Persuasion
Persuasion is the communicative effort to convince people to think a certain or act a certain way—to vote for a city-wide recycling program, to oppose the building of more coal-fired electricity plants, and so on—or the opposite!
Here are a few guidelines on writing persuasively:
Carefully pick your topic and your approach to it.
Finding a project for persuasion is like trying to pick a fight. Think of the main issues of the day—global warming, ozone-layer depletion, alternative fuels, mass transportation, pesticides, zero population growth, solar energy, cloning (bioengineering), abortion, effects of computer- and video-game violence, capital punishment, nuclear armaments, chemical warfare. Each of these topics has multiple issues that are hotly debated. Technical-writing courses are not the place for the common pro-and-con and letter-to-the editor essays you may have written in past writing courses. However, these topics have a technical side that challenges your abilities as a technical writer.
What are the logical arguments for recycling——more specifically, a city-based curb-side recycling program? They range from altruistic (for the city, for the planet) to selfish (to reduce waste management costs, to decrease taxes). Which arguments you use depends on your readers. Altruistic arguments may be of no use to certain conservative or business readers or to city administrators, but they may be vital in getting ordinary citizens to back such the program.
Define each of your arguments; plan how you will support them.
You must prove each logical argument, using supporting data, reasoning, and examples. You can’t just baldly state that something costs less, works better, provides benefits, and is acceptable to the public—you’ve got to prove it!
In your persuasive effort to get the city to consider recycling, you might use the logical appeal that such a program would reduce landfill requirements. How can you prove that? Do some research. What’s the city’s daily input to the landfill; what are the costs? Can you determine the percent made up by recyclables? If you can get believable numbers, calculate landfill savings in terms of volume and dollars.
Consider emotional appeals.
At best, emotional appeals capture readers’ attention and get them to care about the issue. At worst, they rouse strong emotions such as fear and anger, preventing readers from thinking clearly about the issue.
What emotional appeals could you use for the recycling promotion (not that you actually would, of course)? Images of overflowing landfills might work; images of dwindling natural habitats, replete with deer, chipmunks, hummingbirds——these might work. Would they pull at the heart strings of your readers, or would readers cynically mutter “give me a break”? How would you feel about using such tactics?
Consider personal appeals.
Like emotional appeals, personal appeals have no logical relevance to an argument. If you use the personal appeal, you attempt to build readers’ confidence in you as someone who is knowledgeable and reliable. Citing years of experience and education is a common example of building a personal appeal.
What personal appeals could this recycling persuasion use? To get people to accept your data, cite believable sources, such as government reports or leading experts. To give yourself credibility, describe your past experience and training in this area. Perhaps also describe yourself as a long-time resident of the city. These appeals shouldn’t have any relevance, but they may cause people to hear you out.
Address any counter-arguments.
It’s a good idea to address counter-arguments—objections people might raise in relation to your argument. Imagine people out there saying “but—but—but—!” Discuss their counter-arguments and show how they are wrong, how they can be addressed, or how they are irrelevant to your main point. Notice that the persuasive document advocating recycling is structured on counter-arguments: Recycling: Not a Waste of Money or Time!
As for recycling programs, you must address the standard objections. It’s a hassle. Your might counter-argue that recycling is no more of a hassle than taking out the garbage. It’s a hassle sorting everything and keeping in separate bins. That one is easy——most recycling programs don’t require sorting. It’s messy and attracts pests. Hmmm, that’s a hard one——time for some research.
Plan an introduction.
In an introduction to a persuasion, you cannot start out guns blazing and swords rattling. It’s not necessary to state your main argumentative point right away. Instead, just indicate the subject matter—not your main point about it. Your readers are more likely to hear you out.
Imagine that you’ve written the main sections of this persuasion. You have logical appeals, counter-arguments, and possibly some personal and emotional appeals as well. Instead of demanding that the city adopt a recycling program, begin with a quiet purpose statement that this document “looks at” or “investigates” the possibilities for recycling. Indicate that this document is for both city officials and ordinary citizens. Provide an overview, indicating that you’ll be discussing current and projected landfill use and associated costs, amount of recyclables in municipal waste, their recyclable value, potential revenue from a recycling program, costs of a recycling program, and necessary administrative and citizen participation in such a program.
Consider the conclusion.
In a persuasion, the final section is often a “true” conclusion. If you have not yet overtly stated your main argumentative point, now’s the time. When you do, summarize the main arguments that support it.
While the introduction may be the place for quiet understatement, the conclusion is the place to pound home your main point. Come out and state vigorously that the city should implement a recycling program and then summarize the main reasons why.
“Online Technical Writing: Persuasion.” By David McMurrey. Retrieved from: https://www.prismnet.com/~hcexres/textbook/pers.html Licensed under: CC-BY. Adapted by The American Women’s College.
