Four Features Of Argumentative Writing

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Writers must show some form of cohesion and coherence in their presentation of ideas
. At the discourse level, analysis of cohesion provides a useful measure of t he effectiveness and quality of written text. In addition to having knowledge about the internal features of written texts, familiarity with different genres can affect writing quality of the learners to a large extent. The notion of genre is defined as ab stract, socially recognized ways of using language, which are purposeful communicative activities employed by members of a particular discourse community .Argumentative writing is a fundamental writing style which is required …show more content…

Thus,
Connor (1990) identifies four features of argumentative texts that are unique to this genre
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The first feature is s uperstructure which refers t o the organizational plan of any text and the linear progression of the text
. The second feature is the quality of logical reasoning which is assessed by analyzing the interrelationships of writers ' assertions and the associated support or dat a provided to substantiate those claims. The third feature is identified as persuasive appeal, including affective appeal and establishment of writer credibility.
Finally, she notes that audience awareness is an important characterist ic of successful argumentative writing. The writer must
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observe an awareness of the reader 's perspecti ve by dealing implicitly or explicitly with possible counterarguments
In addition, the writer must also aware of the various elements tha t are specific to the genre of argumentation. According to Toulmin (1958), argumentation is composed of the following elements: