SUGGESTIONS FOR WRITING GOOD CRITICAL ESSAYS 

Prof. Martin

Make an argument. Argumentation is essential to persuasive writing. You argue when you give reasons and evidence to support your view. So take a stand and defend it. You will of course have to make some assumptions since you cannot argue for everything. Choose to make those assumptions that seem the most generally acceptable. If an opponent could easily undermine your assumptions, your essay will be much less persuasive.

Be creative. Originality (broadly defined as doing your own creative thinking) is very important since it makes the paper more valuable and interesting to your reader. So think for yourself. And if you do draw from other authors (citing them of course), do not just rehash their view(s). These additional viewpoints should be taken as an opportunity for you to think more deeply and originally about the problem you have set out to address.

Organize. Organization is critical. When readers pick up your essay, they generally have no idea what you will be arguing, much less how your logic proceeds or how you will be presenting your supporting evidence. Be sure to tell them early on what your position is and how you will go about defending it. Then stick to your promise: argue for your view in the manner and in the order you said you would. And be sure to recap your argument briefly at the end, perhaps discussing its implications and/or remaining questions. Above all, do not hide your point until the conclusion. You're not writing a mystery novel; the reader should not be surprised to find out what you meant to be arguing all along. Rather, spread your view throughout the main body of the paper. It will not suffer from over-exposure if you have defended it well.

Maintain focus. A more focused paper will be clearer and more valuable to your reader. So pare your paper down to the essentials; cut out any tangential arguments or unnecessary rehashing of others' views. Be sure throughout that you are answering the question or defending the position you set for yourself. (Providing an introduction that states clearly your position and how your argument is organized will not only provide clarity, it will also help you to be more focused.)

Avoid dogmatism. Do not try to settle the matter by referring to your own opinion or some other unsupported view. Instead, argue with reasons and evidence others might find persuasive. Conversely, do not give in to uncritical skepticism by insisting that everything is relative and someone somewhere would have a different view. There are better-reasoned, better-supported arguments; make sure yours is one of them.

Address powerful objections. Do not pretend good reasonable objections to your view don't exist. Addressing them and showing them to be weak, unfounded, or irrelevant will establish your argument as the more compelling one. The more powerful an objection you undermine, the more persuasive your essay will be.

Document. If you quote another source directly, or merely borrow ideas from it, cite it. Its not just a matter of academic honestly and fair-play; documented sources are more persuasive evidence and if you undermine a published view, your argument will be more authoritative.

Take your time. Write a few drafts. Read them aloud. Read them critically, asking: Does this make sense? Have I defined all ambiguous terms? Have I addressed the important objections? Does the logic flow in an obvious manner? Will the reader get lost along the way?

Take it seriously. For example: 1) Don't exceed the assigned lengths, either directly or by playing with margins, spacing, fonts, etc. 2) Always proofread and "spellcheck" whenever possible. 3) Don't bind it with fancy folders; a single staple will do.