Routledge Dictionary of Language and Linguistics
Complexly structured linguistic act to explain a state of affairs or to justify an act. The foundation of argumentation is the Aristotelian syllogism, in which the truth of the conclusion necessarily arises from the linguistic form and the choice of arguments (premise). The so-called ‘rhetorical argument’ of everyday language (entymon), is much more complicated than such ‘analytic conclusions,’ which form the topics of formal logic. The persuasive power of ‘rhetorical arguments’ depends as much on their linguistic construction as on the credible substantiation of their claims. Arguments can take the form of dialogues, can be embedded in scientific discourse, and are found in all kinds of commercial advertising (
advertising language). Argument theory, developed by S.A.Toulmin, C.Perelman, and others, is central to modern rhetoric and modern text linguistics. It is an inherently interdisciplinary field of study.
References
Benoit, W.L., D.Hample, and P.J.Benoit (eds) 1992. Readings in argumentation. Berlin and New York.
Cox, R.J. and C.A.Willard (eds) 1982. Advances in argumentation: theory and research. Carbondale, IL.
Freeman, J.B. 1991. Dialectics and the macro-structure of arguments. Berlin and New York.
Govier, T. 1985. A practical study of argument. Belmont.
Hirsch, R. 1989. Argumentation, information, and interaction. Göteborg.
Hirschberg, S. 1990. Strategies of argument. New York.
Johnstone, H.W. 1968. Theory of argumentation.
In R.Klibansky (ed.), La Philosophie contemporaine. Florence. Vol. I, 177–84.
Perelman, C. et al. 1969. The new rhetoric: a treatise on argumentation. London.
——1977. L’Empire rhétorique: rhétorique et argumentation. Paris.
Rescher, N. 1966. The logic of commands. London.
Richards, T.J. 1978. The language of reason. Oxford.
Scriven, M. 1976. Reasoning. New York.
Toulmin, S. 1958. The uses of argument. Cambridge.
——et al. 1979. An introduction to reasoning. New York.
Van Eemeren, F. et al. (eds) 1987. Argumentation: proceedings of the first international conference on argumentation, 3 vols. Dordrecht.
——et al. (eds) 1987. Handbook of argumentation theory: critical survey of classical backgrounds and modern studies. Dordrecht.
Bibliography
Nye, R.A. 1973. Argument and debate: an annotated bibliography. New York.
Journal
Argumentation: an International Journal of Reasoning
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