Welcome to this lecture headed “ARGUMENT/DEBATE ESSAY”. We will be discussing all about argument/debate essay. Enjoy your lecture.
For an argument essay to be efficient, it ought to bear certain elements that will influence the audience to see things from your perspective.
For this reason, you ought to take a few minutes to organize and prepare before you move into writing an argument essay.
Find a Good Topic
To uncover good topic for an argument essay you ought to consider a lot of issues that will have two contradictory points of view or very differing conclusions.
As you look over a list of topics, you ought to discover one that actually sparks your interest.
While a strong interest in a topic is essential, it’s not enough to make it interesting. You have to consider what position you can back up with logic and evidence.
It’s one thing to have a strong belief, but when shaping an argument you’ll have to give details why your belief is sensible and logical. As you discover the topics, make a mental list of points you could make use of as evidence for or against an issue.
Consider Both Sides of Your story and Take a stand
Once you have chosen a topic you feel strongly about, you ought to make a list of points for both sides of the argument and pick a side. One of your first aims in your essay will be to offer both sides of your topic with an evaluation of each.
Of course, you will wrap up that one side (your side) is the best conclusion. In the planning stage you will be required to consider strong arguments for the “other” side. Then you’ll water them down!
Collect Evidence
When we think of arguments we may picture two red-faced people speaking quite loudly and making dramatic gestures. But that’s because face-to-face arguments frequently turn into an emotional thing.
In fact, the act of arguing involves making available a proof to support your claim, with or without emotions.
In an argument essay you will have to make available evidence without including too much drama.
You’ll explore two sides of a topic (briefly) and back up why one side or position is the best one.
Writing Stage
Once you’ve provided yourself with a solid foundation to work with, you can start to craft your essay. An argument essay ought to be made up of three parts: the introduction, the body, and the conclusion.
The length of these parts (number of paragraphs) will differ, depending on the length of your essay assignment.
1. Introduce your topic and assert your side
Just like any essay, the first paragraph of your argument essay ought to be made up of a brief explanation of your topic, some background information, and a thesis statement.
In this instance, your thesis will be a statement of your position on a specific contentious topic.
Example introductory paragraph with thesis statement:
Since the beginning of the new century, a theory has emerged regarding the end of the world, or at least the end of life as we know it. This new theory centers around the year 2012, a date that many claim has mysterious origins in ancient manuscripts from a lot of cultures.
The most noted attribute of this date is that it appears to mark the end of the Mayan calendar. But there is no substantiation to propose that the Maya saw any great significance to this date.
In fact, none of the claims surrounding a 2012 doomsday event hold up to scientific inquiry. The year 2012 passed without a major, life-altering catastrophe.
2. Relay both sides of the controversy
The body of your essay will constitute the major part of your argument. You ought to go into more detail about the two sides of your controversy and affirm the strongest points of the counter-side of your concern.
After describing the “other” side, you will relay your own point of view and then make available evidence to illustrate why your position is the correct one.
Choose your strongest evidence and offer your points one by one. Make use of a mixture of evidence forms, from statistics, to other studies and anecdotal stories.
This portion of your paper could be any length, from two paragraphs to two hundred pages.
Reaffirm your position as the most sensible one in your summary paragraphs.
Tips for Your Essay:
Desist from using emotional language
Know the variation between a logical conclusion and an emotional point of view
Don’t formulate evidence
Cite your sources
Create an outline
Be prepared to support your side by knowing the strongest arguments for the other side. You may be challenged by the teacher or by another student.
Writing introductions to argumentative essays
You now know how to write the body of an argumentative essay. In the next two sections of this section you will learn how to write an introduction and a conclusion.
Introductions are very significant in an argumentative essay. The introduction provides the reader his/her first impression of the piece of writing. The first impression that you are trying to give the reader is of a high-class argumentative essay written in a professional and academic style.
Let’s have a look at an introduction from the model essay from the following extract on wildlife Parks:
The issue of whether we should allow leisure parks to stay open has been widely debated in our community recently.
It is a significant issue because it concerns basic moral and economic questions about the way we make use of our native wildlife. A variety of different arguments have been put forward about this issue.
This essay will consider arguments for having wildlife parks and point to a few of the problems with these views. It will then put forward reasons for the introduction of laws which prohibit these needless and cruel institutions.
