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40 Strong Persuasive Writing Examples (Essays, Speeches, Ads, and More)

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The more we read, the better writers we become. Teaching students to write strong persuasive essays should always start with reading some top-notch models. This round-up of persuasive writing examples includes famous speeches, influential ad campaigns, contemporary reviews of famous books, and more. Use them to inspire your students to write their own essays. (Need persuasive essay topics? Check out our list of interesting persuasive essay ideas here! )

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Persuasive Essay Writing Examples

From the earliest days of print, authors have used persuasive essays to try to sway others to their own point of view. Check out these top persuasive essay writing examples.

Professions for Women by Virginia Woolf

Sample lines: “Outwardly, what is simpler than to write books? Outwardly, what obstacles are there for a woman rather than for a man? Inwardly, I think, the case is very different; she has still many ghosts to fight, many prejudices to overcome. Indeed it will be a long time still, I think, before a woman can sit down to write a book without finding a phantom to be slain, a rock to be dashed against. And if this is so in literature, the freest of all professions for women, how is it in the new professions which you are now for the first time entering?”

The Crisis by Thomas Paine

Sample lines: “These are the times that try men’s souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands by it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly: it is dearness only that gives every thing its value.”

Politics and the English Language by George Orwell

Sample lines: “As I have tried to show, modern writing at its worst does not consist in picking out words for the sake of their meaning and inventing images in order to make the meaning clearer. It consists in gumming together long strips of words which have already been set in order by someone else, and making the results presentable by sheer humbug.”

Letter From a Birmingham Jail by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Sample lines: “We know through painful experience that freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed. Frankly, I have yet to engage in a direct action campaign that was ‘well timed’ in the view of those who have not suffered unduly from the disease of segregation. For years now I have heard the word ‘Wait!’ It rings in the ear of every Negro with piercing familiarity. This ‘Wait’ has almost always meant ‘Never.’ We must come to see, with one of our distinguished jurists, that ‘justice too long delayed is justice denied.'”

Civil Disobedience by Henry David Thoreau

Sample lines: “Even voting for the right is doing nothing for it. It is only expressing to men feebly your desire that it should prevail. A wise man will not leave the right to the mercy of chance, nor wish it to prevail through the power of the majority. There is but little virtue in the action of masses of men.”

Go Gentle Into That Good Night by Roger Ebert

Sample lines: “‘Kindness’ covers all of my political beliefs. No need to spell them out. I believe that if, at the end of it all, according to our abilities, we have done something to make others a little happier, and something to make ourselves a little happier, that is about the best we can do. To make others less happy is a crime.”

The Way to Wealth by Benjamin Franklin

Sample lines: “Methinks I hear some of you say, must a man afford himself no leisure? I will tell thee, my friend, what Poor Richard says, employ thy time well if thou meanest to gain leisure; and, since thou art not sure of a minute, throw not away an hour. Leisure is time for doing something useful; this leisure the diligent man will obtain, but the lazy man never; so that, as Poor Richard says, a life of leisure and a life of laziness are two things.”

The Crack-Up by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Sample lines: “Of course all life is a process of breaking down, but the blows that do the dramatic side of the work—the big sudden blows that come, or seem to come, from outside—the ones you remember and blame things on and, in moments of weakness, tell your friends about, don’t show their effect all at once.”

Open Letter to the Kansas School Board by Bobby Henderson

Sample lines: “I am writing you with much concern after having read of your hearing to decide whether the alternative theory of Intelligent Design should be taught along with the theory of Evolution. … Let us remember that there are multiple theories of Intelligent Design. I and many others around the world are of the strong belief that the universe was created by a Flying Spaghetti Monster. … We feel strongly that the overwhelming scientific evidence pointing towards evolutionary processes is nothing but a coincidence, put in place by Him. It is for this reason that I’m writing you today, to formally request that this alternative theory be taught in your schools, along with the other two theories.”

Open Letter to the United Nations by Niels Bohr

Sample lines: “Humanity will, therefore, be confronted with dangers of unprecedented character unless, in due time, measures can be taken to forestall a disastrous competition in such formidable armaments and to establish an international control of the manufacture and use of the powerful materials.”

Persuasive Speech Writing Examples

Many persuasive speeches are political in nature, often addressing subjects like human rights. Here are some of history’s most well-known persuasive writing examples in the form of speeches.

I Have a Dream by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Sample lines: “And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream. I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.”

Woodrow Wilson’s War Message to Congress, 1917

Sample lines: “There are, it may be, many months of fiery trial and sacrifice ahead of us. It is a fearful thing to lead this great peaceful people into war, into the most terrible and disastrous of all wars, civilization itself seeming to be in the balance. But the right is more precious than peace, and we shall fight for the things which we have always carried nearest our hearts—for democracy, for the right of those who submit to authority to have a voice in their own governments, for the rights and liberties of small nations, for a universal dominion of right by such a concert of free peoples as shall bring peace and safety to all nations and make the world itself at last free.”

Chief Seattle’s 1854 Oration

Sample lines: “I here and now make this condition that we will not be denied the privilege without molestation of visiting at any time the tombs of our ancestors, friends, and children. Every part of this soil is sacred in the estimation of my people. Every hillside, every valley, every plain and grove, has been hallowed by some sad or happy event in days long vanished. Even the rocks, which seem to be dumb and dead as they swelter in the sun along the silent shore, thrill with memories of stirring events connected with the lives of my people, and the very dust upon which you now stand responds more lovingly to their footsteps than yours, because it is rich with the blood of our ancestors, and our bare feet are conscious of the sympathetic touch.”

Women’s Rights Are Human Rights, Hillary Rodham Clinton

Sample lines: “What we are learning around the world is that if women are healthy and educated, their families will flourish. If women are free from violence, their families will flourish. If women have a chance to work and earn as full and equal partners in society, their families will flourish. And when families flourish, communities and nations do as well. … If there is one message that echoes forth from this conference, let it be that human rights are women’s rights and women’s rights are human rights once and for all.”

I Am Prepared to Die, Nelson Mandela

Sample lines: “Above all, My Lord, we want equal political rights, because without them our disabilities will be permanent. I know this sounds revolutionary to the whites in this country, because the majority of voters will be Africans. This makes the white man fear democracy. But this fear cannot be allowed to stand in the way of the only solution which will guarantee racial harmony and freedom for all. It is not true that the enfranchisement of all will result in racial domination. Political division, based on color, is entirely artificial and, when it disappears, so will the domination of one color group by another. … This then is what the ANC is fighting. Our struggle is a truly national one. It is a struggle of the African people, inspired by our own suffering and our own experience. It is a struggle for the right to live.”

The Struggle for Human Rights by Eleanor Roosevelt

Sample lines: “It is my belief, and I am sure it is also yours, that the struggle for democracy and freedom is a critical struggle, for their preservation is essential to the great objective of the United Nations to maintain international peace and security. Among free men the end cannot justify the means. We know the patterns of totalitarianism—the single political party, the control of schools, press, radio, the arts, the sciences, and the church to support autocratic authority; these are the age-old patterns against which men have struggled for 3,000 years. These are the signs of reaction, retreat, and retrogression. The United Nations must hold fast to the heritage of freedom won by the struggle of its people; it must help us to pass it on to generations to come.”

Freedom From Fear by Aung San Suu Kyi

Sample lines: “Saints, it has been said, are the sinners who go on trying. So free men are the oppressed who go on trying and who in the process make themselves fit to bear the responsibilities and to uphold the disciplines which will maintain a free society. Among the basic freedoms to which men aspire that their lives might be full and uncramped, freedom from fear stands out as both a means and an end. A people who would build a nation in which strong, democratic institutions are firmly established as a guarantee against state-induced power must first learn to liberate their own minds from apathy and fear.”

Harvey Milk’s “The Hope” Speech

Sample lines: “Some people are satisfied. And some people are not. You see there is a major difference—and it remains a vital difference—between a friend and a gay person, a friend in office and a gay person in office. Gay people have been slandered nationwide. We’ve been tarred and we’ve been brushed with the picture of pornography. In Dade County, we were accused of child molestation. It is not enough anymore just to have friends represent us, no matter how good that friend may be.”

The Union and the Strike, Cesar Chavez

Sample lines: “We are showing our unity in our strike. Our strike is stopping the work in the fields; our strike is stopping ships that would carry grapes; our strike is stopping the trucks that would carry the grapes. Our strike will stop every way the grower makes money until we have a union contract that guarantees us a fair share of the money he makes from our work! We are a union and we are strong and we are striking to force the growers to respect our strength!”

Nobel Lecture by Malala Yousafzai

Sample lines: “The world can no longer accept that basic education is enough. Why do leaders accept that for children in developing countries, only basic literacy is sufficient, when their own children do homework in algebra, mathematics, science, and physics? Leaders must seize this opportunity to guarantee a free, quality, primary and secondary education for every child. Some will say this is impractical, or too expensive, or too hard. Or maybe even impossible. But it is time the world thinks bigger.”   

Persuasive Writing Examples in Advertising Campaigns

Ads are prime persuasive writing examples. You can flip open any magazine or watch TV for an hour or two to see sample after sample of persuasive language. Here are some of the most popular ad campaigns of all time, with links to articles explaining why they were so successful.

Nike: Just Do It

The iconic swoosh with the simple tagline has persuaded millions to buy their kicks from Nike and Nike alone. Teamed with pro sports-star endorsements, this campaign is one for the ages. Blinkist offers an opinion on what made it work.

Dove: Real Beauty

Beauty brand Dove changed the game by choosing “real” women to tell their stories instead of models. They used relatable images and language to make connections, and inspired other brands to try the same concept. Learn why Global Brands considers this one a true success story.

Wendy’s: Where’s the Beef?

Today’s kids are too young to remember the cranky old woman demanding to know where the beef was on her fast-food hamburger. But in the 1980s, it was a catchphrase that sold millions of Wendy’s burgers. Learn from Better Marketing how this ad campaign even found its way into the 1984 presidential debate.

De Beers: A Diamond Is Forever

A diamond engagement ring has become a standard these days, but the tradition isn’t as old as you might think. In fact, it was De Beers jewelry company’s 1948 campaign that created the modern engagement ring trend. The Drum has the whole story of this sparkling campaign.

Volkswagen: Think Small

Americans have always loved big cars. So in the 1960s, when Volkswagen wanted to introduce their small cars to a bigger market, they had a problem. The clever “Think Small” campaign gave buyers clever reasons to consider these models, like “If you run out of gas, it’s easy to push.” Learn how advertisers interested American buyers in little cars at Visual Rhetoric.

American Express: Don’t Leave Home Without It

AmEx was once better known for traveler’s checks than credit cards, and the original slogan was “Don’t leave home without them.” A simple word change convinced travelers that American Express was the credit card they needed when they headed out on adventures. Discover more about this persuasive campaign from Medium.

Skittles: Taste the Rainbow

These candy ads are weird and intriguing and probably not for everyone. But they definitely get you thinking, and that often leads to buying. Learn more about why these wacky ads are successful from The Drum.

Maybelline: Maybe She’s Born With It

Smart wordplay made this ad campaign slogan an instant hit. The ads teased, “Maybe she’s born with it. Maybe it’s Maybelline.” (So many literary devices all in one phrase!) Fashionista has more on this beauty campaign.

Coca-Cola: Share a Coke

Seeing their own name on a bottle made teens more likely to want to buy a Coke. What can that teach us about persuasive writing in general? It’s an interesting question to consider. Learn more about the “Share a Coke” campaign from Digital Vidya.

Always: #LikeaGirl

Talk about the power of words! This Always campaign turned the derogatory phrase “like a girl” on its head, and the world embraced it. Storytelling is an important part of persuasive writing, and these ads really do it well. Medium has more on this stereotype-bashing campaign.   

Editorial Persuasive Writing Examples

Newspaper editors or publishers use editorials to share their personal opinions. Noted politicians, experts, or pundits may also offer their opinions on behalf of the editors or publishers. Here are a couple of older well-known editorials, along with a selection from current newspapers.

Yes, Virginia, There Is a Santa Claus (1897)

Sample lines: “Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! How dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus. It would be as dreary as if there were no Virginias.”

What’s the Matter With Kansas? (1896)

Sample lines: “Oh, this IS a state to be proud of! We are a people who can hold up our heads! What we need is not more money, but less capital, fewer white shirts and brains, fewer men with business judgment, and more of those fellows who boast that they are ‘just ordinary clodhoppers, but they know more in a minute about finance than John Sherman,’ we need more men … who hate prosperity, and who think, because a man believes in national honor, he is a tool of Wall Street.”

America Can Have Democracy or Political Violence. Not Both. (The New York Times)

Sample lines: “The nation is not powerless to stop a slide toward deadly chaos. If institutions and individuals do more to make it unacceptable in American public life, organized violence in the service of political objectives can still be pushed to the fringes. When a faction of one of the country’s two main political parties embraces extremism, that makes thwarting it both more difficult and more necessary. A well-functioning democracy demands it.”

The Booster Isn’t Perfect, But Still Can Help Against COVID (The Washington Post)

Sample lines: “The booster shots are still free, readily available and work better than the previous boosters even as the virus evolves. Much still needs to be done to build better vaccines that protect longer and against more variants, including those that might emerge in the future. But it is worth grabbing the booster that exists today, the jab being a small price for any measure that can help keep COVID at bay.”

If We Want Wildlife To Thrive in L.A., We Have To Share Our Neighborhoods With Them (Los Angeles Times)

Sample lines: “If there are no corridors for wildlife movement and if excessive excavation of dirt to build bigger, taller houses erodes the slope of a hillside, then we are slowly destroying wildlife habitat. For those people fretting about what this will do to their property values—isn’t open space, trees, and wildlife an amenity in these communities?”   

Persuasive Review Writing Examples

Book or movie reviews are more great persuasive writing examples. Look for those written by professionals for the strongest arguments and writing styles. Here are reviews of some popular books and movies by well-known critics to use as samples.

The Great Gatsby (The Chicago Tribune, 1925)

Sample lines: “What ails it, fundamentally, is the plain fact that it is simply a story—that Fitzgerald seems to be far more interested in maintaining its suspense than in getting under the skins of its people. It is not that they are false: It is that they are taken too much for granted. Only Gatsby himself genuinely lives and breathes. The rest are mere marionettes—often astonishingly lifelike, but nevertheless not quite alive.”

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (The Washington Post, 1999)

Sample lines: “Obviously, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone should make any modern 11-year-old a very happy reader. The novel moves quickly, packs in everything from a boa constrictor that winks to a melancholy Zen-spouting centaur to an owl postal system, and ends with a scary surprise. Yet it is, essentially, a light-hearted thriller, interrupted by occasional seriousness (the implications of Harry’s miserable childhood, a moral about the power of love).”

Twilight (The Telegraph, 2009)

Sample lines: “No secret, of course, at whom this book is aimed, and no doubt, either, that it has hit its mark. The four Twilight novels are not so much enjoyed, as devoured, by legions of young female fans worldwide. That’s not to say boys can’t enjoy these books; it’s just that the pages of heart-searching dialogue between Edward and Bella may prove too long on chat and too short on action for the average male reader.”

To Kill a Mockingbird (Time, 1960)

Sample lines: “Author Lee, 34, an Alabaman, has written her first novel with all of the tactile brilliance and none of the preciosity generally supposed to be standard swamp-warfare issue for Southern writers. The novel is an account of an awakening to good and evil, and a faint catechistic flavor may have been inevitable. But it is faint indeed; novelist Lee’s prose has an edge that cuts through cant, and she teaches the reader an astonishing number of useful truths about little girls and about Southern life.”

The Diary of Anne Frank (The New York Times, 1952)

Sample lines: “And this quality brings it home to any family in the world today. Just as the Franks lived in momentary fear of the Gestapo’s knock on their hidden door, so every family today lives in fear of the knock of war. Anne’s diary is a great affirmative answer to the life-question of today, for she shows how ordinary people, within this ordeal, consistently hold to the greater human values.”   

What are your favorite persuasive writing examples to use with students? Come share your ideas in the WeAreTeachers HELPLINE group on Facebook .

Plus, the big list of essay topics for high school (120+ ideas) ..

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How to Write a Persuasive Essay and Article: Structure, Examples

• by Anastasiya Yakubovska
• 21.07.2022 04.05.2024
• How to write ...

In this article, you will learn how to write a persuasive essay or article, what the basic methods of persuasion are, the classical structure of the persuasive essay, what rhetorical figures and literary tropes are, and we will analyze their types and, of course, consider examples.

Table of Contents

Why persuasion matters, how to write a persuasive article or essay: where to begin.

• How to Write a Persuasive Essay: Structure 
• Writing a Persuasive Article: Stylistics 

Syntax and Rhythm of a Persuasive Article

Rhetorical figures of speech: types and examples, rhetorical devices: literature tropes.

Advertisements, movies, news… Everything around screams and calls: buy, listen, look, take, approve, support. Persuasive speeches are heard through the screens of TVs, computers, and smartphones. Social platforms such as Facebook and Instagram have become public forums where people can express any opinion and stand up for it.

Since eloquence and persuasion are indispensable these days, let’s figure out how to write and speak persuasively.

Before you start writing a persuasive essay or article, you need to follow these 3 steps:

• Decide on the topic of the article . 

Before you get started and write a persuasive essay, the first thing you need to do is decide on a topic. Think about what you want to write about? Maybe you want to change something in the world or your country? Why is it important for you? What do you want to achieve, and what kind of response and reaction do you expect from society? In what ways can you convince?

The basis of any persuasive article and speech is the essence of the argument – the main idea that you want to convey to others, or the point of view that you defend and prove.

2. Write a thesis statement . 

The second step in creating a persuasive essay is to write this idea in the form of a thesis statement – a sentence that summarizes the main idea.

Thesis statement example:

“Due to the construction of dams, the river ecosystem suffers.”

If you can express your idea in the form of a thesis, then you are ready to argue it.

3. Choose a writing technique . 

The third step is to find the right strategy for your persuasive essay.

Try to find stylistic devices, figures of speech, literary tropes, modes of persuasion, sentence structure, and text rhythm that are suitable specifically for your text. This all will be discussed further in the article.

How to Write a Persuasive Essay: Three Modes of Persuasion

Each public speech is based on the modes of persuasion, which can be used as the foundation for any text.

Read also the article “The Rhetorical Triangle: Ethos, Pathos, Logos – Meaning and Examples” . 

The ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle identifies three methods of persuasion in rhetoric – ethos , logos , and pathos , comparing them with artistic techniques. After all, the use of these modes of persuasion, indeed, requires special skill and ability. 

Let’s consider the first method – the logos. This technique involves persuading the audience with rational, logical arguments, and evidence: 

During the construction of dams, it is important to identify all possible risks. Otherwise, the same scenario will be repeated again and again: flooding of vast areas of forest, the death of flora and fauna, and the disappearance of territories that are of historical and archaeological value. For example, the Tellico Reservoir in Tennessee flooded an ancient Cherokee Indian village, and the Aswan Reservoir in Egypt led to the spread of schistosomiasis, a severe human disease caused by the helminth Schistosoma.

This is an example of deductive reasoning (that is, from the general premises to the specific conclusions). I formulated the main, generalized argument: the risks in the construction of dams are great and they inevitably recur. Further, I revealed in more detail what consequences (risks) are possible and strengthened the argument with concrete examples.

In turn, inductive reasoning is the movement of thought from the specific to the general. If you use this method, then get something like this:

In some countries, the construction of dams has led to the flooding of forests, the death of animals and plants, and the deterioration of drinking water quality. The harm from dams and reservoirs is obvious – the risks are too great.

It is important to feel this fine line between a strong argument and a weaker one.

As you can see, there are a lot of variations in the use of logos in persuasive articles or essays. The main thing is that your logical chain should be 100% thought out.

The second method of persuasion is ethos . This method is expressed by arousing the trust of the audience: 

For 15 years I have been studying the impact of hydroelectric power stations on the environment, and now I can say with confidence that there are always negative consequences from high dams.

With this statement, the writer or speaker makes it clear that he can be trusted because has many years of experience and knowledge.

The third method of persuasion is pathos . 

Pathos is aimed at evoking reciprocal emotions from the audience. These emotions can be positive (joy or hope), and negative (fear or anger). An example of pathos on the topic of dam construction:

When will we finally say “Stop!”? Are the consequences not enough: flooded forests, dried-up rivers, estuaries, and destruction of animals and plants? How long will humanity take into account only its own interests and interfere with a finely tuned ecosystem?

The ability to use all three modes of persuasion, to do it appropriately and competently, is an art. No wonder Aristotle called these techniques artistic.

The method of application and effectiveness of logos, ethos, and pathos completely depends on the skill of the writer or speaker, in contrast, for example, to quoting, paraphrasing a source, statistics, etc.

The topic you have chosen for the text initially sets some features of the use of certain methods of persuasion, for example, what to focus on (emotions or evidence), and in what proportions to use logos, ethos, and pathos in the writing. 

Steve Jobs’ commencement speech to Stanford graduates is considered one of the examples of how persuasion methods can be effectively applied in practice.

