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论述的定义是：The process whereby humans use reason to communicate claims to one another．此定义中，论述最显著的特征是推理阐释，这也是论述与其他文体的主要区别。
请看以下四个例子，判断它们是否为论述：
（a）Forty-nine divided by seven equals seven．
（b）I can’t stand broccoli！
（c）What are the causes of juvenile delinquency？
（d）It was a crisp and frosty September morning，but so many problems occupied their minds that the beauty of the day went unappreciated．
显然，以上四个例子都不是论述。（a）仅仅是一个数学事实的阐述；（b）表达了不喜欢的情绪；（c）提出了一个问题，而不是阐述或论证任何事物；（d）仅仅描述了一种情形，即在九月份某个清晨的情形。上面的四个例句中，都没有试图针对某个观点说服人，而论述则需要推理论证。要进一步了解论述，首先需要熟悉论述的结构。
图尔敏在其名著《论述的运用》中提出“图尔敏模型”（见图1-1）。
图1-1
论述由三个基本要素组成：论点（claim／proposition）——由主方提出，希望客方同意或照办；论据（evidence／support）——支持主张的依据，通常是客观证据；论证（warrant／reasoning）——有时论据与主张的关系不那么明了，就需进行一番解释，说明论据与主张之间的关系，这就是论证。下面将分别就这三部分进行阐释。
论点主要分为三大类：事实类（claim of fact），价值类（claim of value），政策类（claim of policy）。
（1）事实类（claim of fact）
该类型与说明文类似，不同之处在于说明文要尽量中立客观，不偏不倚，而事实类论述则尽可能有说服力地论证该事实的某个观点。例如：
William Shakespeare did not write the plays attributed to him．
莎士比亚名下的戏剧可能都是他写的，也可能不是。这句话则是要证明并非其名下所有戏剧都是他写的，是有倾向性的事实类论证。
（2）价值类（claim of value）
价值类的论述不仅仅阐述事实，而且要求有价值判断，该价值判断建立在个人的信念之上，如该论述是对是错，是好是坏，是否道德，是否合适，是否公正等。例如：
Cloning is morally justifiable．
Bicycle riding is the ideal form of land transportation．
Celebrities who endorse shoddy products should be punished．
在进行价值类论述时，注意一定要给出该价值的评判标准。如第一个论证：克隆是道德的。首先需要说明道德的评判标准是什么。
（3）政策类（claim of policy）
政策类的论述是证明某一特定政策能够解决某个问题，目的是使客方同意该政策，抑或促使客方立即采取行动，实施该政策。例如：
Public speaking should be a required course for all college students．
The use of antibacterial chemicals in household products should be reduced．
论据是用来证明主张有理可循，有据可依，没有论据支撑的主张只是断言（assertion）而已。论据可以分为三类：事例（examples）、数据（statistics）和证词（testimony）。
（1）事例（examples）
生动具体的事例对客体影响很大。一位社会心理学家曾说：
“Most people are more deeply influenced by one clear vivid personal example than by an abundance of statistical data．”
事例可以分为简单事例（brief examples）、拓展事例（extended examples）和假设事例（hypothetical examples）。简单事例即简单提及以证明某个主张，通常只有一两句话。拓展事例则是生动详细的讲述，无论是简单事例还是拓展事例，都是真实发生过的事，而假设事例则描述了想象的情况，使用这类例证，并非是要糊弄听众，而是通过有效的假设让听众们能够对某种情形产生共鸣。
比如，在一个题为“What I saw in the war”的演讲中，演讲者是这样开头的：This is how a war starts．One day you’re living your ordinary life，you’re planning to go to a party，you’re taking your children to school，you’re making a dentist appointment．The next thing，the telephones go out，the TVs go out，there’re armed men on the street，there’re roadblocks．Your life as you know goes into suspended animation．It stops．这样一个假设的场景很自然地把观众带入了战争这个话题，让观众感同身受——对于普通人战争意味着什么。
（2）数据（statistics）
19世纪的物理学家Lord Kelvin曾说：
“When you can measure what you are speaking about，and express it in numbers，you know something about it．But when you cannot measure it，when you cannot express it in numbers，your knowledge is…meager and unsatisfactory．”
使用数据时，需要做到：
● 标明数据的来源；
● 注意所用数据的代表性；
● 使用有可靠来源的数据；
● 简化较大的复杂数据，如数字58934可以表述为“约6万”；
● 用与读者或观众相关的方式解释数据的含义。
（3）证词（testimony）
证词也分为专家证词（expert testimony）和普通证词（peer testimony）。专家证词即公认的在该领域权威人士的话语，而普通证词则是指普通大众，但是对要论证的主张有第一手的经历。
使用证词时，可以选择直接引用，或者采取释义的方式，用自己的话进行阐述。
本书主要介绍以下四种论证方式：演绎论证（deductive entailment）、聚合论证（conductive argument）、归纳论证（inductive support）和类比论证（analogy）。
（1）演绎论证（deductive entailment）
演绎论证逻辑严密：当前提为真时，结论也一定为真。在演绎论证中，有直线型论证模式（linear pattern），也有连锁型论证模式（chain pattern）。直线型论证模式如下：
（a）All the cabinet ministers have a university degree，and Joe Nelson is in the cabinet，so we can conclude that Joe Nelson has a university degree．
