Write an argumentative essay about the topic of your choice. The purpose of the essay is to convince readers that your point of view is valid and logical. The essay should contain the following:
Introduction
A thesis statement with a clearly defined argument on a relevant, debatable topic.
Logical points of argument to support your claim.
Evidence to support your points of argument.
Points of opposition and rebuttals
Conclusion
Choosing a Topic:
Your choice of topic is the most important part of writing an argumentative essay. There are many things to consider when choosing your topic. It should be debatable, relevant, manageable, and can be supported with evidence. Debatable Your topic must be something that allows for argument. If there are no differing viewpoints on the topic, then you haven’t got an argument. For example, “It is difficult to live comfortably on minimum wage” is a statement that almost everyone would agree with. “Minimum wage should be raised so every working American can afford a comfortable lifestyle” is debatable because not everyone would agree. Also, make sure your claim states the argument clearly. For example, “High speed police chases often put innocent people in danger” is a statement of fact that only implies an argument. A better claim would be “Police should not engage in high speed chases because they often put innocent people in danger.”
Relevant Avoid stale and obvious topics like the death penalty, abortion, gun control, or marijuana legalization. If you want to use one of these topics, be sure that you have a fresh, current take on it. For example, “Women should be able to have a legal abortion” is not a fresh debate. “Although protestors argue free speech, they should not be allowed to display graphic images outside of abortion clinics” is more interesting and current. To avoid using an overdone topic, look at what is in the news today. Is your city or state considering raising the minimum wage? Are there interesting propositions coming up in an election? Is your school considering requiring uniforms? Watch the news or look at some online news sites. What piques your interest?
Manageable The narrower your topic, the easier it will be to write a short essay. With only a few pages, writing effectively about the problems with health care reform would be impossible. Focusing on one or two problems associated with heath care reform would be more manageable. If you are starting with a broad topic that is interesting to you, such as genetically modified foods, you can make a list of questions or issues about the topic after doing a bit of research, then choose a particular focus, such as whether labeling of genetically modified foods should be required.
Can be supported with evidence Make sure that your topic can be supported with evidence. Arguing an issue from a moral standpoint can be problematic because logical evidence might be hard to find. For example, finding evidence for the claim “Laws that prohibit physician-assisted suicide are wrong” is more difficult to support than “Physician-assisted suicide should be legal so that patient choice is not limited.” Although you want a narrow, focused topic, if you go too far in this direction, you might limit the evidence you can find. For example, if you want to argue that building a local bike trail is worth the taxpayer dollars, it might be hard to find definitive evidence for that particular trail. If you expand your argument to show that bike trails in local communities in general increase resident satisfaction and promote fitness, then you can apply that to your local argument.
Determining Purpose:
The purpose of an argumentative essay, besides presenting a solid argument, is to persuade readers to do something. It’s important to determine what that something is before you write the essay. The purpose can be to solve a problem, present a plan of action, or simply to get the readers to agree with your opinion. This purpose may or may not be included in your thesis, but the paper should be making a case for it as it progresses. It is also an excellent starting point for your conclusion. Here are some examples of the three purposes, using the topic of the cost of college:
Problem solving: Once a student has been accepted to a college, the tuition should be capped at the rate when he or she entered to prevent unexpected increases that the student may not be able to afford.
Plan of action: Voters should vote “Yes” on Proposition 42, which raises funds through sales tax to help keep the cost of tuition down for students enrolled in the state’s public colleges. Agreement: The rising cost of tuition at four-year universities should cause students to assess whether the debt they will accumulate makes sense compared to the worth of their degree. Use your own topic to try out each purpose to see which is the best fit for your essay.
Addressing the Opposition:
Addressing the opposition’s viewpoint is a necessary part of creating a solid argument. There are several reasons you should bring up the counterpoints to your arguments.
It shows that you are knowledgeable about the topic. If you ignore alternate viewpoints, you will seem uninformed about the topic, and you will lose your reader’s trust that you have done your research and carefully thought through each point.
You can strengthen your own arguments by refuting or diminishing opposing points. It gives you an opportunity to fully persuade your audience.
Demonstrating that you have researched opposing arguments shows that you are not biased and have given all the information consideration. You will seem more fair and balanced in your arguments.
Creating a Working Thesis:
The thesis statement is the most important part of the argumentative essay. It states your position and sets expectations for what will follow in the essay. A “working thesis” is basically your thesis rough draft. You need to have a direction before you begin your paper, but as you write and research, you may find that you want to revise your thesis. One way to create a working thesis statement is to use the “Opposition-Opinion-Reason” template. Using this method, you address the main point of opposition to your stance, state your opinion and give the main reason why you hold this opinion. Whether or not you end up using the thesis in this format for the final draft, it’s a good exercise to clarify your idea.
What Makes a Good Thesis?
It has a clearly defined argument.
It contains one main idea.
It uses specific terms.
It is interesting and engaging (avoiding the "so-what"? problem)
It can be supported by research.
Tips:
Make sure your thesis fits the scope of your paper. If you have two or three pages, you’ll want a narrow topic that you can cover adequately.
Do not start your thesis statement with “I believe....” or “In my opinion....”
Do not “announce” your topic, for example, “In this paper I will be discussing....”
