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When writing any type of essay, you’ll need to start with the topic. But if you’re making an argument, which takes a clear position on a debatable question and backs up claims with evidence and reasoning, then you’ll want to think carefully about what topic you choose to ensure it is argumentative and clear.
A clear, argumentative topic needs two distinct sides (pro or con, yes or no) on a debatable issue, meaning both sides make valid and interesting points in a way that makes the issue worth having a debate about.
In addition, the debate needs to be somehow controversial. If no one really cares about the outcome, then it’s not a debate. You need a topic about which reasonable people might disagree.
You also need to think about your audience, or the person or people at whom the specific piece of writing is directed. The topic should be relevant or of interest to your intended audience.
IN CONTEXT
If you were presenting a paper against nuclear power at a conference of nuclear scientists, you would need to think about whether or not it would be possible for you to change their minds. If you were trying to convince them of your position, you would need to think carefully about the way that you appealed to your shared connections, such as perhaps a shared belief in the need for alternative energy sources.
Finally, for an argument to work as an essay topic, the author needs to pick a side of that topic and stick to it. If you don’t clearly and consistently argue for one side of the debate, then your audience isn’t going to be convinced.
Once you know your argument, you need evidence to back up your claims. Evidence is facts and details that support an argument.
There are two types of evidence that you can use:
With personal evidence, you draw from your own experience to justify your position. But this needs to be done carefully. For it to work effectively as evidence, your experience needs to be shared. You’re using your experience to speak to and for more people than yourself, so that experience needs to be relatable.
This can be a very useful kind of evidence when you’re trying to make a personal connection with your readers. But if you only use evidence from your personal experience, then your readers may perceive the issue that you’re discussing as being related only to you and not to a larger context that they might relate to.
Your other option is researched evidence. When you research, you gather up facts, data, statistics, and ideas from other writers and sources to support your ideas. Your evidence needs to be current and relevant, as out-of-date ideas won’t help you, and neither will data that doesn’t speak directly to your argument.
Research is a great way to fend off those who would dismiss your argument as being just your opinion, which may happen if you base your evidence solely on personal experience. Research proves to your reader that you’re not just mindlessly relaying ideas, but have instead thoroughly and carefully thought through the argument and found the data to support your position.
Just as important in making a convincing argument is how you, the author, present yourself in your writing. What tone are you using? What authorial persona is coming across to your readers?
An argument may be less convincing if the author seems haughty versus if the author seems considerate. Likewise, an author who is clearly biased, hot-headed, and brash is less credible than one who is even-keeled, rational, and approachable.
You want to practice projecting an aura of rationality, and then think carefully about what your tone, word choice, style, and other writing aspects are saying to your readers about who you are.
All of these facets together make up what is called the author’s ethos. Building a credible persona depends upon presenting an unbiased viewpoint, a reasonable tone, and making careful use of logical reasoning, research, and rhetorical appeals.
Now that you understand some of the important aspects of an argumentative essay, you can think about the rules for making that essay effective:
| Rules for Effective Argumentation | Description |
|---|---|
| Rely upon shared values. | All effective arguments and, indeed, many other kinds of writing should appeal to values that you share with your readers. This is why it’s important to think of your audience. for instance, a paper arguing that science fiction novels aren’t important probably wouldn’t get much traction with an audience at Comic Con. |
| Incorporate carefully sourced research and credible evidence that supports your claim. | In particular, you want to select evidence that directly supports your side of the argument. Be careful when you’re presenting evidence about the general topic, as sometimes it can contradict your claim. |
| Explain clearly why your claim is valid or believable. | You want to do this instead of just stating that your claim is believable. It’s hard to be convinced by an argument that merely states, “I am right.” A more convincing argument will explain, “I’m right, and here is why.” |
| Clearly state the argument so that the reader knows which side you’re on. | In particular, it’s essential that you use a thesis statement in the introduction to demonstrate your position on the debate. |
| Stick to one argument. | You may have multiple parts to an argument, but if you’re taking on two different debates, you should be writing them in two separate papers. |
| Make careful and thoughtful use of rhetorical appeals. | Consider how to use logos, ethos, and pathos. |
Now consider the following short essay:
Does this author does seem credible, reasonable, or believable? No. In this spot, you can see that the author is making a pretty substantial claim:
Violent video games shouldn't be restricted from anyone who wants to play.
But there isn’t any evidence to support that claim. Furthermore, the author comes across as angry and brash and doesn’t seem like someone you’d want to trust.
And see how here the author is taking a really extreme line of reasoning without addressing any possible disagreement?
It seems like the author is dismissive of anyone who might disagree. That’s not very credible. Overall, this author seems hard-line and presents as biased, not wholly informed, and unreasonable, instead of measured, neutral, and rational.
Compare that to the following piece:
What do you see here? The tone is markedly different. In this version of the essay, the author seems reasonable and trustworthy. See how here the author makes a concession to the other side?
It's clear that there are circumstances where violent video games are inappropriate. It's reasonable to be concerned about the effect of violence on young children.
That’s a mark of credibility—being able to represent the other side fairly and generously and finding the rational connections between the two sides instead of demonizing the other side. That’s something you want to emulate.
Also notice how here the author’s personal experience is used to demonstrate how violent video games can be a positive element of an adult’s life:
This is a believable and rationally presented example of personal experience, unlike what you saw in the previous text. Overall, you could say that this author manages to strike the right tone and uses evidence and appeals carefully to make the argument.
Source: This tutorial was authored by Martina Shabram for Sophia Learning. Please see our Terms of Use.
