What is an opinion essay?

Opinion essays are a common assessment and exam task, presenting students with a statement on a topic and asking them ‘How far’ or ‘To what extent’ they agree with the given idea.

This type of question is essentially asking the student to assess the validity of the statement, which makes an opinion essay an evaluative, critical-thinking exercise.

Avoid this common mistake

Students often assume that this question is asking them to refer to themselves in giving their opinion, using ‘I’ phrases such as ‘I think’ or ‘I would argue’.

In fact, the strongest academic essays present opinions objectively, making formal thesis statements and supporting them with points, evidence, reasoning and argumentation.

This means, unless you are explicitly instructed otherwise, you should avoid referring to yourself (‘I’) in your essays—even when the question is asking you, directly, what you think.

Word your argument objectively

Objective phrasing makes your opinion a confident statement. Any given essay argument is expressing an opinion—the key is to state that opinion as fact.

For example, take the following Media Studies question:

‘Audiences and producers no longer find the concept of genre relevant to long form television drama.’ How far do you agree with this statement?

If you think, based on your research and knowledge, that genre is still highly relevant to audiences and producers of long form TV drama, that opinion should be stated using the statement language, as follows:

The concept of genre is still highly relevant to the audiences and producers of long form television drama.

If you find yourself unsure of how to word your argument, write a statement using ‘I think’ as a prompt, then ditch the ‘I think’ at the start:

I think The concept of genre is still highly relevant to the audiences and producers of long form television drama.

Incorporate the counterargument

To craft an even stronger evaluative argument, include the strongest counterargument in the phrasing of your thesis:

While TV creators are increasingly blending genres in new series, the concept of genre itself is still highly relevant to both audiences and producers of long form television drama.

[OR]

Despite the blending in new multi-genre series, the concept of genre itself is still highly relevant to the audiences and producers of long form television drama.

Agree or disagree partially

If you are advised to respond directly to the question using an ‘I’ phrase, do this only once in posing partial agreement or disagreement, and quickly then stating the considered reason for your opinion:

I mostly disagree that genre is no longer relevant to long form television drama, as while producers are increasingly blending genres for audiences, the concept of genre is still crucial to that process.

Ultimately, your opinion in response to the question should be stated firmly and precisely in your introduction, as a thesis statement at the start of your essay.

If you’d like support developing effective arguments for your essays, DM me or email me at katie.musgrave@gmail.com.