Discursive/ Argumentative Writing

Discursive/ Argumentative Writing

Writing Folio • Two pieces of writing form different genres. • One reflective/ creative • One discursive / persuasive • One fifth of total award

Argumentative writing will treat a topic or issue in a way which presents a line of argument, dealing with two or more varying viewpoints. The main requirements of the argumentative essay are that it will: ♦ communicate a clear and balanced line of argument ♦ present two sides of an argument (or more, if applicable) ♦ distinguish between facts and opinions ♦ convey an argumentative tone which is measured, reasonable and yet carries personal conviction ♦ communicate to the reader a clear sense that the writer has weighed up different aspects of the argument before reaching conclusions ♦ make effective use of a number of argumentative techniques such as comparison,contrast, confirmation, refutation, counter-argument, proof, disproof.

Effective Discusive Writing: • Strong sense of engagement with the ideas/issues and a sophisticated understanding of them • The line of thought is subtle and sustained; • The writer’s stance permeates the ideas and use of language. • The structure is highly appropriate and there is skilful organisation which significantly enhances the overall impact of the writing. • Expression is concise and effective. Word choice is consistently apposite, and sentence structures are skilfully varied to achieve effects.

Introduction • Introduces your topic. • Gives a clear indication of your stance. • Perhaps indicates some of your reasons in support. • Could use a specific example of your topic. • Must engage the reader by being written in a stylish manner.

Activity • Read the introductions. • Give each a rating out of ten. • Make notes on the following: topic; stance; techniques used to involve/ persuade the reader; other language features. • Is there anything that could be improved?

Every one of us owes a debt to Julian Assange. Thanks to him, we now know that our governments are pursuing policies that place you and your family in considerably greater danger. Wikileaks has informed us they have secretly launched war on yet another Muslim country, sanctioned torture, kidnapped innocent people from the streets of free countries and intimidated the police into hushing it up, and covered up the killing of 15,000 civilians – five times the number killed on 9/11. Each one of these acts has increased the number of jihadis. We can only change these policies if we know about them – and Assange has given us the black-and-white proof.

Activity • Write your own introduction.

Structure • Must deal with both sides of the argument. • Must look at a variety of reasons, both for and against. • Deal with one reason, or one aspect of a reason, per paragraph. • Try to develop a line of thought/ argument.

Topic Sentences • Must give a clear indication of the paragraph’s focus. • Should demonstrate linkage/ development of your ideas.

One of the main complaints seems to have been that Ronnie’s actions conform to some deranged stereotype of the bereaved mother following a loss to a cot death. • It’s not only the influence of the mass media which should be celebrated, the phenomenon that is Social Networking deserves equal praise. • But Gordon Ramsay has never had a particular "problem feature" and he's certainly never been perfect. He's joyfully imperfect.

Task • Write a topic sentence for your first paragraph after your introduction. • This paragraph should deal with your first reason in support of your stance.

Developing your Paragraph • Give explanations, opinions, statistics. • Point • Evidence • Analysis • Link

Writing with Style • Sentence structure • Word choice • Imagery • Tone

Sentence Structure • Variety of simple and complex sentences. • Short sentences for brevity or emphasis. • Long sentences to suggest an overwhelming amount or extreme duration. • Use of colons to introduce examples/ lists / explanations. • Use of semi-colons to balance points/ divide items in a complex list. • Use of parenthesis for asides / to give additional information.

Repetition to stress key words or phrases / suggest a monotonous experience. • Rhetorical Questions to involve the reader.

Power is abused in our name by governments and transnational corporations around the world: they fight illegal wars; abuse and kill people;pillage property and planet. The powerful accumulate wealth and force the majority – the rest of us – to pay for it: with our health, our freedom, our time, our money and with our lives. For a long time, we have been deceived about the reasons for this: it is our right for the truth to be known. Without that right, democracy cannot and does not exist. The current assault on WikiLeaks is yet another instance of democracy-hating by elites.

Improve: • One reason given for banning Orange Walks is that there are far too many of them. People have complained that they are on almost every week. The number of walks increases very year, they claim.

Three is the magic number • Tri colon: series of three parallel words, phrases, or clauses. It's a simple enough structure, yet potentially a powerful one. • We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.“ • American Declaration of Independence

Alcohol abuse in Scotland leads to broken homes, violent streets and early deaths. • Scottish football looks on enviously at it glamorous, rich and popular neighbour. • WikiLeaks are looking to support truth, freedom and democracy. • Consumption of drugs is rife in Britain today; hundreds of thousands of clubbers choose ecstasy to accompany their weekend; heroin refuses to loosen its grip on vast numbers of addicts; smokers now light up in their designated outside areas.

Activity • Write a tri colon which illustrates a point in your essay.

Using quotations • Do not use too many. • Keep them short • Type one- recent quotation from someone directly discussing this topic. • Introduce the person. • You may even wish to paraphrase some or all of what they say. • Analyse the importance of what they say.

Author Denise Mina says though people are often appalled by what she puts in her crime fiction, at least they can put it down. She thinks EastEnders’ cot death plot may indeed have been too dark. “People watch Corrie and EastEnders with one eye on the tea,” she says, “so maybe it’s too heavy for that.” This underlines that there is indeed a place for dealing with the darker aspects of humanity. However, an early evening light entertainment vehicle is not it.

Put together • Point: The Eastenders’ storyline is not nearly as crass and insensitive as made out. • Quote: “As ludicrous as some of the twists were ... at the story’s centre was a grief much more understated than the hype would have you expecting, and one that felt very authentic.” • Source: Alex Hardy in The Times

Using General / Older Quotes • Use these to help identify a line of thought /argument, rather than illustrate it. • Demonstrate the correlation with your topic. • As former US president Thomas Jefferson once stated, "information is the currency of democracy". Democracy – the rule of the people – as currently understood and practiced is, and has long been, severely restricted.

Lies, damned lies and statistics • Try to use some facts and figures. • Don’t overload your essay with them. • They should illustrate/ support your point. • Ensure that you analyse the information.

One aspect of social networking that cannot be debated is its popularity: in the UK alone, a staggering twenty five million people are now registered with the Social Networking site; in the world there are an 500 million “Facebookers.” This latter figure becomes all the more overwhelming when we consider that it is one hundred times larger than the whole population of Scotland.

Point: The British taxpayers will have to pay a large amount towards the Royal Wedding. • Numbers: between 20 and 80 million.

Discursive/ Argumentative Writing