Chapter 7

Chapter 7 talks about counter-arguments and the different types of ways to refute, or discredit, arguments.

Refuting an argument directly
According to Epstein, there are three ways of directly refuting an argument. One way is to show that at least one of the premises is dubious or doubtful. A premise that is not valid hurts the whole argument. Another direct way of refuting an argument is to show that the argument isn't valid or strong. Additional to disproving a premise, proving that the conclusion is invalid would make the argument weak.

Refuting an argument indirectly
Indirectly refuting an argument involves showing that a false conclusion follows from the premises. In doing so, one must be able to create a good argument to counter the bad argument. To counter the bad argument, one must make sure that any counter claims to point out the dubious premises are plausible.