首页
外语
计算机
考研
公务员
职业资格
财经
工程
司法
医学
专升本
自考
实用职业技能
登录
外语
Seven Types of Evidence It is important to learn to use evidence in argumentative writing, because without evidence, you can
Seven Types of Evidence It is important to learn to use evidence in argumentative writing, because without evidence, you can
admin
2010-04-28
77
问题
Seven Types of Evidence
It is important to learn to use evidence in argumentative writing, because without evidence, you can’t persuade anybody of anything. Usually seven types of evidence are used.
Ⅰ. Expert Testimony
Expert testimony is useful because it comes from somebody with special knowledge
and has been tested by others.
There are three kinds of expert testimony:
facts, informed opinions, and 1 . 【1】______.
The first two can be safely used in your writing, but the third may be dangerous,
because they are just what is possibly tree.
Ⅱ. 2 【2】______.
This refers to data that can reveal some information. Strong evidence of this type should
be valid, accurate, and 3 . 【3】______.
Ⅲ. Examples
Examples are widely used in our daily life.
Examples can serve three purposes. First, clarify meaning. Second, provide reason
for justification. Third, 4 . 【4】______.
Ⅳ. Personal Experience
Writer can use his own experience to support an argument,
But if the experience is 5 , 【5】______.
the argument will not be very forcefulⅤ. Analogy
Analogy is a comparison of apparently dissimilar things.
Analogy can make unfamiliar topics 6 , but k is not enough to prove anything.【6】______.
Ⅵ. Known Facts
Known facts are facts that are known to 7 . 【7】______.
They can be used as a type of evidence.
Ⅶ. Logic and Reasoning
Logic and reasoning may be used in two situations. One, 8 is not available.【8】______.
Two, the writer wants to strengthen the persuasiveness of his factual evidence.
Ⅷ. Three Criteria for Good Evidence;
1 relevant
2 9 【9】______.
3 10 【10】______.
【5】
Seven Types of Evidence
Good morning. Today we will talk about how to use evidence in writing. In much of your college writing, you will try to persuade your readers to see things your way. Without good evidence to support your ideas, you will hardly persuade anyone of anything. So today we’ll look at seven kinds of evidence that are widely used in argumentative writing.
The first type of evidence is expert testimony. An expert is someone who has special skill and knowledge based on careful study and wide experience in a certain area. More than that, an expert has tested his or her skill and knowledge in a public forum.
Once your opinion is firm, you can use expert testimony to support it. To use expert testimony wisely, you need to be both respectful and critical. You will need to differentiate among three kinds of evidence that experts provide: facts, informed opinions, and speculations. Generally, you can use facts and informed opinions, but must be cautious with speculations. This is because speculations are just what one person thinks is plausible, so they should be treated as something that could be true.
The second type of evidence is statistics. Statistics are numerical data gathered and tabulated to yield information. Whether they are raw data or translated into charts and figures, numbers are powerful evidence. If they are properly used, data can prove a claim rapidly and conclusively. When a survey shows that 95 per cent of senior students are satisfied with the courses they have taken at a university, we can persuade readers that the university is a good one.
But you must he careful with numbers. Only when the data are valid, accurate and up to date can they really sup port your point. So when you want to use data, examine carefully before putting them down in your article
Next comes the third evidence, examples. Every day you use examples as evidence for your claims. You might write to your parents, "Sorry I haven’t written much but I’ve been very busy. I spent last week in the library, bent over the books studying for two midterms." In this case, you establish your claim and back it up with a specific example.
Examples serve three purposes. First, they clarify meaning. Your parents may not know exactly what you mean by busy until you show them. Second, examples demonstrate why, at least in one instance, you are justified in making your claim. Studying for two midterms does sound like being busy. Third, examples make for entertaining reading. Abstractions are dry. Claiming that you are busy isn’t very interesting. But the image of you bent intently over a book probably pleases your parents, who may now forgive you for not writing.
The fourth type of evidence is personal experience. If we actually experience something directly, we don’t need experts or statistics to back us up. Although we know that our experience is not totally reliable, we trust our senses and our ability to understand our personal experience. And in some cases, our own experience can persuade readers to accept our statement.
In complex matters, however, be aware of jumping to conclusions based on limited personal experience. Your experience may help to explain, but it cannot prove a more general thesis. Knowing someone who cheats on her income tax does not prove that the problem with income tax cheaters is pervasive. Even if you know five or ten or twenty cheaters, all that proves is that you are unlucky in your acquaintances. For such a complex subject, you need more than personal experience. You need statistics and expert interpretation.
Analogy is the fifth type of evidence on our list. An analogy is a comparison of apparently dissimilar things, and its purpose is to illuminate one thing by showing how it is like and not like the other. If well used, an analogy can make an abstract, unfamiliar topic easy to understand. For example, if a writer wants to directly persuade readers that it is our work that determines our social role, he would face a tough task. But analogy can help him out. Here is his analogy:
Human beings in a society are like the bees in a hive. Each person’s identity is determined by his or her place in the overall system. Like drones, no one has any identity but the work he or she does. And if one doesn’t work, he will be kicked out of the society just like a drone out of the hive.
