How do we know if an argument is good or not? According to the text “Critical Reading”, it shows us how to determine if an argument is good. It is based off the premises, which is the problem and the plausible, how realistic is the issue. He lists out three rules to follow. You must show that 1.) “The premises are plausible”, 2.) “The premises are more plausible than the conclusion”, and 3.) “If the argument is valid or strong” (Epstein, 42). We need to evaluate the argument before determining is the argument is a good one. In my own opinion, I feel that you need to also have common sense when you are trying to develop an argument with someone. You can’t just say something is true when its just not valid is real life. An example would be “The sun is blue colored.” Everyone knows that that is just not real. We need a common knowledge and can’t just make up a story and claim it is correct.
Example:
Ryan has been the lead singer in church for 10 years. Ryan has a karaoke machine at home. Therefore, Ryan must love to sing.
This argument may be true, but the conclusion may be wrong. It gives a lot of details that can define him as a good singer such as the karaoke machine or because he has been singing for such a long time. We must go through each rule to see if this is a good argument or not. 1.) The premises are plausible. True 2.) The premises are more plausible than the conclusion. False, because he might have been forced by his parents to sing at church when he was a little kid and just stuck with it because he had to. As for the karaoke machine, it might have been his parents’ machine. All these things allow us to change how was see Ryan. 3.) This is a valid or strong. True. This is a valid argument, but a bad argument because it did not pass all three rules to be considered as a good argument.
I agree with your example; just because someone's been the lead singer in church for 10 years and has a karaoke machine at home does not automatically mean he must love to sing. His parents may have forced him to sing and could have bought a karaoke machine for him to practice on (doesn't necessarily mean he wants to) or the karaoke machine could belong to someone else in the family and not just be entitled to Ryan. There are many other possibilities for why he has been the Church's lead singer for a long time and for why he has a machine; it can't all mean he loves to sing though it does make sense to assume so.
ReplyDeleteHi I like the explanation you give about what the three test to see if an argument is good. I like that you went into detail and even gave your opinion about making an argument with someone. That was very creative to give your opinion when you were explaining the three tests. I feel like that made your post very unique. I also liked the example you used to show if it was a good or bad argument. I liked the log explanation you gave to determine whether it was good or bad. Just because Ryan is the lead at church and has a karaoke machine at home does not mean he loves to sing.
ReplyDeleteI really like your post. After reading it, I think your example is very detailed, clear, and unique. I like the way you explained the example by explaining each test as you go along. I learned that is a better way to write a post like this. The post is very helpful since you provide a clear summary on the topic-the three tests. This could be a big help for people who do not know what are we posting about. I agree with you about the common sense part because if we have something in common, then we do not need to prove it or argue since people believe in the same thing as us.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed how you wrote your how to test for an argument. I think it was well written. I enjoyed how you started off with questions asking readers, "How do we know if an argument is good or not" I like how you included the steps on how to tell whether an argument is good or not. I also like how you stated the three steps an argument need to pass to have it considered a good argument. I enjoyed and thought it was great how you included some of your own opinions on what you felt should be included in a good argument. I agree that you should have common since when arguing with someone. I think your example was well written as well. "Ryan has been the lead singer in church for 10 years" and "Ryan has a karaoke machine at home" may be true, but the conclusion may or may not be true. He may be the lead singer and have a karaoke machine, but does not necessarily mean he loves to sing. The premises of the argument are true, but the conclusion leaves asking questions, which may be false. Overall, I think you wrote your example well!
ReplyDeleteGreat post. This explains it clearly how an argument can be tested thoroughly. You get into depth, which actually helped me, better understand the material. The way you used your examples was strong in getting your the point of an argument across. Your second example was good. I would have never thought to think that his parents could have forced him to join the church for singing. Then explaining why it’s a bad argument made me understand it more. This is a very good post to review for a test or a quiz you made it interesting, keep it up.
ReplyDeleteVery good post. I liked how you were able to give so much detail in the description of Epstein's three part test. I liked the way you incorporated your own opinion and examples into the blog. It made it really easy to read and understand. Ryan might or might not enjoy singing. Only he really knows. I have a friend who "wants" to become a teacher. Both his parents are teachers and he tells me that everyday his parents drop very subtle hints on how he should be a teacher. His parents are trying to make him do something that I am not even sure he wants to do.
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