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How to Make an Argumentative
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Three Methods: Sample Outlines Creating Your Argument Writing Your Paper
Want to make an argumentative essay but don't know where to start? Or do you want to improve
your argumentative essay? With some thought and the right guide (like the one below), you'll be
getting that A in no time.
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1
Research your topic. Once you've got a vague idea of what you'd like to write about,
you'll need to research your topic. This is a vital step for writing an argumentative
essay. You will need to be very well informed about your topic and the arguments
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Sample Outlines
Method 1 of 2: Creating Your Argument
Method 2 of 2: Writing Your Paper
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essay. You will need to be very well informed about your topic and the arguments
surrounding it, in order to be able to make a strong, coherent argument. You can find books
in a library, search the internet for reliable sources, and read back issues of newspapers
and similar media to get information about what you're arguing. If you can, find an actual
expert on the subject and ask them if they would be willing to do an interview.
During the course of your research, you will want to collect as much evidence as
possible. Statistics, charts, data, and empirical evidence will help you make your
argument but also give you fodder for criticism of the other side. How to use this
evidence will be discussed below.
Develop your thesis statement. This is a statement that sums up your answer to
the question. It is your main argument. Every piece of evidence and every paragraph
should tie back to supporting this single idea. This sentence should be clear and
identifiable. The stronger a statement it is, the more clear it will be to your audience.
This may not necessarily be the side you agree with most. There is nothing wrong
with arguing something you do not believe. This is called "playing the devil's
advocate" and is a common way to encourage arguments about a topic.
Once you choose a side to argue, you will need to logically stick to and defend that
side through your whole paper. If you change your mind, you will need to rewrite
earlier sections.
An example thesis statement might be: "The death penalty should be federally
outlawed because it disproportionately punishes minorities."
Make sure to be clear about your focus. Your entire paper should make it clear
what part of an issue you're focusing on, and you will want a fairly narrow focus. Make
everything, as much as you can, about your thesis but certainly never stray from the specific
part of a topic you're arguing. For example, you would want to focus on gender equality in
child custody cases, rather than jumping around different arguments regarding men's or
women's rights.
Consider your audience. With your argument chosen, determine who your
audience will be. This is important as it will inform the type of arguments that you
make.
[1]
Are you writing for an academic audience? Write your argument using strong
logical appeals. Are you writing for common people? You may have better luck with
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emotional appeals. Are you writing for your peers? You may want to consider using a tone
befitting the language of that age or social group.
1
Have a strong introduction. In an introduction, you begin with giving your reader a
vague explanation of the topic you will be writing about. Tell them what it is...and then
tell them where the problem is. Once youve done that, youre going to tell them your solution
to the problem: state your thesis sentence, as discussed above. Wrap up the introduction
by telling them that your idea is right and maybe (if you want to) a brief explanation of how
you are going to make your argument or the type of evidence you will use.
Depending on the length of a paper, the introduction can range from a single
paragraph in length to an entire page or more.
A sample introduction would look like this: "The death penalty is a form of
punishment used on the most violent and unforgivable criminals. However, the
death penalty is used in a very inconsistent manner. Because the system can
and does not use the death penalty equally, and minorities are
disproportionately affected, the practice should be federally outlawed. We will
examine statistics and real life examples to showhowminorities are unfairly
punished in this broken system."
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Make your argument. Split each argument into its own paragraph or section of the
paper. These paragraphs are your "body" paragraphs. You should make it very clear
when you move from one argument to another. The beginning sentence of each paragraph
should hint at what that paragraph will be about and the final sentence should act as both a
conclusion to that paragraph (wrapping up the argument) and a logical segue into the next.
There are many different types of arguments and you can use more than one type in a given
paper. Here are a few
[2]
:
Try using an inductive reasoning argument. This type of argument uses a series of
specific examples to draw a broad conclusion.
Try using a deductive reasoning argument. This type of argument uses a series of
broad ideas to draw conclusions about specific situations.
You can argue that systems which do not function under the best conditions cannot
possible function under the worst. This is called an argument a fortiori.
You can also appeal to your audiences concerns for the future. Point out the
possible consequences of an action or series of actions and show how taking that
path would be irresponsible.
It is also possible to argue for or against something by showing that the common
view of the situation is wrong or more complex than previously thought. The lets
not do this until we know more about it argument, if you will.
