by Charles Bobbitt

Created on: March 03, 2009

The theory of constructing a good argument is simple. It consists of two parts: (1) framing a strong, clear, positive argument in such a way that the reader is forced to choose a side; and (2) presenting the evidence in such a way that your side is the obvious choice.

To illustrate how to frame an argument, let's examine four poor examples and see how they could be improved.

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Poor: "The pros and cons of affirmative action."

Problem: The reader is not forced to make a choice, and probably won't. Push the reader to agree or disagree.

Improved: "Affirmative action did nothing to solve the problem of discrimination in America."

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Poor: "I think that the government bailout of banks might have worsened the economic crisis."

Problem: The words "I think that" and "might" scream to the reader, "I have no confidence in what I am about to say." Voice a strong opinion.

Improved: "The government bailout of banks worsened the economic crisis."

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Poor: "The recent war in Iraq wasn't the best thing."

Problem: The claim is ambiguous. What is the best thing? Chocolate ice cream? The birth of a child? A tax refund? Be clear and specific.

Improved: "The war in Iraq destabilized the Middle East while doing nothing to remove threats to the US."

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Poor: "Tax cuts alone aren't enough to keep the economy out of a depression."

Problem: This statement is negative and unproductive. It would be better to take a positive stand and convince us of what will work.

Improvement: "Small business incentives, along with the proposed new tax cuts, will keep the economy out of a depression."

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Now, once you've got a well-framed argument, the task is to make it appear that your viewpoint is the only reasonable viewpoint to hold. The difficulty of this task varies according to the topic and your target audience.

If you're writing an article claiming that gun control is an infringement of our basic constitutional rights, and plan to submit it for publication in the magazine "Guns and Ammo," then you can relax. You could write the most inane clap-trap as supporting evidence, and most of your intended readers would still feel they had no choice but to support your conclusion. If, on the other hand, you wanted to submit the article to the newsletter published by MARP (Mothers Against Revolvers and Pistols), you would have your work cut out for you.

The key thing to remember is that it is easier to keep the reader on your side than to get the reader on your side.

Begin with statements that your reader will agree with, even

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