counterargument and refutation
counterargument and refutation
Counterargument and Refutation: Practice
1. Pretend you are writing an essay in favor of al
lowing smoking on campus.
You think
students should be allowed to smoke on campus. To m
ake your argument, you need to
defeat the arguments of people who hold the opposit
e view (the counterargument). Your
thesis is “Smoking should be allowed on campus.”
Thesis: Smoking should be allowed on campus.
Counterargument: Some people say that smoking shou
ld NOT be allowed on campus
because____________________________________________
_________
Refutation: (Think of an argument that will destro
y the counterargument above.)
___________________________________________________
_____________________
___________________________________________________
_____________________
___________________________________________________
_____________________
___________________________________________________
_____________________
2. Pretend you are writing an essay in favor of al
lowing students to use iPhones in class.
You think students should be allowed to use their i
Phones in class. To make your
argument, you need to defeat the arguments of the p
eople who hold the opposite view
(the counterargument). Your thesis is “Students sh
ould be allowed to use iPhones in
class.
Thesis
: Students should be allowed to use their iPhones
in class.
Counterargument #1
: Some people say that students should NOT be allow
ed to use
their iPhones in class because_____________________
___________________________
Refutation
: (Think of an argument that will destroy the coun
terargument above.)
___________________________________________________
_____________________
___________________________________________________
_____________________
___________________________________________________
_____________________
___________________________________________________
_____________________
Counterargument #2
: Yet other people say that students should NOT be
allowed to use
their iPhones in class because_____________________
___________________________
Refutation
: (Think of an argument that will destroy the coun
terargument above.)
___________________________________________________
_________________