Planning an argumentative essay

Complete 1-8 to plan for the final draft.  

General Notes

You need to explain all of your thinking. Think of your readers as blockheads – they don’t understand anything unless you clarify it in detail.

For a rough guideline, keep in mind these questions:

  1. What are you talking about? (introduction)
  2. What's your point? (thesis -- remember to include division statement)
  3. Can you prove that? (body paragraphs)
  4. What's it all mean? (conclusion)

Directions

  1. Thinking on paper: After reading the assigned essays and completing the writing exercises based on them, jot down your thoughts on the issue – don’t be afraid to ramble: the goal here is to get your thinking down on paper.  Try the following questions: Which of the readings surprised you? Which of the arguments were the most engaging? What examples really made you think? Has your opinion of the issue changed after the readings – how? What are some reasons both for and against the issue. 
  2. Making a list: Looking over the writing generated from the question above, the previous exercises and from just ruminating on the issue yourself and/or talking it over with friends, start grouping them into categories. Write a list of reasons showing why the capital punishment is a good idea, then a list of reasons showing why it isn’t. If you have trouble coming up with reasons, try this sentence starter: One reason the death penalty is/is not a good/bad idea is _____. 
  3. Okay, now it’s decision time.  Based upon your listing of reasons, the long and short term effects, and The Logic Behind Arguments, decide your stance.
  4. Review readings: Look over the readings again, this time with your list of reasons alongside of you.  Since you now know what you’ll be writing about, different facts, statistics, and examples will jump out at you.  As they leap off the page, grasp them by their ankles and fasten them to your paper with your ink pen.  Failure to do this step will result in the dreaded “bland as warm milk and toast” essay.
  5. Thesis Statements: Try out three different thesis statements to organize your thoughts and guide readers through your argument. Choose the clearest one and include on your Reasons and Evidence Sheet. If you’re stumped, try this starter sentence ________ helps/hurts because __________, ________, and _________
  6. Transfer time:  Copy out the three reasons and corresponding evidence you will be using onto the Reasons and Evidence Sheet.  Decide on a controlling word to set the focus of the paragraph.  
  7. Practice: Practice writing several body paragraphs.  You cannot use them in class, but the work put in will result in a much improved in-class essay.  See Parts of an Argumentative Essay and Building Argumentative Paragraphs for specifics on argumentation.
  8. Titles and Introduction: Come up with idea for title (make a list of five and choose the best one).  For introductions, look over the suggestions in the handbook, and be sure to develop a focused introduction that points toward your thesis/position.

When Writing the Essay

  1. Using evidence from the readings and then an explanation of how and why the evidence suggests your position as valid, draft body paragraphs of essay, making each topic sentence a claim which the rest of your paragraph supports.  Then you get to play show and tell. Each paragraph needs to show readers what led you to your decision.  Try to include the specific descriptions, numbers, etc. from the readings that made you think “This is why I think ____ is a good idea.”

Then, you need to “tell” the reader why and how each particular example persuaded you to adopt your position.  Remember, your reader can only read words, not minds, and, therefore, you need to fully explain your reasoning. You should provide at least two sentences of explanation for each example. Try explaining the importance or connotations of particular words or actions. Beware of including too many examples: one or two examples presented and explained in detail make for more persuasive writing than three or four examples that are left gasping on the page like a fish out of water.  After your example, try repeating a key phrase from it or using (but not overusing) the word “This.”  See Building Argumentative Paragraphs for more on shifting to an argumentative mode. 

Remember to provide a Context (see Glossary) for your examples and to use quotation marks around direct quotes -- even if you just use a word or a phrase. Ex. From an essay on consumerism: 

For example, one shopper at a mall in Virginia, Rebecca Michalski, “see[s] nothing wrong with” consumerism.  She feels it’s “a good way to spend time together” with her family (Masci 1003). But her remarks point to the problem with consumerism.  She feels quality time with a family involves spending money instead of something that will foster communication among family members like playing a board game together, or even, though it sounds old-fashioned, just going out for a walk (Masci 1003).

Or instead of the sentence beginning with “But her remarks,” you could add

This nonchalance about spending time building up debt instead of building a family illustrates the danger of consumerism. Now the parents will have to spend more time at work to support their spending habit, a practice which just feeds the cycle of work too much - miss family - spend money - work too much. Work too much - miss family - spend money, etc.  And unfortunately for some families, this cycle becomes a perpetual motion machine.
  1. Revise essay: pay particular attention to the explanation of your examples. Remember, examples do not speak for themselves.  You have to write down your reasoning -- the why and how that particular examples proves your point.  My crystal ball has been at the shop for years now, so I cannot read your mind: you have to write out the thinking behind your reaction to the text.  This is the heart of a good essay.
  2. Once your revision is complete, shift to proofreading.  While it won’t be as thorough as working over several days, it’s better than nothing.

If all this sounds formulaic, it is.  You can do two things.  Ignore the formula and wing it.  Or work within the formula, yet still use all your skills as a writer to capture the reader's attention and leave a vivid impression of your intellect: your call.