THE ART OF PERSUASIONTechniques & Guidelines

CONSIDER THIS… What persuades you? Why do you decide to go along with

something? How do you convince others to go

along with you? How persuasive are you?

PERSUASIVE WRITING has a clear and focused position has more than one supporting argument uses reasons, specific details, examples, anecdotes,

facts, and/or statistics to support arguments is organized and structured anticipates and refutes the opposing position begins with an opening, including a thesis, and

ends with an effective persuasive conclusion uses transitions to connect position, arguments,

and evidence shows commitment to position by writing for

specific audience compels reader to support position

PERSUASIVE WRITING Definition:

In persuasive writing, a writer takes a position FOR or AGAINST an issue and writes to convince the reader to believe or do something.

CHARACTERISTICS OF PERSUASIVE WRITING

Clear position Audience awareness Persuasive

language Rhetorical questions Semantics Euphemism

Persuasive strategies Inclusion of statistics Expert testimony

Organizational Structures Order of Importance Causal Chain Concession/Rebuttal Cause and Effect Problem/Solution Definition Combination of

several structures

PURPOSES OF PERSUASION Support a cause Urge people to action Promote change Refute a theory Arouse sympathy Stimulate interest Win agreement Solve a problem

CLEAR POSITION The writer must have a clear position and

stay focused on that position.

Generally, the position is stated in the opening paragraph or introduction.

The position becomes the center of the essay around which the remainder of the argument revolves.

CLEAR POSITION The following is an example:

Anxiety creases the brows of many students trying to finish their homework on time. If they don’t finish on time, they won’t get any credit. Having a no late homework rule is a very bad idea. Students’ grades will drop, their work will be of lesser quality, and school won’t feel as welcoming. Students won’t be able to do work worth a lot of merit.

CLEAR POSITION Find the clear position in this paragraph:

“I’m sorry!” “Sorry isn’t good enough! This assignment was due

yesterday, not today.” Here I am on my knees begging for mercy at my teacher’s feet. Tears forming in my eyes, I feel like an out-of-order water fountain ready to explode! I sigh and back away like a puppy dog with its tail between its legs. I slump back down in my plastic, red chair and stare at the metal desk. “I worked so hard,” I muttered silently to myself. The teacher turned her back on me and continued on with today’s lesson. I am against the no late homework rule because some students did the work but forgot it at home, and others forgot about the assignment but make it up the next day.

AUDIENCE AWARENESS Know your audience before you start writing Think about the needs of your reader (audience) so

you can give reasons that will persuade him/her Knowing your audience helps you to decide the

following: how to connect with the ideas, knowledge, or

beliefs of the person or group what information to include how informal or formal the language should be

AUDIENCE AWARENESS Who is the intended audience here?

Dear Mrs. Gillingham,Imagine you were a student, sitting in algebra when your teacher says, “Okay, get out your homework.” You rustle around in your backpack for a while until you realize -- oh no! You left your homework at home, perfectly done.

PERSUASIVE LANGUAGE Connotation and denotation

Denotation: the dictionary definition of a word Connotation: the thoughts, feelings, or emotions that

a word evokes

Define the following words. Generate connotations. Which words have positive, neutral, or negative connotations?

Group, throng, mob Thin, skinny, scrawny Gentle, benign, harmless

Why is it important to keep this in mind?

PERSUASIVE LANGUAGEEuphemism A euphemism is the substitution of a mild,

indirect, or vague expression for an expression thought of as harsh or blunt.

Contemplate and generate more euphemistic expressions for each blunt word or expression. To die Toilet Fat

PERSUASIVE LANGUAGE Choosing just the right words or phrases to use at just

the right time with just the right audience. Strong words trigger strong feelings.

Seizes Snarls Dumbstruck

Effective choice of connotations Mean or strict Late fee or extended-viewing fee Used or pre-owned Surge or escalate

Repeated words or phrases for emphasis I have a dream…(Martin Luther King, Jr.)

PERSUASIVE LANGUAGE Change the highlighted words to create a

stronger reaction.

You are a high school student. Essay in one hand, you go to class. “I’m done!” You smile. The teacher takes the essay out of your hands and throws it away. She says, “It’s a day late!” You look at your hard work. The teacher didn’t look at it! The No Late Homework Rule is bad.

