Countering: there is no right or wrong answer, but...

I found this chapter really interesting because countering others’ argument in order to make my own better is always the hardest part of writing asserting essays for me. I always found that there are many good argument made by the opponent, and I can hardly be against it. However, Harris here tells his readers that it is okay not to be against their opponents’ rather, there are other ways to counter the arguments. Unlike forwarding, countering is a tool of creating argument in the writing. Harris describes that it is not necessarily to prove who is smarter to make a right argument; rather, it is the process of reviewing what has been there, and therefore, leading to another direction of the conversation. He says that countering is a technique of Yes, but… while forwarding is simply the continuous Yes, and… in conversation. Countering is not exactly pushing down one’s weak argument (because there is no right or wrong in the arguments), but to add other perspective or alternative on opponent’s incomplete and partial argument so that the criticism we have can be seen as useful and fair. He introduces three ways of countering in this chapter: arguing the other side, uncovering values, and dissenting. He shows some examples how effective it is used as countering in others’ work, but also gives some advice that we have to think before we counter the argument. We should not guess at the intent, and should focus on position than phrasing, be careful with modifiers, and stress what we bring to the discussion, because this type of writing is more than just criticizing one’s work, which means we have to have our own idea in the writing.