When discussing good persuasive essay topics, the first thing that needs clarification is writing type and its aim. The goal of an argumentative or persuasive essay is illuminating one’s position on some issue and substantiating it with evidence. The core of this type of essay is a thesis statement in which a student articulates his/her claim and summarizes key points of evidence used for proving it. The entire structure should exactly follow thesis statement as it also serves as the essay roadmap. In a persuasive argument topics already contain a question. Student's task is to answer it and to support this answer with evidence. What is also essential in this type of writing is topic – controversial issue to write about. If you pick a good one, the entire process will go easy and smooth as it will be obvious what position you should choose and what argument will prove it best. Otherwise, it’s tantalizing task for students. So one must be careful with topic as it determines all further writing steps.
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It is a must choosing a topic you understand. If from a title you do not have clear vision of what paper is about, look for alternatives. With good topics for a persuasive essay, it should always be understandable what one’s argument is. Otherwise, one is at risk of making paper watery and poorly structured. Clarity of expression is significant for art of persuasion and writing in general. So, things like “Art and Political Protest” should be avoided. Instead, for adding clarity, one might rewrite it like “The Positive Impact of Contemporary Visual Art as a Means of Political Protest”.
This is true for all essay types, but for the argumentative essay writing, it is especially important. Persuasive writing topics should always have a specific scope. Keeping writing focused on one particular issue, it’s possible to discuss it thoroughly and make an essay succinct. For example, if you would like to state your position on global warming, a bad idea would be to formulate a topic like “The Impact of Global Warming”. This issue is so multifaceted that a student wouldn’t be able to put all the ideas and arguments in one piece. Instead, a topic for a persuasive essay should be narrowed to “The Impact of Climate Change on Whale Population”, which contains specific focus for a persuasive research paper. The more precise a topic is, the easier is to search for suitable and sharp arguments and evidence proving it. So focusing on specific issues makes it easier and faster.
This should be the starting point for literally any writing assignment. However, preliminary research might be of extreme importance when looking for good persuasive topics to write about for class. Come up with an idea for an essay and then search the internet or library for information already available about it. Wikipedia is good enough for shaping the issue’s general overview. If an essay should be about some topic learned in class read relevant paragraphs for getting some vision. Sometimes, it might happen that there will be not enough information online for constructing one’s argument. So, any topic should first be checked for the availability of data. The preliminary research can also help find the right direction for modifying essay focus. In persuasion topics make a huge difference both concerning effort and the quality of the final essay. Thus, it’s always better to check it in advance.
A persuasive essay is a form of a written debate where one’s opponent would be skeptical. So it’s necessary to choose an arguable issue. It is not acceptable to write that slavery is bad because anyone knows it is. Instead, to write a good paper, one needs to look at debatable topics to write a persuasive essay on, that should contain intrinsic controversy. The majority of such themes do not have a right or wrong side. But what is crucial in such debate is to articulate your standpoint and use evidence proving it. Therefore, topics like “Smoking is bad for health” should be avoided as they are self-obvious. Another good example here would be “Children in Africa should not be starving”. Of course, they shouldn’t, but whether “Financial aid to Africa might have a negative impact” is indeed a good question for research and arguing.
It is always more interesting for students to do tasks in subjects they are keen on. Nice ideas for persuasive essays should not be a matter of an exhausting quest. It is better to relax, clear one’s thoughts and start brainstorming what might be interesting for you as a person. Do you like politics, environment, or art? Or maybe history, science, education, or literature? A nice strategy would be going from several general subjects to more specific ones, narrowing down an area of interest to several options. Once you come up with several options, you can conduct the preliminary research and make the final decision. Many students fail to understand it. But remember that easy persuasive essay topics are not the ones that are on easy subjects but on those that you are interested in. It’s no point in making tasks boring. Writing is a challenging task, so you should have some intrinsic motivation when getting down to it.
A good argumentative essay should not only be narrow and debatable but also timely. What is meant here is the idea that a controversial issue chosen for an essay should be relevant for the contemporary situation in the world’s society. All the best persuasive essay topics need to highlight an urgent problem that people are trying to solve nowadays. Current events might give an interesting insight into an issue, and it might be valuable to discuss it from a different angle. So, outdated things like “Right of women in the US to vote”, which has already been solved, should not be chosen. Instead, look for contemporary issues like space exploration, feminism, environment conservation, the impact of digitalization, and other currently relevant topics.
