Books: Practical Argumentation
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George K. Pattee >> Practical Argumentation
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The student who has carefully read this chapter up to this point
should have a fairly clear idea of the nature of proof; he should know
that proof consists of evidence and reasoning; he should know the
tests for each of these; and he should be able to distinguish between
strong and weak arguments. The next step for him to take will be to
apply these instructions in generating proof for any statement that he
wishes to establish.
A common fault in argumentation is the failure to support important
points with sufficient proof. One or two points well established will
go farther toward inducing belief in a proposition than a dozen points
that are but weakly substantiated. A statement should be proved not
only by inductive reasoning, but, if possible, by deductive. If one
uses argument from antecedent probability in establishing a statement,
he should not rest content with this one method of proof, but he
should try also to use argument from sign, and argument from example,
and, whenever he can, he should quote authority.
Notice that in the following outline three kinds of proof are used.
The amount of proof here given is by no means sufficient to establish
the truth of the proposition being upheld; the outline, however, does
illustrate the proper method of building up the proof of a
proposition.
The present condition of the United States Senate is deplorable.
ANTECEDENT PROBABILITY.
I. The present method of electing Senators is ample cause for such a
condition, since
A. Senators are not responsible to any one, as
1. They are not responsible to the people, for
a. The people do not elect them.
2. They are not responsible to the legislature, for
a. The legislature changes inside of six years.
SIGN.
II. There is ample evidence to prove that the condition is
deplorable.
A. States are often unrepresented in the Senate. (Haynes'
_Election of Senators_, page 158.)
B. Many Senators have fallen into disrepute, for
1. One out of every ten members of the Fifty-eighth
Congress had been before the courts on criminal charges.
(Harper's Weekly, Vol. XLIV, page 113.)
C. Many Senators have engaged in fist fights on the floor of the
Senate Chamber.
AUTHORITY.
III. Prominent men testify to its deplorable condition. (A. M. Low,
North American Review, Vol. CLXXIV, page 231; D. G. Phillips,
Cosmopolitan, Vol. XL, page 487.)
PERSUASION.
Though it has been stated in a previous chapter that the persuasive
portions of an argument should be found for the most part in the
introduction and the conclusion, still persuasion in the discussion is
extremely important. It is true that the real work of the discussion
is to prove the proposition; but if conviction alone be used, there is
great danger, in most cases, that the arguer will weary his audience,
lose their attention, and thus fail to drive home the ideas that he
wishes them to adopt. Since everything depends upon how the arguer has
already treated his subject, and how it has been received by the
audience, specific directions for persuasion in the discussion cannot
possibly be given. Suggestions in regard to this matter must be even
more abstract and general than were the directions for persuasion in
the introduction.
To begin with, persuasion in the discussion should usually be of a
supplementary nature. Unless the arguer has won the attention and, to
some extent at least, the good will of his audience before he
commences upon his proof, he may as well confess failure and proceed
no farther. If, however, the persuasiveness of his introduction has
accomplished the purpose for which it exists, he may introduce his
proof without hesitation, taking care all the time to interweave
enough persuasion to maintain the favorable impression that he has
already made.
In general, the directions for doing this are the same as those for
securing persuasion in the introduction. In both divisions
_modesty_, _fairness_, and _sincerity_, are the characteristics that make
for success. The same conditions that demand these qualities in one place
require their use throughout the whole argument. Then, too, it is often
effective to make occasionally an appeal to some strong emotion. As a
rule, the attitude of the modern audience is essentially one of
indifference, of so great indifference that special effort must be made
first to gain, then to hold, their attention. The direct emotional appeal,
when the subject, the occasion, and the audience are such that
there is no danger of its being ludicrous, will usually accomplish this
result. If such a method, however, is manifestly out of place, other means
must be sought for producing a similar effect.
