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Argument and Persuasion: Find Books

This Library Guide focuses on persuasive writing, or argument. While some of the contents may pertain to spoken rhetoric (debate/speech), the emphasis is on written rhetoric such as papers frequently assigned in freshman composition classes.

Page Overview

This page lists some books about argument and persuasion as well as subject headings under which more books might be found.  It also presents two philosophical pyramids related to argument and persuasion.

Library of Congress Classifications and Subject Headings

There is no discrete subject heading for Argument and Persuasion (A&P) in the Library of Congress Subject Headings.  However, small shelf-browsing ranges can be found at Library of Congress book classification P301, as well as the ranges PE1431 and PN171.4 - PN229, all on the Library's sixth floor.  Useable headings for library online catalog Subject searches are

Debates and debating.
Forensics (Public speaking)
Logic.
Oratory.
Reasoning.
Syllogism
Verbal self-defense
 

Critical Thinking

English Language -- Rhetoric -- Handbooks, manuals, etc.

Fallacies (Logic)

Induction (Logic)

Persuasion (Rhetoric)
 
Persuasion (Rhetoric) -- Handbooks, manuals, etc.
 
Pros and Cons
 
Reasoning
 
 
 
 

 

The Hierarchy of Argument

Grahams_Hierarchy_of_Disagreement1-449x337

Source: https://gahunde.org/2017/07/30/learn-how-to-disagree/

The source url provides useful commentary for interpreting the pyramid.  Basically, the closer your own (counter)arguments correspond to the lower tiers of the pyramid, the weaker they are. 

 

The Knowledge Hierarchy

 

Source: sentineleffect.wordpress.com

From bottom to top, the pyramid very closely mimics the progress of a deductive argument, from examination of individual cases (data) through processing the data to obtain information and knowledge, which in turn help formulate the inductive generalization at the top of the pyramid.

Selection of Circulating Books

The splay of call numbers in the list of books below confirms that there is nothing that could be called an "argument section" in the Library of Congress classification.  Probably the best way to supplement this list of books would be to examine the books shelved near them in the Houston Cole Library stacks or to look on the backs of the title page to review the subject headings assigned to these books.