Advanced Persuasive Techniques in Esssay Writing
Teach High School Students to Write Strong Persuasive Essays
Oct 31, 2008
The main purposes of a persuasive essay are to convince the reader that a certain point of view is valid and to encourage the reader to take a specific action or adopt a specific belief. By reminding your students throughout the persuasive writing process that this is their primary goal, you will help them stay focused and avoid the common pitfalls of persuasive writing. Here are some advanced techiques that will help them accomplish this goal.
Explore the Writing Topic
SInce a compelling argument must unfold throughout the essay and lead to a convincing summary in the conclusion paragraph, the following strategies should be implemented to help build momentum. Let's say that students are instructed to convince their readers whether the national voting age should be reduced to age sixteen. Students should first define the importance of this topic, articulate its relevance to teenagers. and state a specific position--for or against--the voting age being changed in a robust thesis statement..
Extended Examples
Once students select a position, they need to identify their reasons in defense of their position. However, reasons alone will not likely convince readers to agree with them. That's where the development of one or two well-developed examples are necessary to illustrate how the reasons are valid. Students can be encouraged to describe a hypothetical situation describing, for instance, a committed sixteen year old girl who is passionately committed to several issues being addressed in the current election. Once the scenario is set, other advanced persuasive techniques can be implemented.
Appeal to Emotion
Students want to discover ways to appeal to the emotions of their readers. In this case, the emotions students would like to reach might be compassion or support for the girl in the scenario. Readers may start to see that a sixteen year old girl might possess the interest and maturity to vote for her preferred political candidate because they have emotionally related to her in some way.
Appeal to Logic
Students can use logical reasoning when developing the reasons for their position. In this case, they would use their extended example of a committed sixteen year old girl to show that it is logical she be permitted to vote, and walk through that line of reasoning in one of the body paragraphs of the essay. When ideas are presented as being merely common sense, then readers are more likely to keep an open mind with the perspective one is sharing with them.
Altering Diction
Instruct students to adopt an authoritative, persuasive tone throughout their essays to help convince readers of the validity of their position on the given topic. They must avoid phrases such as “I think” or “I believe” because it weakens their argument. It is assumed that what students write is their opinion. Instead, students should vigorously argue their point, keeping them clear and concise for the reader. This will also help create a sense of urgency and importance for the topic being discussed.
FInally, when students finish writing their essay, instruct them to use revision and editing checklist to improve their first draft. In additon to this checklist, students need to review their essay as a persuasive piece of writing. Does it feel convincing? Is there anything the student should add in order to further drive their points home to the reader? Students can drastically improve the persuasive quality of their essays with a bit of reflection and analysis once the essay has been drafted.
