English B1A Counterargument

Supporting your stance To strengthen your argument, you must support it with reasons and evidence. This, on its own, is not sufficient to be convincing. You also need to respond to your counterarguments predictable questions and objections.

Intrinsic soundness Readers may question your argument’s intrinsic soundness. This includes The clarity of your thesis statement The relevance of your reasoning The quality of your evidence

Extrinsic soundness Readers may also question your argument’s extrinsic soundness This includes Consideration of alternative solutions Different ways of framing the problem Evidence you’ve overlooked Other perspectives you’ve ignored

When to consider the counter Assemble your argument first before attempting to work in your acknowledgement of and response to the counter argument. Then, imagine colleagues questioning your argument. It is helpful to imagine a hostile audience here—that is one that disagrees with you from the outset.

Question your problem Why is this a problem at all? What are the costs and/or consequences? Why have you defined the problem as you have?

Question your solution What kind of solution do you propose? Is it practical? Does your audience need more background information in order to understand it? Have you stated your claim too strongly? Are there exceptions or limitations? Why is your solution better than others?

Question your support Do you offer multiple different types of support (hard numbers, expert testimonies, etc.)? Is your evidence accurate? Is it precise? Is it current? Is it representative of the issue? Is it authoritative? Do you need more of it?

Deciding what to acknowledge Avoid what the text calls the “Goldilocks” moment: Acknowledge too many counterarguments and distract your reader from your stance; acknowledge too few and risk looking indifferent to or ignorant of other views. Find the amount that is “just right”.

Questions to ask yourself What are the plausible charges of weakness I can rebut? What are other important lines of argument in the field? What alternative conclusions to readers want to be true? What alternative evidence do readers already know about? What counterexamples will you need to explain away?

Acknowledging questions you can’t answer If your argument has a flaw, you shouldn’t ignore the problem which would be dishonest. If you try to hide the weakness, your readers will question your honesty or doubt your competence. Instead, you can respond by saying The rest of your argument makes up for the shortcoming. The flaw is serious but more research will find an answer for it. Your argument offers important insight into the question and offers suggestions toward a possible solution despite the flaw

Making concessions The truth is almost never black and white. Readers know this and will respect your argument (and you as the author)more if you are able to acknowledge limits. Concessions also show readers that their views are legitimate, which can help warm them up to accept your claim.

Activity Think about your own thesis statement and line of reasoning. What counter arguments can you imagine? Which have you encountered in your research? Take a minute to jot them down. Turn to a partner, share your list, and get additional ideas. Now, turn to pg. 146 (section 10.5) of the Craft of Research and, using the frameworks provided, acknowledge at least 3 potential counterarguments to your claim. Be prepared to turn this in when you are finished.