how to write an for and against essay

Blog de Cristina

Digital tools and ideas to transform education, five steps to writing a good for and against essay.

An essay is a formal piece of writing which describes, analyses or discusses a particular issue.

The most common types are:

• Opinion essays. They present the writer’s personal opinion of the topic, supported with examples and reasons.
• For and against essays. They   present both sides of an issue in a balanced way. In the concluding paragraph you can say why you find one side more convincing than the other.

In this post, I’ll guide you step by step to help you write a good for and against essay.

• Step 1. Tips and Guidelines +sample essay (pdf)
• Step 2. Presentation + sample essay (reinforcing)
• Step 3. Using connectors of contrast
• Step 4. Using connectors of purpose
• Step 5. Write: 53 topics to write about. (pdf)

Step 1. Tips and guidelines+sample essay 

Download pdf

1. The first stage in writing is producing ideas. It’s important to dedicate two or three minutes to carefully planning what you are going to say. Make a list of the points for and against. Remember that the key to writing a good balanced essay is to include as many arguments you disagree with as those you agree with. They should be noted impartially although in your conclusion you can say why you find one side more convincing than the other.

2. Producing and organising ideas is one thing. Shaping ideas and the organisation of your writing is another. But often the most difficult part is starting a first draft.

Once you have your first draft pay attention to how you have organised the information into paragraphs and grouped ideas.

Once this is done you can focus on expression. This means looking at sentence structure, tense usage and vocabulary. It’s important to write clearly and economically. This can mean either rephrasing ideas in two sentences instead of one, or rewriting two longer sentences as one shorter sentence. So, go over your first draft, looking for ways of improving sentence structure, tense usage and vocabulary.

3. Organise your essay into three parts:

• Introduction- Paragraph 1- Introduce the topic. The opening should engage the reader’s interest and give a hint of what is to follow.
• Main Body- Normally you have two paragraphs. In Paragraph 2, you state your arguments for and in Paragraph 3, your arguments against.
• Conclusion– In paragraph 4 you refer back to the topic and summarize. Here you can say why you find one side more convincing than the other.

4. It’s important that you begin each paragraph with a main idea and then develop this idea. For a new idea, begin a new paragraph.

5. This is academic writing, so don’t use informal style ( no contractions, colloquial words, or emotional language).

6. Remember to use a variety of structures and vocabulary adequate to your level.

Step 2. Presentation + sample essay (reinforcing ).

Step 3. Using connectors of contrast.

Using connectors is important to express different relationships between ideas. Here, you’ll learn how to use connectors of contrast.

Read the flyer below to learn how to use: despite/in spite of, nevertheless, however, on the other hand, although, even though, though, yet, still, but and while/whereas. 

At the end of the flyer there are some interactive exercises to test your knowledge.

Step 3. Using connectors of purpose.

Now we learn how to express purpose with the following words: to, in order to, so as to, for, so that and in case.

Test your knowledge

Step 5. Write: 53 topics to write about.   Pdf here

Are you ready to write now? Here’s a compilation of 53 for and against topics to write about from different sites and course books. Take your pick, follow all the tips and guidelines and good luck!

• Should schools start later in the morning?
• Benefits of teaching children second languages early on.
• The pros and cons of single gender classrooms.
• Is sex education the job of parents or of the school?
• The pros and cons of reduction of physical education hours in our current school system.
• The pros and cons of security cameras in schools.
• Pros and cons of a 4-day school week.
• Should parents pay students for good grades?
• The pros and cons of bilingual or dual language education.
• The pros and cons of wearing a uniform.
• The pros and cons of banning junk food in schools.
• Should sexual education be taught in high schools?
• The education a child receives at home from having parents who are positive role models is more important than the academic education a child receives at school. To what extent do you agree or disagree?

HEALTHY ISSUES

• Plastic surgery- vanity or need?
• Is vegetarianism a healthy diet?
• One of the largest parts of government expenditure is health. Some people argue that this money would be better spent on health education on the principle that prevention is better than cure. To what extent do you agree or disagree?

MORAL ISSUES

• Should parents be allowed to choose their child’s gender?
• Pros and cons of having exotic animals as home pets?
• Should advertising for plastic surgery be illegal?
• Should priests be celibate?
• What does everyone think about zoo animals? Is it a good or a bad thing?
• Does legal prostitution reduce crime?
• To what extent is the use of animals in scientific research acceptable? Discuss the pros and cons.
• Some people argue that the amount of violence shown in films and on television has led to an increase in violent crimes in society. Do you agree with this argument? Should the government control what is shown on television and in the cinema?
• Should rich countries forgive all debts for poor countries?
• The pros and cons of children under the age of 10 playing video games.
• The pros and cons of film, television, and music piracy.
• Should kids under the age of 13 have a phone?
• Advantages and disadvantages of digital spying on kids and teens.
• The pros and cons of owning an electric car.
• Have we become too dependent on technology? Discuss the pros and cons.
• Should students be allowed to have cell phones in elementary and high schools?
• Should we ban the sale of violent video games?
• Some people say that the Internet is making the world smaller by bringing people together. To what extent do you agree that the Internet is making it easier for people to communicate with one another?
• Should pro wrestling be considered a sport?
• Should sport hunting be banned?
• Many people want their country to hold the Olympics. Others believe that international sporting events bring more problems than benefits. Discuss both views and state your opinion.
• In the future, we will have more and more leisure time as machines replace many of the tasks we do at home and work. Discuss the benefits this will bring and also the problem it will cause.
• It is said that travel broadens the mind. What can we learn by travelling to other countries? Should we first explore our own countries? Discuss.
• In many countries tourism is a major part of the economy, but it also causes environmental damage and ruins the places it exploits. It is argued that tourists should pay an additional tax to compensate for this damage. Do you agree?
• Should museums and art galleries be free of charge for the general public, or should a charge, even a voluntary charge, be levied for admittance? Discuss this issue, and give your opinion.
• Unemployment is one of the most serious problems facing developed nations today. What are the advantages and/or disadvantages of reducing the working week to thirty five hours?
• Most high level jobs are done by men. Should the government encourage a certain percentage of these jobs to be reserved for women?
• Should retirement be compulsory at 65 years of age?

  GLOBALISATION:

• Differences between countries become less evident each year. Nowadays, all over the world people share the same fashions, advertising, brands, eating habits and TV channels. What are the advantages and disadvantages of this?
• Television has had a significant influence on the culture of many societies. To what extent would you say that television has positively or negatively affected the cultural development of your society?
• Some people like living in a house, while others prefer an apartment. Are there more advantages than disadvantages to living in a house rather than in an apartment?

FAMILY AND RELATIONSHIPS

• The pros and cons of gay marriage.
• Some parents choose not to have a television at home because of the influence on their children. Is this a good or a bad thing?
• Some people believe in the traditional idea that the woman’s place is in the home, while others say that idea is outdated and that women should play an increasingly important role in the workplace of the future. What is your opinion?
• People are now living longer than ever before and many old people are unable to look after themselves. Some people believe that it is the responsibility of families to look after the elderly, while others say governments should provide retirement homes for them where they can be looked after properly. Discuss.
• Are women better parents than men?
• If children behave badly, should their parents accept responsibility and also be punished?

Have you visited my writing section yet ?

Blog de Cristina is also on Facebook. Follow us.

Related posts:

23 thoughts on “ Five Steps to Writing a Good For and Against Essay ”

thanks https://www.cristinacabal.com/ y

Thank you for the information. Really is useful

Thanks for your comment! And also, for the link to the video! Very clear and helpful!

Great article! Thanks! Perhaps this information that I found will be useful as well https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FGU5Tkh-Rvg

Thanks for sharing. This is a very interesting post.

Thank you very much for your comments and post.

Thanks for your comment!

Writing is an art that everyone has but you need to figure it out. You can write any type of essay and article first you need to choose the topic wisely then do research and then start writing. You can choose topics like Fashion, Business, and Environment. Thanks for sharing this information it is interesting.

Hey, Thanks for sharing this information.

Hi Montse Which presentation are you referring to? There are three. I’ve just checked all of them and they seem to be working fine. I suggest you use another browser, just in case!

Thanks very much for sharing your For and Against Presentation but it does not work quite well. Words overlap, some of them are not separated… it is difficult to stop the presentation..

Hi Grace Thanks for your comment!

This is all very useful. Thanks a lot..

Hi Bry Where is “although” hyphenated exactly? I can’t see it anywhere! Thanks

Your rules of hypenation seem to not be for English words and spellings. I think that your current rules are perhaps for Spanish. That makes this kind of hypenation:

Since “th” is a digraph, you have to hyphenate:

FYI, no worries!

–Bry.

This is quite interesting topic and students can have variety of words to write on. Writing an essay just needs clear instruction and valuable content. This is basic requirement of essay because without clear concept we can’t write well. Also i want to say that writing will describe your thinking as well so always try to remain positive and determined to your task.

Thanks a lot, Ann!

Hi Cristina,

Just to let you know that we’ve shortlisted this blog post for this month’s TeachingEnglish blog award and I’ll be putting up a post about it on tomorrow’s TeachingEnglish Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/TeachingEnglish.BritishCouncil , if you’d like to check there for likes and comments.

You’re welcome! I am glad you find it useful!

Thanks a lot for sharing us this material. I really appreciate it.

Hi Nad Which powerpoint do you refer to? I’ve tested everything visual on the post and it seems to be working fine.

Hello, The powerpoint like document is not working properly. Some words overlap others and it makes it difficult to read sometimes.

Anyway, thanks for sharing, it’s very useful,

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your e-mail address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed .

Choose Your Test

Sat / act prep online guides and tips, how to write an a+ argumentative essay.

Miscellaneous

You'll no doubt have to write a number of argumentative essays in both high school and college, but what, exactly, is an argumentative essay and how do you write the best one possible? Let's take a look.

A great argumentative essay always combines the same basic elements: approaching an argument from a rational perspective, researching sources, supporting your claims using facts rather than opinion, and articulating your reasoning into the most cogent and reasoned points. Argumentative essays are great building blocks for all sorts of research and rhetoric, so your teachers will expect you to master the technique before long.

But if this sounds daunting, never fear! We'll show how an argumentative essay differs from other kinds of papers, how to research and write them, how to pick an argumentative essay topic, and where to find example essays. So let's get started.

What Is an Argumentative Essay? How Is it Different from Other Kinds of Essays?

There are two basic requirements for any and all essays: to state a claim (a thesis statement) and to support that claim with evidence.

Though every essay is founded on these two ideas, there are several different types of essays, differentiated by the style of the writing, how the writer presents the thesis, and the types of evidence used to support the thesis statement.

Essays can be roughly divided into four different types:

#1: Argumentative #2: Persuasive #3: Expository #4: Analytical

So let's look at each type and what the differences are between them before we focus the rest of our time to argumentative essays.

Argumentative Essay

Argumentative essays are what this article is all about, so let's talk about them first.

An argumentative essay attempts to convince a reader to agree with a particular argument (the writer's thesis statement). The writer takes a firm stand one way or another on a topic and then uses hard evidence to support that stance.

An argumentative essay seeks to prove to the reader that one argument —the writer's argument— is the factually and logically correct one. This means that an argumentative essay must use only evidence-based support to back up a claim , rather than emotional or philosophical reasoning (which is often allowed in other types of essays). Thus, an argumentative essay has a burden of substantiated proof and sources , whereas some other types of essays (namely persuasive essays) do not.

You can write an argumentative essay on any topic, so long as there's room for argument. Generally, you can use the same topics for both a persuasive essay or an argumentative one, so long as you support the argumentative essay with hard evidence.

Example topics of an argumentative essay:

• "Should farmers be allowed to shoot wolves if those wolves injure or kill farm animals?"
• "Should the drinking age be lowered in the United States?"
• "Are alternatives to democracy effective and/or feasible to implement?"

The next three types of essays are not argumentative essays, but you may have written them in school. We're going to cover them so you know what not to do for your argumentative essay.

Persuasive Essay

Persuasive essays are similar to argumentative essays, so it can be easy to get them confused. But knowing what makes an argumentative essay different than a persuasive essay can often mean the difference between an excellent grade and an average one.

Persuasive essays seek to persuade a reader to agree with the point of view of the writer, whether that point of view is based on factual evidence or not. The writer has much more flexibility in the evidence they can use, with the ability to use moral, cultural, or opinion-based reasoning as well as factual reasoning to persuade the reader to agree the writer's side of a given issue.

Instead of being forced to use "pure" reason as one would in an argumentative essay, the writer of a persuasive essay can manipulate or appeal to the reader's emotions. So long as the writer attempts to steer the readers into agreeing with the thesis statement, the writer doesn't necessarily need hard evidence in favor of the argument.

