Critical Thinking Skills - Developing Effective Analysis and Argument(2)

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Practice 3: Features of an argument to the Laffer. Read to the Literary and Philosophical Society of Manchester at Different Meetings (Manchester: Literary and Philosophical Society). Wollstonecraft, M. (1792) Vindication of t11e Rights of Women. (Republished in 1975 by Penguin, Harmondsworth, Middlesex.) Comments Secondary sources Barking, J. K. (1957) Changes iiz Conceptions of the Universe (Cotteridge: Poltergeist Press)*. Colley, L. (2003) Captives. Britain, Empire and the World 1600-1850 (London: Pimlico). Madison, S. (1967) 'The End of the Chain of Being: the Impact of Descartian Philosophy on Medieval Conceptions of Being'. Jozrmal of Medieval and Enlightenment Shldies, 66, 7.* Pendleton, G. (1976) 'English Conservative Propaganda During the French Revolution, 1780: 1802' Ph.D. (unpub.), Emory University. Thompson, E. P. (1963) The Making of the English Working Class (Harmondsworth, Middlesex: Penguin). * These two sources are hypothetical and provided for the purpose of the practice activity; the other sources are genuine. 228 Critical Thinking Skills O Stella Cottrell (ZOOS), Criticnl Thinkifzg Skills, Palgrave Macmillan Ltd
Answers to Practice 3: Features of an argument The Great Chain of Being (Text 1) 'Notions of a "Creat Chain of Being" and of a natural order to the universe continued to exert ideological significance during the eighteenth century and beyond. ' Discuss. The idea of the 'Great Chain of Being' was common in medieval Europe. For those who believed in this chain, everything that existed belonged to a pre-assigned place, as if on higher or lower rungs of a ladder. Those lowest items in the universe were at the bottom of the chain whilst humans were nearer the top, below angels but above animak8 In considering the influence of the chain of being in the eighteenth century, there are two aspects to consider. Firstly, whether the idea was still familiar in the eighteenth century, and secondly, whether. it was used to support political or ideological positions in the important debates of the peri~d.~ First of a1lI9 it is proposed that the concept of the chain of being was very much alive in the eighteenth century.l Such a view is not universally accepted. It has been argued that references to the chain of being had died out by the mid-seventeenth century (Barking, 1957; Madison, 1967). Madison claimed that such notions of the universe were replaced by more enlightened ideas based on scientific observation.lO* l3 It could also be argued that war and trade provided ever increasing opportunities for people to meet with new ideas and ideologies. Colley (2003), for example, refers to how impressed travellers to North African Muslim countries were by its culture and by the tolerance shown by Islam to other faiths. In earlier centuries, Christian rulers burnt people at the stake for expressing such sentiments but this was no longer the case in the eighteenth century.l0, l3 However, despite such changes in people's outlook, old ideas still continued to hold sway.ll In the literature of the late eighteenth century, and even the early nineteenth century, it is not unusual to find references to the chain of being. Indeed, in an analysis of pamphlets produced in 1802-3, for example, Pendleton (1976) found that over one in ten pamphlets, a significant proportion, included a reference to the 'Chain of l3 A much higher proportion of the pamphlets alluded to related concepts, such as the 'natural order' of society. The concept of the 'chain of Comments Numbers in the text and below refer to the grid on p. 223. 8 This is descriptive text that tells the reader, briefly, what the 'chain of being' was. This is necessary background information. 2 These two sentences set out how the author intends to approach the argument, breaking it into two sections to help the reader recognise these stages in the argument when they are introduced later. 9 Signal word to introduce the first of the author's reasons. 1 This sentence sums up the main argument. 10 The author considers here counter arguments to the main line of reasoning. In this case, the counter arguments are raised and dealt with early in the line of reasoning as, if it was true that the idea had already died out, there wouldn't be much point continuing with the rest of the argument. 13 Examples of secondary sources (see p. 126 above). 11 This paragraph addresses the counter argument raised by Barking that references to the chain of being had died out. The counter argument raised by Madison is addressed throughout the essay, and in a separate paragraph below. 7 This evidence helps to support the overall conclusion that the idea did continue to have ideological significance. 13 Examples of a secondary sources (see p. 126 above). O Stella Cottrell (2005), Critical Thinking Skills, Palgrave Macm~llan Ltd Practice activities on longer texts 229
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Critical Thinking Skills Developing
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Contents Introduction Glossary Ackn
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10 Critical, analytical writing: Cr
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people are referring to when they m
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'false premises'. Finally, it exami
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predicated on a Marxist interpretat
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Chapter 1 What is critical thinking
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Reasoning Knowing our own reasons C
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Underlying skills and attitudes Cri
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Personal strategies for critical th
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The idea or the action, not the per
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Barriers to critical thinking (2) L
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Critical thinking: Knowledge, skill
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ther D low esser - - See PL--*--- k
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Chapter 2 How well do you think Dev
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Activity: Argument and disagreement
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Non-arguments: Explanations and sum
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There were many reasons why the stu
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Activity: Selecting out the argumen
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This chapter has looked at ways of
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Chapter 5 How well do they say it C
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Internal consistency larity and int
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Logical consistency clear and consi
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lndependent reasons and joint reaso
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Intermediate conclusions In I anger
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-- Activity: Intermediate conclusio
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Activity: Summative and logical con
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Activity: Logical order L 8,"L I ne
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Answers to activities in Chapter 5
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- Answers to activities in Chapter
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Chapter 6 Reading between the lines
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Activity: Identify the underlying a
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Implicit assumptions used as reason
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False premises Predicating an argum
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Implicit arguments ~plicit and impl
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Denoted and connoted meanings (I) A
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- - Activities: Associations and st
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This chapter looked at some aspects
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Chapter 7 Does it add up Identifyin
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Correlations and false correlations
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Not meeting the necessary condition
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Activity: Necessary and sufficient
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Activity: False analogies Activity
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Other types of flawed argument Ther
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Emotive language; Attacking the per
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1 Misrepresentation and trivialisat
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This chapter introduces many of the
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Chapter 8 Where's the proof Finding
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Searching for evidence Critical thi
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Reputable sources For academic stud
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Currency and reliability Currency I
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Relevant and irrelevant evidence Re
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- Representative samples 1 I Most r
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Certainty and probability Certainty
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Generalisations are useful as they
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Facts and opinions Opinion An opini
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- Triangulation What is triangulati
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This chapter has looked at some key
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Chapter 9 Critical reading and note
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Identifying the theoretical perspec
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Categorising and selecting Critical
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Making notes to support critical re
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Concise critical notes: Analysing a
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Concise critical notes: Articles an
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Activity: critical selection - Note
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Commentary on critical selection ac
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I Note your source of information (
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Chapter 10 Critical, analytical wri
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Characteristics of critical, analyt
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I Activity: Setting the scene for t
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Words used to introduce the line of
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Signposting alternative points of v
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Words used to signpost conclusions
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Page 164 and 165: Checklist for Essay 1 Use this chec
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Page 176 and 177: Evaluating your writing for critica
Page 178 and 179: -- This chapter provided the opport
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Page 198 and 199: Practice 2: Finding flaws in the ar
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Page 206 and 207: Practice 3: Features of an araument
Page 208 and 209: Practice 3: Features of an argument
Page 228 and 229: I Answers to Practice 4: Finding fl
Page 230 and 231: Bibliography Arnheim, R. (1954, 197
Page 232 and 233: abstracts, using, 128 academic writ
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