Broad review of features and principles of arguments ● Narrative elements and structure ○ Used naturally by audiences to evaluate via narrative probability and narrative fidelity ● Audiences should be accounted for and appealed to ○ Universal audience, specific audiences, unintended audiences ○ Use of ethos, pathos or logos as appropriate ● Elements of argument offer opportunities for critique or improvement ○ What is the claim, the support/grounds/evidence, the warrants and backing, the rebuttals, qualifiers/modalities ● Types of arguments connect to tests of logic and reasoning ○ Argument by example, analogy, causal correlation, and sign ● Analysis can reveal weaknesses or misunderstandings ○ Propositions of fact, value or policy? ○ Basic analysis: factual conjecture, definitions, qualities, objections ○ Stock issues analysis: ill, blame, cure, cost, conclusion ○ Are we trying to analyze or critique the whole system? If so, assess components, relationships, goals, and effects Broad review of features and principles of arguments ● Language choices impact effectiveness ○ Word choices: denotative and connotative meanings, abstractions, metaphors ○ Storytelling choices: characters (descriptions, roles, types), settings (descriptions, types), events and actions (descriptions, types) ● Logical fallacies undermine effectiveness ● Grounds for argument can impact effectiveness ○ Premises: personal knowledge, cultural knowledge, rituals, symbols, presumptions ○ Examples: personal or from elsewhere, detailed or brief (should be: significant number, relevant, typical of the category, account for negative or rival examples) ○ Statistics: systematically derived, descriptive or inferential (should note: method of gathering, category definitions, time frame for data collection & analysis, percentages and ratios put in context) ○ Testimony: descriptive or interpretive, assessed via competence (ability), trustworthiness (motives) ● Refutation of your own or others’ arguments is useful practice ○ Critically evaluate support, errors, obfuscation, equivocations ○ Refute via denial, mitigation, reduce to absurdity or turn the tables ○ Present via declaration or questioning ● Visual elements can enhance or undermine claim, or make a claim on their own
#Explan #Logical #fallacies #undermine #effectiveness
