ABSTRACT
This chapter examines how to confront and engage the text. The first step is actually to open the book. The second step is to read given selection from beginning to end without stopping. The third step is to ascertain what the general point is and where the text might be parsed into sections for analysis. The fourth and final step in the reading phase is to uncover the point of contention and the premises that support it. The most common problem in reconstructing arguments in the form of a logical outline is determining just what a premise is and what a conclusion is. The first level of confronting the text is to obtain a general overview of what is in the given selection. The next level is to search for the general point of the passage and discover the point of contention that is at the heart of argumentative passages.