How to Write a Persuasive Essay: Structure

In classical rhetoric, the structure of any speech or piece of writing consists of 5 parts:

• Introduction. 
• Presentation of information. 
• Refutation in the form of presenting a counterargument and establishing its falsity (unproven);
• Confirmation of the idea in the form of providing arguments and facts. 
• Conclusion.

This classical structure for constructing oratorical speech can be used as the skeleton for the persuasive essay and article. At the same time, the structure of your essay may or may not include all 5 parts. You can also change their sequence.

What Rhetorical Devices Can Be Used in a Persuasive Essay

For 2,500 years orators and philosophers have been studying the art of oratory. It is hard to even imagine how much information has been studied over the years. Therefore, we will not stop and analyze all the existing rhetorical devices, figures of speech, and tropes, we will consider only the main ones.

Writing a Persuasive Article: Stylistics

The stylistics of the text is the correct choice of words to express thoughts.

The words that we choose to express some thought give the text a certain style (formal, colloquial , slang) and tone (emotional characteristics).

Thus, stylistics is a tool for applying such methods of persuasion as ethos, pathos, and logos .

For example, the abundance of technical terms in the persuasive article can serve as proof of your professional knowledge and experience (ethos) for the reader, or it can make your text hard to read and boring.

Complex metaphors, expressive epithets, and comparisons can sound beautiful and romantic (pathos) , or they can turn the article into a “vanilla-flowery” mass, in which the reader will not understand the meaning.

You should pay attention to the sentence structure and the combination of words inside these sentences.

Depending on the structure and length of the sentences, an essay may be read and understood easily and quickly, or it may seem difficult and boring. Using syntax, the text is given rhythm.

Joseph Sugarman , an American copywriter, master of direct mail, resourceful marketer, and public speaker, says that there is no one particular pattern here, say a short sentence, then a long sentence, followed by a medium-length sentence, and then two short sentences and a very long one. You just need to vary the length of the sentences so that when you read them, they create a sense of variety and rhythm.

Sugarman suggests thinking about how the text would sound if all the sentences in it were very short or very long, or if all followed the same predictable pattern. This is the aim of the rhythm of the text.

So, vary your sentences, and change their length to give the text a certain rhythm. 

A figure of speech (from the Greek “ schema “) is a syntactic construction that enhances the impact of speech on the audience. This is a way of combining and linking words.

Let’s analyze the following example: the sentence structure in which there is an enumeration (amplification) . Usually, in such a sentence there are cohesive devices “ and ”, “ or ”, “ also ”. For example, I brought bread and cheese. 

And this is how, in contrast, the asyndeton (non-union) looks like:

“… we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty.” John F. Kennedy

Read also article “John F. Kennedy’s Inaugural Address: Rhetorical Analysis and Summary”.

Asyndeton speeds up the pace of the text, as if forming an increasing wave, while the sentence is read in one breath.

Polysyndeton causes the opposite effect, slowing down the enumeration:

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together. Martin Luther King JR. “I Have a Dream”

In addition to asyndeton, polysyndeton, and enumeration, the following rhetorical figures are distinguished:

• antithesis – opposition, contrast (“War and Peace”);
• oxymoron – combining two opposite concepts into one (eloquent silence);
• repetitions : “ And that government of the people , by the people , for the people , shall not perish from the earth”. ( Gettysburg Address )
• inversion – when the writer inverts the order of words to achieve greater expressiveness, to focus attention:

GLOUCESTER: Now is the winter of our discontent Made glorious summer by this sun of York; And all the clouds that lour’d upon our house In the deep bosom of the ocean buried. “Richard III” by William Shakespeare

• chiasmus is a cruciform permutation of words in the sentence: “ The Sabbath was made for a man, and not a man for the Sabbath ” (Mark 2:17).
• ellipsis , syllepse , and aposiopesis – decrease, omission of words in a sentence, unfinished sentences:

Well, I lay if I get hold of you I’ll – She did not finish, for by this time she was bending down and punching under the bed with the broom, and so she needed breath to punctuate the punches with. She resurrected nothing but the cat … ” “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer” by Mark Twain

A literary trope is the use of figurative language, via word, phrase, or an image, for artistic effect such as using a figure of speech. Wikipedia

The literary tropes are simple, like, for example, the comparisons and metaphors.

Comparison is a rhetorical device in which a writer compares two things, people, situations, etc. 

“ As a tree quietly drops its leaves, so I drop sad words .” (S. Yesenin).

Metaphor is also called a hidden comparison: a waterfall of stars, a wall of fire, a pearl of art, a bear of a problem. 

There are also more complex types of rhetorical devices:

• Synecdoche is a literary trope in which the characteristic of the general is transferred to the particular (“ Everything is sleeping: both man, and beast, and bird.” (N. V. Gogol). In this example, the singular is used instead of the plural: a person instead of people, etc.
• Metonymy is a rhetorical device that is based on the replacement of words by adjacency. For example: the White House instead the President of the United States and administration; Hollywood instead of the movie industry. 
• Hyperbole is an exaggeration: “ We haven’t seen each other for ages!”
• Litotes is an understatement: Life is one moment.
• Allegory is the use of a word in a figurative sense. For example: the biblical allegory – The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis, where the lion, Aslan, represents a Jesus Christ character. 
• Euphemism is a literary device that is used to soften, neutralize or replace rude, obscene words: prison – a place of deprivation of liberty, senior s is a euphemism for old people. 
• Anaphora is the repetition of the same words or sound combinations. Martin Luther King uses this figure of speech repeatedly, we can say that anaphora is practically the basis of the speech “I Have a Dream”:

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal. “ I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood. I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi…

“You take an eager interest in that gentleman’s concerns,” said Darcy, in a less tranquil tone, and with a heightened colour. “Who that knows what his misfortunes have been, can help feeling an interest in him?” “His misfortunes!” repeated Darcy contemptuously; “yes, his misfortunes have been great indeed.” “Pride and Prejudice” by Jane Austen

Patriot: the person who can holler the loudest without knowing what he is hollering about.  Mark Twain

• Personification is the transfer of the properties and qualities of a person to inanimate objects: 

“Rays of sunshine danced through the trees.” 

Among these stylistic devices, rhetorical figures, literary tropes, and modes of persuasion, it is important to find exactly those devices that will not be dissonant with the topic and main idea of the persuasive essay, but, on the contrary, will strengthen and reveal the author’s thoughts.

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WTO / Education / 30 Great Persuasive Essay Examples | Guide & Tips

30 Great Persuasive Essay Examples | Guide & Tips

A persuasive essay , or argumentative essay , is one in which you use logic and arguments to convince or persuade your readers to agree with a specific opinion or idea.

A good one employs excellent research and choice of words to strongly present the writer’s opinion and convince the readers to agree with it.

To write one, you must research thoroughly, write convincingly, and arrange your points succinctly. This article will gain more insight into the prewriting stage, the writing stage, and the editing stage. You will also learn winning tips that will help you write outstanding examples.

Persuasive Essay Examples

Fundamentals of Writing a Great Persuasive Essay

To write a great persuasive essay, you need to follow the outlined writing process. Below are tips for each stage of the writing process:

Prewriting stage

This stage is critical to the success of your writing. At this point, you plan the different parts of the essay.

These are the steps to take:

Choose a position you’re passionate about

Choose a topic and select the position you would love to advocate for. It would help if you chose a side you believe in, as that will make the research, writing, and argument more personalized. Opting for a topic you strongly believe in will make the defense easy. Also, because you are knowledgeable on the subject, you will not have issues with the research.

Understand the audience

To write a unique essay, you need to consider your audience. Remember that your writing should be suited to your audience. Check whether they are knowledgeable and inclined to believe your arguments. If you’re writing for a semi-literate audience, using high-sounding words will be ineffective as they won’t understand you. Instead, make it easy, simple, and easy to understand.

Research both sides thoroughly

You must thoroughly research the different sides of the argument to put up a convincing essay example. By researching both sides, you will discover points for and against the opinion and the loopholes in the different opinions. Utilize your school’s resources, such as a library, reference materials, and academic journals.

Identify convincing evidence

After conducting your research, select the most convincing evidence, as it will form the basis of your essay. Also, discover the significant points for the opposite team.

Create a working outline or structure

In this stage, you must create a working structure that will guide your essay. To do this, you must think critically about the pros and cons of your argument and note the places to put forward your most robust evidence.

Your outline will also keep you organized from the beginning, with supporting facts, figures, and pieces of evidence. So, for each point, you must outline the significant facts and research to support it. A working outline also helps you define your argument concisely and logically to make your writing process more manageable.

Here is a good sample outline to use:

Introductory paragraph

• Get your readers’ attention with a hook: A hook is the one big idea that hooks your audience. It can be a significant promise, quotation, unusual statistic, question, premise, or argument that will keep your readers engaged with your essay.
• Provide an overview of the argument: After writing the hook, the next step is to outline the argument.
• Close with the statement: Close by providing a thesis statement that reveals the position of the argument.

Body paragraphs

• Each paragraph should tackle one part of the evidence.
• Back up each paragraph with adequate supporting facts, figures, and pieces of evidence.

Opposing view paragraph

• In the opposing view paragraph, explain and counter the significant points of the opposite view.

Concluding paragraph

• In the concluding paragraph, reaffirm and re-emphasize the thesis and supporting points.

Draft your essay

After creating your outline, the next stage is to create an initial draft.

Here are the steps to follow:

• Open the Introductory Paragraph with a hook; your hook can be a quote, a story, a question, or a strong statement. For example, for an essay on education, you can use this hook. Nelson Mandela said, “Education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world.”
• State the thesis statement clearly, concisely, and succinctly.
• For each body paragraph, address one reason that emphasizes your point and provide strong evidence using research results, facts and figures, real-life examples, and quotable quotes from experts.
• Make arguments using different means, like analogies, comparisons, and logic.
• Define terms and give background information. Your readers may not be deeply knowledgeable about the subject. To carry everyone along, you must define terms and provide some background information.
• Remember that the concluding paragraph must summarize the points and provide more credence to your argument. It can be a question, a plea, a recommendation, or a prediction that convinces your readers to believe your point and act in the direction you want.

How to Revise the Persuasive Essay

After scribbling your essay, the next step is to revise and review it. Remember, “The first draft reveals the art; revision reveals the artist.” ― Michael Lee. So, to refine it and take it to the next level, you must revise what you have written.

Here are some things to do when revising a persuasive essay:

Crosscheck your position on the issue

Here, you should check whether your position is coherent and well-captured. Check if your points are well explained with illustrations, analogies, and arguments. Also, check if the essay states a firm position on the topic and is backed up with adequate statistics, quotes, facts, and examples.

Review the opening

Check if the hook captures the topic and aligns with the points you want to make. Ensure the hook is captivating, persuasive, and intriguing.

Ensure coherence of paragraphs

Your paragraphs should be coherent. They should have logical evidence, supporting analogies, and illustrations. In addition, your paragraphs should be legible, brief, and concise.

Confirm validity of refutation

Verify whether you refuted the opposing views convincingly with enough evidence to support your ideas while revising.

Review the formal structure

Check for the formal essay structure. Are the paragraphs well outlined? Do the paragraphs address only one issue? What’s the word choice like? Are the paragraphs coherent and readable? Are the sentences well-written and clear?

Food for thought in the concluding paragraph

Verify if the article persuades the reader to think and act in the manner in which it is concluded.

Persuasive Essay Topics

To further assist you in your writing, we will provide you with different and appropriate topic examples.

Here are some topics you can write on:

• Should people be forced to take the Covid-19 vaccine?
• Is the American dream a reality or a myth?
• Are eBooks better than physical books?
• Should under 18 children have any abortion rights?
• Should abortion be abolished?
• Should same-sex couples be allowed to adopt children?
• Should there be limits to free speech?
• Is religion the opium of the masses?
• Should classes on emotional intelligence be part of the curriculum for high school students?
• Should wealthier people pay more taxes?
• Is the keto diet a safe way to lose weight?
• Is feminism equal to misandry?
• Should paternal leave be made compulsory?
• Should human cloning be encouraged?
• Does artificial intelligence portend great harm in the future?
• Is social media a curse or a blessing?
• Is the quality of marriages eroding?
• Is society losing its long-upheld values?
• Is marriage a curse or a blessing?
• Should euthanasia be abolished?
• Should financial education be part of the curriculum?
• Do violent TV shows and games encourage violence in real life?
• Should social media be banned for under-aged children?
• Does nature or nurture play a greater role in shaping an individual?
• Can we change our behavior?
• Can science be a tool of destruction in the world?
• Should student loans be forgiven?

Persuasive Essay Outline Examples

Tips for Writing a Persuasive Essay

Although writing a persuasive essay is an interesting and easy task, there are a few considerations that, if kept in mind while writing, can make the end result perfect.

Following are some effective considerations for writing a persuasive essay:

Write with integrity and empathy

To write an award-winning essay, you must employ ethos (integrity or ethics), pathos (empathy), and logos (logic). First, your writing must appeal to ethics. Second, you must convince your readers that you are writing from an ethical standpoint. That means your position must be correct. Third, disagree with ethically wrong opinions.  More so, it would help if you appealed to emotions. You ought to awaken your reader’s anger, sadness, or sympathy through your essay. Your points should also be logical and supported by supporting facts and research.

Proofread and correct errors

After putting down a well-written essay, you should ensure it is grammatically correct by proofreading and correcting errors. You can use online tools as well to correct your write-up.

Key Takeaways

• A persuasive essay entails convincing your readers of a particular opinion.
• It is a significant part of life today and appears in ads, marketing campaigns, political manifestos, newspapers, and magazines.
• However, to write a convincing one, you must be thoroughly versed and passionate about the topic.
• You must also state your point convincingly, with supporting research and facts to back up your points.
• This write-up has provided you with well-written points on persuasive writing. Working with them will help create convincing essays.

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How to Write a Persuasive Essay: Tips and Tricks

Allison Bressmer

Most composition classes you’ll take will teach the art of persuasive writing. That’s a good thing.

Knowing where you stand on issues and knowing how to argue for or against something is a skill that will serve you well both inside and outside of the classroom.

Persuasion is the art of using logic to prompt audiences to change their mind or take action , and is generally seen as accomplishing that goal by appealing to emotions and feelings.

A persuasive essay is one that attempts to get a reader to agree with your perspective.

Ready for some tips on how to produce a well-written, well-rounded, well-structured persuasive essay? Just say yes. I don’t want to have to write another essay to convince you!

How Do I Write a Persuasive Essay?

What are some good topics for a persuasive essay, how do i identify an audience for my persuasive essay, how do you create an effective persuasive essay, how should i edit my persuasive essay.

Your persuasive essay needs to have the three components required of any essay: the introduction , body , and conclusion .

That is essay structure. However, there is flexibility in that structure.

There is no rule (unless the assignment has specific rules) for how many paragraphs any of those sections need.

Although the components should be proportional; the body paragraphs will comprise most of your persuasive essay.

How Do I Start a Persuasive Essay?

As with any essay introduction, this paragraph is where you grab your audience’s attention, provide context for the topic of discussion, and present your thesis statement.

TIP 1: Some writers find it easier to write their introductions last. As long as you have your working thesis, this is a perfectly acceptable approach. From that thesis, you can plan your body paragraphs and then go back and write your introduction.

TIP 2: Avoid “announcing” your thesis. Don’t include statements like this:

• “In my essay I will show why extinct animals should (not) be regenerated.”
• “The purpose of my essay is to argue that extinct animals should (not) be regenerated.”

Announcements take away from the originality, authority, and sophistication of your writing.

Instead, write a convincing thesis statement that answers the question "so what?" Why is the topic important, what do you think about it, and why do you think that? Be specific.

How Many Paragraphs Should a Persuasive Essay Have?

This body of your persuasive essay is the section in which you develop the arguments that support your thesis. Consider these questions as you plan this section of your essay:

• What arguments support your thesis?
• What is the best order for your arguments?
• What evidence do you have?
• Will you address the opposing argument to your own?
• How can you conclude convincingly?

TIP: Brainstorm and do your research before you decide which arguments you’ll focus on in your discussion. Make a list of possibilities and go with the ones that are strongest, that you can discuss with the most confidence, and that help you balance your rhetorical triangle .

What Should I Put in the Conclusion of a Persuasive Essay?

The conclusion is your “mic-drop” moment. Think about how you can leave your audience with a strong final comment.

And while a conclusion often re-emphasizes the main points of a discussion, it shouldn’t simply repeat them.

TIP 1: Be careful not to introduce a new argument in the conclusion—there’s no time to develop it now that you’ve reached the end of your discussion!

TIP 2 : As with your thesis, avoid announcing your conclusion. Don’t start your conclusion with “in conclusion” or “to conclude” or “to end my essay” type statements. Your audience should be able to see that you are bringing the discussion to a close without those overused, less sophisticated signals.

If your instructor has assigned you a topic, then you’ve already got your issue; you’ll just have to determine where you stand on the issue. Where you stand on your topic is your position on that topic.

Your position will ultimately become the thesis of your persuasive essay: the statement the rest of the essay argues for and supports, intending to convince your audience to consider your point of view.

If you have to choose your own topic, use these guidelines to help you make your selection:

• Choose an issue you truly care about
• Choose an issue that is actually debatable

Simple “tastes” (likes and dislikes) can’t really be argued. No matter how many ways someone tries to convince me that milk chocolate rules, I just won’t agree.

It’s dark chocolate or nothing as far as my tastes are concerned.

Similarly, you can’t convince a person to “like” one film more than another in an essay.

You could argue that one movie has superior qualities than another: cinematography, acting, directing, etc. but you can’t convince a person that the film really appeals to them.

Once you’ve selected your issue, determine your position just as you would for an assigned topic. That position will ultimately become your thesis.

Until you’ve finalized your work, consider your thesis a “working thesis.”

This means that your statement represents your position, but you might change its phrasing or structure for that final version.

When you’re writing an essay for a class, it can seem strange to identify an audience—isn’t the audience the instructor?

Your instructor will read and evaluate your essay, and may be part of your greater audience, but you shouldn’t just write for your teacher.

Think about who your intended audience is.

For an argument essay, think of your audience as the people who disagree with you—the people who need convincing.

That population could be quite broad, for example, if you’re arguing a political issue, or narrow, if you’re trying to convince your parents to extend your curfew.

Once you’ve got a sense of your audience, it’s time to consult with Aristotle. Aristotle’s teaching on persuasion has shaped communication since about 330 BC. Apparently, it works.

Aristotle taught that in order to convince an audience of something, the communicator needs to balance the three elements of the rhetorical triangle to achieve the best results.

Those three elements are ethos , logos , and pathos .

Ethos relates to credibility and trustworthiness. How can you, as the writer, demonstrate your credibility as a source of information to your audience?

How will you show them you are worthy of their trust?

• You show you’ve done your research: you understand the issue, both sides
• You show respect for the opposing side: if you disrespect your audience, they won’t respect you or your ideas

Logos relates to logic. How will you convince your audience that your arguments and ideas are reasonable?

You provide facts or other supporting evidence to support your claims.

That evidence may take the form of studies or expert input or reasonable examples or a combination of all of those things, depending on the specific requirements of your assignment.

Remember: if you use someone else’s ideas or words in your essay, you need to give them credit.

ProWritingAid's Plagiarism Checker checks your work against over a billion web-pages, published works, and academic papers so you can be sure of its originality.

Find out more about ProWritingAid’s Plagiarism checks.

Pathos relates to emotion. Audiences are people and people are emotional beings. We respond to emotional prompts. How will you engage your audience with your arguments on an emotional level?

• You make strategic word choices : words have denotations (dictionary meanings) and also connotations, or emotional values. Use words whose connotations will help prompt the feelings you want your audience to experience.
• You use emotionally engaging examples to support your claims or make a point, prompting your audience to be moved by your discussion.

Be mindful as you lean into elements of the triangle. Too much pathos and your audience might end up feeling manipulated, roll their eyes and move on.

An “all logos” approach will leave your essay dry and without a sense of voice; it will probably bore your audience rather than make them care.

Once you’ve got your essay planned, start writing! Don’t worry about perfection, just get your ideas out of your head and off your list and into a rough essay format.

After you’ve written your draft, evaluate your work. What works and what doesn’t? For help with evaluating and revising your work, check out this ProWritingAid post on manuscript revision .

After you’ve evaluated your draft, revise it. Repeat that process as many times as you need to make your work the best it can be.

When you’re satisfied with the content and structure of the essay, take it through the editing process .

Grammatical or sentence-level errors can distract your audience or even detract from the ethos—the authority—of your work.

You don’t have to edit alone! ProWritingAid’s Realtime Report will find errors and make suggestions for improvements.

You can even use it on emails to your professors:

Try ProWritingAid with a free account.

How Can I Improve My Persuasion Skills?

You can develop your powers of persuasion every day just by observing what’s around you.

