Persuasive Thesis Statement/Claim

Did You Know?

The Argument

51

Arguing for or against something involves offering convincing reasons in support of your

position. To write an effective argumentative essay, first you need to consider your audience's

needs and goals and write a persuasive thesis statement. You will also need to select relevant

reasons and acknowledge opposing arguments and develop your reaso

ns with sufficient

logical or emotional evidence. This requires a lot of critical thinking. Let's practice building

that critical thinking by reading three scenes from Shakespeare's Macbeth.

Macbeth52

Macbeth is a tragedy by William Shakespeare that dram

atizes the damaging physical and

psychological effects of political ambition on those who seek power for its own sake. A brave

Scottish general named Macbeth receives a prophecy from a trio of witches that one day he

will become King of Scotland. Consumed

by ambition and spurred to action by his wife,

Macbeth murders King Duncan and takes the Scottish throne for himself. He is then wracked

with guilt and paranoia. Forced to commit

more and more murders to protect himself

from enmity and suspicion, he soon b

ecomes

a tyrannical ruler. The bloodbath and

consequent civil war swiftly take Macbeth

and Lady Macbeth into the realms of

madness and death.

Lady Macbeth plays a very pivotal role in the

story. Lady Macbeth is a powerful presence in the

play, most notabl

y in the first two acts, one of

which we'll read. She's persuasive and says

whatever she needs to in order to convince her

husband to commit the murder and become king.

Did You Know?

The Argument

51

Arguing for or against something involves offering convincing reasons in support of your

position. To write an effective argumentative essay, first you need to consider your audience's

needs and goals and write a persuasive thesis statement. You will also need to select relevant

reasons and acknowledge opposing arguments and develop your reasons with sufficient

logical or emotional evidence. This requires a lot of critical thinking. Let's practice building

that critical thinking by reading three scenes from Shakespeare's Macbeth.

Macbeth52

Macbeth is a tragedy by William Shakespeare that dramatizes the damaging physical and

psychological effects of political ambition on those who seek power for its own sake. A brave

Scottish general named Macbeth receives a prophecy from a trio of witches that one day he

will become King of Scotland. Consumed by ambition and spurred to action by his wife,

Macbeth murders King Duncan and takes the Scottish throne for himself. He is then wracked

with guilt and paranoia. Forced to commit

more and more murders to protect himself

from enmity and suspicion, he soon becomes

a tyrannical ruler. The bloodbath and

consequent civil war swiftly take Macbeth

and Lady Macbeth into the realms of

madness and death.

Lady Macbeth plays a very pivotal role in the

story. Lady Macbeth is a powerful presence in the

play, most notably in the first two acts, one of

which we'll read. She's persuasive and says

whatever she needs to in order to convince her

husband to commit the murder and become king.