Page 1 of 3 Courtesy the Odegaard Writing & Research Center http://www.depts.washington.edu/owrc Argumentative Paper Format *Please note that this is only a sample format. There are multiple ways to organize an argumentative paper  INTRODUCTION o 1-2 paragraphs tops o PURPOSE: To set up and state one’s claim o OPTIONAL ELEMENTS  Make your introductory paragraph interesting. How can you draw your readers in?  What background information, if any, do we need to know in order to understand your claim? If you don’t follow this paragraph with a background information paragraph, please insert that info here. o REQUIRED ELEMENTS  If you’re arguing about a literary work—state author + title  If you’re arguing about an issue or theory – provide brief explanation or your of issue/theory.  If you’re arguing about a film—state director, year + title  STATE your claim at the end of your introductory paragraph  BACKGROUND PARAGRAPH o 1-2 paragraphs tops; Optional (can omit for some papers). Also, sometimes this info is incorporated into the introduction paragraph (see above). o PURPOSE: Lays the foundation for proving your argument. o Will often include:  Summary of works being discussed  Definition of key terms  Explanation of key theories  SUPPORTING EVIDENCE PARAGRAPH #1 o PURPOSE: To prove your argument. Usually is one paragraph but it can be longer. o Topic Sentence: What is one item, fact, detail, or example you can tell your readers that will help them better understand your claim/paper topic? Your answer should be the topic sentence for this paragraph. o Explain Topic Sentence: Do you need to explain your topic sentence? If so, do so here. o Introduce Evidence: Introduce your evidence either in a few words (As Dr. Brown states ―…‖) or in a full sentence (―To understand this issue we first need to look at statistics). o State Evidence: What supporting evidence (reasons, examples, facts, statistics, and/or quotations) can you include to prove/support/explain your topic sentence? o Explain Evidence: How should we read or interpret the evidence you are providing us? How does this evidence prove the point you are trying to make in this paragraph? Can be opinion based and is often at least 1-3 sentences. o Concluding Sentence: End your paragraph with a concluding sentence that reasserts how the topic sentence of this paragraph helps up better understand and/or prove your paper’s overall claim. Page 2 of 3 Courtesy the Odegaard Writing & Research Center http://www.depts.washington.edu/owrc  SUPPORTING EVIDENCE PARAGRAPH #2, 3, 4 etc. o Repeat above  COUNTERARGUMENT PARAGRAPH o PURPOSE: To anticipate your reader’s objections; make yourself sound more objective and reasonable. o Optional; usually 1-2 paragraphs tops o What possible argument might your reader pose against your argument and/or some aspect of you ...

1. Page 1 of 3
Courtesy the Odegaard Writing & Research Center
http://www.depts.washington.edu/owrc
Argumentative Paper Format
*Please note that this is only a sample format. There are
multiple ways to organize an
argumentative paper
o 1-2 paragraphs tops
o PURPOSE: To set up and state one’s claim
o OPTIONAL ELEMENTS
draw
your readers in?
order
to understand your claim? If you don’t follow this paragraph
with a
background information paragraph, please insert that info here.
o REQUIRED ELEMENTS
—state author + title

2. t an issue or theory – provide brief
explanation
or your of issue/theory.
—state director, year + title
o 1-2 paragraphs tops; Optional (can omit for some papers).
Also, sometimes
this info is incorporated into the introduction paragraph (see
above).
o PURPOSE: Lays the foundation for proving your argument.
o Will often include:
on of key terms
o PURPOSE: To prove your argument. Usually is one
paragraph but it can be
longer.
o Topic Sentence: What is one item, fact, detail, or example you
can tell your
readers that will help them better understand your claim/paper
topic? Your
answer should be the topic sentence for this paragraph.
o Explain Topic Sentence: Do you need to explain your topic

3. sentence? If so,
do so here.
o Introduce Evidence: Introduce your evidence either in a few
words (As Dr.
Brown states ―…‖) or in a full sentence (―To understand this
issue we first
need to look at statistics).
o State Evidence: What supporting evidence (reasons, examples,
facts,
statistics, and/or quotations) can you include to
prove/support/explain your
topic sentence?
o Explain Evidence: How should we read or interpret the
evidence you are
providing us? How does this evidence prove the point you are
trying to make
in this paragraph? Can be opinion based and is often at least 1-3
sentences.
o Concluding Sentence: End your paragraph with a concluding
sentence that
reasserts how the topic sentence of this paragraph helps up
better
understand and/or prove your paper’s overall claim.
Page 2 of 3

