebuttal

Paragraph 5. Conclusion w/Restated Thesis

Thesis = ClaimYour opinion or position on an issue

Must be supported with reasons and

evidence

Evidence can include quotes, facts, and data

Evidence MUST be explained

ReasonsYour reasons support the thesis and form argument with your evidence.

Typical supporting paragraph structure goes like this: topic sentence (A reason why your thesis is correct), then evidence/support of that reason. Finally, include an explanation of the evidence.

Be sure to repeat a similar structure with every body paragraph

Know the Opposing Side

Ask these questions:

1. Who might disagree with my position? Why?

2. What reasons do people have for disagreeing with me?

3. What evidence would support an opposing argument?

Counter ClaimConsider the opposite side

Argues against your claim

Turn against your argument to challenge it

Then turn back to reaffirm your position

Counter Claims

Key phrases to use:

One might object that...

It might seem that...

It's true that...

Admittedly...

Of course...

Rebuttal

Turn back to your original position

Responds to and refutes* issues presented by the counterclaim

Refute-prove (a statement or theory) to be wrong or false; disprove.

Example

CLAIM: “More Americans are choosing low-carb diets because the media promotes low-carb diets as the new way to a skinnier body.”

COUNTER CLAIM: “Some Americans don't watch television commercials because they own a DVR or Tivo, but most Americans are exposed to other forms of advertisement in magazines, newspapers, and highway billboards.

Color Coded Paragraphs

Red = Thesis statements or Topic sentences

Green = Assertions or claims

Blue = Evidence/Quotes – should be cited

Yellow = Explanation of the quote or evidence

Orange = Transitions

How to quote your evidence

Useful phrases to introduce quotations

According to X,…

To quote from X, ‘…’

X tells/shows us that…

Referring to …, X argues that

As X stated/wrote/argued/discussed/expressed the concern, …