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40 Strong Persuasive Writing Examples (Essays, Speeches, Ads, and More)
Learn from the experts.
The more we read, the better writers we become. Teaching students to write strong persuasive essays should always start with reading some top-notch models. This round-up of persuasive writing examples includes famous speeches, influential ad campaigns, contemporary reviews of famous books, and more. Use them to inspire your students to write their own essays. (Need persuasive essay topics? Check out our list of interesting persuasive essay ideas here! )
- Persuasive Essays
- Persuasive Speeches
- Advertising Campaigns
Persuasive Essay Writing Examples
From the earliest days of print, authors have used persuasive essays to try to sway others to their own point of view. Check out these top persuasive essay writing examples.
Professions for Women by Virginia Woolf
Sample lines: “Outwardly, what is simpler than to write books? Outwardly, what obstacles are there for a woman rather than for a man? Inwardly, I think, the case is very different; she has still many ghosts to fight, many prejudices to overcome. Indeed it will be a long time still, I think, before a woman can sit down to write a book without finding a phantom to be slain, a rock to be dashed against. And if this is so in literature, the freest of all professions for women, how is it in the new professions which you are now for the first time entering?”
The Crisis by Thomas Paine
Sample lines: “These are the times that try men’s souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands by it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly: it is dearness only that gives every thing its value.”
Politics and the English Language by George Orwell
Sample lines: “As I have tried to show, modern writing at its worst does not consist in picking out words for the sake of their meaning and inventing images in order to make the meaning clearer. It consists in gumming together long strips of words which have already been set in order by someone else, and making the results presentable by sheer humbug.”
Letter From a Birmingham Jail by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Sample lines: “We know through painful experience that freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed. Frankly, I have yet to engage in a direct action campaign that was ‘well timed’ in the view of those who have not suffered unduly from the disease of segregation. For years now I have heard the word ‘Wait!’ It rings in the ear of every Negro with piercing familiarity. This ‘Wait’ has almost always meant ‘Never.’ We must come to see, with one of our distinguished jurists, that ‘justice too long delayed is justice denied.'”
Civil Disobedience by Henry David Thoreau
Sample lines: “Even voting for the right is doing nothing for it. It is only expressing to men feebly your desire that it should prevail. A wise man will not leave the right to the mercy of chance, nor wish it to prevail through the power of the majority. There is but little virtue in the action of masses of men.”
Go Gentle Into That Good Night by Roger Ebert
Sample lines: “‘Kindness’ covers all of my political beliefs. No need to spell them out. I believe that if, at the end of it all, according to our abilities, we have done something to make others a little happier, and something to make ourselves a little happier, that is about the best we can do. To make others less happy is a crime.”
The Way to Wealth by Benjamin Franklin
Sample lines: “Methinks I hear some of you say, must a man afford himself no leisure? I will tell thee, my friend, what Poor Richard says, employ thy time well if thou meanest to gain leisure; and, since thou art not sure of a minute, throw not away an hour. Leisure is time for doing something useful; this leisure the diligent man will obtain, but the lazy man never; so that, as Poor Richard says, a life of leisure and a life of laziness are two things.”
The Crack-Up by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Sample lines: “Of course all life is a process of breaking down, but the blows that do the dramatic side of the work—the big sudden blows that come, or seem to come, from outside—the ones you remember and blame things on and, in moments of weakness, tell your friends about, don’t show their effect all at once.”
Open Letter to the Kansas School Board by Bobby Henderson
Sample lines: “I am writing you with much concern after having read of your hearing to decide whether the alternative theory of Intelligent Design should be taught along with the theory of Evolution. … Let us remember that there are multiple theories of Intelligent Design. I and many others around the world are of the strong belief that the universe was created by a Flying Spaghetti Monster. … We feel strongly that the overwhelming scientific evidence pointing towards evolutionary processes is nothing but a coincidence, put in place by Him. It is for this reason that I’m writing you today, to formally request that this alternative theory be taught in your schools, along with the other two theories.”
Open Letter to the United Nations by Niels Bohr
Sample lines: “Humanity will, therefore, be confronted with dangers of unprecedented character unless, in due time, measures can be taken to forestall a disastrous competition in such formidable armaments and to establish an international control of the manufacture and use of the powerful materials.”
Persuasive Speech Writing Examples
Many persuasive speeches are political in nature, often addressing subjects like human rights. Here are some of history’s most well-known persuasive writing examples in the form of speeches.
I Have a Dream by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Sample lines: “And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream. I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.”
Woodrow Wilson’s War Message to Congress, 1917
Sample lines: “There are, it may be, many months of fiery trial and sacrifice ahead of us. It is a fearful thing to lead this great peaceful people into war, into the most terrible and disastrous of all wars, civilization itself seeming to be in the balance. But the right is more precious than peace, and we shall fight for the things which we have always carried nearest our hearts—for democracy, for the right of those who submit to authority to have a voice in their own governments, for the rights and liberties of small nations, for a universal dominion of right by such a concert of free peoples as shall bring peace and safety to all nations and make the world itself at last free.”
Chief Seattle’s 1854 Oration
Sample lines: “I here and now make this condition that we will not be denied the privilege without molestation of visiting at any time the tombs of our ancestors, friends, and children. Every part of this soil is sacred in the estimation of my people. Every hillside, every valley, every plain and grove, has been hallowed by some sad or happy event in days long vanished. Even the rocks, which seem to be dumb and dead as they swelter in the sun along the silent shore, thrill with memories of stirring events connected with the lives of my people, and the very dust upon which you now stand responds more lovingly to their footsteps than yours, because it is rich with the blood of our ancestors, and our bare feet are conscious of the sympathetic touch.”
Women’s Rights Are Human Rights, Hillary Rodham Clinton
Sample lines: “What we are learning around the world is that if women are healthy and educated, their families will flourish. If women are free from violence, their families will flourish. If women have a chance to work and earn as full and equal partners in society, their families will flourish. And when families flourish, communities and nations do as well. … If there is one message that echoes forth from this conference, let it be that human rights are women’s rights and women’s rights are human rights once and for all.”
I Am Prepared to Die, Nelson Mandela
Sample lines: “Above all, My Lord, we want equal political rights, because without them our disabilities will be permanent. I know this sounds revolutionary to the whites in this country, because the majority of voters will be Africans. This makes the white man fear democracy. But this fear cannot be allowed to stand in the way of the only solution which will guarantee racial harmony and freedom for all. It is not true that the enfranchisement of all will result in racial domination. Political division, based on color, is entirely artificial and, when it disappears, so will the domination of one color group by another. … This then is what the ANC is fighting. Our struggle is a truly national one. It is a struggle of the African people, inspired by our own suffering and our own experience. It is a struggle for the right to live.”
The Struggle for Human Rights by Eleanor Roosevelt
Sample lines: “It is my belief, and I am sure it is also yours, that the struggle for democracy and freedom is a critical struggle, for their preservation is essential to the great objective of the United Nations to maintain international peace and security. Among free men the end cannot justify the means. We know the patterns of totalitarianism—the single political party, the control of schools, press, radio, the arts, the sciences, and the church to support autocratic authority; these are the age-old patterns against which men have struggled for 3,000 years. These are the signs of reaction, retreat, and retrogression. The United Nations must hold fast to the heritage of freedom won by the struggle of its people; it must help us to pass it on to generations to come.”
Freedom From Fear by Aung San Suu Kyi
Sample lines: “Saints, it has been said, are the sinners who go on trying. So free men are the oppressed who go on trying and who in the process make themselves fit to bear the responsibilities and to uphold the disciplines which will maintain a free society. Among the basic freedoms to which men aspire that their lives might be full and uncramped, freedom from fear stands out as both a means and an end. A people who would build a nation in which strong, democratic institutions are firmly established as a guarantee against state-induced power must first learn to liberate their own minds from apathy and fear.”
Harvey Milk’s “The Hope” Speech
Sample lines: “Some people are satisfied. And some people are not. You see there is a major difference—and it remains a vital difference—between a friend and a gay person, a friend in office and a gay person in office. Gay people have been slandered nationwide. We’ve been tarred and we’ve been brushed with the picture of pornography. In Dade County, we were accused of child molestation. It is not enough anymore just to have friends represent us, no matter how good that friend may be.”
The Union and the Strike, Cesar Chavez
Sample lines: “We are showing our unity in our strike. Our strike is stopping the work in the fields; our strike is stopping ships that would carry grapes; our strike is stopping the trucks that would carry the grapes. Our strike will stop every way the grower makes money until we have a union contract that guarantees us a fair share of the money he makes from our work! We are a union and we are strong and we are striking to force the growers to respect our strength!”
Nobel Lecture by Malala Yousafzai
Sample lines: “The world can no longer accept that basic education is enough. Why do leaders accept that for children in developing countries, only basic literacy is sufficient, when their own children do homework in algebra, mathematics, science, and physics? Leaders must seize this opportunity to guarantee a free, quality, primary and secondary education for every child. Some will say this is impractical, or too expensive, or too hard. Or maybe even impossible. But it is time the world thinks bigger.”
Persuasive Writing Examples in Advertising Campaigns
Ads are prime persuasive writing examples. You can flip open any magazine or watch TV for an hour or two to see sample after sample of persuasive language. Here are some of the most popular ad campaigns of all time, with links to articles explaining why they were so successful.
Nike: Just Do It
The iconic swoosh with the simple tagline has persuaded millions to buy their kicks from Nike and Nike alone. Teamed with pro sports-star endorsements, this campaign is one for the ages. Blinkist offers an opinion on what made it work.
Dove: Real Beauty
Beauty brand Dove changed the game by choosing “real” women to tell their stories instead of models. They used relatable images and language to make connections, and inspired other brands to try the same concept. Learn why Global Brands considers this one a true success story.
Wendy’s: Where’s the Beef?
Today’s kids are too young to remember the cranky old woman demanding to know where the beef was on her fast-food hamburger. But in the 1980s, it was a catchphrase that sold millions of Wendy’s burgers. Learn from Better Marketing how this ad campaign even found its way into the 1984 presidential debate.
De Beers: A Diamond Is Forever
A diamond engagement ring has become a standard these days, but the tradition isn’t as old as you might think. In fact, it was De Beers jewelry company’s 1948 campaign that created the modern engagement ring trend. The Drum has the whole story of this sparkling campaign.
Volkswagen: Think Small
Americans have always loved big cars. So in the 1960s, when Volkswagen wanted to introduce their small cars to a bigger market, they had a problem. The clever “Think Small” campaign gave buyers clever reasons to consider these models, like “If you run out of gas, it’s easy to push.” Learn how advertisers interested American buyers in little cars at Visual Rhetoric.
American Express: Don’t Leave Home Without It
AmEx was once better known for traveler’s checks than credit cards, and the original slogan was “Don’t leave home without them.” A simple word change convinced travelers that American Express was the credit card they needed when they headed out on adventures. Discover more about this persuasive campaign from Medium.
Skittles: Taste the Rainbow
These candy ads are weird and intriguing and probably not for everyone. But they definitely get you thinking, and that often leads to buying. Learn more about why these wacky ads are successful from The Drum.
Maybelline: Maybe She’s Born With It
Smart wordplay made this ad campaign slogan an instant hit. The ads teased, “Maybe she’s born with it. Maybe it’s Maybelline.” (So many literary devices all in one phrase!) Fashionista has more on this beauty campaign.
Coca-Cola: Share a Coke
Seeing their own name on a bottle made teens more likely to want to buy a Coke. What can that teach us about persuasive writing in general? It’s an interesting question to consider. Learn more about the “Share a Coke” campaign from Digital Vidya.
Always: #LikeaGirl
Talk about the power of words! This Always campaign turned the derogatory phrase “like a girl” on its head, and the world embraced it. Storytelling is an important part of persuasive writing, and these ads really do it well. Medium has more on this stereotype-bashing campaign.
Editorial Persuasive Writing Examples
Newspaper editors or publishers use editorials to share their personal opinions. Noted politicians, experts, or pundits may also offer their opinions on behalf of the editors or publishers. Here are a couple of older well-known editorials, along with a selection from current newspapers.
Yes, Virginia, There Is a Santa Claus (1897)
Sample lines: “Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! How dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus. It would be as dreary as if there were no Virginias.”
What’s the Matter With Kansas? (1896)
Sample lines: “Oh, this IS a state to be proud of! We are a people who can hold up our heads! What we need is not more money, but less capital, fewer white shirts and brains, fewer men with business judgment, and more of those fellows who boast that they are ‘just ordinary clodhoppers, but they know more in a minute about finance than John Sherman,’ we need more men … who hate prosperity, and who think, because a man believes in national honor, he is a tool of Wall Street.”
