Argumentative Essay
LECTURE 18
Date: February 25, 2021
Lecture Contents
• What is an Argumentative Essay?
• 3 Tips for Writing a Good Argumentative Essay
• How To Outline an Argumentative Essay in 4 Steps
• Five Types of Argument Claims
• How to Write a Thesis Statement in 3 Steps
• Three Main Types of Arguments and How to Use
Them
• Example
English Comprehension and Composition
Learning Objectives
• Objectives
– Students will be able to know how to write a good
argument in a piece of writing.
• Goals
– Apply these learning to make a strong argument
and supporting it with logics and facts.
English Comprehension and Composition
English Comprehension and Composition
What Is an Argumentative Essay?
• An argumentative essay is a piece of writing that
takes a stance on an issue. In a good
argumentative essay, a writer attempts to
persuade readers to understand and support
their point of view about a topic by stating their
reasoning and providing evidence to back it up.
• Argumentative essay writing is a common
assignment for high school and college students.
Generally, argumentative essay topics are related
to science, technology, politics, and health care.
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Contd..
• A good argumentative essay will use facts
and evidence to support the argument,
rather than just the author’s thoughts and
opinions.
• For example, say you wanted to write an
argumentative essay stating that Naran Valley,
is a great destination for families. You couldn’t
just say that it’s a great place because you
took your family there and enjoyed it.
English Comprehension and Composition
Contd..
• For it to be an argumentative essay, you need
to have facts and data to support your
argument, such as the number of child-
friendly attractions in Naran, special deals you
can get with kids, and surveys of people who
visited Naran as a family and enjoyed it.
• The first argument is based entirely on
feelings, whereas the second is based on
evidence that can be proven.
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•3 Tips for Writing a Good
Argumentative Essay
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1. Make Your Thesis Crystal Clear
• The thesis is the key to your argumentative essay; if it isn’t clear or
readers can’t find it easily, your entire essay will be weak as a result.
Always make sure that your thesis statement is easy to find.
• The typical spot for it is the final sentence of the introduction
paragraph, but if it doesn’t fit in that spot for your essay, try to at
least put it as the first or last sentence of a different paragraph so
it stands out more.
• Also make sure that your thesis makes clear what side of the
argument you’re on.
• After you’ve written it, it’s a great idea to show your thesis to a
couple different people--classmates are great for this. Just by
reading your thesis they should be able to understand what point
you’ll be trying to make with the rest of your essay.
•
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2. Show Why the Other Side Is Weak
• When writing your essay, you may be tempted to ignore the other
side of the argument and just focus on your side, but don’t do this.
• The best argumentative essays really tear apart the other side to
show why readers shouldn’t believe it. Before you begin writing
your essay, research what the other side believes, and what their
strongest points are.
• Then, in your essay, be sure to mention each of these and use
evidence to explain why they’re incorrect/weak arguments.
• That’ll make your essay much more effective than if you only
focused on your side of the argument.
•
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3. Use Evidence to Support Your Side
• Remember, an essay can’t be an argumentative essay if
it doesn’t support its argument with evidence.
• For every point you make, make sure you have facts to
back it up. Some examples are previous studies done
on the topic, surveys of large groups of people, data
points, etc.
• There should be lots of numbers in your argumentative
essay that support your side of the argument. This will
make your essay much stronger compared to only
relying on your own opinions to support your
argument.
English Comprehension and Composition
English Comprehension and Composition
How To Outline an Argumentative
Essay in 4 Steps
• Argumentative essays should have a straightforward
structure so they are easy for readers to follow.
• The goal of an argumentative essay is to clearly
outline a point of view, reasoning, and evidence.
• A good argumentative essay should follow this
structure:
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Introductory paragraph.
• The first paragraph of your essay should outline the
topic, provide background information necessary to
understand your argument, outline the evidence you
will present and states your thesis.
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The thesis statement.
• This is part of your first paragraph. It is a concise,
one-sentence summary of your main point and
claim.
– Rather than leaving students at their own, parents should
monitor students active presence during online classes.
– Teenagers spend so much time using their mobile phones
that they are no longer skilled at face-to-face interaction.
English Comprehension and Composition
Body paragraphs.
• A typical argumentative essay comprises three or more
paragraphs that explain the reasons why you support
your thesis.
• Each body paragraph should cover a different idea or
piece of evidence and contain a topic sentence that
clearly and concisely explains why the reader should
agree with your position.
• Body paragraphs are where you back up your claims
with examples, research, statistics, studies, and text
citations. Address opposing points of view and disprove
them or explain why you disagree with them.
• Presenting facts and considering a topic from every angle
adds credibility and will help you gain a reader’s trust.
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Conclusion
• One paragraph that restates your thesis and
summarizes all of the arguments made in your body
paragraphs.
