9G For and against essay
Identify these elements and
I can write a for and against essay.
1 SPEAKING Work in pairs. Say whether you agree or
disagree with each of these statements. Give
reasons.
1 Worries about money are a cause of unhappiness.
2 Rich people are not always happy.
3 Love and friendship produce more happiness than
money.
Artwork: If space, an image that illustrates one of the ideas in
the sentences, e.g. people on luxury yacht, smiling happy
poor children.
2 Read the Matura tip and the introduction to the
essay. Which two of the techniques (a–c) does the
writer use?
Matura writing tip
In the introduction to the essay, you should show that you
understand the title of the essay, and what the essay
needs to cover. You can do one or more of these things:
a make a general statement which relates to the topic
and/or gives some background information.
b rephrase the statement to show that you understand the
main issue
c give a brief introduction to both sides of the argument.
Money can buy happiness. Discuss.
In most parts of the developed world, people are richer
today than they were fifty years ago. But has money
made them happier? This is the question we need to
answer.
It is hard to deny that money is necessary in today’s
world. It is very difficult to be happy if you do not have
enough money for things like food and clothing. It is
also true that even people who are not very poor, but
are not rich either, are often worried about money. For
instance, they may be concerned that they can’t afford
a holiday. It seems clear then that extra money would
remove these worries.
On the other hand, money is not the most important
thing in most people’s lives. They regard friends and
family as more important. For example, if you are
feeling miserable about a friendship that has ended,
money cannot help you. What is more, if money really
could buy happiness, the rich would be the happiest
people in the world. Judging by the stories about them
in magazines and on TV, they do not seem to be.
To sum up, I would say that money can improve the
lives of people who do not have enough cash to live
comfortably. However, money alone is not enough to
bring happiness; you also need love and friendship.
3 Read the essay.
underline the phrases used to introduce them. See
page 00 exercise 00.
Second paragraph:
• First ‘argument for’ with supporting statement
• Second ‘argument for’ with example
• Concluding sentence
Third paragraph:
• First ‘argument against’ with supporting statement
and example
• Second ‘argument against’ with supporting statement
4 Read the Learn this! box and the conclusion of the
essay. What is the writer’s opinion? Do you agree
with him/her? Why / why not?
LEARN THIS!
Essay conclusion
1 You can begin the conclusion with: To sum up / In
summary, I would say that …
2 You should give your opinion. This could be a balanced
view, or you may agree with the statement in the title, or
you may disagree with it.
> Vocabulary Builder 9.4: Linking words p. 00
5 You are going to write an essay called: The best
things in life are free. Brainstorm arguments for
and arguments against. Write two lists.
6 Choose the best two or three arguments from each
list in exercise 5, and think of supporting
statements and/or examples for each.
7 Read the Matura tip again and plan the
introduction.
8 Read the Learn this! box again. Decide what your
opinion is and plan the conclusion.
9 Write the essay (150–200 words) following this
plan. Use the phrases you identified in exercise 3,
the phrases in the Vocabulary builder 9.5, and
those in exercise 2 on page XX 5 to help you.
Paragraph 1 Introduce the topic. Show that you
understand the title of the essay, and what the
essay needs to cover.
Paragraph 2 Points in favour, with supporting
statements and/or examples
Paragraph 3 Points against, with supporting
statements and/or examples
Paragraph 4 Conclusion. Sum up your own opinion.
advantages and disadvantages owing to
the pros and cons *on account of
the pluses and minuses as
positive and negative aspects Since
- introducing a result
- introducing arguments in order to
-- the first argument in a paragraph so that
First of all, so as to
Firstly, As a result, / As a consequence,
*In the first place, The result is that
*To start with, consequently
-- the second, third etc. argument so
Secondly, *therefore
A second point is that *thus
Another point is that , which is why
Also, - introducing a contrasting idea
In addition (to this), but
Another thing, *whereas
Furthermore, while
What is more, nevertheless
*Moreover, nonetheless
-- the last argument in a paragraph though
Finally, although
Last but not least, even though
A final point is that despite
- starting the opposing paragraph in spite of
On the other hand, yet
On the minus side, then again
However, contrary to (that)
*Having said that, - introducing a similar idea
*While that may be true, Likewise,
- introducing the conclusion (in the last paragraph) as well
To conclude, too
In conclusion, - introducing an example
Overall, for example
*Having considered all these arguments, for instance
*In sum, an/another (good) example is
To sum up, such as
On balance, like
All things considered, - introducing a general opinion
- stating personal opinion it has been suggested that
to my mind it's obvious that
I (firmly) believe that it's clear that
I feel that it could be argued that / it is argued that
I think that some people claim/think/believe that
*it is my belief/opinion that it seems that
it seems to me that there is no doubt that
in my opinion/view undoubtedly / indisputably / undeniably /
the way I see it unquestionably
as far as I'm concerned - introducing an explanation
personally, I namely
in other words
that is
- introducing a reason to put it another way
because (of)
due to