The key difference between argumentative and expository essay is that an argumentative essay has statistics, facts, and the writer’s personal opinions, whereas an expository essay has only information that explains a topic.
There are four main types of essays as argumentative, expository, narrative, and descriptive essays. All these types of essays share many similarities, especially in terms of their structure. These essays contain an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. However, their purpose and function are different. In addition, an argumentative essay is written in the first person point of view, while an expository essay is usually in the third person.
CONTENT
1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is an Argumentative Essay
3. What is an Expository Essay
4. Argumentative vs Expository Essay in Tabular Form
5. Summary – Argumentative vs Expository Essay
What is an Argumentative Essay?
An argumentative essay is a piece of writing through which the writer tries to convince his view to the audience. This is also called a persuasive essay. Such essays are written in the first person point of view and try to persuade the reader to agree with the writer’s point of view on a specific issue. Therefore, these contain facts, statistics, and the writer’s personal view of the subject matter.
Before writing argumentative essays, the writer should do research and be well prepared with facts to prove as well as defend the points. Generally, these essays tend to be biased and subjective; however, the writer should not narrow-mindedly take sides without considering valid evidence. The writer should be open-minded, well-informed, and aware of the opposing ideas on the subject. Only then he or she should come to a proper conclusion on the topic. When writing such essays, it is a must to have an in-depth knowledge of the two topics to compare them effectively.
Some examples of argumentative essay topics include:
Are printed books better than e-readers?
Is the death penalty a just punishment?
Do you think that abortion should be made illegal?
How to Write an Argumentative Essay
The first step in writing an argumentative essay is the introductory paragraph. This should describe the topic and the background information. It should also outline evidence. The second step is the thesis statement, which is included in the introductory paragraph. This is a summary of the main point of the essay in a single sentence, which is the argument.
The third and the fourth points are the body paragraphs of the essay and the conclusion. The body paragraphs contain the reasons for supporting the thesis. In addition, they include the opposing points and your reasons for disagreeing with them. Usually, there are 3-4- body paragraphs in an essay, and each contains a topic sentence. The conclusion should not include new points but should summarise the content and the points mentioned in the body paragraphs.
What is an Expository Essay?
An expository essay is a piece of writing that contains factual information. The writer’s personal opinion is not included in such essays. Instead, it should have an objective, neutral and academic tone throughout the whole essay. Writing such an essay needs critical thinking and a thorough explanation of the reasons behind the conclusions drawn.
The purpose of an expository essay is to educate the readers. In many instances, this type of essay shows the writer’s knowledge of the subject area and how they learned it. There are several types of expository essays named classification, definition, process, compare and contrast, and cause and effect essays.
Classification essays are written about various subjects within one category; definition essays describe a subject by presenting clear facts and evidence about it; process essays take the reader through the steps of completing a task. Meanwhile, in compare and contrast essays, the writer supports the thesis statement by analyzing the similarities and differences between the two topics and the sources. Cause and effect essays, on the other hand, describe how various events and actions occur for other events to occur.
What is the Difference Between Argumentative and Expository Essay?
The key difference between argumentative and expository essay is that an argumentative essay has statistics, facts, and the writer’s personal opinions, whereas an expository essay has only information that explains a topic. While argumentative essays are biased and subjective, expository essays are unbiased and neutral.
The below infographic presents the differences between argumentative and expository essay in tabular form for side-by-side comparison.
Summary – Argumentative vs Expository Essay
An argumentative essay is a piece of writing through which the writer tries to convince his view to the audience. It is usually written in the first person point of view and includes the writer’s opinion on the subject matter. An expository essay, however, is a piece of writing that contains factual information. Unlike argumentative essays, these essays are written in the third person point of view and should not include personal opinions. So, this is the summary of the difference between argumentative and expository essay.
Reference:
1. “What is an Expository Essay?” Bibe Me.
2. “Argumentative Essay Examples: Types And Tips.” Turito.
Image Courtesy:
1. “Pen-writing-notes-studying” By Tookapic – Pexels (CC0) via Commons Wikimedia