IN ST RUCTIO NS F OR E SS AY 3: THE ARG UMENTATIVE ESSAY
You have now completed the pre-writing stages of finding a topic and sketching an outline. Review your Journal
Writing 5, Class Discussion 5, and the Preliminary Outline Assignments. Make any adjustments necessary to your
plan before you begin these next stages in the writing process.
STAG E 2: WRITING A WORKIN G DRAF T USI NG YOU R SKE LETON OU TLI NE
This essay assignment is designed to familiarize you with the form and structure of argument. For this reason,
you have been encouraged to explore issues of a more immediate nature. You have selected a topic that is
sufficiently narrow and focused, and one that you are sufficiently familiar with. This should allow you to write
the essay without using sources or research.
NOTE: Research and use of sources is not required for this essay, but if you choose to use information from
sources, you must cite the sources and use MLA Documentation Style.
In your pre-writing to discover a topic, you have been encouraged to avoid highly controversial or "hot
button" issues such as abortion, gun control, or other issues that have long been part of the public debate in
America. While you may be drawn to these kinds of topics out of personal conviction or the wide availability
of sources, they are simply too polarized and tired to be suitable for this kind of academic assignment.
Here are the specific requirements for Essay 3:
AUDIENCE: Direct the defense of your topic to a group of classmates who are reasonably educated and
informed. Imagine that they represent diverse ages, ethnicities, backgrounds, and gender.
LENGTH: The final draft of this essay should run about 3 -5 pages, or 600 - 1000 words.
STRUCTURE: You should be able to follow your preliminary outline to create your overall structure for this
essay.
Introduction: In the initial draft, simply state your topic, your claim (or viewpoint) that you plan to
defend, and a brief summary of your plan of presenting the evidence. You will want to return to this
introduction when you begin your revisions and rework it in terms of voice and interest.
Body: Each of your supporting points in your defense will need a paragraph. State your point as a
way of creating a topic sentence for an evidence paragraph. You'll need at least three and probably no
more than five. Each evidence paragraph should have specific support by way of facts, statistics,
examples, or other details. Since the topic is likely more immediate to you, you may use personal
example as some of your supporting detail, but try to use more objective support as well.
Counter-argument: Once you have presented your defense, you are ready to write a counter-
argument paragraph. Make sure you begin this paragraph with a clear transition that indicates a
counter position. For example, you could begin, "Some people disagree with the need for _______ and
feel that _______ is a more appropriate solution to this issue." The counter-argument paragraph should
clearly state the most reasonable counter position, briefly explain it, and then overcome it. Be fair and
respectful to your opposition! Remember that you are trying to win over those readers who don’t
