This course offers an introduction to Argumentation Theory. Students will gain an overview of contemporary philosophical studies addressing questions such as ‘what is an argument?’, ‘what is the point of argumentation?’, ‘how should we argue?’, and ‘how do we evaluate arguments?’. The course is structured in three parts. Part I ‘The concept of argument’ surveys definitions of ‘argument’ in terms of their logical structure, dialectical function, and rhetorical power. Part II ‘Argumentation theories’ studies different methodological approaches to argumentation featuring topics such as argument schemes and formal and informal fallacies. Part III ‘Argumentation studies’ examines contemporary research in Argumentation Theory, regarding topics such as the differences between adversarial and cooperative argumentation, the principle of charity in argument reconstruction, the ethics of argumentation, and presumptions and the burden of proof in argumentation.
Poslední úprava: Domínguez Armas Álvaro, Dr. (25.08.2026)
Podmínky zakončení předmětu - angličtina
The final grade will be based on (1) active participation (10%), (2) a mid-term written exam (30%), and (3) a written exam at the end of the semester (60%). Active participation includes mandatory attendance (a maximum of three absences), completing the preparatory readings, and participating in seminar discussions. The mid-term written exam will consist of multiple-choice questions and a short essay. The final exam will consist of open questions that will test students’ knowledge of the concepts and theories discussed during the course.
Poslední úprava: Domínguez Armas Álvaro, Dr. (26.08.2026)
Literatura - angličtina
There are necessary, recommended and additional readings for this class. The texts listed below in bold are necessary readings, the texts which are not in bold are recommended readings. The list of readings is to be found on Moodle and will be further adapted during the semester.
Aikin, Scott, Casey, John, Stevens, Katharina (eds.) (2025) The Routledge Handbook of Argumentation Theory, Routledge.
Eemeren, Frans H. van, Bart Garssen, Erik C. W. Krabbe, A. Francisca Snoeck Henkemans, Bart Verheij, and Jean H. M. Wagemans (eds.) (2014) Handbook of Argumentation Theory, Springer.
Casey, John (2020) Adversariality and Argumentation, Informal Logic, 40(1): 77–108.
Hamblin, Charles L. (1970) Fallacies, Methuen & Co.
Macagno, F., Walton, D., & Reed, C. (2018). Argumentation Schemes, in Baroni, P., Gabbay, D., Giacomin, M., and van der Torre, L. (eds.) Handbook of formal argumentation (pp. 519–576), College Publications.
Mohammed, Dima (2016) Goals in Argumentation: A Proposal for the Analysis and Evaluation of Public Political Arguments, Argumentation, 30(3): 221–245.
Olmos, Paula (ed.) (2017) Narration as Argument, Springer.
Tanesini, Alessandra (2020) Arrogance, Polarisation and Arguing to Win, in Tanesini, A. and Lynch, M. (eds.)Polarisation, Arrogance, and Dogmatism: Philosophical Perspectives (pp. 158–174), Routledge.
Tindale, Christopher (2021) The Anthropology of Argument: Cultural Foundations of Rhetoric and Reason, Routledge.
Toulmin, Stephen E. [1958] (2003), The Uses of Argument, Cambridge University Press.
Walton, Douglas N. (1996), Argument Schemes for Presumptive Reasoning, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Walton, Douglas N., Reed, C. and Macagno, F. (2008), Argumentation Schemes, Cambridge University Press.
Wenzel, Joseph, W. (1990) Three perspectives on argument: Rhetoric, Dialectic, Logic, in Trapp, R., & Schuetz, J. Perspectives on Argumentation (pp. 9–26), Waveland Press.
Poslední úprava: Domínguez Armas Álvaro, Dr. (26.08.2026)
