Do explanation sentences in an argument offer support?

Comments

• Chris Nguyen Alum Member Administrator Sage ⭐ 7Sage Tutor

  June 2020 4598 karma

  Interesting question. Yes, that sentence gives an explanation, but isn't that explanation also a conditional statement that supports your conclusion? So yes, an explanation can offer support. But I don't think it has to in all cases.

  Whether or not an explanation offers support depends on what the sentence is actually explaining. In the argument above, I think you mislabeled your 3rd sentence. I don't think the third sentence is an explanation of premise 1. An explanation of premise 1 would be something like "global temperatures are rising because of increasing carbon emissions". It would explain why global temperatures are rising. Rather, the third sentence helps explain, or make clear why global warming is real. Therefore supporting the conclusion.

  So what the explanation is explaining depends on whether or not such explanation offers support. Hope this helps!
• jeff.wongkachi Member

  June 2020 edited June 2020 410 karma

  I think I've seen something super similar in a recent preptest, and when asked about that specific argument part the answer choice is something like "It is offered as support for the premise that is in turn used to support the overall conclusion of the argument" or something like "It is a statement that helps to explain an idea that is used to infer the only conclusion of the argument". A more realistic stimulus might look something like this:

  Science Magazine: Despite what some scientists think, global warming is real. This is because global temperatures are rising, and global temperatures rising means that a global phenomenon such as global warming must be occurring.

  If we were to ask What role does "global temperatures rising means that a global phenomenon such as global warming must be occurring" play in the Science Magazine's argument?

  The trap answer would be something like "It is offered as direct support for the conclusion." But it by itself does not help the conclusion. (Test it by asking why global warming is real, then stick in the italicized part.

  It only makes sense in context with the premise. "Since global temperatures rising means that a global phenomenon such as global warming must be occurring, and global temperatures ARE rising, therefore global warming is real."
• Markmark Alum Member

  June 2020 976 karma

  @Christopherr
  Ya you made a better example sentence than I did. So if an explanation sentence is just explaining a premise this sometimes does and sometimes doesn't provide support for the premise? If it does sometimes then the premise would be an intermediate conclusion which is a big deal for argument structure
• 1 Like

  Markmark Alum Member

  June 2020 976 karma

  @jeff.wongkachi
  Ya I agree with your example and explanation. You're saying in the case you provided the italicized sentence is an explanation for the premise but the italicized sentence does NOT offer support for the main conclusion right?
  Would you say the argument structure is just C, P, explanation, or would it be C, intermediate conclusion, explanation?
• jeff.wongkachi Member

  June 2020 410 karma

  @Markmark said:
  @jeff.wongkachi
  Ya I agree with your example and explanation. You're saying in the case you provided the italicized sentence is an explanation for the premise but the italicized sentence does NOT offer support for the main conclusion right?
  Would you say the argument structure is just C, P, explanation, or would it be C, intermediate conclusion, explanation?

  I would say C, P, Explanation. Doesn't match intermediate conclusion because it doesn't pass the therefore test:

  global temperatures rising means that a global phenomenon such as global warming must be occurring, therefore global temperatures are rising.

  Doesn't really make much sense. It's additional detail added onto a fact.

  Hope this helps! Sorry I didn't reply sooner, for some reason I didn't get any notifications that I was pinged or that there was movement in this topic.