ASSEMBLING REASONS

AND EVIDENCE
From The Craft of Research by Booth, Colomb,
and Williams

ARGUMENT CORE

Claim

Based

on Reasons

Based on Evidence

PLAN YOUR ARGUMENT

Introductory
Claim

Conclusion

Reason 1

Reason 2

Reason 3

Reason 4

Evidence
1

Evidence
2

Evidence
3

Evidence
4

EVIDENCE
Evidence needs to be facts that readers will
accept as facts.
If your reader doesnt believe your evidence is a
fact, he/she will consider it only a reason in need
of further evidence to make it believable.
Cite primary sources and scientific research as
much as possible to support your reasons.
Skeptical readers will keep asking questions
about the reliability of your evidence.

METAPHORS FOR EVIDENCE

Good evidence

Not very good evidence

Solid

Weak

Hard

Flimsy

Bedrock foundation

Shaky

See for ourselves

Thin

Counts

EVIDENCE VS. REPORTS OF

EVIDENCE

REQUIREMENTS FOR EVIDENCE

Report Evidence Accurately
Be Appropriately Precise
Provide Sufficient, Representative, and
Authoritative Evidence

REPORT EVIDENCE ACCURATELY

Accuracy: make sure you report evidence without

making an error
Numbers

and data are accurate

Quotes are accurate
Bibliographic information is accurate

If you are inaccurate, readers will doubt your

entire claim
Sometimes you can

Use

weak evidence if you acknowledge that it is of

questionable origin
Gain reader confidence by rejecting evidence that
might seem to support your argument because you
doubt its accuracy

BE APPROPRIATELY PRECISE

Too much hedging can make the claim useless to

a reader
Example:

Alternative energy will significantly

increase costs to the economy.
Questions:

What types of alternative energy?

What do you mean by significant?
What costs will increase?
What parts of the economy will be affected and why?

Be

careful using vague language: some, most, many,

almost, often, usually, frequently, generally
The standards for precision vary by field:
paleontologists might measure time in millions of
years; subatomic physicists in nanoseconds

PROVIDE SUFFICIENT,
REPRESENTATIVE, AND
AUTHORITATIVE EVIDENCE

Sufficient
Is

there enough evidence to trust the reason?

One quote, fact, or number may not be enough to
prove a reason valid (but can disprove a claim)

Representative
Does

the evidence cover the range of cases or

situations that apply to the claim?
Example: opinion surveys of a city should include
people from all different parts and social classes of
the city
You must show that your evidence is representative

Authoritative
Is

the type of evidence accepted in the field of study?

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Booth, Wayne C., Gregory G. Colomb, and Joseph

M. Williams. The Craft of Research. 3rd ed.
Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2008.