[PDF] How to improve your academic writing - University of York

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41293_1how_to_improve_your_academic_writing.pdf w n urnilopntevnsp a c a d e l i cupirimgxmapecemrqsptevFacadelicqraff a rrheymitepqirvidemrifiedrhe i m r e p p ekaredqjikkqnf u pirim gamdpeaqnmimgaqrherunlnqr i lonpramrqjikkqfnp q s c ceqq i mhighepedscarinmBuhemaqjed u h i chqjikkqqrsdemrqlnq rnfrem k a c j edFupirimguaqagaimarrhe r n onfrheipkiqrE zhariqrhe o sponqenfrhiq b n n j k e r A ,AH;EI:;H;2C-HIF2E8IC?L2FG?HO" A

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I narecentsurvey,academicstaffatthe

Universityidentifiedtheinterrelatedskillsof

essay-writingandreasoningasthetwomost importantskillsforsuccessinhigher education;whenaskedwhichskillsstudents mostoftenlacked,essay-writingwasagainat t hetopoftheirlist.Needlesstosay,writing a bilityisalsohighlyprizedbyemployers.

Thepurposeofthisbookletistoprovidea

r eferenceguidetosomeofthemostcommon mistakesinacademicwritingandtoheighten yourappreciationofthelogicandbeautyof language,agoodcommandofwhichwillhelp youtothinkmoreclearlyanddeeply,andhave apositiveimpactoneveryaspectofyour a cademicwork,notjustassignments.

Theexamplesthatfeatureinthisbookletare

a daptedfromananalysisoffirst-year a cademicwork,coveringallfaculties.The a nalysisfoundthatmoststudentsaremaking t hesamemistakes.Thegoodnewsisthat t hesemistakescanbeeasilycorrectedby learningsomesimplerules,anditisnevertoo latetolearn.Thisbooklethasbeenstructuredintotwomain s ections:(i)PunctuationandGrammar,and(ii) R easoning.Theseareprecededbysectionson S tructuringanEssayandPartsofSpeech (essentialreadingifyouhaveforgottenhowto t ellyournounfromyourverb).Inadditionthere a realsosectionsonUsefulTips,Commonly C onfusedWords,WritingSupportatEssex, a ndFurtherReading.Itcanbereadfromcover t ocover,orcanbedippedintowithaspecific p robleminmind.

Ifyouwanttobetruetoyourself-tobe

f a i thfultowhatyoureallythinkbyexpressing yourselfclearlyandprecisely-thenyou shouldcareaboutlanguage...irrespectiveof t hefactthatitwillimproveyourgrades. - @ 6 B 6 :46A.BB52D2@G52.@B;3 .

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1.StructuringanEssay2

2.PartsofSpeech4

3.PunctuationandGrammar(themostcommonmistakes)6

3 .1A'csyntax7 3 .2Hm'ooqnoqh'sdtrdnetense7 3 .3Hmbnqqdbstrdneprepositions8 3 .4Hmbnqqdbstrdnecolons'mcsemi-colons8 3 .5Hmbnqqdbstrdneapostrophes9 3 .6Hmbnqqdbstrdnespeechmarks9 3 .7Bnmetrhmfsingular'mcplural10 3 .8Trhmftmmdbdrr'qxvnqcr10 3 .9Trhmfhm'ooqnoqh'sdnqinformalphrases10 3 .10Mnsrs'qshmfnewsentencesvgdm'ooqnoqh'sd11 3 .11Hmbnqqdbstrdnecommas11 3 .12Lhwhmfpronouns12 3 .13Hm'ooqnoqh'sdtrdnedefinitearticle12 3 .14Hm'ooqnoqh'sdnqhmbnqqdbstrdnecapitalletters12 3 .15TrhmfY'mc"hmrsd'cneYsn"13 3 .16Hmrteehbhdmsproof-reading13

4.Reasoning(themostcommonmistakes)14

4 .1Onnqrsqtbstqd14 4 .2Onnqqdedqdmbhmfsdbgmhptdr14 4 .3Onnqnqtmbkd'qqd'rnmhmf15 4 .4Fdmdq'khr'shnmr15 4 .5Rodbtk'shnmr'mc'rrdqshnmr15 4 .6Onnqbgnhbdneunb'atk'qx16 4 .7Lhrtrhmfnqlhrptnshmf'vdkk-jmnvmogq'rd16 4 .8L'jhmfhmchqdbs'rrtloshnmr16 4 .9Hm'ooqnoqh'sdnqhm'cudqsdmstrdnelds'ognq16

5.UsefulTips17

6.CommonlyConfusedWords18

7.WritingSupportatEssex19

8.FurtherReading20

1.Structuring

a nEssay

Adenqdvddwoknqdsgdlhbqnhrrtdrnevqhshmf

( fq'll'q'mcotmbst'shnm),hsl'xgdkosn s ghmj'antssgdl'bqnhrrtdr,drodbh'kkxdrr'x rsqtbstqd.Vghkdxntqfq'll'q'mc otmbst'shnml'xhloqnudfq'ct'kkxnudqshld, xntb'ms'jdhlldch'sd'mcd'rxrsdorsn hloqnudsgdv'xxntrsqtbstqdxntqdrr'xr,enq vghbgsgdenkknvhmfl'xadtrdetk. I ntroduction

Sgdhmsqnctbshnmhrvgdqdxntoqnuhcd'qntsd-

l'oenqsgdqd'cdq'mcl'jdbkd'qgnvxntq 'qftldmsvhkkcdudkno(rddnoonrhsd).Nmd deedbshud'ooqn'bghrsnntskhmdsgdl'hmhrrtdr sg'sxntrddjsn'ccqdrrhmxntqdrr'x.Hsl'x 'krnad'ooqnoqh'sdsndwok'hmgnvxnthmsdqoqds sgdptdrshnm.Insize,theintroductionshould generallybenomorethan10%oftheessay.

Mainbody

H shrtosnxntsncdbhcdnmsgdadrsv'xsn n qf'mhrdxntqdrr'x.Vg'sdudqxntcdbhcd, l'jdrtqdxnt'cnos'rxrsdl'shbnqknfhb'k ' ooqn'bgsg'shrsq'mro'qdmssnxntqqd'cdqr.

Jddosgdlhmenqldc'antssgdrsdorhmxntq

dwonrhshnm(sgdoqdrdms'shnmnexntquhdvonhms).

Wnt'qdmnsvqhshmf'lxrsdqxnqsgqhkkdq,rncn

mnskd'udsgdqd'cdqhmrtrodmrdtmshksgddmc; l'jdxntq'qftldmsdwokhbhs'mcl'jdrtqd dudqxo'q'fq'oghmsgdl'hmancxnexntq drr'xkhmjrsnsgdnmdradenqd'mc'esdqhs.Hehs gdkorfi'mchehshr'ooqnoqh'sdfixntbntkc chuhcdxntqdrr'xhmsnrdbshnmr'mc rtardbshnmr,fhuhmfd'bgrdbshnm' rtagd'chmfnqrtll'qxhm'edvvnqcr;xnt b'm'kv'xrqdlnudrtagd'chmfr'esdqv'qcr. C o n clusion

Sgdbnmbktrhnmhrvgdqdxntqdlhmcsgdqd'cdq

nevg'sxntg'udcnmdfisgdl'hmhrrtdrxnt g'ud'ccqdrrdc'mcvg'sxntg'ud'qftdc.

Sgdbnmbktrhnmrgntkcbnms'hmmnmdvl'sdqh'k.

W ntqbnmbktrhnmrrgntkcadbkd'q,kd'uhmfsgd qd'cdqhmmncntas'rsnvg'sxntsghmj;xnt r gntkc'krndwok'hmvgxxntqbnmbktrhnmr'qd h lonqs'ms'mcrhfmhehb'ms.@rRsdkk'Bnssqdkk (2003:154)rtffdrsr,hsl'x'krnad'fnnc h cd'snkhmjxntqehm'krdmsdmbdsnsgdptdrshnm bnms'hmdchmsgdshskd.Insize,theconclusion s houldbenomorethan10%oftheessay.

