Name_________________________________

Snapshot Persuasive Essay Format

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Body

Introduction

Hook 2-3 sentences

Thesis 1-2 sentences

Reason 1

First reason why you should be believed

Transition

Connects reason 1 to your reason 2

Reason 2

Second reason why you should be believed

Conclusion 2-3 sentencesRestate your 2 reasonsFull-circle ending (take something from your hook)Persuasive Technique

Call for actionRhetorical question

Thesis Statement

• A thesis is one or two sentences at the end of the introduction.

Your thesis statement must:

1.

2.

Ex. If your topic is, Write an essay stating your position on whether it is important to recycle, you must first state your position (it is important to recycle) and then provide two reasons why it is important to recycle (1. reduces pollution and 2. curbs energy consumption).

Ex. Thesis: Recycling is an invaluable practice that reduces pollution and curbs

energy consumption.

Thesis Statement Don’t

Another example: Topic: Write an essay stating your position on whether it should be legal to get married under the age of 18.

State your position: Marriage at a young age should not be allowed.Provide your two reasons to support your position:

1. It can cause a person to lose the desire to pursue his or her own dreams.2. It can cause a person to lose his or her chance to learn how to be

independent.

Read the two essay topics below. Write a thesis statement for both. You must include the two things a thesis statement must have.

State your position (choose only one side)

Give the 2 reasons why your position should be believed

R2R1Position

Never write a thesis with the phrase, “In this essay” “this essay will explain” or anything similar

WRITTEN COMPOSITION: Persuasive

TOPIC A

Read the following quotation.

So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past. From The Great Gatsby

Think carefully about the following statement. According to Fitzgerald, when people move on with their future, they are constantly carried back to their past.

Write an essay stating your position on whether it is important to hold on to your past as you move forward in life.

Be sure to — • state your position clearly• use appropriate organization• provide specific support for your argument• choose your words carefully• edit your writing for grammar, mechanics, and spelling

WRITTEN COMPOSITION: Persuasive

TOPIC B

Read the following quotation.

I couldn’t forgive him [Tom] or like him, but I saw that what he had done was, to him, entirely justified. It was all very careless and confused. They were careless people, Tom and Daisy — they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessness, or whatever it was that kept them together, and let other people clean up the mess they had made....

From The Great Gatsby

Think carefully about the following statement.

According to Nick, the narrator in The Great Gatsby, wealth is used to engage in and justify careless behavior.

Write an essay stating your position on whether wealth is more of a benefit or a detriment in a person’s life.

Be sure to — • state your position clearly• use appropriate organization• provide specific support for your argument• choose your words carefully• edit your writing for grammar, mechanics, and spelling

Write your thesis statement for Topic A in the box below. Label your position and reason 1 and 2.

Write your thesis statement for Topic B in the box below. Label your position and reason 1 and 2.

PositionIt is not important to hold on to your past because it can prevent a person from achieving desired goals and developing self-confidence.

It is important to hold on to your past because it can inspire change and develop empathy.

Wealth is more of a benefit in a person’s life. It can provide opportunities to help and to inspire people.

Wealth is more of a detriment in a person’s life. It creates carelessness and a lack of appreciation.

Hooking Your Reader with Your Introduction

What are 2 things that you must do concerning a hook?

1. ______________________________________________________________________________

2. ______________________________________________________________________________

HOOK DON’T

Identify the types of hooks by writing the correct type next to its example.

Simile- an unlike comparison that uses like or as Metaphor- a direct comparison that does not use like or as Personification- giving an inanimate object or animal a human quality Imagery- appeals to the senses Historical Event Quote Dialogue

_______________________________ Driving without a seatbelt is much like climbing Mount Everest without a safety harness. Being without a harness doesn’t mean you are going to fall but if you do, your chances of survival become a toss of the dice.

______________________________ As the Butterfinger smirked at me from the teacher’s desk, all I could think of was peeling off the wrapper and sneaking bites while the lesson droned on.

