Principles of Logical Reasoning and Text Cohesion

The Nature of Argumentation

The argument is the act of arguing, a set of arguments, discussion, and controversy. The act of arguing includes one or more presentations of ideas and one or more personal viewpoints accompanied by evidence from the text to which the author has the right. In informal dialogue situations, we argue very often but may forget the evidence or the reasoning with logic. In formal situations, such as legal discourses, these care-driven discourses are present.

Key Elements of Argumentation

Consistency of reasoning: It consists of the transportation of reasoning so that it can be confirmed and be exempt from being vacated by counter-argumentation.

The evidence: This is the truth criterion that is reached by reasoning or the presentation of facts. There are five elements:

• Facts themselves: The facts are obvious or notorious and serve to prove a point.
• Examples: These are facts that are typical or representative of a particular situation.
• Illustrations: When the sample is stretched to a detailed narrative description, we have an illustration.
• Statistics: They have great power of conviction, being almost always incontestable proof or evidence if they have a reliable basis; they are usually presented in tables, maps, etc.
• Witnesses: If authorized or authoritative, their probative value is undeniable and they deserve faith even in the courts.

The Cohesion of the Text

The text should be organized by taking into account carefully selected words, the order of ideas, style, language registers, and connectors. The elements are:

• Establishing opposition and contrast (Oppositional): Used to contrast with views expressed or that will follow below (e.g., but, nevertheless, in spite of this, although, even accepting that, some that, but, on the contrary, however, in spite of that, even so, now, etc.).
• Relation of cause and establishing consequence (Logic): To indicate cause (because, then why, for them, both) and to indicate a consequence (then, for this, accordingly, consequently).
• Stating the purpose or intent: (To that, for the purpose of, with the intent of, etc.).
• Expressing sum of ideas and progression (Additives): Notion of addition, a new theme to get started, intensified hue, highest degree, or to start a new topic.
• Highlighting similarity (Comparative): (Similarly, equally, likewise, in the same way).
• Restating statements: An indication that a statement will be reproduced later in another form, as expressed in one or more previous statements (explanation, recapitulation, modeling, instruction, stress, or insisting on something).
• Order and notation: Noting the different parts of the text, such as the beginning of speech, closing, transition, enumerative, temporary, digression, and space.