• How is that advertisement working to convince you to buy a product?
• How is a political candidate arguing for you to vote for them?
• How do you “argue” with friends about what to do over the weekend, or convince your boss to give you a raise?
• How are your parents working to convince you to follow a certain academic or career path?

As you observe these arguments in action, evaluate them. Why are they effective or why do they fail?

How could an argument be strengthened with more (or less) emphasis on ethos, logos, and pathos?

Every argument is an opportunity to learn! Observe them, evaluate them, and use them to perfect your own powers of persuasion.

Be confident about grammar

Check every email, essay, or story for grammar mistakes. Fix them before you press send.

Allison Bressmer is a professor of freshman composition and critical reading at a community college and a freelance writer. If she isn’t writing or teaching, you’ll likely find her reading a book or listening to a podcast while happily sipping a semi-sweet iced tea or happy-houring with friends. She lives in New York with her family. Connect at linkedin.com/in/allisonbressmer.

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Writing a Persuasive Essay

Persuasive essays convince readers to accept a certain perspective. Writing a persuasive essay therefore entails making an argument that will appeal to readers, so they believe what you say has merit. This act of appealing to readers is the art of persuasion, also known as rhetoric. In classical rhetoric, persuasion involves appealing to readers using ethos, pathos, and logos.

In this tutorial, we refer to the sample persuasive draft and final paper written by fictional student Maggie Durham.

THE ART OF PERSUASION

Ethos refers to establishing yourself as a credible source of information. To convince an audience of anything, they must first trust you are being earnest and ethical. One strategy to do this is to write a balanced discussion with relevant and reliable research that supports your claims. Reliable research would include quoting or paraphrasing experts, first-hand witnesses, or authorities. Properly citing your sources, so your readers can also retrieve them, is another factor in establishing a reliable ethos. When writing for academic purposes, expressing your argument using unbiased language and a neutral tone will also indicate you are arguing fairly and with consideration of others having differing views.

When you appeal to your readers’ emotions, you are using pathos. This appeal is common in advertising that convinces consumers they lack something and buying a certain product or service will fulfill that lack. Emotional appeals are subtler in academic writing; they serve to engage a reader in the argument and inspire a change of heart or motivate readers toward a course of action. The examples you use, how you define terms, any comparisons you draw, as well as the language choices you use can draw readers in and impact their willingness to go along with your ideas.

Consider that one purpose of persuasion is to appeal to those who do not already agree with you, so it will be important to show that you understand other points of view. You will also want to avoid derogatory or insulting descriptions or remarks about the opposition. You wouldn’t want to offend the very readers you want to persuade.

Establishing an appeal of logos is to write a sound argument, one that readers can follow and understand. To do this, the facts and evidence you use should be relevant, representative, and reliable, and the writing as a whole should be well organized, developed, and edited.

STEPS FOR WRITING PERSUASIVELY

Step one: determine the topic.

The first step in writing a persuasive essay is to establish the topic. The best topic is one that interests you. You can generate ideas for a topic by prewriting, such as by brainstorming whatever comes to mind, recording in grocery-list fashion your thoughts, or freewriting in complete sentences what you know or think about topics of interest.

Whatever topic you choose, it needs to be:

• Interesting : The topic should appeal both to you and to your intended readers.
• Researchable : A body of knowledge should already exist on the topic.
• Nonfiction : The information about the topic should be factual, not based on personal opinions or conspiracy theories.
• Important : Your reader should think the topic is relevant to them or worthy of being explored and discussed.

Our sample student Maggie Durham has selected the topic of educational technology. We will use Maggie’s sample persuasive draft and final paper as we discuss the steps for writing a persuasive essay.

Step Two: Pose a Research Question

Once you have a topic, the next step is to develop a research question along with related questions that delve further into the first question. If you do not know what to ask, start with one of the question words: What? Who? Where? When? Why? and How? The research question helps you focus or narrow the scope of your topic by identifying a problem, controversy, or aspect of the topic that is worth exploration and discussion. Some general questions about a topic would be the following:

• Who is affected by this problem and how?
• Have previous efforts or polices been made to address this problem? – What are they?
• Why hasn’t this problem been solved already?

For Maggie’s topic of educational technology, potential issues or controversies range from data privacy to digital literacy to the impact of technology on learning, which is what Maggie is interested in. Maggie’s local school district has low literacy rates, so Maggie wants to know the following:

• Are there advantages and/or disadvantages of technology within primary and secondary education?
• Which types of technology are considered the best in terms of quality and endurance?
• What types of technology and/or programs do students like using and why?
• Do teachers know how to use certain technologies with curriculum design, instruction, and/or assessment?

Step Three: Draft a Thesis

A thesis is a claim that asserts your main argument about the topic. As you conduct your research and draft your paper, you may discover information that changes your mind about your thesis, so at this point in writing, the thesis is tentative. Still, it is an important step in narrowing your focus for research and writing.

The thesis should

1. be a complete sentence,

2. identify the topic, and

3. make a specific claim about that topic.

In a persuasive paper, the thesis is a claim that someone should believe or do something. For example, a persuasive thesis might assert that something is effective or ineffective. It might state that a policy should be changed or a plan should be implemented. Or a persuasive thesis might be a plea for people to change their minds about a particular issue.

Once you have figured out your research question, your thesis is simply the answer. Maggie’s thesis is “Schools should supply technology aids to all students to increase student learning and literacy rates.” Her next step is to find evidence to support her claim.

Step Four: Research

Once you have a topic, research question, and thesis, you are ready to conduct research. To find sources that would be appropriate for an academic persuasive essay, begin your search in the library. The Purdue Global Library has a number of tutorials on conducting research, choosing search teams, types of sources, and how to evaluate information to determine its reliability and usefulness. Remember that the research you use will not only provide content to prove your claim and develop your essay, but it will also help to establish your credibility as a reliable source (ethos), create a logical framework for your argument (logos), and appeal to your readers emotionally (pathos).

Step Five: Plan Your Argument; Make an Outline

Once you have located quality source information—facts, examples, definitions, knowledge, and other information that answers your research question(s), you’ll want to create an outline to organize it. The example outline below illustrates a logical organizational plan for writing a persuasive essay. The example outline begins with an introduction that presents the topic, explains the issue, and asserts the position (the thesis). The body then provides the reasoning for the position and addresses the opposing viewpoints that some readers may hold. In your paper, you could modify this organization and address the opposing viewpoints first and then give the reasoning for your viewpoints, or you can alternate and give one opposing viewpoint then counter that with your viewpoint and then give another opposing viewpoint and counter that with your viewpoint.

The outline below also considers the alternatives to the position—certainly, there are other ways to think about or address the issue or situation. Considering the alternatives can be done in conjunction with looking at the opposing viewpoints. You do not always have to disagree with other opinions, either. You can acknowledge that another solution could work or another belief is valid. However, at the end of the body section, you will want to stand by your original position and prove that in light of all the opposing viewpoints and other perspectives, your position has the most merit.

Sample Outline of a Persuasive Argument

• 1. Introduction: Tell them what you will tell them.
• a. Present an interesting fact or description to make the topic clear and capture the reader’s attention.
• b. Define and narrow the topic using facts or descriptions to illustrate what the situation or issue is (and that is it important).
• c. Assert the claim (thesis) that something should be believed or done about the issue. (Some writers also briefly state the reasons behind this claim in the thesis as Maggie does in her paper when she claims that schools should supply tablets to students to increase learning , engagement, and literacy rates ).
• 2. Body: Tell them.
• a. Defend the claim with logical reasons and practical examples based on research.
• b. Anticipate objections to the claim and refute or accommodate them with research.
• c. Consider alternate positions or solutions using examples from research.
• d. Present a final point based on research that supports your claim in light of the objections and alternatives considered.
• 3. Conclusion: Tell them what you told them.
• a. Recap the main points to reinforce the importance of the issue.
• b. Restate the thesis in new wording to reinforce your position.
• c. Make a final remark to leave a lasting impression, so the reader will want to continue this conversation and ideally adopt the belief or take the action you are advocating.

In Maggie’s draft, she introduced the topic with facts about school ratings in Texas and then narrowed the topic using the example of her local school district’s literacy rates. She then claimed the district should provide each student a tablet in order to increase learning (and thus, literacy rates).

Maggie defends her claim with a series of examples from research that proved how access to tablets, technology-integrated curriculums, and “flipped classrooms” have improved literacy rates in other districts. She anticipates objections to her proposal due to the high cost of technology and counter argues this with expert opinions and examples that show partnerships with businesses, personalized curriculums that technology makes possible, and teacher training can balance the costs. Maggie included an alternative solution of having students check out tablets from the library, but her research showed that this still left students needing Wi-Fi at home while her proposal would include a plan for students to access Wi-Fi.

Maggie concluded her argument by pointing out the cost of not helping the students in this way and restated her thesis reaffirming the benefits, and then left the reader with a memorable quote.

Click here to see Maggie’s draft with feedback from her instructor and a peer. Sample Persuasive Draft

Feedback, Revision, and Editing

After you write a draft of your persuasive essay, the next step is to have a peer, instructor, or tutor read it and provide feedback. Without reader feedback, you cannot fully know how your readers will react to your argument. Reader feedback is meant to be constructive. Use it to better understand your readers and craft your argument to more appropriately appeal to them.

Maggie received valuable feedback on her draft from her instructor and classmate. They pointed to where her thesis needed to be even more specific, to paragraphs where a different organization would make her argument more convincing, to parts of the paper that lacked examples, sentences that needed revision and editing for greater clarity, and APA formatting that needed to be edited.

Maggie also took a critical look at her paper and looked back at her writing process. One technique she found helpful was to read her paper aloud because it let her know where her wording and organization were not clear. She did this several times as she revised and again as she edited and refined her paper for sentence level clarity and concision.

In the end, Maggie produced a convincing persuasive essay and effective argument that would appeal to readers who are also interested in the way technology can impact and improve student learning, an important topic in 2014 when this paper was written and still relevant today.

Click here to see Maggie’s final draft after revising and editing. Sample Persuasive Revised

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How To Write An Amazing Feature Article In 5 Steps

Need to write a feature article for class? Don't worry, in this article, we show you how to write an amazing feature article in 5 steps!

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Unsure of the difference between a feature article and a newspaper report? Well, it’s time to find out! We will show you the different characteristics of an amazing feature article and how to write one!

To show you how to write an amazing feature article, we’ll discuss:

Characteristics of a feature article.

• Different types of feature articles

Language used in feature articles

• Research / Planning
• Header / Title
• Introduction

What is a feature article?

A feature article is a non-fiction piece of writing that focuses on a particular topic. You will find them in newspapers and news sites, online blogs, or magazines.

However, they are not the same as news reports! Whereas news reports are more factual…

Feature articles are more subjective and emotive.

They commonly present information in a more narratorial manner to make them more engaging.

Now that we have a general understanding of what a feature article is, let’s take a detailed look at their characteristics.

A feature article should,

• Explore a topic or issue of current importance
• Follows  narratorial conventions (i.e. There is a plot, complication, and conclusion)
• Written in short paragraphs
• Combine facts and opinions
• Provide a perspective or angle about the topic or issue
• Includes catchy features (eg. Catchy title, images etc.).

Different types of feature articles:

There are many different types of feature articles. Each one has a different focus and purpose.

So, let’s see a few examples of feature articles!

• eg.  ‘ Charlie Kaufman’s debut novel, ‘Antkind’, is just as loopy and clever as his movies ‘
• eg. ‘ A Former High School Football Player Dove and Caught a Child Dropped From the Balcony of a Burning Building’
• eg. ‘ How to Tie Dye ‘
• eg. ‘ My 2019 UCAT Experience ‘
• eg. ‘ Why Australia Day is really held on 26 January and the push to change the date ‘ or ‘ Thanksgiving 2020 – Date, history behind the holiday and what time is Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade ?’
• eg. ‘ Craziness behind the scenes at the White House ‘ and ‘ Two Former McDonald Employees Spill Insider Secrets About Working at the Fast Food Chain ‘

Note : There are many more different types of feature articles. You’ll want to research the genre specific for the task you’ve been set.

Before we go into the nitty-gritty details for writing feature articles, you need to know what skills and techniques you need to acquire in order to write a feature article!

• Share your opinions
• Show your personality (eg. humourous, serious…)
• Use semi-formal language (i.e. some colloquialism)
• Use emotive language
• Refer to the audience in second person language (eg. “you”)
• Use literary and rhetorical techniques to engage the reader (eg. rhetorical questions, anecdotes, imagery…)
• Don’t overuse adjectives or adverbs . Use strong verbs and nouns to describe, instead of adjectives and adverbs.
• Use facts, quotes and jargon  to add authenticity
• Make sure you write in the  active voice

How to write an amazing feature article in 5 steps

Now that we know what a feature article is, let’s see what you need to do in when writing an amazing feature article:

Step 1: Research and Planning

Remember, feature articles are still based on factual information. So, it is vital that you research your topic very well and that you carefully plan out what you want to write.

We will need to research, plan and research again!

Once you’ve thought about the topic you’ve begin, or decided which issue you would like to discuss, you’re ready to get stuck into researching.

a. Research the general topic

This step is all about reading different perspectives and information about your chosen topic.

Doing this will help you take an informative stance on your topic.

See which perspective interests you most, or which one you agree with most. Also, take into account of the amount of strong evidence you can find for your feature article.

b. Narrow your focus and plan

Now, it is time to take a stance and start planning your feature article!

Here are some points you need to consider when you are planning:

• What type of feature article do you want to write?
• What is your stance on the topic?
• Who is your target audience?
• What is your article about?
• Why are you writing about this topic? (i.e. purpose)
• Chronologically?
• Level of importance?
• Like a narrative?

Note : The purpose of your feature article can be to convince, evoke sympathy or anger, praise or even to educate. It is up to you to figure out what you want to say about the topic.

c. Research evidence

Now, it is time to research some more and gather some evidence to support your feature article.

Feature articles are supposed to help readers really understand and feel your story.

So, to do this, you must ensure that you spend this time to really flesh out your story and get a good grasp of what you are writing about.

Here are some examples you should look for:

• eg. “ According to Cancer.org , 1960 Australians died from skin cancer in 2016 “
• eg. “ Brendan Thomas will not be deported to New Zealand because he is an Indigenous Australian and is protected by the new law “
• eg. “ Professor Gabriel Leung, Expert on COVID-19 Epidemic from Hong Kong University , says that COVID-19 could ‘infect 60% of global population if unchecked'”  
• “ From the live interview with Holocaust survivor.. “

Step 2: Header / Title

Feature articles are known for their eye-catching headers!

Let’s take a look at 2 headers. Which title would you click on first?

“ Rising film director, Sherrice, just released a provocative stop-motion piece that will change your view about fast food! ”

“ Film director, Sherrice, just released a stop-motion piece about fast food ”

The first line is more catchy because it uses emotive language and it directly addresses the readers.

So, how do you write catchy headlines?

• Keep it short and snappy
• Directly address the reader
• Use adjectives / adverbs
• Tell readers what your content is about
• Ask a question
• Give an imperative

Step 3: Introduction

Like your title, your introduction also needs to ‘hook’ in the readers.

They set the scene and draw interest from the audience.

Think about a narrative’s 3 Act Structure:

• The opening act sets the scene and captivate the audience’s attention
• Act 2 is where the action and the major complication occurs
• The 3rd act is the conclusion. It ‘solves’ the problem.

Feature articles function in the same way.

However, unlike a narrative, feature articles’ introductions are very brief and short. They should never be longer than 15% of your whole article.

So, how do you write effective introductions to feature articles:

• Make an interesting and provocative opening statement to draw reader’s attention
• Briefly introduce the topic and purpose
• Establish a relationship with your reader through your language (eg. second person language, rhetorical questions…)
• Create intrigue and interest by foreshadowing your points or challenging your audience
• Provide background information about your topic

Take a read of ABC journalist, Stan Grant’s introduction from  ‘Anger has the hour’: How long must Indigenous Australia Wait for Change? 

“How long must Aboriginal people wait? How many “turning points” must there be, before we stop believing?

Time is something Indigenous people do not have, not when we die 10 years younger than the rest of the population. Every year lost is counted in graveyard crosses.

Yet the Federal Government says there will likely be no referendum on Indigenous constitutional recognition this term of Parliament. Three years since the Uluru Statement from the Heart laid out a vision for Australia — Voice, Treaty, Truth — and we are told still to wait.

That is three years lost; a wasted opportunity to finish our unfinished business. First Nations people asked Australians to walk with us for a better future, yet we cannot get beyond those first steps.”

You see, Grant draws the audience’s interest by asking provocative rhetorical questions that hints at his stance about the topic.

He then provides background information about his topic to inform his audience about the issue. However, notice how he does this in an interesting and engaging way.

Grant uses literary techniques like tricolon (eg. “Voice, Treaty, Truth”), metaphors (eg. “year lost is counted in graveyard crosses” and “First Nations people asked Australians to walk wth us for a better future, yet we cannot get beyond those first steps”) and the motif of steps (eg. “walk with us” and “first steps”).

Step 4: Body

Now, let’s move onto the main part of your feature article.

The body of your feature article is where you write all of your juicy information.

This is where the story unfolds and you share your opinions.

So, let’s get started and see what you need to do in your feature article body paragraphs.

a. Show don’t tell

‘Show, don’t tell’ is a commonly taught writing technique. It requires students to describe and ‘show’ what is happening, instead of simply recounting (‘telling’).

Let’s take a look at an example:

• Tell : Johnny was tired after he ran up the hill.
• Show : Johnny’s legs were aching as he forced himself up the hill. He was struggling to catch his breath and his cheeks were red and puffed up.

Notice the difference? The second line is much more engaging and descriptive, and we feel more connected to the character.

As such, you need to ‘show’ your information to make your article more engaging and interesting to read.

Remember, a feature article is much more colourful than a newspaper report.

So, let’s learn how to ‘show, not tell’:

• Write vivid descriptions and imagery
• Rely on the different senses to describe (i.e. sight, touch, smell, hearing, taste)
• Use literary techniques
• Don’t state emotions (eg. ‘He is happy’,  ‘She was excited’ or ‘That was scary’)
• Use strong verbs and nouns, instead of adverbs and adjectives (eg. ‘sprinted’ instead of ‘ran fast’)

b. Be creative

In other terms, use rhetorical and literary techniques! Using these techniques will help you achieve your purpose and simultaneously engage the audience.

For example, if you want to evoke sympathy from the audience, you can use emotive language and hyperbole:

“Big, brute boys brutally beat small neighbourhood boy until he was unrecognisable” 

Or, if you want to convince the audience, you can use high modality words and an imperative voice:

“The time to take action is now! Get your phones and fill out the survey now”

So, what are some techniques that are commonly used in feature articles:

If you want to find more techniques, or learn more about the listed techniques, take a read of our English Literary Techniques Toolkit .

c. Support your opinions

Remember, a feature article isn’t just a story… it is also an article! This means that you will need a set of strong evidence to support what you are saying.

We already went through the various types of evidence you need for a feature article:

• Case studies
• Quotes from critics or experts

So, ensure you use a variety of different evidence and use it across your whole feature article.

Step 5: Conclusion

We are at the final stage of your feature article!

Too often, students neglect the conclusion because they think it’s unimportant in a feature article.

However, it is quite the opposite.

Conclusions are especially important in feature article because they summarise your ideas and stance, and ultimately inspire your readers to take action.

So, take your time to quickly summarise your article and add a call to action (i.e. tell your audience to do something, either explicitly or implicitly).

Let’s take a look at News.com journalist, Emma Reynold’s conclusion: “ Craziness Behind the Scenes at the White House ”

“ Three levels of the imposing White House are visible above ground, with the rest beneath. The basements include workrooms, bombs shelters and a bowling alley.

I’m told to look out for the famous red-tailed hawks that live in the rafters of the building. While squirrels are a common sight outside the gates, not many survive within.

Back on Pennsylvania Avenue, I note the absence of sewer grates or rubbish bins, a precaution against bombs.

Clearly, there is a strong consciousness of danger here. But it’s covered with a Disney smile. “

Here, Reynold summarises her experience at the White House and comes to a final conclusion.

She also uses rhetorical and literary techniques to engage her audience and make her conclusion more memorable.

For example, we see a metaphor with “while squirrels are a common sight outside the gates, not many survive within [the White House]”, drawing links between squirrels and common people.

She also uses framing (her introduction refers a ‘Disney star’), allusion and metaphor in her final line: “But it’s covered with a Disney smile”.

Furthermore, Reynolds also implicitly warns us to be aware and critical of what is truly happening in the White House. This is her call to action.

This is what you need to do with your conclusions too!

Written by Matrix English Team

© Matrix Education and www.matrix.edu.au, 2023. Unauthorised use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Matrix Education and www.matrix.edu.au with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

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How to Write a Persuasive Essay (This Convinced My Professor!)

Table of contents

Meredith Sell

You can make your essay more persuasive by getting straight to the point.

In fact, that's exactly what we did here, and that's just the first tip of this guide. Throughout this guide, we share the steps needed to prove an argument and create a persuasive essay.

