代写Write a Good History Essay代做留学生Matlab编程

Write a Good History Essay

I. Relevance

Answer the question, the whole question and nothing but the question. Avoid the two most common pitfalls students make. The first is to ignore the question altogether. The second is to write a narrative of events with a half-hearted attempt at answering the question in the final paragraph.

II. Analysing the question

Many people do not make the distinction between what the question is asking and what the question is about. By breaking down the title into topic words (the subject matter) and key words (the issue to be considered), you can make sure that you actually answer the question rather than provide a simple narrative of events.

Here’s an example:

Essay question: How much did socialist and capitalist regimes differ in their approaches to the development of tourism?

Main topic/subject matter: tourism in socialist and capitalist regimes

Issue to be considered: differences/similarities between the development of tourism under socialist and capitalist regimes;

Key terms: tourism; political regimes;

Once you determine the topic and issue, consider the following questions:

1. Can I break the question into a series of sub-questions?

E.g. What were the (political, economic, social, cultural) differences between socialist and capitalist regimes? How did these differences and similarities reflect in or shape the development of tourism?

2. Is there a useful way for you to narrow/focus the question?

E.g. select a type of tourism: domestic/international, group/individual, officially organized/private or informal. OR Focus on a country, group or countries, historical period, or category of people.

III. Researching the Topic/Essay Question

Consider the following questions:

1. What sort of evidence is there to answer the question?

Explore primary sources (statistics, memoirs, visuals: ads, posters, etc) on the topic. Look for secondary sources (articles or books) that deal with this topic.

2. What are some of the different (even competing) historical perspectives on this topic?

Read several articles, books chapters, or books for diversity of opinions or angles on the topic. Take notes that will help you make your points.

3. What arguments or debates does this question bring up? For the essay question considered above, some of the larger questions/debates could be:

- the relation between state and society under socialism/capitalism;

- the ambivalent role of consumption/entertainment/tourism under socialism

- diverse forms of state control over society under socialism (coercion vs. satisfaction of consumer desires)

IV. Planning

Your plan determines what approach you take to answering the question. If you have written your plan properly, you will know exactly what your answer is going to be. This is not something that should be decided while you are writing your essay.

1. What is my main argument/thesis?

2. What points will I need to make in order to sustain this argument?

3. How have historians approached this topic? Are there different theories and methodologies in existing scholarship on the topic? What are the main debates? Where do I situate my argument?

4. Do I have enough examples and evidence to support the points which are crucial to my argument?

5. Do I need to know more about the examples I’m planning to use?

V. Writing

The Vital First Paragraph

“Start with an earthquake and work up to a climax.” (Cecil B. De Mille)

Every part of an essay is important, but the first paragraph is vital. This is the first chance you have to impress – or depress – an examiner. You might therefore try to write an eye-catching first sentence.

More important is that you demonstrate your understanding of the question set. Here you give your carefully thought-out definitions of the key terms, and here you establish the relevant time-frame. and issues – in other words, the parameters of the question. Also, you divide the overall question into more manageable sub-divisions, or smaller questions, on each of which you will subsequently write a paragraph. You formulate an argument, or perhaps voice alternative lines of argument, that you will substantiate later in the essay. Hence the first paragraph – or perhaps you might spread this opening section over two paragraphs – is the key to a good essay.

Middle Paragraphs

Philip Larkin once said that the modern novel consists of a beginning, a muddle and an end. The same is, alas, all too true of many history essays. But if you’ve written a good opening section, in which you’ve divided the overall question into separate and manageable areas, your essay will not be muddled; it will be coherent.

So consider starting each middle paragraph will a generalisation relevant to the question. We call this a topic sentence. Then you can develop this idea and substantiate it with evidence. Be careful in your selection of evidence [i.e. primary and secondary sources or historical works) to support the argument you are making. You only have a limited amount of space or time, so think about how much detail to give. Relatively unimportant background issues can be summarised with a broad brush; your most important areas need greater embellishment.

Become familiar with the main interpretations of historians (secondary sources). On the other hand, do not take historiography to extremes, so that the past itself is virtually ignored. In particular, never fall into the trap of thinking that all you need are sets of historians’ opinions. ( DO NOT Appeal To Experts) This presupposes that historians are infallible gods. Unless you give real evidence to back up your view – as historians do – a generalisation is simply an assertion. Middle paragraphs are the place for the real substance of an essay, and you neglect this at your peril.

Final Paragraph

If you’ve been arguing a case in the body of an essay, you should hammer home that case in the final paragraph. If you’ve been examining several alternative propositions, now is the time to say which one is correct. In the middle paragraph you are akin to a barrister arguing a case. Now, in the final paragraph, you are the judge summing up and pronouncing the verdict.

It’s as well to keep in mind what you should not be doing. Do not introduce lots of fresh evidence at this stage, though you can certainly introduce the odd extra fact that clinches your case. Nor should you go on to the ‘next’ issue. Don’t expect the examiner to puzzle out relevance; you must make your material explicitly relevant.

VI. Revise your essay

A good essay, especially one that seems to have been effortlessly composed, has often been revised several times; and the best students are those who are most self-critical. Get into the habit of revising your own first drafts, and never be satisfied with second-best efforts.

Here are some of the questions to consider as you revise:

1. Is your argument clear?

2. Have you included factual information necessary for contextualizing your argument?

3. Have you considered competing scholarly perspectives?

4. Do you have enough evidence/examples? Is it reliable and persuasive?

5. Have you provided adequate, properly formatted citations (i.e. both footnotes and bibliography)?

6. Have you proofread your text?