Are you looking for a guide on how to write a persuasive essay? Then you are in the right place. A persuasive essay is a genre of academic writing that students write to convince readers about a particular point of view using logic and reason.
Writing these essays is a delicate endeavor, yet it is as common an assignment as an argumentative essay. Some nail it on the first go, and others struggle to put their points across. You must present your arguments clearly and back them up with logic and evidence.
Practicing persuasive writing will help you formulate specific reasons why your opinion matters to you and the readers. When you master the art of writing a convincing persuasive essay, you can win debates, give good speeches, and win negotiations using persuasion skills such as ethos, logos, and pathos.
In this guide, prepared by our top persuasive essay experts, you will learn everything about how to write a perfect persuasive essay, even if it is your first. Let's get started!
The first step in learning how to write a persuasive essay is knowing what the essay involves. A persuasive essay is writing that tries to convince or persuade readers about something to inspire action. You express your opinion on a contentious or controversial subject. This could be persuading the target audience to buy something, think in a particular way, or believe in something. In an argumentative essay, your task is to convince or persuade the readers that a given point of view is correct, as you would do in a classical or Aristotelian argumentative essay. Your persuasive essay should:
Some examples of persuasive writing you are likely to encounter in daily life include
As a student, your teacher will assign persuasive essays to test your ability to argue your opinions and convince readers to follow your point of view. How well you articulate your words and ideas will determine whether readers will be sold. There are different types of ways you can use when writing these types of essays: rhetoric, craftsmanship, authenticity, reflexivity, and imagination.
This refers to all the ways you can appeal to your target audience, such as ethos, logos, and pathos. All these three play a crucial role in how you communicate your opinions. Pathos is generates emotional responses such as fear or pity from the readers. Logos is the logical appeal that involves using reasoning and concrete evidence. Ethos is about ethical appeal. It consists in providing your experiences and reputation to appeal to the audience.
This involves using language effectively to persuade readers about your point of view. It is about using appropriate language, vocabulary, sentence structure, and grammar so that what you are saying makes sense to the readers. You must also employ rhetorical elements such as repetitions and metaphors to enhance your words.
This is about reflecting on your opinions and any potential biases. It is about acknowledging that you are not perfect and are ready to address your biases to make your ideas more credible and authentic.
When writing any form of persuasive writing, you must show authenticity so readers believe what you are saying. To establish authenticity, your ideas and arguments have to be believable.
Using imagination is crucial to creating compelling content. You can use storytelling or vivid imagery to make your arguments more relatable, increasing persuasion.
Consider developing a comprehensive outline when writing a persuasive essay that everyone will read and have a wow factor. The best structure to adopt contains:
You can use the outline template below to develop a persuasive essay that addresses your topic comprehensively.
The Topic___________________________________________________________________
I. Introduction
II. Body Section
Body Paragraph #1
Body Paragraph #2
Body Paragraph #3
III. Conclusion
Format your outline in APA, MLA, Harvard, Chicago, Oxford, or any format that your professor or teacher has suggested in the instructions. Ensure that you write a double-spaced persuasive essay that is in Times New Roman font size 12 or any other suggested font and font style.
The purpose of writing a persuasive essay is to present and defend a point of view backed by strong evidence (examples, citations, quotes, statistics, facts, etc.). You can write it to influence others' opinions on a specific topic or issue. In most cases, the same topics that are suitable for argumentative essays apply to persuasive essays. When writing a persuasive essay, you must balance emotive language and formal tone.
You have to adequately prepare to have all the facts in hand when you sit down to write. Start by doing the following:
The first step is picking a position you want to support. You can write an effective persuasive essay when you are passionate about the topic. Researching and arguing for a topic you believe in is much easier. For instance, if you are passionate about the environment, pick a topic like nuclear power plants are a significant environmental threat, plastics should be banned, etc. On the other hand, if you are zealous about animals, choose a topic like scientific testing on animals should be banned or hunting for sports should be made illegal.
Other topics to consider include the following:
What is considered persuasive by one person may need to be more convincing to another. So, consider who you want to target with the chosen topic. For instance, if you are against standardized testing in schools, parents are the best people to target for support. They may have some preconceived biases about a topic. Therefore, by studying who they are, you can shape your arguments to convince them. You can also determine the kind of opposition to expect, thus helping you develop ways to strengthen your ideas and persuade them to be on your side.
Even the best argument has a counterargument, so you must be adequately prepared by doing thorough research. You have to back up your ideas with sufficient evidence and leave no room for doubt. Please review the topic and research its history, any previous arguments made by other authors, and how the target audience reacted to it. Use the available resources, including your school's library and academic journals, to gather enough materials. Follow the research process to ensure that you have the correct information. Enough information about the chosen topic will help you effortlessly and convincingly argue your point.
Look for current information about the topic in magazines, newspapers, and online. As you read through them, write down significant notes that you will use to build your argument when you begin writing. Discuss your facts and evidence with a close friend to ensure you have covered all the relevant facts to support your position.
Please note that only some pieces of information you collect will be helpful. When you have a wide selection of facts and evidence supporting your arguments, you must choose the most convincing. You should use your critical thinking skills to pick only the most relevant evidence.