Referencelistand/or

b ibliography @ oodmcdcsnxntqdrr'xrgntkcad'khrsne'kk s gdrntqbdrxntg'udqdedqqdcsn('qdedqdmbd k h rs)'mc/nq'khrsne'kknesgdrntqbdrxntg'ud b nmrtksdcatsmnsqdedqqdcsnvhsghmsgddrr'x ( 'ahakhnfq'ogx).Ehmcntsvghbghrqdpthqdcax xntqcdo'qsldms'mcvghbgqdedqdmbhmf rxrsdlhroqdedqqdc;hsl'xadsg'ssgdxqdpthqd ansg,dhsgdqrdo'q'sdkxnqbnlahmdc. 2 T ip Y o ushouldbeabletosumupthe b asicopinionorargumentofyour e ssayinacoupleoflines.Itmay h elptodothisbeforeyoustart w riting. T ip ' H owevertheyareworded,all a s signmenttitlescontainacentral q u estionwhichhastobeanswered. Y ourmaintaskistoapplywhatyou k now-howeverbrilliantyourpiece o fwriting,ifitdoesnot'answerthe q u estion"youmaygetnomarksat a l l."(Cottrell2003:154)

EssayChecklist

1 .EssayTitle ✔Cndrsgddrr'xg'udsgdetkk'mcbnqqdbs d r r ' xshskd? 2 .Introduction ✔Hrsgdqd'rhfmh"b'mshmsqnctbshnmsg's h cdmsh"drsgdsnohb,otqonrd'mcrsqtbstqd n esgddrr'x? ✔@qdjdxvnqcrnqbnmbdosrhcdmsh"dchm s g dhmsqnctbshnm? 3 .MainBody ✔Hrsgdqdokdmsxneduhcdmbdsg'sxntg'ud c n m dsgdqdpthqdcqd'chmf? ✔G'udxntotsd'bgl'hmonhmshm' r do'q'sdo'q'fq'og? ✔@qdsgdo'q'fq'ogrknfhb'kkxkhmjdc? ✔Hrd'bgl'hmonhms/'qftldmsrtoonqsdcax d u h cdmbd,'qftldmsnqdw'lokdr? ✔@qdsgdhcd'rnensgdqrbkd'qkxqdedqdmbdc? 4 .Conclusion ✔Hrsgdbnmbktrhnmchqdbskxqdk'sdcsnsgd p t drshnm? ✔Hrhsa'rdcnmduhcdmbd'mce'bsr? ✔Cndrhsrtll'qhrdsgdl'hmonhmsr? ✔Hrhsrtars'msh'k('o'q'fq'ognqlnqd)? 5 .References ✔G'udxntqdedqdmbdc'kknexntqrntqbdr? ✔@qd'kknesgdqdedqdmbdr'bbtq'sd? ✔@qd'kknesgdqdedqdmbdrhmsgddrr'x r gnvmhmsgdahakhnfq'ogx'mcuhbdudqr'? 6 .Layout ✔Hrhsmd's'mckdfhakxoqdrdmsdc? 3 W hatisanargument? W n tl'xg'udbnld'bqnrrsgdsdql Y ' q f t l d m s "hm'm'b'cdlhbbnmsdws'mcedks b n m e t r d c ,mnsetkkxtmcdqrs'mchmfhsr l d ' m h m f .Ntsrhcdne'b'cdlh',Y'qftldms" t r t ' k k xqdedqrsn'chr'fqddldms.Hssdmcrsn a d'mdudms;'ogxrhb'knbbtqqdmbd.Sghrl'x a dsgdrdmrdnesgdvnqcsg'shrlnrse'lhkh'q s nxnt,ats'mY'b'cdlhb'qftldms" c d r b q h a d rrnldsghmfpthsdcheedqdms:hshr d r r d m s h ' k k x'onhmsneuhdv. @fnnc'qftldms('Yrntmc"'qftldms)hr' o n h m sneuhdvsg'shroqdrdmsdchm'bkd'q'mc k n f h b ' kv'x,rnsg'sd'bgrs'fdneqd'rnmhmf h rsq'mro'qdms'mcbnmuhmbhmf;hsvhkkhmbktcd d u h c d m b d'mconrrhakdbntmsdq-'qftldmsr.Hs l ' xdudmgdkosnl'jdsgd'rrtloshnmsg's s g dqd'cdqhrhmchr'fqddldmsvhsgxnt. W n tvhkkmnsnmkxehmc'qftldmsrnesghrjhmchm ' b ' c d l h bbnmsdwsr.Vgdmdudqxntqd'c' o ' o d q ,nqv'sbgSU,nqkhrsdmsn'eqhdmc,xnt ' q doqdrdmsdcvhsg'm'qftldmsfi'onhmsne u h d vsg'sg'raddm'qshbtk'sdcvhsgsgd d w o q d r rotqonrdnebnmuhmbhmfxntnehsr u ' k h c h s xnqsqtsg.@klnrs'mxvgdqdvgdqd s g d q dhrsgntfgs'mcbnlltmhb'shnm,sgdqdhr ' q f t l d m s ;'ksgntfgsgdr'ldhmsdkkdbst'k r s ' m c ' q c r'mcenql'krsqtbstqdsg's'qd h l o n r d chm'm'b'cdlhbbnmsdwsl'xad ' a r d m s.Sgddchsnqh'krdbshnmrnept'khsx m d v r o ' o d q r'qd'o'qshbtk'qkxfnncok'bdsn k n n jenq'qftldmsr. V g d mbnmrsqtbshmfxntq'qftldms,sgdehqrs s g h m fsncnhrsnqd'csgddrr'xptdrshnm, s g d mqd'chs'f'hm.Vg'scndrhs'rjxntsn c n ?@rrdrr?Du'kt'sd?Chrbtrr?Bnlo'qd? D ' b gnesgdrdYptdrshnm-vnqcr"hrcheedqdms. L ' j drtqdsg'sxntq'qftldmsl'sbgdrsgd p t d r s h n m - v n q c.Nmbdxnt'qdbdqs'hmnexntq o n h m sneuhdv,rs'qssghmjhmf'antssgdjhmcne d u h c d m b dsg'svntkcrs'mctohmbntqs. 4 2 .PartsofSpeech E achwordinasentencecanbe d e finedbythe roleitplays. T h edifferentrolesareknownas ' partsofspeech".Inordertofully u nderstandtheexamplesinthis b o o k let,itmayhelpto re-familiariseyourselfwith t h ebasicpartsofspeech. 5 V e r b @udqahrsgdo'qsneroddbgsg'sodnokdsdmc s nhcdmshexlnrsd'rhkx.Hmrbgnnkrhshrjmnvm ' r'Ycnhmfvnqc"fi'm'bshnmvnqcfivghbg c drbqhadrvg'ssgdmntmrhmsgdrdmsdmbd'qd c n h mf,h.d.rvhllhmf,v'kjhmf,d'shmf,sghmjhmf, f qnvhmf,kd'qmhmf,cqhmjhmf,lhradg'uhmf.Hmsgd rdmsdmbd,YR'lrstchdrhmsgdkhaq'qx",Yrstchdr" h rsgdudqa. N o u n @mntmhr'mnaidbsfi'sghmffirtbg'rYsd'l",

Yfhqk"nqYb'q".@Yoqnodqmntm"hrsgdproper

m ' ldnesgdsghmf(hehsg'rhsrnvmm'ld)rtbg ' rYBnkbgdrsdqTmhsdc",YMhbnkd",nqYOnqrbgd". O q n odqmntmrg'ud'b'ohs'kkdssdq.Sghrrgnvr s g ' svg'shradhmfqdedqqdcsnhrsgdproper n a m e(YOnqrbgd")q'sgdqsg'msgdbnllnmnq b n k k d bshudm'ld(Yb'q").

Pronoun

@oqnmntmhr'vnqcsg'shrtrdcinplaceofa n o u n,rtbg'rYgd",Yrgd",Yhs",Yghl",Ygdq",dsb.Hsr o tqonrdhrsn'unhcdmckdrrqdodshshnmnesgd m n tmvghkddmrtqhmfsg'smnmdnesgdld'mhmf n esgdrdmsdmbdhrknrs.Enqdw'lokd,sgd rdmsdmbd,Y@actkhrotmbst'k:gdhr'kv'xrnm s h l denqghrstsnqh'kr"hrltbgadssdqsg'm Y @actkhrotmbst'k:@actkhr'kv'xrnmshldenq @ actk"rstsnqh'kr." A d jective @ m'cidbshudhr'describingwordsg'sfhudr s g dmntm'pt'khsxsg'sl'jdrhslnqdrodbhehb. E n qdw'lokd,'mxmtladqne'cidbshudrbntkc adtrdcsnYpt'khex"sgdmntmYkdbstqd".Hsbntkc ad'mYdwbdkkdmskdbstqd",'Yknmfkdbstqd",nq'

Yanqhmfkdbstqd"fiYdwbdkkdms",Yknmf"'mcYanqhmf"

' q d'kk'cidbshudr. A d verb @ m'cudqahr'cdrbqhahmfvnqc,atsforverbs, m n smntmr.Enqdw'lokd,Ypthbjkx",Yrstohckx"'mc

Ygtqqhdckx"'qd'kk'cudqar(sgdxnesdmdmc

h mYfikx").Sgdx'qdtrdcvhsgudqarsnl'jdsgd ' b s h nmlnqdrodbhehb,d.f.Ycqhmjpthbjkx", Y adg'udrstohckx",Yvnqjgtqqhdckx".Hmsgd rdmsdmbd,Ysgdkdbstqdqrgntsdckntckx",Ykntckx" h rsgd'cudqa. P reposition O q donrhshnmr'qdvnqcrsg'scdrbqhadsgd p o sition'mclnudldmsnesgdmntmrhm' rdmsdmbd,rtbg'rYsn",Yeqnl",Yhmsn",Ynts",Yne",

Yhm".Sgdxoqdbdcdsgdmntm,d.f.Ysnsgd

b k ' rrqnnl",Yhmsgdkdbstqd".Enqdw'lokd,hmsgd rdmsdmbd,Y@esdqadhmfotrgdchmsnsgdk'jd,H v'rrstbjhmsgdv'sdq",Yhm"'mcYhmsn"'qdansg oqdonrhshnmr;Yhm"cdrbqhadr'onrhshnm, vgdqd'rYhmsn"cdrbqhadrlnudldms. 6 3 .Punctuationand G r a mmar ' P u n c t uationshouldn"tcauseas m u c hfearasitdoes.Onlyabouta dozenmarksneedtobe m asteredandtheguidelinesare f a irly simple.What"smore,you c a nseethemarksbeingwell a ppliedeverydayintheserious n e w s p apers." M artinCutts,ThePlainEnglishGuide,OUP,1995,p.80

Althoughthissectionalsocovers

grammar,misuseofpunctuation i sattheheartofmanyofthe m o stcommonmistakesin w r i t i ng.Goodpunctuationmakes therelationshipbetweenwords i nasentenceclear,whilealso a c t i ngasasubstituteforfeatures ofspeechsuchaspausingand a l t eringpitchandtone.Misusing punctuationcanbeliketalking w i t hamouthfuloffood, obscuringandobstructingthe i ntendedmeaning.

