Toulmin terms

1. Pre-test Toulmin terms

2. Stephen Toulmin

3. Toulmin wanted to devise a way to judge arguments. He wanted to find an unbiased way to judge whether an argument was “good” or “bad”.

4. He did this by asking a series of questions of the argument. The more “yes” answers the argument provided, the better it was.

5. Define the following terms • Claim • Qualifiers • Reasons • Warrant • Backing • Evidence • Authority • Concession • Rebuttal

6. Go over correct definitions • Claim- a statement that asserts a belief or truth/ most claims require supporting evidence • Qualifiers- words or phrases that limit the scope of a claim • Reasons- statement that expands a claim by offering evidence to support it • Warrant- the statement that establishes the logical connection between a claim and its supporting reason (claim: don’t eat mushrooms /reason: it’s poisonous /warrant: What is poisonous shouldn’t be eaten) • Backing- evidence provided to support a warrant • Evidence- material offered to support an argument • Authority- person knowledgeable is his/her content area • Concession- the act of yielding or conceding to a demand • Rebuttal- potential objections to an argument

7. Now for the Memory tricks- Tool man • Think of a memory trick for each term (5 min) • Share with the whole class

8. Here are mine • Claim- clam (pearl) • Qualifier- • Reasons- recess • Warrant- Warren “I can’t marry u bc…” • Backing- back spotter warrant • Evidence- backs argument • Authority- • Concession- • Rebuttal- rebuke, object is a “but!”