Argumentative essays address controversial topics in a nuanced way to persuade readers towards the writer’s view. Simple topics have two or three strong opinions, while complex ones require more background information. Topics can be expressed as questions to engage readers.
The arguments of argumentative essays as a whole generally have only one common attribute: they are or can be made controversial. Topics can be related to politics, religion, science, philosophy, or any other broad area of study, and can be written in a variety of different forms. Argumentative essay topics are specifically intended to address a controversial topic in a nuanced and calculated manner with the intention of shifting the reader’s opinion towards the writer’s view of the problem. Sometimes, the topic of an argumentative essay may not seem controversial at first. A seasoned writer with an opinion on such a topic can, however, frame the subject in such a way that complications and problems become apparent and worthy of discussion.
The simplest argumentative essay topics are those on which there are only two or three strong but differing opinions. The death penalty is a common topic, for example, because the basic schools of thought on the issue are “the death penalty is permissible” and “the death penalty is not permissible”. While the issue itself is much more complex and there are more nuanced positions one could take, the underlying arguments tend to be for or against the death penalty. As such, one’s main goal is to pick a particular argument to support the point and develop it into a cohesive and detailed argument.
Sometimes, however, argumentative essay topics aren’t that simple, and people tend not to have polarized views on issues. In such cases, the writer has another task that may be substantially more difficult than simply arguing for a particular position on a clearly polarized topic. A fashion writer making a broad statement about the value of fashion, for example, needs to provide background information that will interest readers who aren’t necessarily interested in the issue; only then will a reader be interested or receptive to discussions of the value of fashion.
In general, argumentative essay topics can be expressed as questions. Setting argumentative essay topics as questions forces the reader to answer the question, thus personally engaging with the problem, so setting the problem as a question is often a good strategy. Questions like “something should be a certain way”, “is something better or worse than something else”, “how should something be done” and “under what circumstances is it okay for someone to act a certain way” all ask the reader to find an answer and can create well-framed argumentative essay topics.
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