Instruction
Literary Argument Essay:
Steps in writing a literary argument essay
• Choose a topic – a short story, a novel, movie, etc.
• Take a position on a debatable issue that reasonable people do not agree
• Do not take a factual position – it must be a discussable position
• Your topic should be interesting
• Write down your thesis statement first
• Consider your audience
• Your thesis should be debatable, so not everyone will agree with you
• Try to refute or disprove the rebuttal or opposing arguments
• Support your argument with references from the text itself
• Use clear reasoning, compelling evidence, and strong refutation
• Keep a reasonable tone – talk to your readers, not at them – don’t try to lecture or talk down to them
• Be fair and avoid bias
• Avoid distorting evidence (misrepresentations)
• Avoid quoting out of context
• Avoid slanting – quoting only a part of a text that supports your case and ignore information that does not support your view.
• Avoid using unfair appeals (Logos, Ethos, Pathos) that only support your view