HUMAN RIGHTS CENTRE ~
HU901 ESSAY WRITING GUIDELINES
The University applies the following definition of plagiarism:
“Using or copying the work of others (whether written, printed or in any other form)
without proper acknowledgement in any coursework”.
In brief, if you use the work of others, you must either quote it or paraphrase it, but
whichever method you choose, you must also include a citation and reference.
Further details about plagiarism will be given to you whilst on the degree, you can
also check the University webpages at
http://www.essex.ac.uk/plagiarism/pages/about.htm
General Guidelines:
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Students are required to reference their sources properly, and failure to do so
can lead to a charge of an academic offence. When submitting any piece of
work (eg essay, report, dissertation, or thesis) you will be required to
acknowledge any assistance received or any use of the work of others.
An academic offence in coursework includes using the work of others
(whether written, printed or some other form) without acknowledgement,
whether this has been the result of serious negligence or of intention to
deceive. It is therefore very important that you learn how to reference your
work properly, and that you familiarise yourself with your departmental
guidelines on referencing. If, after having read the guidelines, you are still
unclear about referencing, you must talk to your tutor before you submit your
assignment. Ignorance of the regulations will not be accepted as a defence
against a charge of an academic offence or serious negligence in referencing
If you wish to reference an actual idea or concept from the tutor you should
refer to the topic within a book or article and then make reference to that.
Coursework should be double-spaced in Times New Roman font no less than
10 point.
Try not to repeat yourself throughout the essay.
The content of the coursework question should be clear on the issues and
response to the task set
The word limit EXCLUDES bibliography and footnotes.
HU901 Coursework 1 and 2:
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Coursework 1 and Coursework 2 must 4,000 words long. You are advised to
stay within these word limits plus or minus 10%. Any further deviation from
the word limit will be penalised.
You will be given a list of essay questions, for both coursework 1 and 2, to
choose one topic for your essay.
More Detailed Instructions:
Context
The advice on essay writing offered here is fairly basic and reflects my experience of
advising students writing essays in politics. HRC students write essays across several
disciplines & departments and should, in the first instance, be guided by conventions
and requirements in the different disciplines for which they are writing essays.
Students should always follow any guidelines or instructions given by their course
supervisor, the relevant department or the Centre.
Moreover, HRC students will be writing different kinds of essays: essay topics range
from the theoretical foundations of human rights to the application of human rights
principles and contemporary debates and controversies; from theoretical perspectives
to evaluation of specific rights claims; from issues surrounding practice &
implementation to explanation, measurement, comparison in empirical studies. This
means that students will be presenting different types of analysis and argument and
using different methods & different kinds of evidence.
The style of essay questions will vary, not only from discipline to discipline, but also
from course supervisor to course supervisor. And each student will have their own
intellectual background, their own epistemological & methodological orientations and
be developing their own styles.
There are, however, certain basic essay-writing requirements that apply across
disciplines, departments, essay types and question styles:
Five Basic Requirements
1. Answer the question. This is not as simple or easy as it sounds. Nevertheless, as
you will realise when you begin to construct your own research questions & designs,
a lot of work has already been done for you when you are provided with ready-made
questions in the context of a course setting out themes, perspectives & issues. Thus
the first step in writing a good essay is to analyse the question and understand exactly
what it is asking you to do: if in any doubt, ask. ANALYSIS STARTS WITH THE
QUESTION. By analysing the question at the outset, you should be able to establish
the essay’s:
* Focus, framework or parameters
* The key terms, concepts or categories to be defined, analysed, critiqued
* A credible line of argument, including possible answer/evaluation
* A preliminary structure: i.e., the set of claims, statements or propositions
(subarguments) you will make to support the overall argument
* Analytical parameters & tools: theoretical perspective, methodology,
evidence
* The appropriate/available sources
If you spend some time identifying &/or reflecting on these elements of the essay at
the outset, it will help you organise your research, read selectively and effectively,
take notes effectively, and know when to stop reading & taking notes. In brief, you
will know what you are looking for.
2. Compile a bibliography: Consider your bibliography as the baseline for your essay.
The essay should be grounded in a body of literature/ a set of sources. Make sure that
you are consulting the most important, most relevant literature or other sources. In
almost all cases there will be some guidance & at least a preliminary reading list on
course outlines which you should use as a starting point. If you are unsure, ask.
Prepare a draft bibliography and ask your course supervisor to comment on it. Seek
out and try to understand different theoretical and methodological approaches,
opposing arguments, interpretations and evidence bases. (See below for a brief note
on bibliographies & referencing.)
3. Construct an argument: take a position on a debate, an issue, a problem: almost all
essay questions ask you for an evaluation, a judgment: whether it is about theoretical
foundations or perspectives, specific rights claims, practical issues of policy or
implementation, measurement or comparison. Part of constructing an argument is
judging how much & what type of analysis (theory – methodology – evidence) is
most relevant or appropriate for answering the specific question; how many & what
kind of claims or propositions you should present to support your answer; how much
& what type of evidence is necessary; how it should be collected & interpreted; the
strengths and weaknesses of alternative approaches or interpretations.
