How to Write an Argumentative Essay

Presenting an argument in written form is something that many students shy away from because of other assignments and the firm requirements of the paper. We have a step-by-step guide on how to write an argumentative essay!

• What Is an Argumentative Essay
• Importance of Writing an Argumentative Essay
• Argumentative Essay Structure & Format
• How to Write Body Paragraphs
• How to Write Conclusion for an Argumentative Essay
• Difference Between Argumentative and Persuasive Essay
• Good Argumentative Essay Topics to Write About
• Short Example of a College Argumentative Essay
• Common Mistakes to Avoid While Writing Argumentative Essays
• Q&A

What Is an Argumentative Essay?

An argumentative essay is one where a writer has to select one side of the debate and support it over the other side in the form of a discussion. Writing argumentative pieces, reasoning, and evidence are the core requirements for convincing readers through this type of writing. These assignments come very frequently when you are in high school or college and are the teachers’ favorites.

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Importance of Writing an Argumentative Essay

Students often wonder why they are working so hard to write argumentative essays for a university that won’t even help them in the future. Well, don’t let your shortsightedness cloud your judgment. We will discuss several factors that make an argumentative paper crucial for education.

Clarity

When you work with argumentative writing, there is a lot of research involved in it. It leads you to develop clarity on many aspects of the topic, and you understand different viewpoints as you proceed with your paper.

Persuasive skills

When one tries to change people’s opinions, it helps them develop persuasive skills by presenting their points differently. Sometimes it can be an emotional appeal; other times, one can give facts and figures to convince the reader.

Research

Strong argumentative essays come with a lot of research. You learn how to analyze different types of evidence and present them in simple ways to your audience according to their level of understanding. It helps you professionally because you can find authentic sources for evidence and convince people with it.

Argumentative Essay Structure & Format

To start a good argumentative essay, you need to make sure you know the correct format and the proper structure. The format of an argumentative essay is pretty easy to follow. Students often follow the six-paragraph format known as the Toulmin Model. There is an introduction, a minimum of three body paragraphs, and finally, a conclusion. The traditional argumentative paper format is easy to remember and makes the process more straightforward than it is.

How to Write an Outline

Before you answer the question “how to write an argumentative essay?” make sure you know the correct way to form an outline before you begin with a draft. Furthermore, we have prepared an example argumentative essay outline for you to follow along the way!

• Argumentative essay introduction:
• Hook
• Background information
• Thesis statement
• Body paragraph:
• First claim
• Topic sentence
• Supporting evidence
• Evaluation

Follow the same pattern of outline for all body paragraphs:

• Conclusion
• Summary of main points
• Restate the thesis statement
• Call for action paired with a personal comment

Tips Concerning Writing an Argumentative Essay Intro & Thesis Statement

A great argumentative essay is not significant unless it has a strong introduction and a well-written thesis statement to interest the reader. When you begin to write an introduction for an argumentative essay, make sure you are clear. Write a hook for an argumentative essay to capture the attention of the readers. Don’t try to overload the paragraph with information; briefly give a background check and move on. It is only to help your reader understand the direction of the argument.

Come up with a well-written thesis statement. Without it, your paper is incomplete. It tells your reader the main point of the argument. A thesis statement for an argumentative essay must be concise and easy to understand. Don’t overcomplicate it or write long sentences. Focus on the topic. You should write a thesis statement once you finish the entire paper so that your focus doesn’t deviate too much. A good introduction paragraph for an argumentative essay will help you call out to the audience in a better way.

How to Write Body Paragraphs

Well, you need something to support your thesis. Your body paragraphs will do the work for you. Here you present the evidence to back your thesis up and support your argument. Evaluate the evidence and link it to the point you’re trying to make. Always write in a formal tone as it is a form of academic writing.

Make sure to write at least three body paragraphs. You have to introduce a new point in each paragraph to support your claim. Begin each paragraph with a topic sentence for an argumentative essay which should clearly state why the audience should agree with you. You have to present the correct statistics, data, facts, and figures here to make your argument stronger.

Argumentative writing is incomplete without a rebuttal. You must state opposing claims and then write why they aren’t strong enough and why you disagree with them. It will help you seem credible, and your readers will trust your work more.

How to Write Conclusion for an Argumentative Essay

A conclusion never comes with new information; it summarises your overall text and should restate your thesis statement to make sure the reader remembers it. To write a conclusion for an argumentative essay, you need to reinforce the text’s main point and wrap it up. Make sure you never sound embarrassed for having a point of view. It will only confuse the readers and will make your conclusion weak. Don’t start your conclusion with a phrase that you’ve used earlier in the text. Overuse of the exact words can make the text bland.

