Critical

Thinking
Unit 1
Prof.Shali.B.B
Unit 1: Critical Thought - Arguments

a) What is thinking – key principles of thought and thinking process?

Who is a critical thinker?
b) What is an argument and why arguments matter?
c) Arguments: how to evaluate one (validity/soundness/tangents and
repetition), how to recognise one, how to interpret one?
d) Foundations of arguments – cognitive biases, facts vs opinions,
logical fallacies and constructing an argument.
What is NOT an argument?
• Argument is not yelling
• Argument is not abuse
• Argument is not complaint
• Argument is not denying
• Argument is not fighting
• Can arguments be written or verbal?
• Can it be poetry or prose?
• Can an argument be good even if the delivery was meek or poor? Even if it
was silenced?
Why do arguments matter?
• Most people don’t want to have arbitrary or unjustified beliefs
• We use arguments to better understand our own beliefs and actions
• Arguments are a way to approach reasons
 Student Exercise

Tell me something Now tell me why

that you believe in you believe in that:
I believe …..
I believe ……….because…….
Why was what
you just wrote an
argument?
What do arguments do?

Explan Persua
Justify
ation sion
The FORM of an Argument
• An argument is a connected series of statements to establish a
proposition.
Purpose!

Statements put into a certain structure that reflects the order of reasoning.
1. People living in the slums are poor – this is a commonly held knowledge.
2. But my research shows that many of them have incomes well above that of LIG.
3. They also have an expenditure that is consistent with middle income groups.
4. When asked they responded that they would like to move out of the slums but cannot do so because of
institutional constraints.
5. Conclusion – Associating slums with poverty can be a mistaken conclusion. Also, people may not
choose to live in the slums, but institutional constraints of access may force them to do so.
Proofs
• Some arguments don’t try to establish a
proposition, but help you understand why a
proposition is true.
• Like mathematical proofs – Pythagoras theorem.
Definition of an Argument
• Argument is a series of connected statements or propositions where
some are the premises, and one is a conclusion.
• If your premises are wrong, your conclusion is in danger.
• Your premises can be assumptions.
• Can you think of some examples?
An Example
• Nobody in the world is really happy. Therefore, it seems that human
beings are just not made for happiness. Why should we expect what
we can never find?
Purposes of Arguments
• Why do we need to know the purpose of an argument?
Questions to ask to determine the purpose –
1) Is the arguer trying to change someone’s mind? If so, the purpose is
persuasion.
2) Is the arguer trying to give some kind of reason to believe
something? Then the purpose is justification.

Are the two really that different?

Strong Arguments don’t always persuade
everyone, why?
• It is not enough for an argument to be strong, valid, and sound.
• You can have an argument for which every premise is true, and where every
conceivable flaw is negated and still not have it be persuasive. Why?
• People might misunderstand the argument
• Blindly believe the opposite to be true
• Human beings aren’t always logical, don’t always believe scientifically proven cause and
effect
• Religious and cultural beliefs are too hard to overcome.
• So, even the best argument can have disbelievers.
• So, what does a good argument do? What should be the benchmark of success
for arguments?
Good Argument
• An argument that is either valid or strong and with premises that
are true,do not question and are relevant to conclusions.
• It should include i)reasons or they become opinions ii)reasons
should not contradict each other.
• Charactersictics of a Good Argument:
• i)all its premises are true
• ii)It considers all relevant info
• iii)It is logically valid
i)True Premises
• Premises may be accepted as it is
• There can be a necessity from outside research
ii)All relevant info included
• i)Research the topic
• Talk with someone else about your argument
• Imagine a hypothetical person who denies all your premises
and conclusion
iii)Logical validity
• An argument is valid only if it is not possible for all premises to
be true and conclusion to be false.
• Deductive arguments:When arguments move from general to
specific
• Inductive Arguments:It goes specific to general.
Writing an Argument
• Claim-what the writer is trying to prove-What do I think?
• Reason-provided to support claim-Why do I think it?
• Evidence-use to support or prove a reason-facts, statistics,
surveys, quotations etc..-How do I know?
• Counterclaim-opposing position-What is the other side?
• Rebuttal-Refutes or disproves the counterclaim-What is my
response to the other side?
Building Strong Arguments
The Seven C’s of Building an Argument

• When you
position needato
about build an
specific argument, use the seven C’s to develop and support a
topic:
1. Consider the situation. Think of all aspects of the communication situation What are the subject and purpose of your
message? What medium will you use? Who is the receiver? What is the context?
2. Clarify your thinking. Think about the pros and cons of each side of the issue, and do some preliminary research so that you
understand the subject well
3. Construct a claim. Write a single statement that gives your position and the main reason that you hold that position.
4. Collect evidence. Research the issue in depth, using primary, secondary, and tertiary sources. Investigate to make sure your
claim holds up, and change it if it doesn’t. Gather a variety of key evidence to support your claim.
5. Consider key objections. Think about other viewpoints related to the argument. What reasons could people cite to support
opposing positions? What major problems could they see with your argument? Decide how you will answer those objections—by
countering them (saying why they are unimportant) or by conceding them (saying they are important but can be overcome).
6. Craft your argument. Use your claim statement and the evidence you have gathered to argue persuasively for your position.
Appeal to the needs of your reader, and answer any key objections.
7. Confirm your main point. Wrap up your argument by stating your claim in a new way, connecting it to real life and to the
future.
1.Consider the situation.