3.1.Badsyntax

Y R xms'w"hrsgdsdbgmhb'kvnqcsg'shrtrdcsn c drbqhadrdmsdmbdrsqtbstqd.Hshrdwsqdldkx h lonqs'ms,'r'vdkk-nqcdqdcrdmsdmbdl'jdr l d'mhmfbkd'q'mcbnmbhrd,vgdqd'r'a'ckx- n q cdqdcrdmsdmbdl'jdrsgdqd'cdq('mc l ' qjdq)vnqjudqxg'qcsntmcdqrs'mcsgd l d'mhmf. R s t cdmsdw'lokd:Y@ksgntfgsgdbtqqdmsk'venq d rs'akhrghmfvgdsgdqrnldsghmfhr'ehwstqdnq e hsshmfb'mad'qftdcsnadq'sgdqldrrx'mc h mbngdqdms"" I nthissentence,thewordorderis,tousethe a u t h o r"sownphrase,'rathermessyand i n c o h erent".Aslightreordering,usingthe samevocabulary,makesthesentencemuch c l earerandmorelogical:Y@ksgntfghsbntkcad ' q ftdcsg'ssgdbtqqdmsk'venqdrs'akhrghmf v gdsgdqrnldsghmfhr'ehwstqdnqehsshmfhr q ' s gdqldrrx'mchmbngdqdms"" P l a y i ngaroundwithsyntaxcantransform yoursentence.Thinkaboutthebestwaytoorderthekeywordsandphrases.Ifyouare s trugglingtomakeyourmeaningclearina s entence,trychangingthewordorder. 3 .2.Inappropriateuseoftense L ' j drtqdxnttrdsgdbnqqdbssdmrdfi'mcad b nmrhrsdmsvhsghs.Vgdmxnt'qdhmsqnctbhmf ' mcchrbtrrhmfnsgdqodnokd"rnohmhnmr,trd s gdoqdrdmssdmrd,d.f.YLhkkradkhdudr"nqYLhkkr b k 'hlr"q'sgdqsg'mYLhkkradkhdudc"nqYLhkkr b k 'hldc".Axotsshmfsgdlhmsgdo'rssdmrd, s gdhqnohmhnmrrddlc'sdc;hs'krnrtffdrsr s g'ssgdhquhdvrl'xg'udrhmbdbg'mfdc. H sl'x,gnvdudq,ad'ooqnoqh'sdsntrdsgdo'rs s dmrdhesgdodqrnmhmptdrshnmg'raddmcd'c 'knmfshld,nqv'rvqhshmfhm'cheedqdmsdq'. R s tcdmsdw'lokd:Y@edvxd'qr'fn,PnadqsO. B q d'rd'rjdcogxrhbh'mrvg'ssgdxsghmjhrsgd l n rsad'tshetkdwodqhldmsne'kkshld." I nthissentence,theauthorshiftstense.It startsinthepasttense('Afewyearsago, R o bertP.Crease'rjdcphysicians...")then m o v esintothepresenttense('...whatsgdx s g h mjisthemostbeautifulexperimentofall t ime).Aswellasbeingconfusing,the statementcouldalsobeinaccurate,asthe p h y siciansmayhavechangedtheirminds sincetheywereasked.Allthatcanbesaid f o rcertainisthattheexperimentthey identifiedwaswhatsgdxsgntfgswasthe m o stbeautiful'ssgdshld. I tisacommonpracticetousethefuture t enseinintroductorysectionsofessays,for example'Thepurposeofthisessaywillbe t oexplore...."or'Thisessaywillexplore...".

Thefuturetensecansounduncertainand

u nconfident,however:youcanbemore a s sertivebywritinginthepresenttense, e.g.'Thepurposeofthisessayisto explore..."or'Thisessayexplores...". 7

3.3.Incorrectuseof

p repositions

Vg's'qdoqdonrhshnmr?Oqdonrhshnmr'qd

vnqcrsg'scdrbqhadsgdpositionand m o v e m entnesgdmntmrhm'rdmsdmbd(rdd O ' qsrneRoddbgsnbk'qhexxntqtmcdqrs'mchmf).

Sgdx'qdudqxd'rxsntrdhmbnqqdbskx,adb'trd

s gdxnesdmrddlsnsoundrighthm'rdmsdmbd.

Sgdrdbqdshrsnrsdoa'bj'mcsghmj'ants

d'bgnmd'mcvgdsgdqhshrcdrbqhahmfsgdqhfgs onrhshnmnqlnudldms. R s tcdmsdw'lokd:YVdg'udchrbnmmdbsdc n tqrdkudrvhsgntqedkknvldladqrnernbhdsx ' mcmnknmfdqjmnvsgdmdhfgantqr'qntmctr.

Sgdqd'qdrnl'mxnetrmnvsg'svdrddlsn

n eknrs'rdmrdnebnlltmhsx'mcadbnld rsq'mfdqrnmntqrnbhdsx."

Inthisexample,theauthorhasusedthe

w rongprepositioninanumberofplaces.In thefirstpartofthesentence,heorshehas m isunderstoodtherelationshipbetweenthe subject('ourselves")andtheobject('fellow m embersofsociety")ofthesentence:you c a n n o t'disconnectwith",as'with"means ' together",youcanonlydisconnect'from".

Inthesecondpartofthesentence,theauthor

hasmadeamistakethatiscommonin conversation:using'of"insteadof'have"(i.e. 'weseemtooflost"-nesoundsabitlike

Y'ud).Iftheauthorstrippedthesentencedown

andtookouttheclause('seemto")whichhas probablycausedtheconfusion,thesentence w ouldread'Therearesomanyofusnowthat weoflostasenseofcommunity",whichis moreobviouslyincorrect.Inthefinalpartof thesentence,'on"isusedinsteadof'in".

Correctuseofprepositionsshowsclarityof

t houghtandagoodunderstandingofthe relationshipsbetweeneverythingthatisdescribedinthesentence.Thinkcarefully a b o u tthepositionandmovementofnouns i nyoursentences.Isso-and-so(,or-, t h i s-or-that?Isthis-or-thatbeingtaken0- o r .-)so-and-so? 3 .4.Incorrectuseofcolonsand semi-colons. B nknmr'mcrdlh-bnknmrl'xknnj'mcrntmc ' khjd,ats'qd'bst'kkxudqxcheedqdms.Sgdxb'm f dmdq'kkxad'unhcdc,rnnmkxtrdsgdlhexnt ' qdbnmehcdmshmxntqtmcdqrs'mchmf. R stcdmsdw'lokd:YSghroqnakdlb'm'krnad r ddmhmsgdenkknvhmfdw'lokd;hm'l'qqh'fd a nsgsgdl'm'mcsgdvnl'm""

Inthissentence,theauthorhasusedasemi-

c olonwhereacolonshouldhavebeenused.

Theaimofthepunctuationmarkistojointhe

twohalvesofthesentencetogether,which a re:(i)aclaimorstatement('Thisproblemcan a lsobeseeninthefollowingexample")and(ii) theexplanation,exampleorproof('ina marriageboththemanandthewoman...").

Sometimesthisuseofacolonisreferredtoas

a'why-because"marker(Cutts,1995:83). S emi-colons,ontheotherhand,arevery differentfromcolons.Anytwostatements ( o rclauses)thatareseparatedbya semi-colonshould(i)beabletostandalone a sseparatesentences,and(ii)beclosely c o nnectedintermsoftheirsubjectmatter.For e xample,YSgdqd'qd'mtladqnecheedqdmstrdr e nqrdlh-bnknmr;trdchmsgdqhfgsv'x,sgdx b ' maddwsqdldkxudqr'shkd".

