Preparing to Write Your Essay
Read the question carefully. The first thing to do if you have an economics essay assigned is carefully read and analyse the question. It’s essential that you fully understand what you are being asked and keep this in your mind throughout. Pick out the essential point from the question and highlight it. If it is a complex question you find it helpful to breakdown it down into component parts. For example a question such as “Discuss the macroeconomic consequences of rising house prices, alongside falling interest rates” could be divided into 2 parts: 1 part could be on the effects of rising prices, and 1 on the effects of falling interest rates. In this example you could begin by discussing each separately and then bringing the 2 together and analysing how they influence each other. Be sure to keep the question at the forefront of your mind and don’t veer off topic.
Research the topic thoroughly. Once you have a clear understanding of the question you are being asked, it’s time to do some thorough research on the topic. Consult any reading lists and economics textbooks you have, and ask your teacher or lecturer for some recommendations if you are struggling to find reading material. Be sure that you understand all the key terms that you are being asked about. Try to keep your reading focussed closely to the essay question. Don’t forget to look at any lecture or class notes you have made.
Come up with a thesis statement. A thesis statement is the main argument you will make in your essay. It should be 1-2 sentences long and respond to the essential question that’s being asked. The thesis will help you structure the body of your essay, and each point you make should relate back to the thesis.
Plan out your content. After thinking about the question, and doing some research, you will have developed some ideas about what to write in your essay. Writing a good essay plan will help you stay focussed on the key points, and produce a clearly structured essay that flows and develops. Start by writing the key points you want to focus on in a basic list. Once you have put together a list of key points, then try to add in some more detail that brings in elements from your research. When you come to write out your essay, you can develop a paragraph based on each point.
Think about your structure. Now you have mapped out the key points that you want to discuss in your essay, you need to spend some time thinking about how you will put it all together. The structure of your essay is very important, and shouldn’t be overlooked. Generally essays will be structured in three parts: Introduction; Main Body; and Conclusion. All of the evidence and explanation will be in the main body of the essay. Order the key points in the body of your essay in such a way that they flow logically. If you are writing a longer essay, you can break the main body into different sections. If you have a word limit, be sure to take this into account when you are planning. Allocate yourself a rough number of words per section. The introduction and conclusion can be just a paragraph each.
Writing the Essay
Write the introduction. The introduction is the part of the essay in which you should provide a clear outline of your main argument, and a basic outline of the content of your essay. You’re introduction should concisely address the following points: What your essay is about. What material you will cover in the essay. What your argument is.
Outline your argument. Try to summarise your main argument in one or two sentences in your introductory paragraph. Directly address and answer the question. For example, you could say “rising house prices alongside falling interest rates make property a very attractive investment as opposed to saving in a bank. While interest rates remain low, the upwards pressure on house prices will continue.” Having this stated clearly at the start can help you to stay focussed on the question as you work your way through the essay. Try writing out this one or two sentence statement and sticking it up in front of you as you write, so it’s stays at the forefront of your mind.
Write the body of the essay. The body of your essay is where you will elucidate your argument, and introduce the evidence that supports it. It’s important that this section of the essay flows and has a clear order. For the example question, you could start by having the first few paragraphs discuss the effect of rising house prices on the economy. This could be followed by the paragraphs which address the impact of falling interest rates. A third section could bring the two elements together and examine how each impacts on the other. Try to begin each paragraph with a sentence that outlines what the paragraph will cover. Look at the opening sentence of each paragraph and ask yourself if it is addressing the essay question.
Provide evidence for your argument. In each paragraph of the body of your essay you should provide evidence for the paragraph’s opening sentence. Bring in appropriate evidence from your research and engage directly with this material. Your evidence might include real world examples, and should always be cited properly. Try to engage with arguments that run counter to yours, and use the evidence you have found to show the flaws. It might help to imagine someone reading the essay, and anticipating the objections that he might raise. Showing that you have thought about potential problems, and you can make an argument that overcomes them, is a hallmark of an excellent essay. If there is conflicting evidence, discuss it openly and try to show where the weight of the evidence lies. Don’t just ignore the evidence that runs counter to your argument.
Write the conclusion. Once you reach the conclusion, the bulk of the work is done and you should have introduced all the material you wanted to use in the essay. In the conclusion you can summarise what your essay has argued, and what the evidence you introduced has indicated. Think about it as wrapping up the content of the essay in a neat package that the reader can take away. Restate what your argument is, but avoid using exactly the same phrasing you used in the outline sentences in the introduction. In the conclusion you can add a few sentences that show how your essay could be developed and taken further. Here you can assert why the question is important and make some tentative suggestions for further analysis.
Proofreading and Making Revisions
Check for divergences away from the question. Your work isn’t finished at the end of the conclusion. Re-reading and revising your essay is an important part of the process, and can make a big difference to the grade you achieve. Going back through your essay will also help you see common mistakes or recurring problems in your writing. This will help you become more attuned to them, and avoid repeating them in future essays. As you read through it, think about how closely you stick to main overarching question. If you notice paragraphs that drift off into other areas, you need to be tough and cut them out. You have a limited number of words so it’s essential to make every one count by keeping tightly focussed on the main question.
Assess the quality and depth of your argument. Think about the quality and consistency of argument when you read back through your essay. Your argument should be clear and obvious to the reader, with evidence introduced to support it, and counter-arguments discussed. Read it through carefully, and try to identify any points at which the argument is getting lost. Think about how you use the evidence too. Do you critically engage with it, or do you merely quote it to support your point? A good analytical essay such discuss evidence critically at all times. Even if the evidence supports your argument, you need to show that you have thought about the value of this particular piece of data. Try to avoid making any assumptions, or writing as if something were beyond dispute.
Check spelling, grammar and style. Don’t forget to thoroughly check your spelling and grammar. Make sure all your paragraphs are well-ordered, and well-structured. Avoid long and complicated sentences with many clauses. Try to read it out loud to see if the sentences are too long. Try to write in a clear and concise style that reads easily. Avoid unnecessarily ornate language or phrasing, and focus on making your argument comprehensible. Remember an academic essay should be written in a formal style, so avoid colloquialisms. Avoid contractions, such as “don’t”, or “won’t”. Try to avoid paragraphs that are more than ten or fifteen lines long. Think about how it looks on the page.
Check your referencing and bibliography. In an academic essay, proper referencing is very important. If you miss a reference, or incorrectly reference something, you may be accidentally guilty of plagiarism. When it comes to referencing, ensure you follow the style set out for you in your department or class. Always include a bibliography, but don’t include references to things you haven’t read or didn’t inform your argument. Your teacher will know if you just add a load of titles into your bibliography that are not evidenced in the body of your essay. Always follow the bibliography format used by your department or class.
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