In my opinion, the most powerful part of a persuasive piece of writing is the application for the reader. A writer may be brilliant in identifying a problem and even present a solution. But if it doesn’t change a mind or soften a heart, it was an intellectual exercise, albeit a brilliant one.
While that statement may be simplistic, I think you get my “persuasive” point. When a writer comes to the conclusion, the focus must shift from explanation to implication. The reader has followed the argument and, hopefully, now stands at a point where the writer must bring its purpose home. The remaining task in the presentation is to show how that purpose extends beyond the page. The takeaway.
The temptation in a conclusion is to write a recap with a few comments to tidy up. If it were that simple, then a reader could have skipped the previous chapters and read this synopsis. Instead, in great writing, a well-constructed argument carries its own persuasive strength, and the reader can recognize what follows from it.
The writer’s role in the conclusion is to make that recognition clear. To provide direction without restating or overstating the case. This should come naturally from what was already established in the prior material. It is here that the central ideas are gathered in a way that the reader can see what has been argued but also why it matters to them, personally.
When handled with care, the conclusion does more than end the piece. It extends it, allowing the ideas to continue their work in the reader’s thinking beyond the final sentence. Plus, it may create a reader who anticipates your next work with enthusiasm.