Make sure your thesis is not just a statement of fact, for example, “An eating disorder is a serious illness,” but contains your opinion.
Types of Arguments and Evidence:
For each reason you give to support your thesis statement, you will need to argue it logically and give evidence to support your claim.
Give relevant examples
Present a comparison or a contrast
Show a cause and effect relationship
Argue by definition
Personal experience
Primary Source material (interview, survey, questionaire)
Hypothetical example
Graphics
Defending Your Argument:
Once you have made your argument and shown evidence to back it, you will want to address the opposition, or counterpoint, with a rebuttal to further strengthen your argument. Below are some effective strategies:
Show that the counterpoint is illogical or that the underlying assumption is incorrect.
Show that the counterpoint has merit, but does not show the whole picture.
Show the counterpoint is not relevant or has limited impact.
Show the counterpoint has merit, but does not supersede the other points.
Persuasive Techniques:
Ethos, pathos, and logos are three persuasive techniques you can use to convince your audience to agree with you. If you can use all of these techniques in your paper, you have a better chance of your audience responding to your ideas favorably. Ethos Ethos is the Greek word for “character.” In order to convince people to agree with you, you need to establish that you are worth listening to. If your audience thinks you are trustworthy, knowledgeable, likeable, and respectable, they will tend to believe what you are saying. The impression you make on the reader is just as important as the information you present.
In an essay, you can persuade your reader with ethos by your tone (fair, professional, pleasant), by addressing the opposition respectfully (showing you understand what people who hold different opinions care about), sharing a relevant personal experience, and presenting an error-free, well written, organized paper. Example: While it is understandable that some parents are wary of getting their children immunized due to occasional adverse side effects, watching my sister suffer from measles and subsequent complications convinced me at a young age that immunizations are worth the small risk.
Pathos Pathos means appealing to the audience’s emotions. If you can inspire an emotional connection with your audience, get them to feel what you feel, such as anger or pity, or get them to feel sympathetic to your cause, they are more likely to agree with your position. Pathos is accomplished in an essay by presenting facts that engage your audience’s emotions, or presenting stories or hypothetical situations that people can relate to on an emotional level.
Example: For 49 people, including young children, a Disneyland vacation turned into a nightmare when they contracted measles, an entirely preventable disease through immunizations, at the Happiest Place on Earth. Logos Logos means to persuade an audience by logic. This is where you present facts, evidence, and reason to convince your audience. Citing authorities, logical arguments and rebuttals, and showing that your argument is well-researched are examples of logos in your essay. Example: Although many parents are concerned about the link between autism and vaccinations, the original study that created this alarm has been retracted. In addition, in response to the concerns that stemmed from the faulty study, the ingredient in question, Thimerosal, has been almost entirely removed from vaccinations since 2001 (Harris 3).
Logical Fallacies:
Your arguments need to be logical in order to be convincing. You will lose credibility if the reader can poke your argument full of holes. Below are examples of errors in logic that you will want to avoid. Generalizations: “Children no longer play outside and interact with others; they are at home, glued to their electronics.” This may be true for some children, but it is certainly not true for all, so this is not a valid statement. Faulty analogy: “Using bottled water should be regarded by society as irresponsible, just like smoking while pregnant.” These two things are so dissimilar, the comparison doesn’t work. It causes the reader to think, “What?” instead of making a solid point. Straw man (misrepresenting the real argument or focusing on an irrelevant point as a distraction from the real issue) : “People who want to cut the budget for food stamps don’t care if children go to bed hungry at night.” Certainly no one wants children to go to bed hungry at night, so this is a point that is not relevant to the argument. Bandwagon appeal (implies that everyone else agrees with your argument): “Everyone knows that organic food is better than non-organic food.” Instead of trying to convince the reader that organic food is better through facts, the writer implies that the reader has an unacceptable opinion if he or she does not believe this. False Dilemma: “If energy drinks are not banned, young people will continue to suffer dangerous health consequences.” This argument assumes there is only one choice, rather than multiple possibilities. Energy drinks could be regulated, made illegal for minors, be required to reduce or eliminate certain ingredients etc.
Quick fix: “Parents should control their children so they will not become criminals.” This is a simplistic statement. It doesn’t have any practical application and skirts the more complicated issues of why kids become criminals. Red herring (distraction from the real issue): “The fracking operation may be dangerous for the environment, but if it is shut down, what will happen to the workers who depend on it for their living?” By bringing up the emotional topic of workers losing their jobs, the writer avoids the real issue of the problem of fracking. Ad hominem (attack on character rather than the issue): “Anyone who supports the zoning allowance of marijuana dispensaries near residential neighborhoods has a drug-addled brain.” This argument makes assumptions and generalizations about individuals with a different opinion that may not be valid.
Ad populum (evading an issue by appealing to an emotional concept): “Any patriotic American will oppose cuts in the defense department budget.” This argument negates any real debate on the topic, because it writes off anyone who wants budget cuts as unpatriotic. Non sequitur (“it doesn’t follow”): “If the school board was made up of parents instead of administrators, the schools would be run more efficiently.” This conclusion does not follow the premise because it’s not necessarily true that parents would be more efficient than administration.