America Can Have Democracy or Political Violence. Not Both. (The New York Times)
Sample lines: “The nation is not powerless to stop a slide toward deadly chaos. If institutions and individuals do more to make it unacceptable in American public life, organized violence in the service of political objectives can still be pushed to the fringes. When a faction of one of the country’s two main political parties embraces extremism, that makes thwarting it both more difficult and more necessary. A well-functioning democracy demands it.”
The Booster Isn’t Perfect, But Still Can Help Against COVID (The Washington Post)
Sample lines: “The booster shots are still free, readily available and work better than the previous boosters even as the virus evolves. Much still needs to be done to build better vaccines that protect longer and against more variants, including those that might emerge in the future. But it is worth grabbing the booster that exists today, the jab being a small price for any measure that can help keep COVID at bay.”
If We Want Wildlife To Thrive in L.A., We Have To Share Our Neighborhoods With Them (Los Angeles Times)
Sample lines: “If there are no corridors for wildlife movement and if excessive excavation of dirt to build bigger, taller houses erodes the slope of a hillside, then we are slowly destroying wildlife habitat. For those people fretting about what this will do to their property values—isn’t open space, trees, and wildlife an amenity in these communities?”
Persuasive Review Writing Examples
Book or movie reviews are more great persuasive writing examples. Look for those written by professionals for the strongest arguments and writing styles. Here are reviews of some popular books and movies by well-known critics to use as samples.
The Great Gatsby (The Chicago Tribune, 1925)
Sample lines: “What ails it, fundamentally, is the plain fact that it is simply a story—that Fitzgerald seems to be far more interested in maintaining its suspense than in getting under the skins of its people. It is not that they are false: It is that they are taken too much for granted. Only Gatsby himself genuinely lives and breathes. The rest are mere marionettes—often astonishingly lifelike, but nevertheless not quite alive.”
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (The Washington Post, 1999)
Sample lines: “Obviously, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone should make any modern 11-year-old a very happy reader. The novel moves quickly, packs in everything from a boa constrictor that winks to a melancholy Zen-spouting centaur to an owl postal system, and ends with a scary surprise. Yet it is, essentially, a light-hearted thriller, interrupted by occasional seriousness (the implications of Harry’s miserable childhood, a moral about the power of love).”
Twilight (The Telegraph, 2009)
Sample lines: “No secret, of course, at whom this book is aimed, and no doubt, either, that it has hit its mark. The four Twilight novels are not so much enjoyed, as devoured, by legions of young female fans worldwide. That’s not to say boys can’t enjoy these books; it’s just that the pages of heart-searching dialogue between Edward and Bella may prove too long on chat and too short on action for the average male reader.”
To Kill a Mockingbird (Time, 1960)
Sample lines: “Author Lee, 34, an Alabaman, has written her first novel with all of the tactile brilliance and none of the preciosity generally supposed to be standard swamp-warfare issue for Southern writers. The novel is an account of an awakening to good and evil, and a faint catechistic flavor may have been inevitable. But it is faint indeed; novelist Lee’s prose has an edge that cuts through cant, and she teaches the reader an astonishing number of useful truths about little girls and about Southern life.”
The Diary of Anne Frank (The New York Times, 1952)
Sample lines: “And this quality brings it home to any family in the world today. Just as the Franks lived in momentary fear of the Gestapo’s knock on their hidden door, so every family today lives in fear of the knock of war. Anne’s diary is a great affirmative answer to the life-question of today, for she shows how ordinary people, within this ordeal, consistently hold to the greater human values.”
What are your favorite persuasive writing examples to use with students? Come share your ideas in the WeAreTeachers HELPLINE group on Facebook .
Plus, the big list of essay topics for high school (120+ ideas) ..
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Are you looking to improve your persuasive writing skills?
One of the best ways to do that is by reading persuasive essay examples. These examples can show you how to structure your arguments effectively.
But finding good examples can be a challenge. Don't worry, though – we've gathered some helpful persuasive essays for you right here!
So, if you're in search of persuasive essay examples to help you write your own, you're in the right place.
Keep reading this blog to explore various examples
- 1. Persuasive Essay Examples For Students
- 2. Persuasive Essay Examples for Different Formats
- 3. Persuasive Essay Outline Examples
- 4. Persuasive Essay Format Example
- 5. How to Write A Persuasive Essay With Examples
- 6. How to End a Persuasive Essay Examples
- 7. Catchy Persuasive Essay Topics
Persuasive Essay Examples For Students
A persuasive essay aims to convince the reader of the author’s point of view.
To find the right path for your essay, it's helpful to go through some examples. Similarly, good essay examples also help to avoid any potential pitfalls and offer clear information to the readers to adopt.
Here are some persuasive essay examples pdf:
3rd-grade Persuasive Essay Example
4th-grade Persuasive Essay Example
Persuasive Essay Example 5th-grade pdf
Persuasive Essay Examples for 6th Grade pdf
7th-grade Persuasive Essay Example
8th-grade Persuasive Essay Example
Persuasive Essay Examples Grade 10
11th-grade Persuasive Essay Example
Persuasive Writing Example For Kids
Persuasive Essay Examples High School
The following are good persuasive essay examples for high school. Having a look at them will help you understand better.
High-school Persuasive Essay Example
Examples of Persuasive Essay in Everyday Life
Persuasive Essay Examples for Middle School
Check out these persuasive essay examples for middle school to get a comprehensive idea of the format structure.
Persuasive Essay Examples Middle School
Short Persuasive Essay Example
Persuasive Essay Examples for College Students
Essay writing at the college level becomes more difficult and complicated. We have provided you with top-notch college persuasive and argumentative essay examples here.
Read them to understand the essay writing process easily.
Persuasive Essay Examples College
Higher English Persuasive Essay Example
Persuasive Essay About Smoking
Argumentative and Persuasive Examples
Persuasive Essay Examples For University
It becomes even more challenging to draft a perfect essay at the university level. Have a look at the below examples of a persuasive essay to get an idea of writing one.
University Persuasive Essay Example
5 Paragraph Persuasive Essay Example
Persuasive Essay Examples for Different Formats
A persuasive essay can be written in several formats. For instance, you can write the usual 5-paragraph essay, or even something longer or shorter.
Below are a few sample essays in various common formats.
Persuasive Essay Examples 5 Paragraph
Persuasive Essay Examples 3 Paragraph
Short Persuasive Essay Examples
These examples tell you how to remain convincing and persuasive regardless of the essay format you use.
Persuasive Essay Outline Examples
Creating an impressive outline is the most important step for writing a persuasive essay. It helps to organize thoughts and make the writing process easier.
A standard outline consists of the following sections.
- Introduction
- Body Paragraphs
Have a look at the following persuasive essay outline template examples.
Persuasive Essay Outline
Persuasive Essay Template
Persuasive Essay Format Example
A persuasive essay outline is bound to follow a specific format and structure. The main elements of a persuasive essay format are as follows.
- Font: Times New Roman, Georgia, or Arial
- Font Size: 16pt for the headlines and 12pt for the rest of the text
- Alignment: Justified
- Spacing: Double spacing
- Word Count: It usually contains 500 to 2000 words
How to Write A Persuasive Essay With Examples
Planning an essay before starting writing is essential to produce an organized and structured writing piece. So, it is better to understand the concept beforehand to impress your instructor.
The below example will show a good starting to an essay.
A Good Start for a Persuasive Essay - Short Example
How to Start a Persuasive Essay Examples
The introduction is the first part of an essay and your first chance to grab the reader's attention. It should clearly state the essay's purpose and give the reader a clear idea of what to expect.
A compelling persuasive essay introduction must have the following elements.
- Hook statement + topic
- A strong thesis statement
- Your arguments
Here are some examples of persuasive essay introductions to help you make a compelling start:
Introduction Persuasive Essay Example
Persuasive Essay Thesis Statement Examples
Persuasive Essay Hook Examples
How to End a Persuasive Essay Examples
Just like the introduction, the conclusion of the persuasive essay is equally important. It is considered as the last impression of your writing piece to the audience.
A good conclusion paragraph must include the following aspects.
- Restate the thesis statement or hypothesis
- Summarize the key arguments
- Avoid being obvious
- Include a call to action
Have a look at the document to explore the sample conclusions of a persuasive essay.
Conclusion Persuasive Essay Examples
Catchy Persuasive Essay Topics
Now that you have read some good examples, it's time to write your own persuasive essay.
But what should you write about? You can write persuasive essays about any topic, from business and online education to controversial topics like abortion , gun control , and more.
Here is a list of ten persuasive essay topics that you can use to grab your reader's attention and make them think:
- Should the government increase taxes to fund public health initiatives?
- Is the current education system effective in preparing students for college and the workplace?
- Should there be tighter gun control laws?
- Should schools have uniforms or a dress code?
- Are standardized tests an accurate measure of student performance?
- Should students be required to take physical education courses?
- Is undocumented immigration a legitimate cause for concern in the United States?
- Is affirmative action still necessary in today’s society?
- How much, if any, regulation should there be on technology companies?
- Is the death penalty an appropriate form of punishment for serious crimes?
Check out two examples on similar topics:
Political Persuasive Essay Examples
Persuasive Essay Examples About Life
Need more topic ideas? Check out our extensive list of unique persuasive essay topics and get started!
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In a world brimming with information, persuasion is a valuable skill. Whether you’re a marketer aiming to sway consumers, a politician seeking votes, or a writer hoping to engage and inform, persuasive writing is your secret weapon. It’s the art of crafting words and arguments that convince, influence, and inspire action, presenting many persuasive writing examples to underscore your viewpoint.
Have you ever wondered what sets persuasive writing apart from the rest? How does it work, and why is it so powerful? In this blog, we’ll delve deep into the world of writing persuasive essays, exploring its techniques, psychology, and real-world applications, including persuasive writing examples. When you finish reading, you’ll understand the fundamentals and have the tools to apply persuasive writing in your endeavors.
So, let’s embark on a journey into the realm of words and ideas, where the power of persuasion awaits. Join us as we uncover the strategies and secrets behind compelling narratives and convincing arguments and learn how to master the art of persuasive writing.
Understanding Persuasive Writing
Persuasive writing is an art that shapes our decisions, beliefs, and actions daily. Whether convincing a friend to try a new restaurant, supporting a political candidate, or buying a product, persuasive elements are ever-present. To master persuasive writing, it’s crucial to comprehend the underlying psychology that drives it.
writers must understand how people think and make choices. One of the key foundations of writing persuasive essays is Aristotle’s three modes of persuasion: ethos, pathos, and logos. These principles are the building blocks of effective communication. Understanding and utilizing persuasive writing examples that incorporate ethos (ethical appeal), pathos (emotional appeal), and logos (logical appeal) can significantly enhance the impact of persuasive writing by appealing to the audience’s emotions, ethics, and reasoning.
Ethos involves establishing the credibility and authority of the speaker or writer. It’s about showcasing your expertise, trustworthiness, and authority on the subject matter. An audience is more likely to be persuaded by someone they perceive as a credible source. Exploring persuasive writing examples that effectively utilize ethos can provide a deeper understanding of how credibility and authority are established to influence an audience.
Pathos taps into emotions. It’s about crafting your writing to resonate with your audience’s feelings, values, and desires. Emotional appeal can be a potent tool in persuasion to convince the reader, as it forges a connection with readers on a personal level.
Logos employs logic and reasoning. It involves using evidence, data, and well-structured arguments to support your claims. A logically sound argument can bolster your persuasive efforts, especially when dealing with a rational or analytical audience.
In addition to these three principles, it’s important to recognize the role of cognitive biases in persuasion. Human brains often take cognitive shortcuts, resulting in biases that influence decision-making. By understanding these biases, such as confirmation bias, anchoring, and the bandwagon effect, writers can strategically shape their persuasive content to convince the reader to work with, rather than against, these cognitive tendencies.
Furthermore, the power of storytelling should not be underestimated. People are naturally drawn to write narratives. A well-told story can captivate, resonate, and persuade better than a dry recitation of facts. By weaving persuasive elements into a compelling narrative, writers can engage their audience on a deep, emotional level.
Persuasive Writing in Professional Life
Effective writing to write persuasive content is a versatile and significant tool in numerous professional scenarios. Whether in a corporate setting or freelancing, knowing how to wield the power of words can greatly enhance your career prospects and bring about desired outcomes. Here are five situations where persuasive writing is particularly effective:
1. Marketing and Advertising Campaigns
To write persuasive essays lies at the core of marketing and advertising efforts. Crafting compelling and engaging copy that resonates with the target audience can persuade consumers to purchase products, subscribe to services, or take specific actions. Successful marketers use persuasive language, storytelling, and emotion-evoking content to connect strongly with potential customers.
