Readers who already agree with you need no convincing, but skeptical readers may resist your arguments. To be willing to give up a position that seems reasonable, readers need to see that another position is even more reasonable. In addition to presenting your own case, therefore, you should acknowledge the opposing arguments and attempt to counter them.
It might seem at first that drawing attention to an opposing point of view or contradictory evidence would weaken your argument. But by anticipating and countering objections, you show yourself as a reasonable and well-informed writer who has a thorough understanding of the significance of the issue.
There is no best place in an essay to deal with opposing views. Often it is useful to summarize the opposing position early in your essay. After stating your thesis but before developing your own arguments, you might have a paragraph that addresses the most important counterargument. Or you can anticipate objections paragraph by paragraph as you develop your case. Wherever you decide to address opposing arguments, you will enhance your credibility if you explain the arguments of others accurately and fairly.
To anticipate a possible objection to your argument, consider the following questions.
The following questions may help you respond to a reader’s potential objection.
When you write, use phrasing to signal to readers that you’re about to present an objection. Often the signal phrase can go in the lead sentence of a paragraph.
Critics of this view argue that . . .
While some readers point out that . . .
Researchers challenge these claims by . . .