Often, you can use the same topics for both a persuasive essay or an argumentative one—the difference is all in the approach and the evidence you present.

Example topics of a persuasive essay:

• "Should children be responsible for their parents' debts?"
• "Should cheating on a test be automatic grounds for expulsion?"
• "How much should sports leagues be held accountable for player injuries and the long-term consequences of those injuries?"

Expository Essay

An expository essay is typically a short essay in which the writer explains an idea, issue, or theme , or discusses the history of a person, place, or idea.

This is typically a fact-forward essay with little argument or opinion one way or the other.

Example topics of an expository essay:

• "The History of the Philadelphia Liberty Bell"
• "The Reasons I Always Wanted to be a Doctor"
• "The Meaning Behind the Colloquialism ‘People in Glass Houses Shouldn't Throw Stones'"

Analytical Essay

An analytical essay seeks to delve into the deeper meaning of a text or work of art, or unpack a complicated idea . These kinds of essays closely interpret a source and look into its meaning by analyzing it at both a macro and micro level.

This type of analysis can be augmented by historical context or other expert or widely-regarded opinions on the subject, but is mainly supported directly through the original source (the piece or art or text being analyzed) .

Example topics of an analytical essay:

• "Victory Gin in Place of Water: The Symbolism Behind Gin as the Only Potable Substance in George Orwell's 1984"
• "Amarna Period Art: The Meaning Behind the Shift from Rigid to Fluid Poses"
• "Adultery During WWII, as Told Through a Series of Letters to and from Soldiers"

There are many different types of essay and, over time, you'll be able to master them all.

A Typical Argumentative Essay Assignment

The average argumentative essay is between three to five pages, and will require at least three or four separate sources with which to back your claims . As for the essay topic , you'll most often be asked to write an argumentative essay in an English class on a "general" topic of your choice, ranging the gamut from science, to history, to literature.

But while the topics of an argumentative essay can span several different fields, the structure of an argumentative essay is always the same: you must support a claim—a claim that can reasonably have multiple sides—using multiple sources and using a standard essay format (which we'll talk about later on).

This is why many argumentative essay topics begin with the word "should," as in:

• "Should all students be required to learn chemistry in high school?"
• "Should children be required to learn a second language?"
• "Should schools or governments be allowed to ban books?"

These topics all have at least two sides of the argument: Yes or no. And you must support the side you choose with evidence as to why your side is the correct one.

But there are also plenty of other ways to frame an argumentative essay as well:

• "Does using social media do more to benefit or harm people?"
• "Does the legal status of artwork or its creators—graffiti and vandalism, pirated media, a creator who's in jail—have an impact on the art itself?"
• "Is or should anyone ever be ‘above the law?'"

Though these are worded differently than the first three, you're still essentially forced to pick between two sides of an issue: yes or no, for or against, benefit or detriment. Though your argument might not fall entirely into one side of the divide or another—for instance, you could claim that social media has positively impacted some aspects of modern life while being a detriment to others—your essay should still support one side of the argument above all. Your final stance would be that overall , social media is beneficial or overall , social media is harmful.

If your argument is one that is mostly text-based or backed by a single source (e.g., "How does Salinger show that Holden Caulfield is an unreliable narrator?" or "Does Gatsby personify the American Dream?"), then it's an analytical essay, rather than an argumentative essay. An argumentative essay will always be focused on more general topics so that you can use multiple sources to back up your claims.

Good Argumentative Essay Topics

So you know the basic idea behind an argumentative essay, but what topic should you write about?

Again, almost always, you'll be asked to write an argumentative essay on a free topic of your choice, or you'll be asked to select between a few given topics . If you're given complete free reign of topics, then it'll be up to you to find an essay topic that no only appeals to you, but that you can turn into an A+ argumentative essay.

What makes a "good" argumentative essay topic depends on both the subject matter and your personal interest —it can be hard to give your best effort on something that bores you to tears! But it can also be near impossible to write an argumentative essay on a topic that has no room for debate.

As we said earlier, a good argumentative essay topic will be one that has the potential to reasonably go in at least two directions—for or against, yes or no, and why . For example, it's pretty hard to write an argumentative essay on whether or not people should be allowed to murder one another—not a whole lot of debate there for most people!—but writing an essay for or against the death penalty has a lot more wiggle room for evidence and argument.

A good topic is also one that can be substantiated through hard evidence and relevant sources . So be sure to pick a topic that other people have studied (or at least studied elements of) so that you can use their data in your argument. For example, if you're arguing that it should be mandatory for all middle school children to play a sport, you might have to apply smaller scientific data points to the larger picture you're trying to justify. There are probably several studies you could cite on the benefits of physical activity and the positive effect structure and teamwork has on young minds, but there's probably no study you could use where a group of scientists put all middle-schoolers in one jurisdiction into a mandatory sports program (since that's probably never happened). So long as your evidence is relevant to your point and you can extrapolate from it to form a larger whole, you can use it as a part of your resource material.

And if you need ideas on where to get started, or just want to see sample argumentative essay topics, then check out these links for hundreds of potential argumentative essay topics.

101 Persuasive (or Argumentative) Essay and Speech Topics

301 Prompts for Argumentative Writing

Top 50 Ideas for Argumentative/Persuasive Essay Writing

[Note: some of these say "persuasive essay topics," but just remember that the same topic can often be used for both a persuasive essay and an argumentative essay; the difference is in your writing style and the evidence you use to support your claims.]

KO! Find that one argumentative essay topic you can absolutely conquer.

Argumentative Essay Format

Argumentative Essays are composed of four main elements:

• A position (your argument)
• Your reasons
• Supporting evidence for those reasons (from reliable sources)
• Counterargument(s) (possible opposing arguments and reasons why those arguments are incorrect)

If you're familiar with essay writing in general, then you're also probably familiar with the five paragraph essay structure . This structure is a simple tool to show how one outlines an essay and breaks it down into its component parts, although it can be expanded into as many paragraphs as you want beyond the core five.

The standard argumentative essay is often 3-5 pages, which will usually mean a lot more than five paragraphs, but your overall structure will look the same as a much shorter essay.

An argumentative essay at its simplest structure will look like:

Paragraph 1: Intro

• Set up the story/problem/issue
• Thesis/claim

Paragraph 2: Support

• Reason #1 claim is correct
• Supporting evidence with sources

Paragraph 3: Support

• Reason #2 claim is correct

Paragraph 4: Counterargument

• Explanation of argument for the other side
• Refutation of opposing argument with supporting evidence

Paragraph 5: Conclusion

• Re-state claim
• Sum up reasons and support of claim from the essay to prove claim is correct

Now let's unpack each of these paragraph types to see how they work (with examples!), what goes into them, and why.

Paragraph 1—Set Up and Claim

Your first task is to introduce the reader to the topic at hand so they'll be prepared for your claim. Give a little background information, set the scene, and give the reader some stakes so that they care about the issue you're going to discuss.

Next, you absolutely must have a position on an argument and make that position clear to the readers. It's not an argumentative essay unless you're arguing for a specific claim, and this claim will be your thesis statement.

Your thesis CANNOT be a mere statement of fact (e.g., "Washington DC is the capital of the United States"). Your thesis must instead be an opinion which can be backed up with evidence and has the potential to be argued against (e.g., "New York should be the capital of the United States").

Paragraphs 2 and 3—Your Evidence

These are your body paragraphs in which you give the reasons why your argument is the best one and back up this reasoning with concrete evidence .

The argument supporting the thesis of an argumentative essay should be one that can be supported by facts and evidence, rather than personal opinion or cultural or religious mores.

For example, if you're arguing that New York should be the new capital of the US, you would have to back up that fact by discussing the factual contrasts between New York and DC in terms of location, population, revenue, and laws. You would then have to talk about the precedents for what makes for a good capital city and why New York fits the bill more than DC does.

Your argument can't simply be that a lot of people think New York is the best city ever and that you agree.

In addition to using concrete evidence, you always want to keep the tone of your essay passionate, but impersonal . Even though you're writing your argument from a single opinion, don't use first person language—"I think," "I feel," "I believe,"—to present your claims. Doing so is repetitive, since by writing the essay you're already telling the audience what you feel, and using first person language weakens your writing voice.

For example,

"I think that Washington DC is no longer suited to be the capital city of the United States."

"Washington DC is no longer suited to be the capital city of the United States."

The second statement sounds far stronger and more analytical.

Paragraph 4—Argument for the Other Side and Refutation

Even without a counter argument, you can make a pretty persuasive claim, but a counterargument will round out your essay into one that is much more persuasive and substantial.

By anticipating an argument against your claim and taking the initiative to counter it, you're allowing yourself to get ahead of the game. This way, you show that you've given great thought to all sides of the issue before choosing your position, and you demonstrate in multiple ways how yours is the more reasoned and supported side.

Paragraph 5—Conclusion

This paragraph is where you re-state your argument and summarize why it's the best claim.

Briefly touch on your supporting evidence and voila! A finished argumentative essay.

Your essay should have just as awesome a skeleton as this plesiosaur does. (In other words: a ridiculously awesome skeleton)

Argumentative Essay Example: 5-Paragraph Style

It always helps to have an example to learn from. I've written a full 5-paragraph argumentative essay here. Look at how I state my thesis in paragraph 1, give supporting evidence in paragraphs 2 and 3, address a counterargument in paragraph 4, and conclude in paragraph 5.

Topic: Is it possible to maintain conflicting loyalties?

Paragraph 1

It is almost impossible to go through life without encountering a situation where your loyalties to different people or causes come into conflict with each other. Maybe you have a loving relationship with your sister, but she disagrees with your decision to join the army, or you find yourself torn between your cultural beliefs and your scientific ones. These conflicting loyalties can often be maintained for a time, but as examples from both history and psychological theory illustrate, sooner or later, people have to make a choice between competing loyalties, as no one can maintain a conflicting loyalty or belief system forever.

The first two sentences set the scene and give some hypothetical examples and stakes for the reader to care about.

The third sentence finishes off the intro with the thesis statement, making very clear how the author stands on the issue ("people have to make a choice between competing loyalties, as no one can maintain a conflicting loyalty or belief system forever." )

Paragraphs 2 and 3

Psychological theory states that human beings are not equipped to maintain conflicting loyalties indefinitely and that attempting to do so leads to a state called "cognitive dissonance." Cognitive dissonance theory is the psychological idea that people undergo tremendous mental stress or anxiety when holding contradictory beliefs, values, or loyalties (Festinger, 1957). Even if human beings initially hold a conflicting loyalty, they will do their best to find a mental equilibrium by making a choice between those loyalties—stay stalwart to a belief system or change their beliefs. One of the earliest formal examples of cognitive dissonance theory comes from Leon Festinger's When Prophesy Fails . Members of an apocalyptic cult are told that the end of the world will occur on a specific date and that they alone will be spared the Earth's destruction. When that day comes and goes with no apocalypse, the cult members face a cognitive dissonance between what they see and what they've been led to believe (Festinger, 1956). Some choose to believe that the cult's beliefs are still correct, but that the Earth was simply spared from destruction by mercy, while others choose to believe that they were lied to and that the cult was fraudulent all along. Both beliefs cannot be correct at the same time, and so the cult members are forced to make their choice.

But even when conflicting loyalties can lead to potentially physical, rather than just mental, consequences, people will always make a choice to fall on one side or other of a dividing line. Take, for instance, Nicolaus Copernicus, a man born and raised in Catholic Poland (and educated in Catholic Italy). Though the Catholic church dictated specific scientific teachings, Copernicus' loyalty to his own observations and scientific evidence won out over his loyalty to his country's government and belief system. When he published his heliocentric model of the solar system--in opposition to the geocentric model that had been widely accepted for hundreds of years (Hannam, 2011)-- Copernicus was making a choice between his loyalties. In an attempt t o maintain his fealty both to the established system and to what he believed, h e sat on his findings for a number of years (Fantoli, 1994). But, ultimately, Copernicus made the choice to side with his beliefs and observations above all and published his work for the world to see (even though, in doing so, he risked both his reputation and personal freedoms).

These two paragraphs provide the reasons why the author supports the main argument and uses substantiated sources to back those reasons.

The paragraph on cognitive dissonance theory gives both broad supporting evidence and more narrow, detailed supporting evidence to show why the thesis statement is correct not just anecdotally but also scientifically and psychologically. First, we see why people in general have a difficult time accepting conflicting loyalties and desires and then how this applies to individuals through the example of the cult members from the Dr. Festinger's research.

The next paragraph continues to use more detailed examples from history to provide further evidence of why the thesis that people cannot indefinitely maintain conflicting loyalties is true.

