Essay Techniques.

Preparation.

Choose your question. Look at all the options available and think about each one briefly. Try to imagine how you might answer each in turn, and jot down a couple of points. Select the one that gives you the most ideas. If you get stuck, this means that you will have reserves to fall back on.

It is extremely important to prepare your essay before starting to write. This will prevent you from waffling or loosing your thread when writing. If you prepare properly, the essay should be easy to compose, and takes less time.

Produce a plan of key points that you intend to cover. This is the most important stage of your essay, when you decide what you have to say and how to present it. Everyone produces their plans in different ways – try spider diagrams, post-it notes or making a list. (We will talk about these in class). Whatever method you use, make sure you can see the question you intend to answer at all times. Write it on the page and keep referring back to it as you make your notes. How are the notes relevant? What points or arguments do they cover? Do you have evidence to back this up?

Don’t charge straight in. You should have a list, or series of points you want to make in the essay. Think carefully about the order you want to do this in – make sure each point leads logically to the next. Mark your notes accordingly, so you know where to place each idea.

All the evidence is assembled, but you also need a point of view to put forwards, and this is one of the key parts to writing a successful essay. Make sure before you start that you know where you stand, and that your plan indicates this viewpoint clearly.

Writing.

You should now have a clear essay plan that tells you almost exactly what to write. However, an essay needs more than a list of points to make it work well.

Each essay has a beginning, a middle and an end.

The beginning introduces the reader to the essay, giving them an idea of where the argument or discussion will lead. To get the reader’s attention, it needs to be punchy and interesting. Do not repeat the question in your first sentence – “This essay will discuss whether or not Deckard is a replicant”, or “This essay examines the role of the internet in Neuromancer”. Firstly, you have already written the question at the top of the page, and secondly, this will make your reader instantly switch off.

Use the beginning to very briefly outline the main bones of your essay, giving an indication of the points you will cover.

The middle brings together your argument, using the points that you have thought of in your plan. Use a paragraph for each one, linking them together logically. Paragraphs are extremely important, and should contain three things. They should all make a different point – this can be a subtle difference only, but it will stop repetition. They should all contain proof of this point; your opinion, a quote or event from the source you are using, or a critical opinion that backs these up. Finally, they should be relevant the original question in some way. This does not mean that you need to go back to the start, but will stop you from drifting off the point as the essay progresses.

The ending summarises your argument. All of the ideas you have expressed in the paper should mean that you have a consistent viewpoint about the question. Pull these all together in a succinct answer and explain why you have reached this conclusion. If you are still uncertain about the answer, say why. If there are points that you would have liked to investigate, describe them briefly. If you can see obvious flaws in the argument, point these out. Critical thinking about your essay is a sign that you have understood your subject, but you do not need to dwell on it, or even include this if you do not think it’s relevant. In all, make the ending brief and to the point. Try not to just fade away – it should be clear that this essay has ended.

Tips

Most of us cannot type a perfect essay straight into the word processor. It is a good technique to write a draft of your essay, and then put it away for a day or two before getting it out and rereading it. By putting a little distance between yourself and the prose, it is easier to assess objectively what you have written. You should be able to identify inconsistencies, waffle, poor syntax and ugly style.

Get someone else to check over your draft - it’s easy to get too close to a piece of work. Ask them to see where it could be done differently and better.

Keep sentences short and to the point - long sentences are hard for anyone other than the writer to follow, and make the essay clumsy. A good way to spot this is by reading the essay aloud – if you have to pause for breath, the sentence is to long, and if the words start to sound peculiar, this is often because you have written an unclear sentence.

Back up all of your argument with evidence. Use quotes from the book/film/comic/series, critical opinions (say why you agree or disagree with them), or specific examples (e.g. “Friction between the crew can be seen in the way that Janeway and Chakotay disagree over the acceptance of Seven Of Nine”).

Reference all of your quotes, examples and critical opinions. This is extremely important. Failure to do this can imply plagurism, as you have included a quote without crediting the creator. See the second hand-out on how to do this.

Do not machine-gun your page. This involves selecting your quotes and firing them randomly onto the page, then crow-barring your argument in between them. Quotes are great, but make sure they have a reason to be there.

Think about who you are writing the essay for; in this case it is myself, the university, and you. Make yourself heard, but remember to explain clearly what you mean. If there are ideas that you understand perfectly, but feel that your reader may not, do not gloss over them. Give examples of what you mean to make things clearer, or include a brief footnote.

Finally, relax! Don’t expect to be perfect first time, and learn from your mistakes. Read the comments on the response sheet and try to respond to them next time. I do not expect masterpieces from the start. If you are really worried, remember that you can come and see me in my office hour.