Analytical Piece

Essay tips 2023

Dr Nicola Marks

Some technical requirements

• Please state the question (option 1 or 2) you are answering – This should also be clear from your introduction
• Submission format: – Double spaced
  • – .pdf or .doc or .rtf format
• 1000-1250 words word limit
• Please state your word count

– Technically direct quote don’t count (but don't

• veruse direct quotes – remember to show understanding)
  • You shouldn’t need to deduct the quotes from your total unless you are doing a discourse analysis question and include lots of data

– Reference list doesn’t count – Question doesn’t count

– No need for an abstract

Clarity

• Short clear sentences are better than long convoluted ones
• Prefer the active voice over the passive voice (“X causes Y”, rather than “Y is caused by X”)
• It’s fine to use “I” in Sociology essays
• NO rhetorical questions
  • This is an academic essay, not a newspaper story
  • So don’t see “but what does this mean”. Rather tell me: “This means… because…”

Grammar

• Sentences should be complete (e.g. have a subject and a verb

– So “The social issues are complex”. NOT “So many social issues. So

complex.”

• Use apostrophes properly:

– “Its” marks possession: “its social issues are complex” = “the social

issues of the case study are complex”.

– “It’s” is a contraction: “it’s socially complex” = “it is socially

complex”.

– Don’t use apostrophes to pluralise: “There are many cells; the cells’

biology can cause issues”. [not “the cell’s biology” here; unless you are referring to only 1 cell].

• Use semi-colons [;] only if you know how to (e.g. to replace a full stop [.] when 2 sentences are closely related in contents to each
  • ther. ) The bits on either side of the semi-colon should be grammatically complete.

Introduction

• Not too long

– Approx 250 words for 1500 word essay • Set the scene for your essay

– You may have a separate “background section”

that comes afterwards if you need to explain a technology or provide some further information

• State your overall argument/answer to the question
• Provide an essay plan/outline

Body of the essay

• You may have sub-headings in this essay (just like in an academic journal article)
  • – Don’t call this section ‘body’ though
• Think about how each paragraph contributes to your overall argument/answer
• Aim for 1 idea/1 paragraph
  • – Don’t try to explain two complex concepts and

apply them to your example, and to another example all in one go

• Avoid paragraphs made up of 1 sentence only
• Don’t forget to demonstrate your understanding

– A list of quotes is not enough, you need to also

explain in your own words and/or provide illustrations

– Understanding is also demonstrated through

your analysis

• Use topic sentences if that helps you structure your argument

• Be clear when you are summarising someone else’s argument versus when you are making your own argument.

– E.g. Kitzinger doesn’t talk about embryos in

Australia, but you might draw on her ideas to comment on that yourself

• Don’t forget to demonstrate you have done research

– Through referencing and through analysis of your

case study/ies

Conclusion

• Similar length to introduction

• Summarises your main points and brings all the different threads of your argument

together

• You can have a separate “discussion” section before your conclusion

• Can “close the door and open a window”

Referencing

• Essential to demonstrate you have done research and read the appropriate tutorial and further readings

• Harvard (author, date: page) or any form of in-text (author, data, page)

referencing. – Be consistent and provide ALL the necessary information (pages, URLs,

access dates…).

– I’ve tried to model good referencing (except for access dates) in the lecture Moodle Books.

– Please include an alphabetised and chronological reference list at the end.

– Don’t write “In the article by Mulkay, he suggests…” or “In the article Rhetorics of Mulkay suggest…”. I want Author and date and

of Hope Fear, Mulkay suggest…”. just want (sometimes pages). E.g. “Mulkay (1996) suggests…”. – Don’t include the initials of the author in the text except for disambiguation

(e.g. 2 authors have the same family name, but different first names).

– Put the in-text reference BEFORE the full stop: “New genetics can be eugenic

(e.g. Shakespeare, 1998; Ekberg, 2007).” – If there’s no author, put (Anon, date: page) or (Title of news story, date:

page).

– The only other time you would put the title of a book, article or movie is if

argument or analysis. [Ask me if you don’t understand what this means.] 11

• In-text referencing: if you are referring to a direct quote or subsection of

a paper, you MUST indicate the relevant page numbers, not just the author and date of publication, same if you’re paraphrasing a specific

author and date of publication, same if you’re paraphrasing a specific

section.

