An argumentative essay is one that makes a clear assertion or argument about some topic or issue. When you’re writing an argument essay, it’s important to remember that an academic argument is quite different from a regular, emotional argument.
In an academic argument, you’ll have a lot more constraints you have to consider, and you’ll focus much more on logic and reasoning than emotions. From Excelisor College
Read your assignment instructions carefully. Questions about your argumentative essay? Ask your instructor or TA.
Focusing your research topic is a challenging process which takes time and work. Try brainstorming through pre-writing strategies, creating a concept map, or asking questions to generate possible topics.
Create a working thesis statement.
Note that a working thesis will change as you work with your topic, and you will eventually create a final thesis statement.
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Choose the best sources for your assignment. Consider:
- Type of Source: Does it fulfill your assignment requirements and/or information needs?
- Relevance of Source: Is the source relevant to your research topic? Is it relevant to your discipline? How will it help you discuss your research question or thesis?
- Additional criteria: Consider the RADAR test to evaluate and select sources.
Look for patterns and themes in the research. Try using a note-taking worksheet to gather and analyze your research.
Consider the role of sources in your essay to decide how you will integrate them into your essay.
Develop an outline of your argumentative essay.
Consider how you will build a critical argument to explore your topic.
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Write a first draft. Be careful to construct a logical argument, with coherent paragraphs, and a strong introduction and conclusion.
Revise drafts of your work.
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