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Just as with most essays, the major secret to excelling on the SAT essay is to pre-plan the
examples and evidence you want to use.
"But wait!" I hear you cry. "Can you do that on the new SAT essay? Isnt the point of the
essay that youre supposed to be using information from the passage in your answer,
which you dont know about ahead of time?"
The answer: Yes and no. While the specics of each example will obviously change,
depending on the passage, the types of examples you choose to discuss (and the way
you explain each example builds the authors argument) can be dened, and thus
prepared for, ahead of time.
In this article, we give you 6 good SAT essay examples youll be able to nd in nearly
every prompt the SAT throws at you. By assembling a collection of these reliable
examples that can answer most prompts, you'll cut down on planning time and
signicantly increase the amount you can write, making you able to walk into every SAT
essay condent in your abilities.
feature image credit: 1 to 9 mosaic, cropped/Used under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.
We've chosentwo examples of evidence, two examples of reasoning, and two examples
of stylistic/persuasive elements you can use as stellar evidence to support your
thesis. Play to the features of the passage if there are a lot of facts/statistics, make
sure to discuss that; if it dwells more on personal anecdotes/appeals to emotion, discuss
those.
For each example below, we also show you how you can use the type of evidence to
support your thesis across a range of prompts. This should prove to you how
eective pre-planned examples are.
So, without further ado, onto our list of multipurpose support for any SAT Essay prompt.
Examples of Evidence
The most basic way author builds an argument is by supporting claims with evidence.
There are many dierent kinds of evidence author might use to support her/his point,
but I'm just going to discuss the two big ones I've seen in the various ocial SAT Essay
prompts that have been released. These two types of evidence are Facts and Statistics
and Anecdotes.
Example: In the UnitedStates and Western Europe, the amount of light in the sky
Why Is It Persuasive?
Facts and statistics are persuasive argument building techniques because the author
isn't just making up reasons for why his/her argument could possibly be true - there's
actually something (data, research, other events/information) that backs up the
author's claim. In the case of the examples above, Bogard presents specic data about
issues with light pollution (8 in 10 children won't be able to see the Milky Way, light in
the sky increases 6% annually) to back up his statements that light pollution is real, then
goes on to present further information that indicates light pollution is a problem
(working the night shift puts humans at risk for cancer). By presenting information and
facts, rather than just opinion and spin, Bogard empowers the reader to connect the
dots on her own, which in turn gives the reader ownership over the argument and
makes it more persuasive (since the reader is coming to the same conclusions on her
own, rather than entirely relying on Bogard to tell her what to think).
SAT essay prompt that was adapted from a foreword by former U.S. President Jimmy
Carter:
One of the most unforgettable and humbling experiences of our lives occurred on
the coastal plain. We had hoped to see caribou during our trip, but to our
amazement, we witnessed the migration of tens of thousands of caribou with their
newborn calves. In a matter of a few minutes, the sweep of tundra before us
became ooded with life, with the sounds of grunting animals and clicking hooves
lling the air. The dramatic procession of the Porcupine caribou herd was a oncein-a-lifetime wildlife spectacle. We understand rsthand why some have described
this special birthplace as Americas Serengeti.
Why Is It Persuasive?
Even though anecdotes aren't statistics or facts, they can be powerful because its more
relatable/interesting to the reader to read an anecdote than to be presented with dry,
boring facts. People tend to put more faith in experiences if they can personally
connect with the experiences (even though that doesn't actually aect how likely or
not a statement is to be true). In the example above, rather than discussing the statistics
that support the creation of wildlife refuges, Jimmy Carter instead uses an anecdote
about experiencing the wonder of nature to illustrate the same point - probably more
eectively. By inviting the reader to experience vicariously the majesty of witnessing the
migration of the Porcupine caribou, Carter activates the reader's empathy towards
wildlife preservation and so makes it more likely that the reader will agree with him that
wildlife refuges are important.
Examples of Reasoning
All authors use reasoning to some extent, but its not always a major part of how the
author builds her/his argument. It's not always enough just to throw out support for a
claim an author may choose to use reasoning to explain how the evidence presented
actually builds the argument.
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You could say some computer games develop creativity, says Lucy Wurtz, an
administrator at the Waldorf School in Los Altos, Calif., minutes from Silicon Valley.
But I dont see any benet. Waldorf kids knit and build things and painta lot of
really practical and creative endeavors.
But its not that simple. While there are dangers inherent in access to Facebook,
new research suggests that social-networking sites also oer unprecedented
learning opportunities.
Why Is It Persuasive?
So how does bringing up an opposing point of view help an author build her argument?
It may seem counterintuitive that discussing a counterargument actually strengthens
the main argument. However, as you can see in the brief example above, giving some
space to another point of view serves to make it seem as if the discussions going
to be more fair. This is still true whether the author delves into the counterargument
or if the author only briey mentions an opposing point of view before moving on. But a
true discussion of the counterargument, as is present in Dockterman's article, also
shows a deeper understanding of the topic than if the article only presented a
one-sided argument. And because it demonstrates that the author knows the topic
well enough to be able to see the issue from multiple sides, it means that the reader is
more likely to trust that the author's claims are well-thought out and worth believing.