4. Courtesy the Odegaard Writing & Research Center
http://www.depts.washington.edu/owrc
o Repeat above
o PURPOSE: To anticipate your reader’s objections; make
yourself sound more
objective and reasonable.
o Optional; usually 1-2 paragraphs tops
o What possible argument might your reader pose against your
argument
and/or some aspect of your reasoning? Insert one or more of
those
arguments here and refute them.
o End paragraph with a concluding sentence that reasserts your
paper’s claim
as a whole.
o PURPOSE: Remind readers of your argument and supporting
evidence
o Conclusion you were most likely taught to write in High
School
o Restates your paper’s overall claim and supporting evidence

5. o PURPOSE: To illustrate to your instructor that you have
thought critically
and analytically about this issue.
o Your conclusion should not simply restate your intro
paragraph. If your
conclusion says almost the exact same thing as your
introduction, it may
indicate that you have not done enough critical thinking during
the course of
your essay (since you ended up right where you started).
o Your conclusion should tell us why we should care about your
paper. What is
the significance of your claim? Why is it important to you as
the writer or to
me as the reader? What information should you or I take away
from this?
o Your conclusion should create a sense of movement to a more
complex
understanding of the subject of your paper. By the end of your
essay, you
should have worked through your ideas enough so that your
reader
understands what you have argued and is ready to hear the
larger point (i.e.

6. the "so what") you want to make about your topic.
o Your conclusion should serve as the climax of your paper.
So, save your
strongest analytical points for the end of your essay, and use
them to drive
your conclusion
o Vivid, concrete language is as important in a conclusion as it
is elsewhere--
perhaps more essential, since the conclusion determines the
reader's final
impression of your essay. Do not leave them with the
impression that your
argument was vague or unsure.
o WARNING: It's fine to introduce new information or
quotations in your
conclusions, as long as the new points grow from your
argument. New points
might be more general, answering the "so what" question; they
might be
quite specific. Just avoid making new claims that need lots of
additional
support.

7. Page 3 of 3
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OUTLINE WORKSHOP
INTRODUCTION
BACKGROUND
SUPPORTING EVIDENCE #1
SUPPORTING EVIDENCE #2
SUPPORTING EVIDENCE #3

8. COUNTERARGUMENT
SUM UP CONCLUSION
SO WHAT CONCLUSION
GLOBAL WARMING
1
GLOBAL WARMING
8
Yawen Tan
Prof. Harabasz
Wrd-104x
02/26/20
Global Warming
Global warming is the steady escalation of the temperatures of
the earth primarily due to the heat which is trapped in the
atmosphere. This has resulted in extreme weather patterns and
conditions for living organisms on the earth's surface. The
greenhouse effect is a situation whereby, harmful gases trap
heat in the atmosphere leading to the warming up of the surface.
Increased industrial and chemical activities amongst the human
population have resulted in the greenhouse effect. This is

9. because fumes such as carbon monoxide are released in the
process, leading to adverse effects such as unnatural warming.
The ozone layer, which cushions the globe from direct heat
from the sun, gets depleted, making life on the planet
unbearable (Rahmstorf et al., 2018). Increased ultraviolet (UV)
radiation on the surface endangers human existence; thus, a
clear indication as to why it is necessary to protect our planet
by all means possible. Numerous scientists, scholars, and
governments have tried different approaches that focus on
ensuring these conditions do not get worse (Cook et al., 2016).
Initiatives have been taken to find a better way of ensuring
humans do not deplete the ozone layer as a result of their
ambitions to fulfil different industrial and chemical targets. The
greenhouse effect endangers the survival of human beings and
their respective environments. Global warming is something
that humans need to work together and counter the causative
agents threatening our existence on the planet. Just to mention,
a distinct analysis of the causes of the greenhouse effect and
how it negatively affects people and the environment can prove
to be the difference. This study relies on credible sources,
which play a fundamental role in ensuring readers can
understand the current situation of our planet and how deep
greenhouse gas emissions has corroded our existence over time.
The leading gases which enhance greenhouse effect include
methane, ozone, carbon dioxide, and water vapor. These gases
exist as a blanket, which helps in regulating the earth's climate
and temperature. Despite being a natural phenomenon, an
existing imbalance in the number of gases released to the earth's
atmosphere leads to unfavorable temperatures as the ozone layer
is depleted when these gases are in excess in the troposphere,
therefore, enhancing global warming. Rahmstorf et al. (2018)
explain that the greenhouse effect is fueled through different
human undertakings such as farming, deforestation, burning of
fuels, and even industrial waste. Therefore, mass education and
the implementation of regulatory policies can help mitigate the
situation.

