Expository vs Persuasive
Expository and persuasive are two writing styles that are very common and also have many similarities between them. The two styles of writing are used by students to write essays in social sciences. Because of the overlapping, many students remain confused between these two writing styles. This article attempts to highlight the differences between expository and persuasive styles of writing.
Expository Writing
The style of writing that aims to arm the reader with lots of information is expository style of writing. In social sciences, this amounts to a lot of explaining as to how and what to do something and in what manner, what caused something, the cause and effect of something, and so on. Expository style is used to explain things while giving information like a teacher would do in his class while teaching his students.
Business writing is a form of expository style where the management tries to communicate with the employees explaining its policies. Another example of expository writing is where things are compared and contrasted by bringing out their similarities and differences. Yet another category of expository writing is informative writing where the writer has the sole purpose of providing as much information to the reader as possible in a clear and easy manner. There are also subcategories of response writing, technical writing, and research writing within expository writing.
Persuasive Writing
Persuasive style of writing is a style that aims to provide a point of view to the reader in a bid to sway his opinion. This style of writing is seen in advertisements where the writer presents a point of view and supports this point of view with facts and other evidence to convince the reader about the efficacy or its efficiency. Speeches of leaders are written in persuasive style to convert as many as possible voters to a particular political party. This style of writing aims to influence the thinking of the readers.
What is the difference between Expository and Persuasive?
• While expository style merely gives out information in an explanatory manner, persuasive style tries to present a point of view and aims to sway the opinion of the readers.
• The tone of persuasive essay is personal and informal, whereas the tone of an expository essay is formal and rather cold.
• There is a call for action at the end of a persuasive essay whereas expository style of writing restricts itself to providing information and facts.
• Dissemination of information and facts is best carried out with the help of expository style of writing.