Finding the
Conclusion
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The conclusion of
an argumentative piece of writing (or speech) is the claim that the author
intends for you to accept on the basis of the reasoning that has been
given. It is the central point, or the
proposition that all of the other claims support. Recall that a successful argument is supposed
to be a set of claims, reasons, or premises that are true, and when they are
taken jointly, they logically imply the truth of the conclusion. So accepting the premises will also require
us to accept the conclusion as true.
There many be
several points being made, or there may appear to be several arguments for
different conclusions. If the piece is
composed well, those subordinate arguments will lend support to the final,
central thesis. It may help to ask, “which
of the claims being argued for is the broadest in scope or the most
general?” That will often reveal the
central thesis.
How does one find
the conclusion in a piece of argumentative writing? Three suggestions:
1. Innate sense—In general, our innate sense of
the main point is a pretty reliable guide to the conclusion. Read all of the claims carefully and ask
yourself, “what is the central claim being made here? What is the main point that the author wants
me to accept?
2. Conclusion Indicators—There are a number of
explicit terms that we use to indicate that a conclusion follows from some
reasoning. They can be obvious
3. Logical Structure—We have been studying
formalized arguments that have valid or cogent structures. If a passage contains claims that can be
represented at “If P then Q,” and “Q,” and “P,” for instance, the obvious
conclusion that could follow from what the author has said is “Q” from the
premises “If P then Q,” and “P.” If we
interpret the conclusion as “P,” in this case, we would be attributing an
invalid, and poor argument to the author.
If the author makes that sort of egregious logical mistake, and it is
clear that she does in the passage, then that is her mistake and you must take
her at her word. (Your first criticism
of the reconstructed argument should be that it is invalid, so the conclusion
does not follow from the premises even if they were true.) But if the athor is being careful, and we are
being charitable, attribute a valid argument to them if it is consistent with
what is in the passage, all other things being equal. That is, get a sense of what the logical
structure of the argument is, and that can help you identify the conclusion, if
other methods fail.
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