TransferCredit.org Guide to AP® English Language and Composition

This skill category asks you to find a writer's claims, thesis and evidence in a passage and explain how they work, including how claims are qualified and how the writer answers other views. At 13–16% of the multiple-choice section, it is one of the two heaviest skill categories, tested in the two reading sets on nonfiction passages.

Key terms, with examples

claim

An arguable statement that a writer must defend with evidence or reasoning. Writers convey their position through one or more claims.

Example: "Cursive should be taught again in elementary school" is a claim: a reader could reasonably disagree.

evidence

Material a writer uses to defend a claim, such as facts, anecdotes, analogies, statistics, examples, details, expert opinions, personal experiences, testimonies or experiments.

Example: Claim: "Our school needs a second nurse." Evidence: "Last month, students waited an average of 25 minutes to be seen."

thesis

The main, overarching claim a writer seeks to defend or prove, using reasoning supported by evidence. Every other claim serves it.

Example: "Teens should be allowed to vote in city elections" is the thesis; paragraphs on maturity and civic habits support it.

counterargument

An opposing claim or objection to the writer's position. Writers may raise it in order to concede, rebut or refute it; not all arguments address one.

Example: "Some parents worry that a longer school year will cut into family vacations." The writer then answers the worry.

position

The writer's stance on a subject: for, against, or somewhere between. The writer's claims convey the position.

Example: On a proposed phone ban, one writer's position is full support; another's is support only during tests.

function of evidence

The job a piece of evidence does in an argument: to illustrate, clarify, set a mood, exemplify, associate or amplify a point.

Example: A writer arguing for quieter hospitals describes alarms beeping all night; the detail sets a mood of exhaustion.

thesis statement

A thesis that is directly expressed, usually in a sentence or two. Not every text has one; some leave the thesis implied.

Example: "Museums should be free on weekends because cost keeps many families away" states the thesis directly.

concession

Accepting all or part of an opposing claim as correct, agreeing it holds under other circumstances, or admitting a limit of one's own argument.

Example: "Admittedly, self-checkout lanes do shorten some lines." The writer, who opposes them, accepts that part of the objection.

fact

A statement that can be checked and proven true. Facts serve as evidence; on their own they are not arguable claims.

Example: Fact: "The ferry runs every 30 minutes." Claim: "The ferry is the best way to cross the river."

anecdote

A brief story about a real event or person, used as evidence to make a point vivid and relatable.

Example: To argue that small kindnesses matter, a writer tells of a bus driver who waited for a running student.

implied thesis

A thesis the writer never states in one explicit sentence. Readers infer it from the whole text, which may take a thorough reading.

Example: An essay describes cracked benches, a dry fountain and weeds in the town square, never saying "fund upkeep," yet clearly argues it.

rebuttal

Answering an opposing claim by offering a contrasting perspective or alternative evidence to suggest that all or part of it is invalid.

Example: "Critics say video games isolate teens, but many teens now play online with friends they talk to daily."

What this area covers

How the exam asks it

On the exam, several questions follow each nonfiction passage. They ask what a sentence or detail "serves mainly to" do, which choice best states the writer's thesis or main claim, or what a word or phrase does to a claim. Name the job before you read the choices: illustrate, add authority, concede, rebut, limit a claim. For thesis questions, look for the one claim that every detail supports; it may be stated anywhere or only implied.

Common traps

Trap 1. Don't mistake a detail for the thesis. The thesis is the claim the whole passage supports, not one fact or example from a single sentence.

Trap 2. Small words change a claim. "Many," "often," "may" and "in most cases" limit its scope; a choice that reads the claim as absolute misreads it.

Trap 3. An outside voice is not always the opposing side. Check whether a quoted expert or source supports the writer or objects before calling it a counterargument.

Memory trick

Concede = "You're right that…"; rebut = "But consider…"; refute = "Here's proof you're wrong."

Evidence jobs spell I CAME A: Illustrate, Clarify, Associate, set a Mood, Exemplify, Amplify.

