We explain what an opinion piece is and what genre it belongs to. Also, what is the language and structure that this text uses.
What is an opinion piece?
The opinion piece, also known as an opinion column, is a text which aims to awaken a certain interest of public opinion by dealing with issues or problems in the first person.
The people who write their points of view in these texts are usually notable characters or who have some relevance in their specialties; for example, they may be people related to politics, to the economy or at letters. These people will be called "Columnists."
Opinion articles usually appear in newspapers or on certain news portals. Internet and the people who carry them out tend to work constantly for each media in which they appear.
As we said, these texts can deal with any topic that the communicator deems necessary to share, and its main objective is to influence your readers with your opinion so that they can come to their own reflection based on what they are reading.
In order to capture the attention of the recipient and for your reading is fast and bearable, the language used is usually simple and familiar to readers. Despite staying at a Newspaper In particular, opinion articles do not usually have any kind of limitation when choosing how the chosen topic will be approached.
Genre of opinion piece
There are certain controversies when it comes to qualifying what genre this type of text belongs to. Some specialists consider that the opinion article belongs to the journalistic genre because it exposes a topic and gives its opinion in a context related to journalism and the information.
Although it does not meet the characteristics of a News, has certain similarities with this because its themes are usually about problems from the actuality.
Instead, it can also be classified as literary genre because it is not news, but is simply a text where the writer reflects and gives his opinions on a certain topic.
The opinion article does not have as its main focus the facts of the news itself, but rather what that person thinks and thinks about it.
Language and structure of the opinion piece
Opinion articles usually occupy a short space in the newspapers and usually appear in a narrow column next to a main story or on a page specific to these texts. The prayers that you have should be short and with structures simple in order to obtain an agile and clear reading text for your readers.
A column should be structured as follows:
- In the first paragraph of the text, the subject on which the article will deal and its thesis.
- In the following paragraphs the arguments that will support the columnist's thesis will be developed; positive and negative aspects and their opinion may be included.
- It will be essential to include a conclusion with the thoughts and the ideas of the writer with which the text will end.
The columnist must be capable enough to persuade and influence the reader with his thoughts on the subject, for this he must resort to all the tools he manages in relation to the language and to the power of conviction.