Counterarguments
Raising objections is common when people state arguments. By raising an objection you are finding ways to make an argument bad. It is everyday reasoning by calling to question of an argument. For example if you have the argument, “Everyone should get a dog. Dogs are way more fun than cats. They can even do tricks too”, you question why are dogs better than cats and can’t cats do tricks too? Since most of the claims are subjective or false, you can say the argument is invalid and bad. There was also a big section in chapter 7 about refuting an argument. You can refute and argument in 2 ways, directly and indirectly. To directly refute and argument you can prove that at least on of the premises is dubious, invalid or weak, or prove that the conclusion is false. To indirectly refute and argument, you must find a way to prove that one of the premises are false. For example, when you use the argument above, you know that the premise “dogs are more fun than cats” is something that is completely based on personal preference. That premise raises a question on if the argument is bad or good.
Hey k_tab,
ReplyDeleteCounterarguments are a very interesting topic to me. I think it intrigues me because I love to debate. I am the youngest of four kids and my whole life I have always had to argue with my siblings just to get my way or my point across. For example, I remember my oldest sister would always try and hog the remote control. She would say, "I get to control the TV because I am the oldest and the prettiest." I would always counter-argue because who is she to say that she is the prettiest? Haha. But I realize that I, and many other people, counter-argue far more than I actually realize.
Great post and keep up the good work!