How parts of an argument make a whole
About this video
David listens to the podcast "Grumpy Li'l Guy", whose host argues that abandoned shopping carts are a sign that people don't care about each other. David pauses at each section to show how the argument is built: introduce the idea with background, expand and explain, give specific examples, and address counterarguments, with each part strengthening the whole.
You'll be able to
- identify the job of each section of an argument (introduce, expand and explain, give examples, address counterarguments).
- explain how a writer can absorb a counterargument to strengthen a claim.
- explain why specific examples are more convincing than vague assertions.
Key words
- claim
- The main point an author is arguing for.
- expand and explain
- A section that goes deeper into the main idea, explaining how or why it happens.
- counterargument
- A point that goes against the author's claim.
- social contagion
- The idea that behavior, such as disorder, spreads from person to person.
- assertion
- A statement presented as true, often without proof.
Transcript
- [David] Hey readers, you've caught me just as I was about to listen to my favorite podcast, "Grumpy Li'l Guy". Where the host finds something new to be unhappy about each episode. I probably shouldn't be listening to podcasts at work, but this gives us a great opportunity to talk about how an author develops claims across a text, how parts create a whole.
You get to learn something and I get to chill out with one of my favorite pods. Win-win. Our little secret. How about it? Okay, so I'm gonna put my feet up and put on the podcast. (bouncy music) ♪ He's a grumpy little guy. ♪
- [Host] Hey, this is Grumpy Li'l Guy with Dim Bin Rain Stone, brought to you by WKHN 90.3 FM and our partners at Khan Academy. Today, I want to talk to you about loose shopping carts. Are they a sign of moral decline?
- [David] Okay, hey, sorry, gonna get in real quick. I'm one of those people who loves to pause the podcast and discuss a lot. So, let's talk about how the host of this show is building his argument. Let's listen for a bit and then I'll divide up the argument into sections.
(David imitates skipping sound) - [Host] ...loose shopping carts. Are they a sign of moral decline? When I see a flock of shopping carts uncared for and unloved clogging the parking lot of my local Save a Bunch, I feel a fury that borders on, "Whoa, why don't we care about one another?"
- [David] So our first section here introduces the main idea and gives some background for the argument. The author is trying to argue that a failure to put your shopping cart back demonstrates a culture where people don't take care of each other. Let's skip ahead.
(David imitates skipping sound) - [Host] ... cart abandonment as social contagion. The desire to put away your grocery cart is a socially considerate one, but studies indicate that social disorder is infectious. A 2008 study in the Netherlands found that if you see graffiti in an alleyway, you'll feel more entitled to litter there.
- [David] This section is an expand and explain. The author expands on the main idea and explains more about it. Not just background or the context, but going deeper on the subject itself. So, we've got a reference to a study that explains how and why cart abandonment might happen.
Let's keep going. (David imitates skipping sound)
- [Host] Who it hurts? Why is this bad you might be asking. What's the trouble here? Well, shopping carts don't have breaks. They can hit little kids, they can block handicapped spaces, they can damage cars, they can trundle outta the parking lot and into the road causing car crashes.
- [David] This part of the argument brings in examples to strengthen the original claim that not returning your grocery cart is bad for society. The more specific the example the better. Vague assertions aren't compelling. If I say the weather was bad, that's less interesting than, "Hail the size of a grapefruit punched a hole in my car's windshield."
Let's press on. (David imitates skipping sound)
- [Host] Legitimate reasons to abandon your cart. Now, I recognize that there are several legitimate reasons why a person might not be able to return a shopping cart easily. Perhaps you've got lots of children and can't wrangle the kids and groceries by yourself.
Perhaps you have a physical disability and can't return the cart on your own, but the fact that a minority of people cannot return carts means that the rest of us as a society must support you and fill in the gaps.
- [David] Do you see how the podcaster is addressing a counter argument and then absorbing it to make the overall claim a little stronger? He acknowledges that some of the reasons a person might have for not returning a cart are legitimate, but it strengthens the overall argument to say that when one of us has a legitimate reason they can't return the cart, the rest of us have to support them.
So that's the structure of this argument. How a claim is developed across sections, with each section working together to build support for and then strengthen the overall idea. First, introduce the idea, give background. Second, expand and explain. Third, provide examples or data.
And fourth, address counter arguments. This is a structure you can use in your own arguments. And there are different structures and orders to arguments. This obviously isn't the only one. Now, if you want to go back and read the whole argument, I'll put the full text in the video description.
Meanwhile, I think I've hit the end of the episode.
- [Host] Thanks so much for listening today. Our line producer is Hannah Charlie, our senior producers are Jeff Handel and Heather Neston, and our executive producer is Amanda Leff. I'm Nim Bin Rain Stone, and you can learn anything.
- [David] Gosh, I love that show. ♪ He's a grumpy little guy. ♪ - [David] David out.
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