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Better Essays

ENGLISH ESSAY STUDY GUIDE
1. Argumentative Essay

DEFINITION
An argumentative essay tries to change the reader’s mind by convincing the reader to agree with the writer’s point of view.

CHARACTERISTICS
An argumentative essay attempts to be highly persuasive and logical. It usually assumes that the reader disagrees with the writer, but it should be noted that the reader is no less intelligent than the writer. Hence an argumentative essay should be written objectively, logically and respectfully.

When planning an argumentative essay, be aware that the essay should contain the following characteristics:
The argumentative essay introduces and explains the issue or case. The reader needs to know what the issue is going to be. …show more content…

WRITING OPINION STATEMENTS
In argumentative writing, you need to convince your readers to agree with your point of view or opinion. You can achieve this goal by supporting your opinions with strong evidence. A careful study of the essay “Aggressive driving should be avoided’ will reveal that the writer uses statistics from the National Highway Traffic Safety Council (NHTSC) and the Department of Highway Safety (DHS) – two wellrespected organizations - to lend support to his opinions. Statistics from very reliable sources as those used in the essay provide very strong evidence which can easily sway the readers to the writer’s point of view. There are different sources of evidence that can be used in argumentative essays. Besides statistics published by reliable sources, research findings, examples and opinions of experts in their fields are some of the other sources of evidence. You also can use forceful words to state your opinions. These words can make readers rethink their views about the issue being discussed. There are many examples of such words in the essay. They are:

raised public opinion (1); dangerous to other road users (4); should be avoided (5); causes crashes, injuries and fatalities (5); resulted in (7); accounts for (11), the most important contributing factor (14); has increased (18); and leading to more aggressive drivers (19).

IMPORTANT POINTS
• A clear, concise, and defined thesis statement that occurs in the first

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