Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Arguements- Strong vs. Valid
The difference between a strong and valid argument is very subtle, and unless you think about it carefully it may be difficult to tell them apart. A strong argument is persuasive but not necessarily true. For example, if someone were to tell you that they go to college, and all of their friends from college like to wear skinny jeans, therefore all college students like to wear skinny jeans. This is a strong argument because it may actually be true that a lot of college students like to wear skinny jeans based on their observations which are both true. However, it doesn’t take into account the possibility that some people who aren’t their friends might like different kinds of jeans. A more accurate and valid argument to the same affect could be I go to college, and all of my friends from college like to wear skinny jeans, therefore some college students prefer skinny jeans to other types of jeans. By making the result less absolute, you can eliminate the problem of error with your argument, making it true and valid.
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I like how your post is very informing and clear. It's cool how you used a good example too since it seems like skinny jeans are in. I am not a fan of the skinny jeans which stay tight all the way down to your ankles, but I do see more and more people wearing them around campus. On my post, I used two different ideas for strong and valid arguments, but it seems more helpful to use one idea for both arguments like you did here. The only thing I need is for someone to make a strong argument for me to even try on a pair of skinny jeans.
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