Types of Argument

Why we Should Study This When we deal with arguments, either studying them or writing them ourselves, it can be very useful to know some of the different types of arguments being made so we can better understand the goal(s) of the writer or our own goal(s).

Proposal Arguments With proposal arguments, the writer is trying to convince his or her readers to take some course of action. We frequently see this type of argument in action when people debate whether we should pass certain types of laws or institute certain types of rules.

Simple Categorical Arguments In these types of arguments, the writer is trying to convince his or her readers that something either does or does not belong in a certain category. For example, a film critic might argue that a certain movie, although containing a few elements of romance, is not really a true romantic comedy.

Definitional Arguments With definitional arguments, the writer is trying to convince his or her readers that certain terms should be defined in a certain way. For example, philosophers might debate the definition of love.

Evaluative Arguments In evaluative arguments, the writer is making a judgment on something. For example, a film critic might try to convince his or her readers that a certain film is well or poorly made.

Analogy Arguments With analogy arguments, the writer is trying to convince his or her reader that something is or is not similar to something else. For example, during the Iraq war, some pundits debated whether that war was in some ways similar to the war in Viet Nam.

Causal Arguments In a causal argument, the writer is trying to convince his or her readers that something either causes or has caused something else. Also, sometimes the converse is true. The writer sometimes argues that something doesn’t or didn’t cause something else. For example, a debate has existed for some time as to whether media violence actually causes real violence.

Descriptive Arguments With descriptive arguments, the writer is trying to convince his or her readers that the world is or works in a certain way. For example, a writer in the business world might argue that the business world is self-correcting, because when a company makes a mistake, it usually damages that company financially, and in order to continue to exist the company must change so that the mistake is corrected.

Practice In the following passage, see if you can tell which type of argument is the type of argument the writer is predominantly using. We should treat drug use in the same way we treat speech and religion, as a fundamental right. No one has to ingest any drug he or she does not want to, just as no one has to read a particular book. The only reason the state assumes control over such matters is to subjugate its citizens—by shielding them from temptation as befits children.

Argument Types The passage, overall, is a proposal argument. The author wants us to do something: treat drug use as a fundamental right. The passage also uses other forms of argument in its reasons. One is an analogy argument (choosing which drug to ingest being similar to choosing what book to read). Another is a descriptive argument about the motives of government. Although the quality of these arguments may be questionable, the writer clearly uses a dominant form of argument and supports it with several other forms.