How To Write An Argumentative Essay

Argumentative essays can be very confusing to write, especially if one does not have clear guidelines on how to go about it. Argumentative essays are also referred to as ‘Persuasive Essays’ as they require the writer to persuade the reader about certain issues by stating various arguments and making a stand.

What is an Argumentative Essay?

Also referred to as a persuasive essay, an argumentative essay is an essay where the writer has to present arguments with reasoning and evidence to try and convince the reader about their point of view, based on a particular thesis statement. The writer of an argumentative essay has to make a clear claim and have enough evidence to back their claim to be able to pull the reader to their side. These kinds of essays are very popular in universities, especially on subjects related to health care, politics, science, religion, and technology. While writing an argumentative essay, the writer needs to be very clear about what their standpoint is by using strong evidence and persuasive language. An example of an argumentative essay is https://assignmentsden.com/blog/racism-essay/

Steps to writing an Argumentative Essay

• Good Topic: To write a good argumentative essay, one needs to choose a good topic that can have at least two strong conflicting points of view. You also need to find a topic that you are passionate about so that you can successfully argue it out and convince your reader to agree with your point of view. A great topic will also make it easier for the writer to generate a strong thesis statement for the essay.
• Strong Thesis Statement: A good topic is a great guide to writing a strong thesis statement for your argumentative essay. This, therefore, is the second most important step to writing an argumentative essay. A thesis statement is usually included in the introductive paragraph. It is very important to have a thesis statement as this presents the basis of the argument and also identifies the claim that the writer has taken. It is important to note that as the writer, you have to make a claim and work towards persuading the reader to see your point of view.
• Sufficient Evidence: After selecting a topic that you are comfortable with, the next very critical thing to do is to gather sufficient evidence to back up your arguments. An argumentative essay is meant to be persuasive; thus, strong evidence is key to the success of an argumentative essay. This can be done by assessing both points of view that one is arguing about and coming up with strong arguments for both sides while still maintaining one’s stand. It is important to stick to the facts of the topic without being vague and also provide enough statistics to support your reasoning. Useful information can be found in books, academic journals, reports, news articles, interviews, among others; all materials which are relevant to the topic. All these will be very useful in making your argumentative essay compelling.
• Write the Essay: With a good topic, a strong thesis statement, and sufficient evidence, you can now begin to write your argumentative essay with a solid foundation of information. Just like most essays, an argumentative essay has three important parts; introduction, body paragraphs, conclusion.

1. The introduction should introduce the topic of the argumentative essay. The thesis statement is usually the last sentence of the introductory paragraph. It is important to note that a thesis statement is where you make your claim and let your reader know what you will be arguing for.
2. The body paragraphs follow after the introduction. The length of the paragraphs depends on the length of the essay. Regardless of this, you should ensure that all the arguments supporting your claim are presented in the body paragraphs, with each paragraph dedicated to one argument to avoid having a clumsy and disorganized paper. If it is a two-sided argument, ensure that you present both conflicting sides of the arguments, while still ensuring that your claim remains superior so that the reader is not confused about what your claim is.
3. The conclusion is the last part of your essay and this offers a summary of your claim and the arguments made in the essay. It’s important to start your conclusion by restating your thesis statement.

• Edit and Proofread: Once you are done writing your essay, make sure that you go through it again to correct all the grammatical errors. Simple grammatical errors can cause a good essay to receive a bad grade. While proofreading, ensure that all the arguments are well-argued out, all references have intext citations and the reference page follows the right kind of format (MLA, APA, CHICAGO, among others.)