English

Persuasive essays are any essay where you are trying to convince the reader that your view of the subject is valid. Note that you are not trying to convince the reader that your view or position is the only way to see the subject, nor are you necessarily trying to convince the reader that your position is the best way to see the subject. 

The key is to think defensively: you are trying to explain why you see the subject this way. More importantly, you want to base your argument on solid evidence. This is not a personal experience essay, even though your personal experiences will probably influence your viewpoint. Every point that you make needs to be supported with evidence.

In general, evidence that proves that your views are known or shared with a wide variety of other people will help validate your claim; that is one of the primary reasons for using sources - to provide that outside validation that you aren't the only one who feels this way. However, remember that your position should be the focus of the paper. You should not just be blindly repeating your sources' arguments -- we want to know your unique set of evidence and how it adds up to support your claims.

Try to find as wide a variety of sources as possible and learn as much about the subject as you can. After you've done the research, reading, and thinking about the subject, then you are ready to share your viewpoint with the audience. Make sure that you cite all evidence from your sources. Give credit where credit is due.

To produce an acceptable persuasive essay, the writer should:

· Use grammatically appropriate sentence structures

· Organize the essay in a format appropriate to the assignment

· Use appropriate paragraph breaks to control the flow of information

· Use transitions both within and between the paragraphs

· Develop and explain the essay content completely

· Communicate a clear and specific purpose to an audience

· Incorporate information from outside sources ethically, effectively, and appropriately using the MLA citation style

The following topics are  not  allowed to be written about for various reasons.

· Abortion

· Medical marijuana

· Medical assisted suicide

· Gun Laws

· Social Media

· Gay marriage

· Death penalty

· Drinking Age

Essay Requirements:

· MLA Format and Citations

· Minimum of four pages (not counting the works cited page)

· Three outside sources

· Two peer reviews

Green sheets from the Writing Center will be considered bonus five points.

Due Dates:

· Five Potential Sources – 11/8

· Argumentative Outline – 11/8

· First Peer Review – 11/15

· Second Peer Review – 11/29

· Final Draft – 12/6