Toulmin,+Stephen.++From+The+Uses+of+Argument

In this text, Toulmin does not believe that he is writing about rhetoric, but rather about reasoning that is not based on syllogism. He sets up a system in which we can understand and make a case for lines of thought that are not derived from all or always statements, but those based on likelihoods given certain contingencies. So, he suggests a model that has six parts (which Brian has summed up nicely, so with his permission I will excerpt here): These are the six features in Toulmin’s pattern of an argument Data is the information on which a claim is based. The warrant is the assumption, within the parameters of a specific field, that under-gird the claim made by a speaker-writer. Backing is the taxonomy, set of facts, legal statutes, theoretical readings or empirical studies which move the speaker-writer to form her warrant when arguing for a claim. A qualifier is an explicit reference to the degree of force which data confers on the claim made by a speaker-writer. They are usually some type of modal. Rebuttal refers to a condition of exception. The claim, or conclusion, is the thing the speaker-writer professes exists or asserts is a fact. (For a diagram of these terms in action, please see page 1419 in //The Rhetorical Tradition.//) A key feature of Toulmin’s argument is the idea that, while the criteria and meaning behind any assessment of an argument is field-dependent, there is a sort of universal “force of assessment.” Good can mean something different in each field, but in every field it situates itself as positive or effective to some extent. Toulmin’s model attempts to find ways that an argument can be deemed effective or not effective based on the force of the argument rather than the specific criteria used to argue or reject it.
 * Toulmin, Stephen. “From the Uses of Argument.” //The Rhetorical Tradition//. 2nd ed. Ed. Bruce Herzberg and Patricia Bizzell.**
 * 1) (D)=Data
 * 2) (W)=Warrant
 * 3) (B)=Backing
 * 4) (Q)=Qualifier
 * 5) (R)=Rebuttal
 * 6) (C)=Claim
 * Data**
 * Warrant**
 * Backing**
 * Qualifier**
 * Rebuttal**
 * Claim**