Persuasive Writing

Writing Mode #3 Persuasion

Writing Mode #3        Persuasion

Purpose:    

To persuade is to convince someone that a particular opinion or point of view is the correct one.

Pre-writing Suggestions:
•    Research
•    Outlining

Six-Trait Development:

Ideas:

Persuasion convinces someone that your opinion is correct.  However, your opinion must be based on evidence.  There are several types of evidence or methods of persuasion that can be used:

1.  Facts:  Facts are simply statements of what is.  They should appeal to the reader’s mind, not just to the emotions.  The source of your facts should be clear to the reader.  If you wish to prove that children’s eyesight should be checked every year by a doctor, you might look for supporting facts in appropriate books and magazines, or you might ask your eye doctor for information.   Your paper might say, “Many people suffer serious visual impairment later in life because they received insufficient or inadequate eye care when they were children, according to an article in Better Vision.”
    Avoid the vague, “everyone knows that” or “it is common knowledge that” or “they all say.”  Such statements will make your reader justifiably suspicious of your “facts.”

2.  Referring to an authority:  An authority is an expert, someone who can be relied on to give unbiased facts and information.  If you wish to convince your readers that asthma is a far more serious illness than most people realize, you might speak with an emergency0room physician about the numbers of patients treated for asthma attacks, or you might quote experts from the literature of national organizations like the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America or the American Lung Association.  These are all excellent and knowledgeable authorities whose opinions on medical matters would be considered valid and unbiased.
    Avoid appealing to “authorities” who are interesting or glamorous but who are not experts.  A basketball player certainly knows about sports, but probably knows little about cameras or cookware.

3.  Examples:  An example should clearly relate to the argument and should be typical enough to support it.  Avoid examples that are not typical enough to support your general statement.  That your friend was once bitten by a dog does not adequately prove that all dogs are dangerous pets.  Generalized examples (examples well-known in the community or press) do not necessarily require citation.  Specific case examples, however, must be cited just like facts.

4.  Predicting the consequence:  Predicting the consequence helps the reader visualize what will occur if something does or does not happen.  Avoid exaggerating the consequence.  For instance, telling the reader, “If our city doesn’t build more playgrounds, a crime wave will destroy our homes and businesses,” exaggerates the consequences.


It is always best to use a variety of these methods of persuasion and to find information from multiple sources.  



Organization:

Your thesis statement must very clearly identify your topic and your position on it.   Main ideas (opinions) must be extended by specific evidence (researched).  Sources for evidence must be cited near the evidence.  Summary statements at the end of paragraphs must tie evidence to main ideas and thesis statement.

Persuasion is organized emphatically—either from most important reason to least important reason or least important reason to most important reason.  Use transitions to link paragraphs and let the reader know you are giving another reason.

Voice:

Do not use first or second person.  Even though you are presenting opinions, presenting them in third person makes them seem more “official” than preceding them with “I think” or “in my opinion.”

Do not in any way personally attack or slander your opposition.  Attack ideas, not people!

 
Word Choice:

Persuasion is often researched.  Be familiar with the terms and key ideas surrounding your topic and use them correctly.  For example, if a student is doing a paper for or against the death penalty, he/she might also run into terms like capital punshiment, clemency, recidivism, etc.

Be wary of inflammatory language.  A person who would not be bothered is already on your side, so you aren’t actually persuading him/her.  A neutral or opposing person would be offended and won’t listen to your argument.

Sentence Fluency:

It takes practice to embed citation information so that it flows smoothly into the argument.  Avoid dropped quotations or statistics.

Conventions:

Always be sure to check for spelling, punctuation, usage, and mechanics.  

The point of view should be third person.  However, there are isolated incidents where 1st pov is okay if you are describing a personal experience as an example.

Any paper that includes source information must have a Works Cited.  A Works Cited is a list of all sources referenced in the body.  The format for a Works Cited is very specific.  Be sure to check your style guide carefully!



 

Last update: Thursday, May 4, 2006 at 2:05:35 PM
Copyright 2010 Mrs. Olson - English 7

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