Paragraph 4

Some will claim that it is possible to maintain conflicting beliefs or loyalties permanently, but this is often more a matter of people deluding themselves and still making a choice for one side or the other, rather than truly maintaining loyalty to both sides equally. For example, Lancelot du Lac typifies a person who claims to maintain a balanced loyalty between to two parties, but his attempt to do so fails (as all attempts to permanently maintain conflicting loyalties must). Lancelot tells himself and others that he is equally devoted to both King Arthur and his court and to being Queen Guinevere's knight (Malory, 2008). But he can neither be in two places at once to protect both the king and queen, nor can he help but let his romantic feelings for the queen to interfere with his duties to the king and the kingdom. Ultimately, he and Queen Guinevere give into their feelings for one another and Lancelot—though he denies it—chooses his loyalty to her over his loyalty to Arthur. This decision plunges the kingdom into a civil war, ages Lancelot prematurely, and ultimately leads to Camelot's ruin (Raabe, 1987). Though Lancelot claimed to have been loyal to both the king and the queen, this loyalty was ultimately in conflict, and he could not maintain it.

Here we have the acknowledgement of a potential counter-argument and the evidence as to why it isn't true.

The argument is that some people (or literary characters) have asserted that they give equal weight to their conflicting loyalties. The refutation is that, though some may claim to be able to maintain conflicting loyalties, they're either lying to others or deceiving themselves. The paragraph shows why this is true by providing an example of this in action.

Paragraph 5

Whether it be through literature or history, time and time again, people demonstrate the challenges of trying to manage conflicting loyalties and the inevitable consequences of doing so. Though belief systems are malleable and will often change over time, it is not possible to maintain two mutually exclusive loyalties or beliefs at once. In the end, people always make a choice, and loyalty for one party or one side of an issue will always trump loyalty to the other.

The concluding paragraph summarizes the essay, touches on the evidence presented, and re-states the thesis statement.

How to Write an Argumentative Essay: 8 Steps

Writing the best argumentative essay is all about the preparation, so let's talk steps:

#1: Preliminary Research

If you have the option to pick your own argumentative essay topic (which you most likely will), then choose one or two topics you find the most intriguing or that you have a vested interest in and do some preliminary research on both sides of the debate.

Do an open internet search just to see what the general chatter is on the topic and what the research trends are.

Did your preliminary reading influence you to pick a side or change your side? Without diving into all the scholarly articles at length, do you believe there's enough evidence to support your claim? Have there been scientific studies? Experiments? Does a noted scholar in the field agree with you? If not, you may need to pick another topic or side of the argument to support.

#2: Pick Your Side and Form Your Thesis

Now's the time to pick the side of the argument you feel you can support the best and summarize your main point into your thesis statement.

Your thesis will be the basis of your entire essay, so make sure you know which side you're on, that you've stated it clearly, and that you stick by your argument throughout the entire essay .

#3: Heavy-Duty Research Time

You've taken a gander at what the internet at large has to say on your argument, but now's the time to actually read those sources and take notes.

Check scholarly journals online at Google Scholar , the Directory of Open Access Journals , or JStor . You can also search individual university or school libraries and websites to see what kinds of academic articles you can access for free. Keep track of your important quotes and page numbers and put them somewhere that's easy to find later.

And don't forget to check your school or local libraries as well!

#4: Outline

Follow the five-paragraph outline structure from the previous section.

Fill in your topic, your reasons, and your supporting evidence into each of the categories.

Before you begin to flesh out the essay, take a look at what you've got. Is your thesis statement in the first paragraph? Is it clear? Is your argument logical? Does your supporting evidence support your reasoning?

By outlining your essay, you streamline your process and take care of any logic gaps before you dive headfirst into the writing. This will save you a lot of grief later on if you need to change your sources or your structure, so don't get too trigger-happy and skip this step.

Now that you've laid out exactly what you'll need for your essay and where, it's time to fill in all the gaps by writing it out.

Take it one step at a time and expand your ideas into complete sentences and substantiated claims. It may feel daunting to turn an outline into a complete draft, but just remember that you've already laid out all the groundwork; now you're just filling in the gaps.

If you have the time before deadline, give yourself a day or two (or even just an hour!) away from your essay . Looking it over with fresh eyes will allow you to see errors, both minor and major, that you likely would have missed had you tried to edit when it was still raw.

Take a first pass over the entire essay and try your best to ignore any minor spelling or grammar mistakes—you're just looking at the big picture right now. Does it make sense as a whole? Did the essay succeed in making an argument and backing that argument up logically? (Do you feel persuaded?)

If not, go back and make notes so that you can fix it for your final draft.

Once you've made your revisions to the overall structure, mark all your small errors and grammar problems so you can fix them in the next draft.

#7: Final Draft

Use the notes you made on the rough draft and go in and hack and smooth away until you're satisfied with the final result.

A checklist for your final draft:

• Formatting is correct according to your teacher's standards
• No errors in spelling, grammar, and punctuation
• Essay is the right length and size for the assignment
• The argument is present, consistent, and concise
• Each reason is supported by relevant evidence
• The essay makes sense overall

#8: Celebrate!

Once you've brought that final draft to a perfect polish and turned in your assignment, you're done! Go you!

Be prepared and ♪ you'll never go hungry again ♪, *cough*, or struggle with your argumentative essay-writing again. (Walt Disney Studios)

Good Examples of Argumentative Essays Online

Theory is all well and good, but examples are key. Just to get you started on what a fully-fleshed out argumentative essay looks like, let's see some examples in action.

Check out these two argumentative essay examples on the use of landmines and freons (and note the excellent use of concrete sources to back up their arguments!).

The Use of Landmines

A Shattered Sky

The Take-Aways: Keys to Writing an Argumentative Essay

At first, writing an argumentative essay may seem like a monstrous hurdle to overcome, but with the proper preparation and understanding, you'll be able to knock yours out of the park.

Remember the differences between a persuasive essay and an argumentative one, make sure your thesis is clear, and double-check that your supporting evidence is both relevant to your point and well-sourced . Pick your topic, do your research, make your outline, and fill in the gaps. Before you know it, you'll have yourself an A+ argumentative essay there, my friend.

What's Next?

Now you know the ins and outs of an argumentative essay, but how comfortable are you writing in other styles? Learn more about the four writing styles and when it makes sense to use each .

Understand how to make an argument, but still having trouble organizing your thoughts? Check out our guide to three popular essay formats and choose which one is right for you.

Ready to make your case, but not sure what to write about? We've created a list of 50 potential argumentative essay topics to spark your imagination.

Courtney scored in the 99th percentile on the SAT in high school and went on to graduate from Stanford University with a degree in Cultural and Social Anthropology. She is passionate about bringing education and the tools to succeed to students from all backgrounds and walks of life, as she believes open education is one of the great societal equalizers. She has years of tutoring experience and writes creative works in her free time.

Ask a Question Below

Have any questions about this article or other topics? Ask below and we'll reply!

Improve With Our Famous Guides

• For All Students

The 5 Strategies You Must Be Using to Improve 160+ SAT Points

How to Get a Perfect 1600, by a Perfect Scorer

Series: How to Get 800 on Each SAT Section:

Score 800 on SAT Math

Score 800 on SAT Reading

Score 800 on SAT Writing

Series: How to Get to 600 on Each SAT Section:

Score 600 on SAT Math

Score 600 on SAT Reading

Score 600 on SAT Writing

Free Complete Official SAT Practice Tests

What SAT Target Score Should You Be Aiming For?

15 Strategies to Improve Your SAT Essay

The 5 Strategies You Must Be Using to Improve 4+ ACT Points

How to Get a Perfect 36 ACT, by a Perfect Scorer

Series: How to Get 36 on Each ACT Section:

36 on ACT English

36 on ACT Math

36 on ACT Reading

36 on ACT Science

Series: How to Get to 24 on Each ACT Section:

24 on ACT English

24 on ACT Math

24 on ACT Reading

24 on ACT Science

What ACT target score should you be aiming for?

ACT Vocabulary You Must Know

ACT Writing: 15 Tips to Raise Your Essay Score

How to Get Into Harvard and the Ivy League

How to Get a Perfect 4.0 GPA

How to Write an Amazing College Essay

What Exactly Are Colleges Looking For?

Is the ACT easier than the SAT? A Comprehensive Guide

Should you retake your SAT or ACT?

When should you take the SAT or ACT?

Stay Informed

Get the latest articles and test prep tips!

Looking for Graduate School Test Prep?

Check out our top-rated graduate blogs here:

GRE Online Prep Blog

GMAT Online Prep Blog

TOEFL Online Prep Blog

Holly R. "I am absolutely overjoyed and cannot thank you enough for helping me!”

Argumentative Essay Examples to Inspire You (+ Free Formula)

Table of contents

Meredith Sell

Have you ever been asked to explain your opinion on a controversial issue? 

• Maybe your family got into a discussion about chemical pesticides
• Someone at work argues against investing resources into your project
• Your partner thinks intermittent fasting is the best way to lose weight and you disagree

Proving your point in an argumentative essay can be challenging, unless you are using a proven formula.

Argumentative essay formula & example

In the image below, you can see a recommended structure for argumentative essays. It starts with the topic sentence, which establishes the main idea of the essay. Next, this hypothesis is developed in the development stage. Then, the rebuttal, or the refutal of the main counter argument or arguments. Then, again, development of the rebuttal. This is followed by an example, and ends with a summary. This is a very basic structure, but it gives you a bird-eye-view of how a proper argumentative essay can be built.

Writing an argumentative essay (for a class, a news outlet, or just for fun) can help you improve your understanding of an issue and sharpen your thinking on the matter. Using researched facts and data, you can explain why you or others think the way you do, even while other reasonable people disagree.

Free AI argumentative essay generator > Free AI argumentative essay generator >

What Is an Argumentative Essay?

An argumentative essay is an explanatory essay that takes a side.

Instead of appealing to emotion and personal experience to change the reader’s mind, an argumentative essay uses logic and well-researched factual information to explain why the thesis in question is the most reasonable opinion on the matter.  

Over several paragraphs or pages, the author systematically walks through:

• The opposition (and supporting evidence)
• The chosen thesis (and its supporting evidence)

At the end, the author leaves the decision up to the reader, trusting that the case they’ve made will do the work of changing the reader’s mind. Even if the reader’s opinion doesn’t change, they come away from the essay with a greater understanding of the perspective presented — and perhaps a better understanding of their original opinion.

All of that might make it seem like writing an argumentative essay is way harder than an emotionally-driven persuasive essay — but if you’re like me and much more comfortable spouting facts and figures than making impassioned pleas, you may find that an argumentative essay is easier to write. 

Plus, the process of researching an argumentative essay means you can check your assumptions and develop an opinion that’s more based in reality than what you originally thought. I know for sure that my opinions need to be fact checked — don’t yours?

So how exactly do we write the argumentative essay?

How do you start an argumentative essay

First, gain a clear understanding of what exactly an argumentative essay is. To formulate a proper topic sentence, you have to be clear on your topic, and to explore it through research.

Students have difficulty starting an essay because the whole task seems intimidating, and they are afraid of spending too much time on the topic sentence. Experienced writers, however, know that there is no set time to spend on figuring out your topic. It's a real exploration that is based to a large extent on intuition.

6 Steps to Write an Argumentative Essay (Persuasion Formula)

Use this checklist to tackle your essay one step at a time:

1. Research an issue with an arguable question

To start, you need to identify an issue that well-informed people have varying opinions on. Here, it’s helpful to think of one core topic and how it intersects with another (or several other) issues. That intersection is where hot takes and reasonable (or unreasonable) opinions abound. 

I find it helpful to stage the issue as a question.

For example: 

Is it better to legislate the minimum size of chicken enclosures or to outlaw the sale of eggs from chickens who don’t have enough space?

Should snow removal policies focus more on effectively keeping roads clear for traffic or the environmental impacts of snow removal methods?

Once you have your arguable question ready, start researching the basic facts and specific opinions and arguments on the issue. Do your best to stay focused on gathering information that is directly relevant to your topic. Depending on what your essay is for, you may reference academic studies, government reports, or newspaper articles.

‍ Research your opposition and the facts that support their viewpoint as much as you research your own position . You’ll need to address your opposition in your essay, so you’ll want to know their argument from the inside out.

2. Choose a side based on your research

You likely started with an inclination toward one side or the other, but your research should ultimately shape your perspective. So once you’ve completed the research, nail down your opinion and start articulating the what and why of your take. 

What: I think it’s better to outlaw selling eggs from chickens whose enclosures are too small.

Why: Because if you regulate the enclosure size directly, egg producers outside of the government’s jurisdiction could ship eggs into your territory and put nearby egg producers out of business by offering better prices because they don’t have the added cost of larger enclosures.

This is an early form of your thesis and the basic logic of your argument. You’ll want to iterate on this a few times and develop a one-sentence statement that sums up the thesis of your essay.

Thesis: Outlawing the sale of eggs from chickens with cramped living spaces is better for business than regulating the size of chicken enclosures.

