Hi, I’m Mark and you’re watching EssayPro.
The Opinion Essay is perhaps one of the most basic essays you could write, as it follows
the usual five-paragraph essay structure: Intro Paragraph,
Three Paragraphs for each Supporting Argument, and the Conclusion.
Before you start writing, wouldn’t you agree that it’s extremely important that you understand
your own side of the argument before arguing it?
What this means is that you have to do enough research in order to offer a persuasive position
that can sway your reader’s opinion.
Do not add sources that show a clear bias, such as news organizations owned by dictatorships.
Make sure to engage in critical thinking.
You can find a good list of logical mistakes on rationalwiki.org in their Logic Portal
– the link is available in the description below.
Understanding how logical mistakes work is fundamental in arguing anything, and knowing
how to identify your own errors in logic will make you a better debater and establish you
as a critical thinker.
Another benefit of understanding how logical mistakes work, is that the better you are
at thinking this way, the better you will be at detecting fake news and/or false truths.
On to paragraph one: The Introduction. One of the fundamental parts of persuading
someone using an Opinion Essay is to have a strong Thesis Statement, so come up with
a statement that affirms your position.
The paragraph must also introduce the three main points, or Supporting Arguments, for
why your Thesis Statement is true.
Start with a sentence or question that hooks the reader, and then lay out your three main points,
and conclude your first paragraph with the Thesis Statement.
Here’s an example of a good thesis statement: “Nature is as equally important as Nurture
in determining human behavior.”
This specific topic is a tug-of-war for those studying our species, but the hard science
that is available offers great insight, and so you could extract a ton of data for your
argument.
--Make sure your thesis shows that you take a clear position on the issue you are trying
to debate
Paragraph two begins with your strongest supporting argument in the first sentence, or the topic
sentence.
Here’s an example we came up with for our first supporting argument: “Nurture
alone can’t explain human behaviour” To support your topic sentence, provide this
paragraph with at least two examples that illustrate why this supporting argument is
true.
Your examples can include cited work from academic sources, journalistic reports, and
so on.
An example of a credible cited source you could use to support your first argument could
be Professor Steven Pinker’s book The Blank Slate", which argues that it is both nature
and nurture that determines human behavior.
A good quote from the book discrediting the exclusively pro-nurture position would be:
“The environment is just as important as the genes.
The things children experience while they are growing up are just as important as the
things they are born with.”
This quote is good because it’s from a credible source and backs-up our supporting argument.
Paragraph three and four follow the same formula as paragraph two for these.
You will have a topic sentence for your supporting argument, and at least two examples for each
paragraph for evidence why your supporting argument is correct.
Paragraph five is your Conclusion, which begins with a restatement of the thesis.
It continues with additional commentary you might want to include.
And it concludes with thoughts, but does not provide any new concepts that would otherwise
require you to continue the essay.
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