Asking the Right Questions, A Guide to Critical Thinking, 8th Ed

What Are the Reasons? 29
One of the best ways for you to determine whether you have discovered
a reason is to try to play the role of the communicator. Put yourself in her
position and ask yourself, "Why am I in favor of this conclusion that I am supporting?"
Try to put into your own words how you believe the communicator
would answer this question. If you can paraphrase the answer, you have probably
discovered her reasons.
As you determine a communicator's reasoning structure, you should
treat any idea that seems to be used to support her conclusion as a reason,
even if you do not believe it provides support for the conclusion. At this stage
of critical thinking, you are trying to identify the argument. Because you want
to be fair to the person who made the argument, it makes good sense to use
the principle of charity. If the writer or speaker believed she was providing support
for the conclusion with some evidence or logic, then we should at least
consider the reasoning. There will be plenty of time later to evaluate the reasoning
carefully.
Words That Identify Reasons
As was the case with conclusions, there are certain words that will typically
indicate that a reason will follow. Remember: The structure of reasoning is this,
because of that. Thus, the word because, as well as words synonymous with and
similar in function to it, will frequently signal the presence of reasons. A list of
indicator words for reasons follows:
as a result of
because of the fact that
is supported by
for the reason that
in view of
because the evidence is
Kinds of Reasons
There are many different kinds of reasons, depending on the kind of issue.
Many reasons will be statements that present evidence. By evidence, we mean
specific information that someone uses to furnish "proof for something she
is trying to claim is true. Communicators appeal to many kinds of evidence to
"prove their point." These include "the facts," research findings, examples
from real life, statistics, appeals to experts and authorities, personal testimonials,
metaphors, and analogies. Different kinds of evidence are more appropriate
in some situations than in others, and you will find it helpful to develop