______________________________ Huddling around the fire for warmth in the morning used to be a luxury; now it’s becoming a necessity. Because of the rising cost of living, many people are turning off their electric heaters and depending solely on natural means for warmth, trying to cut costs in any way they can.

Lead it into the thesis (bridge sentence)

Keep it short (2-3 sentences)

Don’t address the reader in the hook or anywhere in your essay. “Do you agree?” Or “What do you believe?” Do not use “you”.

Simile

Personification

Imagery

_____________________________ 9-11 is a date that will forever be synonymous with tragedy. On that day in 2001, the world came to a crippling stop.

_____________________________ Our house slab after the hurricane was a replica of my bedroom floor. With clothes, odds and ends, and debris scattered everywhere, the resemblance was uncanny, even to the look of despair on my Mom’s face.

_____________________________ “I hate living in a small town! There’s nothing to do!” These words are spoken by small town kids across America.

_____________________________ When Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends,” he wasn’t describing MY friends, or so I thought until today when I waited in vain for my friends to defend me.

Choose one of the thesis statements that you wrote over the following prompts:

a. Write an essay stating your position on whether it is important to hold on to your past as you move forward in life.

b. Write an essay stating your position on whether wealth is more of a benefit or a detriment in a person’s life.

Write 1 of the types of hooks to introduce the topic you chose. Remember that a hook must lead into your thesis. If the thesis you wrote needs revision in order to connect to the hook, make the necessary changes.

Historical Event

Metaphor

Dialogue

Quote

The past is a beacon of light that can guide a person through their future path. It’s beam shines continuously as we move forward, so it’s important to hold onto it. A person’s past can inspire change and develop empathy.

Snapshot Persuasive Writing Body Paragraph Format and Evidence

Types of Evidence- Make your evidence BHIP!

B-________________________________________________________________________

H-________________________________________________________________________

I-________________________________________________________________________

P-________________________________________________________________________

DON’TS

Body Paragraph Format

• A good way to look at the format of a body paragraph is to think of an OER. A body paragraph should contain each part that an OER does.

FOR EXAMPLE:ANSWER- this is the topic sentence of a body paragraph. Ask yourself the question, “What is my first body paragraph over?” Then provide the answer to that question as the topic sentence. Let’s refer to the example topic, “Write an essay stating your position on whether it is important to take risks or play it safe.” Here’s the thesis for this topic: Life is more rewarding when risks are taken. A risk not only can improve the condition of a single life, but it has the power to change all of society. So, what will the first body paragraph be over? ANSWER- A risk can improve the condition of a single life. That’s the topic sentence!

BHIP provides the supporting details of your essay.

Books

History

In the news

Personal/people you know

Don’t use false or incorrect evidence (facts and statistics)

Don’t use “I think” or “I believe”

BACK IT UP- this is the evidence you will use to prove your claim. Just like in an OER, you must have proof. Make your evidence BHIP!

CONNECT AND CLARIFY- This is your concluding sentence that provides your final commentary so that your reader fully believes your point.

Here are two ways to conclude your body paragraphs:

1. Return to your position (RTP statement)- write a sentence that connects back to your position. This keeps you focused on your objective, which is to prove your position and to make the reader believe you.

RTP Stems: • It is clear that (state your position)/Clearly, (state your position) • It is evident that (state your position) • proving that (state your position) • clearly illustrating that (state your position) • for that reason (state your position)

Example: Here is an example from a body paragraph of an essay over whether it is important to recycle.

Manufacturing products using recycled materials consumes considerably less energy than the industrial processes used to create products from virgin resources. This process drastically reduces greenhouse gas emissions that pollute the air, which clearly illustrates the importance of recycling. (RTP statement)

2. rhetorical question- this is a question asked in order to create a dramatic effect or to make a point rather than to get an answer.

Example: Here is the same body paragraph that ends with a rhetorical question instead.

Manufacturing products using recycled materials consumes considerably less energy than the industrial processes used to create products from virgin resources. This process drastically reduces greenhouse gas emissions that pollute the air. Isn’t recycling worth creating an environment where children do not have to gasp for air? (rhetorical question)

DON’TS

Colorful Language

• Choosing your words carefully is crucial in a persuasive essay. You want your reader to believe your point.