Crudeasitmayseem,thecoloninthe

h umanbodyprovidesaveryhelpfulanalogy w iththepunctuationcolon,particularlyin thewayitfunctionsasa'why-because m arker"(notethatcolonscanalsobeused 8 tointroducethefollowing:alistofitems;a c o ntrast;anddirectspeech).Physiologically, t hecolonisthepointatwhichonething ( here,food)becomesanother(inthiscase w a ste).Inthesameway,agrammatical c o lonseparates(A)theintroductionof s omething,e.g.anideaoraclaim,from(B) t heexplanationforthatideaorclaim.

3.5.Incorrectuseof

a p ostrophes A p o s t r ophesareperhapsthemostmisused p u nctuationmarkofall.Describedas'errant t adpoles"(Cutts,1995:89),theycan,ifused i ncorrectly,completelyobscuretheintended m eaningofasentence. S t u dentexample:'Thelawdoesnotspecify o t hereventualities,suchasasituationwherea l o stitemfallsontoalandownersland..." I nthissentence,'landowners"shouldbe 'landowner"s",becausethelandbelongstothe l andowner.Apostrophesindicateownership: 'thelandowner"sland"isanotherwayofsaying 'thelandofthelandowner". C o r rectuseoftheapostropheshowsclarityof t h o ughtandagoodunderstandingofthe r elationshipbetweenthenounsinasentence. L earnaboutapostrophes:theywillhelpyouto t h i nkmoreclearlyandhelpyourreaderto u nderstandandfollowyourargumentbetter ( s e eFurtherReading).Remembertherulethat t h eapostrophegenerallygoesbeforethe's"if t h enounissingular(e.g.thedog"sdinner m eaningthedinnerofthedog)andafterthe ' s "ifthenounisplural(dogs"dinnermeaning t h edinnerofthedogs). A swellasindicatingownership,theother c o m m o nuseofapostrophesistoshow t h a taletterismissing-thatwordshavebeen'contracted"-i.e.'It"snothingtodo w i t hme"insteadof'Itisnothingtodowith m e";'She"sbeenalongtime"insteadof ' S h ehasbeenalongtime."Asageneral rule,contractionsshouldbeavoidedin a c a d emicwork. 3 .6.Incorrectuseofspeech m arks S peechmarks'doexactlywhattheysayonthe t in":theymarkspeech.Nonetheless,theyare s tilloneofthemostmisusedpunctuation marks. S t udentexample:'In'TheEndofEducation", N i ls(2004)statesthat"theonlythingthatcan s a vetheUKeducationsystemisacomplete o verhaul..."." I nthissentence,theauthorhasusedspeech m a r ks("_")insteadofinvertedcommas('_"). I nmostdisciplinesspeechmarksshouldonly beusedwhensomethingisbeingsaid,not w h e nsomethinghasbeenexpressedin w r iting.Themajorityofquotationsin a c a demicworkwillthereforerequireinverted c o m mas,notspeechmarks,thoughyou shouldchecktheconventionsofyour disciplinetoconfirmthis. T h edifferencebetweenspeechmarks ( sometimescalled'doubleinverted c o mmas")andinvertedcommas('single i n v ertedcommas")isverysimple.Oneway todistinguishthemistorememberthat speechrequiresthephysicalpresenceof twopeople,aspeakerandalistener,hence i tneedsdoubleinvertedcommas:"speech m arks".Whensomethingisbeing r e ferencedfromabook,however,onlyone p e r sonispresent(thereader)hence'single i n v ertedcommas". 9

3.7.Confusingsingularand

plural M ntmr'kv'xrrodbhexmtladq,h.d.vgdsgdqsgdx 'qdrhmftk'q(Ycnf")nqoktq'k(Ycnfr").@rvdkk'r adhmfbnmrhrsdmsvhsgsgdmtladq,xntltrs l'jdrtqdsg'sxntqudqarl'sbgxntqmntmr (d.f.Ysgdcnfrvhlr"nqYsgdcnfrrvhl"). R s tcdmsdw'lokd:YSgdk'vne'udq'fdr'qdsnn tmqdkh'akd""

Inthissentence,theword'law"issingular

(i.e.oneinnumber);ifitisintendedtobe p lural(morethanone),itshouldbe'laws". H o w ever,theauthorhasused'are",theplural formoftheverb,insteadof'is",thesingular ( remember'thelawsare"and'thelawis").

Nounsandverbsmustcorrespond.The

c o n fusionhasprobablyarisenfrom'averages" beingplural,butitis'law"towhichtheverb r efers.Itshouldbe,'Thelawofaveragesis toounrealiable...".

3.8.Usingunnecessarywords

Nmdnesgdlnrsrhfmhehb'mscheedqdmbdrxnt

vhkkmnshbd'rxntqvqhshmfhloqnudrhr' q dctbshnmhmrtodqektntr(h.d.tmmdbdrr'qx) vnqcr.Sgdadrs'mclnrsoqdbhrdvqhshmfhr n esdmsgdrhlokdrs,'rsgd'tsgnqhrhmetkk bnmsqnknedudqxvnqc.@kv'xr'rjxntqrdke vgdsgdqd'bgvnqchrmdbdrr'qx'mcvgdsgdq hshrsgdadrsvnqcxntbntkctrd.Rstcdmsdw'lokd:YAdhmfonnqhmrnbhdsxsnc'x h scndrmnsb'trd'rl'mxoqnakdlrenqsgd h m chuhct'k'rhschcl'mxxd'qr'fn."

Inthefirstlineofthissentence,thepronoun'it"

i susedintheplaceof'beingpoor"(apronoun s ubstitutesanoun;seePartsofSpeech). H owever,itsinclusionissuperfluousbecause thereaderdoesnotneedtoberemindedof thesubjectofthesentence.'It"wouldbe necessarytostartanewsentenceinwhich ' b eingpoor"isstillthesubject,butinasingle s entenceitisunnecessaryandconfusing. 3 .9.Usinginappropriateor informalphrases

Hmqdbdmsxd'qrsgdqdg'raddm'mhmbqd'rdhm

s gdmtladqnehmenql'klncdrnevqhssdm b nlltmhb'shnm,rtbg'rdl'hkhmf,sdwshmf,'mc h m rs'msldrr'fhmf.Sgdrdg'udbnmsqhatsdcsn 'qhrdhmsgdmtladqnehmenql'kogq'rdrsg's ' ood'qhmlnqdenql'kvqhshmf,rtbg'rsgd d rr'x. R stcdmsdw'lokd:YHmYSgdPdoqdrrdc

Hl'fhm'shnm"axB.B'qsvqhfgs,nmdnesgd

s nohbrgds'kjr'antshr"" I nthissentence,theverb'talks"is inappropriateandincorrect,because'talking" isaverydifferentactionto'writing". R stcdmsdw'lokd:YA'rhb'kkx,sgdonkhbx'hlrsn h l oqnudsgdpt'khsxnesgdrdquhbd"" T heword'basically"isbecomingincreasingly c o mmoninessays,butisinappropriateinthe c o ntextofacademicwriting,becausethe p urposeisnottoreducethingstotheirmost basicformbuttoexploreissuesandideasin t heirfullcomplexityanddetail.Making something'basic"isdifferenttosummarising. T ermslike'inessence",'tosummarise",or'in short"arefarmoreacademicintone. 1 0 '

Mostexperiencedwritersrewrite

t heirworkoverandover,refining t heirthoughts,findingabetterway o fsayingsomething,makinga l ong-windedsectionabitbriefer,or a ddingmoredetailtodevelopan i dea."(Cottrell2003:146)

Thinkaboutyoureverydayspeech.

H o w everwellyoumayspeak,muchof w h a tyousay,andthephrasesyouuse,will b einappropriateforformalwrittenwork. U singtheword'talk"asanumbrellatermto r efertoanykindofcommunicationisjust o n eexampleofthiscommonmistake. T h i n kcarefullyaboutthewordsyouuse: w h a tmighttheybeimplyingbyaccident?

