Give your essay a title

The title should make immediately obvious what question you are answering
Suppose the question is Does Socrates prove that Simmias is wrong in holding the soul
is an attunement of the body?
This would then be a good title: Souls and Attunements.
Parts of an essay
Introduction
Body
Conclusion

Introduction
Should only do two things: State problem you are addressing, state your solution to the
problem (thesis).

Thesis Statement
This is the most important sentence in your essay
Traditionally it is the last sentence of your first paragraph but it must appear in the first
paragraph.

Why the thesis statement is important

At every subsequent stage of the process of writing your essay, you should ask yourself
Is what I am about to write help prove my thesis statement?
If yes, continue.
If no, omit the information.

Body of the essay

This contains your arguments for your conclusion.
You may first want to have a second paragraph that sets the stage a little.
Everything in the body should be relevant to proving your thesis.

Arguments!
Give arguments for your thesis (your conclusion.)

Use the concepts to u have learned

Validity. Invalidity
Soundness / unsoundness
Necessary and sufficient conditions
Contradictory / contrary
Consistency

Replies to objections
Include this only if you have space.
 After you have given arguments for your conclusion, you can anticipate objections to
your view and respond to them.

Clarity is a virtue
Use clear, ordinary, easy-to-understand language. (Not impressed by fancy words, or
flowery language.)
Write short sentences.

Semi-colons (Kurt Vonnegut)

First rule: Do not semicolons. They are transvestite hermaphrodites representing
absolutely nothing. All they do is show youve been to college.

Conclusion
A conclusion is not a summary.
A good conclusion can simply be your introduction, re-written in the past tense.

Basically:
A) You say you are going to prove X.
B) Prove X.
C) Say you have proven X.

Secondary sources
Do NOT consult any secondary sources.
You will then easily avoid plagiarism.
If you use secondary sources, you must cite them properly and any quoted material
must be clearly indicated (by, for example, using quotation marks).

A few tips
Do not write your essay the night before it is due.
If you get to 1400 words, and cant think of anything more to say, stop. Do not add filler.
No fuss about format.
Dont worry about a bibliography.
You may write in the first person. (I believe that)
If a paragraph is over half a page long, its too long.
Double spaced, single side. On paper.