Real ESL

Okay, so, you may or may not agree that gay marriage is a good thing. Even here in California, which is a hippie (person from the 60’s or who follows the 60’s way of thinking - free love, sandals, long hair…) liberal-land (a place where many people have liberal/socialist/left-leaning beliefs), only around 50 percent of the people support it. So, let’s talk about the opinion essay on the TOEFL.

If this were a TOEFL question, it would be, “Do you believe homosexuals should have the right to get married? Give reasons and details.”

Now, you need to come up with your thesis - People who are gay should not be allowed to get married with one another because… (or) Homosexuals should have the right to get married because…

Common mistake - starting with “I believe…” or “I think…” or “In my opinion.” That’s a boring beginning and any thesis statement is your opinion, so you are adding unnecessary words. A better beginning is a hook, but that’s an added flourish and unnecessary if you are short on time.

Now, after your thesis statement, think of your two main reasons. In my case, I support gay marriage and I have many reasons, but I’ll pick two.

The first:
Sexual orientation is biologically predetermined in one’s genetic makeup and is not a choice. Therefore, discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation should not be permitted any more than discrimination on the basis of race.

The second:
People who are in love should be allowed to get married, regardless of sexual orientation, because the institution of marriage provides more financial and emotional stability for children and families.

Okay, so now I’ve got the very basic parts of my opening paragraph, a thesis and two specific reasons. If you put them together, your first paragraph will look like this:

Homosexuals should have the right to get married because sexual orientation is biologically predetermined in one’s genetic makeup and is not a choice. Therefore, discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation should not be permitted any more than discrimination on the basis of race. Furthermore, people who are in love should be allowed to get married, regardless of sexual orientation, because the institution of marriage provides more financial and emotional stability for children and families.

Now, for the hook… that comes at the beginning and pulls the reader in (makes the reader start reading). If you can’t think of one immediately, forget it. A quote or a saying is the easiest hook. You can also do a one line story. The quote doesn’t have to be from someone famous. It could be from your grandpa. So, you can make it up (create it).

For my essay, I might use a Martin Luther King quote. He talked a lot about love and hatred. There are many quotes to choose from, but I like this one…Hatred paralyzes life; love releases it. So, if I put this at the front of my opening paragraph, I’d have to explain:

Martin Luther King said: “Hatred paralyzes life; love releases it.” Any restriction put on a particular group of people is due to fear and hatred, so if we make love our guiding principle, we must, as a society, allow gay marriage.

From this point, I’d continue with, “Homosexuals should have…”

Maybe you don’t have a quote or saying in your head. Make one up….

“I love him, I love him with my heart and soul. I want to be with him forever. I want to be with him when he wins the Pulizer Prize. I want to be with him at his death bed. He is my soul mate.” These are the words of my gay neighbor who wanted to marry his life partner.

Or skip the hook all together (to skip something all together means to not do it).

Now, you write an opening paragraph on this topic. In my next written post, I’ll talk about how to develop your two main reasons in the body of the essay.

Kim