Abstract

Argumentation textbooks typically dismiss the anecdote as an inferior type of evidence. We argue that it deserves more serious attention because it serves three important purposes: Anecdotes function as synecdoches capable of revealing insights unobtainable through statistical norms. Their narrative form lends vivacity and presence to an argument. They often enact or portray the arguer’s character. Anecdotes, then, coordinate evidentiary, representational, narrative and ethotic elements of argumentation and are not always trivial.