A claim without evidence is merely an unsubstantiated idea or opinion.

Rather than simply summarizing the plot – these discussion boards are asking you to provide an argument about the text and support your argument with textual evidence. Again, as a writer, it is important to provide evidence to persuade your readers to accept your claims. A claim without evidence is merely an unsubstantiated idea or opinion. This applies to virtually any discipline you decided to pursue, however, the types of evidence you use will most likely change from discipline to discipline. For example, in a literature paper, you might use quotations from a poem or a literary critic, while in a lab report you might use data from an experiment. Either way, you will want to support your claims throughout.