Keywords Argumentative Writing Essentials Dichotomy Comparative Dialectical Analysis
Everything has two sides, just as every piece of paper has two sides. Life itself has two opposing aspects: right and wrong, more and less, fast and slow, success and failure, advance and retreat, life and death, exercise and rest, fashion and tradition, and so on. Things themselves have two opposing aspects: positive and negative, dynamic and static, subjective and secondary, heavy and light, inside and outside, exterior and interior, advantages and disadvantages, example and so on. When people know life, things and themselves, they also have two opposing thoughts and attitudes: merits and demerits, sharing weal and woe, happiness and sorrow, bitterness and sweetness, criticism and inheritance, attention and contempt, contentment and dissatisfaction, gain and abandonment, and so on. Therefore, writing argumentative essays often requires dialectical analysis and discussion from two relative aspects. This requires mastering the discussion mode of "dichotomy and dialectical analysis".
The basic idea of "binary contrast" type: (1) Introduction paragraph: Explain the concept, or summarize the phenomena and problems, or quote famous sayings to lead to the central argument. Note: Interpretation, summary and elicitation should reflect or contain two aspects of comparison. (2) Discussion paragraph: Establish the argument from two aspects of comparison; Then choose the argument around the sub-argument to discuss. There are two ways to establish an argument: positive and negative comparison and correlation comparison. Discussion mode: combination of narration and discussion, summary and analysis. (3) Conclusion: Summarize some contents and viewpoints, further emphasize the central argument, and put forward hopes and suggestions. There are two keys to the application of "dichotomy and comparison": dialectical analysis of concepts and viewpoints; Make clear what you want to clarify.
"Dialectical analysis" is the requirement of exposition and expression: first, dialectically establish arguments and sub-arguments, and dialectically demonstrate; Second, we should emphasize the central argument, sub-argument and argumentative argument, especially before and after the factual argument and after quoting famous sayings and aphorisms. In the analysis and discussion, we should not only pay attention to dialectics, but also reflect the center, which is persuasive and infectious.
Example display
Success or failure is due to common sense.
Looking back at the historical starry sky, there are many stories in ancient and modern times. Some achievements are kings, while others are defeats. How many heroes, with the river rolling east. Looking back suddenly, I feel that success or failure is due to common sense.
Starting from "looking back at history", closely following "common sense" leads to the full-text argument that "success or failure is due to common sense". The introduction is concise and clear; There are obviously two aspects to this view. ]
Turning over the yellowing history, we can see the lonely soul defeated by common sense.
[Grasping "Being defeated by common sense" to establish a sub-argument. ]
The lights of Weiyang Palace are unknown, and the waves on the banks of Wujiang River are monstrous. Shi Gong's music has become a memory, but the waves are very big and the music is ugly. His heart has settled in all directions. "When will the recruiter leave?" Yes! When will it be returned? Eight thousand Chu Shi died in Jiangbei, and he was the only one. How does he go back to Chu? How to face the expectations of fellow villagers? He just bent down and took a sip of the river he cared about, and then spilled his blood on the bloody beach.
I can't help but sigh: "Life is a hero, and death is a ghost hero." And think about it, isn't it common sense that the overlord of Chu is dead? He neglected the most basic common sense ―― staying in the green hills is not afraid of burning without firewood. So, life was reduced to ashes in his hands. If he keeps this common sense in mind, ten years later, he will make a comeback, and the revenge of eight thousand brothers will realize the hope of millions of Chu people.
[Summarize the historical facts of Xiang Yu's suicide in Wujiang River, add the method of association and hypothesis analysis, and discuss it with typical arguments, sufficient arguments and strong persuasiveness. ]
Not only Xiang Yu, but also Yue Fei, who was loyal to the country, died of so-called common sense. "Your orders are inviolable." "You want me to die, I have to die." It was common sense at that time that killed him.
[Give another example of Yue Fei, which is fully discussed. The above example is detailed, this example is omitted, and the use case is reasonable. ]
Walking into the flowing words, I saw the winner who had become common sense shining.
[Then establish an argument from "common sense". ]
At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Zhuge Liang went out of Longzhong to assist Liu Bei, and helped Liu Bang to establish Shu in difficulties and obstacles, which eventually became a three-point world. And his success lies in making good use of common sense.
When the river is foggy, if an unknown fleet approaches, they dare not fight and can only shoot through the enemy with arrows. This is military common sense and wisdom. Zhuge Liang used this common sense to harvest 100,000 arrows in one fell swoop, so that Sun Liu's allied forces defeated Cao Cao and won a great victory in Chibi.
The gate is wide open, and there are no soldiers in the city. You must think there is an ambush in the city, and you dare not go near it. This is common sense, but it is also the key to success or failure. Zhuge Liang took advantage of this and retired from the city by playing the piano. A little common sense made Zhuge Liang an invincible king.
【 Summarize the allusions of Zhuge Liang's straw boat borrowing arrows, and discuss them with analytical methods. The argument is typical and convincing. ]
After eight years of Anti-Japanese War, the heroic producers believed in the common sense of "justice conquers evil", and it was only after eight years of Anti-Japanese War that the new China was established and the producers succeeded.
[For another example, briefly describe the historical facts of the struggle of producers in China, and the argument that the details are combined with the above. ]
Ignoring common sense is like a broken flower, which only withers; Using common sense is like an eagle, spreading its wings and flying high. Those who blindly follow common sense dig their own graves, while those who practice common sense follow Wan Li Road.
Look up at the blue sky and find that success or failure is due to common sense!
[The conclusion paragraph summarizes the main body's exposition in vivid language, and emphasizes the central argument again. ]
Comments on this excellent composition of the 2009 Guangdong College Entrance Examination have the following highlights: First, it focuses on "common sense", fits the meaning of the topic, shows the argument in the topic, and shows the central argument at the beginning; The second is to stick to the argument and discuss it from two different levels by comparison, so as to make the discussion more profound; Third, the arguments are rich. This paper takes historical figures Xiang Yu, Yue Fei, Zhuge Liang and the producers of China today as examples, which are detailed and convincing from ancient times to the present. Fourth, the expression is very literary. In particular, some languages are very cultural and old-fashioned, not copied, but from the true feelings of candidates.
There are many examples of this way of thinking in the college entrance examination composition, such as what the college entrance examination can give me and what it can't give me (Chongqing college entrance examination composition in 2007), Steps and Life (Sichuan college entrance examination composition in 2007), Let dreams lead the way for reality and realize dreams with reality (Shandong college entrance examination composition in 2006) and Talking about spirit (Hunan in 2006).
It is very valuable to master this basic argumentative writing mode, because the object and content we are facing often involve two aspects of dialectical opposition. The correct analysis method is to use the viewpoint of unity of opposites and dichotomy to analyze the problem dialectically. When we establish an argument, if we consider two dialectical aspects, we need to use "dichotomy contrast" to discuss it.
★ Author: No.1 Middle School, Yixing City, Jiangsu Province.