How To Write An Academic Essay With Pictures

Does your essay need to answer a specific question or questions? Is your essay supposed to present a critical analysis of a source, such as a book, poem, film, or work of art? Is the objective to demonstrate your ability to present an original argument based on research? Have you been asked to compare and contrast two ideas, events, or literary or artistic works?

If the formatting requirements aren’t on your assignment sheet, check the course syllabus or ask your instructor.

Essays on subjects in the social sciences usually use APA-style citations. Essays on subjects in the humanities, such as literature or history, typically use MLA or Chicago Style. Essays on medical or health-related topics may use the AMA style, while other sciences have their own discipline-specific styles. The basic rules for most common citation styles are readily available online. For more detailed information, look for a style guide in your school library or bookstore.

You may need to log in with your student ID or institutional ID to get access to many online scholarly databases, or access them through a school or library computer. Another good way to start building your bibliography is to look at the reference list on an introductory overview of your subject, such as an encyclopedia entry. Your instructor, or your school’s reference librarian, may also be able to recommend some good sources on your topic.

While Wikipedia is often unreliable and is not considered an appropriate source for most academic writing, it can be a good starting point for research. Check the “References” section of the Wikipedia article on your topic for useful sources.

Where is the author getting their information? Do they provide credible sources? Does the author provide convincing evidence to back up their arguments? Does the author have any obvious biases or agendas that affect the way they present or interpret their information?

When you look at secondary sources, such as scholarly papers or news articles, you are seeing the data filtered through someone else’s perspective. Looking at primary data allows you to interpret the evidence for yourself. Your instructor should specify whether you need to incorporate primary sources into your research, and if so, how to find and utilize them. If you’re not sure, ask.

Are the author’s credentials given? Is the author qualified to write on the subject? Does the author state where they got their information? Are you able to verify the sources? Is the article written in an objective, unbiased manner? Is the article written for an academic audience? Is the content intended to be educational? How does the URL end? Generally, sites that end in . edu, . org, or . gov are more reputable than sites that end in . com.

The thesis should be included toward the end of your introduction along with a brief outline of the evidence you will use to support your thesis. An example of a thesis statement is, “A growing body of evidence suggests that ‘Ode to a Tufted Titmouse’ may in fact have been written by Huffbottom’s lesser-known contemporary, Georgina Roodles. In addition to the poem’s numerous stylistic parallels to Roodles’ known works, private letters between Roodles and her brother demonstrate that she was keenly interested in ornithology at the time that ‘Tufted Titmouse’ was published. ”

Introduction Body Point 1, with supporting evidence Point 2, with supporting evidence Point 3, with supporting evidence Counter-argument(s) Your refutation of the counter-argument(s) Conclusion

Each paragraph should include a “topic sentence” that clearly states the main point of the paragraph. For example: “The poem is characterized by several stylistic features that occur in numerous examples of Roodles’ work, including alliteration, humorous synecdoche, and malapropisms. ”

For example, “Compare the alliterative phrase ‘timid and tremulous twittering,’ which appears in the first stanza of ‘Ode to a Tufted Titmouse,’ with ‘mild and melodious meowing,’ which appears in the second stanza of Roodles’ 1904 poem, ‘Sadie: A Cat. ’ By contrast, alliteration is almost completely absent from the contemporary works of Reginald Huffbottom. ”

“In 1910, an anonymous poem entitled ‘Ode to a Tufted Titmouse’ appeared in the Winter issue of Bertram’s Bogus Ballads Quarterly. The poem was eventually republished in a compilation edited by D. Travers (1934, p. 13-15), where it was attributed to Reginald Huffbottom. Several literary critics have since questioned Huffbottom’s authorship of the poem. This essay will utilize a combination of stylistic analysis and evidence from private correspondence to attempt to identify the true author of ‘Tufted Titmouse. ’”

“In addition to alliteration, ‘Ode to a Tufted Titmouse’ contains several examples of synecdoche, another stylistic device that occurs in several of Roodles’ earlier works. ”

Always make a clear distinction between paraphrasing (putting someone else’s statement into your own words) and quoting directly (using someone else’s exact words).
If you are paraphrasing, rephrase your source’s statement or idea using your own words, but identify the source with a footnote or in-text citation.
E.
g.: Percival Bingley states that ‘Ode to a Tufted Titmouse’ was most stylistically similar to Roodles’ earliest work, and was unlikely to have been written later than 1906 (2015, p. 357). For short direct quotations, put the passage you’re quoting in quotation marks (“”), and identify the source immediately after the quote with a footnote or in-text citation. E. g.; In May 1908, Roodles stated in a letter to her brother that she found it “quite impossible to get a good rhyme for Bay-breasted Warbler” (Twistleton, 2010, p. 78). Longer “block quotations” (of 3 lines or more) should not be put in quotes. Instead, every line of the quote should be indented from the left-hand side.

“Vogle has argued against Roodles as a likely author of ‘Tufted Titmose’ based on the fact that none of her known works contain references to birds (2007, p. 73). However, several of Roodles’ letters to her brother, written between 1906 and 1909, refer to ‘those blasted bird poems I’ve been working on’ (Twistleton, 2010, pgs. 23-24, 35, and 78). ”

Don’t just rehash what you wrote in your introduction. Use a few sentences to reflect on the significance of your argument, and how it might affect future studies of this topic.

The name of the author. The title of the work. The name of the publisher, and (usually) the place of publication. The date of the publication.

Is your writing concise? Are there any words or sentences that you could cut out? Is your writing clear? Does everything make sense? Is the essay well-organized? Is there anything that would flow better if it was arranged in a different order? Do you need to make the transitions between sections flow more smoothly?

For example, “Roodles’ early work is pretty awful compared to her later stuff!” would not be appropriate in an academic paper. Instead, write something like, “Roodles’ poems published before 1910 show a less nuanced understanding of verse and meter than her later poems. ”

Make sure to save a copy of your previous draft separately, in case you make any major revisions and then change your mind.

Reading out loud can help you catch problems that your eye might miss when you’re reading silently.