- If in doubt, put the page number.

- “p.” is for one page [p. 7], “pp.” is for several pages [pp. 6-9]. [you can just put the number, without “p.”]

- If there are no pages, put a section, or paragraph number. (Author, date: unpaginated). - If there really is nothing,

unpaginated). - really nothing, put • If a is more than two lines long, don’t it in inverted commas in

long, a quote put more commas the text (ie. “quote, quote, quote”) but indent it:

Text text text text text text text text text text text text text text text text. Author argues that:

quote quote quote quote quote quote quote quote quote

quote quote quote quote quote quote quote quotequote quote quote quote quote quote quote quote quote (date: page) Text text text text text text text text text text text text text text text text

•

• Don’t mix “double” and ‘single’ quotation marks – Use one throughout (preferably double as this is a Turnitin assessment), and

only use the other for a quote within a quote

– E.g. Jansen and Roquas argue that the “discussion of ‘missing expertise’ is good starting point” (2005: 150).

12

• Everything in your reference list must be

that have read and referenced in

something you

the body of your essay. Everything you reference

in your essay must be listed in the reference list.

• If you include a quote from a book/paper that

you haven’t personally read but is quoted in a

tutorial reading, make this clear.

in Felt date:

– E.g.: According to Wynne (cited in Felt et al., date: page) the deficit model can be defined as…

the authors of the – Felt et al. have read

– are paper you reference list; and will be in is the

list; Wynne your author you haven’t read, and won’t be in your

reference list

13

• Referencing lectures:

– It’s fine to reference lectures for small points;

make sure you include the section number

– If you are using a point from a lecture as a key

analytical perspective, you need to read and

reference the relevant academic paper

• Referencing tutorial presentations:

– As for lecture: if you’re just using a small

point/detail, you only need to reference the presentation

– If key drawing to do

– analysis, you are you drawing must on read a key the concept paper and reference your

it as well as the presentation (if that’s where you

got the original idea from)

14

Do NOT plagiarise!!!!! • Plagiarism = fail for essay, and maybe fail for

subject

• A formal plagiarism verdict will stay on your record forever!
• Wikipedia people It’s better with to than a say specific to if pretend you genetic got a you fact condition) just (e.g. know number from it of
• taking sociological might It’s better not credit this to even session) concepts do for be your someone in own line from with analysis else’s this what course, analysis using you than were (that taught

Just don’t do it

TURNITIN

• I’m using Turnitin for this assessment.
• To early resubmit help and with get the learning, an due initial date I similarity will if enable there report, are students issues then with to submit the
  • riginal submission by

– about leave Note the yourselves 10 generation minutes, enough but of the the time 2nd 1st one similarity takes report 24 hours. takes So

• Turnitin single and only not recognises indented) double quotation marks (not

– So use double quotation marks – The don’t me that indented panic: they’re marks) as quotes long quotes), as will they’re you’ll come indented be up fine as plagiarised, (or (and you it’s can clear but use to

quotation

• jRuesmt or absence teamkeb ethr ew of rea plagiarism. ww iplle inrcteenrptaregte tahse e sviimdeilnacriet yo rf epproerste, nncoet

What I’m looking for overall

• Evidence that you’ve understood the general gist of

this subject so far

– This will be easier to do if you’ve attended lectures and

paid attention in tutorials.

– This means, e.g., that you can’t offer something as a self

evident solution (e.g. informed consent) to a problem, if we have highlighted some of the intrinsic limitations of that ‘solution’.

– You must therefore engage with the nuances of any taken-for-granted solutions and ways of thinking.

– This doesn’t mean that you have to agree with the

message of the course.

– However, you MUST engage with it and discuss it.

• Evidence that you have read and understood all the relevant tutorial readings

– Not all of them need to be used throughout your essay, but if you are focussing on a couple throughout your essay, you may want to explain early on that you are

aware of the importance of other perspectives/papers,

and why you are not using them, but using the particular

ones you chose.

• Evidence that you paid attention to class

presentations, checked out the slides on Moodle,

and went on to actually read the papers that are relevant to your essay question

– If you are using a concept from a tutorial presentation

paper as a core part of your analysis, remember to not

just read and cite the presentation, but also the paper itself.