To write a good essay or dissertation, you must have a clear idea of what you want to achieve. ‘To look at how X influenced Y’ isn’t clear enough, likewise ‘To investigate Riefenstahl’s stylistic representations of power.’ These only describe a subject area and are not solid enough foundations for a purposeful essay. Other examples of weak essay outlines could be:
Where's your argument? How to present your academic argument in writing
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A central argument is the backbone of your essay, what you want to persuade your reader is true. It gives your writing a sense of purpose. It does not have to be ‘argumentative’, but it is normally reducible to a single statement (not a question). If you can’t express it in a single statement, then you may not have a clear enough idea of where your essay is going. It represents the difference between descriptive and analytical writing.
Reducing your central argument to a single statement is one method of cracking the essay; it may be frustratingly difficult, but it is an invaluable way to check if you are ready to begin. Here are some examples of what a statement of the central argument might look like:
Notice that all of these statements explicitly answer questions about the true nature of the subject they address: What are X’s photographs about? What were the most important differences between Bauhaus and Art Deco? In what way did the Gothic novel impact on gender roles? What explanation is there for X? and so on. A central argument should say something important about the topic, and say it clearly. Please note, however, that a central argument can raise questions at the same time as being explicit and clear – as is the case with the last example.
Testing relevance
The examples above each represent a particular argument, or position on the subject material. For this reason, they allow you to judge the relevance of everything in your essay: ‘Does this material support my central argument?’ should be the question that you keep asking yourself. If it doesn’t then you must either find a way of making it relevant (and explicitly showing the reader that it is), or leaving it out. In this way, your central argument is the organising principle of your essay or dissertation. You might want to write down your central argument and stick it above your desk to refer to.
Two fundamental approaches to analysing information/ evidence to develop an argument involve deductive and inductive reasoning.
Deductive Reasoning = From the Big Idea to the Details
Start with a principle or theory - apply it to your case - draw a conclusion.
Example:
Inductive Reasoning = From the Details to the Big Idea
Start with observations - spot patterns -propose a general conclusion.
Example:
Quick comparison:
| Deductive | Inductive |
| Theory → Evidence | Evidence → Theory |
| Broad to narrow | Narrow to broad |
| Top-down | Bottom-up |
| To prove a point or test a hypothesis | To identify patterns and develop a new understanding |
