Some of the things that tend to drive us the craziest during a Presidential campaign, such a negative TV and “debates” where the candidates seem to talk past each other, are best understood (and maybe even appreciated) once you understand the concept of argumentation.
While we tend to label every type of loud or uncomfortable disagreement an argument, in the context of critical thinking an argument is actually a cooperative activity where participants are trying to achieve a common goal (even if they want to go about it in different ways).
This week’s podcast focuses on argumentation and includes a description of what an argument is and how you can tell an argument from a fight. We also take a look at different types of arguments (forensic, demonstrative and deliberative) and see how arguments can often contain “broken” logic in the form of fallacies.
Finally, we review how argumentation can be diagramed in a way that can help you make sense of even the most complex arguments.
References made during this podcast include:
Monty Python’s Argument Sketch
Toulmin diagrams described in the podcast
Toulmin analysis of a negative TV ad
Educational material associated with this week’s podcast include:
Critical Voter - Argumentation - Quiz
Critical Voter - Argumentation - Lesson Plan