One of the very commonest devices for gaining attention is to relate a
short anecdote. Everybody enjoys a good story, and if it is chosen
with proper regard for its illustrative value, the argument is sure to
be strengthened. On the whole, humorous stories are best. They often
relieve the tedium of an otherwise dry speech, and not only serve as
persuasion, but drive home a point with greater emphasis than could
the most elaborate course of reasoning. This method is so familiar to
every one that detailed explanation is unnecessary. Owing to the
limited amount of time at their command, student debaters can, as a
rule, use only the very shortest stories, and these should be chosen
for their illustrative rather than for their persuasive value; in
written arguments greater latitude is possible.
Another method that often finds favor in both written and spoken
arguments is the introduction of a paragraph showing the importance of
the topic under consideration. Oftentimes the arguer can show that
this particular phase of the subject is of wider significance than at
first appears. Perhaps he can draw a picture that will turn a
seemingly uninteresting and commonplace subject into one that is
teeming with romance and wonderment. For example, consider the
following extract from Burke's speech on _Conciliation with the
American Colonies_:--
This is the relative proportion of the importance of the colonies at
these two periods: and all reasoning concerning our mode of treating
them must have this proportion as its basis; or it is a reasoning
weak, rotten and sophistical.
Mr. Speaker, I cannot prevail on myself to hurry over this great
consideration. It is good for us to be here. We stand where we have an
immense view of what is, and what is passed. Clouds, indeed, and
darkness rest upon the future. Let us, however, before we descend from
this noble eminence, reflect that this growth of our national
prosperity has happened within the short period of the life of man. It
has happened within sixty-eight years. There are those alive whose
memory might touch the two extremities. For instance, my Lord Bathurst
might remember all the stages of the progress. He was in 1704 of an
age at least to be made to comprehend such things. He was then old
enough _acta parentum jam legere, et quae sit poterit cognoscere
virtus_. Suppose, sir, that the angel of this auspicious youth, foreseeing
the many virtues which made him one of the most amiable, as he is one
of the most fortunate, men of his age, had opened to him in vision, that
when in the fourth generation the third prince of the House of
Brunswick had sat twelve years on the throne of that nation which (by
the happy issue of moderate and healing counsels) was to be made
Great Britain, he should see his son, Lord Chancellor of England, turn
back the current of hereditary dignity to its fountain and raise him to an
higher rank of peerage, whilst he enriched the family with a new one;
--if, amidst these bright and happy scenes of domestic honor and
prosperity, that angel should have drawn up the curtain and unfolded
the rising glories of his country, and, whilst he was gazing with
admiration on the then commercial grandeur of England, the genius
should point out to him a little speck, scarcely visible in the mass of
the national interests, a small seminal principle rather than a formed
body, and should tell him,--"Young man, there is America, which at this
day serves for little more than to amuse you with stories of savage men
and uncouth manners; yet shall, before you taste of death, show itself
equal to the whole of that commerce which now attracts the envy of
the world. Whatever England has been growing to by a progressive
increase of improvement, brought in by varieties of people, by
succession of civilizing conquests and civilizing settlements in a series
of seventeen hundred years, you shall see as much added to her by
America in the course of a single life!" If this state of his country had
been foretold to him, would it not require all the sanguine credulity of
youth and all the fervid glow of enthusiasm to make him believe it?
Fortunate man, he has lived to see it! Fortunate indeed, if he lives to
see nothing that shall vary the prospect and cloud the setting of his day!
Excuse me, sir, if, turning from such thoughts, I resume this
comparative view once more. [Footnote: Speech in House of Commons,
March 22, 1775.]
These devices an arguer will often find helpful for bringing an
element of persuasion into his proof, but he should aim at a type of
persuasion much more effective, yet much harder to attain, than is the
result of any mere device. Proof is the strongest when each separate
bit of it appeals both to the reason and the emotions. If an arguer
can connect his subject with the feelings of his audience and then
introduce reasoning processes that will at the same time both convince
them and play upon their feelings, he is certain to attain a large
measure of success. Although not all subjects readily lend themselves
to this method of treatment, yet if the debater will go to the very
bottom of his subject and consider the real significance of the
question he is arguing upon, he can usually succeed in making his
conviction persuasive and his persuasion convincing. Undoubtedly the
best way for a student to train himself in this respect is to study
great arguments. The following quotation from Beecher's speech in
Liverpool, delivered before an audience composed mostly of men
engaged in manufacturing, is an excellent example of persuasive
proof:--
The things required for prosperous labor, prosperous manufactures,
and prosperous commerce are three: first, liberty; secondly, liberty;
thirdly, liberty--but these are not merely the same liberty, as I
shall show you.
