What You Should Know About Supporting Details in Writing

Supporting details are any additional information that clarifies, explains, or proves a certain idea. Although this term looks simple, it’s crucial for many types of writing. College-Writers suggest familiarizing yourself with the meaning of this term so that you can improve both your writing and reading.

The Purpose of Supporting Details

Factual details are important in different situations: in court, when making a sales pitch, when writing research papers, etc. These details allow you to support your opinion and to be more persuasive. No matter what claims you make, they should be always based on evidence.

Supporting details not only provide your readers with more information but also perform a persuasive function and back up your arguments. Without supporting details, building a successful argument turns into an impossible task. There are many situations in which the proper use of supporting details can make a big difference, increasing the effectiveness and trustworthiness of your argument.

Supporting Details: Examples from the Real World

Imagine yourself in court because of a car accident. You and another driver argue about who caused this accident, and you two can blame each other forever. The only way to clarify this situation is to present solid evidence that will prove that you are right.

Now imagine that the accident was caused by the other driver because he was distracted, talking to somebody on his mobile phone. On one hand, you can walk to the judge and say that the driver was talking on his phone and caused the accident. On the other hand, nobody will believe you if you don’t support your claims with details. You’ll need to describe the whole situation in detail. You can also use the driver’s phone records as evidence. The evidence explains how you came to certain conclusions and supports your point, providing information on the background of a certain event.

Supporting Details: Academic Examples

There are also less serious but no less common and important scenarios where supporting details also play a crucial role. For example, imagine yourself writing a research paper on gender discrimination in the workplace. If you just state facts, saying that women get paid less and face other aspects of discrimination, your paper will look shallow and mediocre. Of course, these facts are well-known but you are not convincing readers if you just repeat some phrases without supporting them with evidence.

Another situation occurs when you conduct a statistical study, illustrating the difference in salaries among men and women using figures. In this case, you can support your claims with something real and demonstrate that your point of view is based on solid evidence. You can also provide evidence of another kind, interviewing both female and male employees, and comparing their experiences. In this case, you can tell more about how men and women are treated and describe the existing bias, which will also support your argument. When you have a set of supporting details that illustrate your opinion, your paper will be appreciated by your readers, and your professor, in particular.

Supporting Details and Decisions

Obviously, supporting details are used not only in court and college papers. These are any details that support your opinion on any subject, as well as your beliefs and claims of any kind. How did you draw a certain conclusion? Why do you think your point is correct? Quite often, we need to persuade others that we are right, and that’s where supporting details come in handy. Providing the right supporting details is the most effective and organic way of providing information in a persuasive manner.

Don’t forget about the importance of facts for your argument, and always try to present as many relevant facts as possible. The more details, the more trustworthy your argument.