Brainstorming Together...
What types of careers require the
skill of persuasive language?
Insurance Sales Agents
Animal Trainers
Lawyers
Conservation Workers
Financial Advisors
Telemarketers
Dentists
Radio Ad Announcers
Sales Managers
Politicians
Sales Engineers
Teachers
Doctors
Police Officers
Travel Guides
Nutritionists
Orthodontists
Market Vendors
Clergy
“THE TRAVELLING SALESMEN” PAINTED BY NORMAN ROCKWELL
“THE EXPERT SALESMEN” PAINTED BY NORMAN ROCKWELL
“THE SMALL SALESMEN” PAINTED BY NORMAN ROCKWELL
Brainstorming Together...
What types of writing tend to be
persuasive in nature?
•Opinion pieces
•Letters to the editor
•Newspaper and/or magazine columns
•Written advertisements
•Academic essays which present an
original thesis
•Speeches
•Songs of protest from social movement
•Poetry
Persuasion is the art of getting others
to agree with you; therefore, your task in
writing a persuasive essay or speech is to
convince your audience that your point
of view is correct (or at least reasonable).
Changing someone’s beliefs is a difficult
task; you may have to be satisfied if he or
she says, “Maybe you’re right. I never
thought of it that way.”
Emotional appeals typically consist of vivid description or
moving anecdotes about real people.
They add human interest to an argument.
For example, a writer arguing that our health care system is in
trouble may use an anecdote about a patient who dies while
waiting for an operation. The more details the writer gives
you about the patient, the more you will probably empathize
with the person.
Emotional appeals personalize the situation. After all, an
essay full of eloquent words, heartfelt passion, and personal
anecdotes can be very moving and effectively persuasive,
compared to a dry, factual essay.
Brainstorming Together...
In the court of law, what makes a
lawyer successful when presenting
a case?
Persuasion is a form of exposition
which attempts to convince the
audience of a claim or thesis.
This is accomplished by making
appeals to both the left and right
sides of the brain (to logic and
reason & to the heart and emotions).
Brainstorming Together...
(no pun intended)
Why do you think it’s important
to have an essay/speech that
appeals to both sides of the way
we think?
Although a good essay appeals to the
reader’s emotions, the arguments
must also be based on good logic.
Arguments should be presented in
logical or climatic order.
In other words, always present your
points in order of importance, saving
your most important point for the
end.
Logical appeals are based on reason
and concrete evidence.
To defend your thesis statement, you
can use four different types of
supporting details:
1) examples
2) facts
3) expert opinions
4) personal experiences
What is a thesis?
Your thesis is the point you are trying to
make about a particular subject. It is the
overall message you are trying to persuade
your audience towards.
For example, your class might be assigned to write a
persuasive essay about drinking and driving. One
student’s thesis may be that drinking and driving is
preventable, while another student may write to persuade
their audience that drinking and driving will never be
solved until drinking is outlawed. Finally, some may
strive to prove that drinking and driving could be solved
by having new, severe consequences.
Organizing Persuasive Writing
Outline
Subject: Should the government forbid students under the age of
18 from working a part-time job?
My Thesis: Students under the age of 18 should be allowed to
work part-time, even through the school week.
1. Introduction and thesis statement
2. First Argument: Students need the money to pay for
necessities.
3. Second Argument: Part-time work helps students develop
important people/social skills.
4. Third Argument: Having a part-time job helps students gain
experience and, consequently, better jobs later on in life.
5. Fourth Argument: Students need to begin saving for the high
costs of university and/or college tuition.
6. Conclusion
Outline
Subject: Should teenagers be held responsible for their actions?
My Thesis: Teens should be held fully responsible for their
actions.
1. Introduction and thesis statement
2. First Argument: Teenagers are old enough to be aware of the
consequences of their actions.
3. Second Argument: Without being held responsible, more poor
choices will continue because dealing with consequences helps
young people mature and grow-up.
4. Third Argument: Teens are not small children any more. They
are mature enough to show self-control when necessary.
5. Conclusion
Outline
Subject: Are personal music devices a good or a bad thing?
My Thesis: Personal music devices, such as IPODS and MP3
players, can be dangerous to society in the long term.
1. Introduction and thesis statement
2. First Argument: More and more people are demonstrating poor
social skills when plugged into their music devices.
3. Second Argument: The ear phones slowly cause permanent,
irreversible damage to people’s ears.
4. Third Argument: More and more accidents are caused by
driver’s being distracted by personal music players because the
driver cannot hear the siren, the horn, or the person trying to
warn them of approaching danger.
5. Conclusion
Outline
Subject: Should movies and music be rated?
Class Thesis:
1. Introduction and thesis statement
2. First Argument:
3. Second Argument:
4. Third Argument:
5. Conclusion
Outline
Subject: Should text messaging be allowed in school?
Group Thesis:
1. Introduction and thesis statement
2. First Argument:
3. Second Argument:
4. Third Argument:
5. Conclusion
Outline
Subject: Should Sexual Education be taught in public schools?
My Thesis:
1. Introduction and thesis statement
2. First Argument:
3. Second Argument:
4. Third Argument:
5. Conclusion
Reading Persuasive Essays:
Searching for both
a logical and an emotional appeal
Persuasive Reading
Tournament
There will be rotations every 10-12 minutes. 
Evaluating a Writer’s Persuasiveness
Does the essay use/include...
...emotionally charged
language?
...obvious exaggerations?
...vivid description?
...moving anecdotes/stories?
... good logic and reason?
...examples?
....facts or statistics?
....expert opinions?
...personal experiences?
...acknowledgements of the
possible objections or
opposing arguments?
“I Would Rather
Be Fat”
“Smoking in
Public Places”
“Bilingualism’s
Goal”
“Should Animals
Be Used in
Medical Research?”
“I Would Rather Be Fat”
Subject:
Thesis:
“Smoking in Public Places”
Subject:
Thesis:
“Bilingualism’s Goal”
Subject:
Thesis:
“Should Animals Be Used in Medical Research?”
Subject:
Thesis:
“The Death Penalty: Justice for None”
by: Heather Meredith
Does the essay use/include...
...emotionally charged language?
...obvious exaggerations?
...vivid description?
...moving anecdotes/stories?
... good logic and reason?
...examples?
....facts or statistics?
....expert opinions?
...personal experiences?
...acknowledgements of the possible objections or opposing arguments?
“The Death Penalty: Justice for None”
by: Heather Meredith
The Subject:
Her Thesis:
1. The Introduction:
2. First Argument:
3. Second Argument:
4. Third Argument:
5. Fourth Argument:
6. Fifth Argument:
7. Sixth Argument:
8. Seventh Argument:
9. Eighth Argument:
10. The Conclusion:
“The Death Penalty: Justice for None”
by: Heather Meredith
1. What message does the title alone relay about the essay and
its thesis?
2. Has the writer presented the arguments in climatic order?
How do you know this? What did you observe?
3. Are there sections of the essay that are hard to follow or that
make leaps in logic?
4. Are there any loop-holes in her argument? If so, elaborate.
5. How did the author appeal to the reader’s emotional side?
6. Did the essay answer the critics in advance? How
convincing is the author when they dealt with the
counterargument?
7. Did you already have an opinion about the death penalty?
8. Do you find the writer’s arguments to be convincing?
Explain.