Ebook: The New Dialectic. Conversational Contexts of Argument

Because developments in informal logic have been based, for the most
part, on idealized and abstract models, the tools available for argument
analysis are not easily adapted to the needs of everyday argumentation
In this book Douglas Walton proposes a new and practical approach
to argument analysis based on his theory that different standards for
argument must apply in the case of different types of dialogue
By refining and extending the existing formal classifications of dialogue,
Walton shows that each dialogue type, be it inquiry, negotiation,
or critical discussion, has its own set of goals He goes on to demonstrate
that an argument can best be evaluated m terms of its contribution,
positive or negative, to the goals of the particular dialogue it is
meant to further In this way he illustrates how argument can be
brought into the service of many types of dialogue, and thus has
valuable uses that go well beyond the mere settling of disputes and
differences
By reaching back to the Aristotelian roots of logic as an applied,
practical discipline and by formulating a new framework of rationality
for evaluating arguments, Douglas Walton restores a much-needed
balance to argument analysis This book complements and extends his
Argument Structure A Pragmatic Theory