Advice On How To Write A Conclusion To A Persuasive Essay

The persuasive essay assignment asks students to investigate an issue and make an argument for a certain viewpoint. Generally, these essays are divided into three parts: the introduction, the body, and the conclusion. This article focuses on how to effectively create the last part – the conclusion – for this kind of assignment:

• What You Should Include

The basics of a good conclusion to a persuasive essay are including a brief summary and a synthesis of the information that was presented in the body paragraphs. Don’t simply cut and paste your topic sentences or any quotes you’ve already used. Rewrite your best ideas in a few sentences using different words from how these ideas appeared in the body paragraphs. If you are uncertain whether you are providing more information than you absolutely need to, aim for no more than 4 or 5 sentences to provide this summary and synthesis.

• Giving New Meaning

From prior academic essay writing you should know that you are discouraged from introducing new material in your conclusion. In simple terms you should provide no new arguments or evidence that hasn’t already appeared in the body paragraphs. However, you can provide a different way to look at the evidence you have presented by showing how it relates to each other and proves your argument.

• Challenging the Reader

Persuasive essays can be written on a number of topics so long as it’s something that can be argued for and against. The conclusion should therefore reflect whatever that topic is. For instance, if a student tackles the subject of gun control and insists there should be stricter laws preventing people from acquiring assault weapons, then he or she could challenge the reader to sign a petition or participate in a political rally. A call to action is an extremely effective technique for persuading the reader to agree.

• Providing a Future Outlook

And finally, another really good way of ending a persuasive essay is to ask the reader to take a critical look at the future. For instance, if your essay focused on the subject of teenage bullying and how schools need to do more to prevent it, you might want to create an image in the reader’s mind that shows what a school community would be like if all forms of bullying were gone. This technique is great for leaving a lasting impression and in convincing the reader to agree with your argument.