Gale (2020) states that “Argumentative writing is a form of essay writing in which the author takes a position on an issue and attempts to persuade the reader to adopt the position. When composing an argumentative essay, writers typically seek to build an effective case for their opinion by outlining their reasoning and providing research-based evidence to prove their point.”. This matches Guy’s definition of a personal essay, where he states something similar to “Get facts in there. Convince people why they should feel the same things you feel.”. Gale (2020) also states that an argumentative essay has 4 distinct parts; An introductory paragraph, stating background information, a thesis statement going over what will be talked about, several body paragraphs where you argue your point using facts and sources, and a conclusion to wrap everything up. This essay has all of those things, and adding these was encouraged.
According to Brigham Young University (2016) “A personal essay is usually based on personal experience through which you have grown or changed. Unlike formal writing, a personal essay does not have to prove anything.”. This directly contradicts Guy’s argument of “What should that mean to me? You have to show why I need to care about this.”. If this was a personal essay, I would not have to prove anything. Brewer (2021) states “At its heart, the personal essay is a piece of nonfiction writing that shares an interesting, thought-provoking, entertaining, and/or humorous story for readers that is drawn from the writer's personal experiences (even if it's second-hand information).”. This adds to the definition that a personal essay is a story, not talking about something that is meaningful to you.
A personal essay gets people to care through the same way a story does. An enticing hook, interesting characters, a meaningful plot, etc. The only thing similar an argumentative essay has is the hook, because this is stating facts and persuading the reader. The only thing keeping it going is the author's charisma through writing, because there is rarely anything to be invested in besides opinions.
As you can see, this is not a personal essay. It is a slightly biased argumentative essay. Please refer to it as such. Thank you for your time, and I mean no harm to Guy. [No harm given!]
Sources:
https://www.writersdigest.com/write-better-nonfiction/what-is-a-personal-essay-in-writing
https://courses.byui.edu/AcademicSupport/writing-center/pdf/new/elements-of-a-personal-essay.pdf
Argumentative Writing. (2020). In Gale In Context Online Collection. Gale. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/VTURLD713553317/SUIC?u=mnsminitex&sid=bookmark-SUIC&xid=b192763b
https://www.writersdigest.com/write-better-nonfiction/what-is-a-personal-essay-in-writing
https://courses.byui.edu/AcademicSupport/writing-center/pdf/new/elements-of-a-personal-essay.pdf
Argumentative Writing. (2020). In Gale In Context Online Collection. Gale. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/VTURLD713553317/SUIC?u=mnsminitex&sid=bookmark-SUIC&xid=b192763b
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