Example and Precedent (Argument from Particular Cases)¶

Why It Matters¶

General principles are often contested. Specific cases are harder to deny. "This violates the principle of fairness" invites debate about what fairness means. "When we did this to Alice, everyone agreed it was wrong" is harder to dismiss.

The Key Move¶

Instead of beginning with contested general principles, begin with specific cases the audience accepts. Then generalize: "If we agreed this was wrong in case A, and case B is relevantly similar, consistency requires treating B the same way." Or: "These seventeen instances show a pattern that..." The examples do rhetorical work the abstract principle couldn't.

Classic Application¶

Legal reasoning through precedent (common law). Courts don't primarily argue from abstract principles - they argue by analogy to previous cases. "The current case is relevantly similar to Smith v. Jones (precedent), where we held X, therefore we should hold X here too." The precedent makes the argument, not abstract legal theory.

Surprising Application¶

Technical design discussions. "We should use microservices because they're more scalable" (principle) invites theoretical debate. "When Company X had our growth pattern, monolithic architecture became their bottleneck. Company Y and Z hit the same issue at similar scale. We're approaching that scale now" (precedent and example) is more persuasive because it's harder to dismiss concrete cases than abstract principles.

Failure Modes¶

Cherry-picking examples that support your case while ignoring counter-examples - damages credibility when discovered. Assuming one example proves a general claim - induction requires multiple cases. Drawing false analogies - claiming cases are similar when they differ in relevant ways. Treating examples as proof rather than illustration - examples support claims but rarely prove them conclusively.

Go Deeper¶

Aristotle's "Rhetoric" II.20 on example as rhetorical induction. Sunstein's "Legal Reasoning and Political Conflict" on reasoning from particulars.