Check your paragraph transitions. Use smooth transitions that move logically from
one argument to the next. This will help your audience follow your train of thought.
Keeping them on your same line of thinking will help them more easily come to your same
conclusions.
An example of a good transition would be a paragraph ending "Because of this
data, we clearly see that a disproportionate number of minorities receive the
death penalty." And the first sentence of the next paragraph being, "But this is not
enough evidence on its own. Maybe minorities simply commit more violent
crimes. However, there is also extensive data to showthat minorities receive
harsher penalties than their white counterparts, even within the same regions
and districts."
Use extensive evidence. Simply using an argumentative style or appealing to
someones logic or emotions wont be enough. To write a good argumentative essay,
youll need to provide lots of evidence. For each argument that you make, you will want to
have evidence to back it up (hopefully, multiple examples for each argument).
You can use statistics, data, expert opinions, scholarly articles, respected texts,
quality journalistic reporting, and other evidence woven into the text of your paper.
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Cite your sources. Citing credible sources for your evidence will always make your
arguments look stronger. You can use footnotes or endnotes, but you can also make
some mentions within the text (such as quoting experts by name) to make your argument
look stronger.
Always introduce an idea first and then quote your expert, as it makes it appear as
if they agree with your ideas, rather than the other way around.
Be able to refute the other side. You will need to be very well acquainted with the
evidence and arguments for the other side of the argument you are making. This is an
important part of an argumentative essay, because you will need at least a few paragraphs
where you address problems with your side and then show why those problems are no big
deal or otherwise wrong interpretations of the situation. This should usually be at the end of
a paper, right before the conclusion.
Have a convincing conclusion. Your conclusion should revisit each argument you
made in favor of your thesis and show how all of the arguments and evidence fit
together. It should quickly note that you address and solve all problems brought up by the
other side. It should also end in a strong way by telling someone why they should care about
the issue you have brought up.
[3]
Always write your conclusion last. Oftentimes you might not know exactly what
youre saying until youve said it. Save the conclusion for last and save yourself the
trouble of having to rewrite it later.
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Check for logical fallacies. When youre done, go back over your own arguments as
well as the arguments for the other side and check for logical fallacies. These are
ways in which your thinking or theirs is incorrect. Make sure you dont have any and if you
find some in arguments for the other side, you may want to point them out.
[4]
Look for errors in cause and effect. Maybe someone asserts that one thing causes
another, when in fact they have nothing to do with each other.
Look for hasty conclusions, which are those drawn when not examining all of the
evidence or when making generalizations about an entire group of things based on
limited evidence.
Look for slippery slope arguments, which assert that one thing will lead to another
when in reality there is no reason or evidence to back that up.
Look for weak analogies. These arguments use evidence from a situation that they
assert is the same, when really the situations are too different to draw conclusions
from.
Look for false dichotomies, which is when someone argues that there are only two
possible directions so theirs must be correct, despite the fact that many options
exist in the middle which may better solve the problem.
Edit your paper. Proper editing is very important. If your paper is riddled with
grammar or spelling errors, no one will take your arguments seriously, no matter how
good they are. Use a spell checker on your computer, try reading your paper out loud to
yourself, and have a friend or parent look it over.
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Add your steps using an ordered list. For example:
1. Step one
2. Step two
3. Step three
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To write effectively, try to make a sentence that contains more than one information.
Conjunctions really help here to link two or more sentence. Use formal languages. Also,
don't make any repetitions, unless it is needed to stress an argument or a fact.
Keep the scope of your essay limited. You have to focus on one problem.
The best verifiable source is book. Spend your times in the library, reading a book that is
relevant to the topic you want to discuss. Alternatively, you can watch documentary films
about the topic or using documentations of trustful interviews.
Plagiarism is a form of cheating and that is not allowed. Originality is the main point
here.
1. http://web.clark.edu/martpe/writing_strong_argument_papers.htm
2. http://www9.georgetown.edu/faculty/kingch/How_to_Think.htm
3. http://writingcenter.unc.edu/handouts/conclusions/
4. http://writingcenter.unc.edu/handouts/fallacies/
Categories: Essays
Recent edits by: Grahamster, Mmishima, Brendan
In other languages:
Italiano: Come Scrivere una Tesina Argomentativa, Espaol: Cmo escribir un ensayo
argumentativo, Portugus: Como Escrever uma Dissertao
Argumentativa, Franais: Comment crire une rdaction
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