| Preface | p. ix |
| Introduction | p. xi |
| Composing a Short Argument: Some General Rules | p. 1 |
| Distinguish premises and conclusion | p. 1 |
| Present your ideas in a natural order | p. 3 |
| Start from reliable premises | p. 4 |
| Be concrete and concise | p. 5 |
| Avoid loaded language | p. 6 |
| Use consistent terms | p. 7 |
| Stick to one meaning for each term | p. 8 |
| Arguments by Example | p. 10 |
| Give more than one example | p. 11 |
| Use representative examples | p. 12 |
| Background information is crucial | p. 14 |
| Consider counterexamples | p. 17 |
| Arguments by Analogy | p. 19 |
| Analogy requires a relevantly similar example | p. 21 |
| Arguments from Authority | p. 24 |
| Sources should be cited | p. 25 |
| Seek informed sources | p. 26 |
| Seek impartial sources | p. 28 |
| Cross-check sources | p. 30 |
| Personal attacks do not disqualify a source | p. 30 |
| Arguments about Causes | p. 32 |
| Explain how cause leads to effect | p. 33 |
| Propose the most likely cause | p. 35 |
| Correlated events are not necessarily related | p. 36 |
| Correlated events may have a common cause | p. 36 |
| Either of two correlated events may cause the other | p. 38 |
| Causes may be complex | p. 38 |
| Deductive Arguments | p. 40 |
| Modus Ponens | p. 41 |
| Modus Tollens | p. 42 |
| Hypothetical Syllogism | p. 44 |
| Disjunctive Syllogism | p. 46 |
| Dilemma | p. 47 |
| Reductio ad absurdum | p. 48 |
| Deductive arguments in several steps | p. 50 |
| Composing an Argumentative Essay | |
| Exploring the Issue | p. 53 |
| Explore the arguments on all sides of the issue | p. 54 |
| Question and defend each argument's premises | p. 56 |
| Revise and rethink arguments as they emerge | p. 57 |
| Composing an Argumentative Essay | |
| Main Points of the Essay | p. 59 |
| Explain the question | p. 59 |
| Make a definite claim or proposal | p. 60 |
| Develop your arguments fully | p. 61 |
| Consider objections | p. 62 |
| Consider alternatives | p. 63 |
| Composing an Argumentative Essay | |
| Writing | p. 64 |
| Follow your outline | p. 64 |
| Keep the introduction brief | p. 65 |
| Give your arguments one at a time | p. 65 |
| Clarify, clarify, clarify | p. 67 |
| Support objections with arguments | p. 68 |
| Don't claim more than you have shown | p. 69 |
| Fallacies | p. 71 |
| The Two Great Fallacies | p. 71 |
| Some Classical Fallacies | p. 73 |
| Definition | p. 79 |
| When terms are unclear, get specific | p. 80 |
| When terms are contested, work from the clear cases | p. 82 |
| Don't expect definitions to do the work of arguments | p. 84 |
| Next Steps | p. 86 |
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