In the case of the Dockterman article, the author not only mentions the opposite point
of view but also takes the time to get a quote from someone who supports the opposing
viewpoint. This even-handedness makes her following claim that "it's not that simple"
more believable, since she doesn't appear to be presenting a one-sided argument.
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Why Is It Persuasive?
Unfortunately, the explanation the Ocial SAT Study Guide gives for how to discuss an
author's "reasoning" is a little vague:
You may decide to discuss how the author uses (or fails to use) clear, logical
reasoning to draw a connection between a claim and the evidence supporting that
claim.
But how exactly you should go about doing this? And why is it persuasive to clearly
explain the link between evidence and claim?
In general, when an author explains the logic behind her argument or point, the
reader can follow along and understand the authors argument better (which in
some cases makes it more likely the reader will agree with the author). In the
Dockterman example above, the author clearly lays out data (Civilization leads to
improvements in history class), a claim (this is because of engagement with the game
and thus the subject material), provides data that back up that claim (retention rate
skyrockets when students do things for themselves), and links that smaller claim to a
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larger concept (actively browsing pages on a computer or tablet is way more brain-
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stimulating than vegging out in front of the TV). This clear pattern of data-explanationmore data-more explanation enables the reader to follow along with Dockterman's
points. It's more persuasive because, rather than just being told "Civilization leads to
improvements in history" and having to take it on faith, the reader is forced to reenact
the thinking processes that led to the argument, engaging with the topic on a deeper
level.
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Vivid language: truly the persuasive icing on your SAT essay prompt cake. Your delicious, delicious SAT cake.
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show that what was a very dark country as recently as the 1950s is now nearly
covered with a blanket of light.
This example is relatively restrained, using the metaphor of "a blanket of light" to add
emphasis to Bogard's discussion of light pollution. A more striking example can be
found in another ocial SAT essay prompt, adapted from Martin Luther King, Jr.'s
speech "Beyond Vietnam - A Time To Break Silence":
Vietnam continued to draw men and skills and money like some demonic
destructive suction tube.
Why Is It Persuasive?
Vivid language is an eective argument building device because it puts the reader in the
authors shoes and draws them into the passage. If used in moderation, vivid
language will also make the topic more interesting for the reader to read, thus engaging
them further. In the excerpt taken from Martin Luther King Jr.'s speech above, the
phrase "demonic destructive suction tube" is startling and provocative, meant to rouse
the audience's indignation at the injustice and waste of the Vietnam war. If King had left
out the second part of the sentence and only said, "Vietnam continued to draw men and
skills and money," his point would not have had as big of an impact.
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reader. These stylistic elements are found across all sorts of dierent passage topics,
although as with the previous category, these elements usually play a larger role when
the passage is light on facts or logic.
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Perhaps a more tragic recognition of reality took place when it became clear to me
that the war was doing far more than devastating the hopes of the poor at home. It
was sending their sons and their brothers and their husbands to ght and to die in
extraordinarily high proportions relative to the rest of the population.
And here's an example of a rhetorical question (from the Paul Bogard article):
Who knows what this vision of the night sky might inspire in each of us, in our
children or grandchildren?
Why Is It Persuasive?
Appealing to the emotions, as Martin Luther King, Jr. does in his speech, is an alternate
route to persuasion, as it causes readers to emotionally (rather than logically) agree
with the author. By describing how the war was causing "their sons and their brothers
and their husbands to ght and die," King reminds the reader of the terrible costs of
war, playing upon their emotions to get them to agree that the Vietnam War is a
mistake, particularly for the poor.
Rhetorical questions, on the other hand, get the readers to step into the author's
world. By reading and thinking about the author's question, the reader engages
with the topic on a deeper level than if the reader were just given a statement of
what the author thinks. In the case of the Bogard example above, the rhetorical
question draws the reader into thinking about his/her descendants, a group of people
for whom the reader (presumably) only wishes the best, which then puts the reader into
a positive mood (assuming the reader likes his/her descendants).
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Review
As you can see,these examples of dierent argumentative techniques can be extracted
from a lot of dierent article types for a wide range of topics. This is because the
examples themselves are so meaningful and complex that they can be used to discuss a
lot of issues.
The main point is, you don't have to wait until you see the prompt to develop an arsenal
of types of argument-building techniques you can use to support your points. Instead,
preparing beforehand how youll discuss these techniques will save you a lot of
time and anxiety when the test rolls around.
What's Next?
If you're reading this article, you probably want to excel on the SAT essay. We've written
a bunch of detailed guides to make sure you do.
Start to scratch the surface with our 15 tips to improve your SAT essay score.
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Follow our step-by-step guide to writing a high-scoring essay and learn how to get a
perfect 8/8/8 on the SAT essay.