Unit 3: Reasoning and Organization

17 terms. Say what each one means, then open the card to check.

• Line of reasoning

  The chain of claims and reasons, in a logical order, that leads from the evidence to the thesis.

  Example. A case for a fenced dog park argues that dogs now run loose on the school field, that loose dogs frighten small children, and so a park protects both.

• Counterargument

  A claim or objection from the other side of an issue that a writer raises and responds to.

  Example. In an essay for a 10 p.m. curfew for teens, a writer notes that teens who work late shifts would be caught by it.

• Concession

  Admitting that part of an opposing view is true or reasonable, often before explaining why the writer’s position still holds.

  Example. “It is true that the new bridge will cost more than repairing the old one” concedes a point to the other side.

• Rebuttal

  The writer’s answer to a counterargument, showing why it is wrong, weaker than it looks or outweighed by other reasons.

  Example. “But the new bridge will last fifty years, while repairs would need to be redone in ten” answers the cost objection.

• Refutation

  A rebuttal that shows an opposing claim is false or rests on a mistaken assumption, not just that it is outweighed.

  Example. A writer answers “nobody uses the trail” with a counter that recorded 1,400 visits last month.

• Inductive reasoning

  Reasoning from specific cases or observations to a general conclusion, which is likely but not certain.

  Example. After finding the trailhead lot full on five early mornings, a hiker concludes that it usually fills before 8 a.m.

• Deductive reasoning

  Reasoning from a general principle to a specific case; if the principle and the facts are true, the conclusion must be.

  Example. All buses on this route stop at Fifth Street. This is a bus on this route. So it will stop at Fifth Street.

• Chronological order

  Arranging events or steps in the order they happened or should happen, from earliest to latest.

  Example. A history of a neighborhood park moves from its founding in 1952, to its flood damage in 1979, to its rebuilding in 1985.

• Problem and solution

  An organization that first describes a problem and its effects, then proposes and supports a way to fix it.

  Example. An op-ed spends two paragraphs on overflowing trash cans downtown, then proposes adding pickup on Sundays.

• Cause and effect

  An organization that explains why something happened or what results from it, linking events by cause.

  Example. An article explains that a late frost killed the blossoms, so fewer apples grew, so cider prices rose.

• Compare and contrast

  An organization that sets two or more things side by side to show how they are alike and how they differ.

  Example. A review discusses two bike-share programs by comparing their prices, their number of stations and their hours.

• Order of importance

  Arranging reasons or points from least to most important, or the reverse, so the strongest point lands where it has the most effect.

  Example. An ad for a used car lists its color and mileage first and ends with its strongest selling point: it has never needed a repair.

• Topic sentence

  A sentence, often the first in a paragraph, that states the paragraph’s main point and how it connects to the thesis.

  Example. “The second reason to fund the garden is that it teaches science in a way a textbook cannot” opens a body paragraph.

• Transition

  A word, phrase or sentence that shows how one idea relates to the next, such as by adding, contrasting, giving a cause or an example.

  Example. In “The ice was thin. Therefore, the lake was closed,” the word “therefore” shows the second idea results from the first.

• Contrast transition

  A transition such as “however,” “but,” “yet” or “on the other hand” that signals the next idea differs from or limits the one before.

  Example. “The plan is cheap. However, it would take five years to finish” uses “however” to turn from a strength to a weakness.

• Causal transition

  A transition such as “therefore,” “as a result,” “so” or “consequently” that signals the next idea follows from the one before.

  Example. “The river rose two feet overnight. As a result, the park road was closed” signals cause and effect.

• Additive transition

  A transition such as “moreover,” “in addition,” “also” or “furthermore” that signals the next idea adds to the one before.

  Example. “The library’s new hours help students who work. Furthermore, they let parents visit after dinner” adds a second benefit.