in one interpretation or intellectual position and express them
coherently. Next you assemble an alternative or opposed inter-
pretation, originating from a different intellectual position and
seek to better explain the phenomena being focused on. The
sequence of materials becomes one of ‘pro’ arguments then
‘anti’ arguments, of thesis and antithesis (and perhaps synthe-
sis). Figure 3.5c shows how I might do this when giving an
account of my home study. Here I could set out all the points
that I like about my study, perhaps sequencing them in terms
of their importance to me in evaluating the room. I like my
study because it is spacious, conveniently shaped, equipped
with lots of walls suitable for storage, newly set up, restfully
decorated, well lit, quiet, set a bit apart from the rest of the
house, and so on. Then I might consider all the problems I still
have with the study, such as the amount of clutter I’ve man-
aged to jam into it already, my inability to keep it neatly
organized, or its patchwork feel. (The study was not equipped
in one go, as ‘real’ offices are. Instead its current state repre-
sents a layered accumulation of different bits of kit that I’ve
been able to afford at different stages of my career and never
had the heart, or the finances, to scrap and start again from
scratch.)
An argumentative approach will usually look well organized
for readers, so long as you distinguish clear intellectual posi-
tions or sides in a controversy, using labels and schools of
thought already recognized. By definition an argumentative
approach focuses on a debate or disagreement and tends to
project into sharp focus your value-added. It will also usually
look personalized, especially where you have taken care to
frame or configure your central thesis question in a way or from
an angle which is particular to your work. This approach will
also handle multiple theoretical positions or relational argu-
ments explicitly, normally an important feature of humanities
or social sciences research.
There are also some disadvantages of an argumentative
approach at doctoral level. Pro- and anti- arguments, thesis and
antithesis oppositions are usually pairs, and only rarely triples.
So argumentative categories may not be enough to organize
eight chapters. People sometimes react to this difficulty by trying
to handle many more interpretations at once. Some students,
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