This book investigates the role of inference in argumentation, considering how arguments support standpoints on the basis of different loci. The authors propose and illustrate a model for the analysis of the standpoint-argument connection, called Argumentum Model of Topics (AMT). A prominent feature of the AMT is that it distinguishes, within each and every single argumentation, between an inferential-procedural component, on which the reasoning process is based; and a material-contextual component, which anchors the argument in the interlocutors' cultural and factual common ground. The AMT explains how these components differ and how they are intertwined within each single argument. This model is introduced in Part II of the book, following a careful reconstruction of the enormously rich tradition of studies on inference in argumentation, from the antiquity to contemporary authors, without neglecting medieval and post-medieval contributions. The AMT is a contemporary model grounded in a dialogue with such tradition, whose crucial aspects are illuminated in this book.

Inhalt
Acknowledgement.- Preface.- Part I: The Tradition of Topics.- Chapter 1. Aristotle's foundation of topics: the foundation of the study of inference in argumentation.- Chapter 2. Cicero's Topica and the establishment of the topical tradition by Boethius.- Chapter 3. The richness and originality of medieval contributions.- Chapter 4. After the Middle Ages.- Chapter 5. Modern and contemporary approaches.- Part II: The Argumentum Model of Topics.- Chapter 6. The inferential configuration of arguments: the Argumentum Model of Topics.- Chapter 7. Advanced theoretical perspectives and open questions.- Chapter 8. Analysis and evaluation of arguments in context.- Appendix.- Index.