Argumentation Essay Assignment

This time you will write an argumentation essay. It is in some ways similar to a problem-solving essay, but here the focus is more on supporting your arguments, and you are not limited to just solving a problem.

Please read chapter 4 in Academic Writing in preparation for writing the essay.

Topic, Sources and Avoiding Plagiarism: As with the problem-solving essay, you may choose your own topic for the argumentation essay.

Please otherwise revisit the information in the problem-solving essay instructions about sources (not required but you might want/have to use them) and avoiding plagiarism (don’t do it!).

Importantly, an argumentative essay must be guided by a strong claim, or a clear position you take on the issue. An argumentative essay cannot, consequently, be led into by a formulation such as “I will try to find out if bike helmets really save lives,” rather, you will take a clear stand on the matter: “Bike helmets save lives.” (Note that I have purposely chosen a rather simple argument here to focus on the form–this claim is rather too simple/obvious for what you will produce.) It is then your job, in the rest of the essay, to provide arguments in support of your claim (and acknowledge possible counter arguments). These arguments in the body of the essay are usually referred to as sub-arguments, as each one supports an aspect of the overall argument or claim. The claim is presented in a thesis statement. Please see the pdf on Thesis Statements for more information.

An essay of the limited length we are concerned with here cannot encompass all possible sub-arguments, but you are expected to bring up at least three. Often, this means that the essay will consist of the following building blocks:

1. An introduction paragraph that provides your reader with an “entrance” to the general topic that you will write about and that includes your thesis statement. The thesis statement usually comes at the end of the introduction.
2. Three paragraphs in the body of the essay, each of which presents a sub-argument that supports your thesis statement. Take care and use effective transitions, not only between sentences in each paragraph, of course, but between each paragraph, so the reader can follow the coherence of your ideas. Counter arguments, if you need to address them, should also be considered here.
3. A conclusion paragraph in which you sum up your main points and round off the discussion.

Counter arguments may seem a bit confusing (or counterproductive), so let me give you an example. In an essay claiming that there are positive effects to children playing computer games, one sub-argument may be: Games based on team-play can improve children’s social skills. In a paragraph focused on this argument, it would be a good idea to consider the counterargument that spending a lot of time alone in front of the computer (even when playing in a team) means the absence of in-real-life-interactions. However, to keep the strength of our own argument, we also need to refute this counter argument. Sentences such as these may do the trick: It can of course be argued that spending a lot of time alone in front of the computer may result in a lack of social skills in real life. However, provided that parents take responsibility for the child having a varied leisure time, making sure that computer gaming is complemented with real-life interactions, the skills learned are likely transferable. So in this example the counter argument is introduced and refuted in a couple of sentences. If you have a more involved counter argument, you might need to devote a full paragraph to making arguments against it.

Do you need to address counter arguments? It depends on the topic and if it is relevant to do so. Some debate-style topics that have two sides to an issue will naturally lead to you needing to refute an opposing argument or idea. The example with the benefits of gaming above also lends itself to the need to consider an opposing viewpoint. But other topics you pick for your essay may not readily suggest counter arguments you must address.

As last time, although the first draft you present for the peer review process does not have to be complete, it needs to include the basic features of an argumentative text and the draft should be coherent (that is, not presented as a bulleted list or the like) and proof-read. The more work you have done on the first draft, the more effective the feedback can be.

Length: no fewer than 700 words and no more than 900 words long.