Essay Topics, A Big Mistake?

The last few years have seen a rise in the number of people writing essays in order to try and get better grades. There are many arguments that outline why this is true, and these will be examined in this article. However, as I am writing about this topic now, I would like to make one thing clear; essay topics can have no effect on your grades or your application.

As the writer, it may seem obvious that arguments in essay topics do not make any difference, but some students use them, in order to try and improve their grades. I once received an email from a student, which read 'I noticed that when I argue in my paper, I always end up with a good grade. So I am tempted to make my arguments more convincing to try and get a good grade.' This, to me, is pretty obvious, but why is it that students will use these?

Students who use argument essay topics to try and get a good grade are making a very fundamental mistake. I cannot stress this enough, and it is worth mentioning again. To get a good grade, you need to address all the points, with strong arguments, using the exact words that were used in the exam.

Arguments, for the most part, are simply arguments, they do not solve anything. If you wanted to, for example, convince your tutor to let you turn up with the freshers' year exams with an A, you would not simply write an essay arguing for it, or on your behalf, and leave it at that.

On the other hand, an argument essay can be a different form of argument. It can be based on facts, which can then be backed up with facts. You can argue that your lecturer was wrong, or that the curriculum was wrong, and show that you know more than he does. This should not just be done for the sake of arguing, but because the argument itself, needs to be the basis of your paper.

When I say that an argument needs to be the basis of your paper, I mean that it needs to be a real reason for the argument. If you are arguing that your lecturer was wrong, you cannot simply argue about it, because that will not make any sense. If you are arguing for curriculum changes, you cannot simply argue about them, because this will make no sense, either. This is why you need to address all points in your argument, including your position, and show that it makes sense.

Now that I have made my own arguments and shown that they are logical, it is also important to show that I understand the reason for each of my arguments. Do this by showing that you can use every fact that you make, to prove your points, and that you can use the best way to persuade others to do the same.