Kinds of argumentative academic essays and their purposes
Most of the time, when your supervisors and others talk about academic essays what they mean is essays that present well-reasoned points of view on various topics. This article explains some essential kinds of these essays—exegetical, discursive, expository, and argumentative—and outlines their key differences and similarities. We’ll call the group of them “persuasive essays,” since they all require you to persuade your reader in some way.
Kinds of persuasive academic essays
Exegetical essays persuade your reader to interpret a theory in a certain way and show your ability to understand and accurately explain difficult ideas.
Discursive essays persuade your reader to see the different sides of a debate in a certain way and present your ability to compare different approaches to a topic.
Expository essays persuade your reader that your opinion is the right one and that you are a competent critical thinker.
Argumentative essays persuade your reader to see something new in a field of research and to see that you have some authority in that field.
Difference between persuasive academic essays and standard scientific articles
One thing that separates a persuasive academic essay from a standard scientific article or an article in a newspaper is that the author’s point of view plays a more obvious role. Whereas a scientist is taught not to present the facts as she sees them but as anyone can see them, an essayist always presents information from a certain point of view (usually her own), even if she usually avoids referring to herself in the text.
Differences between kinds of persuasive academic essays
The different kinds of persuasive academic essays are distinguished by the different things they do, but also by the prominence of the author’s point of view. The following tables presents the differences.
| Purpose | Role of author |
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Minimal: but it is understood that the presentation is your own reading of what someone else means by a theory or view. |
| Purpose | Role of author |
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Moderate: although normally you should suggest which argument is the stronger, your primary role is as a guide to competing views on the topic. |
| Purpose | Role of author |
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Strong: you present your own view as the best view to take, and the paper establishes your ability to think independently and critically. |
| Purpose | Role of author |
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Substantial: you present your own view as the best view to take, but the focus is on how this new view contributes meaningfully to the current literature. |
What all persuasive academic essays do
The first thing to notice is that, while essay assignments do sometimes ask for one or the other of these types of essay, often persuasive academic essays will need to mix these styles. For example, in order to properly situate her view in the current literature on a topic, the author of an argumentative essay will sometimes need to present a brief exegesis of someone else’s view. Many other combinations are possible, and the argumentative essay, especially, may draw on each of the other three styles.
Second, each of these academic essay forms is argumentative, even though we call only one of them “the argumentative essay.” In fact, you should keep in mind that, speaking loosely, people sometimes do refer to all of these as “argumentative essays.” This term is not entirely inaccurate, since they all require skillful treatment of argumentation, and they all require you to persuade your reader of something.
Sources in this article
We strongly encourage students to use sources in their work. You can cite our article (APA Style) or take a deep dive into the articles below.
This Scribbr articleBryson, S. (January 18, 2021). Kinds of argumentative academic essays and their purposes. Scribbr. Retrieved October 17, 2022, from https://www.scribbr.com/academic-essay/kinds-argumentative-academic-essays-purposes/
