Good Writing

Good Writing

Good academic writing requires understanding the structure of an essay- this means both the parts (components) that make up the essay, and what the job of each part is (its function).

The main parts of an essay are:

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• An introduction​

• A series of body paragraphs

• A conclusion​

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​We will be learning about these one by one.

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Subject | Subject

Good Writing

​Introductions

​There are three parts to your introduction:

​The acronym CAT will help you remember these parts

​Introductions

​Context Sentence(s)

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Your first sentence or two need to contextualise the topic you are writing about. You can do this in a few different ways, but usually you will begin with a general statement about the topic. Here’s an example:

​"The reign of Akhenaten is one of the most fiercely debated periods in the history of New Kingdom Egypt"​

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Multiple Choice

Which of the following is the best example of a context sentence for a question about New kingdom Egypt?

• Egypt is a fascinating land.

• New Kingdom Egypt was a signi cant period of continuity and change.

• Rameses II treaty with the Hittites ushered in a long

  period of peace and prosperity for Egypt.

•  The Amarna Letters

  raise some tricky problems

  of evidence regarding New Kingdom Egypt.

Multiple Choice

Which of the following is the best example of a context sentence for the question "What evidence do archaeological and written sources provide about Sparta?"

• The modern city of Sparta lies over the ruins of the ancient site, but any ruins present today were rebuilt

  during the Roman era.

• The ancient Spartans and their austere and militaristic way of life, and the myth they

  created about themselves, not only intrigued their contemporaries, but have fascinated

  people for over 2500 years,

• The Spartans were Dorians, a warlike tribe of people, who entered Greece from the

  north about 1100 BC

• Unlike other Greek cities, Sparta was

  more like a collection of rural communities

  scattered over a number of hills, and for

  most of its history it was never enclosed

  by a fortified wall

​Introductions

​Arguments

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Now that you have made a start with a context sentence, you’ll need to preview the arguments that you will be advancing (presenting) through the body of your essay, as well as any opposing arguments that you will discuss. At this point you don’t need to go into any detail, just give the reader an idea of what you’ll be discussing later on. This section will also help you to structure your essay: you will use each of your arguments as the basis for a paragraph in the body.

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​Introductions

Arguments

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​Here’s an example of previewing arguments for the question "Assess Akhenaten’s motives for the transfer of the capital to Akhetaten."

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​"A number of likely candidate motives have been proposed. Firstly, Akhenaten may have had a genuine religious desire to found a new city entirely devoted to the worship of one god, Aten. Another plausible motivation was the political goal of challenging the growing power of the priests of Amun, who had been accumulating substantial wealth and influence throughout the New Kingdom."

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​WRITING PARAGRAPHS

​Some aspects of academic writing are common to all assignments and writing situations. All kinds of academic writing contain paragraphs that must have clear structure, logical organisation and a smooth flow of information within and between paragraphs. Formal language is required when writing paragraphs.

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A paragraph is a group of sentences that develops a common theme or idea.

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The rule is usually one main idea per paragraph. Paragraphs may be long or short, but in academic texts, such as essays, paragraphs of about 100-200 words are quite common.

​WRITING PARAGRAPHS

​WRITING PARAGRAPHS

​Many academic paragraphs share the following structure:

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• A topic sentence

• ​Background information

• Evidence

• Reasoning

• ​Link

Reorder

Arrange the following paragraph components in the correct order

• ​Background information

• Topic sentence

• Reasoning

• Evidence

• Evidence

1

2

3

4

5

• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5