10. Fossil fuels have become part of human life as a significant
quota of people rely on these sources of energy to carry out
numerous activities such as the generation of electricity and
even transportation. When these fuels are burnt, the carbon
components present in them are released to the atmosphere
combining with oxygen to form carbon dioxide. According to
Hoegh-Guldberg et al. (2018), the growth in population has
resulted in more usage and reliance on fossil fuels as the
number of vehicles in each respective country has grown
immensely over the years. This implies that more fuel is burnt
and toxic gases released to the atmosphere. Thus, causing
pollution that depletes the ozone layer. This pollution has stood
out to be one of the causes of the greenhouse effect as the
emission rates have increased immensely, poisoning the
atmosphere and world we live in, respectively. Reliance on
sources of fuel such as coal also releases carbon dioxide to the
atmosphere as a good number of people and population sectors
rely on coal as a source of electricity. Despite being reliable as
a source of fuel, its reliance is damaging the earth's atmosphere
because its emissions are toxic to human existence.
Forests play an integral role in human existence as they intake
carbon dioxide and release oxygen into the environment. This
process is known as photosynthesis. Photosynthesis aids in
nourishing our environment to ensure what we breathe regularly
is healthy for our survival. However, with increased human
settlements and developments have prompted massive
deforestations to provide space for settling. Medhaug, Stolpe,
Fischer, and Knutti (2017) agree that this jeopardizes the
survival of animals and humans as they depend on the
productive process forests provide for the environment. Less
carbon dioxide is taken in when there are limited forest covers
as less oxygen is released to the atmosphere to sustain a balance
in the ecosystem. When the wood is also burnt, the carbon
present in them is released back to the atmosphere hence a clear
indication of how deforestation disrupts the nourishing cycle
photosynthesis provides for humans and animals.

11. An increase in the number of people on the earth's surface has
resulted in an increased demand for food, shelter, and cloth.
This has prompted an increased number of manufacturing hubs
that try to meet the existing demand on the market. This results
in the increased emissions of toxic gases when these industries
are set up in towns and cities, thus, fueling global warming in
the process. Increased population also implies that more people
rely on fossil fuels; therefore, aggravating the problem affecting
our survival and existence on the earth's surface.
Increased farming activities to meet the food demand on the
planet also contributes to the greenhouse effect. Farmers across
the globe rely on chemical components present in fertilizers to
improve their yields, respectively. Chemicals such as nitrous
oxide are one of the greenhouse gases released from these
farming activities. Therefore, increased farming activities imply
that more chemicals will be used in the process, thus a blow to
the earth's ecosystem.
The drive to become industrial comes with its consequences as
the more humans set up industries to meet their needs, the more
toxic gases are released in the earth’s atmosphere. Sarkodie and
Strezov (2019) agree that the continuation of such processes
results in the depletion of the ozone layer, which acts as a
protective blanket for protecting the earth from excess UV light
from the sun. Garbage disposed of in landfills also contributes
significantly to global warming as they produce methane gas
and carbon dioxide, which facilitate the greenhouse effect on
the planet.
Increased emissions result in the intensification of temperatures
as the ozone layer gets depleted the more these gases are
released into the atmosphere. The depletion of the ozone layer
harms all living organisms on the planet as it prevents excess
radiation from reaching the earth's surface (Sarkodie & Strezov,
2019). The emissions will make excess UV rays to seep past the
ozone layer leading to disruption of the ecosystem. Humans will
experience disorders such as eye cataracts, immune deficiency,
and even skin cancers (Li et al., 2018). The health of human

12. beings will be at risk as the effects make the entire existence to
experience abnormal conditions from what people have been
used to respectively. This will gradually make it dangerous to
operate at daytime due to the extreme temperatures experienced
and the effects it has on the human skin and health in general.
The aquatic and terrestrial ecosystem will also be disrupted as
food sources and chains will be impacted. There will be limited
food supply due to the adverse conditions that make its
production more difficult. UV rays directly affect plant growth;
thus, disrupting the balance for those who depend on it,
respectively. Li et al. (2018) assert that agricultural
productivity will also reduce, thus directly impacting food
security in numerous nations across the globe. This will result
in the eventual competition and scarcity of food if humans do
not protect the ozone layer by all means possible. An imbalance
in the ecosystem will imply that some animal species will
become extinct due to the depletion of food sources and, more
so, an inability to adapt to the new temperature levels present at
the time. This will be a blow to the ecosystem, and the variety
of species earth has to offer.
Extreme weather events will also be instigated by global
warming as different regions across the globe will experience
unusual patterns. Instances of droughts, heatwaves, rainstorms,
blizzards, and hurricanes will be experienced in various areas
with high intensities (Sarkodie & Strezov, 2019). Some regions
will experience increased rainfall, while some will witness a
reduction in the amount received annually. This will disrupt the
environment in a way that the people and animals living in the
individual setting will face difficulties adapting to such changes
in their existence.
Ice caps are also affected as the increased temperatures cause
them to melt, leading to an increase in ocean levels and
depletion of its cover on the planet. Increased sea levels result
in flooding and encroachment of land in areas bordering the
oceans, thus affecting human and animal habitats directly (Li et
al., 2018). The reduction in ice cover jeopardizes the survival of