This AI tool helps you improve your essay > This AI tool helps you improve your essay >

Key takeaways: - Proven process to make any argument persuasive - 5-step process to structure arguments - How to use AI to formulate and optimize your essay

Why is being persuasive so difficult?

"Write an essay that persuades the reader of your opinion on a topic of your choice."

You might be staring at an assignment description just like this 👆from your professor. Your computer is open to a blank document, the cursor blinking impatiently. Do I even have opinions?

The persuasive essay can be one of the most intimidating academic papers to write: not only do you need to identify a narrow topic and research it, but you also have to come up with a position on that topic that you can back up with research while simultaneously addressing different viewpoints.

That’s a big ask. And let’s be real: most opinion pieces in major news publications don’t fulfill these requirements.

The upside? By researching and writing your own opinion, you can learn how to better formulate not only an argument but the actual positions you decide to hold. 

Here, we break down exactly how to write a persuasive essay. We’ll start by taking a step that’s key for every piece of writing—defining the terms.

What Is a Persuasive Essay?

A persuasive essay is exactly what it sounds like: an essay that persuades . Over the course of several paragraphs or pages, you’ll use researched facts and logic to convince the reader of your opinion on a particular topic and discredit opposing opinions.

While you’ll spend some time explaining the topic or issue in question, most of your essay will flesh out your viewpoint and the evidence that supports it.

The 5 Must-Have Steps of a Persuasive Essay

If you’re intimidated by the idea of writing an argument, use this list to break your process into manageable chunks. Tackle researching and writing one element at a time, and then revise your essay so that it flows smoothly and coherently with every component in the optimal place.

1. A topic or issue to argue

This is probably the hardest step. You need to identify a topic or issue that is narrow enough to cover in the length of your piece—and is also arguable from more than one position. Your topic must call for an opinion , and not be a simple fact .

It might be helpful to walk through this process:

• Identify a random topic
• Ask a question about the topic that involves a value claim or analysis to answer
• Answer the question

That answer is your opinion.

Let’s consider some examples, from silly to serious:

Topic: Dolphins and mermaids

Question: In a mythical match, who would win: a dolphin or a mermaid?

Answer/Opinion: The mermaid would win in a match against a dolphin.

Topic: Autumn

Question: Which has a better fall: New England or Colorado?

Answer/Opinion: Fall is better in New England than Colorado.

Topic: Electric transportation options

Question: Would it be better for an urban dweller to buy an electric bike or an electric car?

Answer/Opinion: An electric bike is a better investment than an electric car.

Your turn: Walk through the three-step process described above to identify your topic and your tentative opinion. You may want to start by brainstorming a list of topics you find interesting and then going use the three-step process to find the opinion that would make the best essay topic.

2. An unequivocal thesis statement

If you walked through our three-step process above, you already have some semblance of a thesis—but don’t get attached too soon! 

A solid essay thesis is best developed through the research process. You shouldn’t land on an opinion before you know the facts. So press pause. Take a step back. And dive into your research.

You’ll want to learn:

• The basic facts of your topic. How long does fall last in New England vs. Colorado? What trees do they have? What colors do those trees turn?
• The facts specifically relevant to your question. Is there any science on how the varying colors of fall influence human brains and moods?
• What experts or other noteworthy and valid sources say about the question you’re considering. Has a well-known arborist waxed eloquent on the beauty of New England falls?

As you learn the different viewpoints people have on your topic, pay attention to the strengths and weaknesses of existing arguments. Is anyone arguing the perspective you’re leaning toward? Do you find their arguments convincing? What do you find unsatisfying about the various arguments? 

Allow the research process to change your mind and/or refine your thinking on the topic. Your opinion may change entirely or become more specific based on what you learn.

Once you’ve done enough research to feel confident in your understanding of the topic and your opinion on it, craft your thesis. 

Your thesis statement should be clear and concise. It should directly state your viewpoint on the topic, as well as the basic case for your thesis.

Thesis 1: In a mythical match, the mermaid would overcome the dolphin due to one distinct advantage: her ability to breathe underwater.

Thesis 2: The full spectrum of color displayed on New England hillsides is just one reason why fall in the northeast is better than in Colorado.

Thesis 3: In addition to not adding to vehicle traffic, electric bikes are a better investment than electric cars because they’re cheaper and require less energy to accomplish the same function of getting the rider from point A to point B.

Your turn: Dive into the research process with a radar up for the arguments your sources are making about your topic. What are the most convincing cases? Should you stick with your initial opinion or change it up? Write your fleshed-out thesis statement.

3. Evidence to back up your thesis

This is a typical place for everyone from undergrads to politicians to get stuck, but the good news is, if you developed your thesis from research, you already have a good bit of evidence to make your case.

Go back through your research notes and compile a list of every …

… or other piece of information that supports your thesis. 

This info can come from research studies you found in scholarly journals, government publications, news sources, encyclopedias, or other credible sources (as long as they fit your professor’s standards).

As you put this list together, watch for any gaps or weak points. Are you missing information on how electric cars versus electric bicycles charge or how long their batteries last? Did you verify that dolphins are, in fact, mammals and can’t breathe underwater like totally-real-and-not-at-all-fake 😉mermaids can? Track down that information.

Next, organize your list. Group the entries so that similar or closely related information is together, and as you do that, start thinking through how to articulate the individual arguments to support your case. 

Depending on the length of your essay, each argument may get only a paragraph or two of space. As you think through those specific arguments, consider what order to put them in. You’ll probably want to start with the simplest argument and work up to more complicated ones so that the arguments can build on each other. 

Your turn: Organize your evidence and write a rough draft of your arguments. Play around with the order to find the most compelling way to argue your case.

4. Rebuttals to disprove opposing theses

You can’t just present the evidence to support your case and totally ignore other viewpoints. To persuade your readers, you’ll need to address any opposing ideas they may hold about your topic. 

You probably found some holes in the opposing views during your research process. Now’s your chance to expose those holes. 

Take some time (and space) to: describe the opposing views and show why those views don’t hold up. You can accomplish this using both logic and facts.

Is a perspective based on a faulty assumption or misconception of the truth? Shoot it down by providing the facts that disprove the opinion.

Is another opinion drawn from bad or unsound reasoning? Show how that argument falls apart.

Some cases may truly be only a matter of opinion, but you still need to articulate why you don’t find the opposing perspective convincing.

Yes, a dolphin might be stronger than a mermaid, but as a mammal, the dolphin must continually return to the surface for air. A mermaid can breathe both underwater and above water, which gives her a distinct advantage in this mythical battle.

While the Rocky Mountain views are stunning, their limited colors—yellow from aspen trees and green from various evergreens—leaves the autumn-lover less than thrilled. The rich reds and oranges and yellows of the New England fall are more satisfying and awe-inspiring.

But what about longer trips that go beyond the city center into the suburbs and beyond? An electric bike wouldn’t be great for those excursions. Wouldn’t an electric car be the better choice then? 

Certainly, an electric car would be better in these cases than a gas-powered car, but if most of a person’s trips are in their hyper-local area, the electric bicycle is a more environmentally friendly option for those day-to-day outings. That person could then participate in a carshare or use public transit, a ride-sharing app, or even a gas-powered car for longer trips—and still use less energy overall than if they drove an electric car for hyper-local and longer area trips.

Your turn: Organize your rebuttal research and write a draft of each one.

5. A convincing conclusion

You have your arguments and rebuttals. You’ve proven your thesis is rock-solid. Now all you have to do is sum up your overall case and give your final word on the subject. 

Don’t repeat everything you’ve already said. Instead, your conclusion should logically draw from the arguments you’ve made to show how they coherently prove your thesis. You’re pulling everything together and zooming back out with a better understanding of the what and why of your thesis. 

A dolphin may never encounter a mermaid in the wild, but if it were to happen, we know how we’d place our bets. Long hair and fish tail, for the win.

For those of us who relish 50-degree days, sharp air, and the vibrant colors of fall, New England offers a season that’s cozier, longer-lasting, and more aesthetically pleasing than “colorful” Colorado. A leaf-peeper’s paradise.

When most of your trips from day to day are within five miles, the more energy-efficient—and yes, cost-efficient—choice is undoubtedly the electric bike. So strap on your helmet, fire up your pedals, and two-wheel away to your next destination with full confidence that you made the right decision for your wallet and the environment.

3 Quick Tips for Writing a Strong Argument

Once you have a draft to work with, use these tips to refine your argument and make sure you’re not losing readers for avoidable reasons.

1. Choose your words thoughtfully.

If you want to win people over to your side, don’t write in a way that shuts your opponents down. Avoid making abrasive or offensive statements. Instead, use a measured, reasonable tone. Appeal to shared values, and let your facts and logic do the hard work of changing people’s minds.

Choose words with AI

You can use AI to turn your general point into a readable argument. Then, you can paraphrase each sentence and choose between competing arguments generated by the AI, until your argument is well-articulated and concise.

2. Prioritize accuracy (and avoid fallacies).

Make sure the facts you use are actually factual. You don’t want to build your argument on false or disproven information. Use the most recent, respected research. Make sure you don’t misconstrue study findings. And when you’re building your case, avoid logical fallacies that undercut your argument.

A few common fallacies to watch out for:

• Strawman: Misrepresenting or oversimplifying an opposing argument to make it easier to refute.
• Appeal to ignorance: Arguing that a certain claim must be true because it hasn’t been proven false.
• Bandwagon: Assumes that if a group of people, experts, etc., agree with a claim, it must be true.
• Hasty generalization: Using a few examples, rather than substantial evidence, to make a sweeping claim.
• Appeal to authority: Overly relying on opinions of people who have authority of some kind.

The strongest arguments rely on trustworthy information and sound logic.

Research and add citations with AI

We recently wrote a three part piece on researching using AI, so be sure to check it out . Going through an organized process of researching and noting your sources correctly will make sure your written text is more accurate.

3. Persuasive essay structure

If you’re building a house, you start with the foundation and go from there. It’s the same with an argument. You want to build from the ground up: provide necessary background information, then your thesis. Then, start with the simplest part of your argument and build up in terms of complexity and the aspect of your thesis that the argument is tackling.

A consistent, internal logic will make it easier for the reader to follow your argument. Plus, you’ll avoid confusing your reader and you won’t be unnecessarily redundant.

The essay structure usually includes the following parts:

• Intro - Hook, Background information, Thesis statement
• Topic sentence #1 , with supporting facts or stats
• Concluding sentence
• Topic sentence #2 , with supporting facts or stats
• Concluding sentence Topic sentence #3 , with supporting facts or stats
• Conclusion - Thesis and main points restated, call to action, thought provoking ending

Are You Ready to Write?

Persuasive essays are a great way to hone your research, writing, and critical thinking skills. Approach this assignment well, and you’ll learn how to form opinions based on information (not just ideas) and make arguments that—if they don’t change minds—at least win readers’ respect. ‍

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Persuasive Essay Outline – Examples, Templates & Structure

Amanda Green was born in a small town in the west of Scotland, where everyone knows everyone. I joined the Toastmasters 15 years ago, and I served in nearly every office in the club since then. I love helping others gain confidence and skills they can apply in every day life.

Writing a good persuasive essay can help convince others of a point that means a lot to you. It can be anything from an environmental crisis to something as simple as the importance of ebooks to the modern reader. But how do you write a persuasive essay? Where do you even start? Right here! I’ll explain everything you need to know and even show you an example of a persuasive essay.

What Is a Persuasive Essay?

Persuasive essays are meant to convince someone or a group of people to agree with you on a certain topic or point of view. As the writer, you’ll use definitive evidence, simple reasoning, and even examples to support your argument and persuade them to understand the point of the essay.

Why Write a Persuasive Essay?

Believe it or not, you’ll have to form convincing arguments throughout real life. This could be in the form of college essays or academic essays, speeches for debate club that requires a valid argument, or even presenting an idea for change to your town council.

Argumentative vs. Persuasive Essay

An argumentative essay presents an argument on a specific topic and tries to persuade people to accept that argument as valid. It uses evidence, logic, and sometimes counterarguments to support the main point.

A persuasive essay is similar but presents an argument and focuses more on appealing to the reader’s emotions and values to convince them of your point of view. Think of it as convincing vs. persuading. And, yes, persuasive essays can also use evidence, but they often rely more on personal anecdotes and moral appeals to plead their case.

Let me give you an example. I’m a content writer, but I’m also a published author. If I were going to write an argumentative essay, I’d probably choose a topic like “Do you think authors should self-edit their work?”

But if I were doing a persuasive essay with a similar angle, the topic would look more like “The benefits of self-editing for authors.” Make sense?

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Basically, the main difference between argumentative and persuasive essays is all in the emphasis placed on logic and emotion.

How Many Paragraphs in a Persuasive Essay?

A decent persuasive essay should be around five or six paragraphs with double line spacing, depending on the topic, and can range from 500-2000 words in length. This includes your introduction and conclusion.

Introduction of a Persuasive Essay Example

Our world is facing a crisis, and that crisis is plastic pollution! Every day, a disgusting amount of plastic waste is just dumped into our oceans, killing and harming innocent marine life and ultimately affecting the entire food chain, including us.

Even though there is a clear and present danger that plastic presents, there are still a lot of people and corporations that continue to use single-use plastics with zero regards for their impact on our environment. It’s time for people to really look around and take some responsibility.

We can make a change by learning and using environmentally friendly alternatives in our everyday lives. So, in this essay, I’ll argue that using reusable bags, water bottles, and containers is not only necessary for the health of our precious planet but also a simple and effective way to make a real difference.

A Persuasive Essay Structure

As persuasive essay writers, you can write it however you like, but to follow a traditional persuasive essay structure, use this basic layout to get an effective paper:

• An Introduction: You need a good hook to grab the reader’s attention, a thesis statement presenting the main argument, and a roadmap of the essay, so they know what to expect.
• The Body Paragraphs: 2-3 paragraphs should suffice to provide strong evidence, examples, and any reasoning to support the thesis statement. Each paragraph should focus on a single main idea. 
• The Counterargument: This section acknowledges and refutes the opposing viewpoint, strengthening your argument but still without being as forward as an argumentative essay.
• A Conclusion or Closing Statement: Here is where you would summarize the main points of the essay and a restatement of the thesis, including a call to action for the reader and/or a final thought.

In the end, a persuasive essay usually consists of 5-6 paragraphs and needs to be clear, concise, and logically structured to really persuade the reader on the point.

Tips for Persuasive Writing

• Choose a strong, clear thesis statement that presents your argument well.
• Know your audience and tailor your language and arguments to them. You’ll need a different approach if you’re speaking to a group of teenagers versus a team of adults.
• Use credible and reliable sources to support your argument so no one can second guess your point.
• Expect that people will have counterarguments and prepare a few talking points to address them.
• Use strong pieces of evidence and back them up with facts, statistics, examples, and personal anecdotes. Putting a personal touch on it helps ground the essay and lets people know you’re serious about the topic.
• Use an emotional appeal to engage the reader and make a personal connection to your argument. Basically, tug at their heartstrings and play into their guilt.
• Use clear and concise wordage. Try and avoid confusing technical jargon that might confuse people, and maintain a consistent tone throughout the essay.
• Make sure you’re confident and use an assertive tone but avoid being overly aggressive or confrontational. That will just spark a fight.
• Finish up with a powerful call to action or a final thought that leaves a lasting impact on the reader or listener.
• Use the same font throughout your essay, even for headings and titles. Go with easy-to-read fonts like Calibri, Times New Roman, or Garamond.
• Proofread and edit your essay for clarity, grammar, and style. I cannot stress this one enough. If you’re not confident, use programs like Grammarly to help spot typos and inconsistencies.

Persuasive Essay Topic Ideas

If you’re stuck on some ideas of what to form your essay around, here’s a list of some popular topics to inspire you.

• Importance of recycling and reducing waste in today’s climate.
• The need for stricter gun control laws all over the world.
• A paper on abortion rights in today’s age.
• Benefits of alternative energy sources over fossil fuels and how we can be using them.
• How social media has negative impacts on mental health in kids.
• Key benefits of a vegetarian or vegan diet and how it can help the planet.
• The value of a college education.
• Rise of plastic pollution on the environment and sea life and how it is affecting us.
• Why physical exercise and leading an active lifestyle are important.
• The dangers of texting while driving.
• How our public schools need better funding.
• Benefits of a diverse and inclusive workplace both online and in-person.

Any of these could be used as logical arguments. Still, to make a persuasive argument from either of them, just follow the basic persuasive essay outline examples I’ve given you.

Example of a Persuasive Essay

Introduction.

In today’s age of ever-changing technology, the way we consume and experience books have changed dramatically in just a short time. While physical books were once the only option, ebooks have grown increasingly popular in recent years. In my essay, I’ll argue that, while we all still love paperbacks and hardcovers, ebooks offer so many benefits over physical books, making them the number one choice for most readers today.

Body Paragraph 1: Convenience

Ebooks are convenient; there’s just no denying it. They’re easily accessible through devices like smartphones, tablets, and e-readers, and they allow readers to carry hundreds of books with them at all times. This makes them perfect for traveling or heading to work, or even going to the gym. Readers can now have an entire library with them without the added weight of physical books. Plus, ebooks are easily bought online with just the click of a button, further adding to their convenience.

Body Paragraph 2: Customization

Ebooks offer a level of customization that physical books just can’t match. For one, the font size can be adjusted for easier reading, which is great for those who have eyesight problems. The background color can also be changed from light to dark to reduce eye strain. Personally, as someone who suffers from Meniere’s disease, this is a great feature. All of these options make ebooks a great choice for people with visual impairments, neurological disorders, or reading difficulties.

Body Paragraph 3: Affordability

Ebooks are often far cheaper than physical books, especially when purchased in bulk. You can get an entire series for a fraction of the cost of one paperback. This makes them a more accessible option for budget-conscious readers and people who simply don’t have the disposable funds for books. Also, tons of ebooks are available for free, which is a great option for readers that are looking for ways to save money but keep up with their reading habits.

Body Paragraph 4: Environmentally Friendly

626,000 tons of paper is used to produce all the books we see published every year. That’s a scary number when you consider the rate of deforestation and the state of our world in terms of global warming. We simply can’t afford to move ahead at a rate like that. Ebooks help tackle the issue because they require zero trees to produce.

In conclusion, ebooks offer endless benefits over physical books, including convenience, customization, and affordability. While physical books will always hold a special place in our hearts, you have to admit that the benefits of ebooks just can’t be ignored. For modern, busy, on-the-go readers, ebooks are the preferred choice. It’s time to embrace the digital age and make the switch to ebooks.

Now Write Your Persuasive Essay!

I hope this guide has helped you figure out persuasive essay writing and how to put together powerful arguments. Just stick to the facts and ease the reader into your point with gentle arguments that continue to prove your point. Don’t be afraid to get personal if it can help the essay and convince the reader.

Writing a Thesis Statement – Template & Examples

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Persuasive Essay Guide

Persuasive Essay Examples

Last updated on: Feb 9, 2023

Free Persuasive Essay Examples to Help you Get Started

By: Caleb S.

Reviewed By: Rylee W.

Published on: Jan 28, 2020

There are many different kinds of essays, and a persuasive essay is one of them. When writing one, you will have to maintain a certain kind of voice and style throughout the essay.

We know that it could be difficult for you to adapt to a certain tone and maintain it throughout the essay.

Therefore, we gathered some easy-to-understand and high-quality persuasive essay examples to help you get started. These examples will help you know how persuasive writing is different from other kinds of writing.

On this Page

Good Persuasive Essay Examples

There are a lot of benefits of reading great and well-written essays. However, for many students, writing this type of essay would be a novel task. They may not have written it before and need help.

Essays examples come in handy in such situations. This is especially helpful before you begin to write a persuasive essay, which extends to selecting a topic. A persuasive piece of writing is based on encouraging the readers to adopt and agree with your perspective.

These essay examples help the students in the following ways.

• They help the students choose from good persuasive essay topics .
• They help with proper essay formatting.
• They help the students know about the required essay sections.
• They tell the students about the kind of content that is suitable for that particular kind of essay.
• They help you make your essay an effective persuasive essay.

Reading great essay examples or samples helps you know about your weaknesses and the areas you need to focus on.

Here are some examples for your ease.

PERSUASIVE ESSAY EXAMPLE ABOUT COVID 19

PERSUASIVE ESSAY EXAMPLE ABOUT PRODUCT

PERSUASIVE ESSAY EXAMPLE 5 PARAGRAPH

How to Start a Persuasive Essay - Example

Starting your essay engaging will help to keep the readers accepting your point of view. This is important because if you go astray, the reader will lose interest and leave your essay in the middle. To avoid it, make sure that your introduction and essay start is strong and impactful.

Below is an example that gives you a better idea and makes your essay writing process easy.

HOW TO START A PERSUASIVE ESSAY EXAMPLE

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Persuasive Essay Examples for Elementary Students

At primary school, teachers assign essays to students as a way of improving their writing skills. However, the essays are very simple and not very complex, so the students easily write them.

Below are some good persuasive essay topics for primary school kids.