First, there must be liberty to follow those laws of business which
experience has developed, without imposts or restrictions, or
governmental intrusions. Business simply wants to be let alone.
Then, secondly, there must be liberty to distribute and exchange
products of industry in any market without burdensome tariffs, without
imposts, and without vexatious regulations. There must be these two
liberties--liberty to create wealth, as the makers of it think best
according to the light and experience which business has given them;
and then liberty to distribute what they have created without
unnecessary vexatious burdens. The comprehensive law of the ideal
industrial condition of the world is free manufacture and free trade.
I have said there were three elements of liberty. The third is the
necessity of an intelligent and free race of customers. There must be
freedom among producers; there must be freedom among the distributors;
there must be freedom among the customers. It may not have occurred to
you that it makes any difference what one's customers are; but it
does, in all regular and prolonged business. The condition of the
customer determines how much he will buy, determines of what sort he
will buy. Poor and ignorant people buy little and that of the poorest
kind. The richest and the intelligent, having the more means to buy,
buy the most, and always buy the best.
Here, then, are the three liberties: liberty of the producer,
liberty of the distributor, and liberty of the consumer. The first two
need no discussion--they have been long, thoroughly, and brilliantly
illustrated by the political economists of Great Britain, and by her
eminent statesmen; but it seems to me that enough attention has not
been directed to the third, and, with your patience, I will dwell on
that for a moment, before proceeding to other topics.
It is a necessity of every manufacturing and commercial people that
their customers should be very wealthy and intelligent. Let us put the
subject before you in the familiar light of your own local experience.
To whom do the tradesmen of Liverpool sell the most goods at the
highest profit? To the ignorant and poor, or to the educated and
prosperous? The poor man buys simply for his body; he buys food, he
buys clothing, he buys fuel, he buys lodging. His rule is to buy the
least and the cheapest that he can. He goes to the store as seldom as
he can,--he brings away as little as he can--and he buys for the least
he can. Poverty is not a misfortune to the poor only who suffer it,
but it is more or less a misfortune to all with whom they deal.
On the other hand, a man well off--how is it with him? He buys in far
greater quantity. He can afford to do it; he has the money to pay for
it. He buys in far greater variety, because he seeks to gratify not
merely physical wants, but also mental wants. He buys for the
satisfaction of sentiment and taste, as well as of sense. He buys
silk, wool, flax, cotton; he buys all metals--iron, silver, gold,
platinum; in short, he buys for all necessities and of all substances.
But that is not all. He buys a better quality of goods. He buys richer
silks, finer cottons, higher grained wools. Now, a rich silk means so
much skill and care of somebody's that has been expended upon it to
make it finer and richer; and so of cotton, and so of wool. That is,
the price of the finer goods runs back to the very beginning, and
remunerates the workman as well as the merchant. Indeed, the whole
laboring community is as much interested and profited as the mere
merchant, in this buying and selling of the higher grades in the
greater varieties and quantities.
The law of price is the skill; and the amount of skill expended in the
work is as much for the market as are the goods. A man comes to the
market and says, "I have a pair of hands"; and he obtains the lowest
wages. Another man comes and says, "I have something more than a pair
of hands--I have truth and fidelity"; he gets a higher price. Another
man comes and says, "I have something more; I have hands and strength,
and fidelity, and skill." He gets more than either of the others. The
next man comes and says, "I have got hands and strength, and skill,
and fidelity; but my hands work more than that. They know how to
create things for the fancy, for the affections, for the moral
sentiments"; and he gets more than any of the others. The last man
comes and says, "I have all these qualities, and have them so highly
that it is a peculiar genius"; and genius carries the whole market and
gets the highest price. So that both the workman and the merchant are
profited by having purchasers that demand quality, variety, and
quantity.
