 A persuasive essay presents the writer’s position on a certain issue, usually a controversial one. The purpose of the persuasive essay is to convince the reader that the writer’s opinion on the issue is valid whereas the opponent’s opinion is not.

 In order to be successful, a persuasive essay should use evidence and logic. If the writer neglects either evidence or logic, then he will fail to win the reader over to his or her side. The following are three ways to argue and persuade:  1. Use emotional appeal— Touch the heart of the audience.  2. Use rational appeal— a. Use logical reasoning, and let the facts speak; b. Point out what’s wrong with opponents’ opinion.  3. Use ethical appeal— Be fair; no personal attacks.

Homeless people should be sheltered and provided with a variety of health services. Many homeless people are on the streets because of mental illness or other health conditions that prevent them from joining the work force. Our government should fund programs that provide these people with a decent home environment and medical treatment. Without these programs, we are going to see homeless people daily lingering on street corners, with hungry faces and shabby clothing, shivering in cold rain or dehydrated by the burning sun.

We should not legalize drugs because drugs are dangerous to our health. If we legalize drugs, the easy access would encourage more people to take drugs, and as a result, we would have more people with health problems. As it stands now, an estimated 30 million Americans have used cocaine, and some 5 million use it regularly (Willard 151). Because of the increase in cocaine abuse, greater numbers of emergency-room visits, cocaine-related heart problems, and sudden deaths have been reported (162). If we make drugs legal, we should not be surprised that more strokes, heart attacks, and sudden cardiac deaths will take occur.

There are people who believe that school uniforms should not be adopted. They believe uniforms will decrease diversity and prevent students from expressing their personalities. This argument is not accurate because it neglects other aspects of diversity and other ways of expressing personalities. Diversity is not only defined by one’s dress, but also by one’s ethnicity and religious belief (Compton 55). As long as the school recognizes differences in ethnicity and religion, diversity will not be blocked out. As for personality, students can show their personalities by the way they socialize with fellow students and by how they express their ideas in the classroom. What is more important is the students’ education, and school uniforms will help students concentrate on the education they need.

Martin Luther King addressing his opponents in his “Letter from Birmingham Jail”: If I have said anything in this letter that overstate the truth and indicates an unreasonable impatience, I beg you to forgive me. If I have said anything that understates the truth and indicates my having a patience that allows me to settle for anything less than brotherhood, I beg God to forgive me. I hope this letter finds you strong in faith. I also hope that circumstances will soon make it possible for me to meet each of you, not as an integrationist or a civil-rights leader, but as fellow clergyman and Christian brother. Let us all hope that the dark clouds of racial prejudice will soon pass away and the deep fog of misunderstanding will be lifted from our fear-drenched communities, and in some not too distant tomorrow the radiant stars of love and brotherhood will shine over our great nation with all their scintillating beauty.