I. What the "issues" are.

II. How to determine the issues.

III. The value of correct issues.

When you have made perfectly clear to your hearers what you wish them
to believe, the next step is to show them why they should believe it.
The first step in this process, as we saw at the beginning of Lesson
III, is to see what points, if proved, will make them believe it.

These points, as we call them, are better known as "issues." The
issues are really questions, the basic questions on which your side
and the other disagree. The negative would answer "No" to these
issues, the affirmative would say "Yes."

The issues when stated in declarative sentences are the fundamental
reasons why the affirmative believes its proposition should be
believed.

A student might be arguing with himself whether he would study law or
medicine. He would say to himself: "These are the issues: For which am
I the better adapted? Which requires the more study? Which offers the
better promise of reward? In which can I do the more good?"

Should he argue with a friend in order to induce him to give up law
and to study medicine, he would use similar issues. He would feel
that if he could settle these questions he could convince his friend.
Now, however, he would state them as declarative sentences and say:
"You are more adapted to the profession of medicine; you can do more
good in this field," etc. If the friend should open the question, he
would be in the position of a man on the negative side of a debate. He
would state the issues negatively as his reasons. He would say: "I am
not so well adapted to the study of medicine; it offers less promise
of reward," etc.

Each of these would in turn depend upon other reasons, but every
proposition will depend for its acceptance on the proof of a few main
issues. Perhaps this point can be made clearer by an illustration.
Suppose we should take hold of one small rod which we see in the
framework of a large truss bridge and should say: "This bridge is
strong because this rod is here." Our statement would be only
partially true. The rod might be broken, and although the strength of
the bridge as a whole might be slightly weakened, it would not fall.
But suppose we should say: "This bridge really rests on these four
great steel beams which run down to the stone abutment. If I can see
that these four steel beams are secure, I can believe in the security
of the bridge." So a mechanical engineer