PERSUASIVE STRATEGIES Logos:

Facts Expert opinions Statistics Anecdote Examples Present opposition

Pathos: Personal experience Careful word choice

Ethos: Establish credibility Avoid negative words

ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE Persuasive organization is very different

from expository organization. The persuasive structures you select

depend on the ideas in your paper and your audience.

The organizational structure you select will also affect the way the audience receives your argument.

ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE Order of importance

Topics are prioritized from most to least or least to most

Causal chain A culminating chain of events where one thing leads to

the next (snowball or domino effect)

Concession/Rebuttal Organization Acknowledging or recognizing the opposing viewpoint Conceding something that has some merit Then countering with another argument

ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE Cause/effect

Explain why something happened, and what came about as a result

Problem/solution Explain the problem or issue, and suggest how it can be

solved

Definition Define the elements of a concept, and explain how, or

whether or not, your definition fits

Combination Effective papers often use a combination of several

structures

ORDER OF IMPORTANCEHomework should be abolished because students are too busy after school to make up for what teachers can’t seem to find time to teach during the day. Some students are athletes or participate in club activities while many students spend their after-school time working. These young adults don’t have time to re-work algebra problems! If you’re a successful athlete, you may be lucky enough to get money to go to college – that’s more important than recopying an essay! Clubs may serve as practice for the work force. But what really counts in a teen’s life would be to work in order to live, help out the family by taking care of siblings, or save money for college. In the face of these responsibilities or chances to improve life, what student would instead choose to review history notes?

CAUSAL CHAINFor me school starts at 7:30, which means I need to leave my house at 7:00 or 7:05. But for other students who ride the bus they must be ready far earlier than that. I see people half asleep standing outside waiting for that big yellow bus to take them to a long, tiring day at school. I think if school started later it would put many people at ease. Even if you get that extra half an hour of sleep, it can do wonders. You won’t be tired for that first period test, you won’t have to take that nap second period and miss your history notes, and you won’t miss breakfast and have to spend class time counting down the minutes to lunch. Many things would be so much better if school started later.

CONCESSION/REBUTTALThere is nothing more important to students than the ability to express their unique sense of self. Whether it’s grunge, goth, or glam, each student at our high school is a person whose voice must be heard. Dress codes would turn us all into a bland, uniform mass of white and navy. Having a school dress code might improve discipline, which might be true in schools where students fight over shoes, but enforcing a dress code will cause student rebellion, generating even more discipline issues than we have now. Some say a dress code will reduce the numbers of cliques in school, but students will adapt and find new ways to express themselves. Hairstyles, piercings, and tattoos will not just prove which group the student belongs to, but will make students even more of a discipline problem when the tattoos permanently express youth distress. We are still individuals and should be allowed to express ourselves, and allowed our civil rights. Students must never be forced to wear uniforms at the school board’s wishes.

CAUSE/EFFECTJust stay home. The unexcused absence policy at our school is ineffective and needs to be changed. Currently, this policy actually encourages misbehaving. If students skip class, they get one hour of detention. If they then fail to report to detention for three days in a row, they receive one day of at-home suspension. Therefore, this policy punishes a student who skips class by letting them stay home. This actually gives the student more time away from school – just what the school doesn’t want.

PROBLEM/SOLUTIONBecause the world dumps tons of garbage and waste onto the planet every day, recycling should become the law. The real problem is that every week, each family of four generates enough trash to fill two 32 gallon garbage cans. This happens because people are lazy, have busy lives, and buy products with excessive packaging. If people knew there was an immediate consequence for this waste, they would be more inclined to recycle. We must acknowledge that no one likes to pay a fine or have the government tell them what to do, but if recycling were required, we could reduce the amount of trash produced by at least 50%. The best solution to curbing pollution is to enforce recycling by law.

DEFINITIONJust because the food gets to your table quickly,

this doesn’t mean that the breakfast café down the street is a fast food restaurant. If there is a waitress or a waiter, you know you’re not in a fast food restaurant. If there’s a menu on the table and not on a display over the cash register, then you’re not eating fast food. When you eat with a plate and utensils, you pay for your meal after you eat, and are expected to tip the server, then you’re not at a fast food restaurant. The meal may be greasy, quick, and cheap, but that’s not enough to tell you that where you are is a fast food restaurant. The key elements of fast food meals are pre-paid, packaged, served perfunctorily without wait-staff, and selected from a sign over the cashier’s head.