• Rather than introducing new facts or more
arguments, a good conclusion will appeal to a
reader’s emotions.
• In some cases, writers will use a personal anecdote
explaining how the topic personally affects them.
English Comprehension and Composition
How to Write a Thesis Statement in 3
Steps
• Your thesis statement is only one sentence
long, but it’s the most important part of your
argumentative essay.
• The thesis appears in your introductory
paragraph, summarizes what your
argumentative essay will be about, and primes
the reader for what’s to come.
• These steps will help you get your point across
clearly and concisely:
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Turn the topic into a question and
answer it
• Set up a big question in the title of your essay or
within the first few sentences. Then, build up to
answering that question in your thesis statement.
• For example, in your title or introduction, you could
pose the question,
– “What is the best type of sandwich?”
• And then answer with your thesis statement:
– “The best type of sandwich is peanut butter and jelly.”
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Contd..
– “Do parents involvement in career choices affects the
ability of students?”
– “Following a career direction, mapped out by parents,
affects the interest and abilities of students in their
professions”.
• This method is effective because intriguing questions
draw readers in and encourage them to keep reading
to find the answer.
State an argument—and then refute it.
• Introduce an idea that contrasts with your belief,
and immediately explain why you disagree with
it.
• For example: “While some people believe peanut
butter and jelly sandwiches are too simple,
they’re versatile sandwiches that you can easily
turn into a gourmet meal.”
• This method is effective because it uses evidence
and immediately demonstrates your credibility.
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Briefly outline your main points.
• Introduce your main point and explain how you’ll
back it up. For example:
– “More often you found a student who is not showing any
interest in his work or studies, and who is not trying to do
it with any distinction, because he is following a direction
set by his/her parents.”
• This method is effective because it gives readers a
clear idea of everything you’ll discuss in your essay. It
also serves as a roadmap to help keep you organized
and on track.
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Five Types of Argument Claims
• Once you decide what you’re arguing and know your thesis
statement, consider how you’ll present your argument. There
are five types of argument claims that can drive your essay:
• Fact: Whether the statement is true or false.
• Definition: The dictionary definition of what you’re arguing,
plus your own personal interpretation of it.
• Value: The importance of what you’re arguing.
• Cause and effect: What causes the problem in your essay and
what effects it has?
• Policy: Why the reader should care and what they should do
about it after reading?
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Three Main Types of Arguments and
How to Use Them
• There are three main ways to structure an
argumentative essay. Choose one of the following or
combine them to write your persuasive paper:
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Classical
• Present the main argument, state your opinion, and do your
best to convince the reader why your stance is the right one.
• Also called Aristotelian, this is the most popular strategy for
making an argument because it’s the most simple line of
thinking to follow.
• It’s effective when your audience doesn’t have a lot of
information or a strong opinion about your topic, as it outlines
the facts clearly and concisely.
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English Comprehension and Composition
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Rogerian.
• Present the problem, acknowledge the opposing side
of the argument, state your point of view, and
explain why yours is the most beneficial to the
reader.
• This type of argument is effective for splitting topics,
as it acknowledges both sides and presents the
middle ground.
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Contd..
• The ideal format of a written Rogerian persuasion
looks something like this:
• Introduction: Present the topic as a problem to
solve together, rather than an issue.
• Opposing position: State the opinion of your
opposition in an objective manner that's fair and
accurate, so the "other side" knows that you
understand its position.
• Context for the opposing position: Show the
opposition that you understand under what
circumstances its position is valid.
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Contd..
• Your position: Present your position objectively.
Yes, you want to be convincing, but you want the
opposition to see it with clarity and fairly as well,
just as you presented its position earlier.
• Context for your position: Show the opposition
contexts in which your position is also valid.
• Benefits: Appeal to the opposition and show how
elements of your position could work to benefit
its interests.
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Toulmin.
• Present your claim, present grounds to back up that
claim, and then justify that the grounds are linked to
the claim.
• This type of argument is also effective for polarizing
topics, but rather than present both sides, it presents
one, hinging particularly on facts presented in a way
that makes the claim difficult to argue with.
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Using the Toulmin System
• "Use the seven-part Toulmin system to begin to
develop an argument ... Here is the Toulmin system:
– Make your claim.
– Restate or qualify your claim.
– Present good reasons to support your claim.
– Explain the underlying assumptions that connect your
claim and your reasons. If an underlying assumption is
controversial, provide backing for it.
– Provide additional grounds to support your claim.
– Acknowledge and respond to possible counterarguments.