Difference Between Argumentative and Persuasive Essay

Argumentative and persuasive writings might seem similar in many ways, but they are very different. Please don’t make the mistake of thinking they are interchangeable.

• Argumentative writing remains formal from beginning to end with supporting evidence and facts, while a persuasive one tries to convince the reader with an emotional appeal.
• With argumentative writing, the writer aims to tell people the truth and tell them why he reached a particular stance; with persuasive writings, the writer needs to know his audience to write an appealing paper to practice the art of persuasion.
• Argumentative papers will always acknowledge the opposite view and have a rebuttal, whereas a persuasive one will only acknowledge the side that the writer supports.
• Persuasive writing only tries to convince readers to agree with the author’s idea. Still, an argumentative task focuses on telling readers that the author’s ideas are the ultimate truth of the matter.
• A persuasive task can have an informal approach, but an argumentative task will always follow formal language and tone.

Good Argumentative Essay Topics to Write About

Take a look at the following topics for an argumentative essay to write a short argumentative essay:

• Is the death penalty an effective punishment?
• Is the internet the only form of development today?
• Social media makes people feel lonely.
• Beauty pageants make women feel less confident.
• Killing a murderer is an immoral practice.
• Teachers should talk to their students about life.
• Exams reduce the will to study.
• Homework can help students learn better.
• Introducing gadgets to children at an early age is harmful.
• Children of different genders should be treated the same way.

Short Example of a College Argumentative Essay

Here is an argumentative essay example to help you write one yourself!

How many people have lost their lives due to the intolerance they have faced from other people over different matters and views? As time progresses, the world changes, and people are becoming more narrow-minded towards countless cases. However, people are also trying to change for the better.

Firstly, racism has been going on for hundreds of years, and as time passes by, it keeps getting worse. In 2019 there was a 74% rise in cases of racism against blacks in America since 2009. Even in 2020, police officers arrested an innocent black man named George Floyd. He immediately died after a police officer kept his knee on his neck, preventing him from breathing. Society has developed, but people still do not accept the differences they have in their society, it quite saddening. It has gotten so worse that people need to tell others that what they are doing is wrong and demand a just society. For many years, racism was horrible due to the lack of knowledge, but as time went by, it deteriorated.

Additionally, when it comes to religion, people have become intolerant and malicious. According to research by Oxford University from 1996 to 2019, there has been a 78% increase in religious intolerance around the world. Every time this religious intolerance increases which forces the persecuted group to migrate somewhere safer. Even in 2018, a Christian girl named Asia received the blame of a tiny blasphemy and was led to persecution in Pakistan; it had gotten so worse that she had to leave Pakistan. Instead of living in harmony and respecting each other’s religion, they developed hate. That is why this keeps increasing, and there is no one to stop it. If everyone accepted others kindly despite their difference in religion, the world would be a better place.

On the other hand, the world is altering its reactions. A study done by Harvard University shows that in 2016, 81%of people who had been intolerant were punished and caused harm to people of a different race, religion, or gender. The percentage is increasing as the years pass. Furthermore, there is also now much organization like the UN that help victims of religious intolerance and many others. In the past, the world was intolerant. They would oppose someone different from them, and even the leaders were not open-minded to many different ideas. However, now we have enough knowledge to understand everything around us. So, the world is changing and become more accepting.

There are many different areas in which the world becomes intolerant against people of different races and religions. However, through the lessons learned from the past, the world has decided to change and not discriminate against others. When people see someone different from them, they cannot take that. If people do not change as a whole, especially our leaders, then nothing will change. So if we want to avoid these problems, we have to be more open-minded and kind to others, even if they are not like us.

Common Mistakes to Avoid While Writing Argumentative Essays

• Always link relevant evidence to the point.
• Avoid using slang.
• Avoid authoritative phrases such as “I believe”.
• Avoid any form of plagiarism.
• Avoid including too many quotes.
• Always use a formal tone to address readers in argumentative writing.
• Avoid overcomplicating the thesis statement.
• Don’t include new information in the conclusion.

Q&A

How to Start an Argumentative Essay?

Outline the topic and provide necessary background information. Write a one-liner thesis statement for the main point of the argument.

What Are The 4 Parts of An Argumentative Essay?

Introduction, thesis statement, body paragraphs, and conclusion.

What Are The 5 Elements of Argumentative Writing?

Claims, counterclaims, reasons, evidence, and response.

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