However, analogies should be used with caution. To tile extent that analogies make a point easy to see, they are evidence. But they don’t prove the point--they can never be sufficient evidence for a complex idem
After analogy, let’s look at the next type of evidence, known facts. When writing, you can safely assume that you and your readers share a vast body of facts and beliefs. You don’t need to point out Columbus arrived in America in 1492, or that China has a history as long as 5,000 years. But these facts can be used as evidence in your writing.
The last type of evidence we usually use is logic and reasoning. In some cases, we use them because we can’t find any other factual evidence. And in some cases where we can find factual evidence, reasoning can make our argument more persuasive. People in China believe that good argument should appeal to both sense and sensibility, which means that both factual evidence and reasoning are necessary.
OK, these are the seven types of evidence. Before we end today’s lecture, I would talk about three criteria for good evidence. First, good evidence should be relevant. It should speak directly to the point. You should select particular evidence because it supports the point, not because it is novel or comic. Second, good evidence should he representative. It should represent its source or the situation it describes. Last, good evidence should be accurate. It is the writer’s duty to ensure the accuracy of the evidence, In order to do this, you must check the evidence carefully, and present it in your writing carefully.
Well, with that, we will end today’s lecture. We hope that you now understand evidence better, and we look forward to seeing well-supported articles from you in the future.
选项
答案
too limited/too narrow/too insufficient
解析
转载请注明原文地址:https://www.kaotiyun.com/show/AxqO777K
0
专业英语八级
相关试题推荐
NapoleonfamouslydescribedtheBritishasanationofshopkeepers.Thesedaysitwouldbeequallytruetodescribethemasana
A、Toensurepassengers’safety.B、Tocollectfaresfrompassengers.C、Toteachpassengershowtoridetheelephant.D、Tofeedth
ClimatechangethreatenssustainabledevelopmentandalleightMillenniumDevelopmentGoals.Theinternationalcommunityagreed
Transportationisthemovementorconveyingofpersonsandgoodsfromonelocationtoanother.Ashumanbeings,fromancienttim
A、Aninvestmentcontract.B、Aseafoodmenu.C、Thebestdinnerparty.D、Theprice-sensitivemarket.A
A、Attendingasalesconference.B、Waitingforhisnextflight.C、Stayingwithhisparentsfortheweekend.D、Visitinganoldsch
A、Hewasdoggedbybriberyallegationsinthebiddingprocessforthe2018WorldCup.B、Hemadecontroversialremarksonracism
Whyshouldmankindexplorespace?Perhapsthebestreasonforexploringspaceisourbuilt-in【B1】______predispositiontoexpand
在南亚某些国家,轻便、漂亮的服装是理想的公务装。对男性而言,领带加长袖衬衫在大多数情况下是最常见的服饰,高层会议或五星级社交活动需要加穿外衣。南亚人虽然希望大家准时出席,但若你在赶赴会场的途中困于交通堵塞,他们也会体谅。一般来说,南亚人彬彬有礼、体谅宽容。
Itwasnothotthatday,butmanyweresweltering.JuliusStretcher.theJew-baiterofNuremberg.wasthere.Thissadistan
随机试题
根据下列资料,回答下列问题。下列选项中,图()展示了2001—2020年间全球脑科学领域发表论文数量的同比增长情况。
Overthepastdecade,theenvironmentalmovementhasexplodedontothemindofmainstreamconsumers,afactnotlostonmarketer
网络计划中某项工作延误时间超过了其自由时差,但未超过其所在线路的总时差,则该延误将使得( )。
对应试人员违纪违规行为被当场发现的,考试工作人员应当予以制止。对于被认定为违纪违规的,要收集、保存相应证据材料,如实记录违纪违规事实和现场处理情况,当场告知其记录内容,并要求本人签字;对于拒绝签字或者恶意损坏证据材料的,由()名考试工作
西方最早的伦理学专著是()。
国家主席习近平在参加十二届全国人大二次会议上海代表团的审议时强调,加强和创新社会治理,关键在(),核心是人,只有人与人和谐相处,社会才会安定有序。
阅读下列说明,回答问题1至问题4,将解答填入对应栏内。[说明]某大型国家电子政务工程建设项目,使用中央财政性资金,批复的总投资概算5000万元,建设内容主要包括网络平台建设和业务办公应用系统开发。某信息系统工程监理公司承担了全过程监理任务。在工程
数据结构包括数据的逻辑结构、数据的【】以及对数据的操作运算。
Whatwillbetheimpactofaglobalcomputernetworkonculturalforms?Theconstructionofexclusiveinformationsocietieshas
A、Byfax.B、Online.C、Byphone.D、ThroughEMS.B问题问的是“购买这些产品最快的方法是什么”。通过对话内容可知,男士认为网上订购是最快的方法,故选B。
最新回复
(
0
)