#definition arguments

Now that you have established a definition that 

a) your audience is likely to accept 

and 

b) enables you to answer your question

it’s time to put that thing to use! 

Remembering that your essay will need to compare some specific item to a definition and show how that item does/does not meet its criteria, complete the following: 

1. Separate the definition into a list of bullet points. For example, in my previous post I referred to the Merriam-Webster definition of synthesis as “the combining of often diverse conceptions into a coherent whole.” So for this step, I would make my bullet list like this: 

combining 

diverse parts 

whole = coherent 

2. Take the item you are defining and match it against each of the items in the bullet list, identifying whether it does/does not meet the individual criterion (that’s the singular of “criteria”). Give your response to each item in the bullet list as a complete sentence. 

3. For each of the sentences you wrote in the previous step, write a short explanation (2-4 sentences) explaining your answer: How do we know you are right about this? (Examples are always good.) 

4. Look back at the sentences and explanations you have drafted so far; then, write a short (3-5 sentences) paragraph summing up how those explanations, taken together, prove that the item under discussion has met/not met the definition. 

This may be a good time to take a quick glance back at: 

https://en112-fall2020-mwf.tumblr.com/post/628784751016394752/definition-essay-pt-1

and 

https://en112-fall2020-mwf.tumblr.com/post/628785464993857537/definition-essay-pt-2

via GIPHY

For a definition argument to be effective, your readers will need to “buy into” your definition: 

They will need to accept it, or at least accept that it is a reasonable definition of the term in question. So, for instance, a definition argument that depended on a definition of “car” as “any wheeled vehicle” probably wouldn’t be very effective, as readers would likely reject the definition for being too broad (it would include bicycles, motorcycles, and potentially rollerskates).

In other words: 

The definition you offer needs to be reasonable, and you may want to provide readers with some evidence to show that it’s appropriate for use.

One way to deal with the problem of drafting the definition itself is to begin by citing a dictionary definition. It’s also frequently useful –– as you saw last week –– to compare multiple dictionary definitions in order to determine whether there is a general consensus on the meaning of a term, or if that meaning may actually be in dispute. THEREFORE, I want you to 

1. Choose any ONE of the questions you proposed in the previous step. 

2. Identify which term you will be defining in order to answer that question. 

3. Look up at least TWO dictionary definitions of that term, using standard collegiate-level dictionaries (so, Merriam-Webster or Harper-Collins or The Oxford English Dictionary –– not dictionary.com or wiktionary or any of the similar free dictionaries floating around online). 

4. Write a short paragraph explaining the differences between them, and provide your own synthesis to resolve any discrepancies in whatever way you consider most reasonable. 

Just as it can be useful to think of your definition argument in two main blocks –– one small block, which defines a term, and a second larger block, which explains how a specific item fits or does not fit that definition ––  it’s often useful to start your essay by attempting to answer some question that can reasonably be resolved by a sound definition argument. Policy questions often provide a good starting point.

Examples:

Should face coverings be required in all public spaces? (You’d need to define “public spaces.)

Should masks be mandatory at social gatherings? (You’d need to define “social gatherings” –– how many people, under what conditions?)

Should health insurance be required to cover mental health treatment? (You’d have to define “mental health treatment” –– is that prescription drugs, counseling, “self-care” days, something else?)

You can probably think of some others: in fact, you are required to do so! The first step in drafting your definition essay is to brainstorm a list of 3-5 questions similar to those I just gave you. They all need to be questions whose answer could reasonably be resolved with a sound definition readers would be likely to agree on.

ESSAY #1 – DEFINITION ARGUMENT | Fall 2020

The same textbook out of which I drew your Baldwin reading explains that in a definition argument, 

“you will argue that something fits (or does not fit) the definition of a particular class of terms. For example, to argue that Wikipedia is a legitimate research source, you have to define legitimate research source and then show that Wikipedia fits this definition” (Kirszner and Mandell 418). 

I always thought that was a little silly, mainly because we all know that this is a very inadequate definition of a definition argument: most of us will have no trouble at all in thinking of at least one other type, in which the writer argues that a definition currently in use is too broad or too narrow to be useful (for example, I just argued that the definition in that older textbook was too narrow). 

While the explanation provided above may not cover ALL the types of definition arguments, however, it does cover ONE type very well –– and that’s the type I want you to begin drafting today.

Your definition essay, therefore, needs to do TWO things:

propose a definition

identify some specific item or case and demonstrates how that item or case does (or does not) meet the criteria for the proposed definition

As I mentioned above, sometimes a definition argument may argue that some existing definition (already in use) is too narrow to be practical, or too broad to be helpful –– but while you might get to that point during revisions, I don’t want you to head there just yet!

What I want you to notice here is that your definition argument is going to have two parts: It defines a term, and it explains how a specific item fits/does not fit that term under the definition provided.

These two parts are not equal in length: your definition should not be as long as your explanation of why some specific item fits/doesn’t fit. However, for many students it’s useful to think of the essay in these two “blocks.”