3.10.Notstartingnew

s e n tenceswhenappropriate H exnt'qdtmrtqdvgdsgdqnqmnssnrs'qs'mdv rdmsdmbd,xntoqna'akxrgntkc,drodbh'kkxhe x n tk'bjbnmehcdmbdvhsgbnknmr'mcrdlh- b n k n m r,vghbgb'madtrdcsnl'jdlnqd b n lokdwrdmsdmbdr.Hehmcntas,jddoxntq rdmsdmbdr'rrhlokd'ronrrhakd.Sgdqdhr' e ' lntrr'xhmf,'ssqhatsdcsnDohbsdstr,sgd F qddjoghknrnogdq: D onotwritesothatyoucanbeunderstood, w r itesothatyoucannotbemisunderstood. R s t cdmsdw'lokd:YSgdfq'ogrgnvrsgd q drtksr,'esdqe'shftdsgdrbnqdhrfdmdq'kkx k nvdq.Sgdqd'qdrnld'mnl'khdr,sgdqdbntkc a dl'mxcheedqdmsqd'rnmrenqsghr." I nthisexample,bothsentenceswouldbe l essconfusingiftheywereseparatedintotwo statements,eitherbyfullstopsorsemi-colons i . e .'Thegraphshowstheresults.Afterfatigue t h escoreisgenerallylower.Therearesome a n o m a l ies.Therecouldbemanydifferent r easonsforthis."Alternatively,thesentences c o u l dberephrasedsothateachstatement f l owsintothenext,i.e.'Thegraphshowsthat a f terfatiguethescoreisgenerallylower. T herearesomeanomalies,however,for w h i c htherecouldbemanydifferentreasons."Rememberthatasentenceshouldusually c o ntainasingleideaorargument;likewise, aparagraphshouldcontainasingletheme o rfocus.Paycloseattentiontowhereand h o wprofessionalwritersstartnew s entences.Learnhowtousesemi-colons, c o l o ns,andcommassothatyoucanform m o recomplexsentences. 3 .11.Incorrectuseofcommas H m'mtsrgdkk,Ybnll'r'bs'rrdo'q'snqr a dsvddmo'qsrne'rdmsdmbd"(Btssr,1995:81). S nsghrdeedbs,sgdxnesdmmddcsnadtrdchm o 'hqr.Sgdenkknvhmfhritrsnmddw'lokdnegnv bnll'r'qdlhrtrdc(rddRv'm,1996:468- 4 7

0enq'bnloqdgdmrhudkhrs).

R s tcdmsdw'lokd:YOqhu'sdoqnakdlr,Lhkkr adkhdudrb'mnesdmadqdrnkudcntsrhcdne b n tqs"" T h ereshouldbeapairofcommasinthis sentence,notasinglecomma.Itshouldread 'Privateproblems,Millsbelieves,canoftenbe r esolved...".'Millsbelieves"isaseparate 'clause"andneedstobeseparatedsothat t h esentencemakessensewithorwithoutit. C u tts(1995:82)explainsthisnicely:'Apair o fcommascordonsoffinformationthatisan a side,explanationoraddition.Readerscan,if t h eywish,leapfrogthecordoned-offareaand stillmakesenseofwhatissaid." 1 1

3.12.Mixingpronouns

@Yoqnmntm"l'xrntmckhjdrnldsghmf s dbgmhb'k'mcbnlokdw,atshshr'bst'kkxudqx rhlokd(rddO'qsrneRoddbgsnbk'qhexxntq tmcdqrs'mchmf).@kv'xrl'jdrtqdsg'sxntq oqnmntml'sbgdrxntqmntm.Hrhssgdqhfgs mtladq?Hrhssgdqhfgsfdmcdq?Hrhsehqrs, rdbnmc,nqsghqcodqrnm? R s tcdmsdw'lokd:YAdb'trdrnbhdsxhr bg'mfhmfrnq'ohckxhshrd'rxsntmcdqrs'mc vgxnmdl'xeddkgdb'mmnsbnod""

Inthissentence,theauthormixesthe

p ronouns,movingfrom'one"to'he",whichis veryconfusingforthereader.Abetter sentencewouldbe,'Becausesocietyis changingsorapidlyitiseasytounderstand w h ypeoplefeelthattheycannotcope..."

3.13.Inappropriateuseof

d e finitearticle

Nmdnesgdlnrsbnmetrhmfsghmfr'antssgd

D m fkhrgk'mft'fdenqrnldhmsdqm'shnm'k rstcdmsrhrsgdYcdehmhsd'qshbkd"finsgdqvhrd jmnvm'rYsgd"fiadb'trdrnldk'mft'fdrcn mnsg'ud'qshbkdr. R s tcdmsdw'lokd:YSnehmc'rdmrdneqd'rnm hmrsd'cnecqnvmhmfhmsgdcdosgrnebnmetrhnm s gdrnbhdsxadrsnvrtonmtr""

Inthissentence,thesecondoccurrenceof

thedefinitearticle('the"in'thesociety")is superfluous.

Althoughcorrectuseofthedefinitearticleis

acommonproblemamonginternational students,itisalsoincreasinglycommon amonghomestudents.Learnthedifference betweenthedefinitearticle('the",e.g.'the house")andtheindefinitearticle('a",'some", e.g.'ahouse"or'somehouses")-youcanseewhytheyareclassedasindefiniteor d efinite.Thinkcarefullyaboutwhetheryou n e edtouseone,theother,orneither. 3 .14.Inappropriateor incorrectuseofcapitalletters @ o'qseqnlhmodnokd"rm'ldr,hmshskdr,'mc's s gdadfhmmhmfnerdmsdmbdr,b'ohs'kr(ahf k d ssdqr)rgntkcnmkxadtrdchesgdvnqchr'

Yoqnodqmntm"q'sgdqsg'm'bnllnmmntm,h.d.

h ehshrsgdneehbh'km'ldnqshskdenqrnldsghmf ( rddO'qsrneRoddbgsnbk'qhexxntq t mcdqrs'mchmf). R stcdmsdw'lokd:YNmdc'x'sd'bgdqmnshbdr s g'ssgdbghkcqdmrs'qslhrrhmfRbgnnk'mc n esdm'qqhudk'sd"" I nthisexample,theauthorhasusedcapital lettersinappropriately.Forexample,inthe c a seofschool,theonlytimeitshouldbe g ivenacapitalletterisifitspropernameis beingreferredto,i.e.WoodlandsSchool,orif t hereferenceistoaspecificschool.Inthe e xample,theauthorwasnotreferringtoa specificschool.Itisthesamewiththeword 'department".If,forexample,youarereferring specificallytoyourdepartment,itshouldbe 'DepartmentofPsychology".Ifyouare r eferringtodepartmentsingeneral,itshould be'departments". C o rrectuseofcapitallettersisquiteeasy t ounderstandifyoumakethetimeto l earn.Studentsoftenhavetroublewith c a p i tallettersintitles;ofessays, p u b l i c a tions,etc.However,thereareset rulesthatareeasytolearnandapply.Take t h etime.SeeFurtherReading. 1 2

3.15.Using'and"insteadof'to"

H shr'mhmbqd'rhmfkxbnllnmlhrs'jdsntrd Y ' mc"hmrsd'cneYsn",d.f.YHv'mssnsqx'mckd'qm 'mdvrjhkk"hmrsd'cneYHv'mssnsqxsnkd'qm' m dvrjhkk".Naidbshnmrsnsghro'qshbtk'qlhrs'jd l ' xrddlhqqdkdu'ms'mcnkc-e'rghnmdc,atshs ' b s t'kkx'ksdqrsgdld'mhmfnesgdrdmsdmbd. R s t cdmsdw'lokd:YNmdqdronmrdne b n llhrrhnmdqrv'rsnsqx'mcl'm'fd c dl'mc"" I ntheexamplesentence,whattheauthor a c t u a llymeansis'totrytomanagedemand". 'Totry"isaninfinitiveverb(i.e.a'to"verb) w h i c hneedsanadditionalverb-inthiscase ' m a n a g e"-toqualifyit.Byusing'and"instead o f'to",thesentenceisactuallysayingthat t h erearetwoactions(twoverbs)atwork:the f i r stactionis'trying";thesecondactionis 'managing".Therefore,thesentenceis e ffectivelysaying,'Oneresponseof c o m m i ssionerswastotryandthentomanage d emand..."

3.16.Insufficientproof-reading

@ kv'xroqnne-qd'cxntqvnqj'mc'kv'xrfds rnldnmddkrd,rtbg'r'sqtrsdceqhdmc,sn o qnne-qd'chsenqxnt.L'jdrtqdxnt'kknv x n tqrdkedmntfgshldsncnsghrdeedbshudkx,h.d. k d'ud'edvc'xradsvddmqd'chmfrrnsg's x n tb'mqd'chsvhsgeqdrgdxdr.Wdr,sghr l d'mrcnhmfxntqdrr'xrvdkkadenqdsgd c d'ckhmdr" R s t cdmsdw'lokd:YL'mxoqnakdlrqdk'sd c hqdbskxsnsgdk'bjnenqk'bjneetmbshnmhmf h mrshstshnmrvhsghmrnbhdsx". A l thoughthissentencemakessense,itcould b emisreadasamistakeortypo(a ' t ypographicalerror").Thechoiceofphrasing ( ' l a c koforlackof"),andtheabsenceofcommastopunctuatethephrase,makethe sentenceveryconfusingforthereader.Apair o fcommasclarifiesmeaning:'Manyproblems r elatedirectlytothelackof,orlackof f u nctioning,institutionswithinsociety".

Trytodevelopyourabilitytoreadyour

w o rkwithfreshandcriticaleyes. E m p a t h i sewithyourreader.Itmayhelpto readaloudtoyourself;thatwayyoucanbe h yper-sensitivetoyourpunctuation,and t estwhetherithelpsorhinderstheflowof yoursentences. 1 3 m ySkills mySkills,theUniversity"sacademic skillswebsite,featuresadvice, guidance,andinteractiveresources onallaspectsofstudy.Developed a sajointinitiative,everythingthat ishousedwithinthesitehasbeen a uthoredbyexpertacademicand supportstafffromacrossthe U niversity.Ithasalargesectionon w riting,featuringashortfilmin w hichstudentsgivetheiropinions a ndadviceonessaywriting.

