Sample argument (Parik Jain)

Note: The underlined text may be used as a template

Stimulus: Arctic deer live on islands in Canada's arctic regions. They search for food by moving over
ice from island to island during the course of the year. Their habitat is limited to areas warm enough to
sustain the plants on which they feed and cold enough, at least some of the year, for the ice to cover the
sea separating the islands, allowing the deer to travel over it. Unfortunately, according to reports from
local hunters, the deer populations are declining. Since these reports coincide with recent global
warming trends that have caused the sea ice to melt, we can conclude that the purported decline in
deer populations is the result of the deer's being unable to follow their age-old migration patterns
across the frozen sea.

Write a response in which you discuss what specific evidence is needed to evaluate the argument and
explain how the evidence would weaken or strengthen the argument.

Response:
The author of the above argument contends that the reported decline in the deer population in
Canadas arctic regions is an outgrowth of global warming. He argues that the Arctic deer, who move
over the ice, round the year, in search for food, are unable to follow this age-old migration pattern
because of melting of ice, a phenomenon that impedes their movement. This in turn leads to their
inability to sustain. The argument put forth by the author seems coherent at first glance; upon
scrutiny, however, the argument extended appears seriously flawed and based on several
questionable premises and assumptions.

The most glaring error in the authors line of reasoning is his acceptance without validation of the
reports from hunters. Firstly, hunters, or for that matter laity in general, cannot provide a reliable
statistic of an animals population. The responsibility and credibility lies with agencies engaged
particularly in this task. Therefore, the author jumps to a conclusion on the basis of a report that has not
been validated. Secondly, hunters may themselves be responsible for the decline in deer population.
Quite disappointingly, the author has failed to consider this paradox underlying the hunters report. In
light of these fallacies, the claim seems to be resting on questionable grounds.

Besides, the time of the year when this observation was made by the hunters is not clear. As mentioned
by the author, the arctic deer follow a migration pattern; the number of deer reported or seen at a
particular site at a particular time of the year, therefore, is sure to vary. It leads one to think about the
possibility of observation been made at a time when deer had migrated to some other place. This, if
true, invalidates the entire argument. The argument certainly lacks legitimate evidential support and
seems to have been formed out of thin air.
In addition, even if the reports are authenticated and the hunters ruled out as a reason for decline,
nothing has been mentioned regarding the rate of decline in the deer population, something which is
paramount in ascertaining the role, if at all, of global warming in the purported decline. One does not
come to know, for example, about the number of deer some years ago and the figure now. If the figures
have declined precipitously, for instance, it is unlikely that the reason for the decline is a gradual
phenomenon, such as global warming. Instead, outbreak of a fatal disease may well be the cause. We
just do not know. To establish a trend, one clearly needs statistics of at least a few years. The author
has failed to provide these figures. A mere proximity in the time of occurrence of two events (decline
in deer population and global warming reports, in this case) does not essentially establish a causal
relationship between the two. The author, unfortunately, has ignored this fact.

Evidently, the speaker has not thought things through. He should have sought some credible reports,
instead of relying on those given by the hunters, to ascertain the gravity of the problem. He should
have carefully examined other reasons that could well be responsible for the purported decline. Any
conclusion based on irrelevant and insufficient data fails to convince the readers. Therefore, the
author needs to largely reconstruct his argument, fix the flaws in his logic and provide explication for
his assumptions to validate his contention. Without these changes, the speaker's argument blaming
global warming for decline in deer population of Arctic island

Template 1
Para 1

The author of the above argument contends that..

. The argument put forth by the author seems coherent at first glance; upon scrutiny, however,
the argument extended appears seriously flawed and based on several questionable premises and
assumptions.

Para 2

The most glaring error in the authors line of reasoning

.. In light of these fallacies, the claim seems to be resting on questionable grounds.

Para 3

Besides,..

.............. This, if true, invalidates the entire argument. The argument certainly lacks legitimate
evidential support and seems to have been formed out of thin air.

Para 4

In addition,

. We just do not know. To establish a trend, one clearly needs statistics of at least a few
years. The author has failed to provide these figures. A mere proximity in the time of occurrence of
two events (decline in deer population and global warming reports, in this case) does not essentially
establish a causal relationship between the two. The author, unfortunately, has ignored this fact.

Para 5

Evidently, the speaker has not thought things through. He should have sought some credible reports,
instead of relying on, to ascertain the gravity of the problem. He should have carefully
examined other reasons that could well be responsible for the. Any conclusion based on
irrelevant and insufficient data fails to convince the readers. Therefore, the author needs to largely
reconstruct his argument, fix the flaws in his logic and provide explication for his assumptions to
validate his contention. Without these changes, the speaker's argument blaming...

.. shall remain questionable, extremely ill constructed and thus unconvincing.

Template 2

Para 1