The Argument Essay

In any case, understanding key argumentative strategies will help you build a strong essay. Below are some common types of arguments.

• Definition Arguments: In this type of argument, you use a definition as the starting point for making your case.

  • For example, in a definition argument, you might argue that NCAA basketball players should be defined as professional players and, therefore, should be paid.

• Causal Arguments: You write about how something has caused something else.

  • For example, you might explore the increase of industrial pollution and the resulting decline of large mammals in the world’s oceans.

• Evaluation Arguments: You can write an argumentative evaluation of something as “good” or “bad,” but you also need to establish the criteria for “good” or “bad.”

  • For example, you might evaluate a children’s book for your Introduction to Educational Theory class, but you would need to establish clear criteria for your evaluation for your audience.

• Proposal Arguments: With this type of writing, you need to propose a solution to a problem. First, you must establish a clear problem and then propose a specific solution to that problem.

  • For example, you might argue for the removal of parking fines on students who use the parking deck on campus.

In the next section, we'll go into each of these types of arguments in more detail.

Examples: Argumentative Essays

• You can read more about an argumentative essay on the consequences of fast fashion. Read it and look at the comments to recognize strategies and techniques the author uses to convey her ideas.

• In this example, you’ll see a sample argumentative paper from a psychology class submitted in APA format. Key parts of the argumentative structure have been noted for you in the sample.

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"The Argument Essay" by Lumen Learning. Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0). Changes were made to the original work / No changes were made to the original work.