Persuasive Essay Examples for 3rd Grade

PERSUASIVE ESSAY EXAMPLES FOR 3RD GRADE

Persuasive Essay Examples for 4th Grade

PERSUASIVE ESSAY EXAMPLES FOR 4TH GRADE

Persuasive Essay Examples for 5th Grade

PERSUASIVE ESSAY EXAMPLES FOR 5TH GRADE

Persuasive Essay Examples for Middle School

Middle school kids are better acquainted with the essays. These kids learn many things, and by now, essays have become a common part of their homework.

If you are a middle school student and looking for some essay examples, then refer below.

Persuasive Essay Examples for 6th Grade

PERSUASIVE ESSAY EXAMPLES FOR 6TH GRADE

Persuasive Essay Examples for 7th Grade

PERSUASIVE ESSAY EXAMPLES FOR 7TH GRADE

Persuasive Essay Examples for 8th Grade

PERSUASIVE ESSAY EXAMPLES FOR 8TH GRADE

Persuasive Essay Examples for High School

High-school students are often struggling with writing a persuasive essay. However, if you get help from examples, you will easily write a good one.

Below are some persuasive essay examples to help high-school students.

PERSUASIVE ESSAY EXAMPLES FOR 9TH GRADE

PERSUASIVE ESSAY EXAMPLES FOR 10TH GRADE

Persuasive Essay Examples College

Are you looking for college persuasive essay examples? Therefore, for your help, we gathered a professionally written example that you could use for your ease.

PERSUASIVE ESSAY EXAMPLES FOR COLLEGE

Higher English Persuasive Essay Examples

Higher English is a standalone subject and a specialized study course. Here, the students study the language and literature together and learn how to hone their writing skills. For this, they also study different fiction and non-fiction texts and works.

Look at this example and know how a good persuasive essay looks like.

PERSUASIVE ESSAY EXAMPLES FOR HIGHER ENGLISH

How to End a Persuasive Essay - Examples

The ending is as important for your essay as the beginning. A strong conclusion will leave a lasting and strong mark on the reader. This is why you do not end your essay in haste and put ample thought into it.

Refer to the below example to know how to end your persuasive essay strongly.

HOW TO END A PERSUASIVE ESSAY - EXAMPLE

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Tips to Write a Great Persuasive Essay

Below are some helpful tips that will assist you in writing an engaging and great essay.

• Your essay topic should be about something that you are passionate about. It is important because you work better when you are working on something that you like.
• Know your audience fully before starting to write your essay. The essay content largely depends on your academic level. Teachers of higher grades expect the essays to be perfectly researched and written. Therefore, make it according to your teacher’s expectations.
• Begin the essay with a powerful hook sentence. This could be anything like a rhetorical question, a fact, or something interesting about the main essay topic.
• Add a brief and relevant thesis statement after the introduction and divide the body paragraphs according to the number of ideas.
• Do proper research about both sides of the argument. It will help you counter the opposite views and put your point of view more significantly. Do not assume that the audience knows about your stance; research and tell them a better story.
• Emphasize your viewpoint with strong and substantial evidence and details
• Keep the tone empathetic and make the reader feel that you can relate to their experiences and emotions. This is a powerful writing technique because people trust those who know their feelings.
• Divide the sections logically and maintain proper transition between the sections and the rest of the essay.
• Do not add any new ideas at the end of the essay or in conclusion. This section must stick to the main ideas only. Thus, explain one or two of the core ideas and your personal opinion here.
• Proofread your essay thoroughly and make sure that it is error-free and perfectly written.
• Do not mix the persuasive essay with an argumentative essay; they both are different.

Following all these tips, you will be able to write an engaging and perfect persuasive essay.

However, if you still need help. Consult 5StarEssays.com , a professional writing service that provides write my essay help to high-school, college, and university students. We have a dedicated team of professional writers, ensuring you get high-quality essays and papers within the given deadline.

So, contact us now and get your essay on time.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the 5 persuasive techniques.

Below are the five persuasive techniques.

• Think about tone.
• Know the reader’s purpose.
• Establish trust and credibility.
• Use rhetoric and repetition.
• Pay attention to language.

How do you start a persuasive essay?

Here are some steps that you should follow and start writing a persuasive essay.

• Brainstorm the topic ideas.
• Research on the topic.
• Create an outline.
• Develop the thesis statement.
• Choose a strong hook statement.
• Divide the information into body paragraphs.

Arts, Persuasive Essay

Caleb S. has been providing writing services for over five years and has a Masters degree from Oxford University. He is an expert in his craft and takes great pride in helping students achieve their academic goals. Caleb is a dedicated professional who always puts his clients first.

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• Persuasive Essay Guide - How to Write a Persuasive Essay

• Persuasive Essay Topics Ideas to Craft an A-Worthy Essay

• Persuasive Essay Outline - Detailed Guide with Examples

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Persuasive Essay Guide

Persuasive Essay Examples

30+ Persuasive Essay Examples To Get You Started

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Persuasive Essay About Smoking - Making a Powerful Argument with Examples

Are you looking to improve your persuasive writing skills?

One of the best ways to do that is by reading persuasive essay examples. These examples can show you how to structure your arguments effectively.

But finding good examples can be a challenge. Don't worry, though – we've gathered some helpful persuasive essays for you right here!

So, if you're in search of persuasive essay examples to help you write your own, you're in the right place. 

Keep reading this blog to explore various examples!

• 1. Persuasive Essay Examples For Students
• 2. Persuasive Writing Example For Elementary Schools
• 3. Persuasive Essay Examples Middle School
• 4. Persuasive Essay Examples High School
• 5. Persuasive Essay Examples for College Students 
• 6. Persuasive Essay Examples For University
• 7. Persuasive Essay Examples for Different Formats
• 8. Basic Persuasive Essay Structure  
• 9. Catchy Persuasive Essay Topics

Persuasive Essay Examples For Students

A persuasive essay aims to convince the reader of the author’s point of view. 

To find the right path for your essay, it's helpful to go through some examples. Similarly, good essay examples also help to avoid any potential pitfalls and offer clear information to the readers to adopt.

Let’s take a look at 2 short persuasive essay examples, focusing on current and relevant issues:

Example 1: 

If you are looking for longer examples, below are some persuasive essay examples pdf for different academic levels. Read them for free.

Persuasive Writing Example For Elementary Schools

Here are provided some sample essays to further explain the concept of persuasive writing for students.

3rd-grade Persuasive Essay Example

4th-grade Persuasive Essay Example

Persuasive Essay Example 5th-grade

Persuasive Essay Examples Middle School

Check out these persuasive essay examples for middle school to get a comprehensive idea of the format structure. 

Persuasive Essay Examples for 6th Grade

7th-grade Persuasive Essay Example

8th-grade Persuasive Essay Example

Persuasive Essay Examples High School

The following are good persuasive essay examples for high school. Having a look at them will help you understand better.

Persuasive Essay Examples Grade 10

High-school Persuasive Essay Example

Examples of Persuasive Essay in Everyday Life

Persuasive Essay Examples for College Students 

Essay writing at the college level becomes more complicated. We have provided you with top-notch college persuasive and argumentative essay examples here. Read them to understand the essay writing process easily. 

11th-grade Persuasive Essay Example

Persuasive Essay Examples College

Higher English Persuasive Essay Example

Persuasive Essay About Smoking

Argumentative and Persuasive Examples

Persuasive Essay Examples For University

It becomes even more challenging to draft a perfect essay at the university level. Look at the examples of persuasive essays below to get an idea of writing one.

University Persuasive Essay Example

Political Persuasive Essay Examples

Persuasive Essay Examples About Life

Persuasive Essay Examples for Different Formats

A persuasive essay can be written in several formats. For instance, you can write the usual 5-paragraph essay, or even something longer or shorter.

Below are a few sample essays in various common formats.

Persuasive Essay Examples 5 Paragraph

Persuasive Essay Examples 3 Paragraph

These examples tell you how to remain convincing and persuasive regardless of the essay format you use.

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Basic Persuasive Essay Structure  

Here's a breakdown of the typical persuasive essay outline , along with an example for each step:

• Introduction (Grab Attention & Introduce the Issue):

Hook your reader with an interesting fact, anecdote, or question-related to the topic. Briefly introduce the issue you'll be arguing for.

For Example:

• Thesis Statement (Clearly State Your Position):

The thesis statement is a one-sentence summary of your entire argument. It should be clear, concise, and specific, and include your main points.

• Body Paragraphs (Develop Your Arguments):

Dedicate each paragraph to a single main point supporting your thesis. Use strong evidence to back up your claims. This can include statistics, research findings, expert opinions, or personal anecdotes. Use clear transitions between paragraphs to show the flow of your argument.

• Counterargument (Acknowledge Opposing Views):

Briefly acknowledge potential objections to your argument. This shows you've considered different viewpoints and strengthens your own position.

• Rebuttal (Address Counterarguments):

Explain why the counterarguments are not strong enough to invalidate your main points. Offer additional evidence to solidify your position.

• Conclusion (Restate & Call to Action):

Briefly restate your thesis and summarize your main points. End with a strong call to action, urging the reader to adopt your perspective or take a specific step.

By following this structure and incorporating strong evidence, you can craft a persuasive essay that effectively convinces your reader to see things your way.

Catchy Persuasive Essay Topics

Now that you have read some good examples, it's time to write your own persuasive essay.

But what should you write about? You can write persuasive essays about any topic, from business and online education to controversial topics like abortion, gun control, and more.

Here is a list of ten persuasive essay topics that you can use to grab your reader's attention and make them think:

• Should the government increase taxes to fund public health initiatives?
• Is the current education system effective in preparing students for college and the workplace?
• Should there be tighter gun control laws?
• Should schools have uniforms or a dress code?
• Are standardized tests an accurate measure of student performance?
• Should students be required to take physical education courses?
• Is undocumented immigration a legitimate cause for concern in the United States?
• Is affirmative action still necessary in today’s society?
• How much, if any, regulation should there be on technology companies?
• Is the death penalty an appropriate form of punishment for serious crimes?

Need more topic ideas? Check out our extensive list of unique persuasive essay topics and get started!

To Sum it Up!

This post gave you a bunch of persuasive essay examples to check out. By reading them, you learned how to build strong arguments, organize your essay, and use evidence to back up your ideas.

Now it's your time to write! Don't worry about being perfect, just give it a shot and make it your own. But if you're still feeling stuck, don't worry. 

Our persuasive essay writing service is here to the rescue!

Our experienced writers specialize in creating top-notch essays on a wide range of topics. Whether it's a challenging persuasive essay or any other type, we've got you covered.

Take advantage of our paper writing service today!

Write Essay Within 60 Seconds!

Caleb S. has been providing writing services for over five years and has a Masters degree from Oxford University. He is an expert in his craft and takes great pride in helping students achieve their academic goals. Caleb is a dedicated professional who always puts his clients first.

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Keep reading

Choose Your Test

Sat / act prep online guides and tips, 113 perfect persuasive essay topics for any assignment.

General Education

Do you need to write a persuasive essay but aren’t sure what topic to focus on? Were you thrilled when your teacher said you could write about whatever you wanted but are now overwhelmed by the possibilities? We’re here to help!

Read on for a list of 113 top-notch persuasive essay topics, organized into ten categories. To help get you started, we also discuss what a persuasive essay is, how to choose a great topic, and what tips to keep in mind as you write your persuasive essay.

What Is a Persuasive Essay?

In a persuasive essay, you attempt to convince readers to agree with your point of view on an argument. For example, an essay analyzing changes in Italian art during the Renaissance wouldn’t be a persuasive essay, because there’s no argument, but an essay where you argue that Italian art reached its peak during the Renaissance would be a persuasive essay because you’re trying to get your audience to agree with your viewpoint.

Persuasive and argumentative essays both try to convince readers to agree with the author, but the two essay types have key differences. Argumentative essays show a more balanced view of the issue and discuss both sides. Persuasive essays focus more heavily on the side the author agrees with. They also often include more of the author’s opinion than argumentative essays, which tend to use only facts and data to support their argument.

All persuasive essays have the following:

• Introduction: Introduces the topic, explains why it’s important, and ends with the thesis.
• Thesis: A sentence that sums up what the essay be discussing and what your stance on the issue is.
• Reasons you believe your side of the argument: Why do you support the side you do? Typically each main point will have its own body paragraph.
• Evidence supporting your argument: Facts or examples to back up your main points. Even though your opinion is allowed in persuasive essays more than most other essays, having concrete examples will make a stronger argument than relying on your opinion alone.
• Conclusion: Restatement of thesis, summary of main points, and a recap of why the issue is important.

What Makes a Good Persuasive Essay Topic?

Theoretically, you could write a persuasive essay about any subject under the sun, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you should. Certain topics are easier to write a strong persuasive essay on, and below are tips to follow when deciding what you should write about.

It’s a Topic You Care About

Obviously, it’s possible to write an essay about a topic you find completely boring. You’ve probably done it! However, if possible, it’s always better to choose a topic that you care about and are interested in. When this is the case, you’ll find doing the research more enjoyable, writing the essay easier, and your writing will likely be better because you’ll be more passionate about and informed on the topic.

You Have Enough Evidence to Support Your Argument

Just being passionate about a subject isn’t enough to make it a good persuasive essay topic, though. You need to make sure your argument is complex enough to have at least two potential sides to root for, and you need to be able to back up your side with evidence and examples. Even though persuasive essays allow your opinion to feature more than many other essays, you still need concrete evidence to back up your claims, or you’ll end up with a weak essay.

For example, you may passionately believe that mint chocolate chip ice cream is the best ice cream flavor (I agree!), but could you really write an entire essay on this? What would be your reasons for believing mint chocolate chip is the best (besides the fact that it’s delicious)? How would you support your belief? Have enough studies been done on preferred ice cream flavors to support an entire essay? When choosing a persuasive essay idea, you want to find the right balance between something you care about (so you can write well on it) and something the rest of the world cares about (so you can reference evidence to strengthen your position).

It’s a Manageable Topic

Bigger isn’t always better, especially with essay topics. While it may seem like a great idea to choose a huge, complex topic to write about, you’ll likely struggle to sift through all the information and different sides of the issue and winnow them down to one streamlined essay. For example, choosing to write an essay about how WWII impacted American life more than WWI wouldn’t be a great idea because you’d need to analyze all the impacts of both the wars in numerous areas of American life. It’d be a huge undertaking. A better idea would be to choose one impact on American life the wars had (such as changes in female employment) and focus on that. Doing so will make researching and writing your persuasive essay much more feasible.

List of 113 Good Persuasive Essay Topics

Below are over 100 persuasive essay ideas, organized into ten categories. When you find an idea that piques your interest, you’ll choose one side of it to argue for in your essay. For example, if you choose the topic, “should fracking be legal?” you’d decide whether you believe fracking should be legal or illegal, then you’d write an essay arguing all the reasons why your audience should agree with you.

Arts/Culture

• Should students be required to learn an instrument in school?
• Did the end of Game of Thrones fit with the rest of the series?
• Can music be an effective way to treat mental illness?
• With e-readers so popular, have libraries become obsolete?
• Are the Harry Potter books more popular than they deserve to be?
• Should music with offensive language come with a warning label?
• What’s the best way for museums to get more people to visit?
• Should students be able to substitute an art or music class for a PE class in school?
• Are the Kardashians good or bad role models for young people?
• Should people in higher income brackets pay more taxes?
• Should all high school students be required to take a class on financial literacy?
• Is it possible to achieve the American dream, or is it only a myth?
• Is it better to spend a summer as an unpaid intern at a prestigious company or as a paid worker at a local store/restaurant?
• Should the United States impose more or fewer tariffs?
• Should college graduates have their student loans forgiven?
• Should restaurants eliminate tipping and raise staff wages instead?
• Should students learn cursive writing in school?
• Which is more important: PE class or music class?
• Is it better to have year-round school with shorter breaks throughout the year?
• Should class rank be abolished in schools?
• Should students be taught sex education in school?
• Should students be able to attend public universities for free?
• What’s the most effective way to change the behavior of school bullies?
• Are the SAT and ACT accurate ways to measure intelligence?
• Should students be able to learn sign language instead of a foreign language?
• Do the benefits of Greek life at colleges outweigh the negatives?
• Does doing homework actually help students learn more?
• Why do students in many other countries score higher than American students on math exams?
• Should parents/teachers be able to ban certain books from schools?
• What’s the best way to reduce cheating in school?
• Should colleges take a student’s race into account when making admissions decisions?
• Should there be limits to free speech?
• Should students be required to perform community service to graduate high school?
• Should convicted felons who have completed their sentence be allowed to vote?
• Should gun ownership be more tightly regulated?
• Should recycling be made mandatory?
• Should employers be required to offer paid leave to new parents?
• Are there any circumstances where torture should be allowed?
• Should children under the age of 18 be able to get plastic surgery for cosmetic reasons?
• Should white supremacy groups be allowed to hold rallies in public places?
• Does making abortion illegal make women more or less safe?
• Does foreign aid actually help developing countries?
• Are there times a person’s freedom of speech should be curtailed?
• Should people over a certain age not be allowed to adopt children?

Government/Politics

• Should the minimum voting age be raised/lowered/kept the same?
• Should Puerto Rico be granted statehood?
• Should the United States build a border wall with Mexico?
• Who should be the next person printed on American banknotes?
• Should the United States’ military budget be reduced?
• Did China’s one child policy have overall positive or negative impacts on the country?
• Should DREAMers be granted US citizenship?
• Is national security more important than individual privacy?
• What responsibility does the government have to help homeless people?
• Should the electoral college be abolished?
• Should the US increase or decrease the number of refugees it allows in each year?
• Should privately-run prisons be abolished?
• Who was the most/least effective US president?
• Will Brexit end up helping or harming the UK?

• What’s the best way to reduce the spread of Ebola?
• Is the Keto diet a safe and effective way to lose weight?
• Should the FDA regulate vitamins and supplements more strictly?
• Should public schools require all students who attend to be vaccinated?
• Is eating genetically modified food safe?
• What’s the best way to make health insurance more affordable?
• What’s the best way to lower the teen pregnancy rate?
• Should recreational marijuana be legalized nationwide?
• Should birth control pills be available without a prescription?
• Should pregnant women be forbidden from buying cigarettes and alcohol?
• Why has anxiety increased in adolescents?
• Are low-carb or low-fat diets more effective for weight loss?
• What caused the destruction of the USS Maine?
• Was King Arthur a mythical legend or actual Dark Ages king?
• Was the US justified in dropping atomic bombs during WWII?
• What was the primary cause of the Rwandan genocide?
• What happened to the settlers of the Roanoke colony?
• Was disagreement over slavery the primary cause of the US Civil War?
• What has caused the numerous disappearances in the Bermuda triangle?
• Should nuclear power be banned?
• Is scientific testing on animals necessary?
• Do zoos help or harm animals?
• Should scientists be allowed to clone humans?
• Should animals in circuses be banned?
• Should fracking be legal?
• Should people be allowed to keep exotic animals as pets?
• What’s the best way to reduce illegal poaching in Africa?
• What is the best way to reduce the impact of global warming?
• Should euthanasia be legalized?
• Is there legitimate evidence of extraterrestrial life?
• Should people be banned from owning aggressive dog breeds?
• Should the United States devote more money towards space exploration?
• Should the government subsidize renewable forms of energy?
• Is solar energy worth the cost?
• Should stem cells be used in medicine?
• Is it right for the US to leave the Paris Climate Agreement?
• Should athletes who fail a drug test receive a lifetime ban from the sport?
• Should college athletes receive a salary?
• Should the NFL do more to prevent concussions in players?
• Do PE classes help students stay in shape?
• Should horse racing be banned?
• Should cheerleading be considered a sport?
• Should children younger than 18 be allowed to play tackle football?
• Are the costs of hosting an Olympic Games worth it?
• Can online schools be as effective as traditional schools?
• Do violent video games encourage players to be violent in real life?
• Should facial recognition technology be banned?
• Does excessive social media use lead to depression/anxiety?
• Has the rise of translation technology made knowing multiple languages obsolete?
• Was Steve Jobs a visionary or just a great marketer?
• Should social media be banned for children younger than a certain age?
• Which 21st-century invention has had the largest impact on society?
• Are ride-sharing companies like Uber and Lyft good or bad for society?
• Should Facebook have done more to protect the privacy of its users?
• Will technology end up increasing or decreasing inequality worldwide?

Tips for Writing a Strong Persuasive Essay

After you’ve chosen the perfect topic for your persuasive essay, your work isn’t over. Follow the three tips below to create a top-notch essay.

Do Your Research

Your argument will fall apart if you don’t fully understand the issue you’re discussing or you overlook an important piece of it. Readers won’t be convinced by someone who doesn’t know the subject, and you likely won’t persuade any of them to begin supporting your viewpoint. Before you begin writing a single word of your essay, research your topic thoroughly. Study different sources, learn about the different sides of the argument, ask anyone who’s an expert on the topic what their opinion is, etc. You might be tempted to start writing right away, but by doing your research, you’ll make the writing process much easier when the time comes.

