ARGUMENT ESSAY

Requirements

Essay Writing Prompt:

The Civil Rights leaders of the past and present greatly impact our lives. Write an argument essay explaining how your Civil Rights leader impacted society and showed perseverance in his or her life.

Introduction Paragraph

A good introductory paragraph begins with an attention grabber/hook and ends with a clear thesis statement (claim).

Attention Grabber/Hook IdeasTry getting the readers attention with one of these: The personal anecdote/story Ask three thought provoking, universal

questions (NOT the question/questions posed in the essay prompt)

Quotation, song lyric, or short poem Unusual, bizarre, or interesting fact or

statistic

Thesis Statement

A thesis statement helps to guide your writing.

In an argument essay, the thesis is your claim.

Claim: an opinion statement presented as a fact; it’s what you will be arguing

Thesis statement: (subject + claim = thesis statement)

Sample Thesis Statement

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was the greatest peaceful Civil Rights leader who persevered in his fight to gain equal rights for all.

Body Paragraph(s): Background Describe the education/early events that

lead to their influence. You must use at least one quote and correctly cite it.

Describe later life events that lead to their influence and how. You must use at least one quote and correctly cite it.

Body Paragraph(s): Argument

Describe how the civil rights leader influenced civil rights and how they impacted society (AKA their legacy). You must use at least one quote and correctly cite it.

In this paragraph, you must argue that your leader persevered.

You must also include counterarguments that describe how Anti-Civil Rights opponents acted or what they believed.

Argument Planner: Example

Reasons For: Reasons Against:Arguments to support my viewpoint

Arguments to oppose my viewpoint

WHO – WHAT- WHEN- WHERE- WHY

OPPOSITION-OBSTACLES

MLK, speech, 1963, Lincoln Memorial

His safety was in danger

He was trying to inspire a nation He was battling unfair laws

He was trying to inform a nation He was battling racist views

He wanted equal rights

Counterargument Starters:

Some people believed… Many people argued… Opponents of the Civil Rights movement

believed… Anti-Civil Rights supporters… Adversaries of equal rights…

Conclusion

A good conclusion paragraph ends by restating the thesis statement (claim).

Just like your introduction started with getting the reader’s attention with a hook, your conclusion must end similarly. End with a bang.

Use the same introduction techniques to end your essay. Anecdote/story, questions, quotations,

facts… Leave the reader with something to think

about.