What is an argumentative essay and how to score well in it?

by Stella C. Teacher

It is necessary for a college student to know the difference between four types of essay: Persuasive, analytical, expository and argumentative. This article will help you know what an argumentative essay is and how to write a good one.

An argumentative essay is one in which students are required to present their discussion from both sides of the topic i.e. in favor as well as against. It is very much similar to a persuasive essay in which students need to persuade the reader that their view is logical and valid. However, the only difference between the two is that in a persuasive essay, students state their stance and continue to support it till the end. Conversely, students mention their stance in an argumentative essay and provide reasons to support their view along with stating reasons of why they do not support the opposing view.

The main focus in an argumentative essay should be on the pros and cons of the subject being discussed. The following are some tips that can help you write a flawless argumentative essay:

• Planning: This is the most essential part in essay writing, be it a persuasive, expository or argumentative one. Planning involves writing down pros and cons of the subject before articulating them. When you have a plan, it takes a very few minutes to articulate it but if you start an argumentative essay without planning for it, it is highly probable that you will get stuck at some point. Professors believe that students who allocate a significant portion of time to planning are more likely to produce quality content than those who allocate entire time to just write it.

• Five proper paragraphs: Readers are able to understand an argumentative essay quite well when it is properly paragraphed. This is one reason of why a proper structure is very necessary for an argumentative essay. First paragraph is the thesis statement where stance is stated, second and third paragraphs emphasize on the pros, fourth paragraph focuses on the con(s) and finally last paragraph concludes the essay. Nevertheless, other formats and structures are also acceptable as long as they clearly distinguish pros from cons.

• Statistics and Real-world Examples: When a reader is reading an essay written by college students, they expect professionalism. Students tend to earn very high marks if they provide real world examples to support their point. However, it is necessary to be accurate when providing these examples because wrong or fake examples can adversely affect an argumentative essay.

• Use sensible words when comparing: Vocabulary errors are often witnessed by readers during comparisons. It is highly suggested that words like although, however, conversely, on the other hand and but should be used to make the comparison sound good. Moreover, in order to prove something wrong students are encouraged to use sentences like these evidences prove that… and Therefore these points are invalid because…

By following these basic tips and points about an argumentative essay, students can easily score well. However, the tips are not limited to these. Other factors like the flow of content, grammar and vocabulary are also important determinants of your overall grade.

Author bio: Stella is a philosopher and has majored in Philosophy from the University of Kent.and have published several documentaries and articles for Speedyessay | Writing Service UK during his career of 18 years and counting. Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn | Creative times