4. Present an analysis: critically analyse & evaluate foundations, underlying
assumptions, theoretical perspectives, key concepts & their logics; how they are
applied in the study of human rights; arguments & evidence. Analyse the relationships
between aspects of human rights theory & practical applications or uses. Both the
argument & the analysis should follow a logical sequence.
5. Reference: all sources precisely & appropriately & follow guidance as to format &
style. (Avoid plagiarism) The first rule here is to follow any guidance or instructions
given by Course Supervisors or departments. If they ask you to use a particular style
for references & bibliographies, use it. There is often no general requirement. If this is
the case you are free to choose whatever style you prefer, but you must use it
consistently & correctly. (See below for further advice.)
Some practical advice
1. Be assessment aware: be aware of & understand the assessment criteria &
marking guidelines set out on course outlines, in departmental handbooks &/or
provided by the HRC . For politics courses, these can be found in the
Graduate Handbook, pp. 68,73.
2. Planning: Planning =
Time
+ Analytical +
Management
Approach
To question
Sources
(Bib.)
+
Argument
Coherence
Structure
+
Draft
Advice
3. Writing is a craft; it involves skills that improve with practice. Take the time
to draft & redraft. Think of writing 3 versions or drafts: one for the argument,
one for clarification & strengthening, and one for editing/detail/grammar.
4. Make sure that every sentence you write has a precise meaning, that it makes
sense. Especially if you are writing in English as a second language, and given
that you are dealing with quite complex & sophisticated theories & arguments,
keep sentences short: one sentence, one idea. Remember that every sentence
requires a grammatical & logical structure. Use paragraphs. Do not submit an
undifferentiated block of text. It is up to you to distinguish separate themes
and points by using paragraphs: one paragraph, one theme.
5. Ask for advice & feedback. A good point at which to do this is when you have
an introduction, outline or plan & a bibliography. The framework & logic of
your essay will be clear from these. Take them along to your course supervisor
& ask for comment.
6. Format: Essays should be printed on one side of the paper, using at least 11
point font and 1.5 or double spacing. Again, follow any guidelines given by
your course supervisor or department. Left but not right justification. Page
numbers in the top right, but not on first page.
7. Proofread!
Essay Writing/Study Skills Advice & Support
One-to-one study skills appointments are available with Theresa Crowley on Monday,
Tuesday & Wednesday. Either sign up on the timetable (Room 5.306) or email
crowtx@essex.ac.uk to arrange an appointment.
Alternatively, consult the University’s essay-writing advice site via:
www.essex.ac.uk/myskills
If you are worried about grammar, I recommend The Internet Grammar of English at:
http://www.ucl.ac.uk/internet-grammar/
There are also two Royal Literary Fund writing fellows who offer individual writing
guidance: Martyn Waites & Vincent McInerney. They are in Room 5A 223,
but make an appointment in Room 5A201.
Some suggestions on essay structure: What you should do where
When we talk about essay structure, we are talking about a logical sequence of
argument & analysis. Formally, this means that an essay should have a beginning, a
middle & an end, with a clear line of argument running from beginning to end &
giving coherence. Logically, it means a sequence or set of claims, statements or
propositions (sub-arguments) summarized at beginning & end. You do not have to
label the separate parts, but sometimes it can help in the preparatory stage by helping
you focus on the principal claims or steps in your argument, indeed ensuring that
there is a sequence of distinct claims rather than an undifferentiated & unstructured
blob of text!
Please note that the suggestions here are general & fairly basic. Always observe
instructions or guidelines provided by course supervisors or the relevant departments..
Introduction:
 Identify the question, problem or issue addressed by the essay; it’s significance,
the central issues at stake: theoretical, practical, political
 Briefly give your answer, outline your overall argument, & the main points
(claims or sub-arguments) you will make to support it
 Define (or open up for analysis) the key terms/concepts/categories you will use or
investigate
 If you are focusing on one aspect of the question, on particular text(s) or
theoretical approaches, specify & explain this
 Specify the analytical perspective or parameters of the essay: theoretical,
methodological, evidential
The body of the essay/the argument:
 Stick to the question & follow through on the introduction. Do not bring in
anything that is not relevant to or necessary for answering the question. Observe
the word limit. This sharpens focus, selection, specification, precision.
 Don’t overload on general background information.
 You should at all points be presenting critical commentary & analysis, discussing
principal arguments & debates in the field, theoretical strengths & weaknesses,
selection & use of evidence, cases, comparisons.
 Remember that you are presenting an argument: you want to make a case &
convince the reader. Your argument should consist of a sequence of distinct
claims each one of which is clearly stated and supported by appropriate evidence.