2. Business Proposals and Reports
When presenting business proposals, reports, or recommendations, a persuasive essay can make a substantial difference. Convincing stakeholders or decision-makers to endorse your ideas, allocate resources, or support your strategies often hinges on how effectively you can articulate the benefits and potential returns on investment.
3. Sales Emails and Correspondence
Sales professionals and account managers frequently employ persuasive writing techniques in their emails and client communication. Skillful use of persuasive language, personalized content, and the presentation of unique selling points can win over potential clients, retain existing customers, and close deals.
4. Job Applications and Resumes
In the competitive job market, a persuasive essay is vital for crafting attention-grabbing resumes and compelling cover letters. The ability to present your skills, experiences, and qualifications persuasively can help you stand out among a sea of applicants, ultimately securing interviews and job offers.
5. Public Relations and Crisis Management
Persuasive writing plays a crucial role in managing public relations and handling crises. Communicating effectively during challenging situations requires language that can restore trust, mitigate damage, and convey a sense of responsibility and accountability.
As we’ve explored the power of persuasive writing in professional life, let’s now delve into crafting a persuasive message for specific scenarios.
Crafting A Persuasive Message
Creating a persuasive message is an art that combines the mastery of language, psychology, and strategy. To write a great persuasive message, you need to consider various elements and techniques that can captivate and influence your audience effectively. Here are some techniques how:
Establish Compelling Statement
Your persuasive message should begin with a concise and powerful thesis statement. This statement serves as the core idea you want to convey to your audience. It should be clear, specific, and easily understood. For example, suppose you’re writing a persuasive essay on the importance of recycling. In that case, your thesis statement might be: “Recycling reduces waste and conserves resources, making it an essential practice for a sustainable future.”
Structure Your Arguments
The structure of your message plays a crucial role in how persuasive it is. Arrange your arguments logically, beginning with the strongest points and gradually leading to the supporting details. This structure not only reinforces your main thesis but also ensures your audience remains engaged. An effective structure guides the reader from their initial skepticism to a point of agreement or action.
Use Persuasive Language
Employ persuasive language and rhetorical devices to make your message more convincing. These include metaphors, analogies, vivid imagery, and emotionally charged words. For example, in a persuasive speech advocating for better healthcare access, you could use the metaphor, “Healthcare is the cornerstone of a strong, healthy society,” to evoke a powerful image.
Address Counterarguments
Acknowledging and addressing potential counterarguments in your message demonstrates that you’ve thoroughly considered the issue. Anticipating and refuting opposing viewpoints adds credibility to your argument and reassures your audience. For instance, if you’re advocating for a particular environmental policy, address common objections and provide compelling counterarguments to debunk them.
Engage Reader’s Emotions
One of the most powerful tools in persuasive writing is emotional appeal. Engage your audience’s emotions by telling relatable stories, sharing personal anecdotes, or using emotional language. Suppose you’re writing a persuasive message to encourage donations to a charitable cause. In that case, a heartwarming story about a beneficiary can resonate deeply with your readers and inspire them to take action.
Having discussed the art of crafting a persuasive message, let’s now shift our focus to the broader skill of developing persuasive writing for various professional contexts.
Developing Persuasive Writing
Mastering the art of persuasive writing requires practice, dedication, and a deep understanding of the key principles and techniques. Here are some essential steps to help you develop persuasive writing skills:
Understanding Your Audience
Start by researching your target audience. Understand their demographics, interests, and the concerns. Engage with your readers or listeners to gain insights into what motivates them and what matters most to them. Use surveys, social media, and other feedback mechanisms to gather information. Once you have a clear understanding of your audience, tailor your writing to address their specific needs and the desires. Speak directly to their concerns, values, and goals. Use language and examples of persuasive essays and writing that resonate with them, demonstrating empathy and a deep connection.
Compelling Storytelling
Study the art of storytelling. Read books and articles and listen to speakers known for their storytelling skills. Practice storytelling in various contexts, from personal anecdotes to fictional narratives. Weave stories into your writing to illustrate key points and connect with your readers emotionally. Craft narratives that evoke feelings and provide relatable examples of persuasive storytelling. A well-told story enhances the impact of your message.
Call To Action
Study successful examples of persuasive calls to action in various contexts, from marketing campaigns to political speeches. Understand the elements that make a call to action compelling and actionable. Practice creating calls to action in different scenarios. Conclude your piece with a strong and specific call to action. Clearly state what you want your readers to do, believe, or think after reading your content. Make it actionable and inspiring, motivating your audience to engage or take the desired steps.
Impact Of Persuasive Writing: Examples
The impact of persuasive essays extends far beyond the written words on a page or screen. It can potentially effect significant change, influence decisions, and shape opinions in various domains. Here’s a closer look at the profound impact of persuasive writing:
Shaping Public Opinion
Persuasive writing is a formidable force in shaping public opinion and influencing policy. Op-eds, research papers, and advocacy campaigns can sway lawmakers, prompting them to adopt new laws or regulations in alignment with the writer’s perspective. Additionally, a persuasive essay has a significant impact on how the public perceives issues, organizations, or individuals. Media outlets, public relations campaigns, and persuasive speeches play a vital role in generating both positive and negative public perceptions, which, in turn, can affect public behavior, from supporting a cause to boycotting a product.
Greta Thunberg’s Climate Change Speech (2019)
Greta Thunberg’s speeches on climate change have ignited a global movement. Her speeches are characterized by their passionate and urgent pleas for environmental action (pathos). Thunberg’s use of moral and ethical arguments, reinforced by her ethos as a young environmental activist, has spurred climate strikes and rallies worldwide, leading to increased awareness and calls for policy changes.
Effective Leadership
Persuasive writing is an indispensable tool for effective leadership. Leaders across various domains use persuasive communication to motivate their teams. Whether through an inspirational email, a compelling speech, or a well-structured persuasive essay, compelling writing fosters a shared sense of purpose, drives high performance, and encourages team members to embrace a common vision. Additionally, leadership’s persuasive writing plays a fundamental role in shaping an organization’s culture. By communicating core values, vision, and expectations through written messages, leaders contribute to a cohesive and thriving workplace culture, positively impacting team dynamics and overall success.
Barack Obama’s 2008 Inaugural Address
In his inaugural address, President Barack Obama used eloquent language and a message of hope and unity to inspire the nation. He appealed to the audience’s emotions (pathos) by emphasizing common values and dreams, fostering a sense of national purpose and unity (ethos).
Motivating Action
Persuasive writing is a catalyst for motivating action on multiple fronts. It is a driving force behind social change, as activists, NGOs, and grassroots organizations use persuasive content to mobilize individuals to take action, whether signing petitions, participating in rallies, or donating to causes they believe in. Additionally, persuasive essays are instrumental in personal growth and development. Self-help books, motivational articles, and life coaching resources harness persuasive language to inspire people to adopt positive behaviors, set and achieve goals, and lead healthier, more fulfilling lives.
Emma Gonzalez’s “We Call B.S.” Speech (2018)
Emma Gonzalez, a survivor of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting, delivered a passionate speech advocating for gun control. Her speech combined personal anecdotes and data-driven arguments (logos) to emphasize the need for policy changes. The emotional impact of her speech (pathos) resonated with many and fueled the gun control movement, contributing to legislative reforms and activism.
Empower Yourself With Persuasion
In an era of information overload and constant communication, the ability to wield persuasive communication is a powerful tool that can transform your personal and professional life, so empower yourself with persuasion. Acquire the skills to express your ideas effectively, build authentic connections, and drive positive change. With the art of persuasion in your toolkit, you hold the key to leaving a lasting mark on the world and shaping your unique history.
By Rishabh Bhandari
How to give a persuasive presentation: techniques and proven framework, influence vs persuasion: what’s the real difference, what is persuasion: meaning, skills and examples.
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How to Write Perfect Persuasive Essays in 5 Simple Steps
WHAT IS A PERSUASIVE ESSAY?
A persuasive text presents a point of view around a topic or theme that is backed by evidence to support it.
The purpose of a persuasive text can be varied. Maybe you intend to influence someone’s opinion on a specific topic, or you might aim to sell a product or service through an advertisement.
The challenge in writing a good persuasive text is to use a mix of emotive language and, in some cases, images that are supported by hard evidence or other people’s opinions.
In a persuasive essay or argument essay, the student strives to convince the reader of the merits of their opinion or stance on a particular issue. The student must utilise several persuasive techniques to form a coherent and logical argument to convince the reader of a point of view or to take a specific action.
PERSUADING PEOPLE REQUIRES A CONSISTENT APPROACH…
Persuasive texts are simple in structure. You must clearly state your opinion around a specific topic and then repeatedly reinforce your opinions with external facts or evidence. A robust concluding summary should leave little doubt in the reader’s mind. ( Please view our planning tool below for a detailed explanation. )
TYPES OF PERSUASIVE TEXT
We cover the broad topic of writing a general persuasive essay in this guide, there are several sub-genres of persuasive texts students will encounter as they progress through school. We have complete guides on these text types, so be sure to click the links and read these in detail if required.
- Argumentative Essays – These are your structured “Dogs are better pets than Cats” opinion-type essays where your role is to upsell the positive elements of your opinions to your audience whilst also highlighting the negative aspects of any opposing views using a range of persuasive language and techniques.
- Advertising – Uses persuasive techniques to sell a good or service to potential customers with a call to action.
- Debating Speeches – A debate is a structured discussion between two teams on a specific topic that a moderator judges and scores. Your role is to state your case, sell your opinions to the audience, and counteract your opposition’s opinions.
- Opinion Articles, Newspaper Editorials. – Editorials often use more subtle persuasive techniques that blur the lines of factual news reporting and opinions that tell a story with bias. Sometimes they may even have a call to action at the end.
- Reviews – Reviews exist to inform others about almost any service or product, such as a film, restaurant, or product. Depending on your experiences, you may have firm opinions or not even care that much about recommending it to others. Either way, you will employ various persuasive techniques to communicate your recommendations to your audience.
- Please note a DISCUSSION essay is not a traditional persuasive text, as even though you are comparing and contrasting elements, the role of the author is to present an unbiased account of both sides so that the reader can make a decision that works best for them. Discussions are often confused as a form of persuasive writing.
A COMPLETE TEACHING UNIT ON PERSUASIVE WRITING SKILLS
Teach your students to produce writing that PERSUADES and INFLUENCES thinking with this HUGE writing guide bundle covering: ⭐ Persuasive Texts / Essays ⭐ Expository Essays⭐ Argumentative Essays⭐ Discussions.
A complete 140 PAGE unit of work on persuasive texts for teachers and students. No preparation is required.
THE STRUCTURE OF A PERSUASIVE ESSAY
1. Introduction
In the introduction, the student will naturally introduce the topic. Controversial issues make for great topics in this writing genre. It’s a cliche in polite society to discourage discussions involving politics, sex, or religion because they can often be very divisive. While these subjects may not be the best topics of conversation for the dinner table at Thanksgiving, they can be perfect when deciding on a topic for persuasive writing. Obviously, the student’s age and abilities should be considered, as well as cultural taboos, when selecting a topic for the essay. But the point holds, the more controversial, the better.
Let’s take a look at some of the critical elements of the introduction when writing a persuasive essay:
Title: Tell your audience what they are reading.
This will often be posed as a question; for example, if the essay is on the merits of a vegetarian lifestyle, it may be called something like: To Eat Meat or Not?
Hook : Provide your audience with a reason to continue reading.
As with any genre of writing, capturing the reader’s interest from the outset is crucial. There are several methods of doing this, known as hooks. Students may open their essays with anecdotes, jokes, quotations, or relevant statistics related to the topic under discussion.
Background: Provide some context to your audience.
In this introductory section, students will provide the reader with some background on the topic. This will place the issue in context and briefly weigh some opinions on the subject.
Thesis statement: Let the audience know your stance.
After surveying the topic in the first part of the introduction, it is now time for the student writer to express their opinion and briefly preview the points they will make later in the essay.
2. Body Paragraphs
The number of paragraphs forming this essay section will depend on the number of points the writer chooses to make to support their opinion. Usually three main points will be sufficient for beginning writers to coordinate. More advanced students can increase the number of paragraphs based on the complexity of their arguments, but the overall structure will largely remain intact.
Be sure to check out our complete guide to writing perfect paragraphs here .
The TEEL acronym is valuable for students to remember how to structure their paragraphs. Read below for a deeper understanding.
Topic Sentence:
The topic sentence states the central point of the paragraph. This will be one of the reasons supporting the thesis statement made in the introduction.
These sentences will build on the topic sentence by illustrating the point further, often by making it more specific.
These sentences’ purpose is to support the paragraph’s central point by providing supporting evidence and examples. This evidence may be statistics, quotations, or anecdotal evidence.