Now, if this be so in the town or the city, it can only be so because
it is a law. This is the specific development of a general or
universal law, and therefore we should expect to find it as true of a
nation as of a city like Liverpool. I know it is so, and you know that
it is true of all the world; and it is just as important to have
customers educated, intelligent, moral, and rich, out of Liverpool as
it is in Liverpool. They are able to buy; they want variety; they want
the very best; and those are the customers you want. That nation is
the best customer that is freest, because freedom works prosperity,
industry, and wealth. Great Britain, then, aside from moral
considerations, has a direct commercial and pecuniary interest in the
liberty, civilization, and wealth of every people and every nation on
the globe.
You have also an interest in this, because you are a moral and a
religious people. You desire it from the highest motives, and
godliness is profitable in all things, having the promise of the life
that is, as well as of that which is to come; but if there were no
hereafter, and if man had no progress in this life, and if there were
no question of moral growth at all, it would be worth your while to
protect civilization and liberty, merely as a commercial speculation.
To evangelize has more than a moral and religious import--it comes
back to temporal relations. Wherever a nation that is crushed,
cramped, degraded under despotism, is struggling to be free, you,
Leeds, Sheffield, Manchester, Paisley, all have an interest that that
nation should be free. When depressed and backward people demand that
they may have a chance to rise--Hungary, Italy, Poland--it is a duty
for humanity's sake, it is a duty for the highest moral motives, to
sympathize with them; but beside all these there is a material and an
interested reason why you should sympathize with them. Pounds and
pence join with conscience and with honor in this design. [Footnote:
The World's Famous Orations, Vol. X, p. 12. Funk and Wagnalls
Company.]
EXERCISES
A. In the following passage point out all assertions that are made,
note whether the source of the evidence is definitely stated, and test
the witnesses that give the evidence.
Reciprocity is the only remedy for the commercial antagonism which
is fast separating Canada and the United States. Canada has long
waited in vain for the culmination of treaties whereby she can trade
with us on equal terms. Now, angered by our long evasion of the
question, she is, according to prominent Canadian statesmen,
contemplating the passage of high protective tariff laws, which will
effectually close the doors of Canadian trade to us. Canada is young,
but she is growing fast. The value of her imports is steadily growing
larger, and if we do not make some concession to her we shall lose
this vast trade. She makes and sells many things of which we do not
have a home supply. Why not then open our doors to her and admit her
products? Would it not be of distinct advantage to us?
The American Press is almost unanimous in declaring that the sum of
the advantages attending this step would far offset any disadvantages.
For instance, the supply of lumber in the United States is fast
becoming exhausted; experts say that in fifteen years we shall have a
lumber famine. If we turn to Canada, however, we see her mountain
slopes green with trees and her wooded valleys covered with millions
of feet of lumber. Why, then, not get our lumber from Canada and
preserve what few forests we do have? Because of the exorbitant tariff
on imported lumber. Lumber at its present high prices is even cheap
compared with the price of imported lumber. Moreover, lumber is not
the only article that is expensive here, though it is cheap just
across the line in Canada. The World's Work, Vol. V, page 2979, says
that reciprocity with Canada would cheapen many articles that are now
costly.
B. Point out the kind of reasoning found in each of the following
arguments:--
1. The wholesale destruction of the forests in many States portends
the loss of our whole timber supply.
2. His faithful performance of every duty assures him an early
promotion.
3. Since he succeeded well in his college work, it is an assured fact
that he will make a brilliant reputation for himself in business.
4. Caesar had his Brutus, Charles I his Cromwell, and George III--may
profit by their example.
5. The well-tilled fields, the carefully-trimmed hedges, and the sleek
appearance of the stock bespoke a thrifty and industrious farmer.
6. You tried in Wales to raise a revenue which the people thought
excessive and unjust: the attempt ended in oppression, resistance,
rebellion, and loss to yourselves. You tried in the Duchy of Lancaster
to raise a revenue which the people believed unjust: this effort ended
in oppression, rebellion, vexation, and loss to yourselves. You are
now trying to raise in America a revenue which the Colonists
disapprove. What must be the result?
