Phil 101 · Reasoning & Critical Thinking

Argument-Style Duel

Two arguments for the same conclusion, in opposite styles — across eleven pairs of temperaments. Pick whichever you find more convincing, and discover the argument styles you’re drawn to.

📖 New to these styles? Read the full framework & sources →

How it works

Each round shows two arguments for the same conclusion, written in opposite styles — one from each of the eleven pairs of temperaments in this unit. Just choose the one that lands better for you. There are no right answers.

Just keep choosing — there’s nothing to read between rounds, so you can answer on instinct. At the end you’ll get a profile of the styles you gravitate toward as a reader — your argumentative taste — together with the conceptual tools behind them.

Why “no right answer” is the whole point. Which style is best depends on the goal of the exchange (Walton & Krabbe, Commitment in Dialogue, 1995). A tight deductive chain is perfect for a proof and wrong for a eulogy. So the duel isn’t testing whether you can spot the “good” argument — it’s surfacing the moves you instinctively trust, so you can notice them and, later, borrow the others.

Two pilot formats. The quick duel shows one round per pair (11 rounds) and reshuffles which argument you see when you retake it. The full duel runs both rounds of all eleven pairs (22 rounds) for a sharper, more reliable read.

Round 1 of 12
Which argument do you find more convincing?
Argument A
▶ Choose A
Argument B
▶ Choose B
Your argumentative taste

What you’re drawn to as a reader

✍ Notice the gap

Now compare your taste with what you actually do: run a piece of your writing through the Argument-Style Diagnostic →
Or read the full framework: The eleven argument styles →