The final part of the paragraph links back to the initial statement of the topic sentence while also forming a bridge to the next point to be made. This part of the paragraph provides some personal analysis and interpretation of how the student arrived at their conclusions and connects the essay as a cohesive whole.
3. Conclusion
The conclusion weaves together the main points of the persuasive essay. It does not usually introduce new arguments or evidence but instead reviews the arguments made already and restates them by summing them up uniquely. It is important at this stage to tie everything back to the initial thesis statement. This is the writer’s last opportunity to drive home their point, to achieve the essay’s goal, to begin with – persuade the reader of their point of view.
Ending an essay well can be challenging, but it is essential to end strongly, especially for persuasive essays. As with the hooks of the essay’s opening, there are many tried and tested methods of leaving the reader with a strong impression. Encourage students to experiment with different endings, for example, concluding the essay with a quotation that amplifies the thesis statement.
Another method is to have the student rework their ending in simple monosyllabic words, as simple language often has the effect of being more decisive in impact. The effect they are striving for in the final sentence is the closing of the circle.
Several persuasive writing techniques can be used in the conclusion and throughout the essay to amp up the persuasive power of the writing. Let’s take a look at a few.
ETHOS, PATHOS & LOGOS TUTORIAL VIDEO (2:20)
TIPS FOR WRITING A GREAT PERSUASIVE ESSAY
PERSUASIVE TECHNIQUES
In this article, we have outlined a basic structure that will be helpful to students in approaching the organization of their persuasive writing. It will also be helpful for the students to be introduced to a few literary techniques that will help your students to present their ideas convincingly. Here are a few of the more common ones:
Repetition: There is a reason why advertisements and commercials are so repetitive – repetition works! Students can use this knowledge to their advantage in their persuasive writing. It is challenging to get the reader to fully agree with the writer’s opinion if they don’t fully understand it. Saying the same thing in various ways ensures the reader gets many bites at the ‘understanding’ cherry.
Repetition Example: “The use of plastic bags is not only bad for the environment, but it is also bad for our economy. Plastic bags are not biodegradable, meaning they will not decompose and will continue to take up space in landfills. Plastic bags are also not recyclable, meaning they will not be reused and will instead end up in landfills. Plastic bags are not only bad for the environment, but they are also bad for our economy as they are costly to dispose of and take up valuable space in landfills.”
In this example, the phrase “not only bad for the environment but also bad for our economy” is repeated multiple times to reinforce the idea that plastic bags are not just a problem for the environment but also the economy. The repetition of the phrase emphasizes the point and makes it more persuasive.
It is also important to note that repetition could be used differently, such as repeating a word or phrase to create rhythm or emphasis.
Storytelling: Humans tend to understand things better through stories. Think of how we teach kids important values through time-tested fables like Peter and the Wolf . Whether through personal anecdotes or references to third-person experiences, stories help climb down the ladder of abstraction and reach the reader on a human level.
Storytelling Example: “Imagine you are walking down the street, and you come across a stray dog clearly in need of food and water. The dog looks up at you with big, sad eyes, and you cannot help but feel a twinge of compassion. Now, imagine that same scenario, but instead of a stray dog, it’s a homeless person sitting on the sidewalk. The person is clearly in need of food and shelter, and their eyes also look up at her with a sense of hopelessness.
The point of this story is to show that just as we feel compelled to help a stray animal in need, we should also feel compelled to help a homeless person. We should not turn a blind eye to the suffering of our fellow human beings, and we should take action to address homelessness in our community. It is important to remember that everyone deserves a roof over their head and a warm meal to eat. The story is designed to elicit an emotional response in the reader and make the argument more relatable and impactful.
By using storytelling, this passage creates an image in the reader’s mind and creates an emotional connection that can be more persuasive than just stating facts and figures.
Dissent: We live in a cynical age, so leaving out the opposing opinion will smack of avoidance to the reader. Encourage your students to turn to that opposing viewpoint and deal with those arguments in their essays .
Dissent Example: “Many people argue that students should not have to wear uniforms in school. They argue that uniforms stifle creativity and individuality and that students should be able to express themselves through their clothing choices. While these are valid concerns, I strongly disagree.
In fact, uniforms can actually promote individuality by levelling the playing field and removing the pressure to dress in a certain way. Furthermore, uniforms can promote a sense of community and belonging within a school. They can also provide a sense of discipline and structure, which can help to create a more focused and productive learning environment. Additionally, uniforms can save families money and eliminate the stress of deciding what to wear daily .
While some may argue that uniforms stifle creativity and individuality, the benefits of uniforms far outweigh the potential drawbacks. It is important to consider the impact of uniforms on the school as a whole, rather than focusing solely on individual expression.”
In this example, the writer presents the opposing viewpoint (uniforms stifle creativity and individuality) and then provides counterarguments to refute it. By doing so, the writer can strengthen their own argument and present a more convincing case for why uniforms should be worn in school.
A Call to Action: A staple of advertising, a call to action can also be used in persuasive writing. When employed, it usually forms part of the conclusion section of the essay and asks the reader to do something, such as recycle, donate to charity, sign a petition etc.
A quick look around reveals to us the power of persuasion, whether in product advertisements, newspaper editorials, or political electioneering; persuasion is an ever-present element in our daily lives. Logic and reason are essential in persuasion, but they are not the only techniques. The dark arts of persuasion can prey on emotion, greed, and bias. Learning to write persuasively can help our students recognize well-made arguments and help to inoculate them against the more sinister manifestations of persuasion.
Call to Action Example: “Climate change is a pressing issue that affects us all, and it’s important that we take action now to reduce our carbon footprint and protect the planet for future generations. As a society, we have the power to make a difference and it starts with small changes that we can make in our own lives.
I urge you to take the following steps to reduce your carbon footprint:
- Reduce your use of single-use plastics
- Use public transportation, carpool, bike or walk instead of driving alone.
- Support clean energy sources such as solar and wind power
- Plant trees and support conservation efforts
It’s easy to feel like one person can’t make a difference, but the truth is that every little bit helps. Together, we can create a more sustainable future for ourselves and for the planet.
So, let’s take action today and make a difference for a better future, it starts with minor changes, but it all adds up and can make a significant impact. We need to take responsibility for our actions and do our part to protect the planet.”
In this example, the writer gives a clear and specific call to action and encourages the reader to take action to reduce their carbon footprint and protect the planet. By doing this, the writer empowers the reader to take action and enables them to change.
Now, go persuade your students of the importance of perfecting the art of persuasive writing!
A COMPLETE UNIT ON TEACHING FACT AND OPINION
This HUGE 120 PAGE resource combines four different fact and opinion activities you can undertake as a WHOLE GROUP or as INDEPENDENT READING GROUP TASKS in either DIGITAL or PRINTABLE TASKS.
20 POPULAR PERSUASIVE ESSAY TOPICS FOR STUDENTS
Writing an effective persuasive essay demonstrates a range of skills that will be of great use in nearly all aspects of life after school.
In essence, if you can influence a person to change their ideas or thoughts on a given topic through how you structure your words and thoughts, you possess a very powerful skill.
Be careful not to rant wildly. Use facts and other people’s ideas who think similarly to you in your essay to strengthen your concepts.
Your biggest challenge in getting started may be choosing a suitable persuasive essay topic. These 20 topics for a persuasive essay should make this process a little easier.
- WHY ARE WE FASCINATED WITH CELEBRITIES AND WEALTHY PEOPLE ON TELEVISION AND SOCIAL MEDIA?
- IS IT RIGHT FOR SCHOOLS TO RAISE MONEY BY SELLING CANDY AND UNHEALTHY FOODS TO STUDENTS?
- SHOULD GIRLS BE ALLOWED TO PLAY ON BOYS SPORTING TEAMS?
- IS TEACHING HANDWRITING A WASTE OF TIME IN THIS DAY AND AGE?
- SHOULD THERE BE FAR GREATER RESTRICTIONS AROUND WHAT CAN BE POSTED ON THE INTERNET?
- SHOULD PROFESSIONAL ATHLETES HAVE TO TAKE DRUG TESTS?
- ARE TEENAGE PREGNANCY SHOWS A NEGATIVE OR POSITIVE INFLUENCE ON VIEWERS?
- SHOULD GAMBLING BE PROMOTED IN ANY WAY IN SPORTS EVEN THOUGH IT BRINGS IN LARGE AMOUNTS OF REVENUE?
- SHOULD SPORTING TEAMS THAT LOSE BE REWARDED BY RECEIVING INCENTIVES SUCH AS HIGH DRAFT PICKS AND / OR FINANCIAL BENEFITS?
- SHOULD SHARKS THAT ATTACK PEOPLE BE DESTROYED? SHOULD WE GET INVOLVED IN FOREIGN CONFLICTS AND ISSUES THAT DON’T DIRECTLY AFFECT OUR COUNTRY?
- SHOULD WE GET INVOLVED IN FOREIGN CONFLICTS AND ISSUES THAT DON’T DIRECTLY AFFECT OUR COUNTRY?
- COULD VIDEO GAMES BE CONSIDERED AS A PROFESSIONAL SPORT?
- IF YOU WERE THE LEADER OF YOUR COUNTRY AND HAD A LARGE SURPLUS TO SPEND, WHAT WOULD YOU DO WITH IT?
- WHEN SHOULD A PERSON BE CONSIDERED AND TREATED AS AN ADULT?
- SHOULD SMOKING BECOME AN ILLEGAL ACTIVITY?
- SHOULD THE VOTING AGE BE LOWERED?
- DOES PROTECTIVE PADDING IN SPORTS MAKE IT MORE DANGEROUS?
- SHOULD CELL PHONES BE ALLOWED IN THE CLASSROOM?
- IS TEACHING A FOREIGN LANGUAGE A WASTE OF TIME?
- SHOULD WE TEACH ETIQUETTE IN SCHOOLS?
PERSUASIVE PROMPTS FOR RELUCTANT WRITERS
If your students need a little more direction and guidance, here are some journal prompts that include aspects to consider.
- Convince us that students would be better off having a three-day weekend . There are many angles you could take with this, such as letting children maximize their childhood or trying to convince your audience that a four-day school week might actually be more productive.
- Which is the best season? And why? You will really need to draw on the benefits of your preferred season and sell them to your audience. Where possible, highlight the negatives of the competing seasons. Use lots of figurative language and sensory and emotional connections for this topic.
- Aliens do / or don’t exist? We can see millions of stars surrounding us just by gazing into the night sky, suggesting alien life should exist, right? Many would argue that if there were aliens we would have seen tangible evidence of them by now. The only fact is that we just don’t know the answer to this question. It is your task to try and convince your audience through some research and logic what your point of view is and why.
- Should school uniforms be mandatory? Do your research on this popular and divisive topic and make your position clear on where you stand and why. Use plenty of real-world examples to support your thoughts and points of view.
- Should Smartphones be banned in schools? Whilst this would be a complete nightmare for most students’ social lives, maybe it might make schools more productive places for students to focus and learn. Pick a position, have at least three solid arguments to support your point of view, and sell them to your audience.
VISUAL JOURNAL PROMPTS FOR PERSUASIVE WRITING
Try these engaging, persuasive prompts with your students to ignite the writing process . Scroll through them.
Persuasive Essay Examples (Student Writing Samples)
Below are a collection of persuasive essay samples. Click on the image to enlarge and explore them in greater detail. Please take a moment to read the persuasive texts in detail and the teacher and student guides highlight some of the critical elements of writing a persuasion.
Please understand these student writing samples are not intended to be perfect examples for each age or grade level but a piece of writing for students and teachers to explore together to critically analyze to improve student writing skills and deepen their understanding of persuasive text writing.
We recommend reading the example either a year above or below, as well as the grade you are currently working with, to gain a broader appreciation of this text type.
VIDEO TUTORIALS FOR PERSUASIVE WRITING
OTHER GREAT ARTICLES RELATED TO PERSUASIVE ESSAY WRITING
Teaching Resources
Use our resources and tools to improve your student’s writing skills through proven teaching strategies.
WHERE CAN I FIND A COMPLETE UNIT OF WORK ON HOW TO WRITE PERSUASIVE ESSAYS?
We pride ourselves on being the web’s best resource for teaching students and teachers how to write a persuasive text. We value the fact you have taken the time to read our comprehensive guides to understand the fundamentals of writing skills.
We also understand some of you just don’t have the luxury of time or the resources to create engaging resources exactly when you need them.
If you are time-poor and looking for an in-depth solution that encompasses all of the concepts outlined in this article, I strongly recommend looking at the “ Writing to Persuade and Influence Unit. ”
Working in partnership with Innovative Teaching Ideas , we confidently recommend this resource as an all-in-one solution to teach how to write persuasively.