7. Then, sir, from these six capital sources: of descent; of form of
government; of religion in the northern provinces; of manners in the
southern; of education; of the remoteness of situation from the first
mover of government--from all these causes a fierce spirit of liberty
has grown up.
8. Collective bargaining is an advantage to working men; it tends to
give them some share in the control of the industry to which they
contribute.
9. That a free labor union is not the impractical dream of an idealist
is to be found in the fact that some of the greatest and most
successful of the labor organizations have always adhered to the
principle of the open shop. In the Pennsylvania coal-mines union and
non-union miners labored together in the same mine and reaped the same
benefits from the collective bargaining carried on for them by John
Mitchell. In the recent anarchy in Colorado, the one mine which went
on with its work peacefully, prosperously, and without disturbance,
until it was closed by military orders, was a mine which maintained
the principle of the open shop, and in which union and non-union men
worked peacefully together.
10. Suppose that all the property you were worth was in gold, and you
had put it in the hands of Blondin, the famous rope-walker, to carry
across the Niagara Falls on a tight rope. Would you shake the rope
while he was passing over it, or keep shouting to him, "Blondin, stoop
a little more! Go a little faster!" No, I am sure you would not. You
would hold your breath as well as your tongue, and keep your hand off
until he was safely over. Now the government is in the same situation.
It is carrying an immense weight across a stormy ocean. Untold
treasures are in its hands. It is doing the best it can. Don't badger
it! Just keep still and it will get you safely over.
C. Prove or disprove the following statements, using, wherever it is
possible, argument from antecedent probability, sign, example, and
authority. Give references for all evidence except generally admitted
facts.
1. The negro is not prepared to receive the same kind of education
that the white man receives.
2. Railway pooling lowers freight rates.
3. The election of Senators by State Legislatures is undemocratic.
4. The present commercial relations between Canada and the United
States are detrimental to the industries of the United States.
5. The influence of labor unions has greatly diminished child labor in
the United States.
6. Woman suffrage would purify politics.
7. Egypt is benefited by the control of England.
8. Strikes benefit the working man.
9. The municipal ownership of street railways is a financial failure.
10. Lumber companies threaten the extermination of the forests in the
United States.
CHAPTER VII
THE DISCUSSION--BRIEF-DRAWING
The second division of a brief, corresponding to the second division
of a complete argument, is called the _discussion_. In this part
of his brief the arguer logically arranges all the evidence and
reasoning that he wishes to use in establishing or overthrowing his
proposition. Illustrative material, rhetorical embellishment, and
other forms of persuasion that may enter into the finished argument
are omitted, but the real proof is complete in the brief.
There are two possible systems of arranging proof. For the sake of
convenience they may be called the "because" method and the
"therefore" method. These methods derive their names from the
connectives that are used. When the "because" method is used, the
proof follows the statement being established, and is connected to
this statement with some such word as: _as_, _because_,
_for_, or _since_. To illustrate:--
I. Expenses at a country college are less than at a city college,
_because_
A. At the country college room rent is cheaper.
B. Table board costs less.
C. Amusement places are less numerous.
Under the "therefore" method, the proof precedes the statement being
established; the connectives are _hence_ and _therefore_.
The previous argument arranged in this form would read as follows:--
A. Since room rent is cheaper at the country college than at the
city college, and
B. Since table board costs less, and
C. Since amusement places are less numerous, _therefore_.
I. Expenses at a country college are less than at a city college.
The student should always use the "because" method of arrangement. It
is preferable to the "therefore" method since it affords a much easier
apprehension of the argument advanced. If the reader of the brief has
the conclusion in his mind at the very start, he can test the strength
and adequacy of the proof very quickly, and can, perhaps, the first
time he reads the argument form an opinion as to its worth. But he
will almost always have difficulty in grasping the significance of
evidence and reasoning before he knows what the proof is expected to
prove. The "therefore" method usually obliges a careful reasoner,
after finally reaching the conclusion, to go over the whole proof a
second time.
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