The evidence can be of different types:
1. Theoretical/conceptual/logical: analysis of theories, concepts, e.g.,
the concepts of representation, governance or iteration
2. Empirical evidence, it’s selection & interpretation
3. Quantitative: statistics, graphs, tables
4. Case study (ies)
5. Comparative study
 Consider the counter-arguments, claims & evidence & give reasons for either
rejecting or only partially (i.e., with qualifications) accepting any points.
 Some independent reflection on the issues, assessment of & imaginative response
to the material, particularly in regard to its political relevance/implications.
Conclusion:
 Go back to the question or title & reaffirm your answer.
 Clearly & concisely summarise you’re the main points of your argument.
 If applicable, state any reservations or qualifications to your answer. Suggest
implications.
Some advice on Bibliographies & References
This is a very short & very basic guide to reference & bibliography requirements,
form & style. Please note that there are different referencing systems and that some
course supervisors specifically (usually on course outlines) request that you use a
particular system or style. If this is the case, you should follow the requirements that
they have set out. If in doubt, ask. In all cases be consistent: stick to one style. In
general you will use either a Footnoting system in which full bibliographical details
are given in the first citation of a book or other source with briefer information in
subsequent citations, or an In-text referencing system. I recommend the Harvard
system and give some examples below.
Bibliography
It is a good idea to think of the bibliography as the baseline of your essay. It is a list of
all the sources you have used to write the essay, whether you have used them for
direct quotations, paraphrasing, examples, background information, statistics,
comparison, inspiration, theories, ideas, etc. These sources may include books,
chapters in edited books (collections), journal or newspaper articles, websites,
interviews, etc. Do not include anything that you do not refer to or mention in the
essay. Remember that you are writing an academic paper & are expected to show
familiarity with & discuss some of the literature on the essay topic, generally starting
with the required & recommended texts on the course outline but also adding to these.
Your bibliography should:
- be on a separate page at the end of the essay
- be in alphabetical order according to the surname of the author
- include author, publication date, title, place of publication and publisher
- there should be a one-line space between entries, not within them
References
A reference is an acknowledgement that you have taken (adopted/adapted/copied) a
particular idea, argument, point of view, question, piece of information, interpretation,
etc., from a particular source (or sources). It doesn’t matter whether you are quoting it
directly or not: if the idea or information comes from something you have read, you
must acknowledge this source – at the point in the essay where you are using it.
Failure to do so undermines your credibility, raises questions about your academic
integrity and exposes you to the charge of plagiarism. You should provide a
reference when:
- you give a direct quotation from a source: the words quoted should be in
quotation marks and be followed by the author surname, date of publication &
page numbers (s) in brackets. For example: ‘The best states exist not in the
universe of Plato’s perfect forms but in the universe of the best attainable’
(Dahl, 1989:50).
- You paraphrase a passage (whether one sentence, a paragraph or a whole
section) from a source. For example: According to Dahl (1989:50), the best
states are to be found, not in any world of perfect forms, but in the world of
the imperfect, the best that can be attained in this world.
- You simply mention, refer in passing to, or want to show that you are
aware of, an idea, a discussion, debate, interpretation, survey, etc., relevant to
your topic. For example: Recent discussions of the prospects for democracy
in Russia have focused on corruption and lawlessness (Kahn, 2002; Klein &
Pomer,eds., 2001; Rose & Munro, 2002).
Some bibliographical examples
1. An authored book:
Baker, G. 2002. Civil Society and Democratic Theory: Alternative Voices. Routledge.
2. An edited book:
Fine, R. and Rai, S. (eds.) 1997. Civil Society: Democratic Perspectives. Frank Cass.
3. A journal article:
Chambers, S. and Kopstein, J. 2001. ‘Bad civil society’ Political Theory 29:6: 223240.
4. A chapter in a book:
Maier, C.S. 1992. ‘Democracy since the French Revolution’, in J. Dunn (ed.),
Democracy, The Unfinished Journey. Oxford University Press.
Internet Sources
For good advice on using the internet for studying politics and on proper referencing
of internet sources, use Intute, which is accessible through the CMR.
You are strongly advised to consult your course supervisor or the relevant department
before relying on any other websites as these have not been through the same review
process as academic books & articles. The exception is an online version of an
academic journal or paper. These can be accessed through the Library. The following
referencing advice & example is taken from the University of Essex Essay Writing
page.
Whatever the source, you should always provide the following information:
- the author's name (if known)
- the full title of the document in quotation marks
- the title of the complete work if applicable in italics
- the date of publication or last revision (if available) - if not available use ‘n.d.’
- the full http address (URL) enclosed within angle brackets
[ HTTP = HyperText Transfer Protocol ]
[ URL = Uniform Resource Locator ]
- the date of your visit in parentheses
Example:
Burka, Lauren P. "A Hypertext History of Multi-User Dimensions." MUD History.
1993.
<http://www.ccs.neu.edu/home/1pb/mud-history.html> (5 Dec. 1994).