PHL/320(BSBS1MQK60)

WRITING ARGUMENTATIVE ESSAYS

Not long ago, the Educational Testing Service revamped the infamous Schol

astic Aptitude Test (SAT), which

many universities use when determining whether to admit an applicant. The most significant change was to

have test takers write an argumentative essay. This change in the SAT shows the importance the educators

place on the

ability to write this type of essay. That’s because writing an argumentative essay is doing nothing

other than thinking critically

—

and leaving a paper trail for others to follow. This isn’t a book on writing, but

writing an argumentative essay is so closel

y related to thinking critically that we would like to take the

opportunity to offer our recommendations. We know professors who have retired because they could not bear

to read another student essay. As a result, we offer our two bits’ worth here in hopes

of continuing to see

familiar faces. As we said back on page 65, an argumentative essay generally has four components: A

statement of the issue A statement of one’s position on that issue Arguments that support one’s position

Rebuttals of arguments that s

upport contrary positions Ideally, your essay should begin with an introduction to

the issue that demonstrates that the issue is important or interesting. This is not always easy, but even when

you are not excited about the subject yourself, it is still go

od practice to try to make your reader interested.

Your statement of the issue should be fair; that is, don’t try to state the issue in such a way that your position

on it is obviously the only correct one. This can make your reader suspicious; the burden

of convincing him or

her will come later, when you give your arguments. Your position on the issue should be clear. Try to be brief.

If you have stated the issue clearly, it should be a simple matter to identify your position. Your arguments in

support of

your position also should be as succinct as you can make them, but it is much more important to be

clear than to be brief. After all, this is the heart of your essay. The reasons you cite should be clearly relevant,

and they should be either clearly reliab

le or backed up by further arguments. Much of the rest of this book is

devoted to how this is done; hang in there. If there are well

-

known arguments for the other side of the issue,

you should acknowledge them and offer some reason to believe that they are

unconvincing. You can do this

either by attacking the premises that are commonly given or by trying to show that those premises do not

actually support the opposing conclusion. More on these topics later, too. Following are some more detailed

hints that m

ight be helpful in planning and writing your argumentative essay: 1. Focus. Make clear at the

outset what issue you intend to address and what your position on the issue will be. However, nothing is quite

so boring as starting off with the words “In this e

ssay, I will argue that X, Y, and Z,” and then going on to

itemize everything you are about to say, and at the end concluding with the words “In this essay, I argued that

X, Y, and Z.” As a matter of style, you should let the reader know what to expect wit

hout using trite phrases

and without going on at length. However, you should try to find an engaging way to state your position. For

example, instead of “In this essay, I will discuss the rights of animals to inherit property from their masters,”

you might

begin, “Could your inheritance wind up belonging to your mother’s cat?” Page 82 2. Stick to the

issue. All points you make in an essay should be connected to the issue under discussion and should always

either (a) support, illustrate, explain, clarify, el

aborate on, or emphasize your position on the issue or (b) serve

as responses to anticipated objections. Rid the essay of irrelevancies and dangling thoughts. 3. Arrange the

components of the essay in a logical sequence. This is just common sense. Make a p

oint before you clarify it,

for example, not the other way around. When supporting your points, bring in examples, clarification, and the

like in such a way that a reader knows what in the world you are doing. A reader should be able to discern the

relatio

nship between any given sentence and your ultimate objective, and he or she should be able to move

from sentence to sentence and from paragraph to paragraph without getting lost or confused. If a reader cannot

outline your essay with ease, you have not pro

perly sequenced your material. Your essay might be fine as a

piece of French philosophy, but it would not pass as an argumentative essay. 4. Be complete. Accomplish what

you set out to accomplish, support your position adequately, and anticipate and respon

d to possible objections.

Keep in mind that many issues are too large to be treated exhaustively in a single essay. The key to being

complete is to define the issue sharply enough that you can be complete. Thus, the more limited your topic, the

easier it i

s to be complete in covering it. Also, be sure there is closure at every level. Sentences should be

complete, paragraphs should be unified as wholes (and usually each should stick to a single point), and the

essay should reach a conclusion. Incidentally, r

eaching a conclusion and summarizing are not the same thing.