This unit will find over 140 pages of engaging and innovative teaching ideas.
PERSUASIVE ESSAY WRITING CHECKLIST AND RUBRIC BUNDLE
The Ultimate Guide to Opinion Writing for Students and Teachers
Top 5 Persuasive Writing Techniques for Students
5 Top Persuasive Writing Lesson Plans for Students and Teachers
23 Persuasive writing Topics for High School students
How to Write an Advertisement: A Complete Guide for Students and Teachers
How to Start an Essay with Strong Hooks and Leads
persuasive essay
What is persuasive essay definition, usage, and literary examples, persuasive essay definition.
A persuasive essay (purr-SWEY-siv ESS-ey) is a composition in which the essayist’s goal is to persuade the reader to agree with their personal views on a debatable topic. A persuasive essay generally follows a five-paragraph model with a thesis, body paragraphs, and conclusion, and it offers evidential support using research and other persuasive techniques.
Persuasive Essay Topic Criteria
To write an effective persuasive essay, the essayist needs to ensure that the topic they choose is polemical, or debatable. If it isn’t, there’s no point in trying to persuade the reader.
For example, a persuasive essayist wouldn’t write about how honeybees make honey; this is a well-known fact, and there’s no opposition to sway. The essayist might, however, write an essay on why the reader shouldn’t put pesticides on their lawn, as it threatens the bee population and environmental health.
A topic should also be concrete enough that the essayist can research and find evidence to support their argument. Using the honeybee example, the essayist could cite statistics showing a decline in the honeybee population since the use of pesticides became prevalent in lawncare. This concrete evidence supports the essayist’s opinion.
Persuasive Essay Structure
The persuasive essay generally follows this five-paragraph model.
Introduction
The introduction includes the thesis, which is the main argument of the persuasive essay. A thesis for the essay on bees and pesticides might be: “Bees are essential to environmental health, and we should protect them by abstaining from the use of harmful lawn pesticides that dwindle the bee population.”
The introductory paragraph should also include some context and background info, like bees’ impact on crop pollination. This paragraph may also include common counterarguments, such as acknowledging how some people don’t believe pesticides harm bees.
Body Paragraphs
The body consists of two or more paragraphs and provides the main arguments. This is also where the essayist’s research and evidential support will appear. For example, the essayist might elaborate on the statistics they alluded to in the introductory paragraph to support their points. Many persuasive essays include a counterargument paragraph to refute conflicting opinions.
The final paragraph readdresses the thesis statement and reexamines the essayist’s main arguments.
Types of Persuasive Essays
Persuasive essays can take several forms. They can encourage the reader to change a habit or support a cause, ask the reader to oppose a certain practice, or compare two things and suggest that one is superior to the other. Here are thesis examples for each type, based on the bee example:
- Call for Support, Action, or Change : “Stop using pesticides on your lawns to save the environmentally essential bees.”
- Call for Opposition : “Oppose the big businesses that haven’t conducted environmental studies concerning bees and pesticides.”
- Superior Subject : “Natural lawn care is far superior to using harmful pesticides.”
The Three Elements of Persuasion
Aristotle first suggested that there were three main elements to persuading an audience: ethos, pathos, and logos. Essayists implement these same tactics to persuade their readers.
Ethos refers to the essayist’s character or authority; this could mean the writer’s name or credibility. For example, a writer might seem more trustworthy if they’ve frequently written on a subject, have a degree related to the subject, or have extensive experience concerning a subject. A writer can also refer to the opinions of other experts, such as a beekeeper who believes pesticides are harming the bee population.
Pathos is an argument that uses the reader’s emotions and morality to persuade them. An argument that uses pathos might point to the number of bees that have died and what that suggests for food production: “If crop production decreases, it will be impoverished families that suffer, with perhaps more poor children having to go hungry.” This argument might make the reader empathetic to the plight of starving children and encourage them to take action against pesticide pollution.
The logos part of the essay uses logic and reason to persuade the reader. This includes the essayist’s research and whatever evidence they’ve collected to support their arguments, such as statistics.
Terms Related to Persuasive Essays
Argumentative Essays
While persuasive essays may use logic and research to support the essayist’s opinions, argumentative essays are more solely based on research and refrain from using emotional arguments. Argumentative essays are also more likely to include in-depth information on counterarguments.
Persuasive Speeches
Persuasive essays and persuasive speeches are similar in intent, but they differ in terms of format, delivery, emphasis, and tone .
In a speech, the speaker can use gestures and inflections to emphasize their points, so the delivery is almost as important as the information a speech provides. A speech requires less structure than an essay, though the repetition of ideas is often necessary to ensure that the audience is absorbing the material. Additionally, a speech relies more heavily on emotion, as the speaker must hold the reader’s attention and interest. In Queen Elizabeth I’s “Tilbury Speech,” for example, she addresses her audience in a personable and highly emotional way: “My loving people, We have been persuaded by some that are careful of our safety, to take heed how we commit our selves to armed multitudes for fear of treachery; but I assure you I do not desire to live to distrust my faithful and loving people. Let tyrants fear.”
Examples of Persuasive Essay
1. Martin Luther King, Jr., “Letter From Birmingham Jail”
Dr. King directs his essay at the Alabama clergymen who opposed his call for protests. The clergymen suggested that King had no business being in Alabama, that he shouldn’t oppose some of the more respectful segregationists, and that he has poor timing. However, here, King attempts to persuade the men that his actions are just:
I am in Birmingham because injustice is here. Just as the prophets of the eight century B.C. left their villages and carried their ‘thus saith the Lord’ far beyond the boundaries of their hometowns, and just as the Apostle Paul left his village of Tarsus and carried the gospel of Jesus Christ to the far corners of the Greco-Roman world, so am I compelled to carry the gospel of freedom beyond my hometown.
Here, King is invoking the ethos of Biblical figures who the clergymen would’ve respected. By comparing himself to Paul, he’s claiming to be a disciple spreading the “gospel of freedom” rather than an outsider butting into Alabama’s affairs.
2. Garrett Hardin, “The Tragedy of Commons”
Hardin argues that a society that shares resources is apt to overuse those resources as the population increases. He attempts to persuade readers that the human population’s growth should be regulated for the sake of preserving resources:
The National Parks present another instance of the working out of the tragedy of commons. At present, they are open to all, without limit. The parks themselves are limited in extent—there is only one Yosemite Valley—whereas population seems to grow without limit. The values that visitors seek in the parks are steadily eroded. Plainly, we must soon cease to treat the parks as commons, or they will be of no value to anyone.
In this excerpt, Harden uses an example that appeals to the reader’s logic. If the human population continues to rise, causing park visitors to increase, parks will continue to erode until there’s nothing left.
Further Resources on Persuasive Essays
We at SuperSummary offer excellent resources for penning your own essays .
Find a list of famous persuasive speeches at Highspark.co .
Read up on the elements of persuasion at the American Management Association website.
Related Terms
- Argumentative Essay
Choose Your Test
Sat / act prep online guides and tips, 113 perfect persuasive essay topics for any assignment.
General Education
Do you need to write a persuasive essay but aren’t sure what topic to focus on? Were you thrilled when your teacher said you could write about whatever you wanted but are now overwhelmed by the possibilities? We’re here to help!
Read on for a list of 113 top-notch persuasive essay topics, organized into ten categories. To help get you started, we also discuss what a persuasive essay is, how to choose a great topic, and what tips to keep in mind as you write your persuasive essay.
What Is a Persuasive Essay?
In a persuasive essay, you attempt to convince readers to agree with your point of view on an argument. For example, an essay analyzing changes in Italian art during the Renaissance wouldn’t be a persuasive essay, because there’s no argument, but an essay where you argue that Italian art reached its peak during the Renaissance would be a persuasive essay because you’re trying to get your audience to agree with your viewpoint.
Persuasive and argumentative essays both try to convince readers to agree with the author, but the two essay types have key differences. Argumentative essays show a more balanced view of the issue and discuss both sides. Persuasive essays focus more heavily on the side the author agrees with. They also often include more of the author’s opinion than argumentative essays, which tend to use only facts and data to support their argument.
All persuasive essays have the following:
- Introduction: Introduces the topic, explains why it’s important, and ends with the thesis.
- Thesis: A sentence that sums up what the essay be discussing and what your stance on the issue is.
- Reasons you believe your side of the argument: Why do you support the side you do? Typically each main point will have its own body paragraph.
- Evidence supporting your argument: Facts or examples to back up your main points. Even though your opinion is allowed in persuasive essays more than most other essays, having concrete examples will make a stronger argument than relying on your opinion alone.
- Conclusion: Restatement of thesis, summary of main points, and a recap of why the issue is important.
What Makes a Good Persuasive Essay Topic?
Theoretically, you could write a persuasive essay about any subject under the sun, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you should. Certain topics are easier to write a strong persuasive essay on, and below are tips to follow when deciding what you should write about.
It’s a Topic You Care About
Obviously, it’s possible to write an essay about a topic you find completely boring. You’ve probably done it! However, if possible, it’s always better to choose a topic that you care about and are interested in. When this is the case, you’ll find doing the research more enjoyable, writing the essay easier, and your writing will likely be better because you’ll be more passionate about and informed on the topic.
You Have Enough Evidence to Support Your Argument
Just being passionate about a subject isn’t enough to make it a good persuasive essay topic, though. You need to make sure your argument is complex enough to have at least two potential sides to root for, and you need to be able to back up your side with evidence and examples. Even though persuasive essays allow your opinion to feature more than many other essays, you still need concrete evidence to back up your claims, or you’ll end up with a weak essay.
For example, you may passionately believe that mint chocolate chip ice cream is the best ice cream flavor (I agree!), but could you really write an entire essay on this? What would be your reasons for believing mint chocolate chip is the best (besides the fact that it’s delicious)? How would you support your belief? Have enough studies been done on preferred ice cream flavors to support an entire essay? When choosing a persuasive essay idea, you want to find the right balance between something you care about (so you can write well on it) and something the rest of the world cares about (so you can reference evidence to strengthen your position).
It’s a Manageable Topic
Bigger isn’t always better, especially with essay topics. While it may seem like a great idea to choose a huge, complex topic to write about, you’ll likely struggle to sift through all the information and different sides of the issue and winnow them down to one streamlined essay. For example, choosing to write an essay about how WWII impacted American life more than WWI wouldn’t be a great idea because you’d need to analyze all the impacts of both the wars in numerous areas of American life. It’d be a huge undertaking. A better idea would be to choose one impact on American life the wars had (such as changes in female employment) and focus on that. Doing so will make researching and writing your persuasive essay much more feasible.
List of 113 Good Persuasive Essay Topics
Below are over 100 persuasive essay ideas, organized into ten categories. When you find an idea that piques your interest, you’ll choose one side of it to argue for in your essay. For example, if you choose the topic, “should fracking be legal?” you’d decide whether you believe fracking should be legal or illegal, then you’d write an essay arguing all the reasons why your audience should agree with you.
Arts/Culture
- Should students be required to learn an instrument in school?
- Did the end of Game of Thrones fit with the rest of the series?
- Can music be an effective way to treat mental illness?
- With e-readers so popular, have libraries become obsolete?
- Are the Harry Potter books more popular than they deserve to be?
- Should music with offensive language come with a warning label?
- What’s the best way for museums to get more people to visit?
- Should students be able to substitute an art or music class for a PE class in school?
- Are the Kardashians good or bad role models for young people?
- Should people in higher income brackets pay more taxes?
- Should all high school students be required to take a class on financial literacy?
- Is it possible to achieve the American dream, or is it only a myth?
- Is it better to spend a summer as an unpaid intern at a prestigious company or as a paid worker at a local store/restaurant?
- Should the United States impose more or fewer tariffs?
- Should college graduates have their student loans forgiven?
- Should restaurants eliminate tipping and raise staff wages instead?
- Should students learn cursive writing in school?
- Which is more important: PE class or music class?
- Is it better to have year-round school with shorter breaks throughout the year?
- Should class rank be abolished in schools?
- Should students be taught sex education in school?
- Should students be able to attend public universities for free?
- What’s the most effective way to change the behavior of school bullies?
- Are the SAT and ACT accurate ways to measure intelligence?
- Should students be able to learn sign language instead of a foreign language?
- Do the benefits of Greek life at colleges outweigh the negatives?
- Does doing homework actually help students learn more?
- Why do students in many other countries score higher than American students on math exams?
- Should parents/teachers be able to ban certain books from schools?
- What’s the best way to reduce cheating in school?
- Should colleges take a student’s race into account when making admissions decisions?
- Should there be limits to free speech?
- Should students be required to perform community service to graduate high school?
- Should convicted felons who have completed their sentence be allowed to vote?
