Relating common theoretical models to true-to-life examples from law, ethics, education, and business, Inch and Warnick stress the importance of argumentation in everyday life as they build student competence and critical awareness.

This text encourages students to develop skills in both constructing and refuting arguments. Through exercises and examples, students learn how to create individual arguments, extend argument cases, and understand how arguments are designed and how to interpret them. The text allow students to conceptualize argumentation in the larger framework of verbal and written interaction, from public speaking and debating to interpersonal, intercultural, and small group communication.