Identify and Follow the Evolution of an Argument in a Text
This recipe shows how the central argument of a text can be identified and traced within a particular text.
Ingredients
- An electronic text containing an argument you wish to explore
- A Collocation tool such as the TAPoR Find Collocates Tool
- A Concordance tool such as the TAPoR Find Words - Concordance Tool
- A Co-occurrence Tool such as TAPoR Find Co-occurrence Tool
- A Distribution tool such as the TAPoR Pattern Distribution Tool
- A Synonym Finding Tool such as Eva at POETS
This recipe needs a good exercise to show how to Identify and Follow the Evolution of an Argument in a Text?Steps
- Take an electronic text from a source such as Project Gutenberg that contains the argument you wish to explore
;
- Compile a list of words related to that argument using a tool such as WordNet;
- Use Concordance tool such as the TAPoR Find Words - Concordance Tool on each of the compiled words in sequence;
- Examine the results using a Distribution tool such as the TAPoR Pattern Distribution Tool to determine where the weight of the argument may lie;
- Use a Co-occurrence Tool such as TAPoR Find Co-occurrence Tool to explore how key words may be paired in the text with modifying words to make the argument stronger or to emphasize key points.
Discussion
Finding a Text
Possible sources for electronic texts are listed on the Electronic Texts Panel of TAPoR. When preparing text for analysis, you should be aware that academic infrastructure included in the text may obstruct reading the text for its original construction. It may be useful to remove notes and other materials added by subsequent authors from the original work. You can use tools such TAPoR Extract Text to remove added material.WordNet Service
WordNet is one of many web services available which will provide word senses, synonyms, antonyms and other related words for terms that you enter. For more information see WordNet or Eva at POETS. In this case, to determine relationships involves distinguish between objects and people as well as between the parties relating to one another. To make this distinction…Glossary
A Complete GlossaryNext Steps/Further Information
- List of All Recipes
- Exercise 10 Identify and Follow the Evolution of an argument in a text?
- Help with Particular Tools
- Background on Text Analysis
- Information about the TAPoR Collocation Tool
- Information about the TAPoR Concordance Tool
- Information about the TAPoR Co-occurrence Tool
- Information about the TAPoR Frequency Distribution Tool