Make Your Thesis Perfect

Your thesis is the most important sentence in your persuasive essay. Just by reading that single sentence, your audience should know exactly what topic you’ll be discussing and where you stand on the issue. You want your thesis to be crystal clear and to accurately set up the rest of your essay. Asking classmates or your teacher to look it over before you begin writing the rest of your essay can be a big help if you’re not entirely confident in your thesis.

Consider the Other Side

You’ll spend most of your essay focusing on your side of the argument since that’s what you want readers to come away believing. However, don’t think that means you can ignore other sides of the issue. In your essay, be sure to discuss the other side’s argument, as well as why you believe this view is weak or untrue. Researching all the different viewpoints and including them in your essay will increase the quality of your writing by making your essay more complete and nuanced.

Summary: Persuasive Essay Ideas

Good persuasive essay topics can be difficult to come up with, but in this guide we’ve created a list of 113 excellent essay topics for you to browse. The best persuasive essay ideas will be those that you are interested in, have enough evidence to support your argument, and aren’t too complicated to be summarized in an essay.

After you’ve chosen your essay topic, keep these three tips in mind when you begin writing:

• Do your research
• Make your thesis perfect
• Consider the other side

What's Next?

Need ideas for a research paper topic as well? Our guide to research paper topics has over 100 topics in ten categories so you can be sure to find the perfect topic for you.

Thinking about taking an AP English class? Read our guide on AP English classes to learn whether you should take AP English Language or AP English Literature (or both!)

Deciding between the SAT or ACT? Find out for sure which you will do the best on . Also read a detailed comparison between the two tests .

Christine graduated from Michigan State University with degrees in Environmental Biology and Geography and received her Master's from Duke University. In high school she scored in the 99th percentile on the SAT and was named a National Merit Finalist. She has taught English and biology in several countries.

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The New York Times

The learning network | for the sake of argument: writing persuasively to craft short, evidence-based editorials.

For the Sake of Argument: Writing Persuasively to Craft Short, Evidence-Based Editorials

Language Arts

Teaching ideas based on New York Times content.

• See All in Language Arts »
• See All Lesson Plans »

Overview | How can writing change people’s worldview? How can it influence public opinion? How can it lead to meaningful action?

The persuasive essay is a quintessential high school writing assignment. With the Common Core standards, it seems to have taken on a new urgency in many school districts and classrooms. But students should know that evidence-based persuasive writing is more than just an academic exercise — it is very much alive in the real world. Perhaps one of the best and most widely recognized examples of persuasive writing in action is the classic newspaper editorial, three to four of which The New York Times publishes every day.

In this lesson, we offer suggestions on how to guide students through the writing process when writing editorials — from brainstorming a topic to publishing their work — and all the steps in between. This lesson can be used in conjunction with our Student Contest on editorial writing, or with any argumentative writing project you do with students.

Materials | Computers with Internet access. Optional copies of one or more of these three handouts: Debatable Issues (PDF), Problem-Solution Organizer (PDF), and the rubric for our Student Editorial Contest (PDF).

Step 1 | Brainstorming: What Do You Care About?

Finding the right topic is essential. Students should pick something that a) they genuinely care about; b) other people would want to read about; c) they can make an argument about; and d) they can find evidence about to support their claim.

You might get students started brainstorming ideas by having them journal about or discuss with partners questions like:

• What would you like to change if you could? What problems or policies do you think should be addressed — whether something global, like climate change, or something closer to home, like a later start time for your high school classes? Make as long a list as you can.
• What issues, topics and fields are you passionate about? Make a list. Your list might included fields as broad as “music” or as specific as “the early days of hip-hop.” What questions or controversies in these fields do experts or fans often argue? Where do you stand?
• What do you do outside of school? What are some things you’re an expert on? What aspects of those hobbies or interests do you find yourself having to explain to others? Why?
• What issues or ideas do you often find yourself discussing or arguing about with friends, your family or online?
• What issues or controversies have you followed recently in current events? What are your opinions about them? What might you need more information about?

Students can then share their ideas and, as a whole class, compile a list on the board or on a class blog or wiki.

To open the class to even more ideas, you might then invite students look through our list of 200 Student Opinion questions that invite argument . Not only can this list help students pick a topic, but each question links to a relevant New York Times article, which may be very helpful when students begin to look for evidence.

A Note on Collaboration: The editorial writing process at The New York Times is done collaboratively . That means, a team of writers works together from choosing a topic through researching it and drafting the writing. Teachers may want to give students opportunities to collaborate on their editorials as well, whether for only one step of the project, such as research, or from beginning to end.

RELATED RESOURCES

From the learning network.

• Student Contest | Write an Editorial on an Issue That Matters to You
• Skills Practice | Persuading an Audience Using Logos, Pathos and Ethos
• 10 Ways to Develop Expository Writing Skills With The New York Times

From NYTimes.com

• Archive of Editorials

Around the Web

• Online Writing Lab | Conducting Research

Step 2 | Modeling: What Is An Editorial?

To help students envision what they will be writing, it is worth spending time discussing what an editorial is and looking at some examples.

Ask students: What is an editorial? Have you ever read any? Where would you find one? What do you think is the purpose of an editorial?

We selected three recent examples from the Times editorial page that students can look over as models, though you or your students may pick others from the thousands in the Opinion archives :

• Firearms’ Toll Among the Young (267 words)
• Zero Traffic Fatalities (277 words)
• The Globalization of Pollution (397 words)

Have students choose an editorial to read on their own or as a whole class. As they read, have them note:

• What is the opinion or call to action in this editorial?
• What evidence does it use to make its argument?
• How persuasive do you find the editorial? Is it effective?
• What do you notice about the language and tone of the editorial? About other choices the writer(s) have made?

Students may want make annotations or use highlighters as they read, then discuss their findings as a class.

Note: You may want students to look at the rubric you will be using to grade their editorials before they start the research and writing process. Here is our the rubric (PDF) that we are using for our Student Contest .

Step 3 | Researching: What Do the Experts Say?

Once students have selected a topic, they should begin their research by gathering background information. That might mean reading newspaper articles, consulting an encyclopedia, finding reliable websites or reaching out to an expert to make sure they have enough context about why their topic is important to write a strong persuasive essay.

As they do their research, students can take notes using index cards or in a notebook, or they can use our Debatable Issues (PDF) handout. Alternatively, if students plan to offer a solution to a problem in their editorial, they may want to use our Problem-Solution Organizer (PDF).

For more detail about the nitty-gritty of the research process, the Online Writing Lab at Purdue University provides a guide to conducting research that can be helpful with areas such as evaluating source reliability and doing Internet searches.

Students can find articles in The Times by using the search feature . For our contest, we ask that students have at least one Times and one non-Times source for their evidence, although of course we hope most will read far beyond that requirement as they learn about the topic.

Students might be grouped by common interests to work together during the research portion of this process, then write individual editorials, or they might do the entire assignment in partners or as a group.

How to Write an Editorial

The New York Times’s editorial page editor Andrew Rosenthal provides seven tips for writing an effective editorial.

Steps 4 and 5 | Outlining and Drafting; Revising and Editing: How Do You Write an Editorial?

Andrew Rosenthal, the editorial page editor at The Times, explains in this brief video that a good editorial consists of “a clear position that is strongly and persuasively argued.” He then goes on to recommend seven pointers for students.

1. Know your bottom line. “You have to know what you want to say. You have to have a clear opinion — what we call a bottom line.” 2. Be concise. “You need to get to the point of your editorial quickly. You have to state it clearly and you have to be concise.” 3. Give an opinion or solution. “There are basically two kinds of editorials. One expresses an opinion about a situation, like if you want to write about human rights abuses in some part of the world or the country that you’re concerned about. The other kind of editorial proposes a solution to a specific problem. For example, if you want to write about traffic congestion in northern New Jersey, where I live and there’s a lot of traffic, you should have an answer to how to fix the traffic problem.” 4. Do your research. “Everyone is entitled to their opinion, you’re not entitled to your own facts. Go online, make calls if you can, check your information, double-check it. There’s nothing that will undermine your argument faster than a fact you got wrong, that you did not have to get wrong.” 5. Write clearly. “Good writing is important. Make your writing clear and easy to understand. Write as if you’re sending a letter to a well-informed friend who cares about what you think. But don’t use any slang. OMG — no. Use examples whenever you can. It’s better to use an example than just to use a word or an adjective that describes something. If you want to say that the mayor’s pre-K policy is wrong, explain how — don’t say it’s just stupid. In fact, never use the word stupid.” 6. Every writer needs an editor. “After you’ve written your editorial, give it to someone you trust to read and listen to what they say. If they don’t understand it, that means it’s probably not clear.” 7. Be prepared for a reaction. “When you write something and you publish it, be prepared for a reaction. If you write a good editorial, people are going to respond to it. And if you criticize people, they definitely are going to respond. So if someone writes you a letter, write them back. Be prepared to defend your position. Don’t get defensive, just explain why you said what you had to say. And if they question your facts, be ready to show that you were right.”

The Online Writing Lab at Purdue University has a guide to writing argumentative essays that may also be helpful for students as they think about organizing their editorial and developing a logical argument.

Step 6 | Publishing: How Can My Editorial Reach an Audience?

Students will have the chance to publish their editorials as comments on the Learning Network on or before March 17, 2014, as part of our Student Contest . Along with our partner, the Center for News Literacy at Stony Brook University, we will then choose the best to publish in a separate post. But even if your students aren’t writing for our contest, the genre is meant to have an audience. That audience can start with the teacher, but it ideally shouldn’t end there.

Students can read their editorials to the class or in groups. Classmates can have a chance to respond to the author, leading to a discussion or debate. Students can try to publish their editorials in the school newspaper or other local newspapers or online forums. It is only when editorials reach a wider audience that they have the power to make change.

Teachers: How do you teach the persuasive essay? Let us know, below. And if you ever use The New York Times to do it, consider writing in to our Reader Ideas column.

This resource may be used to address the academic standards listed below.

Common Core E.L.A. Anchor Standards

1   Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from the text.

2   Determine central ideas or themes of a text and analyze their development; summarize the key supporting details and ideas.

4   Interpret words and phrases as they are used in a text, including determining technical, connotative, and figurative meanings, and analyze how specific word choices shape meaning or tone.

5   Analyze the structure of texts, including how specific sentences, paragraphs, and larger portions of the text (e.g., a section, chapter, scene, or stanza) relate to each other and the whole.

6   Assess how point of view or purpose shapes the content and style of a text.

8   Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, including the validity of the reasoning as well as the relevance and sufficiency of the evidence.

10   Read and comprehend complex literary and informational texts independently and proficiently.

1   Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence.

4   Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.

5   Develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach.

6   Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing and to interact and collaborate with others.

7   Conduct short as well as more sustained research projects based on focused questions, demonstrating understanding of the subject under investigation.

8   Gather relevant information from multiple print and digital sources, assess the credibility and accuracy of each source, and integrate the information while avoiding plagiarism.

1   Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.

2   Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.

3   Apply knowledge of language to understand how language functions in different contexts, to make effective choices for meaning or style, and to comprehend more fully when reading or listening.

6   Acquire and use accurately a range of general academic and domain-specific words and phrases sufficient for reading, writing, speaking, and listening at the college and career readiness level; demonstrate independence in gathering vocabulary knowledge when encountering an unknown term important to comprehension or expression.

Comments are no longer being accepted.

What a great lesson plan. I like the emphasis on writing as a tool to empower. The Debatable Issues PDF and the other links within this article are excellent resources. Using editorials as models is also important, as students get to see real-world application of argumentative/persuasive writing skills. The succinct list of 7 direct pointers is valuable as well. Thank you.

James Mulhern, //www.synthesizingeducation.net

We are looking at the articles that are linked to the topics on school computers. After reading a few of them, students are prompted to purchase a subscription to the Times to continue looking. Is this contest designed only for schools that have a subcription already? If so, this should be made clear in the lesson plan section. Can a short subscription be purchased?

Amy, All links to New York Times articles from the Learning Network are free, so even though your students are prompted to buy a subscription, they should still be able to click through to read the article. If students are going from article to article on the rest of NYTimes.com, however, they will be stopped after they have hit the limit of 10 free articles each month. Special subscriptions are available for schools (link: //www.nytimes.com/subscriptions/edu/lp2266.html?campaignId=3JU39 ), but they are not necessary since we only require one Times article for evidence. One way to find more free articles is to have students search their topic on our blog first, since we’ve likely done more than one post on the subject in the past. Since everything we write links back to The Times and does not “count” toward the 10-article monthly limit, that should give each reader a few more free links. Thank you for asking, and we’re sorry if these work-arounds are a bit awkward, but we hope your students will still participate. — Michael and Katherine

The article that I would like to discuss is titled “How Single Motherhood Hurts Kids”. The title itself is filled with an opinion all its own, which is understandable, but I also have an opinion on this topic as well. The article discusses the topic of transitions that the child may have to go through and the difficulties that they may have to face due to having a single parent. Though all of these are very reasonable accusations and worries, from personal experience and research there is proof that children with a single mother or parent can grow up just as good if not better than a child with both parents in the home. Divorce and parents separating is and unfathomable thing for a child to go through. So one point i would like to make clear is that I am not making divorce seem like a good thing or a good benefit for the parents or the child, but what I am going to point out is the benefits that can rise out of such a dark transition for a family. “unmarried parents here are more likely to enter into parenthood in ways guaranteed to create turmoil in their children’s lives.”(Hymowitz) Yes divorce is going to cause issues in a childs life, and cause issues that may change their life, but what people do not think about is the person that the child may become because the mother or father chose to get them out of a unhealthy relationship. The child is not doomed for unhappiness because their parents no longer live together. Another topic that came up in the article was the transitions that will occur in the childs life now that they live with only one parent now. Yes it is inevitable that the single parent in time will look to possibly remarry. But there is no problem with this fact. What people should view this as is showing that there is hope to the child. By the mother or father choosing a better life for both the child and them this will help show the child how to be independent, and help them later in life. “These children are more likely to build upon their own independence in a home where they may not always have one or both parents hovering over them” (Campbell) By this pushing them to be more independent it will help them make choices later on in life. Of course having both parents at home is ideal but in the case that they are not, it is important for people to know that there are single parents out there that have the best interest for their kids and can offer them just as good of a life as two parents.

We’re about to tackle this contest with some 300 students. I’m wondering how to search the student responses in order to determine whether or not our students uploaded a sample. Is there a way for the teacher to search in order to verify based on the “code” suggested in the instructions?

Hi Shane — I wish I could tell you it was easy to do that, but unfortunately it’s not. Short of having you search for the code on each individual comment page, what we’ve suggested in the past is that teachers make students responsible for reporting the unique URL for each of their comments in order to get credit. So, for instance, this ( //learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/02/06/student-contest-write-an-editorial-on-an-issue-that-matters-to-you/#comment-1498619 ) is the URL for the most recent comment on the contest right now, by someone called R.E. Thank you for participating, and, again, I’m sorry the system isn’t easily searchable. –Katherine

Nothing Is As It Seems It is undeniable that human beings are eager and desiring individuals who acquire a consuming craving to reveal the unknown. Uncertainty brings fear and anguish into the lives of people, which is not cured until the dilemma present is clarified. Sometimes, this intense ambition to uncover the unknown leads to false culminations and makes the unjustified, justified. One of modern society’s tremendous deceptions is found in the tragedy that happened at Columbine High School. On April 20th, 1999, fifteen gunshots echoed through the halls of Columbine High School, dreadfully ending the lives of fifteen people. Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris were two high school seniors who obtained a consummate anger toward the world, and proved it in a brutal and cold-blooded way. Many people perceive the Columbine disaster as being the baleful outcome of bullying. This, however, was not the case. According to David Brooks of The New York Times, “Most of these misconceptions have been exposed. The killers were not outcasts.” Klebold and Harris “laughed at petty school shooters, and they sought murder in a grander scale.” Dylan and Eric weren’t bullied, but simply rebellious, enraged, and vengeful. When this heartbreaking event happened, people all over the country began to attempt to determine the two boy’s reasoning behind this mass massacre that they executed. Since death and the media was involved, it seemed even more vital to make an immediate and reasonable closure. Furthermore, with an ongoing issue with bullying throughout schools in the United States, this catastrophic occurrence appeared to have an accessible blame. Teachers and education systems across the country used this calamity to promote an anti-bullying campaign. ‘Rachel’s Challenge’, which was named after Rachel Scott, the first person killed in Columbine, was advertised in many schools to address the importance of compassion and human kindness. By turning the story of a tragic death at Columbine High School into a mission for change, Rachel’s Challenge is helping create safer learning environments and making a world-wide impact (“Rachel’s Challenge”). Although this movement immensely benefited and continues to benefit relationships between students, bullying was falsely proclaimed as the rationalization behind this movement. The calamity of the Columbine shooting serves as patent proof that humans’ craving for answers to obscurity ultimately lead to inaccurate acquisitions. Making the unjustified seem justified is a dominant characteristic of human nature. People are in constant strive for resolutions and vindication, because to us, the unknown is unbearable. It is crucial for a cessation to be made only after thorough observation and evaluation of the existent perplexity, for sometimes, nothing is as it seems.

Works Cited Brooks, David. “The Columbine Killers.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 23 Apr. 2004. Web. 16 Mar. 2014. “About Rachel’s Challenge.” Rachel’s Challenge. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Mar. 2014.

Enroll yourself in all honors and AP courses. Get A’s in all of your subjects. Get that GPA up. But be well-rounded. Colleges won’t like you if you’re not well-rounded. Do a sport; do a few sports and a few clubs too. Go to those practices and meetings every week. Volunteer at the soup kitchen, and at your church. Every week. But do make sure you get your nine hours of sleep every night. Teenagers are supposed to get nine hours of sleep every night. And if you do it right, colleges will love you. But don’t forget to throw those SAT classes into the mix, because if you have a low SAT score, the colleges won’t accept you. Then, with no college acceptances, your life has been a waste for the past 18 years and you are going to have no job and live in a cardboard box. These statements constantly echo in the average teenager’s mind. Everything we do sets us up for college… SO, we better not mess up. But is the stress and the pressure really justified? Alfie Kohn states, “…students suffer intellectually as well as psychologically because the pressure to succeed academically leaves little room for exploring ideas…” The high expectations of teens, as Kohn explains it, leave little to no room for teenagers to breathe and think, thus causing an unbearable amount of stress. Alright, point noted. But this stress doesn’t really affect anyone; it’s just one of those myths everyone tells you about high school before you’re finally there…right? “Almost 40 percent of parents say their high-schooler is experiencing a lot of stress from school, according to a new NPR poll…In most cases, that stress is from academics…Homework was a leading cause of stress, with 24 percent of parents saying it’s an issue. A survey by the American Psychological Association found that nearly half of all teens — 45 percent — said they were stressed by school pressures…” as well, according to Patti Neighmond of NPR. I’m guessing that earlier assumption was wrong, then. Students, as well as their parents, experience stress due to a heavy work load. The problem has been identified. Now where’s the solution? Do we lower our academic standards as a society in order to help students achieve better grades, or do we let them suffer? Do we shorten the school day so that students have more time to do homework, study, and sleep, or do we keep it the way it is? Do we give less work to ease the stress, or do we stay with the same work load to prepare the students for college? Now, is college really anything like high school? No one really knows, do they?

Works Cited Kohn, Alfie. “Reconsider Attitudes About Success.” New York Times. N.p., 12 Dec. 2010. Web. 16 Mar. 2014. < //www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2010/12/12/stress-and-the-high-school-student/reconsider-attitudes-about-success>. Neighmond, Patti. “School Stress Takes A Toll On Health, Teens And Parents Say.” National Public Radio. N.p., 2 Dec. 2013. Web. 16 Mar. 2014. < //www.npr.org/blogs/health/2013/12/02/246599742/school-stress-takes-a-toll-on-health-teens-and-parents-say>.

Jessica Bowman Mrs. Otto English II Pre-AP 16 March 2014 Is Dance a sport Or an Art? Dance – “To move one’s feet or body, or both, rhythmically in a pattern of steps, especially to the accompaniment of music.” Dance is neither defined as a sport or an art. Why do people think that dance does not fall into the sport category and is only an art? The wonderful thing about dance is that it is not a sport or an art. It is both. Sport – “An athletic activity requiring skill or physical prowess and often of a competitive nature”. Art – “The quality, production, expression, or realm, according to aesthetic principles, of what is beautiful, appealing, or of more than ordinary significance.” There is a fine line with any activity between sport and art. An activity requiring a person to be active and on their feet, like basketball for instance, is truly a sport. But, is shooting a ball through a hoop aesthetic and beautiful? Not really. Art is something that a person can be creative and expressive with. I’m not talking about just painting a picture. I’m talking about different ways to express one’s self, whether it be singing, or even playing an instrument. So, where does dance fit in to all of this? Why is it that when people hear the word sport, they automatically think of football, or soccer, or baseball? Dance is an athletic activity that requires much skill and can be very competitive. For instance, in the Olympics, rhythmic dancers must work diligently in order to be better than anyone else? If competing for an Olympic gold medal isn’t competitive then I don’t know what is. Dance also requires one to be physically fit. A perfect example of this is a drill team. The dancers may make all of those high kicks look easy, but coming from a drill team girl herself, no matter how much you run you will always be out of breath after a kick routine. It takes stamina to be any kind of dancer. It takes an athlete to dance, but an artist to be a dancer. Dance isn’t just all about running dances over and over again for a competition. It is so much more than that. Dance is a place where you can express your feeling through your movement. It’s a place where you can let all of your stress out and just move. Dance allows one to fully use their creativity and create shapes with their body. You can tell a story through gestures and mobility. You can translate your words through your body. Dance is both beautiful and powerful. Even though it requires strength and skill, it is also appealing to look at and very enjoyable to watch. Therefore, dance is both and art and a sport.