Now that you’ve articulated your thesis , spell out the counterargument(s) as well. Putting your opposition’s take into words will help you throughout the rest of the essay-writing process. (You can start by choosing the counter argument option with Wordtune Spices .)

Counterargument: Outlawing the sale of eggs from chickens with too small enclosures will immediately drive up egg prices for consumers, making the low-cost protein source harder to afford — especially for low-income consumers.

There may be one main counterargument to articulate, or several. Write them all out and start thinking about how you’ll use evidence to address each of them or show why your argument is still the best option.

3. Organize the evidence — for your side and the opposition

You did all of that research for a reason. Now’s the time to use it. 

Hopefully, you kept detailed notes in a document, complete with links and titles of all your source material. Go through your research document and copy the evidence for your argument and your opposition’s into another document.

List the main points of your argument. Then, below each point, paste the evidence that backs them up.

If you’re writing about chicken enclosures, maybe you found evidence that shows the spread of disease among birds kept in close quarters is worse than among birds who have more space. Or maybe you found information that says eggs from free-range chickens are more flavorful or nutritious. Put that information next to the appropriate part of your argument. 

Repeat the process with your opposition’s argument: What information did you find that supports your opposition? Paste it beside your opposition’s argument.

You could also put information here that refutes your opposition, but organize it in a way that clearly tells you — at a glance — that the information disproves their point.

Counterargument: Outlawing the sale of eggs from chickens with too small enclosures will immediately drive up egg prices for consumers.

BUT: Sicknesses like avian flu spread more easily through small enclosures and could cause a shortage that would drive up egg prices naturally, so ensuring larger enclosures is still a better policy for consumers over the long term.

As you organize your research and see the evidence all together, start thinking through the best way to order your points.  

Will it be better to present your argument all at once or to break it up with opposition claims you can quickly refute? Would some points set up other points well? Does a more complicated point require that the reader understands a simpler point first?

Play around and rearrange your notes to see how your essay might flow one way or another.

4. Freewrite or outline to think through your argument

Is your brain buzzing yet? At this point in the process, it can be helpful to take out a notebook or open a fresh document and dump whatever you’re thinking on the page.

Where should your essay start? What ground-level information do you need to provide your readers before you can dive into the issue?

Use your organized evidence document from step 3 to think through your argument from beginning to end, and determine the structure of your essay.

There are three typical structures for argumentative essays:

• Make your argument and tackle opposition claims one by one, as they come up in relation to the points of your argument - In this approach, the whole essay — from beginning to end — focuses on your argument, but as you make each point, you address the relevant opposition claims individually. This approach works well if your opposition’s views can be quickly explained and refuted and if they directly relate to specific points in your argument.
• Make the bulk of your argument, and then address the opposition all at once in a paragraph (or a few) - This approach puts the opposition in its own section, separate from your main argument. After you’ve made your case, with ample evidence to convince your readers, you write about the opposition, explaining their viewpoint and supporting evidence — and showing readers why the opposition’s argument is unconvincing. Once you’ve addressed the opposition, you write a conclusion that sums up why your argument is the better one.
• Open your essay by talking about the opposition and where it falls short. Build your entire argument to show how it is superior to that opposition - With this structure, you’re showing your readers “a better way” to address the issue. After opening your piece by showing how your opposition’s approaches fail, you launch into your argument, providing readers with ample evidence that backs you up.

As you think through your argument and examine your evidence document, consider which structure will serve your argument best. Sketch out an outline to give yourself a map to follow in the writing process. You could also rearrange your evidence document again to match your outline, so it will be easy to find what you need when you start writing.

5. Write your first draft

You have an outline and an organized document with all your points and evidence lined up and ready. Now you just have to write your essay.

In your first draft, focus on getting your ideas on the page. Your wording may not be perfect (whose is?), but you know what you’re trying to say — so even if you’re overly wordy and taking too much space to say what you need to say, put those words on the page.

Follow your outline, and draw from that evidence document to flesh out each point of your argument. Explain what the evidence means for your argument and your opposition. Connect the dots for your readers so they can follow you, point by point, and understand what you’re trying to say.

As you write, be sure to include:

1. Any background information your reader needs in order to understand the issue in question.

2. Evidence for both your argument and the counterargument(s). This shows that you’ve done your homework and builds trust with your reader, while also setting you up to make a more convincing argument. (If you find gaps in your research while you’re writing, Wordtune Spices can source statistics or historical facts on the fly!)

Get Wordtune for free > Get Wordtune for free >

3. A conclusion that sums up your overall argument and evidence — and leaves the reader with an understanding of the issue and its significance. This sort of conclusion brings your essay to a strong ending that doesn’t waste readers’ time, but actually adds value to your case.

6. Revise (with Wordtune)

The hard work is done: you have a first draft. Now, let’s fine tune your writing.

I like to step away from what I’ve written for a day (or at least a night of sleep) before attempting to revise. It helps me approach clunky phrases and rough transitions with fresh eyes. If you don’t have that luxury, just get away from your computer for a few minutes — use the bathroom, do some jumping jacks, eat an apple — and then come back and read through your piece.

As you revise, make sure you …

• Get the facts right. An argument with false evidence falls apart pretty quickly, so check your facts to make yours rock solid.
• Don’t misrepresent the opposition or their evidence. If someone who holds the opposing view reads your essay, they should affirm how you explain their side — even if they disagree with your rebuttal.
• Present a case that builds over the course of your essay, makes sense, and ends on a strong note. One point should naturally lead to the next. Your readers shouldn’t feel like you’re constantly changing subjects. You’re making a variety of points, but your argument should feel like a cohesive whole.
• Paraphrase sources and cite them appropriately. Did you skip citations when writing your first draft? No worries — you can add them now. And check that you don’t overly rely on quotations. (Need help paraphrasing? Wordtune can help. Simply highlight the sentence or phrase you want to adjust and sort through Wordtune’s suggestions.)
• Tighten up overly wordy explanations and sharpen any convoluted ideas. Wordtune makes a great sidekick for this too 😉

Words to start an argumentative essay

The best way to introduce a convincing argument is to provide a strong thesis statement . These are the words I usually use to start an argumentative essay:

• It is indisputable that the world today is facing a multitude of issues
• With the rise of ____, the potential to make a positive difference has never been more accessible
• It is essential that we take action now and tackle these issues head-on
• it is critical to understand the underlying causes of the problems standing before us
• Opponents of this idea claim
• Those who are against these ideas may say
• Some people may disagree with this idea
• Some people may say that ____, however

When refuting an opposing concept, use:

• These researchers have a point in thinking
• To a certain extent they are right
• After seeing this evidence, there is no way one can agree with this idea
• This argument is irrelevant to the topic

Are you convinced by your own argument yet? Ready to brave the next get-together where everyone’s talking like they know something about intermittent fasting , chicken enclosures , or snow removal policies? 

Now if someone asks you to explain your evidence-based but controversial opinion, you can hand them your essay and ask them to report back after they’ve read it.

Share This Article:

How To Prepare For Studying Abroad (From Someone Who’s Done It)

Strategic Negotiation: How to Ask For A Raise Over Email

Metaphor vs. Simile: What’s the Difference? (+ Examples)

Looking for fresh content, thank you your submission has been received.

Persuasive Writing: For and Against

Intermediate Level Writing

• Writing Skills
• Pronunciation & Conversation
• Reading Comprehension
• Business English
• Resources for Teachers
• TESOL Diploma, Trinity College London
• M.A., Music Performance, Cologne University of Music
• B.A., Vocal Performance, Eastman School of Music

Persuasive writing asks the writer to provide arguments for and against something in order to convince the reader of a point of view. Use these introductory phrases, structures, and phrases to connect your sentences and create a logical flow. 

Introductory Phrases

Use the phrases below to introduce your arguments are you write to persuade your reader of your opinion. 

Expressing Your Opinion

Express your opinions as you consider the pros and cons.

• In my opinion,
• I feel/think that
• Personally,

Showing Contrast

These words introduce a sentence to show contrast .

• On the other hand,
• Unfortunately,

Use order to help you move through a persuasive paragraph.

• First of all,

Summarizing

Summarize your opinion at the end of a paragraph. 

• In conclusion,
• In summary,
• All things considered,

Expressing Both Sides

Express both sides of an argument using the following phrases.

• Pros and cons -  Understanding the pros and cons of this topic is important.
• Advantages and disadvantages - Let's take a look at the advantages and disadvantages of the topic.
• Plus and minus - One plus is that it's located in the city. One minus is that our costs will increase.

Providing Additional Arguments

Provide additional arguments in your paragraphs with these structures.

• What is more, -  What is more, I feel we should consider his opinion.
• In addition to..., the... -  In addition to his work, the instruction was excellent.
• Further, -  Further, I'd like to show three traits.
• Not only will..., but... will also... -  Not only will we grow together, but we will also profit from the situation.

Tips for Writing a For and Against Argument

Use the following tips to help you write short essays using persuasive writing. 

• Before you begin, write down at least five positive points, and five negative points for your argument.
• Begin your writing by making a statement about the general statement about the outcome of an action, or the overall situation.
• Dedicate the first paragraph to one side of the argument. This can be either positive or negative. Generally, it is the side with which you agree.
• The second paragraph should contain the other side of the argument.
• The final paragraph should shortly summarize both paragraphs, and provide your own general opinion on the matter.

Example Paragraphs: A Short Work Week

Read the following paragraphs. Notice that this paragraph presents the pros and cons of a shorter work week.

Introducing a short work week may lead to both positive and negative effects on society. For workers, the advantages of shortening the work week include more free time. This will lead to stronger family relationships, as well as better physical and mental health for all. An increase in free time should lead to more service sector jobs as people find ways to enjoy their extra leisure time. What is more, companies will need to hire more workers to keep production up to past levels of a standard forty hour work week. Altogether, these benefits will not only improve quality of life but also grow the economy as a whole.

On the other hand, a shorter work week may damage the ability to compete in the global workplace. Moreover, companies may be tempted to outsource positions to countries where longer work weeks are common. Another point is that companies will need to train more workers to make up for the lost productivity hours. To sum up, companies will likely have to pay a steep price for shorter work weeks.

In summary, it is clear that there would be a number of positive gains for individual workers if the work week were shortened. Unfortunately, this move could easily cause companies to look elsewhere for qualified staff. In my opinion, the net positive gains outweigh the negative consequences of such a move towards more free time for all.

Choose a for and against argument from one of the following themes

• Attending College/University
• Getting Married
• Having Children
• Changing Jobs
• Write down five positive points and five negative points.
• Write down an overall statement of the situation (for introduction and first sentence).
• Write down your own personal opinion (for the final paragraph).
• Summarize both sides in one sentence if possible.
• Use your notes to write a For and Against Argument using the helpful language provided.
• Violence in the Media Needs To Be Regulated
• Men and Women: Equal at Last?
• Text Organization
• The Internet Craze
• Tourism Discussion and Debate Lesson for Advanced Level Classes
• Sentence Connectors: Showing Opposition in Written English
• Structure of a Formal Letter
• How To Write an Essay
• Non-Native English Teachers
• How to Successfully Teach English One-to-One
• Modifying Words and Phrases to Express Opinions
• Conceding and Refuting in English
• Paragraph Writing
• Cover Letter Example
• Practice Speaking Skills With Impromptu Speeches
• Conversation Lesson: Points of View

• ELT Concourse home
• A-Z site index
• Teacher training index
• Teacher development
• For teachers
• For trainers
• For managers
• For learners
• About language
• Language questions
• Other areas
• Academic English
• Business English
• Entering ELT
• Courses index
• Basic ELT course
• Language analysis
• Training to train
• Transcription

For and Against Discussion Essays (FADEs)

Learners working in English for Academic Purposes are not alone in needing the skills to write FADEs.  They are also important in business, education, government and other fields where the ability logically and dispassionately to set out arguments for and against a proposal or situation is valued. The social sciences, in particular, value written, balanced arguments. For this reason, this guide is linked from both the EAP sections and the general skills and discourse indexes.

It is important to be clear about what FADEs are not.  They are not:

• Expositions which require the writer to set out one side of an argument and attempt to persuade the reader of a point of view.
• Reports which require the writer to set out facts in logical stages with some discussion of each.
• Problem-Solution texts which require the writer to set out the problems and suggest solutions for each which are evaluated in terms of effectiveness, advantages and drawbacks.

Confusing the text types will bewilder learners.

