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Persuasive essays are texts with a certain structure, which are intended to convince the reader about a certain issue or problem. To do this, the author uses different arguments and persuasion techniques.
What is a persuasive essay
An essay is a text where the author explains a topic and presents his points of view or the opinion of experts, as well as statistics and other data that support it.
Regardless of the type, all essays consist of an introduction, a body or core, and a conclusion. The introduction includes an opening hook to capture the reader’s attention, as well as the thesis statement, that is, the topic to be covered. The body of the essay includes some paragraphs where the theme is developed and the evidence is included. Finally, the conclusion encompasses the most important points of the essay and, depending on its objective, invites the reader to action.
The term “persuasive” derives from the Latin verb persuadere , which means “to persuade”, “to advise”, “to convince”. This verb is made up of the Latin roots per -, which indicates the performance of a complete action, and suadere , which means “advise”, “recommend”, “convince”.
Therefore, a persuasive essay is a writing that seeks to persuade the reader through the organized presentation of arguments and the use of persuasion resources, generally appealing to emotions.
In persuasive essays, the goal is to report on a topic and try to convince the reader. The development of the essay seeks to answer questions such as: why, what benefits or advantages does it have, what is its importance, what is better, etc. Persuasive essays are commonly found in articles for advertising or political purposes.
Difference Between Persuasive Essay and Argumentative Essay
Unlike the argumentative essay , the persuasive essay offers a softer approach that engages the reader’s emotions, empathy, and credible arguments to fully convince the reader. On the other hand, the argumentative essay uses logical arguments and concrete evidence where other arguments are analyzed and refuted so that the reader can form their own opinion of it.
While the persuasive essay acknowledges opposing points of view, it generally doesn’t focus much on your analysis. Instead, the author tries to highlight his own perspective with more compelling language. Persuasive essays often appeal to the reader’s personal interests, social convictions, and emotion, and are therefore intended for a limited audience. By contrast, argumentative essays are often designed for a less specific audience.
How to write a persuasive essay
Like other types of essays, the persuasive essay has an introduction, a body, and a conclusion. However, within this structure, the persuasive essay differs from other texts and presents particular characteristics to take into account:
- Introduction : in this part it is important to highlight the purpose and thesis of the essay. It must include a “hook” that captures the interest of the reader.
- Body : here the content of the essay is extended and the persuasive arguments are presented. You can include evidence of all kinds and use rhetorical and persuasive writing techniques. For example:
- The pillars of rhetoric: pathos , ethos , and logos . Pathos is related to emotion ; ethos with credibility and logos with logic. By putting these three components together, an effective persuasive argument can be developed.
- Repetition: the body of the essay should incorporate repetition of the thesis as many times as possible to facilitate persuasion.
- Social endorsement: it is also convenient to add different quotes or testimonials that endorse the arguments expressed.
- Answer why: Giving reasons and explaining why is also one of the most effective persuasive strategies.
- Problem and Solution: You can list problems and offer potential solutions.
- Measurable data: can include statistical data, results of surveys and studies, among others.
- Forecast: this technique consists of predicting what would happen in the future to give more strength to the argument.
- Comparisons: This is another effective technique, especially if personal experiences or the experiences of other people are included.
- Telling stories: a good narration of a story that appeals to the emotion of the reader can also be very useful.
- Call to action: the persuasive essay can include a call to action in both the body and the conclusion to reinforce the persuasive tone of the essay.
- Conclusion : in this paragraph you should make a brief summary of the content of the essay and call to action or reinforce the idea that you want to convey.
In addition, the persuasive essay must have the following elements:
- Investigation: before writing the essay it is recommended to carry out an investigation on the subject to be treated and look for all the evidence that is required to prove the point of view.
- Style: the persuasive essay should be written maintaining a formal tone, avoiding the use of colloquial phrases, sarcasm, humorous phrases and informalities.
- Persuasion Techniques: It is essential to include some of the persuasion techniques, such as those mentioned above.
- Objective: it is important to clearly identify the objective of the essay in order to orient the text correctly and to persuade the reader.
- Audience: it is equally necessary to know the audience to which the essay will be intended, that is, the type of reader that you are trying to convince.
- Review: after writing the essay, it is convenient to review it again to detect possible errors, edit it or add what is missing.
100 topics to write persuasive essays
There are many interesting topics to practice writing this type of essay. Below is a list of 100 topics for writing persuasive essays.
Society
- The advantages of remote work.
