Your English professor has just assigned your class a new writing assignment. It’s a persuasive essay, but for this one, she wants you to take things a step further. She wants you to stir the pot with a little controversy in order to become better essay writers.
“Hum, this could be fun,” you think to yourself.
But the more you think about it, the more difficult you know it can potentially be. How do I pick a topic? How do I know not to go too far?
These are questions that we’ll cover in the following article, along with 200 controversial topic ideas to get your creative juices flowing.
How to Choose the Right Controversial Topic
To begin with, choosing a controversial topic isn’t hard. I’m sure you can think of many different controversial issues, so you just take a side on one of them. The true questions are: how to choose the right topic and how to know when not to go too far.
1. Start with yourself:
Think of controversial topics that you find interesting. If you don’t find the topic interesting, it will show in your writing. It doesn’t have to be the thing you’re most passionate about, but it should be something you find interesting.
2. Talk with your professor:
This will give you a good indication of what your professor is looking for and it will also help you know how far to take things. Ask your professor what are some things she thinks are appropriate and some topics that you should probably avoid.
3. Do your research:
Once you’ve talked to your professor and decided on a topic, it’s time to do some research. Even though this will be an opinion-based paper, you’ll need to back it up with facts. After all, facts are what make your argument more convincing.
With all of that in mind, keep reading for 200 controversial topics arranged by category.
Controversial Topics to Write About for Students
- Should all high schools have unisex bathrooms?
- Should the legal drinking age in America be lowered to 18?
- Should the voting age be lowered to 16?
- Argue for or against letting teachers carry guns
- Argue for adding religion to public school education
- Should the government pay for all K-12 students’ lunches?
- Should high schools give birth control to students?
- Should students be expelled from high school for truancy?
- How should slavery be taught in high school?
- Argue that math beyond simple arithmetic should be optional in high school
- How should school administrators approach high school students’ sexual identities?
- Argue for or against standardized testing as a way to move students ahead or behind
- The benefits of teaching gun safety to high school students
- Should students have the option of picking their schools?
- Should school officials regulate dating among students under the age of 18?
- Argue that military recruiters should or shouldn’t be allowed on high school campuses
- Should schools be allowed to put cameras in high school bathrooms for security reasons?
- High school students should only graduate after passing a civics exam
- Should high school students be taught hand-to-hand combat?
- Should pregnant students be segregated from the rest of the school?
Controversial Topics to Write About for College
- Should grades be optional in college?
- Argue for or against bars on college campuses
- Argue for or against college students being allowed to possess marijuana in states where it’s legal
- Should college students be allowed to use AI?
- Should students who are married get discounts on tuition?
- Should students with children get discounts on tuition?
- Should a student’s race ever be a consideration in the admissions process?
- Argue for more or fewer foreign college students in the US
- Should all college students have to sign an honor code?
- Argue for or against colleges supporting patriotism
- Should ROTC programs be allowed on college campuses?
- Should effort be a part of a student’s grade?
- Should exam scores be more or less important in the admissions process?
- The benefits of religious groups on campuses
- Should students accused of sexual assault have their information made public?
- Argue for or against greater penalties for cheaters
- Argue against the practice of tenure for college professors
- Should college athletes be required to attend class?
- Should college athletes be paid?
- Should college tuition be eliminated?
Easy Controversial Topics to Write About
- Should the death penalty be used for the worst crimes?
- Should polygamy be legal?
- Should all drugs be legal?
- Has DEI gone too far?
- Argue for or against open borders
- Argue for or against censorship of pornography
- Should hunting be illegal?
- Argue for or against a guaranteed/universal income
- The government should provide public transportation in every city of more than 50,000 people
- Women should try to understand the men’s movement
- Children should be restricted from using the internet
- Should animal testing be banned?
- Should at least one parent from every family stay at home with the kids?
- Are social sciences more important than the hard sciences?
- Should speed limits be eliminated?
- Argue that exercise is the best preventative medicine
- Argue that toll roads are a double tax
- The government should pick an official language
- Welfare recipients should be required to work
- Government employees should be held to a higher standard
Good Controversial Topics to Write About
- Should parents play a more active role in finding partners for their children?
- Should the paper industry be eliminated?
- Gun laws should be less restrictive
- Every person should prepare for nuclear war
- The world governments should create an attack plan if aliens ever come to Earth
- Should dating classes be mandatory for children?
- Herbicides and other chemicals should be banned in the farming industry
- Are some mysteries better left that way?
- Argue for or against the US government system as the best form of democracy
- Should caffeine be considered a drug?
- Can money buy happiness?
- Argue for or against government oversight of the media
- Should the government provide every citizen with a smartphone?
- Should there be a limit on how much money a person can have?
- Argue for or against eugenics
- Processed foods should be more tightly regulated
- Mixed martial arts should be an Olympic sport
- Female athletes should only be paid as much as men if they can beat them
- Genetically modified foods are good
- Should there be term limits for all elected offices?
Interesting Controversial Topics to Write About
- Should the focus of prisons be punishment?
- Does evil exist?
- Are some people just naturally unlucky?
- Should alcoholism be considered a disease?
- Should bodybuilding be considered a real sport?
- Do people have to follow a religion to be moral?
- Are men better drivers than women?
- Are women better parents than men?
- Should religious institutions be taxed?
- Should there be limits on how many pets a person can have?
- Should assisted suicide be available everywhere?
- The benefits of peer pressure
- Argue for or against government control of AI
- Should “deepfakes” be illegal?
