Writing an opinion (persuasive) essay

Persuasive writing
The purpose of persuasive
writing is to give an opinion
and to influence the reader's
way of thinking with
supporting evidence. This is
usually done through
emotional appeals, logic with
presentation of evidence,
establishing credibility as an
author, and using a strongly
biased voice.
 Collaborative work 1
Consider key objections - Develop
counter arguments
Claim
The overuse of social media is
damaging relationships and eroding
social customs.
A copious amount of time is spent on
social media sites, distracting
Americans of all ages from more
worthy activities like doing
homework, spending time with
family, or going outside.
Counterclaim
On the other hand, social media can
strengthen relationships and
improve our ability to connect.
While it is true that many productive
activities can now be done on social
media sites, including work for
school.
Rebuttal
Nevertheless, we are increasingly
more dependent on our electronic
devices.
Collaboration, if not done ethically,
can lead to cheating.
 Claim Counterclaim Rebuttal Evidence Elaboration

The overuse of On the other hand, Nevertheless, we are LOGOS (REASON) Explain
social media is social media can increasingly more Facts
Figures
damaging strengthen dependent on our
Data
relationships and relationships and electronic devices. Numbers
eroding social improve our ability Statistics
customs. to connect. Scientific research
Processes
Product characteristics

A copious amount of While it is true that Collaboration, if not ETHOS (CHARACTER- Explain
time is spent on many productive done ethically, can CREDIBILITY)
Personal anecdotes
social media sites, activities can now be lead to cheating.
Client testimonials
distracting done on social Success stories
Americans of all media sites, Titles
ages from more including work for Quote reliable sources
worthy activities like school.
doing homework, PATHOS
spending time with Stories (movies, songs,
quotes, fabels, books,
family, or going online pages, etc)
outside. Beliefs/Values
Counterclaim/
Evidence Elaboration
Claim
 Creating a title
Try to grab attention by:
offering a provocative image
picking up on words or examples offered in the body or
conclusion of the paper
asking a question

Avoid titles that are too general or lack character

 Introduction: the purpose
To get the readers' attention:

personal anecdote
example-real or hypothetical
question
quotation
shocking statistics
striking image

To restate the prompt

To present some general background information

about the topic

To preview the main points that will appear in the

essay

To present a clear statement of the main idea of

the essay: thesis statement.
 Thesis statement: Your opinion
and the reasons behind it.

Example 1

Specific Purpose: To inform my audience about the major uses of hypnosis.

Central Idea: Major uses of hypnosis are to control pain in surgery, help people stop smoking
and help students improve their academic performance.

Example 2

Specific Purpose: To persuade my audience that online voting should not be approved.
Central Idea: We should not approve online voting because it will increase voter fraud and
disfranchise voters without Internet access.
 To restate the ideas of the
prompt
An example of how this works, with the prompt Is it important to question the ideas and
decisions of people in authority?

If your stance is yes: It is true that we should openly question the decisions of people in
positions of power, as some have said.

If your stance is no: Some have said that it is fundamentally important to second-guess the
decisions of our leaders. However, examples from history, literature, and my personal life prove
otherwise.

Thats it. A simple, easy formula to get your first sentence written by restating the prompt and
taking a side. Its what I used to get a 12 myself.
 Restating the prompt
The key question is...

What it comes down to is...

What needs to be decided is...

Many people are starting to wonder whether...

Collaborative work 2: Write
the persuasive essay
 To get readers' attention
Too General: Crime has been an issue throughout time.

More Specific: The question of the severity of punishments for juveniles is

an issue that has garnered attention due to the increasing number of
juvenile shootings in the last several years.

Too General: Man has always wondered about the meaning of information.

More Specific: The Age of Information brought about through the digital
revolution of computers has posed significant questions about the value and
worth of this information: Does having instant access to every newspaper
and journal blog in the world make us more intelligent, value-based people?
 Opening paragraph
....? This is the question which needs to be answered.

It should be acknowledged from the start that...

The question which needs to be answered/addressed is...

Some people state/argue/claim that... However, others maintain/hold the position

that...

First of all, it is important to state/observe that

 To present some general
background
Bacteria are single celled microbes. The cell structure is
simpler than that of other organisms as there is no
nucleus or membrane bound organelles. Instead their
control centre containing the genetic information is
contained in a single loop of DNA. Some bacteria have
an extra circle of genetic material called a plasmid. The
plasmid often contains genes that give the bacterium
some advantage over other bacteria. For example it may
contain a gene that makes the bacterium resistant to a
certain antibiotic.
Describing the current
situation
Over the past few decades...

We have now reached a point where.../ A point has been reached where.../ ..... has
reached a point where...

Newspapers are full of stories about.../Newspapers are teeming with stories

about.../Stories about...

In some countries... while in others...

To preview the main points of the
essay
To present your thesis
Body
Presenting one side of the
argument
Firstly, it is important to state that...

First, I would like to present some/ the arguments in favour of... / First, it is
important to present the arguments in favour of...

It seems/is (quite) clear that...

On the one hand,...

It is sometimes argued that...

One argument in favour of/against is...

In my view/opinion,... (Only for opinion essays)

I strongly believe that...(only for opinion essays)

Presenting the other side of
the argument
However/Nevertheless,...

On the other side/hand,...

Some people take the opposite view, and claim/maintain that...

Having said that,...

And yet,...

Another argument in favour of/against (a ban on smoking) is (that)...

Acknowledging an argument
and restating your opinion
While it is true to say/argue/claim/suggest/state that..., I really do think that...
(Opinion essay) /... it has been demonstrated/proven that... (Academic essay)

Even though some people maintain that/Even though it is widely accepted/believed/

argued that, I nevertheless believe that... (Opinion essay)/ ... it has been demonstrated/
proven/found that...

There is some truth in the view that... Nevertheless, it does not alter my view that...
(Opinion essay) /

It is hard/difficult to deny that...

To that extent, it is true that...

Giving additional information
What is more, ...

Moreover, ...

Furthermore,...

Similarly,...

We should also remember that/It is also important to remember that...

It is also worth bearing in mind that...

Conclusion
What is the purpose of your
conclusion?
To present the thesis statement/To restate the thesis
statement

To summarize the main points

To show the significance of the points made in the

body

To draw people to action, to give a solution or to make

a prediction
 Conclusion
To sum up, I would say that...(Opinion essay)

In conclusion, ...

On balance, ...

While it is true that..., I firmly believe that... (Opinion essay)

However, on balance, I believe that...(Opinion essay)/ However, on balance, ...

To summarise,.../To conclude,...

It can be argued that... However, the truth of the matter is...

Despite..., I feel that... (Opinion essay)