All texts have purposes.  One definition of genre is that it contains texts which share the same cultural purposes.  Discussion is no exception so we need to identify what exactly the purpose of a FADE is.  We will start with this definition of purpose:

to look at more than one side of an issue: to explore various perspectives before coming to an informed decision Butt et al , 2001:9

and unpack it a little:

• more than one side ... various perspectives : A common error in students' writing (and in some teaching) is to see dichotomies where none exists or even to invent them.  Few important issues have only two sides and there are shades of opinion and many perspectives which need to be considered.
• to explore : This requires the writer to identify, discuss and exemplify a point of view, not simply state it.
• an informed decision : so not a simple statement of a point of view uninfluenced by facts and research.  The coda (at the end of the essay) needs to refer to the facts that have been set out.

The result of bearing these three issues in mind is that an essay will impress the reader with the depth of thought that lies behind it and gets away from some people think X, some people think Y but I agree with Z .

This guide is ordered as follows according to the key skills that are required.  They cannot be taught in a single lesson.

• Organisation This involves the knowledge, some of it cultural, of the conventional staging of information in a FADE.
• using appropriate verbal processes
• selecting appropriate tense structures
• using lexis concerning the register
• syntax and punctuation
• knowing who will read the text
• selecting an appropriate style (tenor)
• content knowledge (field)

We'll take the sections one at a time.

The staging of a discussion in English (not necessarily in the languages of other cultures) is, on the face of it, quite simple.  It comes in two basic options:

The first and last stages are common to both forms and, in fact, the last, the Coda, is often optional.  The other stages are not.

A classic error is to mix the structures and, for example, start with structure 1 and give a bunch of arguments for and then confuse the reader by transitioning to structure 2 and mix the points up.  That disconcerts, disorientates and displeases.

We can break all this down and exemplify what is meant.  As an example, we will take a topic in a field in which there are few technical terms and special registers to be considered.

Only at very low levels should this be a one-sentence section.  It involves two parts and each should be properly refined and defined:

• The particular topic of the essay needs, of course, to be stated clearly both in the title and the introductory paragraph but then the issue has to be set in its wider context and properly defined.
• The importance of the issue has to be stated in general terms and then has to be further refined to set out what is meant by importance: to whom, in what circumstances, says who?

Here's an example of the introduction to a FADE of the pros and cons of allowing smoking in public spaces:

This essay concerns whether smoking should be allowed in public spaces and attempts to set out the arguments that have been proposed for and against permitting it.  This is a social, legal and public health issue and in what follows these aspects of the subject will be taken in turn. For the purposes of this essay, public spaces are defined as any areas outside private homes which are open to the public either free of charge or on payment of an entrance fee.  It includes, therefore, open spaces, shops, bars, public houses, services and utilities such as airports and train stations as well as public roads and streets.  Excluded from consideration are private spaces although consideration will be given to borderline cases such as hotel rooms, hostels, prisons and private vehicles. Smoking is defined as the use of tobacco in pipes, cigarettes and cigars but excludes other, non-smoking ways of ingesting tobacco.  Consideration will also be given to the recent development of e-cigarettes. The issue is important for three reasons. Firstly, there are public health concerns regarding the use of tobacco and its effects both on individuals and those around them.  This includes the resources devoted to the care of those whose illnesses may have been caused or exacerbated by smoking. Secondly, it is a social issue in which the rights of individuals need to be balanced against the rights of others and society as a whole. Thirdly, it is a legal and ethical issue insofar as it concerns the extent to which the law should be used as a social engineering tool to encourage, enforce or prohibit the activities of individuals.

This is a rather sophisticated introduction written by a competent user of English and learners are unlikely to be able to produce writing of this sort without a good deal of help and teaching.  However, such a text may serve as a model for learners to encourage them to say more than just what the essay is about and to define their terms from the outset.  A check-list is helpful for this:

• State the topic
• organisational
• public health
• industrial etc.
• What terms do you need to define?
• Give two reasons why the issue is important.

Given such a list, even learners at lower levels can begin to develop an introduction that is more than a title.

These lie at the core of the essay and should be carefully constructed.  If the introduction has successfully previewed the areas into which the arguments fall, organisation becomes significantly easier. The most important issue here is to avoid what has been termed spaghetti writing characterised by rambling sentences, short unconnected points or a stream-of-consciousness approach.  Good advice is to confine each argument to four paragraphs:

• the issue and examples
• the argument
• the evaluation of the strength of the argument
• the evaluation of any weaknesses in the argument

The damage to health that smoking causes is no longer seriously debated by health professionals and other experts.  It has been shown in numerous well-conducted studies that smoking tobacco has a range of detrimental effects including but not limited to cancer, cardiovascular diseases, respiratory illnesses, reduced fertility and damage to unborn babies. For this reason, there are many who argue that an absolute ban on smoking in public spaces is required to protect individuals from the effects of smoking.  Banning smoking, it is argued, will reduce the amount people smoke, encourage abstinence and reduce the costs to the health care services as well as improving the population's overall fitness. This is a strong point because the costs to individuals and society can be readily estimated and the potential health benefits of a non-smoking society are also quantifiable in terms of health service, insurance and other costs. However, this argument relies on the assumption that it is society's right and duty to protect individuals from their own actions.  Extended logically, the argument might just as well apply to banning dangerous sports, such as mountaineering or solo yachting, boxing and even horse riding, rugby, judo and other contact sports, all of which cause thousands of deaths and injuries worldwide every year and all of which people take part in voluntarily despite the risks.  These activities, too, involve costs for health services and the emergency services whose members own safety may be put at risk rescuing others from the results of their own choices of recreational activities.

Again, only advanced learners are likely to be able to produce such a sophisticated text but, as before, such texts can be used as models to develop their own writing.

• State the field in which the argument lies (financial, health, social, legal etc.)
• State the argument clearly
• State the argument's strength
• State the argument's weakness

A coda may be defined as a concluding remark .  The word conclude , of course, also implies arriving at an opinion by deduction (not just stating a view) so the section needs attention.

Here, the job of the writer is to draw the reader' attention to the points which need to be emphasised and convince them that a just and fair conclusion has been arrived at by weighing the facts and arguments that have been identified. It comes in four parts:

• Identification of the main issue
• Identification of difficulties
• Reiteration of the strongest points
• Statement of view

Here's an example to treat in the same way as the previous ones.  It's more than can be expected of all but the strongest students but would serve as a model.

Whether smoking should be banned in all public spaces is by no means an easy issue to determine. Firstly, there is a tension between the public and private spheres regarding the extent to which the rights of smokers may be subordinated to the rights of others to breath clean air. Secondly, there is the issue of social costs and how far only one type of potentially dangerous voluntary activity should be controlled because of the costs that may be involved to society as a whole. Thirdly, there is the ethical issue of how far the law should be involved in the private decisions and choices of individuals. Arguments on both sides have merits and there are many intermediate points of view that lie between no control at all and an outright, universal ban. On balance, it seems that the costs to society and to the health of its members are more important than the respect we owe to allowing individuals to make informed choices concerning their own lives.  Smoking is not an activity which only affects the smoker.  Others are affected by the degradation of their surroundings, damage to their own health and costs to society as a whole to which all taxpayers contribute. A reasonable position to take, advocated here, is to limit smoking in circumstances which most affect non-smokers but to allow individuals to make choices in other settings. This will mean banning smoking in enclosed public spaces such as shops, bars, cafés, cinemas, theatres and so on but permitting it in private spaces and in the open air where the risk of damage caused to others is either voluntarily run or negligible.

In what follows, we will draw on the examples already given to see what linguistic issues underlie the ability to construct a FADE. As it is unlikely that the ability to write a discussion is something you would teach to lower-level learners, we shall assume from the outset that the learners can competently produce acceptable syntax, control most of the tense structures of English, can make passive and active voice sentences and use a range of conjunction. We shall not assume that they are familiar with complex pre- and post-modification or the large range of discoursal features that are needed in a FADE.

Here's one short paragraph from the example used above:

The damage to health that smoking causes is no longer seriously debated by health professionals and other experts.  It has been shown in numerous well-conducted studies that smoking tobacco has a range of detrimental effects including but not limited to cancer, cardiovascular diseases, respiratory illnesses, reduced fertility and damage to unborn babies. 

The first sentence in this section is, structurally, about as simple as we get in English and akin to, for example:     The book is published because it consists of a subject, a copular verb and an attribute.  The fact that the attribute is a participle so the sentence is also analysable as a passive is actually not very important.  It breaks down like this:

and we can do exactly the same to the longer, apparently more complex sentence, like this:

A feature of many academic texts and of FADEs in particular is that noun, verb and adjective phrases often contain a good deal of pre- and post-modification to make the expression of the data more concise and accessible.  We can of course, avoid most of this with shorter, less informative sentences and could produce a paragraph such as:

Smoking causes damage to health.  The damage used to be debated.  The damage is not debated now.  Health professionals do not debate this.  Other experts do not debate this.

but the outcome is clumsy and inefficient.

A primary teaching aim is to focus, therefore, on how pre- and post-modification of items is achieved in English.  There are guides to modification elsewhere on this site so the point will not be discussed at length here.  See the links to related guides at the end.

However, to teach this kind of structure is not as hard as it may seem.  We can start with something easy, like this and proceed as suggested:

• Homework is useful Add a relative clause to say what sort of homework:
• Homework which is set by the teacher is useful Add an adverb and another verb to make a phrase:
• Homework which is usually set and marked by the teacher is useful Add an adjective phrase for the subject:
• Subject-related homework which is usually set and marked by the teacher is useful Add a prepositional phrase to say who benefits:
• Subject-related homework which is usually set and marked by the teacher is useful for school children
• Now add a conjunction and another clause to say why this is true: Subject-related homework which is usually set and marked by the teacher is useful for school children because it helps them to learn

Once learners get the hang of doing this to simple and undemanding sentences, they can revisit their own writing to see how to compress more data into each clause and make the writing more sophisticated and interesting as well as densely informative.

Once complexity is built into clauses, we can move on to how clauses are connected to make complex and compound sentences. Here is another example taken from the texts we have already used:

Firstly, there is a tension between the public and private spheres regarding the extent to which the rights of smokers may be subordinated to the rights of others to breath clean air. Secondly, there is the issue of social costs and how far only one type of potentially dangerous voluntary activity should be controlled because of the costs that may be involved to society as a whole.

There are three systems at work here: prepositional links, conjunctions and conjuncts and they need to be handled separately.

• Conjuncts Confusing conjuncts with conjunctions is a major source of error for learners trying to write formally.  They are superficially attractive because their use is often a sign of sophisticated writing but they need to be handled with some care.  Errors such as:     *The problem is severe moreover it is difficult to solve     *The problem is severe.  Although it is not difficult to solve. are common outcomes of confusing conjunct with conjunction. Examples of conjunct use from above are:     Secondly, there is the issue of social costs     On balance, it seems that     For this reason, there are many     However, this argument relies on Conjuncts expressing the following concepts are frequently needed in FADEs:

It should be emphasised that teaching this kind of idea linking should precede the demand for learners to produce fully finished essays.

Here we are on simpler ground.

The following sorts of verbal processes are common to many differently focused FADEs.

• Existential: These are almost always introduced by it or there followed by a simple copular verb.  They are easy enough to deploy but learners often need help in noticing the need for them.  For example, from the texts above:     there are many who argue that an absolute ban on smoking in public spaces is required     it seems that the costs to society and to the health of its members are more important     It has been shown in numerous well-conducted studies that
• Relational: As the name suggests, these verbal processes link two items.  Examples from above include:     areas outside private homes which are open to the public     points of view that lie between no control at all and an outright, universal ban     costs to society and to the health of its members are more important than     Arguments on both sides have merits Setting up relationships between ideas is central to the role of writing a good FADE.
• Material and behavioural processes: These refer either to how people or things act.  Example from above include:     The damage to health that smoking causes     the law should be used as a social engineering tool     illnesses may have been caused or exacerbated by smoking      banning smoking in enclosed public spaces Which verbs learners will need will depend greatly on the topic under discussion, of course.  That they will need to deploy verbs relating to material and behavioural processes is not in doubt.
• Projecting: These refer to what people believe or say and are central.  Examples from above include:     no longer seriously debated     there are many who argue that     Smoking is defined as

Tense use is also predictably simple.

Almost all the verbs in the examples given above are in the present simple because the discussion involves a current situation.  Occasionally, the present perfect may be used to refer to a previous event that has significant present consequences, as in, for example:     It has been shown in numerous well-conducted studies that Otherwise, the simple present is conventionally used throughout.

Passive-voice clauses serve to distance the writer from the topic by implying that it is the action that is important, not who did it and that is conventionally how the tone of FADEs is achieved.  For example, from above:     public spaces are defined as not:     I am defining ...      voluntary activity should be controlled not:     The state should control etc. There are many more examples and if you use a model text as a teaching tool, it is worth taking the time to notice the frequency and effect of the structures.

