Is This Argumentation?

My conception of reader-created arguments certainly is not conventional. Even so, I believe its a concept appropriate for the Web. So let me explain how reader-created arguments can be seen as a form of argumentation.

Take, for example, the syllogism:

1. Lassie is a dog.
2. All dogs are animals.
3. Therefore, Lassie is an animal.

A reader can find each of the premises in different documents on the Web. Say you're reading about television shows in the 60s in which you encounter the first premise: Lassie is a dog. The author of the piece on television shows anticipates that people interested in Lassie might be interested in seeing more about our best friends and includes a link to a dog fancier site. At the dog fancier site you encounter the second premise: all dogs are animals. In a matter of seconds you're able to come to the conclusion that Lassie is an animal. You as a reader have created the syllogism from two different documents and two different authors, neither of which were necessarily interested in the conclusion you've come to.

An issue that comes to mind with this conception of argumentation is that argumentation is a matter of production and what I've described is argumentation in terms of reception. With the Web, however, readers are producing temporary texts as they read, producing temporary arguments. The immediacy of the information and the multiple perspectives that can be encountered in a Web session requires that readers be responsible for stringing together persuasive elements of multiple works to form conclusions.

Temporary Arguments Rhetorical Moves
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