WRITING ARGUMENTATIVE ESSAYS

Not long ago, the Educational Testing Service revamped the infamous Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT), which

many universities use when determining whether to admit an applicant. The most significant change was to

have test takers write an argumentative essay. This change in the SAT shows the importance the educators

place on the ability to write this type of essay. That’s because writing an argumentative essay is doing nothing

other than thinking critically—and leaving a paper trail for others to follow. This isn’t a book on writing, but

writing an argumentative essay is so closely related to thinking critically that we would like to take the

opportunity to offer our recommendations. We know professors who have retired because they could not bear

to read another student essay. As a result, we offer our two bits’ worth here in hopes of continuing to see

familiar faces. As we said back on page 65, an argumentative essay generally has four components: A

statement of the issue A statement of one’s position on that issue Arguments that support one’s position

Rebuttals of arguments that support contrary positions Ideally, your essay should begin with an introduction to

the issue that demonstrates that the issue is important or interesting. This is not always easy, but even when

you are not excited about the subject yourself, it is still good practice to try to make your reader interested.

Your statement of the issue should be fair; that is, don’t try to state the issue in such a way that your position

on it is obviously the only correct one. This can make your reader suspicious; the burden of convincing him or

her will come later, when you give your arguments. Your position on the issue should be clear. Try to be brief.

If you have stated the issue clearly, it should be a simple matter to identify your position. Your arguments in

support of your position also should be as succinct as you can make them, but it is much more important to be

clear than to be brief. After all, this is the heart of your essay. The reasons you cite should be clearly relevant,

and they should be either clearly reliable or backed up by further arguments. Much of the rest of this book is

devoted to how this is done; hang in there. If there are well-known arguments for the other side of the issue,

you should acknowledge them and offer some reason to believe that they are unconvincing. You can do this

either by attacking the premises that are commonly given or by trying to show that those premises do not

actually support the opposing conclusion. More on these topics later, too. Following are some more detailed

hints that might be helpful in planning and writing your argumentative essay: 1. Focus. Make clear at the

outset what issue you intend to address and what your position on the issue will be. However, nothing is quite

so boring as starting off with the words “In this essay, I will argue that X, Y, and Z,” and then going on to

itemize everything you are about to say, and at the end concluding with the words “In this essay, I argued that

X, Y, and Z.” As a matter of style, you should let the reader know what to expect without using trite phrases

and without going on at length. However, you should try to find an engaging way to state your position. For

example, instead of “In this essay, I will discuss the rights of animals to inherit property from their masters,”

you might begin, “Could your inheritance wind up belonging to your mother’s cat?” Page 82 2. Stick to the

issue. All points you make in an essay should be connected to the issue under discussion and should always

either (a) support, illustrate, explain, clarify, elaborate on, or emphasize your position on the issue or (b) serve

as responses to anticipated objections. Rid the essay of irrelevancies and dangling thoughts. 3. Arrange the

components of the essay in a logical sequence. This is just common sense. Make a point before you clarify it,

for example, not the other way around. When supporting your points, bring in examples, clarification, and the

like in such a way that a reader knows what in the world you are doing. A reader should be able to discern the

relationship between any given sentence and your ultimate objective, and he or she should be able to move

from sentence to sentence and from paragraph to paragraph without getting lost or confused. If a reader cannot

outline your essay with ease, you have not properly sequenced your material. Your essay might be fine as a

piece of French philosophy, but it would not pass as an argumentative essay. 4. Be complete. Accomplish what

you set out to accomplish, support your position adequately, and anticipate and respond to possible objections.

Keep in mind that many issues are too large to be treated exhaustively in a single essay. The key to being

complete is to define the issue sharply enough that you can be complete. Thus, the more limited your topic, the

easier it is to be complete in covering it. Also, be sure there is closure at every level. Sentences should be

complete, paragraphs should be unified as wholes (and usually each should stick to a single point), and the

essay should reach a conclusion. Incidentally, reaching a conclusion and summarizing are not the same thing.