ShmoopTube

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[Dino and Coop singing]

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Believe it or not, arguing is often a good thing! [Two people arguing]

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And please, don't argue us on this.

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But whether it's a debate between politicians... [Hilary Clinton and Donald Trump arguing]

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…or a lively dinner discussion about philosophy and the meaning of life...

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…or a fight over which toppings to put on your pizza... [Kids arguing about pizza toppings]

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…arguing can be pretty useful.

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But in order to be an effective debater, you need to make sure you've got your claims in [Woman with an enormous pile of paper in her office]

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order.

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Claims, not clams.

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We moved on from the pizza topping thing, c'mon, guys… [Girl with a tin of baby clams]

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Claims are the main points that a writer or a speaker makes in an argument. [Coop pointing at a blackboard]

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And they're stronger than simple opinions.

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See, if you were arguing about, say, what the very best Disney movie was...an opinion [Two people arguing in front of the Disney castle]

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would simply be saying something like, “Frozen is the best Disney movie ever because it has [Girl holding a toy Olaf]

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a talking snowman!”

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Well…talking snowman or not, that argument isn't all that convincing, because there's [Olaf rolling down a hill]

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no facts or research involved – it's just an opinion, nothing more.

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A claim is more formal.

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It's a statement based on research or knowledge, and can be effectively used to convince other [Dino pointing at a blackboard]

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people of your position.

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For instance, if you said something like, “Frozen was one of Disney's strongest movies,

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because to date, it's the highest grossing Disney movie ever made, with a worldwide gross

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of $1,287,000.” [Woman presenting her claim]

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See how this claim includes research to back it up? [Boy using a laptop]

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That's much more effective than a simple opinion.

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In order to argue effectively, you need to back up your claims with evidence. [Dino pointing at a blackboard]

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Think of evidence like a brick wall you're building around your claim. [Brick wall appearing]

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It's tough to knock the wall down and get to the claim if the bricks are super strong [Man trying to knock the wall down with a hammer]

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and sturdy!

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But…you also need to recognize the counterclaims.

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No!

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Counterclaims, not counterclams! [Girl saying clam pizza is the best]

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Seriously, no more pizza stuff!

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Anyway!

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Counterclaims are all the claims that could be made by someone who disagrees with you. [Coop pointing at a blackboard]

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Basically, they'll try and oppose your claim.

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And if you want to be well prepared for a debate, you need to try and recognize these [Tough looking guys wearing counterclaim shirts walk in]

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bad boys before the debate starts.

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And the most effective way to do this is to research, research, research.

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If you have lots of facts and information on your side, you can use them to shoot down [Dino pointing at a blackboard]

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your opponent's counterclaims and make them look weak.

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By preparing your claims and trying to figure out how to shoot down any counterclaims, you [Girl giving a pep talk to her claims]

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can argue like a pro.

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And you know what that means?

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No more gross mushrooms on a delivery pizza ever again. [Guy looks annoyed]

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Clam city, baby.

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Clam city.

Full Transcript