How to identify an argument type? On the hermeneutics of persuasive discourse.

This paper proposes a theory of interpreting argument types as an integral part of a systematic and comprehensive 'hermeneutics of persuasive discourse'. It first explains how such a hermeneutics can be developed based on pragmatic insights about the use of language for persuasive purposes expressed in the philosophy of argument. Then, after having provided an overview of the main hermeneutical stages involved in interpreting persuasive discourse, the paper focuses on the stage of argument type identification. It formulates a 'hermeneutics of argument type' in terms of the Periodic Table of Arguments (PTA), an argument categorization framework systematizing existing accounts of arguments in the broad sense of the term (topoi , loci , argument schemes, fallacies, means of persuasion). For each of the three parameters within this framework, 'argument form', 'argument substance', and 'argument lever', the paper describes how to determine their value by analyzing several examples of natural arguments. • Offers detailed pragmatic insights about the use of language for argumentative or persuasive purposes. • Provides a general overview of the hermeneutical stages involved in interpreting argumentative or persuasive discourse. • Contains an explanation of the Periodic Table of Arguments (PTA) and its application to analyzing argumentation in the wild. • Provides clear guidelines for annotating corpora of argumentative or persuasive discourse. • Can be used to design empirical cognitive psychological research into how people process persuasive messages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]