Writing Logically, Thinking Critically

This concise, accessible text teaches students how to write logical, cohesive arguments and how to evaluate the arguments of others.   Integrating writing skills with critical thinking skills, this practical book teaches students to draw logical inferences, identify premises and conclusions and use language precisely. Students also learn how to identify fallacies and to distinguish between inductive and deductive reasoning. Ideal for any composition class that emphasizes argument, this text includes coverage of writing style and rhetoric, logic, literature, research and documentation.

Table of Contents:
Guide to Readings Preface Chapter 1 Thinking and Writing–A Critical Connection Thinking Made Visible   Critical Thinking  2     An Open Mind–Examining Your World View     Hedgehogs and Foxes Writing as a Process     Invention Strategies–Generating Ideas     The First Draft       The Time to be Critical Audience and Purpose     E-Mail and Text Messaging Writing Assignment 1  Considering Your Audience and Purpose Reason, Intuition, Imagination, and Metaphor Reasoning by Analogy Summary Key Terms   Chapter 2 Inference–Critical Thought What Is an Inference?     How Reliable is an Inference? What Is a Fact?     Reliability of Facts in a Changing World What Is a Judgment? Achieving a Balance Between Inference and Facts     Facts Only     Inferences Only Writing Assignment 2  Reconstructing the Lost Tribe Reading Critically Making Inferences–Writing about Fiction Writing Assignment 3 Interpreting Fiction Making Inferences–Analyzing Images     Persuading With Visual Images     Examining Ads     Vivid Warnings     Visual Images and the Law Summary Key Terms   Chapter 3 The Structure of Argument Premises and Conclusions Distinguishing Between Premises and Conclusions Standard Form Writing Assignment 5  Creating a Political Handout Ambiguous Argument Structure Hidden Assumptions in Argument     Dangers of Hidden Assumptions     Hidden Assumptions and Standard Form     Hidden Assumptions and Audience Awareness Summaries     Strategies For Writing a Summary     An Example of a Summary Writing Assignment 5  Summarizing an Article Argument and Explanation–Distinctions Summary Key Terms   Chapter 4 Written Argument Focusing Your Topic     The Issue     The Question at Issue     The Thesis Shaping a Written Argument–Rhetorical Strategies     The Introduction     The Development of Your Argument     How Many Premises Should an Argument Have?     The Conclusion A Dialectical Approach to Argument     Addressing Counterarguments     How Much Counterargument?     Refutation and Concession     Rogerian Strategy     When There is No Other Side Logical Connections–Coherence     Joining Words     More On Coherence Sample Essays A Two-Step Process for Writing a Complete Argument Writing Assignment 6  Arguing Both Sides of an Issue Writing Assignment 7  Taking a Stand Summary Key Terms   Chapter 5 The Language of Argument–Definition Definition and Perception     Who Controls the Definitions?     Defining Ourselves     Shifting Definitions     Definition: The Social Sciences and Government Language: An Abstract System of Symbols     The Importance of Concrete Examples     Abstractions and Evasion     Euphemism and Connotation Definition in Written Argument     Appositives–A Strategy for Defining Terms Within the Sentence     Appositives and Argument     Punctuation of Appositives     Extended Definition Writing Assignment 8  Composing an Argument Based on a Definition Inventing a New Word to Fill a Need Writing Assignment 9  Creating a New Word Summary Key Terms   Chapter 6 Fallacious Arguments What Is a Fallacious Argument?      Appeal to Authority      Appeal to Fear      Appeal to Pity      Begging the Question      Double Standard      Equivocation       False Analogy      False Cause      False Dilemma      Hasty Generalization      Personal Attack      Poisoning the Well      Red Herring      Slippery Slope      Straw Man   Writing Assignment 10  Analyzing an Extended Argument  Key Terms    Chapter 7 Deductive and Inductive Argument Key Distinction     (1) Necessity Versus Probability     (2) From General to Specific, Specific to General The Relationship Between Induction and Deduction Deductive Reasoning     Class Logic     Relationships Between Classes     Class Logic And The Syllogism Hypothetical Arguments  168     The Valid Hypothetical Argument     The Invalid Hypothetical Argument     Necessary and Sufficient Conditions     Hypothetical Chains     Hypothetical Claims and Everyday Reasoning Inductive Reasoning     Generalization     The Direction of Inductive Reasoning     Testing Inductive Generalizations     Thinking Critically About Surveys and Statistics Writing Assignment 11  Questioning Generalizations Writing Assignment 12  Conducting a Survey: A Collaborative Project Summary Key Terms   Chapter 8 The Language of Argument–Style Parallelism     The Structure of Parallelism     Logic of the Parallel Series     Emphasizing Ideas With Parallelism Sharpening Sentences, Eliminating Wordiness     Concrete Subjects     Active and Passive Verbs     Passive Verbs and Evasion     When the Passive is Appropriate     Consistent Sentence Subjects Summary Key Terms   A Quick Guide to Evaluating Sources and Integrating Research into your Own Writing Where to Begin Evaluating Online Sources Checking for Bias Three Options for Including Research Blend Quotations and Paraphrases into Your Own Writing  Make the Purpose Clear Punctuation and Format of Quotations Omitting Words From a Direct Quotation–Ellipsis Plagiarism A Final Note   Additional Readings “Living with Less,” Graham Hill “The Conservative Case for Gay Marriage,” Ted Olsen “You Are What You Speak,” Guy Deutscher “The Order of Things,” Malcolm Gladwell Text Credits Index