论据是：
All cabinet ministers have a university degree．
Joe Nelson is in the cabinet．
论证是：
Joe Nelson is a member of the cabinet ministers．
因此可以得出结论：
Joe Nelson has a university degree．
这样的论证模式就是直线型论证模式，如图1-2所示：
图1-2
这个主张的论证逻辑如下：所有X都有Y，而Joe Nelson是X，因此，Joe Nelson有Y。当结论为假时，前提必然是假的。
下面一例则是连锁型论证模式（chain pattern）：
（b）If people cannot make mortgage payments，lending agencies will be short of cash．If lending agencies are short of cash，business start-ups will be lessened．If business start-ups are lessened，unemployment will go up．Therefore，if people cannot make mortgage payments，unemployment will go up．
在上例中，各个论据之间是连锁反应。有三个假设（if-then）陈述：If W then X，if X then Y，if Y then Z—so if W then Z．W
X
Y
Z，所以W
Z。
（2）聚合论证（conductive arguments）
假设你正打算买房，那么就需要列出一系列的清单：地段、房租、装修、物业、学区、周边配套设施等，然后到处看房。要确定哪套房子最适合你，就需要列出其各方面特点，几个特点汇集到一起，共同得出这套房子是否合适的结论。同样，要证明一个人是否有罪，可以看其是否有（1）在场证明，是否有（2）作案的动机，是否有（3）证人证明，是否有（4）作案的时间等。
图1-3
从图1-3可以看出，所有的证据都是独立的，可以分别支持最终结论。如果被告可以证明他确实不在场，那么（1）是虚假的，但（2）、（3）和（4）仍然作为支持起诉案件的相关原因。用电路打比方，如果说演绎论证是串联的话，那么聚合论证就是并联。
（3）归纳论证（inductive support）
假设有100名来自同一所高中的学生，他们的数学成绩都非常优秀，这个高中一共有1 500人，于是推断遇到的下一个来自这所高中的学生的数学成绩也会非常优秀。当基于过去的经验进行推理时，采用的论证方法就是归纳法。
Evidence：All the students I have met who have graduated from school X got good grades in mathematics．
Warrant：Mathematics is well taught at this school．
Claim：All students who have graduated from school X got good grades in mathematics．
此处的推论基于对较大组样本的归纳概括，即未知情况将与已知情况相似。归纳推理的一个基本假设即世界及其经验都存在规律，这使我们能够根据以往经验进行可靠预测。归纳论证时，论据比论证更加重要，而论据则来自观察与经验。
上述例子表明，在归纳论证中，个人经验与结论之间并非存在必然的联系。X学校的下一个学生可能数学能力很弱，甚至X学校的数学教学也不好（所有这些学生的成功可能是由于外部辅导或天生的才能）。归纳论证并不能百分百地证明其结论的正确性，这也是演绎论证与归纳论证之间的根本区别。
（4）类比论证（analogy）
爱因斯坦曾用类比论证解释虽然物质内部的固有能量发现较晚——直到20世纪才被物理学家发现，但这个能量却是非常巨大的。他有如下解释：
“It is as though a man who is fabulously rich should never spend or give away a cent；no one could tell how rich he was．”
这里需要解释的是物质内部的能量，爱因斯坦用富人的钱来打比方。通过类比富豪不为人知的巨大财富，阐释被困能量的概念，因为人们能够理解富豪虽然家财万贯，却并不露富，从而阐述虽然人们并未发觉物体内部的能量，但其能量却非常巨大。类比的核心是要找出被类比物与对照物之间的相似之处。
√答案
√拓展资源
Directions ： For each of the following passages ， determine whether it contains an argument ， andgive reasonsfor yourjudgment ．
1．If a diet does not work，then that is a problem．But if a diet does work，there is still a problem，because the diet will have altered the dieter’s metabolism．An altered metabolism as a result of dieting means a person will need less food．Needing less food，the person will gain weight more easily．Therefore，dieting to lose weight is futile．
2．Jane was a better tennis player than Peter．
3．“A computer then calculates the patient’s bone density．Readings are compared to those of a standard for people of the same age，sex and body type．”
4．“The reaction of many people when they first hear a description of the psychopathic personality is that they have known a few people who fit the bill—fellow workers，classmates，acquaintances，bosses，even perhaps，unfortunately，a spouse．”
5．“Like our ancestors of a thousand years ago，we still war and pray and worry about who our children will marry．We still laugh at badjokes and loud farts and scary noises that turn out to be nothing．We flirt and steal and mourn our dead．Nothing there has changed．But when you look at today’s science and technology—how the solar system is put together，the wonders of refrigeration，antibiotics，the theory of evolution，liver transplants，the structure of the atom，nylon，television—we are very different．Our powers are different．Our global consciousness is different．Our wealth，both intellectual and material，is different．”