• As sender, what role do I have?

• What subject is my message about?
• What purpose do I have?
• What medium am I using?
• Who is the receiver? How can I convince that person?
• What is the context? When and where will the message arrive?
• Sender: I'm writing less as a high school student and more as a concerned American citizen.
• Message Subject: I'm writing about the national debt.
• Message Purpose: I'm calling for spending cuts and tax increases to address the debt.
• Medium: This should be a letter to the editor, so it can reach a general audience.
• Receiver: My audience is all Americans who are worried about federal fiscal responsibility.
• Context: This message will appear in a newspaper locally, and it could be picked up by a wire service to appear in national
papers.
2.Clarify your thinking.

Reducing the national debt . . . Reducing the national debt . . .

•is the right choice for the future. •may slow the economy.
•requires us to live within our means. •requires bipartisan support.
•improves our country's credit scores. •requires tax increases.
•sets an example for other nations regarding •requires cuts to spending.
fiscal responsibility. •impacts those receiving entitlements.
•creates a sustainable budget. •impacts the military.
 3.Constructing a Claim

1.A truth claim indicates that you believe something is The national debt threatens the future of our nation.
or is not true.

2.A value claim indicates the worth that you assign to A balanced budget would be the best gift we can give our
something. children.

3.A policy claim says what you think should or should The federal government must cut spending to reduce the
not be done. national debt.

Subject Truth, Value, or Policy Claim (Position)

Statement

The national debt + downsize post-war military To reduce the national debt, the
spending and social programs = U.S. government must cut
wasteful spending.
 4.Collecting Evidence

•Facts and statistics connect your claim to specific Each taxpayer's portion of the U.S. national debt is over
realities. $140,000.

•Reasons and results show the causes and effects of a The debt-ceiling debacle of 2011 caused the U.S. credit rating
situation. to slip.

•Examples and anecdotes show how the claim A person who makes $46,000 can’t spend $71,000—but the
works. government does.

•Quotations and reflections get at the feelings of the “We must not let our rulers load us with perpetual debt,” said
audience. Thomas Jefferson.
5.Considering Key Objections
Any debatable issue has at least two, and often many, points of view. When you build an argument, you need to
consider alternate positions. Just as you have gathered support for your position, those with other perspectives
will have gathered objections. Start by identifying them.

Objection 1: The debt matches our gross domestic product, which means that the debt has not yet reached an
unmanageable size.

Objection 2: The boom of the '90s balanced the federal budget, and the next boom will balance this budget.

Objection 3: The time to cut government spending is not during a recession but during a boom.
 Answering Objections
Ignoring the objections to your argument weakens rather than strengthens it. You need to face objections head-on.

•Rebut the objection. If our gross domestic product goes down, our debt goes up as
we try to stimulate the economy. Allowable debt can't be based
solely on GDP.

•Recognize part of the objection but It is true that the boom of the '90s resulted in a balanced
overcome the rest. budget, but a balanced budget fixes only that year's deficit, not
the compounded national debt.

•Concede the objection and move on. Yes, during a recession, government spending is needed to get
the economy moving again. Now that the recession is over, we
need to reduce spending.
6. Crafting Your Argument

How you structure your

argument depends a great
deal on how receptive or
resistant your audience is.
For a receptive audience,
you can provide support
up front and rebuttal of
objections near the end.
For opposed audiences,
you may want to start with
rebuttals.
Using Persuasive Appeals

• Classical rhetoric, or the art of persuasion, prescribes three ways to appeal to your audience:
1. Appeal to ethos—demonstrate that you are an ethical and trustworthy source.
2. Appeal to logos—use logic to argue for your position.
3. Appeal to pathos—move the person emotionally to connect with your position.
7. Confirming Your Main Point

• Using Socratic Questions to Examine Arguments

• The Greek philosopher Socrates examined arguments through questions, pushing students to use logic to deduce
answers. Socratic questions are especially useful for probing the thinking of opponents in a debate.
• Clarifying questionsask the person to restate an idea in a new way.
• Could you please rephrase that statement?
• How would you summarize your position?
• Are you saying that ________________?
• Assumption questionsexplore the person’s underlying ideas.
• What are the assumptions underlying that statement?
• Is that statement based on the belief that ________________?
• Could you explain how/why ________________?
• Reasoning questionsget at the logic the person is using.
• Can you demonstrate how this premise is true?
• What evidence supports this claim?
• Are you implying/concluding that ________________?
Socratic Questions

• Perspective questionsprompt the person to use a different point of view.

• What analogy could you use to express that idea?
• How would ________________ respond to that idea?
• How do you answer the objection that ________________?

• Consequence questionsask the person to consider what might happen.

• What will result from that position?
• How can we apply that idea in a broader context?
• What is the value of that idea, and why?

• Recursive questionsreturn to the original question.

• Why are we asking this question?
• How does this question connect to the situation?
• How can we reframe this question?

•
Analyzing the Argument
• Arguments has a reason and a conclusion
• Eg: He is irritating (reason ).I won’t talk to him(conclusion)
• When analyzing the arguments, you are expected to explain
how and why something works or does not work.
4-step analysis
• 1) Determining what the arguer means (briefly note the main
assertion)
• 2) Consecutively numbering arguments (make note of all the
reasons)
• 3)Identifying arguments main claim.( underline most important
reason)
• 4) Critiquing the argument