8. Arguments or Nonarguments?

Now that you are familiar with various types of nonarguments, you should get some practice determining whether a given passage is an argument.

Examine the following passages. Each passage is either an argument or a nonargument. Use the provided dropdown menu to indicate whether the passage is an argument or a specific type of nonargument.

Passage A

Since the dawn of human history, all wars have resulted in unnecessary loss of human life. Because war has seemed to be an historically inevitable truth, we can conclude that the unnecessary loss of human life will continue to be a part of the human experience for generations to come.

Passage Ais .

Passage B

President Obama was sworn into office at noon on January 20, following the swearing in of his Vice President, Joe Biden. The weather was cold and crisp, and the inauguration had record turnout.

Passage Bisa statement of belief or opinion .

Passage C

Wasted energy puts an extra burden on our power grid. Much of this wasted energy could be conserved by following basic conservation practices such as turning off unnecessary lights and unplugging unused appliances. For these reasons, we can conclude that many of our energy problems could be alleviated by conservation efforts by average citizens.

Passage Cis .

Passage D

Tomatoes are fruit because they bear seed for the sake of the tomato plants' reproduction.

Passage Dis .