Academic Argument: The Key to Success

Elements of an Academic Argument Claim Reason Evidence Warrant Counterargument

CLAIM Argument begins with a problem, questions, or prompt. A claim is your solution to this argument. The claim is the thesis of your argument, which will most often be presented in a written format. A claim is just a statement until it teams up with some good reasons and evidence. You develop a claim by: drawing up a list of reasons to support it, or find evidence that backs up your point

REASON Reasons are statements that support the claim in your argument. When the claim + reason are paired correctly = they often spell out the major terms of an argument. Let’s practice: Claim: Violence on television and video games should be moderated… Reason: because…

EVIDENCE Reasons and evidence might be seen to be just different words for the same thing, but they are not: we think up reasons, we don’t think up evidence. Think of evidence as anchoring your argument in facts. Claim because of Reason based on Evidence or Evidence + Reasons so Claim

WARRANT A warrant is the big idea underlying the argument that connects the claim to the reason and evidence. Think of a warrant as the glue that holds your argument together. A warrant can either name a general circumstance, belief, or principle state a general conclusion When developing an argument, there must be a logical, persuasive connection between the claim and the reasons supporting it. Warrants give you the authority to proceed and tell your reader what your assumptions are in this argument.

WARRANT Claim: Violence on television and video games should be moderated… Reason: because children who watch lots of violent entertainment tend to become violent adults. Warrant: