Argumentative Essay—une recette!
Paragraphe 1 : L’INTRODUCTION (et thèse)
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Personal experience, quote from article/audio, stat from graph/visual aid; site your
source (e.g. “In the graph, we see that…”, “Dans source # 1, on voit…”)
Thesis statement: answer prompt by choosing a side
o I think that….; In my opinion, xyz….(Je pense que, À mon avis…)
Paragraphe 2 : L’ARGUMENT CONTRAIRE
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Present opposing view (article or audio) by choosing a weak argument that you
can discredit or outweigh with better arguments
o On the one hand….; Some people feel.... (D’une part, On peut dire que …)
 Site source
Paragraphe(s) 3,4 : VOTRE ARGUMENT
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Present 2-3 arguments that support your stance from
o the sources (site them!)
o your opinion, experiences
Link ideas with transitions (On the other hand, first of all, secondly…) (D’autre
part, D’abord, Deuxièmement, Selon moi…)
Dernier paragraphe : CONCLUSION
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Not a simple word-for-word restatement of thesis!
Offer “something to think about” with a “Perhaps” or “It could be that…”