“Both sides” of an argument

When developing an idea for a paper, remember that there are almost never two sides to an issue. Usually, there are many, many different approaches to anything that affects large numbers of people. If you are investigating and comparing two ways of looking at something, be sure that you are clear about the fact that you are only examining two groups of ideas, do not pretend that those are the only ideas that exist.

The idea of “both sides” sometimes causes people to think that there are two sides when there is only one. This is often the case with odd and improbable conspiracy theories. Proponents of ideas like “there was no holocaust” will use this to insist that their opinion has to be given equal weight when, in fact, it’s absolutely ridiculous t take such an assertion seriously. While that is an extreme example, there are often cases where an argument or an element of an argument is opposed by ideas that have far more or far less logical or moral value. That does not mean that you can just say that an idea is less valuable and therefore it is true, but it is important to acknowledge that sometimes one prefers an idea that is less logical or ethical, but for some reason preferred. In short, it is better to be honest about the limitations of a given idea, belief, or approach. It will make you a better writer and, more importantly, a better thinker.