In wake of an amazing conversation I had with some classmates about how to structure persuasive papers, I've decided to share some of my insight with you—a college student who may or may not find the task of writing papers to be impossible. Once you figure out how to structure a paper, the only thing left to do is fill in the mold. Of course, that's not an easy task, but it's the last 50 percent of the job. By learning how to showcase your skill and how to put together your argument—whatever it may be—writing papers will become easier than anything.
Having a million different sources, or a few impossible-to-read sources, we (students in general) often forget how to write in an effective way. That is, through short, impactful language. The usage of adverbs (though it fills a significant amount of space) speaks to how much back up language your rock-solid argument needs. Instead of saying that something is "significantly improved," say, improved." Instead of making sure you're communicating how "completely," "literally," "overwhelmingly" (insert adjective) the subject of your sentence is—just use the adjective. Your reader may be so shocked that you didn't need to overemphasize your point that they might pay more attention to your argument.
Another small thing that could improve one's writing would be the usage of active voice instead of passive voice. This is a little more difficult than it sounds. Passive voice is boring. Instead of the subject performing the verb, the subject is acted upon by the verb. For example: "'Frankenstein, written by Mary Shelley, uses the symbol of fire to showcase the duality of scientific progress."
In the active voice, this sentence would read; "In Mary Shelley's 'Frankenstein,' the duality of scientific progress is showcased through the symbol of fire in the novel." Active voice not only reads cleaner, but it sounds more appealing to the reader. The argument gets across with little to no effort.
When reading a long, drawn-out paper, your reader is likely to lose focus. To combat this, consider using variation in the length of your sentences. It's not so bad. By putting in short sentences here and there, breaking up run-ons, you're more likely to hold your reader's attention. Don't overdo it, though. Just small sentences here and there to keep their mind on the argument. You've got to draw them back.
My final piece of advice: avoid "in general" phrases like the plague. This is the worst mistake you could make. When you go back to proofread your paper (which you should always be doing, by the way) cut every, "Merriam Webster defines (blank) as," "All throughout history," "Needless to say," and "First and foremost" you see. It's for your own good. These phrases show that you need fillers! Your argument should be so cohesive that you don't need any background language. If it's not, then I'm sorry, but you just need more analysis.
A paper where you exhibit your credibility through a thorough understanding of the text is always a successful paper. Happy writing!
