Persuasive Writing

1. Persuasive Writing Oh, yeah… Make Me!

2. Author’s Purpose • The real difference between expository writing and persuasive writing is the author’s purpose. • Expository- to inform the audience • Persuasive- to persuade or convince the audience to think as the author thinks.

3. Effective Persuasion • Presents a number of clear, compelling facts that support your view. • Appeals to and acknowledges the reader’s sense of fairness, responsibility, caring, and intelligence. • Anticipates the arguments of the opposing side and addresses them with a viable alternative. • Explains to the listener what they have to gain by agreeing with you and what they have to lose by disagreeing.

4. Pro or Con • What’s the ISSUE? A matter of importance to be examined and resolved. • What’s your POINT OF VIEW? A specific opinion or perspective on the issue. • What’s your POSITION? An attitude, opinion or particular stand on an issue. • Are you PRO? A position in support of or in favor a particular issue. FOR • Are you CON? A position against or opposing a particular issue.

5. Yes, but… • Acknowledge the other point of view.

6. Audience Awareness • You must be aware of who might be listening to you speech. • You need to be aware of any opposing views. • You need to respect the opposing view. • Only when the speaker acknowledges the opposing view, and then uses that as a bridge to some alternative thought, is there any hope at all of persuading the opposition. • You need to explore the Pros and Cons of an issue.

7. Affirm, don’t belittle your audience • Realize the opposing view may have some advantages or positive elements. • Don’t alienate, marginalize, polarize, or put down anyone in your audience. • That would be a guaranteed way to motivate your opponent, or anyone who is uncertain, to stop listening or hold fast to his or her own opinion.

8. Critical Language Think before you Speak. • You are asking the school board to leave the dress code as it is. • Having a stricter dress code here at school is a dumb idea. • Although some people believe that having a stricter dress code here at school is a good idea, you’ll see why that’s not the case.

9. Which Statement would be more convincing? What is the offensive language in the first statement? • Having a stricter dress code here at school is a dumb idea. • Although some people believe that having a stricter dress code here at school is a good idea, you’ll see why that’s not the case.

10. Revise this sentence using the sentence starters on 99. • To allow communities to decide whether or not to instate and enforce crosswalk laws is not only dangerous, but just plain ignorant. • Susan B.- downright mockery

11. Objective • Our objective here is to examine a number of issues, identify opposing points of view, and recognize and replace critical language that will insult, alienate, or polarize the audience.

12. Connotation • Emotion a word strikes in a listener. • Words have positive, negative, and neutral connotations. • Why use a neutral when a positive is stronger? • Our objective is to recognize that words that mean nearly the same thing can cast a negative or positive slant to a speech. • CHOOSE YOUR WORDS WISELY!

13. Student Council proposes a dress down day to Mrs. Schlickenmaier • “Tell me, how did you come up with this notion?” • “Tell me, how did you comp up with this idea?”

14. Jump on the Bandwagon! • Learn to use the bandwagon technique • Positive adjectives to describe those who agree with your point of view, and recognize the implications for those who disagree. • Do you know anyone who doesn’t want to be smart?

15. Assume the Alternate Point of View • Objective: Recognize that the best way to succeed at persuasion is to thoroughly explore and understand the opposing of alternate point of view. • Understanding the opposing point of view is critical in order to argue your view successfully. • Use “Yes, but” and watch your connotation