4 Sec$on 5 ARGUMENT AND PERSUASION "The major barrier to mutual interpersonal communication is our very natural tendency to judge, to evaluate, to approve or disapprove, the statement of the other person or the other group.” --Carl Rogers CAN’T WE ALL JUST GET ALONG? Close your eyes and think of the word "argument." What images pop into your mind? Do you picture a confrontation, conflict of opinions and personalities, or just a plain old verbal fight? We often associate an argument with yelling, screaming, and anger. However, in writing, an argument is very different. An argument is a reasoned opinion supported and explained by evidence. In persuasive writing, the objective is to convince, motivate, or move readers toward a certain point of view, or opinion. To argue in writing is to advance