The four parts of an introduction
A simple introduction to an argumentative assignment is made up of four parts. Read the following description of the parts.
1. Introduce the topic
2. Mention why the topic is important
3. Mention that there is a disparity of opinion about this topic
4. Explain how the assignment will be organized and vividly states the writer’s main premise
Organizing sentences in an introduction
Now organize the sentences below into the correct order. They constitute the introduction to an argumentative essay about the issue of whether Nigeria ought to become a federal republic.
a. As a result, the issue is a very contentious one and has attracted a lot of debate.
b. It will then put forward a few reasons why Nigeria ought to adopt a republican system of government.
c. The question of whether we preserve the monarchy is not just a legal detail but is essentially connected to the way we see ourselves as a discrete nation of people with its own identity and culture.
d. Since the time of federation, Nigeria has been a constitutional monarchy with the Queen of the United Kingdom as its head of state.
e. This essay will take a look at some of the arguments for sustaining the monarch as head of state and will sketch a few of the problems with this position.
f. Nevertheless, today many a lot of Nigerians are questioning whether this form of government is still pertinent or suitable and are suggesting that we move towards the organization of a republic.
Top Keys for a good Argumentative essay
When you happen to debate with friends or family members, do you tend to win or lose? The art of arguing is intimately connected to your capability to harness convincing facts, statistics, and concepts that support your viewpoint on a topic.
When you lose an argument, chances are you only made use of opinion to support your stand.
The ability to argue in a rational and sensible way is a huge life skill. It will assist you to stand up for what you think is right and to get others to pay attention to your reasoning.
Significant Elements of an Argumentative Essay
The objective of an argumentative essay is to make others believe that your opinion is valid. Normally, an argumentative essay addresses readers who hold a contrasting point of view on a specific issue.
For instance, you may argue the virtues of solar power to a group of city leaders invested in coal and oil.
There are four essential features to consider when creating an argumentative essay.
1. Your topic ought to be debatable.
When choosing an issue to argue, you are required to select a topic that has more than one side.
For instance, there is no way you can argue on the topic of whether humans walk on two legs because it’s a clear fact with no attached debate.
But for topics like GMOs, gun control, and even fast food. For example, should the government regulate the sale of sugary beverages? That’s certainly a question up for debate.
2. You must take a strong position
You can’t probably argue if you don’t take a position and write a convincing thesis.
Imagine reading an argument about the regulation of sugary beverages that says something like, “I enjoy drinking Pepsi, so I’d like to be able to purchase it as I please, but the government ought to regulate it because it’s making me gain weight.”
This statement confuses the reader and makes it difficult for him to understand whether the writer is for or against the regulation of sugary beverages?
Therefore you must take a position and stick with it. A strong stance may be, “The government ought to regulate the purchase of sugary beverages because these drinks lead to a higher occurrence of diabetes.”
3. Your argument ought to be supportable
A good argument needs the utilization of logic and irrefutable evidence. You ought to be able to back up your statements with facts, statistics, examples, and informed opinions from experts.
In the argument for regulating sugary beverages, the author may write something like, “A study by NAFDAC found that drinking just one 12-ounce can of soda per day leads to a 22% increase in a person’s chances of developing diabetes.”
An argumentative essay does not include opinions that are not backed. “I think sugary drinks should be regulated because they are unhealthy” is not a convincing argument…unless you back it up with evidence.
4. You must disprove opposing positions
The final feature of a strong argumentative essay is disproving alternating positions. By taking care of contrasting opinions, you make your argument stronger. It’s best to try to address the most widespread opposing beliefs.
For instance, an opponent might say, “By drinking sugary drinks, I’m only harming myself; therefore it’s not the government’s place to ban them.”
To disprove this argument, the author might write something like, “The Nigerian Diabetes Association reports that the cost of diabetes has risen 41% within the last five years, from N174 billion in 2007 to N245 billion in 2012. It’s a societal problem that decreases efficiency in the workforce and costs taxpayers money.”
By disproving alternate opinions, you make your opponents question their own arguments, which is an authoritative approach indeed.
Thanks for reaching to this point marking the end of this lecture.
Your Lecture Master:
Mst. Ugonwanne Joshua
EDU_JOSH ONLINE CLASSES 