- Should insects be promoted as a source of protein for people?
- Should pit bulls be banned?
- Should horse meat be illegal?
- Argue for or against the elimination of physical money
- Should seat belts be optional?
- Should bullfighting be banned?
Controversial Topics to Write an Argumentative Essay About
- Argue that “no-fault” divorce should be illegal
- Argue that prostitution should be legal
- Argue in favor of the Equal Rights Amendment
- Argue on behalf of geopolitical isolationism
- Argue against zoos
- Argue that private armies should be illegal
- Argue for a national flat tax
- Argue on behalf of private security companies to keep schools safe
- Argue for equal media access for all political candidates
- Argue for gender segregated schools
- Argue against stem cell research
- Argue for mandatory voting
- Argue for expanding the number of Supreme Court justices
- Argue why countries are better that have only one political party
- Argue that people should be able to “self-segregate”
- Argue that Big Pharma should be more tightly controlled
- Argue against genetically modifying humans
- Argue on behalf of steroid use
- Argue that the United Nations should be dismantled
- Argue that multiculturalism has failed
Controversial Topics for Research Papers
- Argue that Hitler wasn’t 100% bad
- Argue that communism wasn’t 100% bad
- Take the creationist viewpoint in a research paper
- Why a high-fat diet can be healthy
- Argue that climate change is real but not caused by humans
- Argue that electric vehicles are actually more dangerous
- Argue that, based on history, wars will always exist
- The American Revolution was largely unnecessary
- Nuclear armament created a more peaceful world
- Argue that the League of Nations was designed to fail
- Argue that women are attracted to partners with status, while men are drawn to looks and youth
- Argue that mandatory police body cams have, or haven’t, reduced police misconduct
- There are a few health risks in cannabis consumption
- Argue that cryptocurrency is the future of investing
- Choose either nature or nurture as the greatest determinant of a person’s success
- Should the government buy more gold and silver bullion?
- Should currency be backed by gold or silver?
- Argue that cell phone towers have been shown to be unhealthy
- Argue that political polarization will reach its peak in the next few years
- Are urban dwellers better positioned for success than their rural counterparts?
Controversial Persuasive Essay Topics
- Argue that once people reach a certain age, they should have their driving license revoked
- Convince your audience that orphanages are better than foster homes
- Convince your readers that violent sports should be outlawed
- Argue that beauty is not in the eye of the beholder
- Persuade your audience that aging can be slowed down
- Convince your readers that the insanity defense shouldn’t be allowed
- Argue that the emperor Nero wasn’t such a bad guy
- Convince your audience that low corporate taxes are good
- Persuade your readers that there are positive effects of bullying
- Persuade your audience that the government should provide utilities for free
- Argue that cardio is better than strength training for your health
- Convince your audience that war can be a good thing
- Persuade the readers that democracy is not the best form of government
- Persuade your readers that crime is not a major problem
- Persuade the audience that some animals should have human rights
- Convince the readers that greed is good
- Argue that the purpose of marriage is to procreate
- Convince your readers that Scientology is a legitimate religion
- Persuade the audience that “bigger” is usually better
- Persuade your readers that good isn’t always victorious over evil
Controversial Compare and Contrast Essay Topics
- Compare and contrast Republican versus Democrat
- Compare and contrast natural birth versus birth with medicine
- Compare and contrast free speech and hate speech
- Compare and contrast North Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa
- Compare and contrast Mormons with Jehovah’s Witness
- Compare and contrast organized religion versus personal spirituality
- Compare and contrast monogamy and non-monogamy
- Compare and contrast atheism and agnosticism
- Compare and contrast more police versus “defund the police”
- Compare and contrast non-violent and violent revolutions
- Compare and contrast monarchism and republicanism
- Compare and contrast right-wing versus left-wing
- Compare and contrast the effectiveness of the written word versus the spoken word
- Compare and contrast Donald Trump and Emmanuel Macron
- Compare and contrast psychopaths and sociopaths
- Compare and contrast Christianity and Islam
- Compare and contrast Islam and Judaism
- Compare and contrast union workers versus small business owners
- Compare and contrast Howard Stern and Bubba the Love Sponge
- Compare and contrast libertarianism with dictatorships
Controversial Science Topics to Write About
- Should we try to extract all fossil fuels?
- Should there be a ban on eating mammals?
- Argue for or against science or religion
- The benefits of having AI run nearly everything in society
- Should the Earth be abandoned for outer space colonies?
- Argue that the threat of COVID to the public was exaggerated
- Should society put the brakes on technological development?
- Should governments make robots to replace human soldiers?
- Argue for or against human cloning
- Will AI ever become “self-aware”?
- Should organ donation be mandatory?
- Should all nations be held to the same environmental standards?
- Should governments impose weight limits on their citizens to fight obesity?
- Argue that the internet should be free for everyone
- Should the idea that the Earth is flat be considered a legitimate theory?
- Should governments get most of their protein from seaweed?
- Governments should eliminate social welfare programs and put the money into scientific exploration
- Science courses should be mandatory starting at the earliest grade level
- Argue that evolution is not contrary to religion
- Should net neutrality be federal law?
Don’t Run from Controversy
Controversy is a part of our daily lives, and it can be an effective part of your writing if you know how to use it. Hopefully, these 200 topic ideas will set you on the right path to becoming a better controversial essay writer.
If you liked this article and learned something from it, be sure to check out some of our other posts, including:
“What Should I Write My College Essay About” and “Using Visuals in Academic Writing”
Good luck and have fun writing!