Directions ： Read through the following arguments ． Find out the evidence and warrant ofeachargument anddistinguishdifferent kinds ofevidence andwarrant ．
1．It’s easy to understand why we have an obligation to pay our taxes．It’s because we receive benefits from government activities． We have an obligation to do our part to pay for those activities．And taxes are the way we do that．Pay your taxes．
Claim：________________________________________________________________________________
Evidence：________________________________________________________________________________
Warrant：________________________________________________________________________________
2．If a word could mean just anything，or could be used in any old way，there would in fact be no meaning at all．So language requires rules．To have a rule，we have to have more than one person following a rule．That’s because a single person could make anything he wanted be right，and his so-called rule would not really be a rule at all．So private language is impossible．
Claim：________________________________________________________________________________________
Evidence：____________________________________________________________________________________________
Warrant：____________________________________________________________________________________________
3．If interest rates go down any further，there will be no incentive for people to buy government bonds．If there is no incentive for people to buy government bonds，they will pretty much stop buying them．We need people buying bonds to keep the economy going．So if interest rates go down，the economy will be in trouble．
Claim：
Evidence：
Warrant：________________________________________________________________________________
Directions ： Read through the following passages ， and indicate the claim of each argument and state whether the argument is based on deductive entailment ， conduction ， induction ， or analogy ．
1．He was angry．There were several things that showed it．He turned all red．He scowled．He was clenching his fist．And when he talked to her，he was almost shouting．
2．If it snows，snow will cover the ice．And if the ice is covered，people won’t see it． Walking on hidden ice is really dangerous for older people．Therefore，if it snows it will be dangerous for older people．
3．Beliefs are like apples in a basket．One rotten apple can contaminate a whole lot of others in the same basket．Similarly，one false belief can contaminate a lot of other beliefs，and make them unjustified．I conclude that a careful thinker should question all of his／her beliefs to make sure none are false．
4．In a 2004 survey，72 percent of the people surveyed in San Diego，California，reported believing in life after death．Therefore，probably，more than two-thirds of people in the state of California believe in life after death．
5．After World War Ⅱ，the United States gave generously of funds and assistance to help with the reconstruction of Europe，including that of Germany，which had been its enemy．It generously aided another nation，Japan，in reconstruction．These efforts were successful．So probably，efforts to reconstruct Iraq after the 2003 invasion will also be successful．