What is an Argument?

The term argument has two meanings in academic writing. First, it means an essay that takes a position on one side of a controversial issue. You might write an argument against the death penalty, or for or against censorship of pornography. But argument has another meaning, too. It means an essay that, simply, argues a point. You might construct an argument about the meaning of ancestor myths in a certain aborigine culture, or you might write an argument defending your interpretation of "Tintern Abbey." You are not necessarily taking one side of a controversial issue, but you are required to defend your points with persuasive evidence. You are taking a position.

In a sense, then, an argument is another word for a thesis. An argument needs to be narrow enough for you to defend in the length of essay assigned. You need to be able to find enough evidence to support your assertions. You need to make a point worth arguing: a point that elicits a "so what?" from your reader will not generate a strong essay.

The "so what" question is a good test for your argument. If you pursue your argument, why is it important? What will readers learn from it? How will it illuminate a text or help us to answer a problem? The "so what" question can help you to distinguish a summary of observations from a real argument. For example, you may notice that in a certain short story there are recurring images of light and dark. This observation strikes you as interesting: why? What question do you want to ask about this imagery? What inferences can you draw from this imagery? When you notice something interesting in a text, you are on your way to asking a question, and that question puts you on your way to formulating an argument.

Argument essays begin with good questions. Often, those questions are generated by primary texts. You notice something surprising, disturbing, or interesting in the text, and you formulate a question to help you understand why. Sometimes your questions come from your dissatisfaction with the interpretations offered in secondary sources. You think: although expert A offers one interpretation, I would like to offer another. Your interpretation, supported by the evidence that you think is relevant, becomes your argument.

Sometimes your questions come from problems that emerge from class discussions, but are not fully resolved. You think: we have gone so far in discussing a poem, but I think additional interpretations can be made. Those interpretations become your argument.

No matter what position you may take to answer your question, your argument essay will contain four basic elements:

A claim, or the position that you put forth.
Evidence, or the details that support your claim.
Definition of terms, so that you are your reader share an understanding of the terms that you use in present your claim and your evidence.
Consideration of counter-arguments, or opposing claims, to show your reader why these are weak and your claim is strong.

Sometimes, the existence of counter-arguments makes students feel uncomfortable: how, they ask, can they put forth an argument that anyone else has opposed? Here is some advice to consider when dealing with opposing arguments:

What are the most important opposing arguments? What concessions can I make and still support my own argument?
What evidence do I have to support my own argument? How does that evidence compare with that used by my opposition?
What are possible misunderstandings of my own argument?

Testing the strength of your argument:

Make sure your presentation is logical. Outlining an essay after you write a first draft often can help you to test its logic. Write a one sentence summary of the main point of each paragraph. Do the points follow logically? Would additional discussion of one or two points strengthen your argument? Do you digress? Should your paragraphs be re-ordered?
Look at your use of evidence. Make sure that when you quote a passage, that quotation is integrated into the context of your own essay. Do you give the reader enough information about the quote in the text of your essay so that the quotation is intelligible? Remember, documenting a quotation in a note is not the same thing as setting the quotation up correctly in your essay.

Do you interpret the quotation? Do not assume that your reader will draw the same conclusions from the quotation that you have drawn. Quotations should not substitute for your own explanations. Quotations are evidence for your own assertions.

Does your introduction and conclusion help the reader to understand the significance of your argument? Do you answer the "so what" question?