arugment papers?

Question

do you need to use outside sources?!

Answer 1

Yes. You data as evidence in order to support you position. After all you are arguing that your point of view on the subject is better than the oppossition's point of view. Therefore, you need a lot of support for your arguments or reasons. Stats are really effective in convincing the audience.

Answer 2

There are three different ways to appeal to an audience: through ethos, through pathos, and through logos.

Building ethos is building credibility with your audience - one way to do this is to present outside sources to support your opinion OR be an expert in the field yourself and present your research.

Arguing through pathos is appealing to your audience's emotion. Compelling stories and thoughtful, descriptive language can help with this.

Logos is the use of logic to prove your point. Present your facts clearly, in a rational way that avoids logical fallacies, and you will fufill logos.

The strongest arguments have each of these elements - so my advice is, unless your teacher specifically tells you not to, do some research. It will only improve your argument.

Answer 3

It depends on the assignment. If your teacher didn't specifically say to use (and cite) outside sources, then one would assume that you should simply state and defend your own point of view. Just to be sure, however, why not ask your teacher?