- Why be a freelancer ?
- The benefits of being an influencer .
- Christmas is ideal for spending time with the family.
- Why it is convenient to shop during Black Friday .
- Having too much money is bad.
- Dogs are better pets than cats.
- Beauty standards are detrimental to the self-esteem of young people.
- Compulsory military service is required.
- Life is better than 50 years ago.
Philosophy and ethics
- Nuclear weapons should not exist.
- All cosmetic products should be vegan.
- Gun ownership should be prohibited.
- Why euthanasia should be a right.
- Why the death penalty should be banned.
- The existence of the soul.
- Racism should be illegal.
- Why abortion is not an ethical practice.
- Why the fetus should be considered as a person.
- The importance of critical thinking.
Education
- Handwriting and spelling are important.
- Why the school grading method should not exist.
- Why virtual classes should be implemented.
- Teaching a musical instrument is essential in school.
- The Montessori teaching method is the most effective.
- Technology should not replace books.
- Schools should offer more extracurricular activities.
- The school year should be longer.
- All schools must implement bullying awareness programs .
- All students must have the opportunity to study abroad.
Languages
- Why it is good to learn a foreign language.
- The advantage of knowing English.
- Why Mandarin Chinese is the language of the future.
- The importance of spelling.
- Knowing how to write well is better than having perfect pronunciation.
- Studying the phonetics of a language is important.
- Movies allow you to practice pronunciation.
- Living abroad helps to learn a language.
- Indigenous languages should be taught in schools.
- Education should be bilingual.
History
- Alien life is real.
- Ancient Greece was one of the most interesting historical civilizations.
- The Romans adopted the Greek architectural styles.
- Ancient Egypt was the most advanced ancient civilization.
- Why a Third World War is imminent.
- The importance of history in the present.
- Democratic governments are better.
- Socialism is a utopia.
- What was the importance of the French Revolution.
- Why the human population is on the verge of extinction.
Literature
- Why should children be encouraged to read?
- The novels in the Harry Potter saga are the most read of all time.
- The writers of before were better than the ones of now.
- There are many excellent writers in English literature.
- Fairy tales reinforce negative stereotypes.
- More inclusive children’s books should be published.
- Why we should practice writing essays.
- The importance of knowing how to write an essay.
- Why is reading important?
- Gabriel García Márquez is one of the most important authors in Latin America.
Entertainment
- Video games can be educational.
- Social media hurts teens.
- Why the internet can become an addiction.
- Mobile phones should never be used while driving.
- Children under the age of 15 should not have social networks.
- Why TV series are more entertaining than movies.
- Superhero movies are the most popular.
- Trap music is better than rap.
- Facebook and Instagram are the favorite social networks of teenagers.
- TikTok is one of the most fun apps.
Health
- The importance of practicing a sport.
- Why it is convenient to have a healthy diet.
- The sun and the open air improve health.
- Suppressed emotions cause disease.
- Laughter combats stress.
- People with less stress live longer.
- Why foods rich in sugars are harmful.
- Dark chocolate and red wine are healthy.
- Sports improve self-esteem.
- Having friends is important for mental health.
Lifestyles
- Why is it better to be a vegetarian?
- Why we shouldn’t be vegans.
- Eating meat is unethical.
- Why we should travel by caravan.
- The importance of recycling.
- Sustainable houses allow you to save more.
- Life in the country is better than life in the city.
- We should all grow our own vegetables.
- We should populate the planet Mars.
- Recreational marijuana should be legal worldwide.
Culture
- The importance of art in modern life.
- Why it is good to celebrate Christmas festivities.
- The Aztec culture influenced today’s Mexican culture.
- The Pachamama ritual must be preserved.
- Spanish culture is very present in Latin American cultures.
- It is important to know the typical customs of a local town.
- Oriental dance (or belly dance) is an ancient art.
- Museums should be more interactive.
- Halloween costume parties are an increasingly popular custom.
- The advantages of electronic music festivals.
Bibliography
- Escalante, E. How to write an essay: Practical guide. (2017, Kindle version). Spain. Edward Escalante.
- Condó, M. 10 precious persuasive writing techniques . Marinascribe.com. Available at: https://marinaescribe.com/articulos/10-tecnicas-escritura-persuasiva
- Romero, I. Persuasive Writing Techniques That Can Ruin Your Content . Available at: https://www.soyisabelromero.com/las-tecnicas-de-escritura-persuasiva-que-pueden-arruinar-tus-contenidos/
