Toulmin's System

Real world arguments actually seldom prove anything to be 100% true, because what you are arguing about could be subjective based on the disputant or things could fall into different groupings, as the example provided on page 87 of the book does. Though, real world arguments seldom actually prove anything, they do serve as a good advocate for one cause or another. Normally, you can only hope to strengthen your side of the argument or weaken your opponent’s side and garner supporters for you cause, but not actually prove either side to be right or wrong. This in and of itself is enough of a reason to learn Toulmin’s “courtroom model” of arguing (“Writing Arguments”). Toulmin’s system assumes that a neutral third party will render all verdicts in regards to the argument and that all assumptions are contestable by an opposing side, which forces the disputants to tailor their arguments to their audience, thus garnering more support. Though it is very difficult to ever prove something in a debate, using a system like Toulmin’s allows you to make a better case for your belief and possibly garner more supporters.