Work Cited Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com, n.d. Web. 16 Mar. 2014.

Jamison, Judith. “The Ecstasy, and Agony, Linking Dance and Sport.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 01 Dec. 2001. Web. 16 Mar. 2014.

“Dance.VS.Sports – Dancers: Artists or Athletes?” Dance.VS.Sports – Dancers: Artists or Athletes? N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Mar. 2014.

Steven S Block 2 Mrs. Otto English II Pre-AP 17 March 2014

Should IPhone/IPads be in youth? In this day in age, technology is at our fingertips, kids and adults having easy access to information. Technology has grown rapidly all over, but mainly in the United States. With this excessive amount of technology, teachers try to use devices such as IPads and using their phones in order to do an activity in class. Especially in the Elementary schools, kids should not be using iPad to learn. This equipment is too expensive to have for children as young as second, third, or fourth grade to be accessing. These young of kids even have iPads for themselves just to play games on them! Instead of playing outside and doing something constructive, they are wasting their time on their iPhone or IPad doing pointless things for their age. Using them to learn is one thing, but playing mindless games for hours at the age of seven? Plus, kids do not need IPads in schools to learn about the real world, how do you think other people did it? Steve Almond, a writer from the New York Times in his article about technology in youth states “Frankly, I find it more disturbing that a brand-name product is being elevated to the status of mandatory school supply. I also worry that iPads might transform the classroom from a social environment into an educational subway car, each student fixated on his or her personalized educational gadget.” I believe to that when you provide technology to kids that young, they will get distracted and not actually learn. I got my first phone about five years ago and I loved it! But today, when you have third graders with the iPhone 5c, while I didn’t even get a phone until last year and I’m sixteen, it’s just ridiculous. It really isn’t the kids fault; after all, they’re not buying the phone. The Parents are really the ones to blame in my opinion. It really all depends on the kids, if they are independent or not, but it’s up to the parents really to decide. Liz Perle from The Common Sense Media claims a reminder for parents “When you hand kids phones today, you’re giving them powerful communications and production tools. They can create text, images, and videos that can be widely distributed and uploaded to Web sites. They can broadcast their status and their location. They can download just about everything in the world.” This really puts the pressure on the parents to know when their child is mature to handle these expensive, and possibly dangerous devices.

Works Cited Almond, Steve. “My Kids Are Obsessed With Technology, and It’s All My Fault.” NY Times. N.p., 21 June 2013. Web. 17 Mar. 2014. < //www.nytimes.com/2013/06/23/magazine/my-kids-are-obsessed-with-technology-and-its-all-my-fault.html?pagewanted=all&action=click&module=Search&region=searchResults%230&version=&url=http%3A%2F%2Fquery.nytimes.com%2Fsearch%2Fsitesearch%2F%3Faction%3Dclick%26region%3DMasthead%26pgtype%3DHomepage%26module%3DSearchSubmit%26contentCollection%3DHomepage%26t%3Dqry721%23%2Fchild+technology> Perle, Liz. “When Should You Get Your Kid a Cell Phone?” PBS. PBS, n.d. Web. 16 Mar. 2014 < //www.pbs.org/parents/childrenandmedia/article-when-should-you-get-kid-cell-phone.html>

“An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.” Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, since 1976 has killed 1,099 people as of 2008. 57% of these people were white, 34% were black, and the other 9% were other races, according to Capital punishment is not sending out a good message to the world. It is basically saying depending on who you killed and how many you killed, your right of life is taken from you. Capital punishment is known to be biased towards a race and biased towards the value of the family economically. Capital punishment takes the right of life away unnecessarily. Truman Capote, author of In Cold Blood, agrees that the capital punishment should not be used. He thinks that because that the main characters, Dick and Perry, killed four wealthy people in cold blood, they don’t have to be killed in cold blood as well.¬¬¬ “… four shotgun blasts that, all told, ended six human lives.” This book shows that this case touched many people because the Clutters were loved by many and because of that the case gave too harsh consequences. This sends a wrong message to the world, it is basically saying if a person is low on the hierarchy then not many people care what happens to them as much as someone who is high on the hierarchy. Though lots of people executed may have deserved the death penalty in some eyes, a very serious problem in capital punishment is executing an innocent person. If the government convicts the wrong person and that person is executed, then an innocent person has lost their right of life for no reason and can’t be given back. There have been around 10 cases in which there has been strong evidence of innocence, yet these 10 human beings were killed. The government took these people’s rights from them and they cannot give it back. Capital punishment takes rights from people that they don’t have the right to take away. Capital punishment should be abolished and so far 18 states have come to their senses and realized that the capital punishment is wrong.¬¬ ”Capital punishment is a fundamentally wrong as a cure for crime as charity is wrong as a cure for poverty.” Capote, Truman. In cold blood: a true account of a multiple murder and its consequences. New York: Random House, 19661965. Print. Cuomo, Mario. “Death penalty is dead wrong: It’s time to outlaw capital punishment in America – completely.” NY Daily News. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Mar. 2014. “Death Penalty Focus.” Death Penalty. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Mar. 2014. “The Slow Demise of Capital Punishment.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 29 Dec. 2013. Web. 13 Mar. 2014.

Graffiti IS an art in itself

Opinions on what is considered a work of art are vast. Just ask Mark Quinn, the British artist, who created a famous piece of work by taking a mold of his head and dunking it in his own blood. He called this piece “Self”. Oh and Quinn didn’t stop there. “The first blood head was made in 1991 and shown in the Sensation exhibition in Brooklyn. Since then the artist has made a new cast every five years, documenting his own transformation and ultimate deterioration. The three earlier blood heads are all in overseas collections. The Gallery wants to present the latest series in London, as a centerpiece in its contemporary collection and as a way of engaging with issues of representation of the human figure in contemporary culture.”(National Portrait Gallery) So what makes this piece of artwork so intriguing? Well, it depends on the audience. Some people may not consider a blood dipped cast of ones head very artful. The same argument arises when discussing graffiti’s position in the art world. Art, by definition, is a word for self-expression. It’s a way for a person to communicate with others without having to use voice. Clearly art can be shown in many different forms. Just because graffiti isn’t often hanging in museums with a little red rope surrounding it doesn’t mean that its not valuable. In fact, a rather large piece of the Berlin Wall is in the Newseum in Washington D.C.. The graffiti covered stone is viewed by thousands of people every day. The attraction is not just the stone but the incredible history that is actually documented on it, in the form of graffiti. The best part about graffiti is that its free! In the New York Times article (Graffiti finds its place in contemporary art) they described a street artist “Haring, chalking his drawling’s in the subway, saw himself as bringing art to the people, according to Lewinsohn, quoting the New York art dealer Tony Shafrazi. “Twenty Million people traveling through the subway got to see his work, “Lewinsohn quoted Shafrazi as saying. “Keith considered that world to be almost a museum of its own kind. “He thought that many of those people didn’t have the means or the knowledge to go museums, so he was bringing the art to them.”(Barbieri) It’s not being made for money, but for the enjoyment of the artist themselves. Just because it is in word form or plastered on the side of a train doesn’t mean its not a form of artwork, it just means its an unpublicized creation made for all’s enjoyment. Is Graffiti art, yes it is. Like Raymond Salvatore Harmon once said ” Art is an evolutionary act. The shape of art and its role in society is constantly changing. At no point is art static. There are no rules.” So next time you hear the names Jr from France, Jaz form Argentina, or even Gaia from the U.S.A, maybe we should thank them for a more entertaining and artistic walk home.

National Portrait Gallery. “Accessibility.” National Portrait Gallery -. National Portrait Gallery, n.d. Web. 17 Mar. 2014. < //www.npg.org.uk/footer/accessibility.php>.

Barbieri, Claudia. “Graffiti Finds Its Place in Contemporary Art.” Editorial. New York Times. Claudia Barbieri, Friday May 2008. Web. < //www.nytimes.com/2008/05/31/arts>.

Raised In Fear Exploitation and sexual violence against women is a plague terrorizing women as it becomes more acceptable every day. Young women are taught to cover up and be on guard from a young age as it would be their fault for triggering an attack on themselves by being “too exposed” or “too flirtatious.” Everyday sexual violence is glorified in the media and vulgar acts towards women are praised on television and in movies leaving the world in a state that can only be described as a “rape culture.” Rape culture is teaching young men that it’s okay to dehumanize women and conquer them without consequence. Not only are rape victims becoming more abundant, the victims and their attackers are becoming younger. Most of these young men aren’t creepy outcasts but they are the charming, athletic stars. Just last year two football stars are charged with the rape of a fellow female classmate and found guilty (Oppel). A guilty verdict was the move in the right direction but all too often charges are dropped because no one is fighting for the victim, such as the Montclair case where the prosecution suddenly dropped all charges against the two attackers (Gettleman). This especially dangerous because when there is no consequence the attackers continue raping and assaulting and often become more violent. Many people will argue more particularly in a younger attacker’s defense that they have their whole life ahead of them and so much potential. The gaping double- standard comes into play as the attackers are defended, but their victims are told by respected adults, friends, peers, even the police that they are at fault for being promiscuous and bringing the attack upon themselves. They are scrutinized, called vile names, and bullied to recant if they do speak out about the despicable acts that were carried out on them. Even with the abundance of survivors speaking out and thousands participating in walks to stand against sexual violence with the statistics that 1 in 3 women are victims of sexual violence and 600 women in the United States alone are raped every day, a plenty of people still say that “rape culture” against women doesn’t exist. They claim that it is a false feminist outcry, however their ignorance is the reason 40% of rapes aren’t even reported as they put the blame on the victim. This sexually violent culture needs to be eradicated. Instead of teaching young women to always be on the defense, young men should be taught that conquering and dehumanizing is wrong. No means no under any circumstance needs to be enforced. Once everyone takes a stand and stops trying to cover up the problem by supporting victims and punishing attackers, the world will be safer for everyone. Little girls should never be raised to live in fear of sexual assault.

Works Cited

Gettleman, Jeffrey. “Rape Case Against 2 Montclair Football Players Is Dropped.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 04 Nov. 2004. Web. 17 Mar. 2014.

Horowitz, Alana. “Steubenville Rape Trial Verdict: Trent Mays, Ma’lik Richmond Found Guilty.” The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 17 Mar. 2013. Web. 17 Mar.

Marshall University. “Women’s Center.” Womens Center. Marshall University, 2013. Web. 16 Mar. 2014.

Oppel, Richard A., Jr. “Ohio Teenagers Guilty in Rape That Social Media Brought to Light.”The New York Times. The New York Times, 17 Mar. 2013. Web. 16 Mar. 2014.

Order of the White Feather. “Rape Culture & Statistics.” The Order of the White Feather. Order of the White Feather, 2013. Web. 16 Mar. 2014.

WOAR. “Resources & Information.” Sexual Assault Statistics – Sexual Violence and Rape Statistics. WOAR, 2005. Web. 14 Mar. 2014.

Raised In Fear Exploitation and sexual violence against women is a plague terrorizing women as it becomes more acceptable every day. Young women are taught to cover up and be on guard from a young age as it would be their fault for triggering an attack on themselves by being “too exposed” or “too flirtatious.” Everyday sexual violence is glorified in the media and vulgar acts towards women are praised on television and in movies leaving the world in a state that can only be described as a “rape culture.” Rape culture is teaching young men that it’s okay to dehumanize women and conquer them without consequence. Not only are rape victims becoming more abundant, the victims and their attackers are becoming younger. Most of these young men aren’t creepy outcasts but they are the charming, athletic stars. All too often charges are dropped because no one is fighting for the victim, such as the Montclair case where the prosecution suddenly dropped all charges against the two attackers (Gettleman). This especially dangerous because when there is no consequence the attackers continue raping and assaulting and often become more violent. Many people will argue more particularly in a younger attacker’s defense that they have their whole life ahead of them and so much potential. The gaping double- standard comes into play as the attackers are defended, but their victims are told by respected adults, friends, peers, even the police that they are at fault for being promiscuous and bringing the attack upon themselves. They are scrutinized, called vile names, and bullied to recant if they do speak out about the despicable acts that were carried out on them. Even with the abundance of survivors speaking out and thousands participating in walks to stand against sexual violence with the statistics that 1 in 3 women are victims of sexual violence and 600 women in the United States alone are raped every day, a plenty of people still say that “rape culture” against women doesn’t exist. They claim that it is a false feminist outcry, however their ignorance is the reason 40% of rapes aren’t even reported as they put the blame on the victim. This sexually violent culture needs to be eradicated. Instead of teaching young women to always be on the defense, young men should be taught that conquering and dehumanizing is wrong. No means no under any circumstance needs to be enforced. Once everyone takes a stand and stops trying to cover up the problem by supporting victims and punishing attackers, the world will be safer for everyone. Little girls should never be raised to live in fear of sexual assault.

Works Cited Gettleman, Jeffrey. “Rape Case Against 2 Montclair Football Players Is Dropped.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 04 Nov. 2004. Web. 17 Mar. 2014. Horowitz, Alana. “Steubenville Rape Trial Verdict: Trent Mays, Ma’lik Richmond Found Guilty.” The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 17 Mar. 2013. Web. 17 Mar. Marshall University. “Women’s Center.” Womens Center. Marshall University, 2013. Web. 16 Mar. 2014. Oppel, Richard A., Jr. “Ohio Teenagers Guilty in Rape That Social Media Brought to Light.”The New York Times. The New York Times, 17 Mar. 2013. Web. 16 Mar. 2014. Order of the White Feather. “Rape Culture & Statistics.” The Order of the White Feather. Order of the White Feather, 2013. Web. 16 Mar. 2014. WOAR. “Resources & Information.” Sexual Assault Statistics – Sexual Violence and Rape Statistics. WOAR, 2005. Web. 14 Mar. 2014.

Money is something that many people believe is just an object, but an object that should be treated with respect. While others think that money is not only an object but one that should be thrown around and squandered at will. But the real question is;

“Can money buy happiness?”

Technically only you can make yourself happy, money will only occupy you for so long until you realize that it cannot buy you happiness. Students and professors like Carol Hyman at the Berkley College in California have been studying whether money is something that in fact does make people happy. And have concluded that;

“Employees that are primarily motivated by the love (of work) become less happy the more money they make.”

When explained, people tend to be fooled by the things that money can do. Although it can buy you exotic trips, fancy cars, and designer clothes it will never buy the best things in life. You can’t buy laughs, making people feel good, and long hugs. Don’t be fooled by money’s desirable appearance.

The best things in life are free, the second best things in life are expensive. May you never find happiness with money, love of a pet, or share a laugh with a friend. Money can be wicked, barbaric, it can eat your soul away, till all that is left is a relentless wanting, a constant aspiration for more, and when more is not not enough, you become relentless.

“Maybe it is more about expectations, desire and a constant “wanting” than it is about actual income.”

No matter the money that you make, can u really be happy? Happiness should be a feeling we find within ourselves as human beings, not in the amount of money we contain. As katherine Schulten vocalizes, the more money you make, can only make you want more, though the less money you make, the more contained on sanity you are.

Ultimately, money should come as an object, after all, it’s only just paper, thin, green, paper. Obsessions can be developed, but only when money takes you for granted. And if you want to feel rich, just count all the things money can’t buy, the list will be eternal. Merry moments, don’t have price tags on them, they have everlasting smiles attached to them. Although money can do majestic things, money will never take the place of the best things in life.

Work cited:

//learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/10/07/can-money-buy-you-happiness/?action=click&module=Search&region=searchResults%230&version=&url=http%3A%2F%2Fquery.nytimes.com%2Fsearch%2Fsitesearch%2F%3Faction%3Dclick%26region%3DMasthead%26pgtype%3DHomepage%26module%3DSearchSubmit%26contentCollection%3DHomepage%26t%3Dqry559%23%2FCan+money+buy+happiness

//www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2003/06/16_money.shtml

I Love You, Don’t Hate Me She should love him, but she loves her. There is nothing wrong with the girl who loves her girly best friend, or the boy who dreams of marrying the guy who sits next to him in algebra. Homophobia is a form of discrimination, like someone being a racist; it’s unnecessary. People have an idea that homosexuality or being gay is a “mental illness” that can be cured through “therapy and prayer.” “Empirical evidence and professional norms do not support the idea that homosexuality is a form of mental illness or is inherently linked to psychopathology.” Homosexuality isn’t a sickness that can be made better; it is a way of life, part of the genetic makeup of a human being. People saying that having sexual feelings for the same sex is a hint that something isn’t right in the head is disconcerting for the individual that is a homosexual. To say that is wrong, there is no evidence to say that homosexuality is an illness, nor does it make sense. Religion has no place in a political argument like homosexuality. It is incorrect for someone to say that it is “unholy” to be gay or that “our Lord said it is a sin that will grant you a one way ticket to Hell” because not everyone is religious or has the same religious believes. If someone who is gay doesn’t believe in that a god like figure, then the person arguing that god said it’s unruly just lost the battle because his argument is now invalid. It’s as useless as a Christian going against a Muslim, trying to convert the other because he doesn’t believe what the other says. The arguing and name-calling is intoxicating. The amount of hate homosexuals get is enough to lead them down the path of suicide, self-hatred, and thinking that they are sick. To discriminate a human based on their love for others is inappropriate. “September 9: Billy Lucas, age 15, of Greensburg, Indiana, hanged himself from the rafters of his family’s barn… September 23: Asher Brown, 13, of Houston, Texas, shot himself in the head.” These boys didn’t know each other, but they were both bullied to the point where they believed that if you’re gay, then life isn’t worth living. If people can look past the color of another’s skin, then they should be able to do the same about another’s sexual orientation. Those kids should be in classes, not caskets. Being gay is normal. It’s more of a blessing than a sin. Words hurt and they feast on a person until there is nothing left but a hollowed out carcass. Discriminating people on their sexual orientation only kills; it helps no one.

There are around 7,219,307,200 humans alive in the world and that number is growing. Each person in this world is unique and there is no one person who is like another person. But every person on planet Earth has one thing in common. Our parents chose life. Unfortunately, some people decide to abort their child. Essentially, denying the child a life and an opportunity to thrive. All murder is seen as unlawful. So if murder is unlawful, then why is it lawful to end the life of an unborn child? Abortion is a painful and inhumane method of murder that violates the basic right of life that should be extended to all human beings. It is obvious that some people don’t think that the unborn child is a child. That became clear to the Pro-life Community when our political representatives denied the Unborn Child Awareness Act, which stated mothers who wanted to abort their baby had to first learn about what would be taking place. It also entailed that the mother could then give her child some drugs to lessen the pain, should she choose to continue with the murder. Although babies are beloved outside the womb, an unborn child has less legal protection than commercial livestock. This means that the slaughterhouse have to follow laws stating, “…killing animals is only deemed “humane” if “animals are rendered insensible to pain….” (Pain). Another argument that is used frequently in debates concerning abortion is ‘the child isn’t a child until birth. It is a zygote and cannot feel the abortion going on.’ Yet in reality, “the zygote is composed of human DNA and other human molecules, so its nature is undeniably human and not some other species.” (Schwarwalder2). This proves that science is on the side of pro-life because it proves that the unborn child is that; a child. In a perfect world, everyone would know what horror abortion brings to not only the child but also, in some cases, the mother. Childbirth, in many cases, is now safer to the mother because of recent technology that has rapidly reduced the number of deaths during delivery to almost nothing. And to add onto that, a mother who decides to abort her child can get infected, can lose the ability to have child, and will have to always live with the horror of murdering a child. Abortion is a worldwide issue, and the problem is that everyone knows the term ‘abortion’; but no one knows what abortion really is. That is where we as Pro-life citizens have to start. The problem needs to be put out to the people who are pro-choice. This is where we can start out task of saving lives.

