The Secrets of Persuasive Essay

Publication Date: 24 Mar 2018
Author: Nicolas Braun

How to Write a Persuasive Essay

People deal with persuasion on a daily basis; they persuade each other all the time – at home, at the shop, on the street, and in many other places. But when it comes to persuasion by means of written words, in particular writing persuasive essays, a lot of them face various difficulties. First of all, let’s clarify what the persuasive essay format is and what it provides.

The persuasive essay is a type of argumentative writing the main aim of which is to present some point of view and convince the readers of its correctness. Such work requires extremely developed logical thinking skills, a big attention to the word choice, and the ability to make generalizations and conclusions. Besides, while writing you work with different facts, reasoning, and evidence.

The Key Factors for Creating a Worthy Persuasive Essay

1. Define and clearly state your point of view. The message you want to share must be clear to everyone, otherwise, the readers won’t be able to accept your position.

2. Take a close look at your audience. Try to be in the place of your readers and feel their needs. It is a good technique that allows understanding readers’ feelings and emotions.

3. Find out the strongest supporting arguments. They will be your beacons pointing the way you should follow.

4. Consider the weightiest points of the opposing side. Successfully refuting the arguments of the opponents you increase the credibility of your position.

What Topics Should You Prefer?

While choosing you must be attentive and observe all the pros and cons. The appropriate topic shouldn’t be very complicated or overused. When you pick up some idea, first of all, determine its potential and source base. Try to deal with the topic that is close to you and might be potentially interesting to your readers.

Persuasive Essay Outline and Structure

No matter how inspired and confident in your own abilities you are, you can’t start writing without any plan. The way you present your essay plays a crucial role, and the more effective you do this the higher your chances to succeed are. Moreover, it makes the writing process easier and faster.

Traditionally, the persuasive essay outline consists of three main parts – introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion.

1. Introduction. The powerful introduction provides three elements that help to increase the number of readers.

• The first step is to begin your introduction with a hook, its main task is to grab readers’ attention and make them involved in the reading process.
• After that we recommend you to define your audience. By means of one or two sentences, you outline your target audience. Thus you give a hint to the readers and help them to determine whether they belong to this audience or not.
• Declare the thesis statement. This point will stimulate the acceptance of your position by the readers.

2. Body paragraphs are called to offer your reasons supported by the facts and examples. Always stay focused and stay on the previously chosen side. At this stage presentation logic and accuracy must be applied to every sentence. Argument + supporting fact and examples – this is the common formula for the body. You can quote writers, actors, artists, and scholars but don’t forget to offer some explanations. Make sure that you deal with reliable and authentic data.

3. The conclusion is the final point of the essay, that’s why it is just as important as the introduction. In order to completely convince the reader and leave no doubts, the excellent conclusion should cover three elements.

• Short summary. You do not retell or restate everything described in the body, you have to touch the most significant and compelling points of the text.
• Benefits for readers. Explain how the issue affects the human life, and how it may be applied to a broader context.
• Call to action. You appeal to the readers, in particular, their emotions and background. In this way, you suggest what actions the readers could take after the reading.