Modal auxiliary verbs are used sparingly and generally confined to their function as hedging tactics or to express degrees of certainty.  For example:     Banning smoking, it is argued, will reduce a predictive use.     whose illnesses may have been caused a hedging use. Occasionally, usually hedged, modal auxiliary verbs of obligation are used but almost never ones which express absolute obligation (deontic modality, in the trade).  For example in

Whether smoking should be banned in all public spaces is by no means an easy issue to determine. Firstly, there is a tension between the public and private spheres regarding the extent to which the rights of smokers may be subordinated to the rights of others to breath clean air. Secondly, there is the issue of social costs and how far only one type of potentially dangerous voluntary activity should be controlled because of the costs that may be involved to society as a whole. Thirdly, there is the ethical issue of how far the law should be involved in the private decisions and choices of individuals.

all the uses are putative rather than expressing obligation per se . Modality in FADE writing is usually focused on the likelihood of a proposition being true.  That is epistemic modality and there is a link below which will take you to a guide.

Circumstances refer to concepts such as location in time or space, contingency, cause, matter, means and angle.  Many of these, including contingency, matter, angle and cause have been considered above under conjunction and prepositional links. However, the discussion would not be complete without some consideration of how adverbials and prepositional phrases in particular are used in a FADE.  Here are some key examples:

There is a guide, linked below, to how theme-rheme structures are achieved in writing.  Here it will be enough to consider two aspects only and we'll take this paragraph as the example:

On balance, it seems that the costs to society and to the health of its members are more important than the respect we owe to allowing individuals to make informed choices concerning their own lives.  Smoking is not an activity which only affects the smoker.  Others are affected by the degradation of their surroundings, damage to their own health and costs to society as a whole to which all taxpayers contribute.:

• The topic sentence It is not invariably the case that every paragraph in a well-written FADE will begin with a topic sentence to alert the reader to its contents but that is the way most texts work and, for novice writers in particular, a safe way to proceed. In our example, the first two word of the first sentence, the conjunct, to give it its proper name, tell the reader what this paragraph will do: sum up and conclude.
• The theme and the rheme The theme of the first sentence is the subject of the verb (excluding the hedging in it seems ).  That subject is:     the costs to society and to the health of its members and its rheme, which follows is     are more important than the respect we owe to allowing individuals to make informed choices concerning their own lives The reference to individuals is taken up as the theme of the next sentence with     Smoking is not an activity which only affects the smoker and that rheme, only affects the smoker , becomes the theme of the next sentence with:     Others are affected and so the coherence of the whole paragraph is maintained.

Simple approaches to teaching in this area involve:

• Recognition, noticing and analysis using cut-up paragraphs for re-sorting, jumbled sentences for re-ordering and so on.  The aim is to get learners to notice how topic sentences are used in the first instance.
• Giving learners paragraphs without topic sentences and getting them to compose something suitable.
• Analysing theme-rheme structures by tracing connections, underlining links and so on.
• Getting learners to write short paragraphs of their own and analysing them to see how (and whether) the theme-rheme links are working.

Short-term, the goal of learners' writing is probably for some kind of assessment purpose, either of their language skills or their subject knowledge and ability to construct rational arguments. The target audience is often, therefore, a single teacher or tutor rather than the audience one imagines for most essays in non-educational settings which may be somewhat wider. However, a long-term objective is to apply the skills learned in real-world settings for true communicative purposes. Possible audiences include, therefore:

• a teacher or tutor
• higher management
• policy makers
• readers of newspaper or magazine articles
• readers of technical or trade journals
• readers of academic journals
• website visitors to serious sites
• website visitors to blog sites (although few of these contain argued discussion, normally being just unsupported bluster)

The nature of the audience will determine a number of issues and can affect the choice of lexis as well as the choice of grammatical structures.  For example:

Writing well in this genre is not achievable overnight or in a lesson or two. Teaching demands consistency in planning and delivery over a series of lessons with sensible and achievable tasks to be accomplished along the way. You may decide, based on your reading, the nature of the learners and your own propensities, to adopt a product, process or genre approach to teaching writing skills but whichever approach you take, you will almost certainly have to find or compose model texts which can be drawn on for examples of the language that needs to be used.  There are examples which you are welcome to use above. An outline syllabus might appear something like:

This is by no means a simple syllabus to design because, although the general structure of FADE writing can be explained and exemplified quickly and will lead naturally to some level of coherence, achieving cohesion involves weaving together the seven issues identified on the right into a series of lesson focusing on the elements on the left.

References: Butt, D, Fahey, R, Feez, S, Spinks, S and Yallop, C, 2001, Using Functional Grammar: an explorer's guide. Sydney: NCELTR Burns, A, 2001, Genre-based Approaches to Writing , in Candlin, C and Mercer, N (Eds.), English Language Teaching in its Social Context . Abingdon, UK: Routledge Halliday, M, 1994, An introduction to functional grammar: 2nd edition. London: Edward Arnold Tribble C, 1997, Writing . Oxford: Oxford University Press

Contact | FAQs | Copyright notice | ELT Concourse charter | Disclaimer and Privacy statement | Search ELT Concourse

• AI Content Shield
• AI KW Research
• AI Assistant
• SEO Optimizer
• AI KW Clustering
• Customer reviews
• The NLO Revolution
• Press Center
• Help Center
• Content Resources
• Facebook Group

The Key to an Interesting For-Against Essay

Table of Contents

There are many types of essays, each with a different purpose and style. Argumentative essays are particularly tricky because they ask students to go beyond being informative. They require students to present arguments on a subject and support them with evidence. This guide will provide readers with a  for and against essay outline  and explain a few basic concepts. 

If you want to learn how to write potent essays and arguments, read on!

What is a For and Against Essay?

A for-and-against essay is an argumentative essay that requires writers to formulate arguments for and against the main topic. After presenting both arguments, the author will then choose a side and explain the reason for their decision.

A for and against essay follows the standard five-paragraph format but dedicates each body paragraph to a different stance on a topic. The key components of a for and against essay are:

• Introduction paragraph
• [For topic] Body Paragraph
• [Against topic] Body Paragraph
• [Writer’s Opinion] Body Paragraph

Conclusion Paragraph

The main point of a for and against essay is to explore both sides of an argument and teach students to exercise sound judgment. Moreover, it also cultivates their ability to assert their stance and express their opinion.

The act of taking a stance is as much a mental exercise as it is a writing exercise. It encourages students to commit to an argument and to defend that stance.

While there are only five paragraphs in a for and against essay, it can still get complicated. This is especially true when there are a lot of ideas and topics involved. 

The best way to create a clear and strong essay is to start with an outline.

The Importance of an Essay Outline

An essay outline gives writers a full view of their topics . It helps them identify the key angles of approach and direction of their topics. Outlines help writers draw connections between topics, which creates a sense of coherence and progression.

It allows them to ease the reader’s transition from one key topic to another by priming them for the upcoming information. 

Outlines also simplify the discussion of topics by narrowing the scope per section. It simplifies essays into sections and subsections that have a focal point and function.

The next section provides a sample for-and-against essay outline .

A Basic For and Against Essay Outline

Remember that the main premise of a for and against essay is to explore both sides of a topic. We will delve into each paragraph’s purpose and components. Let’s begin.

Introduction

• Start with a hook and introduce the main topic.
• Provide background information on the main topic.
• Provide a brief explanation of the writer’s hypothesis.
• State your claim at the end of the paragraph.

First Body Paragraph

• Start with a topic sentence that explains the benefits of the main topic.
• Include at least two sentences that support your argument for the main topic.
• Explain your supporting sentences using facts, examples, anecdotes, quotations, and statistics.

Second Body Paragraph

• Start with a topic sentence explaining the risks related to the main topic.
• Include at least two sentences that support your arguments against the main topic.
• Explain your supporting sentences through facts, examples, anecdotes, and other credible sources of evidence.

Third Body Paragraph

• Start the paragraph with a topic sentence stating your position on the topic.
• Provide at least two sentences to support your stand.
• Explain supporting details using credible sources.
• Restate your argument and supporting evidence. 
• Give a balanced consideration for both sides of the main topic
• State your final opinion.

Outlines simplify all types of essay writing by helping writers organize and plan the logical flow of their content . Outlines create a workflow that identifies the key topics writers must emphasize in each essay paragraph. If you’re unsure of how to start an essay, you can always start by writing an outline.o

Remember that effective writing is all about proper planning and presenting the right ideas in the right order. Outlines are as essential to writers as scripts are to actors.

Abir Ghenaiet

Abir is a data analyst and researcher. Among her interests are artificial intelligence, machine learning, and natural language processing. As a humanitarian and educator, she actively supports women in tech and promotes diversity.

Explore All Essay Outline Tool Articles

How to write a synthesis essay outline.

One of the most interesting assignments you could have is writing a synthesis essay. For a college or university student,…

• Essay Outline Tool

Learning the Structure of an Informational Essay

Academic writing assignments, primarily essays, are required of all college and university students. That’s because they think it will aid…

The Correct Way to Structure an Article

Writing non-fiction has a set format that can be followed, which makes it not all that different from writing fiction.…

Exploring the Structure of a Response Essay

You will typically be expected to write in a formal and impersonal voice when you are given the assignment of…

Writing a Persuasive Essay? Use This Structure!

Writing essays is a requirement of your academic program as a college student. Whether you love them or loathe them,…

Writing a Proposal Essay? Read This!

Are you writing a proposal essay? To write it correctly, we have to know what a proposal essay actually is.…

Trump will face Michael Cohen in court as prosecution nears the end of its case

Stormy Daniels is finished testifying, but another popular target of former President Donald Trump is scheduled to take the witness stand in his criminal trial on Monday — his former lawyer Michael Cohen, multiple sources have told NBC News.

Both Daniels, an adult film actress, and Cohen, Trump's onetime fixer, are outspoken critics of the Republican presidential nominee and key witnesses in Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's falsifying business records case. The former president has labeled them both "sleaze bags."

The move to call Cohen comes as a prosecutor said at the end of court Friday that they could rest their case as soon as next week. Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass told the judge that the DA’s office has only two witnesses remaining. Cohen's testimony is expected to last multiple days.

Trump attorney Todd Blanche asked Judge Juan Merchan to bar Cohen from commenting publicly on the case since he’s about to take the stand. He noted that Cohen appeared on TikTok earlier this week wearing a T-shirt showing Trump behind bars wearing an orange jumpsuit. Blanche had previously complained about Cohen posting on social media and doing interviews criticizing Trump during the trial. Cohen had slowed his frequent commentary after Merchan said he may exclude him from the gag order barring Trump from attacking witnesses in the case because of his commentary.

Steinglass said the DA’s office had previously asked Cohen to stop speaking. The judge directed the DA to tell Cohen that the judge was asking him to stop.

Trump fumed about the lack of a gag order for Cohen after the day's proceedings wrapped. “Everybody can say whatever they want” but “I can’t say anything, “ he told a group of reporters in a courthouse hallway. “It’s a disgrace.”

Daniels testified on Tuesday and Thursday, sparring with Trump attorney Susan Necheles during cross-examination about her claim that she had a sexual encounter with Trump in 2006. Then-Trump lawyer Cohen paid Daniels $130,000 to keep quiet about the allegation during the 2016 presidential election. Trump later reimbursed Cohen in payments prosecutors charge were covered up with falsified business records. Trump has pleaded not guilty and denied Daniels’ claim.

Earlier in the day, jurors heard continued testimony from Madeleine Westerhout, who was Trump's executive assistant in the White House between 2017 and 2019.

Follow live updates on the Trump hush money trial

Westerhout had testified on Thursday about how thrilled she was to be working for Trump and broke down in tears when prosecutors asked her about her departure from the White House in August 2019. She said that working for Trump was “amazing” and that he was “a very good boss” who had a close and loving relationship with his wife, Melania Trump.

The portrayal was at odds with testimony from Daniels, who said Trump had told her not to worry about his wife while he was making passes at her in his hotel room after they met at a celebrity golf tournament in Lake Tahoe, Nevada, in 2006.

Westerhout also testified Thursday that Trump was attentive when she delivered him personal checks to sign and that on occasion he would call his company’s chief financial officer, Allen Weisselberg, if he had questions about any of them — information prosecutors are likely to use to argue Trump was well aware of what he was paying Cohen for.

On Friday, Trump attorney Susan Necheles got Westerhout to say that Trump wasn’t always paying attention when he was signing checks — and he would sometimes be on the phone or in meetings while he did. “He was a person who multitasked, right?” Necheles asked. “Yes,” Westerhout replied.

Necheles also pressed her on details about Trump's reaction when the payment to Daniels became public in 2018.

"He was very upset by it,” Westerhout said. “My understanding is that he knew it would be hurtful to his family. … The whole situation was very unpleasant.”

Westerhout said one of her duties was to act as an intermediary between Trump and the Trump Organization on issues that needed his or the company’s attention, like his travel schedule, mail or phone calls.

