Three types of argumentative essays

There is an old kung-fu saying which states, "The hand that strikes also blocks", meaning that when you argue it is to your advantage to anticipate your opposition and strike down their arguments within the body of your own paper. This sentiment is echoed in the popular saying, "The best defense is a good offense". By addressing the opposition you achieve the following goals: You were far more likely to get them to say yes if you anticipated and addressed all of their concerns before they expressed them.

Three types of argumentative essays

The thesis for your argument needs to be opinionated or debatable. The thesis will usually fall into 4 different categories or claims.

An introduction to an outline for an argumentative essay

Sometimes, an arguable thesis may overlap and use 2 or even 3 different claims. Remember, the more claims you incorporate into your thesis, the longer your essay will be.

Be sure that you construct a focused and narrow thesis -claim that will allow you enough room to write a full essay on your topic.

For example, if a student claimed that the Brazilian Samba was a slow graceful dance, it would only take a few moments of research for me to find that it is actually a fast-paced, rhythmic, and lively dance. So clearly, this claim would not be debatable; there is no argument.

However people disagree about many supposed "facts. Another claim is whether or not a lie-detector test is really accurate.

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Are methods of torture i. And what constitutes "necessary measures" in the first place?

Click here to read a sample that illustrates the claim about fact or definition. It is obvious, for example, that smoking causes lung cancer, but one could debate whether or not secondhand smoke causes lung cancer.

A few recent examples of debatable cause-and-effect topics could be about the new train that has been built, traveling from Beijing to Tibet. Many feel that this train will threaten the Tibetan culture and ancient way of life.

Other more typical controversial cause-and-effect topics range from the effect television has on teens to the effect testing has on the quality of education. Click here to read a sample that illustrates the claim about cause and effect. Claims about solutions or policies usually work hand in hand with claims about fact or definition.

Also, any policy relating to under-aged minors is always controversial because it is difficult to define when an adolescent is capable of making a deliberate decision, just as an adult would. Click here to read a sample that illustrates the claim about solutions or policies.

Anytime a writer places value on someone or something as "the best" or "superior", that writer is making a claim about value.

While writers should always anticipate how to respond to the opposing viewpoint, it is particularly crucial to do so when dealing with a claim about value.

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For example, people who are blind have a unique culture of blindness, and many believe that living a visionless life is better than living a seeing-life. But to properly address this topic and claim, one must anticipate and respond to the opposing viewpoint, that seeing-life has significant benefits.

One could argue that UFC is a dehumanizing sport.

Three types of argumentative essays

The anticipated opposing viewpoint could be that UFC fighters undergo extensive training and skill-based martial arts, thus making it a viable athletic competition. Click here to read a sample that illustrates the claim about value.Effectively writing different types of essays has become critical to academic success.

Essay writing is a common school assignment, a part of standardized tests, and a requirement on college applications. Tips for writing argumentative essays: 1) Make a list of the pros and cons in your plan before you start writing.

Choose the most important that support your argument (the pros) and the most important to refute (the cons) and focus on them.

Three types of argumentative essays

Types of argumentative essays include persuasive, research, analysis and personal essays. Persuasive Essays. Persuasive essays present an argument and try to persuade the reader that one side of the argument is better than the others.

Argumentative essay topics about legal matters are a popular choice. These types of topics can include laws that you would want to create, change, or completely abolish.

Claims for written Argument: The thesis for your argument needs to be opinionated or debatable. The thesis will usually fall into 4 different categories or initiativeblog.com SHOULD make sure that your thesis fits one of the following types of claims.

Types of Papers: Argument/Argumentative While some teachers consider persuasive papers and argument papers to be basically the same thing, it’s usually safe to assume that an argument paper presents a stronger claim—possibly to a more resistant audience.

An Argumentative Essay Outline With Examples