Essay writing

Buttons_sb

Hi

Im writing my first sociology essay at the moment and am a little unsure how they are to be put together now that im not in secondary school. Basically do you just reference ideas and quotes from books and also thow in your own opinion or is there more to it?

Any help would be appreciated

Funglegunk

Buttons_sb wrote: »

Hi

Im writing my first sociology essay at the moment and am a little unsure how they are to be put together now that im not in secondary school. Basically do you just reference ideas and quotes from books and also thow in your own opinion or is there more to it?

Any help would be appreciated

I don't do sociology, but for all of my modules there is a document giving module-specific advice for writing essays on Blackboard. Try that!

RandolphEsq

Buttons_sb wrote: »

Hi

Im writing my first sociology essay at the moment and am a little unsure how they are to be put together now that im not in secondary school. Basically do you just reference ideas and quotes from books and also thow in your own opinion or is there more to it?

Any help would be appreciated

The other way round! Your own opinion mixed in with a dash of quotes/references!

taz70

It depends on what the assignment is. In sociology - or any humanities/socual sciences - it's not usual to give your opinion in an essay but rather find research that is about the topic and present your research not what you might happen to think (unless its a reflective journal).

You should ask your lecturer what they are expecting - it's much better to find out exactly what you need to do rather than doing the wrong thing.

RandomName2

'I think that the renaissance was a big change in European history'

this line alone would ensure that you would ensure an instant fail in history

'I (don't use first person singular) think (don't use opinion) that the renaissance (not terribly specific and open to histological criticism) was a big (vague) change (vague) in European history (sweeping statement that doesn't cite any source)'

F! F! F!

Don't know how the school of sociology works though...

Cannibal Ox

What's the question?

Im writing my first sociology essay at the moment and am a little unsure how they are to be put together now that im not in secondary school.

Start:
In this essay I will discuss the question and argue/discuss/examine/analyse point A, point B, point C, and will then conclude/summarize my essay.

Or:
This essay will discuss...

In the body of the essay discuss each of the points in turn, and try and make sure there's a coherent argument that runs through it (either for or against). Try to start by outlining what ever the idea is you're talking about, then deal with how it relates to the question, then criticize it, then either show how the criticism is justified or not, then conclude.

Look at what you're reading from a standpoint of how are they putting together their article/book. There's a structure and a method behind everything you read, and if you can pick up on it, you'll be able to apply it to your own stuff.

Opinion is fine. They want your opinion. As long as your opinion is informed by all of your research in the essay. If you have an opinion, stick it in around the end of the essay, that way you can show off all the work you've done first, and then draw on it to show what you think. They probably won't care about what you think, but it's good to show that you can think.

Anyway, regardless of the overall content of the essay if you have a proper structure, a coherent argument that runs through the essay and you get the referencing right, you'll pass. And once you have it down, it's repeat ad nauseum throughout your college experience and you'll pass everything. Don't worry.

EDIT: Oh, don't quote to much. Learn to reference without quoting. So, something like, "Marx's theory of historical materialism states that modern capitalist societies are divided into two major classes, the proletariat and the bourgeois (Marx 1970, pp.14-20)" instead of quoting a reel of text.

RandomName2

Cannibal Ox wrote: »

What's the question?


Start:
In this essay I will discuss the question and argue/discuss/examine/analyse point A, point B, point C, and will then conclude/summarize my essay.

Or:
This essay will discuss...

In the body of the essay discuss each of the points in turn, and try and make sure there's a coherent argument that runs through it (either for or against). Try to start by outlining what ever the idea is you're talking about, then deal with how it relates to the question, then criticize it, then either show how the criticism is justified or not, then conclude.

Look at what you're reading from a standpoint of how are they putting together their article/book. There's a structure and a method behind everything you read, and if you can pick up on it, you'll be able to apply it to your own stuff.

Opinion is fine. They want your opinion. As long as your opinion is informed by all of your research in the essay. If you have an opinion, stick it in around the end of the essay, that way you can show off all the work you've done first, and then draw on it to show what you think. They probably won't care about what you think, but it's good to show that you can think.

Anyway, regardless of the overall content of the essay if you have a proper structure, a coherent argument that runs through the essay and you get the referencing right, you'll pass. And once you have it down, it's repeat ad nauseum throughout your college experience and you'll pass everything. Don't worry.

EDIT: Oh, don't quote to much. Learn to reference without quoting. So, something like, "Marx's theory of historical materialism states that modern capitalist societies are divided into two major classes, the proletariat and the bourgeois (Marx 1970, pp.14-20)" instead of quoting a reel of text.

As long as you present that opinion as an argument...

taz70

Cannibal Ox wrote: »

What's the question?

Opinion is fine. They want your opinion.

No - they don't want your "opinion", they want you to show an evaluation of research. This is totally different. Opinion is something you may already have. And evaluation of literature shows that you have done research, have thought about the research and have come to an informed conclusion based on that research. That conclusion might even be the total opposite of your personal opinion - really doesn't matter.

You shouldn't use "I" in a university essay - would you expect a business report for the government to start with "I think that...." - no, you want evidence and research. Lecturers do too.

Cannibal Ox

taz70 wrote:

No - they don't want your "opinion", they want you to show an evaluation of research. This is totally different. Opinion is something you may already have. And evaluation of literature shows that you have done research, have thought about the research and have come to an informed conclusion based on that research. That conclusion might even be the total opposite of your personal opinion - really doesn't matter.

