RLA Analyzing Argument Structure 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which of the following best describes the difference between a fact and an opinion in argumentative writing?
- Facts are always longer and more detailed than opinions
- Facts can be verified through evidence; opinions express personal judgments or beliefs (Correct answer)
- Opinions are found only in persuasive essays, not in arguments
- Facts require a citation; opinions do not need any support
Correct answer: Facts can be verified through evidence; opinions express personal judgments or beliefs
Facts are objective statements verifiable through evidence or observation, while opinions reflect personal judgments that may or may not be supported by evidence.
Question 2: A speaker says: 'You should trust my health advice because I've been sick many times.' Why is this reasoning weak?
- Personal experience is never valid evidence
- Being sick does not establish medical expertise relevant to giving health advice (Correct answer)
- The speaker should have used statistics instead
- Health advice always requires a written source
Correct answer: Being sick does not establish medical expertise relevant to giving health advice
Personal experience with illness does not constitute medical expertise, so this appeal to authority fails because the claimed authority is irrelevant to giving sound health advice.
Question 3: Which paragraph structure best supports a well-organized argumentative body paragraph?
- Hook, story, conclusion, evidence
- Claim, evidence, analysis, transition (Correct answer)
- Counterargument, rebuttal, hook, claim
- Evidence, question, anecdote, opinion
Correct answer: Claim, evidence, analysis, transition
A strong body paragraph states a claim, supports it with evidence, analyzes how the evidence supports the claim, and transitions to the next idea.
Question 4: An author writes: 'Everyone agrees that social media is harmful to teens.' What is the weakness in this statement?
- It does not mention which social media platforms
- It uses an unsupported universal claim that dismisses disagreement (Correct answer)
- It is too short to be an effective argument opener
- It focuses on teens rather than all age groups
Correct answer: It uses an unsupported universal claim that dismisses disagreement
Saying 'everyone agrees' is a sweeping generalization that ignores genuine debate and research on both sides of the social media and teen wellbeing discussion.
Question 5: In the context of argumentation, what does 'burden of proof' mean?
- The requirement that arguments be written in formal language
- The obligation of the person making a claim to provide evidence supporting it (Correct answer)
- The standard that evidence must meet to be published
- The need for both sides to present equal amounts of data
Correct answer: The obligation of the person making a claim to provide evidence supporting it
Burden of proof means the party making an assertion is responsible for providing sufficient evidence to support it rather than requiring others to disprove it.
Question 6: A politician argues: 'If we allow same-day voter registration, next they'll want to let anyone vote, including non-citizens.' This is an example of:
- A valid slippery slope supported by evidence
- A slippery slope fallacy — assuming one change inevitably leads to extreme outcomes (Correct answer)
- A sound analogy between two similar policies
- An appeal to tradition
Correct answer: A slippery slope fallacy — assuming one change inevitably leads to extreme outcomes
A slippery slope fallacy assumes that one action will inevitably lead to a chain of increasingly extreme consequences without evidence that such a chain is likely.
Question 7: When evaluating sources in an argument, which factor most directly affects the reliability of the evidence?
- The length of the source document
- The credentials of the author and the peer-review status of the publication (Correct answer)
- Whether the source agrees with the author's thesis
- The date the source was accessed online
Correct answer: The credentials of the author and the peer-review status of the publication
Author credentials and peer review are primary indicators of source reliability because they reflect expertise and independent verification of the information.
RLA Analyzing Argument Structure 3
Which of the following best describes the difference between a fact and an opinion in argumentative writing?