Argumentation techniques: rational, factual and authoritative arguments.

The Three Ways to Strengthen a Message

To strengthen the opinion we defend or to effectively refute an opposing idea, there are three fundamental argumentation techniques.

These techniques are differentiated by the type of arguments used in the body of the presentation to support the main thesis.

They are rational arguments, which appeal to shared logic; factual arguments, which are based on tangible evidence; and authoritative arguments, which rely on the prestige of an expert.

Mastering these three avenues allows us to build a much more solid, convincing and difficult to refute discourse.

Rational Arguments: Logic and Accepted Truths

Rational arguments are those based on ideas and truths admitted and accepted by society as a whole. Their power lies in the fact that they connect with the common sense of the audience.

Often, they are presented through cause-consequence relationships, where a cause is stated and a conclusion is presented that seems a logical and natural consequence of it.

Another form of rational argument is analogy or similarity, which establishes a parallel between two situations.

A classic example of this is the use of stories, fables or morals, since these stories, deeply rooted in popular culture, convey a teaching that is accepted as a universal truth, thus serving as a powerful rational argument.

Arguments of Fact: The Power of Observable Evidence

Factual arguments are those that are based on observable evidence and data that can be verified, giving them great strength. They can be presented in three main ways:

Objective data: they consist of presenting figures or statistics that support the thesis. For example, to defend the idea that "it has rained very little this year", a factual argument would be: "the reservoirs are at one third of their capacity".

Concrete examples: It is a matter of illustrating the thesis with specific cases that validate it. For example, for the thesis "most developed countries make use of their waste", one could use as arguments: "Germany has been recycling its waste paper for many years" or "Japan manufactures plastic objects from used plastic".

Personal experience: Using one's own experience as an argument can be very powerful, as it positions us as a source of direct knowledge.

For example, to state that "the writing of a text topic is difficult", an argument based on experience would be: "I have corrected hundreds of exercises and very few of them are well written".

Arguments of Authority: Relying on the Prestige of the Expert

Arguments of authority are based on citing the opinion of experts or people of recognized prestige in the field to reinforce our idea.

This technique has a dual purpose: on the one hand, it reinforces our thesis by associating it with a respected figure; on the other hand, it serves to pre-empt possible counter-arguments, since any objection would have to face not only our opinion, but also that of the cited authority.