This chapter was about structuring a strong argument. It starts off talking about inductive and deductive reasoning and the differences between both. Inductive is the process of generalizing on the basis of a number of specific examples. Deductive is reaching a conclusion by assuming a general principle. In order to make a good argument you need various things to help you support it. The classical oration follows sequence of six parts. It starts of with an introduction, then background, then lines of argument, then alternative arguments, then the conclusion. The chapter then talks about rogerian arguments. This is the idea that you should not respond to an argument unless you know the position of your opponent. A Toulmin argument is a way to build an argument and test them. For a Toulmin and Rogerian argument you need to offer evidence and good reasons for why your argument is the one we should believe. You can put out a claim but that is not enough to make your argument win. Once you have evidence behind that claim your argument enhances. You also need a warrant to show how you got from the claim and data supporting it. Another thing helping your argument is backing. Backing is what fills in the holes of your argument. When forming an argument you need to be aware of qualifiers which are words such as few, often, perhaps, possibly, etc. that can make or break your argument. After you make an argument you should analyze it to make sure you have a strong argument.
I thought this chapter was very interesting and is going to help a lot for our next writing project. The part that I found most interesting was the part about understanding conditions of rebuttals. I liked this because knowing what your opponent will say can help you make a stronger argument. If you fix your argument to not have any lose ends for your opponent to go with you have a better chance of winning.
