Using Researched Evidence in Argument
Fold source material into your own argument: choose evidence that changes what a reader believes, attribute it inside the sentence, and keep the argument in your own voice.
What a learner can do afterwards
- Introduce a source in the sentence so the reader knows where the claim comes from
- Keep the one figure or quotation that does the work and drop the rest
- Follow evidence with the inference drawn from it instead of moving straight on
1 · Read
Name the source inside the sentence, so nobody guesses whose idea they are reading. A signal phrase with a verb like argues or writes, or a quote blended into your own grammar, keeps the argument in your own voice.
Keep the one figure or quotation that does the work and drop the rest. Piling up facts looks thorough, but buried points convince nobody.
Never drop a quote and walk away. Follow every piece of evidence with the inference you draw from it, saying plainly why this fact or quote proves your point.
Fold short quotes into your own sentences, with quotation marks around the exact words copied. Then check the paragraph still sounds like you, not like pasted research.
Name each source, keep only what works, and turn every quote into proof with your own inference.
2 · Watch
Take it off screen
Where it sits
Where this leads
Jobs that lean on this skill. Follow one to see everything it is built on.
8 questions wait behind this lesson, each with its answer explained. Every answer feeds the sky: stars light as they are learned, and dim when it is time to come back.