– Draw a conclusion, stated as strongly as possible,"
English Comprehension and Composition
English Comprehension and Composition
English Comprehension and Composition
Argumentative Essay Topics
• While choosing a great essay topic, it is important to focus on
only one subject at a time instead of focusing on several ideas
and making the readers confused. Have a look at
this argumentative essay topics list and choose the one you
find interest in.
– Importance of physical education in high school.
– Reasons why swimming is one of the best sports.
– The dangers of social media pranks and challenges.
– Is cheating out of control?
– Are cell phones dangerous to our health?
– Does boredom lead to trouble?
– Why do people like watching scary movies?
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English Comprehension and Composition
Topic: Smoking in public place
• Smoking in public place has turned into an important issue,
particularly in those areas where there are very high
populations and are densely populated. Few people are
addicted to smoking, and they are not able to be segregated
from non-smokers. The issue is that the individuals who smoked
between smokers are making the most of their cigarette in
zones where non-smokers live are there.
• Do you realize that consistently around 4.5 trillion cigarette bum
is being raised as trash? This is true, in the Plus One magazine,
distributed in January 2015, Giuliano Bonanomi and his
partners have noticed that cigarette bits are dismissed each
year in a wasteful way consistently.
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Contd..
• Many aspects of life are being harmed because of smoking in the
public place, this is why it should be banned. Through my individual
experience and weeks of research, I have discovered proof of
supporting my stand that smoking out in public places is unhealthy
and harmful to both the environment and non-smokers. In this
paper, I will discuss the harmful effects of smoking in public place as
well as an argument to those who oppose that smoking is injurious
and should not be banned in public places.
• Few people use to say that smoking can’t affect the environment as
the cigarette is very small and how could any small butt effect
environment?
• Even a small cigarette butt is harmful to the environment and does
major ecological damage. This isn’t just smoking which harms the
environment, but even Cigarette manufacturing procedures can
likewise cause huge scale harm to the environment.
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Contd..
• Environmental Degradation related to the developing procedures of
tobacco by deforestation can be harmed each day by the ecological
tobacco industry. Every large number of cigarette butt which is not
properly disposed of cause harmful effect on the environment as well as
well being.
• The greatest issue about disposing of cigarette butts is accidentally taken
by kids or small animals. Studies demonstrate that residential pets or
other little creatures who tragically takes cigarette litter can be a
respiratory failure, vomiting, shocks and even death.
• Since I have argued and disagreed that public smoking isn’t hurtful to the
earth, we will now observe the correct rationale of smoking.
• Smokers believe that they have the right to smoke as long as they want
and whenever they want.
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Contd..
• Although it is true that if you are over the age of 18 years,
you can legally smoke cigarettes, but, what are you actually
doing and at what cost?
• Smoking cigarette is not at all cheap thing to do, in fact, it
cost you a lot. But who cares? Despite the fact that the
government used to increase the tax on such products
which are not healthy for living beings, still, people are
buying and smoking cigarettes with an increasing rate.
• More and more people are getting addicted towards the
smoking of cigarette without concerning about their health
and family’s health or public’s health while smoking withers
in-home or in public places.
English Comprehension and Composition
Contd..
• Furthermore, in a CBS News article written by Marie
Marcus, according to which the World Health
Organization reports, “more than 1.7 million
youngsters died under the age of 5 years because of
the impacts of living in the polluted environment”.
• Smoking not only affects them but the people around
them whenever they choose to smoke in public.
• Specialists from Nottingham University found that
pregnant ladies are 23% more prone to smoke and 13%
more inclined to have a child with a deformity. They
took 19 studies around the globe and utilized these
investigations to pull examine together.
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Contd..
• Since some individual may associate, the smoke with tobacco harms the
human as well as makes harms to the animals and pets we love. Animals
may confront issues like respiratory issues, allergies, and nasal and lungs
cancer in dogs and lymphoma cats.
• I accept many individuals will agree to help in banning smoking in public
places. In the event that the government restricted this dangerous
medication then our world would be a superior place and it would
enhance the way of life.
• Nowadays, with the cost of cigarettes are very high, it will help the family
in saving a lot of cash that can be utilized better, where the family can
enjoy the advantages.
• Since there are a substantial number of smokers on the planet, I believe
that if smoking was restricted then this could be the reason for the mob
and can bother many individuals, however, they have to comprehend that
Smokers are a stage toward a superior life and for everybody around
them.
English Comprehension and Composition
References
• Academic Writing: From Paragraph to Essay (Dorothy E Zemach, Lisa
A Rumisek)
• Universal English Essays for CSS, PSC and other Competitive
Examinations (Tariq Mahmood Dogar, Tufail Muhammad Dogar)
• [Link]
argumentative-essay#how-to-write-a-thesis-statement-in-3-steps
• [Link]
• [Link]
• [Link]
examples /
• [Link]
• [Link]
Thank You
