3.3 Arguments vs.

Explanations
Arguments are defined by their premises and conclusions, where the premises are
meant to give the conclusion support or evidence. Often, the goal of making an
argument is to merely prove that the conclusion is true.
Example:
We know that obesity is on the rise in the U.S. because multiple studies carried out by
the CDC and NIH have consistently shown a rise in obesity over the last four decades.
On the example above, you may use evidence from research conducted by the National
Institute of Health (NIH) and the Center for Disease Control (CDC) to persuade
someone that obesity rates are rising in the United States. The studies you provide
would serve as premises for the conclusion that the rate of obesity is increasing.
Alternatively, you might construct this simple argument into standard form like as
follows:
1. Over the past 40 years, a number of studies by the CDC and NIH have
consistently indicated an increase in obesity.
2. Therefore, obesity is rising in the United States.
Standard Form
The premise and conclusion are clearly separated in the standard form argument, which
also demonstrates how the premise's evidence is expected to support the conclusion.
Once more, the aim of this straightforward argument is to convince the listener that the
conclusion is correct. However, there are occasions when we are attempting to prove
why something is true rather than just that it is true because we already know it to be
true. An explanation is an argument that tries to justify why its conclusion is true.
In an explanation, we make the assumption that the conclusion—what we're attempting
to explain—is true. The presumptions are meant to demonstrate why the conclusion
should be expected or predicted to be true. Oftentimes, explanations help us see why a
conclusion is true. We merely need to distinguish between two different forms of
argument: those that seek to prove their conclusion to be true (arguments) and those
that seek to prove why their conclusion is true (explanations).

Short quiz:
Identify the following if it is an Explanation (EX) or an Argument (AR)?
1. Johanne rode the jeep today because her car was in the shop.
2. Either Mark or Jonas rode the jeep to the mall today. But it wasn’t Jonas because
I saw him riding his motorcycle to work. Therefore, it was Mark.
 3. Eric could not have ridden the bus today because today is a citywide holiday and
the bus service is not operating.
4. The Wolves lost their star player due to injury over the weekend, therefore the
Wolves will not win their game against the Kings
5. The reason people’s allergies worsen when they move to Cincinnati is that the
pollen count in Cincinnati is higher than almost anywhere else in the surrounding
area.

Answers:
1. EX
2. AR
3. EX
4. AR
5. AR