QUESTION 3. ARE THERE SIMILARITIES IN THE ARGUMENT COPATTERNS BETWEEN THE FOURTEEN GROUPS? -CONSTRUCTION
To answer this question, I looked at various aspects of the group’s argument
construction, and thus this research question has several important sub-questions. First,
since the heart of the Toulmin structure is the Claim, I closely examined the process of
making a claim, specifically the order of events in an episode. Secondly, as has been
noted, Modified and Alternate Claims are important statement categories, and thus I
looked at how these additional claims elaborate the original claim. The discussion of
Modified Claims and Alternate Claims includes several important subsections, including
an analysis of the role of requests, as well as discussions of creative controversy and
conflict avoidance. Finally, in the Toulmin argument structure, Ground, Warrants and
Backings provide support for Claims, and I will illustrate how these are used to support
the claims.
QUESTION 3 A. DO THEIR ARGUMENT CONSTRUCTIONS BEGIN OR END WITH A CLAIM?
In a strict Toulmin analysis of an argument, the Grounds, Warrants and Backings
lead to the claim. Hence the first sorting of the groups’ prototypes asked where in the
process the claim occurs. Of the 16 patterns, only two patterns lead to the claim (Figure
4-1, page 135). Both groups 3B and 7A used supporting statements before and after their
claim. Groups 3B and 7A were both groups of four. On the other hand, most groups (12
groups, 14 patterns) begin with the claim and then support it.