THE OPINION ESSAY

It’s an academic piece of writing in which you analyze a topic.in an objective way, by supporting it
with facts from research, surveys or studies.

Register: formal (avoid colloquial words or expressions, contractions)

Types of essays:

1. The for-and-against essay. You do not state your opinion in the introduction or the body.
Optionally you can state your opinion in the conclusion

2. The opinion essay : state your opinion at the beginning and at the end.

3. The problem –solution essay or only-solutions essay.

SOME TIPS ON OPINION ESSAYS

Always include the ideas you can actually express in accurate English. Don`t risk developing an
idea or topic whose vocabulary you don’t know.

Use the third person, the passive, abstract nouns and gerunds (many people argue/ suggest/
claim..., it is often suggested/ believed/ argued...), Avoid we, you.

Use formal vocabulary (words from Latin origin e.g detrimental, beneficial),and formal
expressions (I am totally in favour of .., I strongly disagree with this view) Use connectors to
present and develop your arguments.

THE LAYOUT
An opinion essay presents our personal opinion on a particular topic. We need to state our
opinion clearly and support it with examples or reasons/ results.

1. INTRODUCTION

In the first paragraph you present the topic and state your opinion clearly. Paraphrase the
task or give a general statement about the topic. After that, give your opinion, using the
appropriate expressions: in my opinion, I personally feel, my personal view is...

Sample task 1: Everyone of us should become a vegetarian because eating meat can cause
serious health problems. Do you agree or disagree?

Introduction 1:

Eating meat is considered by some to damage our health and therefore they believe everybody
should adopt a vegetarian diet. In my opinion, although a vegetarian diet is certainly a healthy
option, having a balanced diet is the key to a long life.
Sample task 2: People spend too much time and money on fashion. Do you agree or disagree?

Introduction 2:

Every season, the greatest fashion houses of Europe and America present their new collections
on the hope of persuading people to renew their wardrobes by purchasing the latest designs. In
my opinion, one does not have to be a slave to fashion in order to look smart.

Sample task 3: Earning money is more important than getting a good education. Do you agree?

Introduction 3:

Sample task 4: Parents can never understand their teenage children’s problems. Do you agree?

Introduction 4:

MAIN BODY

In the second, third and fourth paragraphs we present viewpoints which support our
thesis(our opinion) and give reasons/examples. We present each viewpoint in a separate
paragraph. (3 supporting statements in total)

Optionally, you could state the opposing viewpoint in the 4th paragraph. In this case, you will
need contrasting connectors: on the other hand, however, nevertheless...

CONCLUSION

In the last paragraph we restate our opinion using different words. We also give a final
conclusion or advice.