Lesson 3e: How is argument both a process and a product?

Argument is a process. An argument requires that its claims be justified (Ramage, Bean, and Johnson, 7), and during an argument involving more than one person (e.g., a debate), there is a process of one party opening the argument, the other party submits a refutation, and finally, one or both parties get a closing statement. In the case of a courtroom, this process can be a lot more complex, with witnesses, evidence, and procedures that must be adhered to.

At the same time, argument is also a product. Court cases set precedents that can be referenced for future cases. whenever the supreme court settles a case, it brings with it a lengthy disposition and a product that changes the course of our society. Brown v. Board of Education desegregated schools, for example, and Miranda v. Arizona gave us our Miranda rights.

This is only one example. Another example, which the book states, is that formal arguments tend to produce powerpoint presentations (Ramage, Bean, and Johnson, 8), and with the rise of the internet, forums tend to produce a lot of argument over the course of days, weeks, or months (Ramage, Bean, and Johnson, 8).

So, argument is both a process because it is something that starts and ends in a certain manner, and it is both a product because in the course of creating an argument, the process can be paused and examined.

Ramage, John, John Bean, and June Johnson. Writing Arguments : A rhetoric with Readingsit'. 4th. Pearson Education, Inc, 2007. 7. Print.