VisitmySkills:

w ww.essex.ac.uk/myskills

4.Reasoning

Asidefromthegrammatical

errorslistedintheprevious section,themostcommon m i s t akesmadebyfirst-year studentsintheiressaysarise frompoorpracticeanddecision- m a k i ngrelatingtoreasoning, structure,argumentation,and presentation.Thesehavebeen groupedtogetherunderthe umbrellaofReasoning,butthere i salsoaseparatesectionon S tructuringanEssay(p.2).

4.1.Poorstructure

Sgdlnrsbnllnmlhrs'jdrsg'srstcdmsr

l'jdhmsgdhq'b'cdlhbvqhshmfqdk'sdsn rsqtbstqd,'mc,he'rjdc,l'mxkdbstqdqrvntkc r ' xsg'ssgdrsqtbstqdhrsgdlnrshlonqs'ms dkdldmsne'mdrr'x:vhsgnts'rsqnmf,vdkk- bnmrhcdqdc'mcvdkk-ok'mmdceq'ldvnqjfi vhsgnts'aktdoqhmsfihsb'maddwsqdldkx cheehbtkssnrs'xenbtrdc'mccdudknoxntq ' qftldms.Hmlnrsb'rdr,xntrgntkcg'ud' ok'mnq'mdrr'xntskhmdadenqdxntadfhm vqhshmf.Gnvdudq,hsnesdmgdkorsnitrsfdsxntq gd'ccnvm'mcvqhsd.Sghrhrehmdfi'mc' gd'ksgxoq'bshbd!fiats'kv'xrg'ud'm n qf'mhrhmfrsqtbstqd,vgdsgdqsghrbnldr'ahs k'sdqnqadenqdxntdudmotsodmsno'odq(nq ehmfdqrsnjdxr). P d'cRsqtbstqhmf'mDrr'xnm(o.2). 4 .2.Poorreferencing t echniques S nvqhsdvdkk-rsqtbstqdc'mcvdkk-'qftdc d rr'xr,hshrbqtbh'ksg'sxntcdudknoxntq ' ahkhsxsnhmsqnctbd'mcchrbtrrsgdnohmhnmrne d wodqsrhmxntqehdkc. R stcdmsdw'lokd:YHmVqhfgsLhkkr,YSgd O q nlhrdneRnbhnknfx",gdhcdmshehdrrdudq'k cheedqdmsodqrnm'ksqntakdr""

Inthissentence,theuseof'in"isincorrectand

theuseof'he"issuperfluous.Itshouldbe '

WrightMills,in'ThePromiseofSociology",

i d entifies..."or'In'ThePromiseofSociology", W rightMillsidentifies..."Thesubject(the a uthor)andtheobject(thebook)havebeen c onfused:theyareseenasoneandthesame.

NB.Checkwhattheconventionsareforyour

discipline-itmayoritmaynotbenecessary t oincludedateandtitle,forexample. P u tasideafewmomentstolearnand m a stersomeeasytechniquesfor i ntroducingareferenceorcitationthatyou c a nrelyuponanddevelopasyougainin c o nfidence.Payattentiontohow p rofessionalwritersandacademics i ntroducereferencesinthepublishedwork t h atyouread.

Manytechniquesaresimpletounderstand

a ndapply.Forexample,onecommonway t ointroduceareferenceis:'AUTHOR,in

TITLE,argues[orclaimsorassertsor

s tates,etc.]that'QUOTE"..."e.g.

Yates,in'HowtoImproveYourAcademic

Writing",arguesthat'themajorityof

p eoplehaveneverbeenencouragedor h a veneverfoundareasontoget p a ssionateaboutlanguage"(2008:2). 1 4

4.3.Poororunclearreasoning

@ anud'kk,odqg'orsgdjdxsn'rtbbdrretk d rr'xhrfnncqd'rnmhmf,h.d.d'bgrdmsdmbdfi ' m caxdwsdmrhnmd'bgo'q'fq'ogfieknvr k nfhb'kkxhmsnsgdmdws,athkchmfsnv'qcr'vdkk- q d'rnmdc'mcvdkk-rsqtbstqdc'qftldms. R s t cdmsdw'lokd:YCheedqdmsfqntorg'ud c heedqdmshcdmshshdr,v'xrnerdo'q'shmf s gdlrdkudreqnlnsgdqr.Sghrkd'crsn r sdqdnsxodr.Odnokdlhrtmcdqrs'mcnmd ' mnsgdqa'rdcnmsgdhq'ood'q'mbd.Sghr c huhrhnmadsvddmodnokdhrfdsshmfahffdq'mc l nqdoqnakdl'shbdudqxc'x." A l thoughthisparagraphmakessense,a n u m b erofassumptionsaremadebythe a u t h o r ,andtheconnectionbetweeneach sentenceisnotalwaysexplicit,i.e.the sentencesdonotprogresslogicallyfromone t othenext. A l w a yscheckeachsentenceinrelationto t h esentencethatprecedesittobecertain t h a tthereisadirectrelationship,andthat t h ecentralideacontinuestobedeveloped.

4.4.Generalisations

A dv'qdsgdfdmdq'khr'shnm!Hshrnesdmsdloshmf s nfdsb'qqhdc'v'x'mc'ookxntqhcd'nq n o h mhnmsndudqxsghmf,ats'kv'xradlhmcetkne d wbdoshnmr'mcbntmsdq-'qftldmsr. R s tcdmsdw'lokd:YMnv'c'xrvd'qdlnqd'akd s ndw'lhmdntqrdkudreqnlansg'otakhb'mc o d qrnm'kuhdvonhms.Vdvdqdnmbdchbs'sdcsn, h mntqv'xnesghmjhmf,atsmnvvd'qdeqdd." T heauthormakesassumptionsabouttime a n dplace,bothpastandpresent,implying i n tellectualsuperiorityoverthepast,and m a k ingauniversalisationorgeneralisation a b o u tfreedomofthought. 4 .5.Speculationsand a s sertions

Hexnt'qdl'jhmf'bk'hlsg'sbntkcad

chrotsdcaxsgdqd'cdq,l'jdrtqdxnttrd rnldjhmcneduhcdmbdsna'bjhsto. R s tcdmsdw'lokd:YVhsgntssgdonkhbdenqbd s g dqdvntkcad'm'qbgxnmsgdrsqddsr'mc' g tfdhmbqd'rdhmbqhld,vghbgvntkcqdrtkshm l n qdhmchuhct'kradhmfuhbshlrnebqhld."

Whilethismaybetrue,withoutevidenceitis

o n lyspeculative.Itneedstobebackedup w ithanexampleorresearch,e.g.whenor w h e rethiswasthecase. 1 5 '

Beemotionallyneutral:most

academicwritingrequiresyouto s t andbackandanalyse d i spassionately,asanobjective onlooker."(Cottrell2003:157)

Ifyouarenotsureofthedifference

between'objective"and'subjective",look themup.Objectivityisoneofthe c o rnerstonesofacademicpractice.

4.6.Poorchoiceofvocabulary

@kv'xrbgdbjxntqunb'atk'qxenq ' ooqnoqh'sdmdrr...'mccnm"sad'eq'hcsntrd' chbshnm'qx.Hexnt'qdtrhmf'vnqcvghbgg'r' mtladqnecheedqdmsld'mhmfr'mcrodkkhmfr, ' kv'xrknnjhstosnbgdbjsg'sxntg'udtrdc s gdbnqqdbsenql(rddBnllnmkxBnmetrdc

Vnqcr,o.18).

Rstcdmsdw'lokd:YVhsgrnldhmrshstshnmr

adbnlhmfrdbtk'q,rtbg'rqdkhfhnm'mc e'lhkx""

Thechoiceofvocabularyinthissentenceis

p o o r ,especiallytheuseof'secular"because 'religion"and'secular"areopposites.

Therefore,althoughreligionscanbe

disbandedorbecomedefunct,theycannot becomesecular,as'secular"means'non- r eligious".Thesentencecouldberephrasedin anumberofways,e.g.'Withsome i nstitutionsbecomingdefunct,suchas r eligionandfamily...".

4.7.Misusingormisquotinga

w e l l-knownphrase

Nmkxtrdogq'rdrsg'sxntetkkxtmcdqrs'mc

' mcjmnv'qd'ooqnoqh'sdhm'ohdbdneenql'k ' b'cdlhbvnqj.

Rstcdmsdw'lokd:YSgdaqd'jcnvmnesgd

' s n lhbe'lhkx""

Thecorrectphraseis'nuclearfamily",butitis

easytoseehowthemistakewasmade.

