How to Write an Argumentative Essay Step By Step

Throughout anyone’s studies, there exist a number of essay styles that you’ll need to craft. Each one takes different approaches to master. Today, we are going to take a deeper glance at one of these formats – an argumentative essay.

Features That Define the Genre

Before someone is able to learn how to write an argumentative essay, they must learn what it entails. This can be applied to any other type of writing an assignment. So, let’s take a deeper dive into what an argumentative essay entails.  

One common misconception is that an assignment type like this always argues a point. However, it’s often about introducing all perspectives of a debate. With that consideration being said, these sides won’t always be showed off equally. This depends on who’s writing and what one wants to be communicated.

Commit to Plenty of Background Work

All forms of writing take some degree of background studying. This style, though, takes an exceptional amount of it. These are often assigned as final assignments or even capstone projects. In other words, you’ll want to plan ahead plenty to ensure there’s enough time to gather all necessary intel.

This – more than anything else – isn’t a style that should be procrastinated.   It’s also a good idea to brainstorm and organize ideas before you ever put a pen to paper.

Forming an Intro

The opening of the piece has a pair of important components: a hook as well as a thesis. An eye-catching hook is an initial stage. This is done to catch the notice of anyone who is referring to the piece. It must be interesting but don’t make it misleading. As an illustration, a fact or statistic that relates is fine. A shocking piece of data that isn’t representative of the content, you’ll lose credibility fast.  

Next, the thesis. That is a forecast of the claim you’re going to make. That must be narrow enough so it fits the prompt and so readers know what to expect. When crafting it, ensure it’s concise and direct.

Working On the Body

In the introductory section of the piece – like alternative styles- is where to introduce specific points. We mentioned credibility earlier. This is where you will build this up.  

For each idea you give, you should also give a good amount of well-researched data. This needs to be detailed and might include anecdotes, facts, and similar details. These must be from quality resources. For this style, stats, interviews, as well as data from news sources or quality websites or texts.

The best websites to use are ones whose URLs end in “.gov” or “.edu.” Published journals and databases are a great place to look as well.   Once in a while, you may come across two worthwhile resources with conflicting information. If these are two sides of a situation, this might be fine. If it’s something along the lines of a hard statistic, it’s best to go with the most current option. This is because as studies and conditions evolve, accurate data will change to keep up.

To Conclude

By the resolution of the piece, you’ll need to wrap things up. If you deliver your final point and then drop off, it leaves readers hanging. This creates a rather ineffective piece and professors will grade it poorly.  

Instead, start the finishing portion by revisiting the points made. The audience has read a lot at this point and this is the writer’s responsibility: to recap all that’s been covered. Then, revisit the thesis too. This is where you’ll aim to sum up the main intention.  

Finally, finish with a call to action or CTA. The CTA could be varied. It could be asking someone to take actual action. Yet, in argumentative essays, it is frequent for the author to want the readers to agree with the conclusion you’ve been leading them to. This is commonly used in this style when the piece is designed with a slant to a side.

Conclusion

Starting any new project is slightly overwhelming initially. This is particularly true if you aren’t especially familiar with the format. The great news is, with a little reading, you can learn about any genre assigned. With the guide we’ve spelled out within this article, the next argumentative essay assignment will go smoothly.