She asked Trump's assistant at the company, Rhona Graff, in 2017 for a list of Trump’s contacts, which Graff sent to her, according to an email shown to the jury. The list included information for Cohen and  David Pecker , the former National Enquirer publisher who testified he worked with Trump and Cohen to suppress scandalous stories about Trump during his 2016 campaign.

Westerhout was followed to the stand by Daniel Dixon, an analyst for AT&T who was brought in to authenticate "call detail records" relating to Cohen's cell phone.

Jennie Tomalin, an analyst from Verizon, was also called to authenticate phone records from Keith Davidson, Daniels' former lawyer, and former Trump Organization chief financial officer Allen Weisselberg.

She was followed by Georgia Longstreet, a paralegal for the DA's office, who was brought in to testify about some of then-President Trump's social media postings that prosecutors say were an effort to influence Cohen and other people he was concerned could cause him legal problems.

One of the posts praised Cohen as "a fine person with a wonderful family" before he began cooperating with federal investigators. After he pleaded guilty to charges that included ones related to the Daniels payment, Trump tweeted, “If anyone is looking for a good lawyer, I would strongly suggest that you don’t retain the services of Michael Cohen!”

Longstreet also read aloud texts between then-National Enquirer editor-in-chief Dylan Howard and Gina Rodriguez, who was Daniels' manager. The 2016 texts included Howard telling her he thought Pecker would pay for her story. Pecker said he did not do so because he'd already spent $180,000 to kill two other salacious Trump stories, and he feared doing business with a porn star could harm his paper. But, he said, he did encourage Cohen to pay the money.

Trump attorney Todd Blanche moved for a mistrial at the end of court Thursday, arguing Daniels' testimony — including her claim that Trump didn't use a condom when they had sex — was unfair and prejudicial. He called the condom allegation "a dog whistle for rape."

State Judge Juan Merchan agreed that Daniels shouldn't have been asked about the condom but noted that there was no objection to that line of questioning, which he said befuddled him.

"I don't understand," he said.  

He denied Blanche's mistrial demand, as well as a request that he loosen the gag order barring Trump from attacking witnesses to allow him to respond to Daniels' testimony.

Prosecutors have previously said they are hopeful they'll be able to wrap up their case by May 21.

It's unclear whether Trump will testify in his own defense. He is under no obligation to do so.

Adam Reiss is a reporter and producer for NBC and MSNBC.

Gary Grumbach produces and reports for NBC News, based in Washington, D.C.

Jillian Frankel is a 2024 NBC News campaign embed.

Dareh Gregorian is a politics reporter for NBC News.

More From Forbes

‘baby reindeer’: stephen king writes essay praising netflix stalker series.

• Share to Facebook
• Share to Twitter
• Share to Linkedin

BANGOR, ME - SEPTEMBER 06: Stephen King attends a special screening of "IT" at Bangor Mall Cinemas ... [+] 10 on September 6, 2017 in Bangor, Maine. (Photo by Scott Eisen/Getty Images for Warner Bros.)

Baby Reindeer fan Stephen King loves the Netflix stalker series so much that he’s gone from posting about it on X to writing an essay on it for a major publication.

The legendary horror author became a huge proponent of the series — based on comedian Richard Gadd’s one-man stage play about his encounter with a stalker he dubbed “Martha” — with a post on X on April 28. In it, the Carrie , IT and Misery author simply wrote, “BABY REINDEER. Holy s—t.”

A blazing success on Netflix, Baby Reindeer is based on Gadd’s harrowing real-life encounter with a stalker. For legal reasons and privacy purposes, Gadd plays a fictionalized version of himself named Donny Dunn for the limited series, while he dubs his stalker “Martha” (Jessica Gunning).

As to the validity of the story, Gadd has said during publicity rounds for the film, “Emotionally, it’s all 100% true.” Gadd also revealed that throughout his stalker ordeal, Martha sent him more than 41,000 emails and left him more than 350 hours of voicemails, among other alarming actions.

King writes in a recent essay for The Times of London that he didn’t start watching Baby Reindeer right away but once he tuned in, he couldn’t stop.

These Are The Worst (And Best) Cities For Low-Income Homebuyers—As Prices Keep Rising

New fbi warning as hackers strike email senders must do this 1 thing, a ukrainian m 2 fighting vehicle sneaked up on a russian t 80 tank at night and hit it with a missile from a mile away.

“Here, less than two minutes into the first episode, we can see what sets Baby Reindeer apart from so many dramas, dramedies and psychodramas that populate the occasional richness (and more common mediocrity) of streaming TV, we’ve been given the essential nature of two pivotal characters in less than two minutes,” King writes in the Times .

The nature of Donny and Martha, King adds, is that “they are both psychologically needy.”

“But it’s Martha who is mentally unstable and manipulative,” King writes in the Times . “Yet Donny — in spite of googly, hopeful eyes that continually say don’t hurt me — has the unusual and rather heroic ability to see into himself. His comedy routine bombs because ‘don’t hurt me’ rarely gets laughs.”

Because Baby Reindeer has become such a global spectacle, viewers have tried to track “Martha” down, which alarmed Gunning . After that, a woman claiming to be the real Martha came forward in an interview with The Daily Mail , which did not identify her by name.

In the interview, “Martha” said she was considering legal action against Gadd over the harm Baby Reindeer has allegedly caused her.

Kathy Bates watches over James Caan in a scene from the film 'Misery', 1990. (Photo by Columbia ... [+] Pictures/Getty Images)

King Says ‘Baby Reindeer’ Reminded Him Of His ‘Misery’

Of course, many of Stephen King’s novels have been turned into television miniseries like The Stand — twice — while others like Carrie , The Dead Zone , IT and Pet Sematary — twice — have been adapted into feature films.

One of King’s novels-turned-film adaptations even went on to Oscar greatness, as 1990’s Misery earned Kathy Bates an Oscar for Best Actress. In the film, Bates stars as Annie Wilkes, a nurse who saves a famous romance novelist, Paul Sheldon (James Caan), after he crashes his car during a blizzard in a remote area of Colorado.

Bedridden with two broken legs and a damaged shoulder in the nurse’s home, Paul soon discovers Annie’s unhealthy obsession with him and his work, which leads the woman to resort to violent measures to keep the author to herself.

While Baby Reindeer takes place in a much different setting, the stalker element of Richard Gadd’s true-life tale has some parallels. After he started watching Baby Reindeer , King had some revelations, first about his and Gadd’s work, and then another about the unique title of the Netflix series.

“My first thought was to thank God my novel [ Misery ] came first, or people would assume I’d stolen it from Richard Gadd, who wrote and produced the seven-episode series and also stars in it,” King writes in The Times of London essay. “My second thought was that Donny Dunn (Gadd) actually looks like a baby reindeer, with his big eyes and timid manner. The scruffy beard adds to this impression rather than distracting from it.”

In addition to his praise for Gadd’s work on the series, King is high on the performance of his co-star who plays Martha in the limited series. In Baby Reindeer , Martha's obsession with Donny begins after the struggling comedian shows the woman kindness at an establishment where he’s a bartender.

“Then comes Martha Scott ( Jessica Gunning ), who appears one day in the pub where Donny works. It’s a showstopper of an entrance, hands down the equal of our introduction (‘I’m your No 1 fan’) to Misery ’s Annie Wilkes,” King writes in the Times . “We take Martha’s measure before she has said a single word: overweight, slump-shouldered, frowsy-haired; her pillocky pink sweater turned up on one side, her colorful bag hanging dispiritedly from her hand.”

After delving into the stories of Gadd’s Baby Reindeer and his Misery , King also notes in his Times essay that he not only feels empathy for Donny but for Martha as well.

All seven episodes of Baby Reindeer are streaming on Netflix.

• Editorial Standards
• Reprints & Permissions

Join The Conversation

One Community. Many Voices. Create a free account to share your thoughts. 

Forbes Community Guidelines

Our community is about connecting people through open and thoughtful conversations. We want our readers to share their views and exchange ideas and facts in a safe space.

In order to do so, please follow the posting rules in our site's  Terms of Service.   We've summarized some of those key rules below. Simply put, keep it civil.

Your post will be rejected if we notice that it seems to contain:

• False or intentionally out-of-context or misleading information
• Insults, profanity, incoherent, obscene or inflammatory language or threats of any kind
• Attacks on the identity of other commenters or the article's author
• Content that otherwise violates our site's  terms.

User accounts will be blocked if we notice or believe that users are engaged in:

• Continuous attempts to re-post comments that have been previously moderated/rejected
• Racist, sexist, homophobic or other discriminatory comments
• Attempts or tactics that put the site security at risk
• Actions that otherwise violate our site's  terms.

So, how can you be a power user?

• Stay on topic and share your insights
• Feel free to be clear and thoughtful to get your point across
• ‘Like’ or ‘Dislike’ to show your point of view.
• Protect your community.
• Use the report tool to alert us when someone breaks the rules.

Thanks for reading our community guidelines. Please read the full list of posting rules found in our site's  Terms of Service.

A newsletter briefing on the intersection of technology and politics.

A college professor wants to use Section 230 against Big Tech

Happy Wednesday! We can add Katy Perry’s mom and whoever runs Instagram’s Instagram account to the long list of folks who could use a primer on how to spot deepfakes . Send news tips to: [email protected]  

A college professor’s lawsuit turns Section 230 against Big Tech

Ethan Zuckerman , a longtime technologist and social media scholar, thought he fully understood Section 230, the 1996 statute that contains the famous “26 words that created the internet.” But three years ago, he was reading its full text aloud to his class at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst when suddenly, in his words, “a lightbulb went off in my head.”

It struck him that the law, widely understood to shield tech companies from being sued for their users’ posts, also protects users. In particular, it protects people who build tools to filter or moderate online content. People like Zuckerman’s friend Louis Barclay , a developer who in 2021 was permanently banned from Facebook and Instagram for developing a tool called “Unfollow Everything” that lets users, well, unfollow everything and restart their feeds fresh.

Three years later, that eureka moment has turned into a lawsuit — one that, if successful, could loosen Big Tech’s grip on how people use social media. 

The suit, filed by Columbia University’s Knight First Amendment Institute on Zuckerman’s behalf, asks a California court to declare that Meta can’t ban or sue him for building an unfollowing tool inspired by Barclay’s. (You can read it here .) If the suit succeeds, Zuckerman plans to release the tool, called “Unfollow Everything 2.0,” and hopes a wave of other tools to give users more control over their online lives will follow.

He has in mind tools like technologist Tracy Chou ’s Block Party, an app that helped Twitter users squelch spam and harassment — as well as third-party algorithms or content moderation systems that let people filter and order their social media feeds in different ways. Such tools are sometimes called “middleware” and have been touted by the Stanford political scientist Francis Fukuyama as a way to break Silicon Valley’s chokehold on online speech. 

Zuckerman’s tool, like Barclay’s before it, is meant to help Facebook users break their scrolling habits and reset the social network to one populated by people they’re actually close with. He also plans to offer users the chance to participate in a study to track how their Facebook use changes. He said he designed it to be “privacy-preserving,” anticipating Meta’s possible objection to the tool on data privacy grounds. 

“I think in many ways Section 230 has become shorthand for, ‘The internet giants have too much power,’” Zuckerman said. “The funny thing is, when you actually read 230, it has language in there that could give us a path to more control” for users.

Meta, which declined to comment, has a history of shutting down such projects. 

Protecting users’ privacy was the company’s justification in 2021, when it pulled the plug on New York University’s Ad Observatory, a tool to study the placement of political ads on the social network. Like Barclay, the New York University researchers behind the project found themselves banned from the site . Facebook said it made the move to comply with a Federal Trade Commission privacy agreement — an excuse the FTC rejected .

Chou, the founder and CEO of Block Party, said she welcomes Zuckerman’s suit. “It's no secret that people are widely dissatisfied with platforms, their algorithms and their dark patterns, and only more so because they have no choice about any of it,” she said. “Enabling more tools to live in this ecosystem could be as transformative as the app store for iOS, with applications that people could never have imagined in the beginning.”

The lawsuit’s chances of success are unclear.

An overly broad ruling that forces Meta to allow “any third party to come along and hoover up data in the name of middleware” could risk opening the door to a repeat of the Cambridge Analytica affair, as Daphne Keller of Stanford’s Cyber Policy Center pointed out in a post on X . But she suggested that a tool like Zuckerman’s could perhaps be immunized for collecting the data necessary to function while still being liable for any misuse of the data.

Jeff Kosseff , a professor of cyberscience at the Naval Academy and author of a book on Section 230 , said the case relies on a theory that has yet to be tested in court. He said the provision it draws on was meant at least in part to protect the use of parental control tools that filter out adult content. It has also been used by anti-malware companies to defend themselves against claims that they’re unfairly filtering other sites. But he’s not aware of anyone using it to seek a preemptive declaration that middleware is permitted.

