Page 104 - Speaking at Length with covers

How to say it?

Language Focus: Stating an Argument Clearly

With your teacher, study several sentences taken from the audio used to state the argument clearly.

1. Smoking in public places should be banned for three main reasons.
2. Firstly, smoking destroys everyone in public places.
3. Secondly, smoking is a main cause of environmental pollution.

In stating an argument, one needs to be familiar with its expressions. Each language expression is as follows.

Introducing/stating an Argument Giving Reasons
✓ "I (strongly)believe that..." ✓ "Firstly, .........."
✓ "It is often argued that...” ✓ "One key reason is that..."
✓ "I want to emphasize .." ✓ "Secondly…"
✓ "What I want to say is that..." ✓ "Another important point is that..."
✓ ”Let’s put our cards on the table: we need ✓ ”The bottom line is + [main point ]”
stricter regulation”.

Giving an Example Clarifying Main Points
✓ "For instance,..." ✓ "In other words,…",
✓ "This can be seen when..." ✓ "That is to say................"
✓ "For example..." ✓ “In other words,…”
✓ "To illustrate this, ..." ✓ “What this means is…”
✓ ”For instance, just off the top of my head + ✓ “Let me spell it out for you: + [clear
[example or illustration]” explanation of your point]”

Persuading
✓ "Therefore, we must...",
✓ "It is essential that we..."
✓ " It is evident that….”
✓ “The ball is in [someone’s]court to + V1”.
Example: The ball is in the government's
court to ban smoking in public places.

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