Argument of Fact

Definition: Argument of Fact

An argument of a fact is statements of existence presented as being a fact. An argument of fact elaborates on a specific interpretation of a contentious fact’s existence and argues for this interpretation’s importance. Depending on the chosen fact, there might be a necessity to simultaneously argue for this fact’s concrete existence if the fact does not have widespread public acceptance.

How to Choose a Claim:

Step 1: Pick a Fact.

But before one is to be picked, what exactly is a fact?

A dictionary definition of fact is "something that is known to have happened or to exist, especially something for which proof exists, or about which there is information" (Cambridge np)

In the context of the Argument of Fact, this is a fact the majority assume to be concrete, but is still a basis for discussion and interpretation.

Fact Type 1: To be avoided.

A fact that is stated to be true.

Examples: The planets in our solar system revolve around the sun.

Fact Type 2: What an argument of fact is based upon.

A fact that is stated to be certain.

Examples: Vaccinations are beneficial.

Step 2: Use Your Fact to Create a Claim

What is a claim?

Your claim is the argument of your essay that you will support with evidence. Essentially, your claim is what you hope to successfully convince your audience of.

How do you turn your fact into a claim?

By using the following procedure, you can form an arguable claim about your fact.

Steps to Building a Claim from a Fact:

Begin with a fact that has caused controversy among groups within a society.
1. For example, the value in widespread public vaccinations against historically deadly diseases has been a recently contentious issue.
Examine the context behind differing perspectives on your fact.
1. For the vaccination example, you could examine the reasons why people have taken an "anti-vax" stance despite extensive medical research in support of vaccines. Some possible reasons for this example include: distrust in the government, distrust in pharmaceutical companies, and spreading of conspiracy and misinformation through social media.
Apply this information to a larger societal context.
1. For the vaccination example, you could choose to analyze how increased support for the "Anti-Vax" Movement as a result of conspiracy spread through social media platforms raises a larger question about how online misinformation is impacting the public's critical thinking skills.
Restructure into an arguable claim.
1. For the vaccination example, your claim could be the following: Increased online misinformation is to blame for the "Anti-Vax" Movement's success.

Now you have a claim!

Here are a few things to keep in mind when turning this claim into an essay:

Make sure your claim is defensible with credible sources. You need to be able to back up your argument with fact and research.
Strengthen your argument with nuance. Acknowledging other perspectives on the topic increases the credibility of the argument. These alternative perspectives can also be used for a counter argument within the essay.
Most importantly, make sure your claim represents a perspective that you personally are interested in and passionate about. This will make your essay far more interesting to read and more fun to write.

Checking for Validity:

After the essay topic has been chosen, questioning the foundation of the fact as well as the supporting evidence will ensure there is strong validity throughout the entirety of the essay.

Facts -

What is the fact?

Pinpointing the exact topic being referenced will ensure that the essay does not stray away from the argument being discussed.

What is the origin of the fact?

- Providing a brief explanation of the origin of the fact will give the reader insight on the chosen topic.

Is there relevant evidence that is in support of this fact?

- The chosen fact must be able to be supported by relevant sources and evidence. If there are no relevant sources that can be used to support the chosen fact, then selecting a new fact may be beneficial in order to produce an essay with strong validity.

Claim/Thesis -

What is the intention behind the claim?

- This question is referencing that the audience or readers should get out of reading this essay. The essay should educate the reader on the fact as well as demonstrate the impacts, negative or positive, that the issue is having on society. Being able to identify the intention of the claim will give the essay a goal that needs to be accomplished.

Who or what does the claim impact/affect?

- The impacts and effects of the claim are what create the body paragraphs of your essay which then lead to the evidence needed to support the thesis that has been made.

Why do those impacts/effects matter?

- Knowing why these impacts are important to the overall topic of the essay strengthens the argument being made.

Evidence -

What evidence supports the fact?

- The evidence chosen should reflect what has been claimed in the thesis.

How effectively does the evidence prove the validity of the fact?

- Chosen evidence needs to demonstrate that the fact is relevant and supported by modern day ideas. The impacts and effects need to be occurring in the time that the essay is written with a buffer of a few years on either end.

