U.S. HISTORY

Argument Essay Examples

ESSAY PROMPT and CLAIMS: Essay Prompt: IT WAS INEVITABLE THAT

THE NORTH WOULD WIN THE CIVIL WAR. Claim One: The North had a stronger and better-

equipped army than the South.

Claim Two: The fight to end slavery gave the North a

strong cause to defeat the South.

Claim Three: The North had better fighting strategies than the South did.

CLAIM, GROUNDS, WARRANT Claim One:

They had a larger, better-equipped army.

Grounds: At the Battle of Gettysburg, the North had

120,000 troops, against the South’s 75,000. They also had xxx more guns than the South.

Warrant: Due, to their numerical advantage in

soldiers and weapons, they were able to defeat the Confederate Army.

Counter-Claim

Counter-Claim to Claim One: The South won several battles in the

Civil War were they were outnumbered. Refutation: Despite the fact the South won some

battles, they still lost many major engagements later in the war due to the North’s overwhelming force in troops and supplies.

Opening Statements and Thesis The opening statement should provide the

“setting” for the era that is being discussed in a historical paper.

For Example…The Civil War was a deadly conflict that ripped the United States apart for several years…

The thesis should be your overall argument as it relates to the topic (and may be a rephrasing of the essay prompt.)

Example…It was completely inevitable that the North would win the Civil War.

Other Example Claims 1) Reconstruction:

Reconstruction policies improved the lives of freed slaves in some ways.

Reconstruction did not allow for equality for Southern Blacks.

2) Western Settlement:- American settlers were able to gain land because of government policies.- Western settlement devastated the Indians.

3) Populism:- The Populist Party represented the voice of

American farmers.