To begin with, let us understand what is meant by reasoning. Different sources give different definitions, so I will try to combine them into one.
Reasoning involves a logical and consistent presentation of one's own thoughts on any particular issue or problem. In the process of reasoning, evidence and arguments are used, on the basis of which certain conclusions are drawn. Arguments and conclusions are part of the structure of reasoning, which I will discuss later.
Your task is to find and describe the reasons for various phenomena, using the thesis (some statement) and arguments (why you think so or not). The thesis is at the beginning and it is what you need to prove using arguments.
What's interesting, your work can be based on a claim (that the thesis presented is true) or a rebuttal (proving that the thesis is false). You can use direct facts or arguments to the contrary, rely on personal experience or movies, or give examples from life or literature as tools of proof.
What an essay-explanation tests
Before you begin your argumentative essay, it's important to think about what the teacher wants from you. And when he or she asks you to write an essay, he or she is testing your skills:
perceive and understand unfamiliar information;
Analyze your own position;
Analyze the form of the text and the way it is presented;
Express your own point of view;
Use the richness and capacity of language to formulate your own position;
work with spelling and syntax norms.
Focus on these requirements in preparation for the essay-expression: they will help to avoid difficulties and surprises in the course of writing the essay.
Structure of an essay-expression
An essay-expression is written according to a certain scheme. It consists of:
An introduction. As a rule, it is small and serves to smoothly approach the main problem of the essay (question or quote).
thesis. Located immediately after the introduction and is the starting point in the reasoning - the statement about which we will argue in the text;
arguments. The main thing is that they are proving and convincing.
As an argument in the essay-explanation you can use:
historical fact;
statistical data;
Episodes and the plot of a work of literature;
statements by people with authority in the field.
More than half of the essay's total length is devoted to argument. Based on experience, the most optimal number of arguments is 3;
conclusion. It should follow from the thesis, but not repeat it, but develop it. The conclusion is broader than the thesis.
The structure is conventionally divided into three parts: the introduction, the main part, and the conclusion.
Introduction in an essay-explanation
As I wrote before, you can use a question or a quote for the introduction. They should lead smoothly to the main problem of the essay. If it is difficult to find a suitable quote or question, write about the relevance of the topic and the importance of talking about it. It is good to make the introduction with an excursus into the history of the problem, examples from various printed and oral sources, etc.
The main part of the essay-expression
Here we arm ourselves with arguments and prove our point of view: the reader must come to the conclusion that your reasoning is correct. How do we do this? Use introductory words and phrases, special sentence-linking constructions, and lots of examples.
Conclusion in an essay-explanation
The final section should summarize what you have described above. If necessary, the key thoughts can be repeated, but adding to them some generalization. Alternatively, you can share your impressions about the problem described.
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