Does the evidence explain/support the impact or effect caused by the claim? How does the evidence support the impact or effect of the claim?

What Evidence Should I Pick?

Throughout this essay, the evidence is critical for supporting the argument of fact.

The evidence chosen should reflect what has been claimed in the thesis. [Original entry descriptor retained]
Chosen evidence needs to demonstrate that the fact is relevant and supported by modern day ideas. The impacts and effects need to be occurring in the time that the essay is written with a buffer of a few years on either end.

As an author, using different evidence is important, as well as recognizing the difference between the types of evidence that can be used. There are two types of evidence: empirical and theoretical.

Empirical Evidence:

Empirical evidence is evidence that is obtained through experimentation and made to be observable and verifiable by outside parties. This type of evidence is indisputable and significant for developing the validity of an argument. Common forms of empirical evidence include studies, surveys, and primary testimonies. Additionally, scholarly journals that document a study or experiment conducted by the author are considered empirical (“Types of Scholarly Articles”, np).

Theoretical Evidence:

Theoretical evidence is evidence that examines empirical evidence studies to identify connections, differences, and substantive conclusions. Theoretical evidence is incorporated to explain the importance of the provided empirical evidence. Common forms of theoretical evidence are scholarly journals, web articles, and news stations. To identify a theoretical scholarly journal article, look for words such as “concept”, “perspective”, and “model” (“Types of Scholarly Articles”, np).

Where Should I Look for Sufficient Evidence?

To start, using the internet articles are extremely easy to locate. However, the author needs to be able to identify adequate articles versus inadequate. Here is a checklist to make sure the website is strong:

Is the website free of bias? (Check the media bias chart)
Is there a listed author?
Are any sources actually cited?

The Approved News Websites are as follows:

- Associated Press (AP)
- Euronews
- Reuters
- DW (Deutsche Welle)

(Can use others - need approval FIRST!)

Here are some helpful links!

Scholarly journals may be found on…

Studies may be found on…

the bottom of a peer reviewed article
numerous web/news articles as quick references but be sure to search for the original study

Other helpful sources are…

United States Census Bureau
Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)
DATA.GOV
ABC News Election Data (FiveThirtyEight.com)

Lets evaluate the evidence!

Credibility: Is the source trustworthy and reliable?

Who is the author? Are they an expert in their field?
How recent is the source? Is the information up to date
What is the author's purpose? Are they persuading? Informing?

Accuracy: Is the evidence free from errors and accurate?
Reliability: Can the evidence be true and consistent? Did you use the above resources?

Let's redefine the sources!

With the many sources and evidence obtained, let's redefine the evidence to use. A sufficient number of initial sources is roughly 10. Start by skimming through each one quickly. Evaluate the significance, relevance, and quality of the reading. Identify the excellent sources to be fully examined and implemented into the essay. Do not be afraid to get rid of most of the initial source collection as a small number of high-quality scholarly journals strengthens an argument far more than a large number of shallow news articles.

Let's look at some examples!

Student Sample 1:

This student's essay was score at an 86, with 14 points docked for mistakes such as being under the word count, incorrect thesis phrasing, uses of informal register such as "it", and MLA errors. The essay was under an appropriate 'fact' and claim for an argument of fact, analyzing the effects neoliberalism has on climate change. A common comment was long sentences, which is something to be looking for when proofreading as more often than not the run-on's are due to comma splices and confusing or unnecessary wording. Other common issues are shown through the highlights, comments, and score breakdown at the end, showing a model by which the essays should be written like and the corrections to take the score to an A.

Example One.pdf

Student Sample 2:

This student's essay was scored at an 80, with bonus points for "research and writing effort" that brought the final score to an 83. The topic was well chosen, demonstrating the requirements of an argument of fact as the issue of bioplastics is an important real world topic to be discussed that is commonly stated to be certain, not fact. The work contains incorrect MLA citations both within the text and in the work cited, errors in grammar such as the use of "it", missing levels under the uneven-U model, and an uncertain thesis. A breakdown of these mistakes are commented at the end of the essay and their worth in the final scoring, which is useful to observe the mistakes that are easily fixable yet will be costly if kept.

student example pdf.pdf

Review this checklist!

