CHAPTER VI ARGUMENT AND PERSUASION 38. ARGUMENT AND PERSUASION. 39. THE STATEMENT OF THE PROPOSITION.-40. METHOD OF PROOF. 41. DIFFICULTY OF OBTAINING ABSOLUTE PROOF.- EXERCISE 20.42. THE BRIEF. EXERCISE 21.-43. THE EXPANSION OF THE BRIEF. — 44. THE CITING OF AUTHORITIES.—45. THE SYLLOGISM AND ITS PARTS. EXERCISE 22. — -46. PERSUASION. - EXERCISE 23.-47. EXPOSITION, ARGUMENT, AND PERSUASION IN LITERATURE. 38. Argument and Persuasion. Finally, we must take up the two forms of prose composition in which the writer's aim is not to amuse the reader or give him information, but to induce him to espouse a certain belief, or to perform certain acts. Writing that attempts to convince the reader by logical proof, we call argument; writing that attempts to induce the reader to do something, we call persuasion. It is argument when we try to prove that it is a citizen's duty to vote a certain ticket; it is persuasion when we try to induce him to vote that ticket. With reasonable men, argument is by far the greater part of persuasion; but even the most reasonable people sometimes need to be appealed to in other ways than by argument before they actually do what they know is logically right or just. 39. The Statement of the Proposition. There can be no good argument when the proposition in question is not clearly defined. You cannot convince the reader when he does not understand precisely what it is which you wish him to believe. It is necessary, then, in the first place, to use care in framing your proposition. Do not state that you are proving that foreign languages should be taught in the high school, when you mean that German and French should be compulsory studies in the high school; or that all states should establish free professional schools, when you refer only to professional schools in law and medicine, but not in theology or other professions. In the second place, explain in your introduction, if necessary, any special meaning you are giving to the terms you employ in your proposition. If your proposition is that Aaron Burr was guilty of treason, give the reader fair warning that you mean morally guilty, not legally guilty. If your proposition is that Latin should be a compulsory study in the high school, be sure to state such necessary limitations as that, for example, you mean only so many years of Latin, and that you do not mean to include manual training high schools. Otherwise, you may find too late that the reader thought you had a different end in view. 40. Method of Proof. The method of proof in argument is precisely similar to that ordinarily employed in geometry. It is desired to prove that such an angle, let us say, is equal to another angle. After looking at the problem, we say that this can be shown, provided that it is true that two other angles are equal to each other, and that this can be shown provided that something else be proved true, and so on until we reach facts that are either self-evident or have been already established. Similarly, in argument, we have a definite proposition, by no means self-evident, of the truth of which we wish to convince the reader. We can logically do so only by showing him that, from certain other points which he already believes or can be brought to believe, the proposition in question can be inferred. To prove a proposition to the satisfaction of a reader or hearer, it is always necessary to reason from facts or principles which he accepts as true. If, for example, I would prove to you that it rained last night, it might not be sufficient to show you that this morning the grass is soaked, because that might have been caused by a heavy fall of dew; nor perhaps to show you that water is standing in a pail left out of doors, because the pail might not have been empty the night before, or might have been used subsequently. It would be necessary to show you traces of the rain which you would accept as settling the matter. Even when one is logically convinced that a proposition is true, he may not be inclined to accept it until his objections have been explained away. I may see every reason to believe you when you say that there was a heavy thunder-storm last night, and yet hesitate to acknowledge myself convinced so long as I cannot understand why I was not awakened by it. If, how ever, you show me there are not only indubitable traces of such a storm, that you and others heard it, and that I did not because my windows were closed, and I was so fatigued as to sleep with unusual soundness, I can then no longer refuse to be convinced. 41. Difficulty of Obtaining Absolute Proof. Particularly if the reader is somewhat obstinate, or insists on complete proof of a proposition, it is often difficult to convince him. If, for example, I should attempt to convince you that Mr. A has tuberculosis of the lungs, and should proceed to infer that from his cough, or other similar symptoms, you might properly reply that these signs might be due to other causes. If I should argue that young Dr. B said that Mr. A had tuberculosis, you might perhaps still reply that young doctors have before now been in error. If I should argue that Dr. C, an acknowledged expert in such matters, gave the same verdict, you might possibly refuse to be convinced until you heard the positive statement from Dr. C's own lips. Even then it is conceivable that, if you were vitally interested in the matter, you should refuse your belief until you had with your own eyes seen under the microscope the tuberculosis germ, which to your own knowledge had been derived from the sputum of the patient, and convinced yourself by further investigation that, so far as human science has gone, that germ is infallibly present under such conditions, and only under such conditions. Similarly, a jury frequently hesitates to condemn a prisoner to severe punishment, such as the loss of life, on merely circumstantial evidence. Even if it is proved that he was seen to have committed the crime in question, the sceptical mind, when great issues are involved, may feel forced to admit the possibility of mistaken identity, or conspiracy among the witnesses. If such be the great difficulty in obtaining absolute proof in questions of existing or recent fact, it is obvious how doubtful must be the validity of attempted proof when the alleged facts upon which the proposition is based are centuries old, or when the proposition deals not with facts, but with opinions. In questions of political or personal ethics, for example, it is often possible that the right lies on both sides of a disputed question, and that absolute proof is not to be secured. From such considerations we may draw several inferences of importance for the student: (1) Do not suppose for an instant that you are likely to arrive at the final truth upon intricate matters, especially those which lie beyond your power, and, of this class, particularly those dependent for their solution upon temperament, taste, or policy. You may, and perhaps should, have your ideas on such subjects, and, if so, it is worth your while to understand your reasons for holding them. But beware of believing that another is wrong because you are sure that you are right. An old proverb runs, de gustibus non disputandum est, one must not argue on questions of personal taste. For example, one could not convince another that Byron was a |