What is a basic draft for a claim (Toulmin) about the theme. For example, "The theme of the piece is "blah-blah" " doesn't have an argument. What does?

Answer 1

This makes no sense. How can you make a claim about "blah-blah"?

What is your topic? What do you want to prove or disprove about that topic?

Answer 2

Here is the best website I know for learning about the parts of persuasive and argumentative writing:
http://www.powa.org

Go to the Convince menu ... and read about Stating your Proposition. That's the claim.