Discursive essays

1. 
   “Animals should be treated with the same respect as humans.” Do you agree with this view?
   
2. 
   “The generation gap is one which cannot be bridged.” Discuss.
   
3. 
   Do you believe that equality for women means that women should also do such things as military service?
   
4. 
   “One language spoken worldwide would lead to better international relations.” Discuss.
   
5. 
   Genetic engineering poses a number of worrying problems, both moral and practical. Discuss some of these problems and suggest what could be done to overcome them.
   
6. 
   “Celebrities should be allowed to keep their private lives private, without the invasion of the media.” Discuss.
   
7. 
   “Fear and ignorance are the root causes of racial hatred.” Discuss this statement and offer some possible solutions to the problem of racial prejudice.
   
8. 
   “The motion picture industry is threatening to destroy culture and tradition.” Do you agree?
   
9. 
   “Too much money is spent on sport when it could be used to help the poor.” What are your views on this issue?
   
10. 
    What are the advantages and disadvantages of our ever-increasing use of computer technology?
    

Formal style

• 
  Discursive essays are written in formal style. The means you should use:
  

• 
  passive voice, impersonal constructions
  

(e.g. It is argued that …; It is a common belief that …)

• 
  a range of advanced vocabulary (verbs, adjectives, abstract nouns, etc)
  

(e.g. heated debate concerning the controversial issue…)

• 
  formal linking words/phrases (e.g. furthermore, however, nonetheless)
  

• 
  complex sentences with a variety of links, dependent clauses, etc
  

(e.g. Although it is widely accepted that compulsory military service, which provides an army with abundant manpower, is beneficial to a country’s ability to defend itself, closer analysis of military efficiency suggests that it is advanced weaponry which plays a crucial role in…)

• 
  inversion, especially in conditionals
  

(e.g. Where this true, we would…; Never has this been more obvious…)

• 
  You should not use:
  

• 
  short forms (e.g. I’m, It’s) except when these are part of a quotation
  

• 
  colloquial expressions, phrasal verbs, idioms
  

(e.g. lots of, pup up with, be over the moon about…)

• 
  simplistic vocabulary (e.g. Experts say they think this is bad, …)
  
• 
  a series of short sentences (e.g. Many people think so. They are wrong.)
  
• 
  simple linking words (e.g. and, but, so) except for variety
  

4. Read the following excerpts and find examples of each of features of formal and informal style listed in the table above.
Excerpt A

A matter of considerable controversy at present is the issue of whether works of art should remain in their country of origin, or whether the owners of such works should be allowed to sell them to collectors abroad, thus depriving the country’s population of a vital part of its cultural heritage. Strong arguments exist in support of both sides of this debate, which implies that it is worth examining both points of view before reaching any conclusion.

Should such sales be permitted, it is argued that the country of origin would lose pieces of art which rightfully belong where they were created. In addition, works of art which were created to be viewed in a certain setting, or as part of a particular structure, lose a great deal of their artistic impact when removed from this context. Venus de Milo, an ancient statue of Aphrodite, is a clear case in point: the conspicuous example of the Hellenistic sculptural tradition, carved in 150 BC and found on the Aegean island of Melos in 1820, is now decorating nothing more inspiring than a room at the Louvre Museum in Paris…

Excerpt B
People argue a lot nowadays about whether or not works of art from one country should be sold to another. I don’t think they should be. If they are, then the people in the country of origin lose out on the chance to see stuff that really belongs to them. This just isn’t right. It’s a problem, too, when you see works of art in the wrong place. I mean, the Parthenon friezes look boring the way they show them in the British Museum. That’s just not where they belong. But if you could see them on the Parthenon, they’d look great…

Beginning and ending discursive essays

In the first paragraph, you should state the topic and/or your opinion, and you may include one more of the following techniques.

• 
  Make reference to an unusual or striking idea/scene/situation
  

e.g. Imagine millions of people coming home from school or work every day to sit staring at a wall for four hours.

• 
  Address the reader directly
  

e.g. You may think this is an exaggeration.

And/or ask a rhetorical question.

e.g. Have you ever wondered what the world be like without cars?

• 
  Start with a quotation or thought-provoking statements.
  

e.g. “Television is an invention that permits you to be entertained in your living room by people you wouldn’t have in your home,” David Frost once said.
In the last paragraph, you should state your opinion and/or give a balanced consideration of the topic, and you may include one or more of the following techniques.

• 
  Finish with a quotation
  
• 
  Ask a rhetorical question
  
• 
  Give the reader something to consider
  

e.g. Perhaps then people will discover that it is like to actually communicate with each other.

5. Match the following beginnings and endings. Then, say which technique has been used in each.

BEGINNINGS

1. 
   You may live in an comfortable house in a clean neighborhood with all the amenities. You would probably not be so lucky in one of the cities where urban growth has been allowed to get completely out of control. This problem is virtually destroying a number of large cities, particularly in developing countries, and a solution must be found before it is too late.
   
2. 
   “An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth” is the biblical phrase we use to refer to capital punishment, the killing of criminals in order to punish them for their crimes. But whether the neat balance suggested by the phrase is reflected by the actual practice is a moot point, and whether one human has the right to kill another in any circumstances remains a much-debated question.
   
3. 
   While most people agree that a woman has the right to work as a heavy-machine operator and a man to become a midwife, is this supposed open-mindedness being put into practice? There is plenty of evidence to suggest that workers are still being judged by their gender and not by their skills, and this is a situation which needs to be dealt with.
   

ENDINGS

1. 
   On the whole, I believe that those cities suffering as a result of urban growth could solve their problems, given financial support. Sadly, however, the chances of this happening are slight, especially in developing countries. Should we not, therefore, be thinking about encouraging people to return to rural areas in order to shift the balance of population?
   
2. 
   To sum up, gender should not be an issue in any work-place, since a powerfully-built female is just as capable of hard manual labor as a kind and gentle male is of child-care. The only obstacles are those which exist in our own minds; as the American therapist DR F.S. Perls once said, “We have to lose our minds to come to our senses.”
   
3. 
   All in all, it is easy to understand the reasons behind the continued existence of capital punishment in a number of countries. In spite of this, however, I cannot personally condone it, since to my mind the act itself is simply legalised murder, the ultimate crime.
   

6. Look at the quotations and the essay subjects below. Which quotation would be most relevant to each of the topics, and which type of essay does each topic require?

1. 
   “You’re either part of the solution or you’re part of the problem.” (Eldridge Cleaver)
   
2. 
   “A mother never realises that her children are no longer children.” (Halbrook Jackson)
   
3. 
   “One machine can do the work of 50 ordinary men. No machine can do the work of an extraordinary man.” (Elbert Hubbard)
   
4. 
   “Education is what survives when what has been learnt is forgotten.” (B.F. Skinner)
   

5. 
   “It is the familiar that usually eludes us in life. What is before our nose is what we see last.”
   

(professor William Barret)

1. 
   “Too much emphasis is placed on educational qualifications.” What are your views?
   
2. 
   “Teenagers have an important contribution to make to society.” Discuss.
   
3. 
   “It is everyone’s responsibility to protect the environment.” Discuss.
   
4. 
   “People today take material comfort for granted.” Do you agree?
   
5. 
   “As technology advances, humans are becoming redundant.” Discuss the problem and suggest what might be done to remedy the situation.
   

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