How to Write a Persuasive Essay

When writing a persuasive essay, your purpose is to convince your audience to embrace your idea or point of view. Keeping this purpose in mind is the key to writing an effective persuasion.

 

Essential steps for writing a persuasive essay:

1.    Identify your main idea or point of view. Your purpose will be to persuade your audience to accept this idea or point of view.

2.    Identify your audience. To write an effective persuasive essay, try to understand your audience. For example, are your readers undecided about your issue? Or are your readers hostile to your point of view?

3.    Considering your audience, identify the strongest supporting points for your persuasion.

4.    Identify the most significant opposing view. Explaining and then refuting the opposing view strengthens the credibility and scope of your essay.

How to organize your persuasive essay:

Introduction

·         Your introduction should hook your reader's attention and provide background information on your topic or controversy.

·         The paragraph should end with a clear statement of your main idea or point of view.

Body paragraphs

·         Your body paragraphs should present the points in support of your main idea.

·         Each body paragraph should focus on one point.

·         Be sure to provide evidence or examples for each point.

Opposing view

·         After presenting your supporting points, develop one paragraph to accurately explain and then refute the most significant opposing view.

Conclusion

·         Creatively restate your main idea and supporting points.

Try to leave your audience even more connected to your topic and persuaded by your main idea or perspective.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Writing a Conclusion for an Essay

The conclusion is the last paragraph of an essay. Although often brief in comparison with the other paragraphs, the conclusion performs a number of very significant functions.

When writing a conclusion for your essay, it's helpful to keep these basic considerations in mind:

·         Your conclusion is the last paragraph that your reader will encounter.

·         Your conclusion should remind your reader about the most important aspects of your essay.

·         In most essays, therefore, your conclusion should creatively restate the main idea of the essay.

·         Your conclusion should also leave your reader even more interested in your topic and idea.

·         For some essays, especially for persuasive or argumentative essays, it's particularly effective to end your conclusion by directly addressing your reader with a question or call for action.

Be sure to spend a good deal of time planning and writing your conclusion. A strong conclusion can resolve and fulfill your essay as a whole and make a real impact on your reader.