I'm in the process of writing an essay on whether the bombing of Hiroshima was justified, and the other forum posts on this website linked to this topic have proved to be very useful. However, I was just querying whether it is more appropriate to counter argue key points or group points into two separate sections (justifiable and unjustifiable).

Also, I'm trying to think of a nicer way of ending my introduction paragraph and linking it to my development then what I've currently drafted...

"().....this essay will explore the conflicting perspectives involved in this debate.

There are many strong arguments supporting the idea that the bombing of Hiroshima was unjustified."

I would really appreciate some help.

HistoryGirl9

Actually, from what you've written, I get the impression that you're well on top of this essay, and I suspect you'll read what I've put an then make up your own mind!
Sometimes, when you're creating (which is what an essay is), and you reach an impasse, the best thing to do is to shove the matter into the back of your mind for a day or longer, and let your subconscious chew away on it for a while.
Very often, you wake up in the middle of the night suddenly realising what the 'answer' is; or at least, when you return to the matter, you will find that your thinking has sorted itself out.


Both.
In general, this is a simple 'debate' essay: thesis (justified), antithesis (unjustified), synthesis (your solution/resolution/conclusion).
Yet, you are correct, so many of the 'points' are debatable that you will wish to argue/counter-argue individual points.
This is partly because of the nature of the topic, but also because you are growing in essay-writing skill (at University ALL essays will be like this).
Therefore, within the two sections thesis and antithesis, each individual line of argument will be in itself a mini-debate, as you reflect on the issue.
Nevetheless, it will still be the case that - at the end of each mini-debate - some points come out more for than against, whereas others turn out more against than for. In your planning therefore, you need to pre-guess these, and put those points which are more-for-than-against in the thesis (justifiable) section, and those others which you expect to turn out more-against-than-for into the antithesis (unjustifiable) section. Don't be afraid to juggle these as the essay develops; experience tells that sometimes you will think that a line of argument will turn out one way but - as you write/consider it - you decide that it isn't that way at all, but the other side of the argument ... in which case just copy and paste it to the other section.

(What happens if this happens to ALL one set of points? Then you have to redesign the essay plan. Your 'thesis' section becomes all the points for one side, your antithesis becomes all the points which at first sight seem to suggest otherwise, but actually don't!, and your conclusion is a rather smug assertion that there IS no real case against your thesis. This kind of essay is particularly satisfying to write, especially if you are emotionally drawn to the cause you have 'proved'.)


I think this is perfectly acceptable, and your final sentence of the first paragraph is positively good.
The only problem I have is your use of the word 'strong' in the next sentence, which is a loaded word, and rather gives away your personal opinion, I suspect.
If I were you, I would try very hard to remain absolutely neutral and objective as you review the arguments.

Hammer home your personal ethical standpoint instead by the force of your argument, not of your language, and the inevitability of your logic.

Perhaps for a nicer ending you could use somthing like :



or maybe



You might want to make it look nice / better than a simple "in this essay" introduction, but what really matters is the content of the essay - get the content done first then think about making it look nicer .

Good luck !

Thanks for the advice - you were right - it seemed that after a good night's sleep, the following morning the points seemed to have organised themselves into a clear order!

Your help has been invaluable and I feel both relieved and satisfied with my finished 'creation!' Time to e-mail it too my teacher and I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a level 8!

Thanks also to 'Marx', for providing some alternatives!

HistoryGirl9