This form of writing should be familiar to every school or college student. Such persuasive topics are most often used in English class and sometimes on some others like history. What is most often required in such writing assignments is a clear thesis statement and correct structure with an introduction, several body paragraphs, and a conclusion. In reality, the range of ideas for persuasive essay prompts is as huge as to the moon and back. However, there are certain peculiarities to consider if you want a good grade. The prompt in such writing should either be about a modern or an eternal issue, for example, “Should author’s biography be considered during an analysis of their works” or “Should healthcare be free of charge”. Another essential feature is a very narrow scope of topic to ensure its thorough discussion. Many good topics for persuasive essays are available online. Below are some popular but interesting ones:
It is said that music is immortal art. Do you agree with it and why?
Do you believe that art can be therapeutic?
Can music be an effective way to treat mental illness?
Is theatre still needed in the era of digital video content?
Are audiobooks a better alternative to printed ones?
Should music with offensive language be censored on the radio?
Are museums still relevant in the modern world?
Sport is considered an art. Why?
Is writing letters still needed, or it can be substituted with emails?
Should artists be protected under copyright law, or does the product of the work belong to humanity?
Should students wear school uniforms?
Why should schools teach financial literacy?
Will artificial intelligence be able to replace a teacher?
Should all students pursue higher education?
Is studying online an effective way to learn?
Should cursive still be taught in elementary school?
Should students take a gap year after graduation and why?
Is learning foreign languages beneficial for everyone?
Should arts be a compulsory subject?
Should standardized testing be canceled?
Was the use of atomic bombs during WWII by the US justified?
What is the primary cause of the Rwandan genocide?
Can revolutions be non-violent?
Do you believe that Gandhi’s civil disobedience method works?
What is the greatest human discovery and why?
Do you agree that in war, whichever side may call itself the victor, there are no winners, but all are losers?
Can students learn a lot from history and why?
Is it inevitable for the great empires to fall and why?
What was the main cause of the Cold War?
Is the question of slavery the primary cause of the US Civil War?
This section has probably the biggest creative potential. Why? Because in one’s speech, it is required to encourage others to make some change that a speaker believes to be significant for the future. Speeches, regardless of theme, are all about the need for change. The scope here can be vast. It’s easy to come up with interesting persuasive speech topics by brainstorming ideas you would like humanity to implement. Here are some prompts to consider as the starting point:
Should animals be used in experiments and testing?
Is the death penalty effective?
Should children be raised sex-free?
Is positive discrimination justified?
Vaccination: obligatory or not?
Is torture acceptable in life-and-death situations?
Should Africa get financial aid?
Should same-sex married couples be able to adopt children?
Should women be allowed to do an abortion at their will?
Do religious movements cause war and terrorism?
Why should you vote?
Should a president be given more power to lead the country?
Should we give more liberties in terms of arms to citizens?
Are anti-abortion law initiatives humane?
Should church and state separate from each other?
Why do people need to be politically conscious?
Should citizens under 18 have a right to vote?
Should we combat global warming?
How should we reduce the threat of terrorism?
Should the media become more unbiased in terms of politics?
Is it possible to travel abroad without any restrictions?
Is marijuana global legalization important?
Is it better to rehabilitate rather than imprison minor offense criminals?
Should child labor be allowed in poor countries?
Is a victim of domestic violence fully innocent?
Do you think that jury court is fair?
Should environmental contamination be considered a violent crime?
Who should be punished for illegal prostitution, prostitutes, or their clients?
Should women be judged for murder if they have lost a baby during pregnancy due to substance abuse?
At what age should one be fully responsible for their actions?
In science, there is also room for argument, but it requires more solid proof of the writer's opinion. Such evidence should be drawn from textbooks or scientific journals and should be properly cited following the reference style required. Often students are encouraged to pick their persuasive essay topic for college research to motivate them to be more engaged and interested in the process. Here is the list of some good topics for students to choose from:
Should nuclear plants be used regardless of their potential danger?
Should shows with animals exist?
Is it acceptable to clone humans?
Should people be allowed to keep dangerous animals as pets?
Does technology advancement bring only benefits?
Should we explore space?
Is it possible to replace the human mind with AI?
Should the government invest in development of renewable forms of energy?
Is solar energy a good alternative?
Should hunting be banned?
Is vegan nutrition healthy?
Should fathers be granted paternity leave?
Should all restaurants display nutrition facts about menu items?
Is obesity a disease?
Is resuscitation immoral in the case when a patient refuses it?
Should people take vitamins and supplements without a doctor’s recommendation?
Are sport nutrition supplements healthy?
Should women get guaranteed maternity leave?
Is mental health as important as physical?
Is drug addiction a disease?
Choosing a topic for a persuasive essay and deciding on one’s position on an issue are probably the hardest and the most important parts of a writing process. But after you come up with a strong and effective thesis statement, half of the work can be considered done. In case you feel lost and can’t find a good idea, reach out for help from professional essay writers. They will gladly assist you with choosing the great prompt to write about.
Posted by Chris M., April 01, 2021
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