I don't think anyone would offer an opinion in an essay for university that they haven't backed up with research. If you're not capable of forming an opinion from that research and articulating it in an essay, I'm not really sure what the point of doing that essay is.

I have a feeling you're approaching an essay like an exercise in objectivism, in which case we're not going to agree what the point of an essay is.

taz70 wrote:

You shouldn't use "I" in a university essay - would you expect a business report for the government to start with "I think that...." - no, you want evidence and research. Lecturers do too.

I flicked through articles by Judith Butler, Pierre Bourdieu and Norbert Elias, all fairly well respected social theorists. Butler and Bourdieu both used I, and Elias didn't.

He/she isn't writing a business report, they're writing an essay for sociology. If I knew what the exact question was, and which module it was for, I could say whether to go with I or not, but I don't know any of that, which is why I suggested both.

Mushy

Cannibal Ox wrote: »

He/she isn't writing a business report, they're writing an essay for sociology. If I knew what the exact question was, and which module it was for, I could say whether to go with I or not, but I don't know any of that, which is why I suggested both.

If its the intro module, it'd be very general. If it was foundations, its more specific. I still wouldn't use 'I' in any of them though. Think the best way to do it is to try and find different ways of expressing what you wanna say, manage to flesh ideas out.

For my essays, I have a general intro, then for the main body of it, the topic would be looked at, seen what aspects there are to it, have a paragraph for each aspect, tie it into the question, then finish with a conclusion, which would be general enough, but still linking everything together.

Notorious

Cannibal Ox wrote: »

I flicked through articles by Judith Butler, Pierre Bourdieu and Norbert Elias, all fairly well respected social theorists. Butler and Bourdieu both used I, and Elias didn't.

He/she isn't writing a business report, they're writing an essay for sociology. If I knew what the exact question was, and which module it was for, I could say whether to go with I or not, but I don't know any of that, which is why I suggested both.

You shouldn't use 'I' in a college essay/scientific paper unless you're giving your opinion (which is rare in any of my classes). That's what I've been told anyway.

convert

The use of 'I', 'in my opinion', 'I believe', 'I think', etc. is quite a controversial topic. Some schools, such as history, will pull you up for it, whereas other schools, such as sociology, are happy, in not encouraging, in allowing you to use these words/terms.

I know lots of sociology students who have received high 2.1s and 1.1s in essays in which they have used the above phrases. Moreover, their tutor/lecturer didn't chastise them for doing so. As cannible ox said, it is almost expected in sociology essays and their post on what to include in an essay is pretty coherent and accurate, and is what most examiners look for in an essay. Just remember, always back up your point with quotations/references to authors.

As has been mentioned in previous posts, take a look on blackboard and on the school of sociology website and see if there are any guidelines for essay writing. Moreover, in your tutorials/seminars, your tutor should have provided you with general guidelines on what they're looking for in your essay. However, if you're in any doubt, go and have a chat with them or the lecturer; afterall, that's what they're there for.

Good luck!

peepeep

I have a BA in sociology. An essay is not an opportunity for you to flaunt your opinions, but rather to demonstrate your research and writing skills. Find relevant studies, situate them appropriately vis-a-vis the essay question, and structure your essay well. No problem.

loca1

Im in the process of doing a sociology essay on the changing/ dark side of family and im finding it difficult I was unsure about the opinion thing so I asked him he said it is perfectly fine to give your opinion in the conclusion only as long as there has been some reference to it in the main body of the essay my main problem is condensing this all into 550 words all my other essays have been 1500 and 2000 to date and its so difficult to do a smaller essay. i think you really need to ask your own lecturer what they want to see in the essay. We are also allowed to argue our lecturers opinion and what he taught us and i sure as hell will cause i really dont argree with his perspective

Funglegunk

loca1 wrote: »

Im in the process of doing a sociology essay on the changing/ dark side of family and im finding it difficult I was unsure about the opinion thing so I asked him he said it is perfectly fine to give your opinion in the conclusion only as long as there has been some reference to it in the main body of the essay my main problem is condensing this all into 550 words all my other essays have been 1500 and 2000 to date and its so difficult to do a smaller essay.

Not trying to be a dick but I hope you use more punctuation in your essays than you did in that post! Makes it very difficult to read.

loca1

Funglegunk good point. I'm a mature student so my essays will be far from perfect.

loca1

Update 80% for my first assignment not bad for someone with bad punctuation :P im not too worried about punctuation on a website but will focus where I need to

Good luck to everyone doing assignments for the first time not as scary as you may first think

littlefriend

loca1 wrote: »

Update 80% for my first assignment

Excellent, well done.

El Siglo

If you're using the Harvard Referencing System, then this document will sort ya out!
Remember OP, be objective (i.e. you don't ever say; "I", "We", "they" etc...) because lecturers don't care what you think (sorry, but it's the truth for now at least).
Be concise, what you can say in a paragraph try and tighten it down to two sentences, lecturers like accuracy not shite.
Always back up your arguments with a source, e.g. "this argument purported by Giddens (2005) has been found to be contentious as Healey (2006) has discussed etc..." Criticial analysis is something you're going to have to get used to, you will be shit at this (we all were at one stage) but you'll get better, all this means is to not take things as gospel and try and either find literature that supports or detracts from a source, so you can say "yeh Habermas (1987) makes a good argument on X, as this has been elaborated further by ... (1992), however this argument has been found to have some flaws, in particular ... as discussed by ... (1999)". It's going to take time, once you can actually construct an argument, with good syntax, spelling, grammar and appropriate referencing and citation, then you're sorted!