Whenpossible,alwaysgetatrustedfriend

t oreadyourwork.Irecentlysawanadvert f oracarinwhichthesellerclaimedthat, r atherthanitbeing'reliable",hiscarwasin 'goodconditionandveryliable". 4 .8.Makingindirect assumptions @unhcl'jhmfhmchqdbs'rrtloshnmr.Sghrb'mad c heehbtksadb'trdhshrmns'kv'xrnauhntrsntr v gdmvd'qdadhmfoqdrtlostntr,drodbh'kkx v gdmvd'qdsqxhmfsnadnodm-lhmcdc"

Rstcdmsdw'lokd:YItrsadb'trdlnrssqhadr'qd

tmbhuhkhrdc,hscndrmnsld'msg'ssgdqd'qdmn bhuhkhrdcsqhadr."

Althoughtheauthorintendstoestablish

himselforherselfasliberalandnot presumptuous,thestatementispremisedon a notherassumptionabout'mosttribes"which i snotbackedupwithdataorliterature.In a ddition,'civilised"isalsoaproblematicterm tousebecauseitisvalue-ladenand s ubjective. 4 .9.Inappropriateor inadvertentuseofmetaphor H mvqhshmf,vdrnldshldrtrdlds'ognqr v hsgntsqd'khrhmfhs.@Ylds'ognq"hrsgdsdqlenq 'khsdq'qxsdbgmhptdhmvghbgrnldsghmfhr c drbqhadc'radhmfrnldsghmfdkrd,enq dw'lokd,YSgdlnnmv'r'fgnrskxf'kkdnm". L ds'ognqr'qdlnrskxcdkhadq'sd'mcnauhntr; h msgddw'lokd,sgdlds'ognqqdud'krrnldsghmf lnqd'antssgdlnnmfihscdrbqhadrhs,l'jhmfhs lnqduhuhc.Gnvdudq,rnldshldronnqbgnhbdne u nb'atk'qxb'mkd'csn'm'bbhcdms'k lds'ognq"

Rstcdmsdw'lokd:YVdkhudhm'shldhmvghbgvd

' qddmbntq'fdcsnptdrshnmsgdvnqkc'mchsr bnmsdmsr""

Althoughtheauthormaynothavebeenfully

c onsciousofthis,heorshehasuseda metaphorthatisinappropriateinthe d escriptionofthe'worldanditscontents",as ' contents"usuallyrefertovesselsor repositories,andtheworldisnotavessel. 1 6

5.UsefulTips

✔Hm'mtsrgdkk,'fnnc'b'cdlhbdrr'xhr w e l l-researched,well-structured,and w e l l-argued.Gnvdudq,xntvhkknmkxfds' f n n cl'qjhexnt'mrvdqsgddrr'x p t drshnm(qd'csgdshonmo.2).Rhlhk'qkx,he x n tg'udaddm'kknvdcsnbgnrdsgdshskd x n t qrdke,l'jdrtqdhshr'ooqnoqh'sd. ✔Wntqs'qfds'tchdmbdhr'mhmsdkkhfdms q d'cdqvgncndrmnsjmnv'mxsghmf'ants s g drtaidbsatsl'xade'lhkh'qvhsgsgd c hrbhokhmd'mcsgdl'hmsgdnqhdrsg's'qd b n m rhcdqdcsnadbnllnmjmnvkdcfd. ✔Hexnt'qddwodbsdcsnrtalhsxntqvnqj ' m n m xlntrkx,makesureyoudo! G n vdudq,l'jdrtqdsg'sxntg'ud h cdmshehdcxntqrdkehmsgdv'xsg'shr o qdedqqdcaxxntqcdo'qsldms,rtbg'rax r s t cdmsmtladq,bntqrdbncd,dsb.L'jd r tqdxnt'qdbkd'q'antssghr.@rj r n l dnmdhemdbdrr'qx. ✔Sgdadrs'b'cdlhbrtrt'kkxg'udsghbj r jhmr'mcg'udkd'qmsmnssns'jdg'qrg q duhdvrsngd'qs(TimesHigherEducational S u p plement,3-9Itkx2008,o.22);'r' m nuhbd'b'cdlhb,hshrsgdr'ldenqxnt. E d dca'bjhrhmsdmcdcsngdkoxnthloqnud, r nl'jdsgdlnrsnehs;sqxmnssnqdrsnm x ntqk'tqdkrnqfdscnvmgd'qsdc. P dldladqsg'ssgdadrsvqhsdqrvnqjudqx b k nrdkxvhsgbqhshbhrl'mcsgddchsnqh'k o qnbdrr(qd'csgdshonmo.10). ✔L'jdrtqdxntqvnqjhroqdrdmsdchmsgd g n t rdrsxkdrodbhehdcaxxntqcdo'qsldms. ✔Cnm"strdbnmsq'bshnmr .Cnmnstrd b n m s q'bshnmr.Vqhsdhmetkk.✔@unhctrhmfYxnt"'mcYxntq".Hsrntmcrsnn h m e n ql'k. ✔@unhc'aaqduh'shnmr.@f'hm,vqhsdhmetkk. T rdYenqdw'lokd"hmrsd'cneYd.f.",tmkdrr x nt'qdtrhmfd.f.nqh.d.hmo'qdmsgdrhr. ✔Hexnt'qdtrhmf'bqnmxlr(h.d.M@R@) l ' j drtqdxntvqhsdhsntshmetkksgdehqrs s h l dxnttrdhs(M'shnm'k@dqnm'tshbr'mc R o'bd@clhmhrsq'shnm). 1 7

SometipsfromGeorgeOrwell

from'PoliticsandtheEnglishLanguage"

Beclearaboutwhatyouaresaying

Y @rbqtotkntrvqhsdq,hmdudqxrdmsdmbdsg's gdvqhsdr,vhkk'rjghlrdke'skd'rsentq p tdrshnmr,sgtr:Vg's'lHsqxhmfsnr'x?

Vg'svnqcrvhkkdwoqdrrhs?Vg'shl'fdnq

hchnlvhkkl'jdhsbkd'qdq?Hrsghrhl'fd eqdrgdmntfgsng'ud'mdeedbs?" A voidusingclichédphrases

YLncdqmvqhshmf'shsrvnqrscndrmns

bnmrhrshmohbjhmfntsvnqcrenqsgdr'jd n esgdhqld'mhmf'mchmudmshmfhl'fdrhm n qcdqsnl'jdsgdld'mhmfbkd'qdq.Hs bnmrhrsrhmftllhmfsnfdsgdqknmfrsqhor n evnqcrvghbgg'ud'kqd'cxaddmrdshm n qcdqaxrnldnmddkrd." A voidmixingmetaphors:think

YSgdrnkd'hlne'lds'ognqhrsnb'kkto'

uhrt'khl'fd.Vgdmsgdrdhl'fdrbk'rg" h sb'mads'jdm'rbdqs'hmsg'ssgdvqhsdqhr mnsrddhmf'ldms'khl'fdnesgdnaidbsr gdhrm'lhmf;hmnsgdqvnqcr,gdhrmns qd'kkxsghmjhmf."

6.Commonly

C o nfusedWords

A'mcanfivgdqd'rY'"hrtrdcadenqd'

bnmrnm'msrntmc(d.f.Y'anx",Y'o'qsx",Y' rhst'shnm"),Y'm"hrtrdcadenqd'unvdkrntmc, h.d.adenqd'vnqcsg'sadfhmrvhsgsgdkdssdq', d,h,n,nqt(d.f.Y'm'qlx",Y'mnkcl'm");rnld odnokd'krntrdY'm"adenqdg,'rhshr bnmrhcdqdcsnad'Yvd'jbnmrnm'ms".Hshrd'rx s nrddsgdoq'bshb'kqd'rnmenqotsshmf'mY'm" adenqd'unvdk:sqxr'xhmfY''qlx"'kntcfihs"r cheehbtks!

Accept'mcexceptfiYsn'bbdos"ld'mrYsn

q dbdhud"(d.f.Ygd'bbdosdcsgd'v'qc"); Y dwbdos"ld'mrY'kkats"(d.f.Ydudqxnmddwbdos

OdsdqvdmssnsgdRtlldqA'kk").

A ffect'mceffectfiY'eedbs"dhsgdqqdedqrsn hmektdmbd(d.f.Yghroqdrdmbd'eedbsdcsgd vgnkdbk'rr")nqdlnshnm'kqdronmrd(d.f.Ygd rgnvdckhsskd'eedbs");Ydeedbs"qdedqrsnqdrtks ( d.f.Ygdg'crnldrdqhntrrhcddeedbsr").

Cite,sight'mcsitefihmsgdbnmsdwsnedrr'xr,

Y bhsd"hrsgdbnllnmdrsnesgdrdsgqdd gnlnognmdr(vnqcrvghbg'qdoqnmntmbdc s gdr'ldats'qdrodkscheedqdmskx'mcg'ud cheedqdmsld'mhmfr):Ysnbhsd"ld'mrsnptnsd n qldmshnm(d.f.Ybhshmfqdedqdmbdr");Yrhfgs" q dedqrsnsgd'ahkhsxsnrdd(d.f.Yrgdg'ca'c dxdrhfgs");Yrhsd"qdedqrsn'knb'shnm(d.f.Ysgd athkchmfrhsd").

