Many arguments combine one or more of the methods just described. This is especially true as one proceeds down the list: Comparing and contrasting two things, for instance, requires that each of them be well defined; making an informed judgment about American foreign poliy in the Middle East would require a narrative summary of key events and decisions leading to the moment being studied.
Or s uppose you're writing an essay on how American cities changed over the course of the 20th century. You're likely to find it useful to combine definition, analysis and narration. Analysis would allow you to break the complex concept "city" into several categories to be considered separately （for instance, demographics, economy, architecture, infrastructure, politics, and the environment）. Each of these categories would require definition, of course. A narrative order would then allow you to treat each of the categories in a natural progression, showing changes over time.
You would still have to decide how to fit these methods of development into a single essay, of course. Should each category be presented separately, or should the argument follow a mainly chronological organization with each category treated serially, for instance decade by decade or era by era? It's easy to see that these definitions would come first—but all together at the very beginning, or each definition coming when that category is discussed? There's no automatically right answer to these questions, but this kind of high-level thinking （how to organize analysis, definition, and narration） will produce a much better essay than simply wading into a discussion with no particular method in mind.
We've looked at some basics of how arguments work. A last word of advice before we move on: The essence of good college thinking is not partisanship but rationality. As you construct arguments, don't just try to "win," but to carry yourself as a fair-minded and reasonable thinker. Realize that not all of your readers will agree with you—in fact, those are the readers you're really writing for. Look for objections to your argument, consider them reasonably, and do a fair job of presenting them.
Building arguments cannot be neatly separated from writing papers. You'll find more help on building strong arguments all throughout Nuts and Bolts—help with words and sentences in Style, help with larger units in Structure, and help with gathering and using source material in Evidence.
Or s uppose you're writing an essay on how American cities changed over the course of the 20th century. You're likely to find it useful to combine definition, analysis and narration. Analysis would allow you to break the complex concept "city" into several categories to be considered separately （for instance, demographics, economy, architecture, infrastructure, politics, and the environment）. Each of these categories would require definition, of course. A narrative order would then allow you to treat each of the categories in a natural progression, showing changes over time.
You would still have to decide how to fit these methods of development into a single essay, of course. Should each category be presented separately, or should the argument follow a mainly chronological organization with each category treated serially, for instance decade by decade or era by era? It's easy to see that these definitions would come first—but all together at the very beginning, or each definition coming when that category is discussed? There's no automatically right answer to these questions, but this kind of high-level thinking （how to organize analysis, definition, and narration） will produce a much better essay than simply wading into a discussion with no particular method in mind.
We've looked at some basics of how arguments work. A last word of advice before we move on: The essence of good college thinking is not partisanship but rationality. As you construct arguments, don't just try to "win," but to carry yourself as a fair-minded and reasonable thinker. Realize that not all of your readers will agree with you—in fact, those are the readers you're really writing for. Look for objections to your argument, consider them reasonably, and do a fair job of presenting them.
Building arguments cannot be neatly separated from writing papers. You'll find more help on building strong arguments all throughout Nuts and Bolts—help with words and sentences in Style, help with larger units in Structure, and help with gathering and using source material in Evidence.