- Should gun ownership be more tightly regulated?
- Should recycling be made mandatory?
- Should employers be required to offer paid leave to new parents?
- Are there any circumstances where torture should be allowed?
- Should children under the age of 18 be able to get plastic surgery for cosmetic reasons?
- Should white supremacy groups be allowed to hold rallies in public places?
- Does making abortion illegal make women more or less safe?
- Does foreign aid actually help developing countries?
- Are there times a person’s freedom of speech should be curtailed?
- Should people over a certain age not be allowed to adopt children?
Government/Politics
- Should the minimum voting age be raised/lowered/kept the same?
- Should Puerto Rico be granted statehood?
- Should the United States build a border wall with Mexico?
- Who should be the next person printed on American banknotes?
- Should the United States’ military budget be reduced?
- Did China’s one child policy have overall positive or negative impacts on the country?
- Should DREAMers be granted US citizenship?
- Is national security more important than individual privacy?
- What responsibility does the government have to help homeless people?
- Should the electoral college be abolished?
- Should the US increase or decrease the number of refugees it allows in each year?
- Should privately-run prisons be abolished?
- Who was the most/least effective US president?
- Will Brexit end up helping or harming the UK?
- What’s the best way to reduce the spread of Ebola?
- Is the Keto diet a safe and effective way to lose weight?
- Should the FDA regulate vitamins and supplements more strictly?
- Should public schools require all students who attend to be vaccinated?
- Is eating genetically modified food safe?
- What’s the best way to make health insurance more affordable?
- What’s the best way to lower the teen pregnancy rate?
- Should recreational marijuana be legalized nationwide?
- Should birth control pills be available without a prescription?
- Should pregnant women be forbidden from buying cigarettes and alcohol?
- Why has anxiety increased in adolescents?
- Are low-carb or low-fat diets more effective for weight loss?
- What caused the destruction of the USS Maine?
- Was King Arthur a mythical legend or actual Dark Ages king?
- Was the US justified in dropping atomic bombs during WWII?
- What was the primary cause of the Rwandan genocide?
- What happened to the settlers of the Roanoke colony?
- Was disagreement over slavery the primary cause of the US Civil War?
- What has caused the numerous disappearances in the Bermuda triangle?
- Should nuclear power be banned?
- Is scientific testing on animals necessary?
- Do zoos help or harm animals?
- Should scientists be allowed to clone humans?
- Should animals in circuses be banned?
- Should fracking be legal?
- Should people be allowed to keep exotic animals as pets?
- What’s the best way to reduce illegal poaching in Africa?
- What is the best way to reduce the impact of global warming?
- Should euthanasia be legalized?
- Is there legitimate evidence of extraterrestrial life?
- Should people be banned from owning aggressive dog breeds?
- Should the United States devote more money towards space exploration?
- Should the government subsidize renewable forms of energy?
- Is solar energy worth the cost?
- Should stem cells be used in medicine?
- Is it right for the US to leave the Paris Climate Agreement?
- Should athletes who fail a drug test receive a lifetime ban from the sport?
- Should college athletes receive a salary?
- Should the NFL do more to prevent concussions in players?
- Do PE classes help students stay in shape?
- Should horse racing be banned?
- Should cheerleading be considered a sport?
- Should children younger than 18 be allowed to play tackle football?
- Are the costs of hosting an Olympic Games worth it?
- Can online schools be as effective as traditional schools?
- Do violent video games encourage players to be violent in real life?
- Should facial recognition technology be banned?
- Does excessive social media use lead to depression/anxiety?
- Has the rise of translation technology made knowing multiple languages obsolete?
- Was Steve Jobs a visionary or just a great marketer?
- Should social media be banned for children younger than a certain age?
- Which 21st-century invention has had the largest impact on society?
- Are ride-sharing companies like Uber and Lyft good or bad for society?
- Should Facebook have done more to protect the privacy of its users?
- Will technology end up increasing or decreasing inequality worldwide?
Tips for Writing a Strong Persuasive Essay
After you’ve chosen the perfect topic for your persuasive essay, your work isn’t over. Follow the three tips below to create a top-notch essay.
Do Your Research
Your argument will fall apart if you don’t fully understand the issue you’re discussing or you overlook an important piece of it. Readers won’t be convinced by someone who doesn’t know the subject, and you likely won’t persuade any of them to begin supporting your viewpoint. Before you begin writing a single word of your essay, research your topic thoroughly. Study different sources, learn about the different sides of the argument, ask anyone who’s an expert on the topic what their opinion is, etc. You might be tempted to start writing right away, but by doing your research, you’ll make the writing process much easier when the time comes.
Make Your Thesis Perfect
Your thesis is the most important sentence in your persuasive essay. Just by reading that single sentence, your audience should know exactly what topic you’ll be discussing and where you stand on the issue. You want your thesis to be crystal clear and to accurately set up the rest of your essay. Asking classmates or your teacher to look it over before you begin writing the rest of your essay can be a big help if you’re not entirely confident in your thesis.
Consider the Other Side
You’ll spend most of your essay focusing on your side of the argument since that’s what you want readers to come away believing. However, don’t think that means you can ignore other sides of the issue. In your essay, be sure to discuss the other side’s argument, as well as why you believe this view is weak or untrue. Researching all the different viewpoints and including them in your essay will increase the quality of your writing by making your essay more complete and nuanced.
Summary: Persuasive Essay Ideas
Good persuasive essay topics can be difficult to come up with, but in this guide we’ve created a list of 113 excellent essay topics for you to browse. The best persuasive essay ideas will be those that you are interested in, have enough evidence to support your argument, and aren’t too complicated to be summarized in an essay.
After you’ve chosen your essay topic, keep these three tips in mind when you begin writing:
- Do your research
- Make your thesis perfect
- Consider the other side
What's Next?
Need ideas for a research paper topic as well? Our guide to research paper topics has over 100 topics in ten categories so you can be sure to find the perfect topic for you.
Thinking about taking an AP English class? Read our guide on AP English classes to learn whether you should take AP English Language or AP English Literature (or both!)
Deciding between the SAT or ACT? Find out for sure which you will do the best on . Also read a detailed comparison between the two tests .
Christine graduated from Michigan State University with degrees in Environmental Biology and Geography and received her Master's from Duke University. In high school she scored in the 99th percentile on the SAT and was named a National Merit Finalist. She has taught English and biology in several countries.
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Persuasive Speeches — Types, Topics, and Examples
What is a persuasive speech?
In a persuasive speech, the speaker aims to convince the audience to accept a particular perspective on a person, place, object, idea, etc. The speaker strives to cause the audience to accept the point of view presented in the speech.
The success of a persuasive speech often relies on the speaker’s use of ethos, pathos, and logos.
Ethos is the speaker’s credibility. Audiences are more likely to accept an argument if they find the speaker trustworthy. To establish credibility during a persuasive speech, speakers can do the following:
Use familiar language.
Select examples that connect to the specific audience.
Utilize credible and well-known sources.
Logically structure the speech in an audience-friendly way.
Use appropriate eye contact, volume, pacing, and inflection.
Pathos appeals to the audience’s emotions. Speakers who create an emotional bond with their audience are typically more convincing. Tapping into the audience’s emotions can be accomplished through the following:
Select evidence that can elicit an emotional response.
Use emotionally-charged words. (The city has a problem … vs. The city has a disease …)
Incorporate analogies and metaphors that connect to a specific emotion to draw a parallel between the reference and topic.
Utilize vivid imagery and sensory words, allowing the audience to visualize the information.
Employ an appropriate tone, inflection, and pace to reflect the emotion.
Logos appeals to the audience’s logic by offering supporting evidence. Speakers can improve their logical appeal in the following ways:
Use comprehensive evidence the audience can understand.
Confirm the evidence logically supports the argument’s claims and stems from credible sources.
Ensure that evidence is specific and avoid any vague or questionable information.
Types of persuasive speeches
The three main types of persuasive speeches are factual, value, and policy.
A factual persuasive speech focuses solely on factual information to prove the existence or absence of something through substantial proof. This is the only type of persuasive speech that exclusively uses objective information rather than subjective. As such, the argument does not rely on the speaker’s interpretation of the information. Essentially, a factual persuasive speech includes historical controversy, a question of current existence, or a prediction:
Historical controversy concerns whether an event happened or whether an object actually existed.
Questions of current existence involve the knowledge that something is currently happening.
Predictions incorporate the analysis of patterns to convince the audience that an event will happen again.
A value persuasive speech concerns the morality of a certain topic. Speakers incorporate facts within these speeches; however, the speaker’s interpretation of those facts creates the argument. These speeches are highly subjective, so the argument cannot be proven to be absolutely true or false.
A policy persuasive speech centers around the speaker’s support or rejection of a public policy, rule, or law. Much like a value speech, speakers provide evidence supporting their viewpoint; however, they provide subjective conclusions based on the facts they provide.
How to write a persuasive speech
Incorporate the following steps when writing a persuasive speech:
Step 1 – Identify the type of persuasive speech (factual, value, or policy) that will help accomplish the goal of the presentation.
Step 2 – Select a good persuasive speech topic to accomplish the goal and choose a position .
Step 3 – Locate credible and reliable sources and identify evidence in support of the topic/position. Revisit Step 2 if there is a lack of relevant resources.
Step 4 – Identify the audience and understand their baseline attitude about the topic.
Step 5 – When constructing an introduction , keep the following questions in mind:
What’s the topic of the speech?
What’s the occasion?
Who’s the audience?
What’s the purpose of the speech?
Step 6 – Utilize the evidence within the previously identified sources to construct the body of the speech. Keeping the audience in mind, determine which pieces of evidence can best help develop the argument. Discuss each point in detail, allowing the audience to understand how the facts support the perspective.
Step 7 – Addressing counterarguments can help speakers build their credibility, as it highlights their breadth of knowledge.
Step 8 – Conclude the speech with an overview of the central purpose and how the main ideas identified in the body support the overall argument.
Persuasive speech outline
One of the best ways to prepare a great persuasive speech is by using an outline. When structuring an outline, include an introduction, body, and conclusion:
Introduction
Attention Grabbers
Ask a question that allows the audience to respond in a non-verbal way; ask a rhetorical question that makes the audience think of the topic without requiring a response.
Incorporate a well-known quote that introduces the topic. Using the words of a celebrated individual gives credibility and authority to the information in the speech.
Offer a startling statement or information about the topic, typically done using data or statistics.
Provide a brief anecdote or story that relates to the topic.
Starting a speech with a humorous statement often makes the audience more comfortable with the speaker.
Provide information on how the selected topic may impact the audience .
Include any background information pertinent to the topic that the audience needs to know to understand the speech in its entirety.
Give the thesis statement in connection to the main topic and identify the main ideas that will help accomplish the central purpose.
Identify evidence
Summarize its meaning
Explain how it helps prove the support/main claim
Evidence 3 (Continue as needed)
Support 3 (Continue as needed)
Restate thesis
Review main supports
Concluding statement
Give the audience a call to action to do something specific.
Identify the overall importan ce of the topic and position.
Persuasive speech topics
The following table identifies some common or interesting persuasive speech topics for high school and college students:
Persuasive speech examples
The following list identifies some of history’s most famous persuasive speeches:
John F. Kennedy’s Inaugural Address: “Ask Not What Your Country Can Do for You”
Lyndon B. Johnson: “We Shall Overcome”
Marc Antony: “Friends, Romans, Countrymen…” in William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar
Ronald Reagan: “Tear Down this Wall”
Sojourner Truth: “Ain’t I a Woman?”
100 Persuasive Essay Topics
- M.Ed., Education Administration, University of Georgia
- B.A., History, Armstrong State University
Persuasive essays are a bit like argument essays and persuasive speeches , but they tend to be a little kinder and gentler. Argument essays require you to discuss and to attack an alternate view, while persuasive essays are attempts to convince the reader that you have a believable argument. In other words, you are an advocate, not an adversary.
A Persuasive Essay Has 3 Components
- Introduction : This is the opening paragraph of your essay. It contains the hook, which is used to grab the reader's attention, and the thesis, or argument, which you'll explain in the next section.
- Body : This is the heart of your essay, usually three to five paragraphs in length. Each paragraph examines one theme or issue used to support your thesis.
- Conclusion : This is the final paragraph of your essay. In it, you'll sum up the main points of the body and connect them to your thesis. Persuasive essays often use the conclusion as a last appeal to the audience.
Learning how to write a persuasive essay is an essential skill that people use every day in fields from business to law to media and entertainment. English students can begin writing a persuasive essay at any skill level. You're sure to find a sample topic or two from the list of 100 persuasive essays below, sorted by degree of difficulty.
