Persuasive Writing Making Your Argument

Purpose of Persuasive Writing  To present your view and support it with arguments and evidence  To “sell” someone on a point you want to make  To change someone’s mind  Persuasive writing is all around us, in posters, brochures, advertisements, commercials, etc.

Three styles  Informal: Used for advertisements, letters, conversations, etc.  Semi-formal: Used for academic writing, including persuasive paragraphs and essays.  Formal: Necessary for research papers and studies, could be used for essays

Three Patterns  Pattern 1: Arguing your own point/position  Pattern 2: Arguing against another’s position  Pattern 3: A combination of Pattern 1 and 2, alternating arguing your point and arguing against another’s point. The argument against another’s point could be another paragraph, or it could involve skillfully working in points while also refuting the other side. This pattern can create a strong essay.

Persuasive Essays “Musts” in ESL 108  They must have a thesis with an attitude, controlling idea and essay map  They must have supporting sentences that include examples, reasons, details, etc.  They must have a conclusion, often one that calls for an action, but also ones that could issue a warning or even evaluate a position

Be Careful of Logical Fallacies  Do not use faulty arguments that might be used for advertising and brochures, but are not appropriate for essays.  Faulty arguments include the bandwagon argument, where someone argues that because everyone does it, the position is correct.  Another logical fallacy is either/or, where the writer argues that there is no middle ground and no compromise, either one or the other position should be made.  Ad hominum is a false argument where the writer attacks the person instead of looking at a person’s beliefs or opinions

More fallacies  A red herring is an argument that is not the real issue. The author is trying to distract you from the real point being argued. For example, someone might argue against cigarettes being harmful by saying alcohol is harmful.  Very similar to a red herring is a non-sequitur, which means an argument is presented that is not logical and does not follow from the evidence. Ex: Cigarette smoking is not harmful because you will die anyway.

Basically….  In an academic essay and especially in a research paper, stay away from arguments that are not logical.  Remember to either include facts or logical reasoning to persuade.  The same can often be said for speeches, but not necessarily for commercials or advertisements, which use emotional pleas.

More on Logical Fallacies  See this website for more on logical fallacies  659/03/ 659/03/  See this YouTube Video (copy link into browser) xB-s  See this PowerPoint on Persuasive Writing (copy link)  xB-s