How to Write Discursive Essay? It's Type & Format

The students in schools and colleges are asked to write discursive essays during their academic cycle. Writing discursive essays is compulsory for every academic student studying in any part of the world. Writing a discursive essay is also significant as it helps the student learn about the basic outline of any type of academic writing that the student requires. The knowledge of discursive writing enables the students to interpret and create any kind of academic writing needed while completing their academic cycle.

What is a discursive essay?

Discursive essays help present a specific topic in the most appropriate and balanced way for the reader. Discursive essays help highlight a topic's different aspects and provide the reader with justified evidence regarding the case explained in the essay. Using an impersonal style helps keep the writer unbiased in a discursive essay. This makes it essential for the writer of a discursive essay to prevent themselves in favour of any one viewpoint and should not include their perspective. Providing an argument on a single point will turn the essay into an argumentative one.

Why write a discursive essay?

The writing of a discursive essay helps in fulfilling the following purposes:

• They help in providing an unbiased evaluation of the topic
• They help in providing a balanced discussion over the issue.
• They help in providing evidence-based research reports and facts.
• They help in presenting the opinions of others on the subject. 
• A discursive essay provides both negative and positive sides of the case.

Different types of discursive essay:

There are three significant types of discursive essays. These are opinion essays, against and for essays, and problem and solution essays.

Opinion essay: The most used and famous form of discursive essay. In this type of essay, the students are asked to select a topic and provide their opinion, giving supportive arguments and also providing negative points before concluding the essay.

Against and for essay: This type of essay provides the writer's opinion and the facts related to the topic. In this type of essay, the writer must give the topic's negative and positive aspects.

Problem solution essay: If the writer selects an essay to provide a solution to a specific issue, then this essay is known as a discursive essay. In this essay, it is essential to understand the problem and provide the solution as per the requirement of the situation in the essay.

Which are essays that can be discursive?

Argumentative essay: This type of essay is written to conduct an in-depth problem analysis. These essays provide a large amount of information regarding the topic in the form of arguments. 

Persuasive Essay: in this type of essay, the writer tries to convince the readers regarding the information provided on the topic. The types of essays are provided to make the reader believe that the arguments made by the writer are correct and should be considered by all.

Step for writing a discursive essay:

Introduction: It is the first step in writing a discursive essay. The introduction should briefly explain the topic selected in the essay. The introduction should also provide information regarding the positive and negative aspects of the case.

Main body: The following things must be handled while writing the discursive essay's main body.

• Firstly, it is essential to stay unbiased and research all the positive and negative aspects of the topic. Any personal opinion of the writer should be avoided. 
• Secondly, it is essential to build your argument for the topic. It is important to provide separate statements in separate paragraphs. This helps in making the essay distinct and comprehensive. 
• Thirdly, it is crucial to write an essay in an alternative manner. In case the first paragraph of the essay provides positive arguments regarding the topic, the second paragraph should give negative aspects related to the topics. This helps the writer stay neutral and makes the essay more apparent. 
• Fourthly, it is essential to include evidence related to the topic. Also, providing a summary of the paragraph at the start of the section will help the readers understand the essence of the section. Giving evidence in every paragraph helps increase the credibility of the information provided in the essay.

Conclusion: In the conclusion part, it is important to summarise the entire essay by including the main arguments made about the topic. The writer can also provide their thoughts based on the evidence supplied in the paragraphs. Moreover, the conclusion should avoid any new information related to the topic and only summarise the existing findings in the body paragraphs.

FAQs about discursive essay:

1. How do you write a discursive essay?

There is no single way to write a discursive way. The only requirement of writing a discursive essay is that the information provided should be clear and maintain a proper structure, including an introduction, the main body, and finally, a conclusion. The discursive essay should be persuasive, cohesive, and able to attract the readers' interest. 

2. How to begin a discursive essay? 

The following steps can be taken to complete a discursive essay:

• It is essential to take a closer look at the topic of the essay to help collect relevant information for the essay. 
• The selection of information relevant to the topic will help construct the main body of the discursive. essay. 
• Providing an appropriate conclusion and introduction in the discursive essay is essential. It will help in making an impact in the minds of the readers. 

3. How to conclude a discussion essay?

Before starting a quality conclusion in the discursive essay, it is essential to complete the main body of the discursive essay. A reasonable conclusion in the discursive essay will help connect the introduction, main body, and conclusion. This will help attract the attention of the readers and make an impact on the minds of the readers.

4. How do you prepare a discursive essay?

To prepare an excellent discursive essay, it is essential to prepare an outline of the essay. This will help in presenting different points regarding the essay in a systematic manner and improve the overall quality of the essay.