Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Contributing arguments:
• Beggars are a nuisance to businesses and
ordinary people
• Beggars are often involved in crime
• They make our streets look filthy
• Crime syndicates are behind, organising the
traficking
Is it an argument?
1. Position: point of view / main message that you want
others to accept
2. Reasons / contributing arguments / propositions
support the conclusion
3. Line of reasoning: set of reasons in logical order
leading to a conclusion
4. Conclusion: the position you want others to accept
5. Persuasion: The argument should convince your
audience
6. Signal words or phrases helps your audience follow
the direction of argument
Nonarguments
Descriptions
Replicability
• The results of the experiment have been re-tested by others.
(Common in natural science)
Select
• Sources regarded as leading authorities
• Refer to other sources in brief
• Your main source material should be those that
contribute most to your
own line of reasoning
• One or two seminal works
• Show that you are able to
discriminate between the most
relevant sources and more marginal sources
• Currency
Analytical writing
• Looks at the evidence given in detail, weighing the relative strengths and
weaknesses of the evidence
• Pointing these out
• Assess clarity, validity, reliability, currency, authenticity and possible flaws
• Select the most important points, avoiding too much detail, but balancing with
enough evidence
• Avoid tautologies, waffle and flaws
• Discuss controversial points
• Present logically – your own arguments first to make a case
• Group similar points
• Use signposts –special words -to signal that the point is a main message, a
reason, an explanation, a description, a summary, a counteargument, a
rebuttal
• Use definitions when there is more than one interpreation
Background information
• Brief overview giving a context. Often 10% of
the thesis.
• Identify two or three books, theories,
perpectives, previous research articles
providing the most relevant
bakground for your research
• How the pieces of research
are linked
Signal words
• Overall argument and Line of reasoning: first, to begin,
first and foremost, Initially, I will start
• Indicate new information: in addition, besides,
furthermore, moreover
• Adding similar reasons: similarly, likewise, equally, in
the same way
• Alternative argument: alternatively, it might be argued
that..
• Contradicting: weigh up evidence for both sides
contrasting all the evidence.:
• although, conversely, by contrast, on the other hand, in
fact…
Evaluation of essay
1. Writer’s position clear
2. The reasons for the writer’s position is clear
3. The writer’s position is clear and based on
evidence
4. Reasons are given logical as in line of reasoning
5. Argument well structured and easy to follow
6. Counterarguments discussed
7. Reasons are linked to each other and lead to the
conclusion
8. All texts are relevant to the assignment
9. The main reasons and key points stand out
Evaluation of critical writing
1. Good use of other’s research and good sources for
supporting evidence and strenghten argument?
2. Make a reasoned evaluation of opposing views?
3. References provided?
4. When introducing other people’s ideas, are these
appropriately referenced?
5. List of references at the end?
6. Has non-essential, descriptive writings been removed?
7. Flaws removed?
8. Consistent line of reasoning?
9. Are the writers’ beliefs distorting the argument?
10. Good, easy to understand and engaging writing?
http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/features/narrative-
trust/421045.article
Main source:
• Cottrell, S. (2005) Critical thinking skills,
Palgrave study guides
Good luck!
Enjoy writing!