Watch Now: 12 Ideas for Great Persuasive Essay Topics
- Kids should get paid for good grades.
- Students should have less homework.
- Snow days are great for family time.
- Penmanship is important.
- Short hair is better than long hair.
- We should all grow our own vegetables.
- We need more holidays.
- Aliens probably exist.
- Gym class is more important than music class.
- Kids should be able to vote.
- Kids should get paid for extra activities like sports.
- School should take place in the evenings.
- Country life is better than city life.
- City life is better than country life.
- We can change the world.
- Skateboard helmets should be mandatory.
- We should provide food for the poor.
- Children should be paid for doing chores.
- We should populate the moon .
- Dogs make better pets than cats.
Intermediate
- The government should impose household trash limits.
- Nuclear weapons are an effective deterrent against foreign attack.
- Teens should be required to take parenting classes.
- We should teach etiquette in schools.
- School uniform laws are unconstitutional.
- All students should wear uniforms.
- Too much money is a bad thing.
- High schools should offer specialized degrees in arts or sciences.
- Magazine advertisements send unhealthy signals to young women.
- Robocalling should be outlawed.
- Age 12 is too young to babysit.
- Children should be required to read more.
- All students should be given the opportunity to study abroad.
- Yearly driving tests should be mandatory past age 65.
- Cell phones should never be used while driving.
- All schools should implement bullying awareness programs.
- Bullies should be kicked out of school.
- Parents of bullies should have to pay a fine.
- The school year should be longer.
- School days should start later.
- Teens should be able to choose their bedtime.
- There should be a mandatory entrance exam for high school.
- Public transit should be privatized.
- We should allow pets in school.
- The voting age should be lowered to 16.
- Beauty contests are bad for body image.
- Every American should learn to speak Spanish.
- Every immigrant should learn to speak English.
- Video games can be educational.
- College athletes should be paid for their services.
- We need a military draft .
- Professional sports should eliminate cheerleaders.
- Teens should be able to start driving at 14 instead of 16.
- Year-round school is a bad idea.
- High school campuses should be guarded by police officers.
- The legal drinking age should be lowered to 19.
- Kids under 15 shouldn't have Facebook pages.
- Standardized testing should be eliminated.
- Teachers should be paid more.
- There should be one world currency.
- Domestic surveillance without a warrant should be legal.
- Letter grades should be replaced with a pass or fail.
- Every family should have a natural disaster survival plan.
- Parents should talk to kids about drugs at a young age.
- Racial slurs should be illegal.
- Gun ownership should be tightly regulated.
- Puerto Rico should be granted statehood.
- People should go to jail when they abandon their pets.
- Free speech should have limitations.
- Members of Congress should be subject to term limits.
- Recycling should be mandatory for everyone.
- High-speed internet access should be regulated like a public utility.
- Yearly driving tests should be mandatory for the first five years after getting a license.
- Recreational marijuana should be made legal nationwide.
- Legal marijuana should be taxed and regulated like tobacco or alcohol.
- Child support dodgers should go to jail.
- Students should be allowed to pray in school.
- All Americans have a constitutional right to health care.
- Internet access should be free for everyone.
- Social Security should be privatized.
- Pregnant couples should receive parenting lessons.
- We shouldn't use products made from animals.
- Celebrities should have more privacy rights.
- Professional football is too violent and should be banned.
- We need better sex education in schools.
- School testing is not effective.
- The United States should build a border wall with Mexico and with Canada.
- Life is better than it was 50 years ago.
- Eating meat is unethical.
- A vegan diet is the only diet people should follow.
- Medical testing on animals should be illegal.
- The Electoral College is outdated.
- Medical testing on animals is necessary.
- Public safety is more important than an individual's right to privacy.
- Single-sex colleges provide a better education.
- Books should never be banned.
- Violent video games can cause people to act violently in real life.
- Freedom of religion has limitations.
- Nuclear power should be illegal.
- Climate change should be the president's primary political concern.
- Arizona State University Writing Center staff. " Persuasive Essay Structure ." ASU.edu, June 2012.
- Collins, Jen, and Polak, Adam. " Persuasive Essays ." Hamilton.edu.
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Persuasive Writing Samples
See the difference the Seven Steps can make with these writing samples!
Below you’ll find a collection of resources to help unlock the fun, engaging and collaborative lessons of the Seven Steps. Learn the complete Seven Steps theory by attending a Workshop One: Seven Steps to Transform Writing or joining Teacher Hub .
Student samples
Recycling should be compulsory step 2: sizzling starts.
TIP: Although the ‘before’ sample introduces why we should recycle, it certainly isn’t compelling. Backing up your arguments with facts and examples helps convince the reader.
Improve your students’ introductions by learning the basics of Step 2: Sizzling Starts for free .
For more before and after examples, download the resource below.
Before and After Samples
STEP Step 2: Sizzling Starts, Step 5: Show, Don’t Tell PURPOSE Teach RESOURCE TYPE Writing samples & exemplars YEAR F–10 RELATED The power to write
- Model how to improve a piece of persuasive writing using the Seven Steps techniques.
- Annotations using Seven Steps terminology provide actionable feedback to students.
2019 Persuasive Writing Competition Winners
STEP All Steps PURPOSE Teach RESOURCE TYPE Writing samples & exemplars YEAR F–10
Competition categories:
- Persuasive speech: Write a speech persuading your school leaders to ban uniforms
- Op-ed: Write an opinion piece about the climate change strikes
- Book review: Write a review of your favourite book.
NAPLAN persuasive exemplars
Looking for annotated NAPLAN writing samples?
Professional exemplars
Persuasive texts demonstrating the seven steps.
STEP All Steps PURPOSE Teach RESOURCE TYPE List YEAR F–10
- Show students examples of the Seven Steps techniques in published texts.
- This handy list is sorted by Step and annotated with notes about how each text demonstrates a particular Seven Steps technique.
- Selection includes picture books, advertisements and speech transcripts.
Persuasive Videos Demonstrating the Seven Steps
- Show students examples of the Seven Steps techniques in filmmaking.
- This handy list is sorted by Step and annotated with notes about how each video clip demonstrates a particular Seven Steps technique.
- Selection includes advertisements in a range of tones, from humorous to heartfelt.
Annotated Writing Sample: Persuasive Essay
STEP Putting It All Together PURPOSE Teach RESOURCE TYPE Writing samples & exemplars YEAR 3–10
- Sample text on the topic ‘Everyone should learn to cook’, before and after using the Seven Steps.
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6 Examples of Persuasive Texts to Inspire Your Writing
Check out inspiring examples of persuasive text without having to read! Press the play up and listen to the article narration.
Are you wondering why you should read this post?
And thinking, “What’s new to me here?”
What if I promise that by reading this post, you will learn examples of valuable persuasive texts to master essay writing service the subtle art of how to write a blog article ?
What if I also promise that you will start thinking about building your text more persuasively and effectively, reasoning strategically to get the attention of your reader?
If you’re still reading, I’ve achieved my goal. I wrote a persuasive opening. And if you’re assigned to write compelling text – be it for the company blog, a landing page or newsletter – you should keep reading and checking out our examples of persuasive texts.
The Art of Persuasive Texts
The term “persuasive” is an adjective derived from the verb “persuade”, which means “to convince someone”. An example of persuasive text is replete with all the compelling techniques a writer can employ.
It presents a situation and takes a stand – either for or against it to prove to readers that it is beneficial or harmful to them.
Why persuasion?
If people are already aware of everything, why persuade them? The answer is that each person’s ability to see and understand things depends on their vision. She believes only in what she sees or is informed about.
If another side of the coin is shown, people will not believe so easily on one side only. That is why arguments supported by evidence, statistics and facts are presented. Persuasion is used to generate:
- Reciprocity – emotionally touches people by giving them something;
- Commitment – ensure a small commitment and then build your arguments on it. People do not want to go back on their initial commitment, so they are more likely to agree on new terms;
- Social Proof – statements from trusted people;
- Authority – clear and perceived expertise;
- Empathy – people are more likely to buy if they like you, so be friendly;
- Shortage – of product, supply or time; this need not be real, just noticeable.
Difference between a persuasive text and an argumentative text
A persuasive text is meant to persuade readers to do certain things or not to do. The writer’s sole purpose is to persuade or persuade readers to do certain things or act.
Already the argumentative text is intended to make readers see the two sides of the coin. It is up to them to choose either side.
In other words, an argumentative text presents both arguments; both for and against something and let the readers decide.
Persuasive text, on the other hand, is meant to get readers to do certain things. Therefore, it presents arguments only on one aspect of the problem.
Examples of persuasive texts
Persuasive writing is very common in advertising where marketers try to persuade people to buy something. But it can also be used in many other situations.
Here are some examples of persuasive texts in the marketing communication of some well known companies in the market.
Example # 1: Basecamp
Creating an example of persuasive text begins with understanding how your product or service helps your customers. And this is what Basecamp does:
“Basecamp helps you engage people with different roles, responsibilities and goals toward a common goal: to finalize a project together.”
The Basecamp is a real – time communication tool to help teams communicate on a daily basis, helping in project management.
The current page of the company’s website also focuses on showing the problems that the company’s target audience – growing entrepreneurs – goes through and offers the solution, bringing together text and image:
” We were waiting for you. All growing companies face the same fundamental problems. Hair on fire, lots of emails, stuff everywhere. The good news? Basecamp solves all these problems. Try Basecamp for free for 30 days .
Example # 2: MailChimp
Have you run out of air while reading the Terms of Use? Or do you mark the box and accept without reading?
Using simple typing, clear headers, bookmarks, and explanations in the sidebar, MailChimp makes reading your Terms of Use a pleasure:
“1. Eligibility To use MailChimp, you must:
be at least eighteen (18) years of age and be able to sign contracts;
complete the registration process;
agree to the Terms; and
provide true, complete and up-to-date contact information. “
Another example of persuasive text is in the current Home page of the company website. A short, straightforward text that highlights the purpose of using the tool.
In a free translation to Portuguese, this example of persuasive text states:
” Your business was born for that. Become the brand you want to have with a smarter marketing created for great things.
Sign up for free “.
The message reinforces not only the importance of MailChimp, but also exalts the user and his business, showing how big business can make your business great too. Sounds attractive, do not you think?
Example # 3: Evernote
The persuasive text example of Evernote is also simple, engaging, and focused on the benefits of your products to you as a reader:
“Everything in Evernote is instantly synchronized on whatever computer or phone you use. Start working on one device and continue on to another device without ever losing your momentum. “
Another example is what is currently at the top of the home page:
” Feel organized without having to strain yourself.
Evernote helps you capture and prioritize ideas, projects, and to-do lists, so that nothing escapes through the edges.
Sign up for free .
The brand focuses 100% on the pain of its audience and shows the attributes of the product that help to solve it. Strategic words such as “free” also reinforce the persuasion strategy of the message as a whole for the user to convert.
Example # 4: Dropbox
The Dropbox targets a wider audience. So in your marketing communication it sounds like something useful, friendly and full of empathy:
“Even if your computer collapses or your phone” decides “to go swimming, your things will always be safe in Dropbox and can be restored in the blink of an eye. Dropbox is like a time machine that lets you undo errors and even recover files that you accidentally put in the bin. “
Following the minimalist line, another example of persuasive branding is on the landing page below. Text and form together create the perfect connection between the message and the desired action:
” Put your creative energy to work with Dropbox
Dropbox is a modern workspace, designed to reduce wasted time. So you can focus on what really matters . “
Example # 5: Apple
Apple writers are marketing poets. Rhythm, rhyme and repetition make your ads smooth and persuasive.
You can learn both from examples of persuasive brand texts and from any writing manual.
The examples of persuasive texts below are from the release of the iPhone Xr:
The title focuses on catching the attention: “The biggest thing that happened to the iPhone since the iPhone”.
Analogies are useful in describing abstract concepts such as quality.
Example # 6: Unbounce
The Unbounce is a software to create landing pages. They use testimonials and case studies to give credibility to the service. Notice how this quote from a case study is specific:
“We managed to crawl all the way from a conversion rate of 5% to 20%. Without driving more traffic, our customer is getting four times more leads than before, “says Andrew Miller, Digital Workshop, Unbounce.
The above persuasive text example is on the page that discloses the Unbounce calculation tool and A / B test duration . Useful tool for those who work with landing pages in their digital marketing strategy. So, the testimonial reinforces the whole argument of the page to persuade the user of the credibility of the material.
The top of the page about the tool explains what the user can expect when using it:
” Test duration and size calculator for A / B test
Fill out the form and find out how long you need to take your test to get a valid result. This will help you avoid false positives and increase the quality of your A / B test. . “
The Truth About Writing Persuasive Texts
Writing persuasive text begins with knowing the right words and improving punctuation.
