Writing a Persuasive Paper

What is a Persuasive Writing? Writing used to convince others of what you believe or say.

Why do it? Want others to: –AGREE with us –Share our Values –Accept our argument or conclusions

Examples To get what we want To avoid trouble ??? Politics Can you think of other examples?

“Mom I want a Dog” Pick Me!!! I am too cute to pass up. Look I do tricks! How will I ever convince her to let me have one?

Parts of a Paper Introduction –Hook –Background –Thesis Body –Topic Sentence –High level of Support Conclusion –Effective Ending –Closure on issues without being repetitive from Intro. –Tie up paper and relate back to hook/thesis

Persuasive Structures Position and why---Thesis Concession---alternate viewpoints Refutation---why other viewpoints are flawed, inaccurate, illogical, etc. Confirmation---restating position (new words)

Thesis Statement Could be last sentence of your Intro. Statement of your position---be sure you know which side of the issue you are on. Should be clear and concise---use effective language (avoid being repetitive) For persuasive essays, these statements should be debatable. (that is, can someone else state the opposite opinion?)

You decide: Are these good thesis statements for the topics? School Uniforms: School uniforms are stupid and are therefore dumb, so they should not be allowed in any school. Exit Exams: Schools should require all high school students to pass an exit exam before graduation. Open Campus: Have you ever tried to eat lunch in just 15 minutes?

Thesis Statements 1 & 3 are NOT STRONG statements. 1 is repetitive, uses poor language, and not concise 3 is a question, so it is not a statement Thesis Statement 2 would be a STRONG thesis statement because it is clear, states the position, and uses effective language without giving all the specific information away.

How can we fix Statements 1 & 3? School Uniforms: School uniforms are stupid and are therefore dumb, so they should not be allowed in any school. Open Campus: Have you ever tried to eat lunch in just 15 minutes?

Concession Acknowledging other viewpoints Make them relevant and significant to topic Make sure you can refute them Don’t: –Make the other side’s points –Lose your focus and flip flop sides

How to set up concessions Begin with a dependent clause followed by an independent clause –While many people think school uniforms are beneficial, others may disagree. Directly state the other views –There may be many reasons to avoid school uniforms such as loss of individuality or loss of personal freedoms Make generalization –Some may argue that school uniforms destroy individuality or personal freedoms.

Refutation State why the concessions are flawed Use a dependent clause (the concession) followed by an independent clause (the refutation) –While others argue that school uniforms cause a loss of individuality and personal freedoms, students need to understand that the Supreme Court has ruled that school districts have the legal right to impose school uniforms for safety reasons.

Confirmation Come back to your main reasons for your position Do not be repetitive Find a key idea throughout your paper and revisit this idea (for example: personal freedom and individuality) Often, the confirmation appears in the conclusion

Possible Paper Set Up Position Your Points Concessions Refutation Confirmation Position Concession 1 & Refutations Concession 2 & Refutations Confirmation

Persuasive Techniques Logic Repetition of key word/phrase throughout Rhetorical Question Emotional Language –Simile –Metaphor Analogy Facts supported by research findings

Persuasive Writing The speaker –Some credibility (knowledgeable and/or believable) The audience –Appeal to particular people The occasion –May become an argument supporting other arguments within work or among works