Why Is Everything An Argument With You?

When most students hear the word “argument,” they think of angry people yelling at one another. When you tell them that academic writing is about making an argument, they picture those uncomfortable moments with family and friends where they fought with one another. No wonder students have so little enthusiasm for “making an argument” in their classes.

An academic argument isn’t an angry fight, though. When you hear the term “argument” in an academic context think about two people having a reasonable conversation. Envision two people who aren’t emotionally attached to the subject. Instead, these two people are actually curious about what the answers to a question might be. As each proposes a possible answer, the other gently tests the proposition with questions and offers new facts to be discussed.

Even given this slightly less combative vision of arguing, students are bound to ask, “Why do I have to argue at all? What’s the point?” It’s a good question.

The point of arguing is to help us better understand something. Anyone can have an opinion. In fact, opinions are among the most common things around. But what is the value of those opinions? Many opinions only have real value to the person who holds them. Typically, these are opinions based on an emotional response to something. For example, I can say, “The Oakland Raiders are my favorite team.” That statement reflects my opinion, and it is factual. But so what? It isn’t really an arguable statement, in part because it has no real value outside of my own personal preference. It doesn’t matter to anyone but me. The fact that I like the Raiders doesn’t preclude you from liking another team.

But what if I claim, “The Oakland Raiders are the best team in the NFL.” That statement is also an opinion. Furthermore, it might matter to you (if you care about football) because if I am right, then your favorite team isn’t the best team in football and maybe you think they are. We don’t have to fight about it, though, because my opinion is arguable and, therefore, potentially provable in a meaningful way. We can actually establish criteria for evaluation, look at data, gather the informed opinions of experts, and evaluate the facts to make a reasonable assessment about which team actually is the best team in football.

We can have a heated argument – the personal kind – about whether the Raiders are my favorite team, but why would we? It doesn’t matter. We can also have an academic argument – though it need not be heated – about whether the Raiders are the best team in football. That argument, though, actually has a good possibility of yielding a factual conclusion. We might not discover who the best team really is, but we are sure to discover that, in fact, the Raiders are not the best team in football (actually, over the past several years, they are one of the worst teams – if not the worst team – in football).

For an opinion to have broader value, for us to have a chance to establish it as fact or truth, we have to take a more intellectual, critical approach. The process of challenging assumptions or opinions; of asking critical questions; of looking for data, facts, expert opinion; and analyzing a subject is a process that can lead us to the truth or at least a better understanding of the subject. It can lead us to better answers about all sorts of things like what you can do about global warming, who you should vote for to be President, even what kind of car you should buy.

Argument – even internal argument – is how we come to understand the world around us. It is a form of critical thinking, one of the most valuable skills you can possess. And academic writing is one of the surest ways to learn that skill.