A visitor (Michael Palin) exchanges words with a professional arguer (John Cleese).

In a sketch by the British comedy group Monty Python, a man walks cheerfully into an “Argument Clinic” and says he wants to have an argument. After paying the receptionist for a five minute argument, he is shown into an office, where a man behind a desk begins contradicting everything he says. They bicker back and forth for a few minutes, then begin arguing about what argument is:

Ridiculous as it is, this sketch nicely illustrates the two meanings of argument. On the one hand, the word “argument” refers to disagreement as such (like an argument with a roommate about who should bring out the trash). On the other hand, “argument” refers to “a connected series of statements intended to establish a proposition.” As we’ll see, academic argument has more in common with the second definition than the first.

What is an academic argument?

An academic argument uses a specific formula.

Topic of Choice + Your Claim + Reasons/Evidence = Argument

An argument must have a claim

When working on an argumentative essay, it is important to first make a claim. This is how your reader will know they are engaging with an argumentative essay instead of a narrative or expository essay. For example, if your topic is “freedom of speech,” it is important for you, as the writer, to make a claim on this topic and then support this claim (more information on this below) to create an argumentative essay. An example of a claim that would work for an argumentative essay might be, “Freedom of speech is the most important civil liberty.” If you were instead to write about what it means to have freedom of speech in general (narrative essay), or if you were to write an essay where your overall topic is “Freedom of speech may or may not be the most important fundamental civil liberty,” this would not be an argumentative essay because the claim is not clear and the reader does not know your perspective.

Argumentative essays can be written around any and all topics. A good way to search for a topic is to consider your personal interests, the things you’re passionate about, although you can also write effectively on topics where you’re “neutral,” with no strong opinions or feelings. Fashion, music, movies, food, books, politics, religion — anything that you feel you can take a stance or form a perspective about can make a good argumentative essay, as long as you can provide support and evidence for your claim.

Arguments will have opinions, but they really need reason and evidence

What was the best TV show currently airing? Why is it so great? Consider your answer. Was it your opinion? Or did you support it with credible pieces of reason or evidence that will solidify your argument if someone were to disagree with you about your choice? For example, let’s say your answer to the above question is Grey’s Anatomy, but you don’t tell me why. Then, I counter that This is Us is the best TV currently airing because the show has great characters with emotional depth and also strong viewership. I have supported my answer with reason (the character and emotional depth), and evidence (data of the number of viewers).

Arguments involve more than just the writer…there’s an audience, too

Consider our example above about the best TV show. When you make your argument, it would not be fun to have the conversation by yourself. Instead, you want to share your point of view with someone else and tell them why you love the show. Even better, you want to provide details about why that show is so great. Otherwise, you’d be talking to yourself about something you already believe.

An academic argument works the same way. Once you know your topic and you’ve picked your claim, now you want to share it with an audience. Engaging an audience with your argument means you need to provide details, evidence, and support throughout your essay. The reader should feel like they are in conversation with you. Essentially, they want to be “in on the secret,” and understand why you feel so passionate about your topic one way or the other.

Finally, if you’re going to have an argument, you need an opposing point of view

Speaking of “one way or the other…” Your argument needs to have an opposite view to be an actual argument. If you present your paper topic as something like: “I really enjoy watching This Is Us,” no one can disagree with that opinion (we’ll talk more about opinion and fact later). However, if you instead state: “This Is Us is relatable for American families because it depicts the role of sibling relationships and shines a light on important aspects of American society,” now you have to support these claims with reasons and evidence. Additionally, your reader can decide if they agree with your claim or not.