It should contain a clear position on an issue and provide evidence (think reputable, unbiased, academic sources) to support said position based on your own logical, emotional, authoritative, and factual conclusions. The other side of the issue should also be given a fair hearing in the essay even though you are ultimately arguing against it (something in the neighborhood of one page should be devoted to the other side). One way to do this is to cover the other side first in the essay, just after the introduction, so that you can spend the rest of the essay refuting it. Keep in mind, too, that your goal is to argue in as calm and reasoned a fashion as possible to an average reader who might be skeptical to your point of view. Arguments which assume that the average reader shares the writer’s view are usually sloppy and shallow.
