Despite their many advantages, welfare payments...

            Although dogs are fine pets, cats...

The main clause of the thesis statement will state the main idea. 

Key Idea  
The thesis for this essay must have an argumentative edge; it must be opinion.

Each body paragraph will begin with a transition to the thesis statement (of course). Then the writer should state the "con." The next item is another transition (a turn-it-around transition like but, nevertheless, or however). Finally the writer states her "pro" and supports it with reasons &/or examples. This format is very similar to the comparison/contrast paper, but it is not as fair. Each body paragraph would have this order:

Transition to thesis

Con

Turn-round transition to the Pro

Pro

Example or illustration  

Example paragraph:

There is a second reason that classes using guided discussion provide a superior learning environment. It is true that a lecture by a knowledgeable professor can convey a great deal of information quickly and efficiently. However, in a lecture setting the student is passive. She becomes a more active learner when she is required to explain her understanding or present her position on an issue. Studies have shown that the student who is using the new material to convince a peer or a group that her understanding of a process or a concept will remember it longer.

Transition to thesis	...a second reason
Con	It is true that a lecture by a knowledgeable professor can convey a great deal of information quickly and efficiently.
Turn-around transition to the Pro	However
Pro	She becomes a more active learner when she is required to explain her understanding or present her position on an issue.
Example or illustration	Studies have shown that the student who is using the new material to convince a peer or a group that her understanding of a process of a concept will remember it longer.

The writer should VERY deliberately short-change the con side of the argument. The writer should NEVER give an example to back up a con statement. It is useful to set the essay up organizationally as an example essay and then add a con for each pro statement. This works better than making a list of pros and cons and trying to match them up; sometimes they simply don’t match up. The trick with this format is not to be fair…just instead to give the appearance of being fair.

Another way to organize an argumentative essay is to write one paragraph immediately after the introduction stating the con side of the argument. The remainder of the essay would look just like an example essay (an opinion thesis proved with factual topic sentence statements and supporting examples/illustrations).

Possible Topics:           

1. Christian college vs. secular college or university  
2. Required chapel  
3. Dorm life vs. living off-campus in an apartment  
4. Censorship in the college library (movies, books, magazines)  
5. Discussion classes vs. lecture classes
6. Every college student should have an "other-cultural" experience
7. Welfare helps people learn to be self-sufficient