Highschool Killed The Teenager The monster is crushing. He is excruciating, and his effects are great. He claws at skin as teachers scream “the colleges, they will love this!” He churns stomachs as work piles up, and pounds a steady beat in heads as parents whisper “don’t forget about this.” He reports back to dreams each night, reminding the subconscious mind to hold onto what the conscious brain so wants to let go. But worst of all, the monster is fed by a mandatory aspect of 3.3 million peoples lives (“Fast Facts”). High school. Coined “the best years of a teenagers life,” high school comes with high expectations and low tolerance. Homework is piled on, because the U.S needs to get better; at math and science and reading and writing, and the only way to tell if you are an adequate member of society, is by passing a standardized test. A test, truley, of your tolerance of stress and ability to memorize facts. The monster is fueled by standardized tests. The monster is also fueled by phrases such as “in the real world,” and “this is the easy part.” This monster does not only gauge out insides, but ravages outsides. Hair begins littering the floor, bones stick out, and food loses its appeal. Skin turns white, the final stage of surrendering to the monster. Signs like those are apparent on countless students all over the country, and “a survey by the American Psychological Association found that nearly half of all teens — 45 percent — said they were stressed by school pressures” (Neighmond). But high school continues to feed the monster. He dines on essays, snacks on applications, and feasts on homework. The monster is even beginning to invade little kids, because elementary and middle school wants to be as much like high school as little brothers and sisters want to be like their siblings. But he thrives in high school students whose heads are stuck in a book, because they care; about college, about grades, friends and family. He cannot live without care. The monster is crushing. The monster is stress. High schools serves stress as a side every single day, along with other high expectations. Nancy Kalish, of The New York Times, calls parents to action, stating “[w]e all know how badly we react to nonstop stress — why would we expect our children to be any different?” (Kalish). There are ways to save students, to kill the monster, to relax the stress. Shorten days, limit number of AP classes a student can take, lessen the homework load. The monster does not have to be crushing. Instead, the monster should be crushed. //www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2010/12/12/stress-and-the-high-school-student/it-starts-before-high-school //www.npr.org/blogs/health/2013/12/02/246599742/school-stress-takes-a-toll-on-health-teens-and-parents-say //nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=372

Thank you so much for hosting this fantastic activity. It was exciting to watch the flurry of activity in my classroom yesterday as students worked to meet the 5:00 deadline.

Now we’re wondering about what is next. Can you let us know the timeline for review and selection? I want to create a follow up lesson where the students review the editorials you selected, especially when they can look at how they responded.

Hi Shane — We were so delighted, and so taken aback, by the response! This contest set a Learning Network record, and we’re still figuring out our timeline for judging. But yes: sometime this week we’ll publish next steps, and put a link here. Thank you for assigning it and your students for participating! –Katherine

Technology does have us become more alone because personally there is a life story about that however to cut it short, I used the computer because I did not have any friends in school and as now my friends may slightly increase, my best friend is still the computer. It is a time waster and I have learned people do not have very interesting life so they do things, both good and bad online. Play video games, research, and other thing people can consider being good or bad. Now the reason why I say technology can make us more alone is because there is sadness to the computer, because I admit I do use the computer a lot and sadly like it a little too much. However due to recent discover and realization, the computer is numbing and can lack of intelligent ideas and facts that can grow into a myth where people create ideas and theories inside which are not, always true. People are becoming also, less creative because their minds are too lazy to think and daydream about something to do. In short the negatives can be balanced however as I like to say: “people have different ideas of how computer can be good and bad”.

Heya! I know this is sort of off-topic however I needed to ask. Does managing a well-established website such as yours require a lot of work? I am completely new to writing a blog but I do write in my diary on a daily basis. I’d like to start a blog so I can easily share my experience and thoughts online. Please let me know if you have any recommendations or tips for new aspiring bloggers. Appreciate it!

excellent points altogether, you just gained a new reader. What might you recommend about your put up that you made a few days in the past? Any sure?

Eliminate Vaccination Loopholes “Herd immunity” is critical to a healthy society. Without a sufficiently vaccinated population, our communities could be overwhelmed with preventable viruses like the measles. In 2015, we are facing a measles outbreak due to a lack of immunized people and the contagiousness of this disease. Currently, our “herd immunity” is threatened by low vaccination rates in 17 states. According to the U.S. Surgeon General, there is even a school in California that has a shockingly low immunization rate of 30%. For measles, “herd immunity” means that 90% of the population is immune to the virus. Parents are using the “personal exemption” loophole allowed in 48 states, to opt out of required vaccinations for their children. Parents can easily deny or delay vaccinations based on personal beliefs. This is too easy. States should not allow the personal exemptions regarding vaccinations. “Personal exemption” laws provide a loophole for parents who are looking for a reason to opt out of vaccinations. Parents opt out for many reasons. Some believe that vaccines are dangerous, can cause serious side effects, or contain harmful ingredients, while others don’t trust safety assurances made by the FDA or the CDC. All scientific studies confirm the safety and effectiveness of the shots. Still others opt to delay some vaccinations so their kids don’t get as many shots in one visit. The risk of getting measles is much worse than a sore shoulder for a day or two. By delaying, the children are off the suggested schedule and therefore some vaccines are less effective. In a period of 20 years, ending in 2014, an estimated 732,000 American children didn’t die due to vaccinations preventing illnesses like the measles. Another main reason why people opt out of their vaccinations is because they expect everyone else to get vaccinated so they don’t have to. This does not work when more and more people think this and are able to exempt their children from the required vaccinations. For children to be safe from preventable horrible, even deadly diseases, they have to get vaccinated, at the right, scheduled time. The effectiveness of vaccines has made some people doubt the need for them. By working so well, vaccines have all but extinguished the flame of preventable diseases. Since people now have not had measles affect their life, they don’t know how bad it is, which helps them with the decision to not vaccinate their children. People have to get vaccinated for the sake of the entire community. By allowing “personal exemptions”, states are putting their communities in jeopardy. We need to eliminate vaccination loopholes for the good of everyone.

The Associated Press. “Oregon Considers Banning Most Vaccine Exemptions.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 28 Feb. 2015. Web. 03 Mar. 2015. Oshinsky, David. “Return of the Vaccine Wars.” Wall Street Journal [Seattle] 21 Feb. 2015: C3. Print. “Vaccines ProCon.org.” ProConorg Headlines. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Feb. 2015.

Lolita: A Slave for Entertainment Is it really ok to lock up an animal and use them as a slave to entertainment? At only 4 years old, Lolita was torn away from her family. 80 Orcas were corralled in the largest orca capture ever. Lolita was kidnapped. Ripped away from her family and sold to Seaquarium for only $6,000. The 48 year old Orca whale is currently living sadly in Miami Seaquarium. Lolita should be released from Seaquarium after over 40 years. Miami Aquarium has become one of the most popular and famous aquariums in the country. Each year they profit millions of dollars off animals. However animal rights activists say Lolita’s 80 x 60ft. wide and 20 feet deep tank is one of the smallest whale enclosures in the world. Their report gives evidence of Lolita’s deplorable living conditions. Of the 160 captive killer whales that have died in captivity, more than 70% didn’t make it beyond 10 years in captivity. The feeling of being locked up, with limited space, and no family is awful. This is exactly how Lolita feels. To pay money to Aquarium to see this is wrong. She has been alone without a companion of her species since 1980 after Hugo, another whale, died after crashing his head repeatedly on the enclosure. “She has no opportunity to socialize or interact with other members of her species, which is excruciating for such a social and intelligent animal,” PETA says. It is unfair to keep a beautiful animal like this held solitary. This proves the sad living conditions for Lolita, who has spent the past 35 years alone in her tank. Orcas are extremely intelligent animals. To be alone like this is much different environment than usual.”They’ll be able to communicate, and begin reforming that bond that was broken 40 years ago,” said Howard Garrett, director of the Orca Network who says the release of Lolita is long overdue. The operation is to release Lolita and return her near the San Juan Island. There, she will be kept in a pen to catch fish naturaly Seaquarium staff says the plan is unsafe and risky. Curator Robert rose, who works with Lolita says, “This is a non-releasable animal” If freed, “she’s going to die without question.” The staff also say she will end up like Keiko. Keiko was released in 2002 and died the following year after being rejected by wild orcas. Although she will have different knowledge of the ocean, Lolita would return into her home, where her family is waiting. Researchers say that her family is off the coast of Washington and has a call that Lolita still remember. The captivity of Lolita and other orca whale should stop. REUTERS. “After 44 Years, Miami Orca May Edge Closer to Freedom.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 25 Jan. 2015. Web. 05 Mar. 2015.

“Life Expectancy of Orcas in Captivity.” Life Expectancy of Orcas in Captivity. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Mar. 2015.

We Should Have Background Checks Kyle Petrie We should have background checks in all of USA. Did you know that roughly 16,272 murders were committed in the United States during 2008. Of these, about 10,886 or 67% were committed with firearms. Think about how many of these could have been prevented if we had background checks. Many criminals wouldn’t have gotten their hands on guns and many innocent people’s lives could have been saved.

Also, based on survey data from the U.S. Department of Justice, about 5,340,000 violent crimes were committed in the United States during 2008. These include simple and aggravated assaults, robberies, sexual assaults, rapes, and murders. Of these, about 436,000 or 8% were committed by offenders visibly armed with a gun. That’s right, 436,000 violent crimes were committed with people who had guns. A 1997 survey of more than 18,000 prison inmates found that among those serving time for a violent crime, “30% of State offenders and 35% of Federal offenders carried a firearm when committing the crime. If we had background checks then many of these criminals wouldn’t have been carrying firearms which would have made them probably not do the crime saving lives and keeping them out of jail at the same time. In the 10-year period from November 30, 1998 to December 31, 2008, about 96 million background checks for gun purchases were processed through the federal background check system. Of these, approximately 681,000 or about 1% were denied. 1% may not seem like a lot but 681,000 denied, that means that 681,000 bad people could have had guns in their possession and it only takes one person to attack a school or shoot a lot of people. Though some people say criminals would just get guns other ways like the black market, or private unauthorized dealers, just look back at the fact that background checks stopped 681,000 possibly bad, dangerous people or criminals from getting guns. Background checks are getting more popular, especially in Oregon were private transactions don’t require a check, but sellers have an incentive to do them. If a gun they sell is used in a crime, they can be liable if no check was done. They are protected if a check was done. We should have background checks for all of the reasons above, it would stop criminals from getting guns, it would protect more citizens, and it would keep more people out of jail.

Who is better; Robinson Cano or President Obama? John P Editorial

The President takes out his pen and is about to sign a law just as Robinson Cano hits a home run. What event is more important? Who do you think deserves a bigger salary? Robinson Cano is arguably one of the best second basemen in MLB history but he still shouldn’t make 43 times the money President Obama makes per year. Being a baseball player, I do have a lot of respect for the amount of work MLB players put in to get to the MLB, but I still believe that they make too much money. “Out of the 912 players in the MLB, the average salary was 3,014,572 dollars.” This is way too much money for a baseball player to make. Many people say that MLB players put in so much work and they deserve to get all this money but I disagree. I do believe that MLB players do put in a lot of work but I disagree about their salary. People who entertain other people shouldn’t make more money than someone who runs the whole United States. “Last year baseball players with a .230 to .239 batting average (which is very bad) were paid 937, 756 dollars. This is 4.7 times the salary of the president, 9.4 times the salary of the members of the cabinet and 7.6 times the salary of Chief Justice.” Baseball Players make more than the people who keep America from falling apart! Without the President and Chief Justice we wouldn’t be what make us America and yet we decide to give baseball players a lot more money than these people. Alex Rodriguez signed a contract with the New York Yankees that gave Alex Rodriguez about 29,000,000 dollars for 10 years. Do you think someone should make this much money? Is one baseball players worth so much more than the president? We need to lower the amount of money MLB players make and increase the Presidents salary. Next time you’re at a baseball game look around at each player who steps onto the field and ask yourself; Are they worth more than the President? Gray, Matthew. “Should Major League Baseball Players Get Paid This Much Money?” Sports Networker. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Mar. 2015. Herman, Louis J. “Of Course, Athletes Are Paid Too Much.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 05 Apr. 1991. Web. 05 Mar. 2015

The Heroes of My School As a student myself, I know that we can always use more friendly faces and open-ears in schools and more understanding and empathetic adults roaming the halls. I know that we can always use more counselors. Why? Take Leelah’s story, for example. Leelah Alcorn was 17 when she took her own life. Born with the name Joshua, Leelah was transgender and treated like an outcast in her own home. She was surrounded by deeply religious parents and forced to attend conversion therapy, an attempt to change Leelah’s sexual orientation. Leelah was bullied. Not by her classmates, not by her teachers, but by her parents, the people sleeping in the room next door. The people who’d promised to love her and accept her and teach her. It may be difficult to recognize this type of bullying when America’s youth has been taught to respect and listen to our elders, but it is terrifyingly real. According to a study done by the NYU School of Medicine, twenty-four percent of high school students have seriously thought about attempting suicide and 90% of suicidal teenagers believe their families do not understand them. Where do these kids turn to for help? If they don’t feel like they can trust an adult at home or that adult is the problem, what are they supposed to do? Some may suggest the counselor’s office as a welcoming place for students. They’d be wrong. The national student-to-counselor ratio is 478 to 1. This means the counselors are always busy, and their doors are always shut. It’s not that the counselors don’t want to give students 100% of his or her time and attention, it’s just that they can’t. There’s practically a three month wait list just to talk to one, let alone get a solid solution to someone’s problem. It’s first come, first serve. School counselors are heroes. They give teens support and care when others do not. We need to hire more counselors so every student can feel safe, happy and healthy at home and at school.

Works Cited Harris, Elizabeth A. “Where Have All the Counselors Gone?” The New York Times. The New York Times, 29 Dec. 2014. Web. 02 Mar. 2015. “Suicide Note of Transgender Ohio Teen Inspires Call to Help Others.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 31 Dec. 2014. Web. 04 Mar. 2015. “Teen Suicides Statistics – Yello Dyno.” Teen Suicides Statistics – Yello Dyno. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Feb. 2015. “Reasons for Teen Suicide.” Teen Suicide (Teenage Suicide, Teenager Suicide). N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Mar. 2015.

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Summary of information, argument, persuasion etc…

NOTE: This article was originally published in the Irish Independent Written Word Supplement, March 2014.

Language Types

The way we use language changes depending on the situation. The words you use in a job interview are obviously more formal than the words you choose when chatting to your mates. If you write a fawning comment to win a competition you’ll use lots of superlatives (think ‘biggest’, ‘best’, ‘brightest’) but for a political speech on bank debt you’ll use financial terminology.

The division of Paper 1 into language categories (information, argument, persuasion, narration/description and aesthetic language) reflects the fact that we use language in different ways in different contexts. These categories aren’t absolute, in fact they often overlap, but understanding the basic rules for informing, arguing, persuading, describing and narrating will make you a more discerning reader (i.e. better at comprehensions) and a more skilled writer (i.e. better at QB & composing).

Language of Information

What is it? Writing whose main purpose is to communicate information.

Examples: Report, leaflet, instructions, travel guide, encyclopaedia.

Layout: The reader wants to glance at the page and select the information they are looking for instantly. Present the facts using a logical, easy to follow structure. Use headings, sub-headings and bullet points or numbering. However, if you are writing an informative essay, full prose paragraphs, rather than bullet point lists, will be expected.

Style: Your focus needs to be on facts and statistics. Every point you make should be backed up by a specific example. If you are giving advice, it needs to be specific – think “count your daily fruit and veg intake and try to gradually increase by one a day until you reach your target” rather than the so-vague-as-to-be-almost-completely-useless “eat more healthily”. You can make statistics up, but you’ll have to make them sound believable. One way to do this is to name the source of the statistic – researcher, title & institution e.g. “According to research carried out by Dr. Hazel Nolan, sociology professor at Harvard University, one reason for the increase in smoking amongst teenage girls is because it is perceived as a good way to control weight gain”. However, your statistic must be convincing! I once had a student write that “92% of teenage girls in Ireland are now smokers”. You only need to look around you (or sniff those around you!) to know this couldn’t possibly be true.

Your language must be appropriate to your audience. Reports commissioned by the government or by an organisation such as the Central Statistics Office (CSO) or the Economic & Social Research Institute (ESRI) adopt a very formal and professional tone and use subject-specific vocabulary. However, a leaflet offering advice to teenagers on staying safe online would need to adopt a much less formal approach, otherwise the people it’s aimed at (teenagers) would stop reading.

Language of Argument

What is it? Writing which offers personal opinions & refutes opposing views logically is argumentative.

Examples: Speeches, debates, opinion pieces, letters to the editor, election material.

Layout: The headings and bullet points you used for the language of information are generally speaking not appropriate here. You are expected to write in complete sentences, alternating between short snappy sentences and longer more complex ones. You need to build up a series of inter-connected ideas paragraph by paragraph, with each one flowing into the next. Election leaflets, however, will use headings, bullet points, etc…

Style: Argumentative language is logical, rational and convincing. Obviously there is a certain amount of overlap with the language of information, with a focus on facts, statistics and examples. However, unlike the language of information, you are not presenting all of the facts and allowing the reader to decide for themselves. Instead, you are emphasising only those facts which support your point of view and offering logical reasons why those who disagree with your viewpoint are wrong.

A strong argument uses logic and reason: 1. to arrive at a particular point of view 2. to defend this position and 3. to refute counter arguments.

Once a person stops utilising the facts to prove their point and resorts to personal insults, they are no longer arguing, they are now persuading.

Language of Persuasion

What is it? Writing which draws you in emotionally to manipulate how you feel and how you think is persuasive.

Examples: Advertisements, competition entries, sermons, inspirational speeches.

Layout: It depends on the genre. Advertisements pay close attention to layout and use a wide variety of headings and font sizes for captions, slogans, statistics etc. A persuasive speech will use a traditional essay-style layout. A competition entry or proposal will have a clear structure – introduction; details (3 – 4 paragraphs); what you expect to happen next.

Style: Rather than purely factual (information) or logical (argument), persuasion manipulates your emotions to make you feel strongly about an issue. The writer draws on personal experiences to lure the reader or viewer into feeling certain emotions – sympathy, distress, disgust, admiration, pride, anger, fear, amusement. Once you are emotionally ‘hooked’ it becomes harder to analyse, assess and accept or reject the writer’s message logically because the heart, not the head, is now in the driving seat! Asking rhetorical questions, making urgent references to time, using emphatic, superlative and emotive words, repeating a key phrase, adopting collective personal pronouns, creating vivid imagery, hyperbole, contrast and humour are all effective ways of manipulating people’s feelings. Argument & persuasion often overlap – logic and emotion is a great combination if you want to win people over. You’ll also find significant overlap between the language of persuasion and descriptive writing, which also draws people in emotionally.

Language of Description / Narration

What is it? Narrative language tells a story, descriptive language paints a picture using words.

Examples: Novels, short stories, memoirs and diary entries narrate. Travel writing, personal essays and feature articles describe.

Layout: All stories have a beginning, a middle and an end. Hemmingway’s six word short story “For sale, baby shoes, never worn” has all the ingredients of a compelling story: set the scene, rousing the reader’s curiosity (for sale) draw the reader into the action emotionally (baby shoes) finish with an unexpected development (never worn) Obviously you need a more fully developed plot, setting and characters for a 1,000 word short story. Descriptive essays are less demanding because they do not require a plot, but they too must draw the reader in emotionally to what is being described.

Style: To write descriptively, you must choose specific verbs. Rather than writing “Susan walks over and says she’s really excited ” select verbs which add energy and movement: “ Susan bounces over, squealing with excitement ”. Adjectives add details about the size, shape, texture, location etc of the noun being described. Rather than writing “ As rain fell from the sky, my daughter began to cry ” include adjectives which add vivid detail “ As heavy rain thundered from the dark grey sky, tiny tears flooded my daughter’s pale face ”. However, be careful not to overload your sentences – too many adjectives can make your writing slow and cumbersome. Evoke all five senses (sights, sounds, smells, tastes and touch) to add depth to your writing. Rather than writing “ A van pulled up and a burly man jumped out, ran into the shop, pulled out a gun and demanded that the shop assistant open the till ” instead create a multi-sensory experience for the reader: “ A shiny black van screeched to a halt and a burly man jumped out, bursting through the double doors and barrelling into the shop. Reaching for the cold metal butt of his revolver, he growled at the trembling shop assistant “open the f**king till! ”.

Aesthetic Language

What is it? Language which is crafted to create something beautiful. Only the language of information deliberately avoids trying to be beautiful & engaging, choosing instead to present the facts in a purely objective fashion. All other types – argumentative, persuasive, narrative and descriptive – aim for beauty as well as clarity.

Examples: Poetry, song lyrics, novels, plays. Any great work of art: think William Shakespeare, James Joyce, Seamus Heaney or equally Emily Bronte, Sylvia Plath, Eavan Boland.

Layout: There are no rules, there is only beauty. Emily Dickinson ignored all the ‘rules’ of grammar to create an aesthetic effect; so did James Joyce. Great writers master their craft by obeying the rules at first but they will also experiment and play with language to create something new.

Style: Similes, metaphors, personification, symbolism, contrast, alliteration, onomatopoeia, rhyme, rhythm, recurring motifs, pathetic fallacy, allusion, foreshadowing, dramatic irony, poetic justice. However, just using literary techniques won’t necessarily make your writing aesthetically pleasing and beauty is always in the eye of the beholder, so what I might consider beautiful, you might consider boring.

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