Search 
MyUMUC 
WebTycho Effective Writing Center (EWC)
Chapter Links:
- Chapter 1: College Writing
- Chapter 2: The Writing Process
- Chapter 3: Thinking Strategies and Writing Patterns
- Chapter 4: The Research Process
- Chapter 5: Academic Integrity and Documentation
- Chapter 6: Using Library Resources
- Chapter 7: Assessing Your Writing
- Chapter 8: Other Frequently Assigned Papers
Appendix Links:
- Appendix A: Books to Help Improve Your Writing
- Appendix B: Collaborative Writing and Peer Reviewing
- Appendix C: Developing an Improvement Plan
- Appendix D: Writing Plan and Project Schedule
Other Links:
Online Guide to Writing and Research
| Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 |
Chapter 8: Other Frequently Assigned Papers
Writing Arguments
Steps to Writing an Argument
State Your Thesis or Proposition
In argument, the thesis is called a proposition. Your proposition should define your argument's scope by stating its situation or context and make clear what assertion you are going to debate. Although you may be presenting both sides of the argument to let your reader decide, you may "hook" your readers by stating your argument as a question. Because many questions lack a point of view, however, be sure a question you use as a hook leads to a proposition and that your proposition makes a claim that is open to debate. Your proposition should state something that your readers feel uncertain about and about which you find arguments for both sides of the issue.
Sometimes students have an opinion they intend to address and support. Then, after reviewing information on the topic, they decide that their opinion has to be modified or changed. This event can enhance your presentation, since you probably have gained valuable insights into how people have formed opinions on the topic. Since your proposition starts out as a working proposition, it can be modified as you write your draft, collect your evidence, and evaluate your information.
To help you get started at this stage, brainstorm and freewrite about what you already know about the topic. Asking—and answering—the following questions can give you a start to your assignment:
- What do I already know about this topic? What do need to learn about this topic?
- Why is this issue important to me? Why do I want to write about it?
- Where can I find more information on this subject?
- Am I concerned more with the causes of this issue, the effects of this issue, or both?
- What other related issues need to be examined for me to address the topic thoroughly?
Report broken links or any other problems on this page to writingcenter@umuc.edu. Be sure to include the title of the chapter and section in your e-mail. Copyright © University of Maryland University College. |
 Print Entire chapter |
Print this Section |
Return to Top |
| Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 |