o Academic arguments are designed to get someone to agree with the author, who may use pathos (emotion), logos (logic and facts) and ethos (authority and expertise) to persuade.
Academic arguments are not about ranting, screaming or otherwise increasing conflict, but in fact are the opposite: They attempt to help the other person understand what the author believes to be right (opinion) based on the evidence presented (authority, logic, facts).
For your topic for your final paper, what kinds of arguments can you develop for your claim (thesis, main idea)?