• USE: o _____________________________________________________________________

Shakespeare’s quote, “They have been at a great feast of languages, and stol’n the scraps,” is a perfect example of poor word choice. So many specific words comprise our great language, but when you use words like “thing(s)”, “stuff”, or “very,” you are filling your essay with scraps. No one wants the scraps. Give your reader the “good food” and use stronger words- words that reflect a great feast of our language.

EXAMPLE: Find the “scraps” in the following sentence, and revise it so that it is “delicious.” Look for the weak or general words and make them specific.

Love is a thing that everyone wants in life.

REVISION:_______________________________________________________________________

• USE: o _____________________________________________________________________

EXAMPLE: "If we don’t move soon, we’re all going to die! Can’t you see how dangerous it would be to stay?"

• What emotion is appealed to?_____________________________________________________

• Highlight the words that help to establish that emotion.

Don’t begin your body paragraphs with reason 1, reason 2, or first, second.

Specific words

Love is an emotion that we all desire in life.

Words that evoke emotion/make people feel (pathos)

Fear/worry

thing(s) everything

something

anything

very stuff a lot

pretty good bad

Look for weak and general words, like those below, in your writing and replace them with stronger, more specific ones. It will make your writing tasty and delicious!

really

fun

great

everyone

• You must use a transition to connect your reason 1 to your reason 2. A transition will:

PRACTICE: Write a transition that connects the first reason to the second reason.

TOPIC: Write an essay stating your position on whether the minimum wage should be increased.

POSITION: The minimum wage should not be increased.

REASON 1: Increases to the minimum wage stifle the growth of small businesses. They depend on a thin profit margin and a high volume of sales, and a minimum wage increase threatens, if not destroys, its very existence.

TRANSITION:

REASON 2: Laws designed to increase the minimum wage rate prevent the young and unskilled from securing employment. The youth need experience more than they need money, and a high minimum wage rate forces employers to find experienced laborers who they feel are worthy of a higher salary.

Be the topic sentence for the reason 2 paragraph (the first sentence of the R2 paragraph)

Much like small businesses, the doors are closing on employment opportunities for young people in states that have raised the minimum wage.

If you are struggling with a transition, use the not-only...but statement.

CONCLUSIONS

Recap:

Your conclusion should contain 3 parts:

1. a full-circle ending, meaning something from your hook should tie back to your conclusion. Make sure that you don’t simply repeat your entire hook word-for-word.

2. restate your 2 reasons

3. contain one of the two types of persuasive techniques:o call for action- ask your reader to do something (do not use “you”)o rhetorical question (a rhetorical question must be meaningful, and it should not

address the reader (do not use “you”). The following is a formula that can help you construct rhetorical questions.

Rhetorical Question Formula

Ask if (the other position) is worth (the consequences of the other position)?

Example: Is not recycling and polluting the environment really worth children gasping for air?

Example Conclusion: The following is from an essay on whether children should play sports or just watch them.

Introduction: Identify and label each part of an introduction in the example below.

President John F. Kennedy captured the value of participating in sports when he said, “We do not want

our children to become a generation of spectators. Rather, we want each of them to become participants

in the vigorous life.” It is far more important for a child to play a sport than to passively watch it.

Participating in sports teaches valuable lessons and the importance of teamwork.

Conclusion: Identify and label each part of a conclusion in the example below.

Take Kennedy’s advice. Encourage kids to play sports, not just watch them because valuable lessons and

teamwork skills will shape their character with each point scored.

Hook-quote

Position

Full-circle ending Call for action

DON’T

• Your conclusion should be 2-3 sentences long.

In the box, rewrite the following conclusion that contains a call for action to include a rhetorical question.

“The Islamic State is an entity beyond the pale of humanity, and it must be eradicated. If we delay now, we will pay later.”

