FUNCTION OF LANGUAGE?Words Value Claim?

E.g.The death penalty, which is legal in

thirty-six states, has been carried out most often in Georgia; however, since 1977 Texas holds the record for the greatest number of executions. (INFORMATION/cognitive meaning)

The death penalty is a cruel and inhuman form of punishment in which hapless prisoners are dragged from their cells and summarily slaughtered only to satiate the bloodlust of a vengeful public. (FEELINGS/ emotive meaning)

LANGUAGE: MEANING & DEFINITION

Determining value claim:Appearance of supporting

evidence:claim that something is good or

bad

Too much attached with emotive terminologies?emotion (“cloths” factual claim)

E.g.“harvest”

Farmers Surgeons Loggers

“sargo”Billiards

Pursue “boljakin” “shoot”

PROBLEM:

make value claims about the subject matter: without providing evidence.

tends to crush potential counterargumentsFunction of counterarguments?

E.g. Now that we know that the rocks on the

moon are similar to those in our backyard and that tadpoles can exist in a weightless environment, and now that we have put the rest of the world in order, can we concentrate on the problems here at home? Like what makes people hungry and why is unemployment so elusive?

FACTUAL MESSAGE? (SEATWORK)

EMOTIVE ARGUMENTS

Now that we know that the rocks on the moon are similar to those in our backyard and that tadpoles can exist in a weightless environment, and now that we have put the rest of the world in order, can we concentrate on the problems here at home? Like what makes people hungry and why is unemployment so elusive?

HOW TO SPOT AN EMOTIVE ARGUMENT?

ARE THEY DEFECTIVE?

MISLEADING/ NOT DIRECT TO THE POINT

COGNITIVE ARGUMENTS BECOME DEFECTIVE

VAGUE TERM AMBIGUOUS TERM

CONCEPT’S EXTENSION IS UNCLEAR

TERM NEEDS A PRECISE DEFINITION

PRECISE DEFINITION SHOULD ANSWER THE

DEMANDED SITUATION/ CONTEXT

TERM USED HAS A WIDE RANGE OF

INTERPRETATION (ARBITRARY)

E.G. “FRESH”

HOW FRESH DOES SOMETHING HAVE TO BE IN ORDER TO BE CALLED

“FRESH”?

E.g.‘‘Today our job situation is

more transparent.’’First, what is the meaning of ‘‘job

situation’’? Does it refer to finding a job, keeping a

job, filling a job, completing a job, or bidding on a job?

And what exactly does it mean for a job situation to be ‘‘transparent’’? Does it mean that the job is more easily

perceived or comprehended? That the job is more easily completed? That we can anticipate our future job needs more clearly? Or what else?

Trouble?A word is not sufficiently precise for

what the situation demands.

VAGUE STATEMENTS

MEANING OF A TERM CANNOT BE DEFINITELY RESOLVED ACCORDING

TO A PROCESS OR A RULE

2 OR MORE CLEARLY DISTINCT MEANINGS IN A GIVEN CONTEXT

LIGHT BEER?

LIGHT IN COLOR

LIGHT IN CALORIES

LIGHT IN TASTE

MORALLY?

SOCIALLY?

E.g. A newspaper headline that

read, ‘‘Tuna are biting off the Washington coast.’’Does this mean that the tuna

are nibbling away at the coastline or that fishermen are catching them off the coast?

‘‘College students are turning to vegetables.’’ Does this mean that the

students are metamorphosing into vegetables or that they are incorporating more vegetables into their diet?

AMBIGUOUS STATEMENTS

VAGUE AMBIGUOUS

Applicability of a word in the demand of a given situation

an expression is vague if there are borderline cases in which it is impossible to tell if the word applies or does not apply.

Context/ situation is given: word may have multiple meanings

-allows for multiple discrete (disconnected/ distinct/ separate) interpretations

Allows for a relatively continuous range of interpretations

Interpretation: produces several contexts

imprecise meaning

-there is a blur ofmeaning

mix-up of otherwise clear meanings

e.g.“love”“fresh”“transparent”“job situation”

e.g.“light beer”“proper action”“tuna: biting off”“students: turning to vegetables”

2 INDIVIDUALS IN CONFLICT BECAUSE OF AN ARGUMENT Vague & ambiguous E.g.

CLAUDIA: Mrs.Wilson abuses her children. And how do I know that? I saw her spank one of her kids the other day after the kid misbehaved.

JANE: Don’t be silly. Kids need discipline, and by disciplining her children, Mrs.Wilson is showing that she loves them.Here the problem surrounds

the vagueness of the words ‘‘abuse’’ and ‘‘discipline.’’

VERBAL DISPUTES

BRENDA: I’m afraid that Smiley is guilty of arson. Last night he confided to me that he was the one who set fire to the old schoolhouse.

WARREN: No, you couldn’t be more mistaken. In this country no one is guilty until proven so in a court of law, and Smiley has not yet even been accused of anything.In this case the dispute

arises over the ambiguity of the word ‘‘guilty.’’Brenda is using the word in

the moral sense.Warren, on the other hand, is

using the word in the legal sense

Disputes: meaning of language verbal disputes: vague or

ambiguous Disputes: disagreement about facts

factual disputes.HOW TRUE THE CLAIM IS? TERMS

ARE CLEAR. E.g.

KIT: I know that Freddie stole a computer from the old schoolhouse. Barbara told me that she saw Freddie do it.

NARDO: That’s ridiculous! Freddie has never stolen anything in his life. Barbara hates Freddie, and she is trying to pin the theft on him only to shield her criminal boyfriend.

FACTUAL DISPUTES