The General Argument Essay
The second type of essay on the Advanced English
Language exam is the argumentative essay.
Because it is often seen as a "give away," many
students believe it to be the easiest of the three
essays to write. Unfortunately, too many students
spend too little time in the actual planning of this
essay and, as a result, present an underdeveloped,
illogical, or off-topic piece.
Although there is a great deal of latitude given for the
response to the prompt, the argumentative essay
demands careful reading and planning.
The General Argument Essay

It is designed as a “contemporary issues”
question, but actually, it is really a “values”
question.
◦ What are your values? What do you think
our society should value? What should a
moral, thoughtful, or reflective society
consider its most important strengths?

These fundamental issues are inherent to
this type of question.
The Prompt
The prompt itself is set up by a brief
passage from fiction, poetry, or nonfiction.
 The passage can be as long as half a page
or as brief as two lines.
 It provides you with a spokesperson for
an issue – an opinion is offered – and
then you are asked to agree, disagree, or
qualify that opinion based on your own
experience and/or reading.

What exactly am I being asked to
do?



The argument essay tends to be the shortest
of the three prompts and usually comes last
on the exam (Question 3).
Good news is that graders are usually
slightly more accepting of shorter written
responses (not lacking quality though!) due
to limited time constraints.
The prompt presents some sort of
quote/maxim or national/global dilemma that
you will need to agree or disagree with by
providing original examples.
What Does the Argumentative
Essay Require of Me?
Basically, you need to do three things:
1. understand the nature of the position
taken in the prompt
2. take a specific stand—argue, qualify, or
disagree—with the assertion in the
prompt
3. clearly and logically support your claim
Identify the Claim
When you deal with a general argument
prompt, there are essentially three things you
must do:
1. First – and this is absolutely vital – you must
understand the claim being made by the
author.
2. Second, you need to perceive the larger
social context and express feelings about it.
3. Finally – and this is also crucial – you are
being asked to make your argument using
examples from your own experience.

What Does It Mean to Agree,
Disagree, or Qualify?

Once you understand what the passage is
saying, you have to ask yourself:
◦ Do I think about this subject in the same way as
the writer/speaker? (Agree; Support; Defend)
◦ Do I think the writer/speaker is totally wrong?
(Disagree; Challenge; Refute)
◦ Do I think some of what is said is correct and
some incorrect? (Qualify)
◦ Regardless of the synonyms used, these are the
three choices you will have.
Qualify – What does it mean?

A brief word about qualifying: qualifying means
simply that you can see some good points and
some not good points about an idea. You might
decide that this concept might work well for
local government issues but would never be
successful for the entire country, or the idea
was great one hundred years ago but wouldn’t
work today. Be clear on your discussion about
the positives and negatives you see.
How Should I Approach the Writing of
My Argumentative Essay?

Before beginning to actually write the
essay, you need to do some quick
planning.
◦ You could brainstorm a list of ideas, construct
a chart, or create an outline.

Whatever it is, you MUST find a way to
allow yourself to think through the issue
and your position.
Challenge: Disagreeing with reasons

I think the author is mistaken because he
overlooks ______________.

The author’s claim that _________ rests upon
the questionable assumption that __________.

I disagree with the author’s view that ________
because _________.

By focusing on ___________, the author
overlooks the deeper problem of __________.
Defend: Agreeing

I agree that _________ because my
experience _______ confirms it.

I agree that ________, a point that needs
emphasizing since so many people belive
_____________.
Qualifying: Agreeing and Disagreeing
at the same time.

Although I agree with ____ up to a point, I
cannot accept his overall conclusion that ____.

Although I disagree with _____, I fully endorse
his conclusion that ______.

Though I conceded that ______ is true (or false),
I still insist that _______.

I’m of two minds about this claim. On the one
hand, I agree that ______. On the other hand, I
am not sure that _______.
Once I've Chosen My Position on the Given
Issue, How Do I Go About Supporting It?

Here is a brief overview of the kinds of
support/evidence you could include:
◦
◦
◦
◦
◦
◦

— examples
— facts/statistics
— contrast and comparison — anecdotes
— details
— quotations
— cause and effect
— dialogue
— appeal to authority
— needed definitions
— recognition of the opposition
Just make certain to choose the strategy or
strategies that are most familiar to you and with
which you feel most comfortable. Don't try to pad
your essay with irrelevancies.
What can I use as evidence in my
argument essay?
H – History – historical documents, events, people,
documentaries, news programs, monuments,
wars, political speeches, etc.
O – Observations – things or events you have
witnessed or know of due to the news other
people (use sparingly)
P – Print – books, newspapers, articles, anything
having to do with the written word
E – Experience – material from your actual life, but
must be pertinent! Think “life-altering” or
“earth shattering” This is College Board, not
Texas EOC. They want to hear an argument,
not your life story.
How to Approach the Prompt
Read it carefully (multiple times). Decode
unfamiliar vocabulary.
 Do you know any background on the
prompt?
 Know who your audience is. Try to make
a connection with them.
 All arguments call for a response – think
about the people your argument will
engage.

Does It Matter What Tone I Take in My
Argumentative Essay?
 The College Board and the AP Comp
readers are open to a wide range of
approaches.
 You can choose to be informal and
personal, formal and objective, or even
humorous and irreverent, and anything in
between. Just be certain that your choice
is appropriate for your purpose.
Will I Be Penalized for Taking an Unpopular,
Unexpected, Irreverent, or Bizarre Position
on the Given Issue?
As long as you are addressing the prompt
and appropriately supporting your
position, there is no danger of your losing
points on your essay, because you've
decided to take a different approach.
 Your essay is graded for process and
mastery and manipulation of language, not
for how close you come to the viewpoint
of your grader.

How Should I Plan to Spend My Time
Writing the Argumentative Essay?

Learning to budget your time is a skill that
can be most helpful in writing the successful
essay. The following is a sample timeline:
◦ 1–3 minutes reading and working the prompt
◦ 3 minutes deciding on a position
◦ 10–12 minutes planning the support of your
position
◦ 20 minutes writing the essay
◦ 3 minutes proofreading
Organization: Pre-Writing

There is a relatively easy three-step process you
should follow before you begin to write your essay:
1.
Step one is to critically read the passage and
underline anything that clearly defines the author’s
claim.
2.
Step two is to set forth your immediate reaction
to the issue in a few words: are you for it, against
it, or ambivalent toward it?
3.
Step three is to make a list of viable, thoughtful
examples you can use to help illustrate your
argument.
Organization: Writing

You should start by identifying and restating the
fundamental claim and then indicate to the grader
whether you intend to agree, disagree, or qualify.

Your subsequent paragraphs should discuss the
quality and meaning of your various examples and
then close with a summarizing statement.


When you write the essay, don’t just drop the examples into the
paragraphs. You must include them with elaboration and
commentary, identifying their relevance to and importance in
your argument.
Remember:
1. Formulate your opinion.
2. Explain your evidence.
General Argument Prompt

Read and think carefully about the following
quotation. Then write an essay in which you
defend, challenge, or qualify Voltaire’s claim.
Make sure to use appropriate evidence from
literary, historical, or personal sources to
develop your argument.
It is dangerous to be right in matters about which
the established authorities are wrong.
--Voltaire