13. animals which depend on these areas for durability. Animals
such as polar bears rely on such habits to coexist. Hence, the
melting of these covers limits the regions where species such as
polar bears can survive comfortably and ensure they do not
become extinct species.
Humans can play a vital role in curbing this endangering
menace in numerous ways. Different populations across the
globe should take the initiative of planting trees as many trees
as possible to ensure that the environment can maintain a
balance in the atmosphere. This will guarantee more airflow is
nourished to facilitate humans and animals to exist in a healthy
environment. Complete eradication of fossil fuels will ensure
that humans do not pollute the environment as they try to carry
out different activities on the surface. Cook et al. (2016)
explain that renewable sources of energies will provide a safe
alternative, which will guarantee humans can move around and
produce electricity using sources that do not pollute the
environment. Sources of energy, such as wind and solar, are
convenient as they do not pollute the environment in any way
because they rely on natural dynamics to generate electricity (Li
et al., 2018). Automobiles that depend on fossil fuel can be
replaced, and more emphasis channeled to electric and solar
vehicles, which will reduce the amount of toxic gases released
in the atmosphere. Greener solutions in farming, such as
reliance on animal manure rather than chemical fertilizers, will
also reduce the amount of damage intensive farming has on the
atmosphere. Hence, a clear indication of how human beings can
stop global warming.
In conclusion, global warming is a menace which if not
adequately dealt with, will make the existence of life on the
planet unbearable. The depletion of the ozone layer as a result
of the greenhouse effect should be treated as a priority for
humanity as humans have the power to rectify the planet's
atmosphere by ensuring all measures that are harmful are
eradicated by all means possible. This will ensure that future
generations do not suffer for the mistakes their predecessors

14. did. A profound assessment depicts the significance of mass
education. It can be asserted that the challenge of global
warming is being perpetuated by humans through their selfish
acts.
References
Cook, J., Oreskes, N., Doran, P. T., Anderegg, W. R.,
Verheggen, B., Maibach, E. W., & Nuccitelli, D. (2016).
Consensus on consensus: A synthesis of consensus estimates on
human-caused global warming. Environmental Research Letters,
11(4), 048002.
Hoegh-Guldberg, O., Jacob, D., Taylor, M., Bindi, M., Brown,
S., Camilloni, I., & Guiot, J. (2018). Impacts of 1.5 ºC global
warming on natural and human systems. In Global Warming of
1.5° C: An IPCC Special Report On The Impacts Of Global
Warming Of 1.5° C Above Pre-Industrial Levels And Related
Global Greenhouse Gas Emission Pathways, In The Context Of
Strengthening The Global Response To The Threat Of Climate
Change, Sustainable Development, And Efforts To Eradicate
Poverty. IPCC.
Li, Y., Hu, S., Chen, J., Müller, K., Li, Y., Fu, W., & Wang, H.
(2018). Effects of biochar application in forest ecosystems on
soil properties and greenhouse gas emissions: a review. Journal
of Soils and Sediments, 18(2), 546-563.
Medhaug, I., Stolpe, M. B., Fischer, E. M., & Knutti, R. (2017).
Reconciling controversies about the 'global warming hiatus.'
Nature, 545(7652), 41-47.
Rahmstorf, S., Lewandowski, S., Risbey, J., Cowtan, K.,
Oreskes, N., Jokimäki, A., & Foster, G. (2018, April). Has there
ever been good evidence for a" global warming hiatus"? In EGU
General Assembly Conference Abstracts (Vol. 20, p. 19067).
Sarkodie, S. A., & Strezov, V. (2019). Effect of foreign direct
investments, economic development, and energy consumption

15. on greenhouse gas emissions in developing countries. Science
of the Total Environment, 646, 862-871.