“I think it’s a fascinating case that could have pretty significant implications for middleware,” Kosseff said. “I wouldn’t even hazard to predict how it’s going to come out, because these issues are so novel.”

Government scanner

Commerce Department revokes more export licenses to China’s Huawei (By Eva Dou and Ellen Nakashima)

In Tesla Autopilot probe, US prosecutors focus on securities, wire fraud (Reuters)

U.S., U.K. police identify and charge Russian leader of LockBit ransomware gang (TechCrunch)

Microsoft launches AI chatbot for spies (Ars Technica)

Hill happenings

TikTok files court challenge to U.S. law that could lead to ban (By Drew Harwell)

Inside the industry

OpenAI is readying a search product to rival Google, Perplexity (Bloomberg)

OpenAI says it can now detect images spawned by its software — most of the time (The Wall Street Journal)

Meta will let advertisers create campaigns using new generative AI tools (Bloomberg News)

Substack courts TikTokers with new ‘creators’ program (By Taylor Lorenz)

Privacy monitor

How to opt out of the privacy nightmare that comes with new Hondas (Sherwood)

The iPad lost. Smartphones won. (By Shira Ovide)

• The Senate Commerce Committee holds a hearing , “Strengthening Data Security to Protect Consumers,” today at 2:30 p.m.
• Justice Department antitrust chief Jonathan Kanter discusses competition enforcement and Big Tech at a Washington Post Live event on Thursday at 3 p.m.
• The House Energy and Commerce Committee holds a hearing , “Perspectives from the Fields: The State of Rural Broadband in America,” Friday at 10 a.m.

Before you log off

aubrey drake graham and kendrick lamar duckworth sound like two 19th century explorers who both died in a race to the south pole — kingseeker peter frampton (@revhowardarson) May 7, 2024

That ’ s all for today — thank you so much for joining us! Make sure to tell others to subscribe to  The Technology 202 here . Get in touch with Cristiano (via email or social media ) and Will (via email or social media ) for tips, feedback or greetings!

Search form

A for and against essay about online communication.

Look at the essay and do the exercises to improve your writing skills. 

Instructions

Do the preparation exercise first. Then read the text and do the other exercises.

Preparation

Check your understanding: grouping

Check your understanding: reordering, check your writing: gap fill, check your writing: multiple choice, worksheets and downloads.

Do you prefer online or face-to-face communication? Why? Which type of communication do you think is more important in today’s world, and why?

Sign up to our newsletter for LearnEnglish Teens

We will process your data to send you our newsletter and updates based on your consent. You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the "unsubscribe" link at the bottom of every email. Read our privacy policy for more information.

• Share full article

Advertisement

Supported by

Kendrick Lamar vs. Drake Beef Goes Nuclear: What to Know

The two rappers had circled one another for more than a decade, but their attacks turned relentless and very personal in a slew of tracks released over the weekend.

By Joe Coscarelli

The long-building and increasingly testy rap beef between Kendrick Lamar and Drake exploded into full-bore acrimony and unverifiable accusations over the weekend. Both artists rapid-fire released multiple songs littered with attacks regarding race, appropriation, sexual and physical abuse, body image, misogyny, hypocrisy, generational trauma and more.

Most relentless was Lamar, a Pulitzer Prize winner from Compton, Calif., who tends toward the isolated and considered but has now released four verbose and conceptual diss tracks — totaling more than 20 minutes of new music — targeting Drake in the last week, including three since Friday.

Each racked up millions of streams and the three that were made available commercially — “Euphoria,” “Meet the Grahams” and “Not Like Us” — are expected to land near the top of next week’s Billboard singles chart, while seeming to, at least momentarily, shift the public perception of Drake, long a maestro of the online public arena and meme ecosystem .

In between, on Friday night, Drake released his own broadside against Lamar — plus a smattering of other recent challengers — in a teasing Instagram interlude plus a three-part track and elaborate music video titled “Family Matters,” in which he referred to his rival as a fake activist and attempted to expose friction and alleged abuse in Lamar’s romantic relationship.

But that song was followed within half an hour by Lamar’s “Meet the Grahams,” an ominous extended address to the parents and young son of Drake, born Aubrey Graham, in which Lamar refers to his rival rapper as a liar and “pervert” who “should die” in order to make the world safer for women.

Lamar also seemed to assert that Drake had more than a decade ago fathered a secret daughter — echoing the big reveal of his son from Drake’s last headline rap beef — a claim Drake quickly denied on Instagram before hitting back in another song on Sunday. (Neither man has addressed the full array of rapped allegations directly.)

On Tuesday, a security guard was shot and seriously injured outside of Drake’s Toronto home, which appeared on the cover art for Lamar’s “Not Like Us.” Authorities said they could not yet speak to a motive in the shooting, but the investigation was ongoing. Representatives for Drake and Lamar did not immediately comment.

How did two of the most famous artists in the world decide to take the gloves off and bring real-life venom into an extended sparring match for rap supremacy? It was weeks, months and years in the making, with a sudden, breakneck escalation into hip-hop infamy. Here’s a breakdown.

Since late March, the much-anticipated head-to-head seemed inevitable. Following years of “will they or won’t they?” lyrical feints, Lamar hit directly on record first this year during a surprise appearance on the song “Like That” by the Atlanta rapper Future and the producer Metro Boomin, both formerly frequent Drake collaborators.

With audible disgust, Lamar invoked the track “First Person Shooter” from last year’s Drake album, “For All the Dogs,” in which a guest verse from J. Cole referred to himself, Drake and Lamar as “the big three” of modern MCs.

Lamar took exception to the grouping, declaring that there was no big three, “just big me.” He also called himself the Prince to Drake’s Michael Jackson — a deeper, more complex artist versus a troubled, pop-oriented hitmaker.

“Like That” spent three weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, as Future and Metro Boomin released two chart-topping albums — “We Don’t Trust You” and “We Still Don’t Trust You” — that were anchored by a parade of Drake’s past associates, each of whom seemed to share a simmering distaste toward the rapper, who later called the ambush a “20 v. 1” fight.

In early April, J. Cole fought back momentarily , releasing the song “7 Minute Drill,” in which he called Lamar overrated, before backtracking, apologizing and having the song removed from streaming services. But Drake soon picked up the baton, releasing a wide-ranging diss track called “Push Ups” less than a week later that addressed the field, with a special focus on Lamar’s height, shoe size and supposedly disadvantageous business dealings.

Less than a week later, Drake mocked Lamar’s lack of a response on “Taylor Made Freestyle,” a track released only on social media. It featured Drake taunting Lamar for being scared to release music at the same time as Taylor Swift and using A.I. voice filters to mimic Tupac and Snoop Dogg imploring Lamar to battle for the good of the West Coast.

“Since ‘Like That,’ your tone changed a little, you not as enthused,” Drake rapped in an abbreviated third verse, as himself. “How are you not in the booth? It feel like you kinda removed.” (“Taylor Made Freestyle” was later removed from the internet at the request of the Tupac Estate.)

But it was a seemingly tossed-off line from the earlier “Push Ups” that included the name of Lamar’s longtime romantic partner — “I be with some bodyguards like Whitney” — that Lamar would later allude to as a red line crossed, making all subject matter fair game in the songs to come. (It was this same alleged faux pas that may have triggered an intensification of Drake’s beef with Pusha T in 2018.)

How We Got Here

Even with Drake-dissing cameos from Future, Ye (formerly Kanye West), Rick Ross, the Weeknd and ASAP Rocky, the main event was always going to be between Drake, 37, and Lamar, 36, who have spent more than a decade subtly antagonizing one another in songs while maintaining an icy frenemy rapport in public.

In 2011, when Drake introduced Lamar to mainstream audiences with a dedicated showcase on his second album, “Take Care,” and an opening slot on the subsequent arena tour, the tone was one of side-eying competition. “He said that he was the same age as myself/and it didn’t help ’cause it made me even more rude and impatient,” Lamar rapped on “Buried Alive Interlude” of his earliest encounter with a more-famous Drake. (On his Instagram on Friday, Drake released a parody of the track, citing Lamar’s jealousy since then.)

The pair went on to appear together on “Poetic Justice,” a single from Lamar’s debut album, “Good Kid, M.A.A.D City,” in 2012, as well as “___ Problems” by ASAP Rocky the same year.

But their collaborations ceased as Drake became his generation’s premier hitmaker across styles in hip-hop and beyond, while Lamar burrowed deeper into his own psyche on knotty concept albums that brought wide critical acclaim alongside less constant commercial success.

When asked, the two rappers tended to profess admiration for one another’s skill, but seemed to trade subtle digs in verses over the years, always with plausible deniability and in the spirit of competition, leading to something of a hip-hop cold war.

The Week It Went Nuclear

Lamar’s first targeted response, “Euphoria,” was more than six minutes long and released last Tuesday morning. In three sections that raised the temperature as they built, he warned Drake about proceeding and insisted, somewhat facetiously, that things were still friendly. “Know you a master manipulator and habitual liar too,” Lamar rapped. “But don’t tell no lie about me and I won’t tell truths ’bout you.”

He accused the biracial Drake, who was born and raised in Toronto, of imitating Black American heritage and insulting him subliminally. “I hate the way that you walk, the way that you talk, I hate the way that you dress,” Lamar said. “I hate the way that you sneak diss, if I catch flight, it’s gon’ be direct.” And he called Drake’s standing as a father into question: “Teachin’ him morals, integrity, discipline/listen, man, you don’t know nothin’ ’bout that.”

Days later, Lamar doubled down with an Instagram-only track called “6:16 in LA,” borrowing both Drake’s “Back to Back” diss tactic from his 2015 beef with Meek Mill and a song title structure lifted from what is known as Drake’s time-stamp series of raps. Opting for psychological warfare on a beat produced in part by Jack Antonoff, Swift’s chief collaborator, Lamar hinted that he had a mole in Drake’s operation and was aware of his opponent’s opposition research.

“Fake bully, I hate bullies, you must be a terrible person,” he rapped. “Everyone inside your team is whispering that you deserve it.”

That night, Drake’s “Family Matters” started with its own justification for getting personal — “You mentioned my seed, now deal with his dad/I gotta go bad, I gotta go bad” — before taking on Lamar’s fatherhood and standing as a man in excruciating detail. “They hired a crisis management team to clean up the fact that you beat on your queen,” Drake rapped. “The picture you painted ain’t what it seem/you’re dead.”

Yet in a chess move that seemed to anticipate Drake’s familial line of attack, Lamar’s “Meet the Grahams” was released almost immediately. “This supposed to be a good exhibition within the game,” Lamar said, noting that Drake had erred “the moment you called out my family’s name.” Instead of a rap battle, Lamar concluded after another six minutes of psychological dissection, “this a long life battle with yourself.”

He wasn’t done yet. Dispensing with subtlety, Lamar followed up again less than 24 hours later with “Not Like Us,” a bouncy club record in a Los Angeles style that delighted in more traditional rap beef territory, like juvenile insults, proudly unsubstantiated claims of sexual preferences and threats of violence.

Lamar, however, didn’t leave it at that, throwing one more shot at Drake’s authenticity as a rapper, calling him a greedy and artificial user as a collaborator — “not a colleague,” but a “colonizer.”

On Sunday evening, Drake responded yet again. On “The Heart Part 6,” a title taken from Lamar’s career-spanning series, Drake denied the accusation that he preyed on young women, indicated that he had planted the bad information about his fake daughter and seemed to sigh away the fight as “some good exercise.”

“It’s good to get out, get the pen working,” Drake said in an exhausted outro. “You would be a worthy competitor if I was really a predator.” He added, “You know, at least your fans are getting some raps out of you. I’m happy I could motivate you.”

Joe Coscarelli is a culture reporter with a focus on popular music, and the author of “Rap Capital: An Atlanta Story.” More about Joe Coscarelli

Explore the World of Hip-Hop

The long-building and increasingly testy rap beef between Kendrick Lamar and Drake  has exploded into full-bore acrimony .

As their influence and success continue to grow, artists including Sexyy Red and Cardi B are destigmatizing motherhood for hip-hop performers .

ValTown, an account on X and other social media platforms, spotlights gangs and drug kingpins of the 1980s and 1990s , illustrating how they have driven the aesthetics and the narratives of hip-hop.

Three new books cataloging objects central to rap’s physical history  demonstrate the importance of celebrating these relics before they vanish.

Hip-hop got its start in a Bronx apartment building 50 years ago. Here’s how the concept of home has been at the center of the genre ever since .

Over five decades, hip-hop has grown from a new art form to a culture-defining superpower . In their own words, 50 influential voices chronicle its evolution .