The Persuasive Essay – Taking A Stand On A Controversial Topic

You have probably written persuasive essays in the past. If so, you know that your topic will be issue on which there are differing opinions. Your job is to identify your position on the issue and to defend that position, using evidence – factual information, data, personal experiences, and voices of authority. Structuring the essay is relatively traditional.

Your introduction begins with some anecdote or startling fact and ends with your thesis statement, your stand on the issue. Each body paragraph should present one of the arguments that supports your position, and you will have as many paragraphs as there are points to be made.

Your conclusion should wrap it all up and perhaps point to the importance of the issue to a more general audience. The object of the entire essay is to convince your reader(s) that your position is valid, in the hopes that the reader will be convinced to adopt the same position.

Sometimes, an instructor or professor will provide several options for topics; other times, you will be required to select your own. In the selection process, be certain that the issue is important to you, so that you are motivated to “prove” your stand but in a scholarly manner. This means that you do not belittle the opposing view, nor do you use sarcasm toward those who might disagree.

Are you looking for some interesting persuasive essay topics? 

You’ve come to the right place! Here are 70 essay prompts, any one of which will make a great topic for your next persuasive essay.

1.  Should start later in order to accommodate the sleeping requirements of teenagers and young adults
2. Wire-tapping without a warrant is unconstitutional.
3. Dress codes in public schools should not be gender specific.
4. Children under the age of 18 should not have access to social media.
5. Online dating is not worth the safety risk.
6. Pre-employment drug screening is an invasion of privacy.
7. Religious organizations that EARN MORE than 100,000 per year should pay federal income tax.
8. The inheritance tax must be continued.
9. Women should not be forced to remove head coverings in court.
10. Marijuana should be legalized on the federal level.
11. The United States should allow citizens to travel to Cuba.
12. Abstinence-only sex education programs should be only one small part of a larger context on pregnancy prevention
13. Election days should be federal holidays.
14. Schools should not take money from soda companies in exchange for allowing them to sell sugary drinks to children.
15. Fast food companies shouldn’t be allowed in school cafeterias.
16. The federal lunch program should be revamped so that more fresh fruits and vegetables are required.
17. Physical education should not be counted towards a student’s grade point average.
18. The United States should follow the lead of other countries and provide women with at least a year of maternity leave.
19. Single payer health care will cost too much money.
20. The affordable health care act benefits insurance companies more than citizens.
21. Police officers should be required to wear body cameras.
22. Terminally ill patients should be allowed to choose medically-assisted suicide.
23. Parents should not be allowed to refuse medical treatment for their children.
24. Pharmaceutical companies need to undergo more rigorous inspections.
25. The FDA needs to regulate essential oils.
26. Vaping is every bit as hazardous as smoking.
27. Prisoners should not be forced to work on chain gangs.
28. Individuals should not be jailed for their inability to pay court fines.
29. Male infants deserve the same protection from circumcision that is afforded to female infants.
30. Students should learn cursive writing in grade school.
31. Cat calling and other forms of street harassment should be illegal.
32. Children who identify as transgender should be allowed to take hormone suppressants when they reach puberty.
33. There should be a third gender designation for individuals who are inter-sex, gender fluid, or who are undecided.
34. State laws banning gay marriage should be overturned.
35. All divorcing parents should be made to agree to a parenting plan.
36. The “selfie” is proof that we are becoming more and more shallow and self-indulgent.
37. School administrators are too fast to label children as bullies.
38. All doctors and hospitals should be forced to treat patients who are on Medicare or Medicaid.
39. States who refuse to expand Medicaid should receive penalties.
40. The police should not be allowed to use devices that monitor cell phone conversations.
41. Celebrities receive unfair preferential treatment when they break the law.
42. Social media doesn’t harm relationships.
43. People who criticize the police are often treated unfairly for doing so.
44. Pregnant women should not have preferential parking spaces.
45. People who purchase hybrid and electric cars should not have to pay sales tax on their vehicles.
46. Individuals who drive large vans for churches should be forced to get commercial driver’s licenses.
47. There should be a limit on the amount of punitive damages that can be awarded in medical malpractice suites.
48. Free range parenting is nothing more than child neglect.
49. Parents should not feed their children junk food before the age of five.
50. It is unhealthy to allow children to watch television or play video games before the age of three.
51. It should be mandatory for children in public schools to recite the pledge of allegiance.
52. The separation of church and state was intended to stop the government from having power over churches, but not to stop churches from having power over government.
53. Teachers should not insert their political and religious beliefs into their lessons.
54. School police should not be used to deal with disciplinary matters.
55. Disorderly conduct laws should be banned because they give the police power to ticket people who have not committed any crime.
56. There should be term limits for judges and justices.
57. Political campaigns are too negative.
58. Anybody who receives a DWI should lose his/her license for a minimum of 5 years.
59. Parents with children who are morbidly obese should be made to take a class on health and nutrition.
60. It is inconsiderate for parents to take children under the age of 7 to nice restaurants.
61. Banning teenagers from malls is unfair.
62. 24 hour cable news is nothing more than harmful sensationalism.
63. People who buy historical homes should be forced to restore those homes using only materials that are historically accurate.
64. College students should not be forced to purchase hard copies of their textbooks if they can find electronic copies that are less expensive.
65. Red light cameras should be banned.
66. Cities should not be allowed to rely on revenue from traffic violations to cover their expenses.
67. Public schools should provide special education services to students who home school.
68. High school and college athletes receive unduly preferential treatment.
69. The Greek system in college encourages bullying, sexual assault, and drug and alcohol abuse, and it should be abolished.
70. Art and music programs are important, and they should not be cut in favor of athletic programs.

Hopefully, you’ve found our list to be helpful and you will be able to find at least a few topics that motivate you.  If you would like some extra help or information on the persuasive essay, access TrustEssays.com. This is the website of choice for students who are looking for help on any college writing assignments, because it has only degreed topic area experts who can assist a struggling student with essays, papers, and other academic writing.