Reasoning and organization questions ask how an argument is built: the order of its claims, how its sentences and paragraphs connect, and which methods of development carry its reasoning. In the reading sets, you trace a passage's line of reasoning, judge whether it supports the thesis, and explain what a paragraph, phrase or method does. This skill category is 13–16% of the multiple-choice section, tied for the largest share.

Key terms, with examples

line of reasoning

The logical sequence of claims, evidence and commentary that leads to and justifies an argument's thesis. The order of the paragraphs reveals it.

Example: An op-ed documents falling bee numbers, names one cause, rebuts an objection, then proposes a local pesticide ban: each step builds the case.

logical fallacy

A flaw in a line of reasoning that may render an argument specious or illogical, such as a false choice, a distorted counterargument or a personal attack.

Example: "This diet works: my cousin lost ten pounds on it." One case cannot support a claim about everyone.

unity

The quality of a text or paragraph in which every part supports one main idea or claim, with no off-topic material.

Example: A paragraph arguing for longer recess loses unity when it detours into the history of the school's mascot.

classical argument

A traditional structure: an introduction with the thesis, background, the writer's reasons and evidence, a response to opposing views, and a conclusion.

Example: A student essay for a later curfew states its thesis, gives background, offers three reasons, rebuts parents' objections and concludes.

method of development

A common approach writers use to develop and organize the reasoning of an argument, such as narration or definition. It gives the audience a means to trace the writer's reasoning.

Example: To argue for a fireworks ban, one writer narrates her brother's burned hand; another compares injury counts in two cities.

inductive reasoning

Reasoning that moves from specific observations or examples to a general conclusion; in an argument, the writer leads readers through reasoning and then arrives at the thesis.

Example: Three paragraphs describe teens whose hearing was damaged by loud earbuds; only the last concludes that phones should cap volume by default.

false dilemma

A fallacy that presents only two options, as if no others existed, to force a choice between them.

Example: "Either we cancel the school play or we cut the art program." Fundraising and a simpler set are ignored.

coherence

Logical connection among ideas at every level: clause to clause in a sentence, sentence to sentence in a paragraph, and paragraph to paragraph in a text.

Example: "The town lost its only grocery store in May. As a result, residents now drive twenty miles for milk." "As a result" links the sentences.

Rogerian argument

A structure that first states the opposing view fairly, then finds common ground, and only then presents the writer's position as meeting both sides' interests.

Example: Addressing hunters who oppose a shorter season, a ranger first restates their concerns fairly, notes their shared love of the land, then proposes the change.

narration

Developing ideas by telling about real-life experiences in detail and offering reflections and insights on their significance.

Example: A writer recounts the summer she spent caring for her grandfather after his stroke, then reflects on what unpaid caregivers need.

deductive reasoning

Reasoning that moves from a general claim or principle to specific cases; in an argument, the writer states a claim first and then develops reasoning to justify it.

Example: An editorial opens, "Restaurants should post calorie counts on menus," then gives one reason in each paragraph that follows.

straw man

A fallacy that misrepresents an opposing argument as weaker or more extreme than it is, then attacks that distorted version.

Example: Asked to limit late-night construction noise, a developer replies, "So my critics want to stop all building in this city."

What this area covers

How the exam asks it

Questions point to a paragraph, sentence or phrase and ask what it does in the argument: introduce a problem, give an example, concede a point, link back to an earlier idea or turn to a solution. Others ask how the whole passage is organized, why a step in the reasoning is weak, or what a comparison or definition accomplishes. As you read, sum up each paragraph's job in a few words. That list is the line of reasoning, and most answers come from it.

Common traps

Trap 1. A paragraph's function is its job, not its topic. "Discusses the shops" names content; "gives examples of the problem the essay will explain" names a job, and questions ask for the job.

Trap 2. A confident conclusion is not proof that the reasoning holds. Check whether the evidence covers the claim: one success story cannot show that a plan works everywhere.

Trap 3. Passages mix methods. A story can also show cause and effect; choose the method that does the main work in the lines the question points to.

Memory trick

Deductive: declare the claim first. Inductive: the claim comes in at the end.

Fallacy trio: false dilemma = only two doors; straw man = a scarecrow of the other side; ad hominem = "to the person."