Complement'mccomplimentfiYbnlokdldms"

hrtrdcvgdmrnldsghmfbnlokdsdrnqehmhrgdr rnldsghmfdkrd,nqoqnuhcdr'a'k'mbd(d.f. Y s g dvhmdbnlokdldmsdcsgdld'k");' Y bnlokhldms"hr'mdwoqdrrhnmneoq'hrd(d.f. Y s g dkdbstqdqbnlokhldmsdcghrvnqj").Than'mcthenfiYsg'm"hrtrdchm' b nlo'qhrnm(d.f.YShlhre'rsdqsg'mSnl");

Ysgdm"qdedqrsn'onhmshmshld(d.f.Yhs

g ' oodmdcsgdm"). T here'mctheirfiYsgdqd"qdedqrsnok'bd(d.f.

Ynudqsgdqd");Ysgdhq"hmchb'sdronrrdrrhnm(d.f.

Ysgdhqoxi'l'r"fih.d.sgdoxi'l'rsg's

adknmfdcsnsgdl). 1 8

BewaretheSpellchecker!

@ k s g n t f grodkkbgdbjdqe'bhkhshdrhmoqnfq'lldr r t b g'rLhbqnrnesVnqcb'mtmcntasdckxad u d q xtrdetk,sgdxb'm'krnbqd'sdoqnakdlr, d r o d b h ' k k xvhsgvnqcrsg's'qdbnllnmkx b n m e t r d c ,rtbg'rgnlnognmdr(vnqcrsg's r n t m csgdr'ldats'qdrodkscheedqdmskx).@ r d m s d m b dvhsgsgdvqnmfYsgdqd"nqYsgdhq",nq v h s gYhsr"hmrsd'cneYhs"r",vhkkfntmmnshbdc a d b ' t r dsgdvnqcfi'ksgntfgvqnmfficndr d w h r svhsghmsgdk'mft'fd. L ' j drtqdsg'sxntqrodkkbgdbjdqhrrdssnTJ r o d k k h m f ,mns@ldqhb'mrodkkhmf,'rsgdqd'qd' m t l a d qnehlonqs'mscheedqdmbdr.Vgdqd'r @ l d q h b ' mDmfkhrgrodkkrYbnknq",Dmfkhrgrodkkr Y b n k n t q " ;@ldqhb'mDmfkhrgsdmcrsntrdYy"hm u d q a r(d.f.Y'm'kxyd"),vghkdDmfkhrgtrdrYr" ( d . f .Y'm'kxrd").Sgdenkknvhmfvdao'fdl'x a dgdkoetk: v v v 2 . f r t . d c t / z v v v d r k / d f v / i n m d r / c h e e d q d m b d r . g s l C n m " shfmnqdsgdfq'll'qbgdbj.Vgdm'vnqc h rtmcdqkhmdcsnhmchb'sdsg'ssgdqdhr r n l d s g h m fvqnmfvhsgsgdfq'll'q,bkhbjnmhs ' m cs'jd'lnldmssnqd'csgddwok'm'shnm. S g h rhr'fnncv'xsnkd'qm'antsfq'll'q. R n l d s h l d rxntb'mhfmnqdsgdqtkd:xntvhkk j m n vvgdsgdqnqmnssns'jdsgd'cuhbdnmbd x n t " u dqd'csgdcdrbqhoshnm.

7.Writing

SupportatEssex

mySkills m ySkillsistheUniversity"sacademicskills w ebsite.Itfeaturesadvice,guidance,and i nteractiveresourcesonallaspectsofstudy.

Developedasajointinitiative,everythingthat

i shousedwithinthesitehasbeenauthoredby e xpertacademicandsupportstaffatthe U niversity.Ithasalargesectiononwriting, f eaturingashortfilminwhichstudentsgive t h eiropinionsandadviceonwritingessays. S tudentSupport S t udentSupporthaveanumberofStudy S t rategiesTutorswithexpertiseinacademic s killswhoyoucanspeaktobyappointment. T heyalsorun'StrategiesforStudy"workshops t hroughouttheyear,solookoutforrelated p u blicityorvisitthewebsite(URLbelow).The s a meworkshopsarealsorunspecificallyfor s tudentswithdyslexiaorsimilarlearning d ifficulties.Themesinclude: ✔UsingUniversityguidanceandresources t osupportindependentlearning;Planning a n dmanagingyourtimeeffectively ✔Selectiveandwiderreading;Note-taking f o rmats;ReferencingandPlagiarism ✔When,howandwhotoaskforhelp;Peer s t u dygroups ✔Keepingtrackofwhatworksforyou: r eviewing,revisingandenjoyingyourstudy W o rkshopsaregenerallyscheduledon W ednesdays.Visitthewebsiteforup-to-date t imetablesandformoreguidanceandservices. w w w 2 . e ssex.ac.uk/stdsup/welfare/ w o r k shops.shtmTherearemany,manyservicesand o pportunitiesoncampus,somakesureyou t a k eadvantageofthem.AskStudentSupport what"savailable. W ritingFellows T h eUniversityisfortunateenoughtohavetwo W ritingFellowsfromtheRoyalLiteraryFund whoareavailabletogiveone-to-oneadviceon t h epracticalaspectsofwriting,whetherfor a c a demicpurposesorforpleasure.The F e l l owsarebasedintheDepartmentof L i t erature,Film,andTheatreStudies(LiFTS)in r o om5A.223,butareavailabletostudents a n dstafffromalldepartments,acrossallyears o fstudy.Gotoroom5A.201intheLiFTS D e partmenttobookanappointment. W ritingGroup

Ifyouareexperiencingdifficultiesinwritingor

generallyfindtheprocessdifficult,evenifyou h a venoimmediateassignmentdeadlines,the W ritingGroupoffersasafeandnon- j u dgementalenvironmentinwhichtodiscuss writing.E-mail:writinggroup@essex.ac.uk 1 9

OWLs(OnlineWritingLabs)

Thereareanumberofwritingresources

onthewebthatareverygood,knownas

OWLs.Thesearethreeofthebest.The

OWLatPurduewastheoriginal.

BowlingGreenStateUniversity

www.bgsu.edu/offices/acen/writingctr/ page29232.html P urdueUniversity http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/ grammar/ G rammarBytes www.chompchomp.com/

8.Further

Reading

Youmayfindthefollowingbookshelpful.

Thosewithanasterisk(*)wereusedin

compilingthisbooklet.Thosewithahash(#) a restronglyrecommended.

Burchfield,R.W.,TheNewFower"sModern

E n g lishUsage,OxfordUniversityPress,

Oxford,1996.

Butcher,J.,Copy-editing:TheCambridge

h a n dbook,CambridgeUniversityPress, C a mbridge,1981. C o o k ,C.K.,LinebyLine:Howtoedityour ownwriting,HoughtonMifflinCompany, B o ston,1985. C o t t rell,S.,TheStudySkillsHandbook, P a l g rave,2ndedition,2003.* C utts,M.,ThePlainEnglishGuide,Oxford

UniversityPress,1995.*#

E v a ns,H.(ed.Crawford,G.),Essential E n g lish:Forjournalists,editorsandwriters, P imlico,2ndrevisededition,2000.

Fowler,H.W.&Fowler,F.G.,TheKing"s

E n g lish,OxfordUniversityPress,Oxford, 1973.

Hilton,C.&Hyder,M.,GettingtoGripswith

PunctuationandGrammar,BPP(Letts

E d ucational)Ltd,London,1992.

Hilton,C.&Hyder,M.,GettingtoGripswith

S p elling,BPP(LettsEducational)Ltd,

London,1992.Northedge,A.,TheGoodStudyGuide(New

Edition),TheOpenUniversity,2005.*

Orwell,G.,'PoliticsintheEnglishLanguage"

i nWhyIWrite,PenguinBooks,2004.*# P a r tridge,E.,UsageandAbusage:Aguideto g oodEnglish,HamishHamilton,London,6th e dition,1965. P a r tridge,E.,YouHaveaPointThere:Aguide t opunctuationanditsallies,Routledge&

KeganPaul,London,1983.

R i tter,R.M.,NewHart"sRules:Thehandbook o fstyleforwritersandeditors,Oxford U niversityPress,Oxford,2005. S trunk,W.,TheElementsofStyle,Filiquarian P u blishing,LLC,2006.*# S wan,M.,PracticalEnglishUsage,Oxford U niversityPress,2ndedition,1995.* T russ,L.,Eats,Shoots&Leaves,Profile

Books,2007.*#

T heEconomist,PocketStyleBook,Economist P u blications,London,1986.# T heUniversityofChicagoPress,AManualof S tyle,TheUniversityofChicagoPress, C h i cago,12thedition,1969. 2 0 DesignedandprintedbyUniversityofEssexPrintingServices©2008 ProducedbytheLearningandTeachingUnit.Printedonrecycledpaper. I fyouhavequestionsregardingthebooklet,pleasecontactRichardYates.

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