A thesis statement is one of the essential elements of any type of essay, including a persuasive essay. The statement tells readers the stance you are taking in the arguments. Knowing how to write a persuasive essay will determine whether you can convince your readers about your opinion.
A persuasive essay thesis should include an opinion and why you support it. Delivering a compelling essay will be easier if your thesis is forceful. A good thesis statement should answer the 'why' and "how." It should do the following:
To come up with an effective thesis statement, consider asking yourself the following questions:
A thesis statement should have a phrase or words that signal your opinion. These words and phrases include should, ought, must, need to, had better, etc.
As you state your position in the thesis, make sure it is evident for readers to spot it.
Figuring out how to write a persuasive essay outline is easy. Like other academic essays, a persuasive essay should have an outline that guides how you write your content. A proper outline gives an overview of how your argument should flow in your paper. Before creating an outline, ensure you have all the facts and opinions in place so your ideas flow effortlessly. It should have an introduction, body paragraph, and conclusion.
You are not alone if you are wondering how to write a persuasive essay introduction. The first paragraph of your persuasive essay should be a strong introduction that presents the argument you will make in the paper. Remember that the essay aims to convince readers to agree with you, so set the stage for outlining your ideas and readers to agree with your topic.
Begin with a hook that grabs the reader's attention, then provide background information about the topic. Consider including a summary of the ideas you plan to discuss and other relevant information.
In short, your introduction should have the following format:
Open with an Interesting Hook
Grab readers' attention by involving them immediately. The idea is to show them your argument, not just tell. Therefore, provide a shocking fact, statistic, or emotional story that will bring the issue to life.
Provide Background information
Readers must know a little about what you are discussing, so the background information section is your chance to discuss why the topic is controversial. If talking about standardized testing, you could talk about the debate around tests and students. Show why there needs to be a change by providing compelling information about the topic.
Establish Credibility
Even though you have established your position, state what the opposing side could agree with about the topic. In other words, you say that even though you favor one position, show that you can be fair to the other.
State Your Thesis Statement.
The last sentence of your introduction paragraph should state your thesis statement. Besides showing the position you will support, a thesis statement will set up the organizational pattern of your essay. This statement should be clear and concise for readers to understand it.
The body is the central part of your essay, where you will develop your arguments and try to convince your readers about the argument. The number of paragraphs will depend on the length of your essay and instructions from your instructor. Most short essays have about 2-5 paragraphs, but if you write a complex topic, the paragraphs could be more. Use the TEEL approach to write a perfect paragraph:
When writing the paragraphs, do not show that you doubt the position. String evidence means you have strong arguments. You can use dissent, storytelling, repetition, and call to action to spice up the body of your persuasive essay.
Each paragraph should talk about a single idea that supports your main argument. It should address one aspect of your thesis statement and bring readers close to supporting your point of view. Make sure you organize your work well to allow easy flow of ideas.
To organize your ideas effectively in each paragraph, begin with a topic sentence that introduces the main point you will be discussing in that paragraph. It also advances your arguments. Think of it as a mini-thesis that binds each paragraph together. Next, support these ideas using examples, quotations, statistics, facts, etc. The last part of your paragraph should be a concluding sentence that brings the whole idea to a close. It should also link back to the statement you made in your topic sentence and form a bridge to the next paragraph.
This is the last section of your persuasive essay which brings all your ideas and arguments to a close. It reviews and summarizes all the ideas and arguments throughout the body. Take this as a final opportunity to persuade the readers about your point of view. It should show where your main arguments have gone. It should tell readers why they bothered to read the paper in the first place.
Additionally, provide some new insights. Consider the following questions to help you:
Related Reading: How to conclude an essay perfectly without confusing the readers.
Now with a clear outline, get down to writing. As you write, give your readerseven those opposing your argumentthe respect they deserve. Insulting your readers just because they disagree with you is unprofessional and undiplomatic. Be careful of your choice of words. Only use that will elicit positive responses from your audience. Compliment your opponents by giving them credit for their opinions instead of pointing out the weaknesses of their argument. Then provides the weaknesses of their ideas to show why they should be on your side.
Define the key terms in your argument that readers may find confusing. Use examples and illustrations to elaborate your main ideas. If you want to compare a point to another, use visual images such as metaphors. Ensure you start and end with stronger points. Those that could be weaker points should be placed in the middle paragraphs of the body of the essay.
Ensure you are building your arguments based on the target audience. Think of who they are and their characteristics and values, then use that to shape your arguments.
As you move to the next paragraph, use transitional words. These words include words such as however, moreover, in addition, etc. Transitional words help.
The conclusion should tell readers what they will gain by supporting your arguments. In the end, you could ask a rhetorical question to leave them with something to ponder over.
Once your first draft writing of the essay is ready, spend the last remaining moments before submission polishing your essay. The following are strategies that can help you do this:
Dos
Don'ts
A persuasive essay convinces readers to accept your point of view. A successful, compelling essay must master all the necessary elements of the paper. You should not only choose a debatable topic but also develop an excellent structure to guide the flow of your work. You must also provide excellent and convincing arguments to get readers to accept your words, ideas, and points.
We hope the above guide will help you answer all your questions about writing a convincing persuasive essay and effectively arguing your points. If you need writing help, do not hesitate to consider our essay writing services.
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