WRAC Online
Essays
Argument
An argument paper is the type of paper most often assigned in college classes
today as it involves a high level of critical thinking. In an argument paper,
you develop your own claim about a text, or about an issue that is covered in
many texts, and you back up that claim with evidence. Your claim is your thesis,
and that thesis cannot be a fact or a question (although you may well begin
your paper by asking a question that you answer in your paper. As is true with
most forms of academic writing, the key to a good argument is development of
your thesis with strong examples that you explain clearly and fully. You want
to make your case to your reader; think of yourself as an attorney in a courtroom,
persuading a jury that may or may not be inclined to agree with you!
The structure of an argument is traditionally three-part: an introduction in
which you present your thesis and introduce any source texts important to your
paper, body paragraphs in which you support your argument with specific evidence
that you explain clearly and fully, and a conclusion that wraps up your paper,
perhaps reiterates your thesis (though not word for word!), and leaves your
reader with something to think about.
Please see below for some examples of Argument Essays written by Chabot students.