These are extremely important elements to have in the argument of a fact essay! Make sure to read each carefully, and implement them into your argument of a fact essay.

Do not use figurative language

This essay must contain a formal register. The use of figurative language distracts from the facts being presented and conveys an emotional tone. This can diminish your logic of the argument.
Avoid using words such as "it", contractions such as "can't", and filler phrasal words.

2. Clear thesis statement: Thesis statement begins with, “This essay will

present the argument that...”

This structure clearly announces the thesis and allows the readers to easily follow.

3. Topical organization

A well-structured essay allows readers to follow the writer’s thought process and understand the logic of the argument.

4. Variety of evidence

Including different types of evidence strengthens the argument and supports the author's credibility.

5. Paragraphs follow the "uneven-U" model

This model allows the author to effectively argue an abstract idea. This will create a strong "Argument of Fact" essay.

6. Address counterarguments

Due to this essay being argumentative, there must be an opposition. A strong argument of a fact will provide evidence proving why one side is correct. This means the author must provide why the opposition is incorrect. By addressing the opposition, these counter arguments can be disproven. This will effectively assure the readers will understand and be convinced of the argument presented in the essay.

7. Proofread out loud

Carefully proofreading is vital in establishing writer credibility. Not proofreading may result in spelling and grammar errors that diminish the professional register of the essay.

8. Have a peer review your essay

Peer review of an essay in class will provide new perspectives on your argument presented. This will expose flawed logic and unclear points within the essay. Peer reviewing will provide an opportunity for the writer to strengthen their argument.

9. Proper MLA format and citations

Including proper in-text citations and MLA format is a must for this class. Proper MLA is important in establishing a professional register and credibility. In text citations are extremely necessary to avoid plagiarism, even when you are summarizing a topic!

Work Cited

“Academic Tone for Formal Writing.” Antioch University Writing Center, 2018, https://www.antioch.edu/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Academic-Tone-for-Formal-Writing.pdf. Accessed 3 Dec. 2023.

“Argument: Claims, Reasons, Evidence.” Department of Communication, University of Pittsburgh, https://www.comm.pitt.edu/argument-claims-reasons-evidence. Accessed 3 Dec. 2023.

“Argument of Fact Common Questions.” Oklahoma State Writing Center, Oklahoma State University, https://osuokc.edu/sites/default/files/documents/writing/Argument-of-Fact-Common-Questions.pdf. Accessed 27 Nov. 2023.

“Argument of Fact.” English 145, Google Sites, https://sites.google.com/view/engl145/argument-of-fact?authuser=0. Accessed 4 Mar. 2025.

Cleveland State University. “Reading Sources for Your Research Paper.” The Writing Center,

https://www.csuohio.edu/writing-center/reading-sources-for-your-research-paper. Accessed 6 Mar. 2024.

“Dull (adj.).” Collins Dictionary, 2023, Collins, https://www.collinsdictionary.com/us/dictionary/english/dull. Accessed 3 Dec. 2023.

Gupta, Megan. “The Fact of an Argument.” Linked In, 16 Mar. 2016, https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/fact-argument-meghna-gupta. Accessed 11 Mar. 2025

Hamilton, Scott. Lecture. English 145 Writing Arguments. 21. Sep. 2023. California Polytechnic State University.

Lindsey, Rebecca. "Climate Change: Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide." Climate.gov, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 12 May 2023, https://www.climate.gov/news-features/understanding-climate/climate-change-atmospheric-carbon-dioxide. Accessed 8 Dec. 2023.

“MLA Works Cited Page: Basic Format.” The Purdue OWL, Purdue U Writing Lab, https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_formatting_and_style_guide/mla_works_cited_page_basic_format.html. Accessed 29 Nov. 2023.

Rider University. “Types of Articles Found in Scholarly Journals.” University Libraries, https://guides.rider.edu/types/empirical. Accessed 11 Mar. 2024.

“Writing Concisely.” The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/conciseness-handout/. Accessed 28 Nov. 2023.

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