INTRODUCTION

Topic: Being a freelance artist

1. Read the topic and make a list of pros and cons.

PROS CONS
1. Doing creative work is therapeutic. 1. The solitude that comes with it is hard.

2. You can connect with other people in 2. It’s very difficult for artists to make a
meaningful and rewarding ways. living purely off artwork sales.

3. Creative work can give your life 3. You are always pondering about the
meaning. meaning of life, which can be tiresome.

4. You can help/inspire other people 4. Being creative often comes together
through your art. with mental health conditions like anxiety
and depression.
5. Being your boss is nice.
5. Being your boss is fun, until you have
to deal with the logistics part of the job.

https://www.georgianaparaschiv.com/post/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-being-an-artist-creative
INTRODUCTION
Topic: Being a freelance artist
2. After getting the pros and cons, take a stand: Do I agree or disagree?
Opinion: Being as a freelance artist is good.
PROS
1. Doing creative work is therapeutic.
2. You can connect with other people in
meaningful and rewarding ways.
3. Creative work can give your life
meaning.
4. You can help/inspire other people
through your art.
5. Being your boss is nice.
CONS
1. The solitude that comes with it is hard.
2. It’s very difficult for artists to make a
living purely off artwork sales.
3. You are always pondering about the
meaning of life, which can be tiresome.
4. Being creative often comes together
with mental health conditions like anxiety
and depression.
5. Being your boss is fun, until you have
to deal with the logistics part of the job.
INTRODUCTION

Topic: Being a freelance artist

3. After taking a stand, choose the two arguments you are going to develop in the
essay from the list of pros.

PROS CONS
1. Doing creative work is therapeutic. 1. The solitude that comes with it is hard.

2. You can connect with other people in 2. It’s very difficult for artists to make a
meaningful and rewarding ways. living purely off artwork sales.

3. Creative work can give your life 3. You are always pondering about the
meaning. meaning of life, which can be tiresome.

4. You can help/inspire other people
through your art.
5. Being your boss is nice.
4. Being creative often comes together
with mental health conditions like anxiety
and depression.
5. Being your boss is fun, until you have
to deal with the logistics part of the job.

Opinion: Being as a freelance artist is good.

Arguments: You can connect with other people in meaningful and rewarding ways.

Creative work can give your life meaning.

INTRODUCTION

Topic: Being a freelance artist

PROS CONS
1. Doing creative work is therapeutic. 1. The solitude that comes with it is hard.

2. You can connect with other people in 2. It’s very difficult for artists to make a
meaningful and rewarding ways. living purely off artwork sales.

3. Creative work can give your life 3. You are always pondering about the
meaning. meaning of life, which can be tiresome.

4. You can help/inspire other people
through your art.
5. Being your boss is nice.
4. Being creative often comes together
with mental health conditions like anxiety
and depression.
5. Being your boss is fun, until you have
to deal with the logistics part of the job.

4. After choosing the two arguments to develop in the essay, look for general
terms that refer to the chosen arguments to include them in the thesis.

You can connect with other people in meaningful and rewarding ways. Social
issue/reason

Creative work can give your life meaning. Psychological issue/reason

5. Write the thesis: opinion + 2 arguments in general terms

Thesis: Being a freelance artist in Colombia is good because of social and

psychological reasons.
INTRODUCTION
Topic: Being a freelance artist

6. Choose 2 counterarguments from the list of cons.

One is going to be the opposing view of my first argument.
The other one is going to be the concession of my second argument.
So, they have to be connected to the topics of my arguments. They are included
in the body paragraphs:

PROS CONS
1. Doing creative work is therapeutic. 1. The solitude that comes with it is hard.

2. You can connect with other people in 2. It’s very difficult for artists to make a
meaningful and rewarding ways. living purely off artwork sales.

3. Creative work can give your life 3. You are always pondering about the
meaning. meaning of life, which can be tiresome.

4. You can help/inspire other people
through your art.
5. Being your boss is nice.
4. Being creative often comes together
with mental health conditions like anxiety
and depression.
5. Being your boss is fun, until you have
to deal with the logistics part of the job.

Thesis: Being a freelance artist in Colombia is good because of social and

psychological reasons.

Body paragraph 1: Topic sentence of the paragraph: You can connect with other
people in meaningful and rewarding ways.
Opposing view and refutation: Those who disagree claim that the solitude that
comes with being a freelance artists is hard. However, . . .

Body paragraph 2: Topic sentence of the paragraph: Creative work can give your
life meaning.
Concession and reply: I admit that freelance artists may sometimes ponder
about the meaning of life, and this can be tiresome. But . . . ..
HOMEWORK
1. Read the following topics and choose one for your essay.
2. Make a chart with pros and cons .
3. Take a stand.
4. Choose two arguments (from the list of pros) and the corresponding
counterarguments (from the list of cons). Match them.
5. Write the thesis.

TOPICS
 Visiting museums as regular activity in schools
 Art on T-shirts
 Song lyrics as a mandatory activity of English classes
 Reading poetry as a mandatory activity in schools
UNIVERSIDAD JAVERIANA NAME: ______________________

Topic: ________________

PROS CONS
1. 1.

2. 2.

3. 3.

4. 4.

5. 5.

Match the 2 chosen arguments with the corresponding counterarguments.

1. Arguments and general terms

Argument 1: ______
General term: ______

Argument 2: ____
General term: _____

2. Thesis: opinion + 2 arguments in general terms

Thesis: _____