Also, it involves understanding your customers and knowing why they choose you instead of millions of other companies.
Find the audience that loves your brand. Offer a service that enchants them.
And then write in a way that makes it clear why your customers should fall in love with your service, your product, and your brand.
Want to learn more about digital marketing and effective strategies for your business? Sign up Custom Essays and receive our newsletter with the best contents of our blog.
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Persuasive Writing Examples and Prompts for Kids
Is your student stepping into the world of persuasive writing?
As a parent, it’s fun to watch your child learn the art of forming and supporting an argument.
(Plus, it’s a significant step toward critical thinking.)
If they need extra help, here are a few persuasive writing examples for kids along with 20 writing prompts to make it fun!
Why Persuasive Writing Is Important for Elementary Writers
Teaching persuasive writing is important because it’s a fundamental step in helping your child think critically.
By arguing a topic, your student will need to examine both sides, which is an essential component of critical thinking. Persuasive writing also inspires formation of opinion and sharing that opinion effectively.
Students as young as elementary-school age can learn to write persuasively. In fact, we’ll share some quick examples of persuasive essays for kids below.
First, let’s discuss the structure of a “mini” persuasive essay.
(If you have an older student, read our step-by-step guide to writing a persuasive essay .)
A Simplified Structure for Persuasive Writing
Of course, expectations and writing guidelines become more involved for older students, but elementary-aged students should keep it simple.
The basic features of persuasive writing can be broken down into 5 steps:
- Topic sentence
- Opening argument 1
- Concluding statement
A topic sentence introduces the argument and clearly expresses the writer’s viewpoint. For a younger child, this is simply a straightforward statement that clearly expresses “this is my opinion.”
The next three steps list “pros” that support their topic statement. Each argument should be distinctly stated.
Again, for an elementary-aged student, arguments can be brief and can simply be a list of reasons.
The concluding statement wraps up by summarizing the arguments and restating the opinion.
If this method of persuasive writing sounds complicated at first, rest assured, it’s not.
Let’s look at how you can easily reinforce this structure for your students, along with some examples.
Homeschool Mom Tip: Use a “Persuasive Text Structure” Poster
One effective method of teaching and reinforcing the persuasive writing model is by using a “persuasive structure” chart or poster.
A visual representation of the steps involved in persuasive writing is important for a few reasons:
- Some students learn best visually. It helps them understand and remember the method when they see it laid out in front of them.
- Graphic illustrations of the different components allow students to take in one piece at a time and avoid overwhelm.
- Hanging the poster where your children do their schoolwork makes it easy for them to reference the structure while they’re writing.
- Knowing the poster is nearby in case they get stuck helps make writing a calmer process.
One other tip I recommend is breaking up essay-style writing with creative writing assignments. ( Try these one-sentence writing prompts! ).
Kid-Friendly Persuasive Writing Examples
Along with tools like a poster, providing simple examples of persuasive writing is another helpful way to teach this new concept.
Here are a few examples of elementary-level persuasive paragraph examples that will give both you and your student an idea of what to expect.
Example 1: A Persuasive Argument About Cats
Cats are the best pets. They can be left alone all day without getting mad. Cats don’t bark, so they are not noisy like dogs. You don’t have to let cats go outside to use the bathroom. As you can see, cats are less work and easier to take care of than dogs.
Example 2: A Persuasive Argument About Meal Choices
French fries should be served with every meal. First, French fries are delicious. Second, French fries are made of potatoes, which are vegetables, and they can air-fried without oil. Also, French fries don’t cost a lot of money. Because they are tasty, cheap, and can be cooked in a healthy way, French fries a perfect side dish to every meal.
Example 3: A Persuasive Argument Against Littering
You should never litter because it is wrong. Littering pollutes the Earth. Littering is throwing trash around outside, which looks ugly. Littering can also make you sick if it has germs on it. Littering is wrong because it makes the world a dirty, unsanitary place to live.
20 Persuasive Writing Prompts for Kids
When you provide a step-by-step structure and supply examples of what is expected, you set your student up for writing success.
The final step in teaching persuasive writing to kids effectively is to present them with an antidote to the dreaded blank page.
To assist you with that, we’ve come up with 20 persuasive writing topics for your students to make it easier for them to get them started on their persuasive essays.
If they can’t come up with their own topics, one of these prompts should spark their interest.
These ideas for persuasive essays cover a wide variety of topics, so there should be something for everyone.
Plus, since persuasive writing is closely related to debate, you can also use these prompts as persuasive debate topics for kids :
- I deserve to be paid for my chores.
- Hamsters are the best type of pet.
- Everyone should eat a salad daily.
- Board games help you learn.
- Kids need free time to relax and play.
- You should always obey speed limits.
- Every family should have a dog.
- Dinner should always end with dessert.
- Homeschool students should get “snow days” as well.
- Kids should choose where the family spends summer vacation.
- I am old enough for a later bedtime.
- All students should learn a second language.
- School should only be 4 days per week.
- Soda is bad for you.
- I am responsible enough to learn how to cook.
- My cat should be allowed to sleep on my bed.
- Kids should be allowed to vote in their local elections at age 16.
- I am old enough to babysit and be paid.
- You should always wear a seatbelt in the car.
- Pizza is a healthy food.
I hope these persuasive texts and prompts for kids are helpful to you!
If you haven’t already, don’t forget to provide a few persuasive paragraph examples for your students to gain inspiration (and eliminate overwhelm).
If your student is entering 6th grade or above , we have a complete course that teaches students to write skillfully, think critically, and speak clearly as they explore the history of ideas! As a bonus in these dark days, Philosophy Adventure also teaches students to discern truth from error:
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Persuasive Text Examples - Ten Reading Samples with Comprehension
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Description
This resource contains ten persuasive text samples to guide students when learning about the features and the structure of persuasive writing. Ten comprehension questions accompany each text.
Topics include:
- Graffiti. Art or Crime?
- Fire Fast Food
- Beat Bullying
- Fun, Fantastic, Fabulous Fitness
- Pointless, Painful, Physical Education
- Change Our School Uniforms
- Ban Animal Testing
- Splendid City
- Cute, Cuddly Cats
- Too Much Technology
All pieces contain various persuasive tools, including alliteration, emotive language, exaggeration, rhetorical questions, groups of three, and repetition.
They follow the structure of an introduction, 3 main body paragraphs, and a conclusion.
Comprehension questions include a range of different reading strategies and personal response questions to determine differentiated student learning.
US spelling and UK spelling versions are included in this download. Simply unzip the file and select the version that you require.
This resource includes a digital (Google Slides) version. See the end page of the resource for the details and the link to access the digital version.
This resource includes detailed answers in the form of complete sentences.
________________________________________
Each of these persuasive comprehension passages are also available individually. Just click the links below:
Persuasive Writing Comprehension - Beat Bullying
Persuasive Writing Comprehension - Fun, Fantastic, Fabulous Fitness
Persuasive Writing Comprehension - Pointless, Painful, Physical Education
Persuasive Writing Comprehension - Change Our School Uniforms
Persuasive Writing Comprehension - Stop This Horrendous Crime
Persuasive Writing Comprehension - Splendid Country
Persuasive Writing Comprehension - Cute, Cuddly Cats
Persuasive Writing Comprehension - Too Much Technology
Persuasive Writing Comprehension - Fire Fast Food
Persuasive Writing Comprehension - Graffiti, Art or Crime?
Check out my similar reading comprehension packs below:
Recount Text Examples - 10 Reading Samples with Comprehension
Explanation Text Examples - 10 Reading Samples with Comprehension
Information Text Examples - 10 Reading Samples with Comprehension
Narrative Text Examples - 10 Reading Samples with Comprehension
Procedural Text Examples - 10 Reading Samples
Christmas Themed Information Texts - Reading Strategy Comprehension
30 Page Reading Strategy Comprehension Pack 10 Page Reading Comprehension Worksheet Pack - With Answers
For more persuasive resources, click the links below:
Persuasive Writing - Marking Assessment Rubrics
Persuasive Writing Worksheets - Persuasive Tools
Persuasive Writing Worksheets - Include Expert Opinions
Persuasive Writing Posters - Earth Tones Classroom Décor
Persuasive Text Posters - Classroom Decor
Persuasive Writing Prompts - Lightning Writing
Persuasive Writing Posters - Classroom Decor
Persuasive Writing - Teaching PowerPoint Presentation
Persuasive Writing Worksheet Pack - No Prep Lesson Ideas
For more writing resources , click the links below:
Explanation Text Writing - Teaching PowerPoint Presentation
Procedural Writing - Teaching PowerPoint Presentation
Information Report Assessment Task - Plan a Holiday
Complex Sentence Workbook - Grammar and Parts of Speech
Grammar Worksheet Pack
Narrative Writing Unit
Poetry - Teaching PowerPoint Presentation
Recount Writing - Teaching PowerPoint Presentation
Narrative Writing - Teaching PowerPoint Presentation
Recount Text Writing Worksheet Pack
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Some persuasive writing examples can help you get a start on your own texts. If you're trying to sway someone towards a certain viewpoint, we can help you.
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Planning for persuasive writing. Explore ready-made lesson plans, activities and planning exemplars to discover how to teach the key concepts behind each Step. Each lesson plan includes relevant links to the Australian Curriculum and NAPLAN marking criteria, plus a learning intention and success criteria to assist with planning and assessment.
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Persuasive Essay Definition. A persuasive essay (purr-SWEY-siv ESS-ey) is a composition in which the essayist's goal is to persuade the reader to agree with their personal views on a debatable topic. A persuasive essay generally follows a five-paragraph model with a thesis, body paragraphs, and conclusion, and it offers evidential support using research and other persuasive techniques.
50 Free Persuasive Essay Examples (+BEST Topics) There are plenty of persuasive essay examples available online and you can access them to learn more about what this type of essay is all about. Persuasive essays explain a topic while trying to persuade the readers that your perspective is the most logical, valid, and informed one about the topic.
Outline your argument. Outlining your entire essay before you get to writing it can help you organize your thoughts, research, and lay out your essay structure. Detail all your main points and pair them with all of the relevant, supporting evidence from your sources cited. 5. Write your introduction.
A persuasive text is a form of non-fiction writing which aims to convince the reader of a certain point of view. The purpose is usually to encourage the reader to buy or do something. Adverts and newspaper columns are good persuasive writing examples. Though there are many techniques to write persuasively, most persuasive texts include a ...
List of 113 Good Persuasive Essay Topics. Below are over 100 persuasive essay ideas, organized into ten categories. When you find an idea that piques your interest, you'll choose one side of it to argue for in your essay. For example, if you choose the topic, "should fracking be legal?" you'd decide whether you believe fracking should ...
Consider these eight tips to help improve your persuasive writing: 1. Choose your topic. Choose and research the topic of your writing and the specific actions you want your readers to take. If you're an expert in a certain field, you can use your experience to guide your topic choice. In any case, the more passionate you feel about the topic ...
Incorporate the following steps when writing a persuasive speech: Step 1 - Identify the type of persuasive speech (factual, value, or policy) that will help accomplish the goal of the presentation. Step 2 - Select a good persuasive speech topic to accomplish the goal and choose a position. How to write a persuasive speech.
Learning how to write a persuasive essay is an essential skill that people use every day in fields from business to law to media and entertainment. English students can begin writing a persuasive essay at any skill level. You're sure to find a sample topic or two from the list of 100 persuasive essays below, sorted by degree of difficulty.
Annotated Writing Sample: Persuasive Essay. STEP Putting It All Together PURPOSE Teach RESOURCE TYPE Writing samples & exemplars YEAR 3-10. Sample text on the topic 'Everyone should learn to cook', before and after using the Seven Steps. Model how to improve a piece of persuasive writing using the Seven Steps techniques.
Example # 1: Basecamp. Creating an example of persuasive text begins with understanding how your product or service helps your customers. And this is what Basecamp does: "Basecamp helps you engage people with different roles, responsibilities and goals toward a common goal: to finalize a project together.".
The basic features of persuasive writing can be broken down into 5 steps: Topic sentence. Opening argument 1. Argument 2. Argument 3. Concluding statement. A topic sentence introduces the argument and clearly expresses the writer's viewpoint.
Introduce pupils to great examples of persuasive writing examples with this set of exemplar material covering a range of topics designed to interest them. All the classic persuasive writing methods are included: imperative verbs, alliteration, facts, opinions, rhetorical questions, repetition and the rest. Pupils can identify examples of persuasive writing, then have a go at putting them ...
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Description. Persuasive Text Examples - Ten Reading Samples with Comprehension. This resource contains ten persuasive text samples to guide students when learning about the features and the structure of persuasive writing. Ten comprehension questions accompany each text. Topics include: Graffiti.