What is the call for action in the above conclusion?__________________________

Cool Technique: The Use of Opposites

• Persuasive essay topics address opposites (Good to recycle, bad to recycle. Increase minimum wage, don’t increase minimum wage. Risks are more important, playing it safe is more important.) A technique typically seen in persuasive writing is the use of opposites. A lot of times, the use of opposites appear in the conclusion to end with a technique that gives your writing impact that sticks with the reader.

• There is a list of opposites on the left of my webpage to help you. Open this list to give you an idea of what you might can use in your conclusion. Challenge yourself to include opposites in as many essays as you can!

• Look back at the above example. Highlight the opposites that are used in the conclusion.

• Take a look at the following conclusion. Highlight the use of opposites.

What politicians are interested in is what they can get the public to believe in the present and to vote on in the future.

Don’t use “In conclusion”

Use of oppositesTo stop ISIS

How many more lives must be lost before action is taken?

Use of opposites

Now take the following conclusion and rewrite it to include a call for action and a rhetorical question. Include the use of opposites in one example.

Increases to the minimum wage is just one of many policies that allow liberals to go around feeling good about themselves, while leaving havoc in their wake.

CALL-FOR-ACTION

RHETORICAL QUESTION

Example: Topic: Write an essay stating your position on whether America should embrace socialism.

The ugly face of socialism has destroyed the beauty of some countries, turning what could be termed a little piece of heaven on earth into hell. Let us commit that America shall not fall to the ugliness of socialism. For if that happens, where does the country go?

• Highlight the use of opposites in the above conclusion.• Which of the 2 persuasive techniques that you can use in your conclusion does the

example above contain?__________________________________

WRITE A CONCLUSION TO THE TOPIC YOU HAVE BEEN WORKING ON. MAKE IT A FULL-CIRCLE ENDING, RESTATE YOUR TWO REASONS, INCLUDE ONE OF THE TWO TYPES OF PERSUASIVE TECHNIQUES (RHETORICAL QUESTION OR CALL FOR ACTION), AND TRY TO USE THE OPPOSITES IF YOU CAN. CHALLENGE YOURSELF!

It’s time to start foreseeing the adverse consequences of minimum wage policies before it’s too late.

Can we really afford the loss of many employment opportunities for the gain of satisfaction for only a few?

Call for action

Rhetorical ques.

Both are used

Example Persuasive Essay

Topic: Write an essay stating your position on whether it is important to take risks or play it safe.

Whoever first said, “Without risk, there’s no reward,” could have spoken from a

deeply personal experience or could have simply made observations of the many gambles

in our history that had a huge return. It is true; life is more rewarding when risks are taken.

A risk not only can improve the condition of a single life, but it has the power to change all

of society.

A risk can be the difference between life and death for a person, as Dr. Kent Brantley

knows. The husband and the father of two small children contracted Ebola while in Africa

treating those with the virus. He felt his life slipping away, and he knew that a distance far

greater than the U.S. and Africa might come between him and his family at any moment. In

a risky move, he was evacuated to the U.S. and administered a highly experimental drug- a

drug that had never been tried in a human being. Despite not knowing the full effects of the

treatment, doctors took a risk, and now Dr. Brantley has recovered and is back in the arms

of his family. Without taking a chance however, he might have never hugged his children

again.

Some risks are powerful enough to reach far beyond that of a single individual. The

risks taken by Martin Luther King Jr. affected an entire society. He spoke out against the

injustices of segregation and fought for equality for all. His non--violent protests led to his

multiple arrests, and his pursuit for equality ultimately led to his assassination. His

significant risks sparked the civil rights movement, ended segregation, and forever changed

race relations in American society.

A risk has the twofold force of improving individuals and even all of society, so feel its power.

Be one to say, “Without risk, there’s no reward,” from personal experience and fully see how the

chances taken today can lead to rewards enjoyed tomorrow and many days to come.

Just imagine life without risks, without the use of experimental drugs that save lives,

without activists who fight to better society. What kind of life would that be?

Hook- quote

PositionBridge

R1 R2

Topic sentence (reason 1)

Concluding sentence (RTP statement)Transition

Call for action

Full-circle ending

Use of opposites

Rhetorical question