See Section 7. Exposition is, then, primarily a matter of developing in your own words what you think the issue is or what you think the text means. In all expository work you should always try to give a fair and accurate account of a text or problem, even when the exposition becomes more interpretive rather than simply descriptive. You ought to be patient and sympathetic in your exposition, even if you intend later to criticise heavily the philosopher in question. Indeed, the better the exposition in this regard, usually the more effective the critique. An important part of exposition is your analysis of the text or issue. Here you should try to "break down" the text, issue or problem into its constitutive elements by distinguishing its different parts.

First, …. Second, …", or "There are three elements in Plato's conception of the soul, namely He establishes these three elements by means of the following two arguments eg "Freedom of the will is importantly connected to the justification of punishment", or "Plato's tripartite theory of the soul bears interesting resemblances to Freud's analysis of the psyche", or "Kant's transcendental idealism can be seen as reconciling the preceding rationalist and empiricist accounts of knowledge". An exposition of a text need not always simply follow the author's own view of what it means. You should, of course, demonstrate that you understand how the author themself understands their work, but an exposition can sometimes go beyond this, giving another reading of the text.

eg "Heidegger might deny it, but his Being and Time can be read as developing a pragmatist account of human understanding. An exposition should aim to be sensitive to such variety. When appropriate, you should defend your interpretations against rivals and objections. Your interpretation ought, though, to be aimed at elucidating the meaning or meanings of the text or issue and not serve merely as a "coat-hanger" for presenting your own favoured views on the matter in question, which should be left to your This is where your thought gets more of the centre stage.

In developing a response to a philosophical problem, argumentation is, again, of central importance. Avoid making unsupported assertions; back up your claims with reasons, and connect up your ideas so that they progress logically toward your conclusions. Consider some of the various objections to and questions about your views that others might or have put forward, and try to respond to them in defence of your own line of thinking. Your goal here should be to discuss what you have expounded so as to come to some conclusion or judgement about it. Critical discussion is thus not necessarily "destructive" or "negative"; it can be quite constructive and positive. In the case of a critical appraisal of a particular author's text, you can negatively criticise the author's arguments by pointing out questionable assumptions, invalid reasoning, etc.

If, on the other hand, you think that the text is good, then your critical discussion can be positive. eg "Norman Malcolm argues that Descartes is mistaken in assuming that dreams and waking episodes have the same content. Of course, by all means go on, after finding fault with some philosopher, to answer in your own way the questions tackled or raised by the author. eg "Simone de Beauvoir's analysis of women's oppression in The Second Sex suffers from serious weaknesses, as I have shown in Section 2 above. A better way to approach the issue, I shall now argue, is to. Where you are not primarily concerned with evaluating or responding to a particular text, your critical discussion can be more focused on your own constructive response to the issue.

eg "Having used Dworkin's account to clarify the meanings of the concepts of 'the sanctity of life' and 'voluntariness', I shall now argue that voluntary euthanasia is morally permissible because its voluntariness respects what is of value in the notion of the sanctity of life" - where you now leave Dworkin behind as a source and move on to give your own account. This fifth edition of How to Write a Philosophy Essay: A Guide for Students previous editions titled A Guide to Researching and Writing Philosophy Essays was prepared in consultation with members of the Philosophy program, the University of Melbourne. For advice and assistance on this and earlier editions, thanks are due to Graham Priest, Barry Taylor, Christopher Cordner, Doug Adeney, Josie Winther, Linda Burns, Marion Tapper, Kimon Lycos, Brendan Long, Jeremy Moss, Tony Coady, Will Barrett, Brian Scarlett, and Megan Laverty.

Some use was also made of materials prepared by the Philosophy Departments of La Trobe University, the University of Queensland, and The Australian National University. Please note: this booklet does not provide authoritative statements of the official policies or rules of the University of Melbourne, the Faculty of Arts, or the Philosophy program with regard to student essays and examinations or any other matters. What do philosophy essay topics look like? There are, very roughly, two basic kinds of philosophy essay topics: "text-focused" topics and "problem-focused" topics. Text-focused topics ask you to consider some particular philosopher's writing on some issue.

eg "Discuss critically David Hume's account of causation in Part III of Book I of his A Treatise of Human Nature " or "Was Wittgenstein right to say that 'the meaning of a word is its use in the language', in his Philosophical Investigations, Sec. Problem-focused topics are more directly about a particular philosophical problem or issue, without reference to any particular philosopher's text. eg "Is voluntary euthanasia morally permissible? There is another sort of topic, one which presents a statement and asks you to discuss it, where that statement is a "made up" or, at least, unattributed quote.

Where you are asked to discuss some such statement "with reference to" some specified text or philosopher, then that topic becomes more text-focused. eg "'Without belief in God, people cannot be moral'. Discuss with reference to J. Mackie's Ethics: Inventing Right and Wrong. An example of the latter: "'All the ideas in our minds originate from either sense perception or our reflection upon sensory information. Should you take such topics as problem- or text-focused? Rather unhelpfully, I'll say only that it depends on the case. You might ask your lecturer or tutor about it.

Whichever way you do take it, be clear in your essay which way you are taking it. The difference between text-focused and problem-focused essay topics is, however, not very radical. This is because, on the one hand, any particular philosopher's text is about some philosophical problem or question, while, on the other hand, most philosophical problems certainly virtually all those you will be given as essay topics at university will have been written about by previous philosophers. The basic way to approach text-focused topics, then, is to treat the nominated text as an attempt by one philosopher to deal with a particular philosophical problem or issue.

The essay topic will, generally speaking, be inviting you to do philosophy with that philosopher, to engage with them in thinking about the issue, whether that engagement proves to be as an ally or an adversary. The chosen text will usually be one which has been or deserves to be influential or significant in the history of philosophy, but the task is not to pay homage to past masters. But, even if homage is your thing, the best way to do that here is to engage with the master philosophically. With regard to problem-focused topics, you will often find your exploration of the problem aided by taking some text or texts which have dealt with it as reference points or prompts.

This is not always strictly necessary, but many of you starting out in philosophy will find it helpful to do so - it can help you give focus to your response to the question. Thus, you might, in an essay on the topic "Is voluntary euthanasia morally permissible? Or, in an essay on the topic "What is scientific method? One way is to consider what texts have already been mentioned with regard to the topic in your course reading guide and in lectures and tutorials. Another way is to do some of your own research. On this see Section 4 below. The examples are primarily to do with the form or style or strategy you might find helpful.

To do research for your philosophy essay you need to do only two things: read and think. Actually, for problem-focused essays, thinking is the only truly necessary bit, but it's highly likely that you will find your thinking much assisted if you do some reading as well. Philosophical research at university is a little different to research in most other disciplines especially the natural sciences , in that it is not really about "collecting data" to support or refute explanatory theories. Rather, the thinking that's involved in philosophical research as part of one's preparation for philosophical writing is more a matter of reflecting critically upon the problems in front of one.

Researching the writings of other philosophers should, therefore, be primarily directed towards helping you with that reflection rather than aiming at gathering together and reporting on "the relevant findings" on a particular topic. In many other disciplines, a "literature review" is an important research skill, and sometimes philosophy academics do do such reviews - but it is rare that philosophy students are asked to do one. What, then, to read? It should be clear from your lectures and tutorials what some starting points for your reading might be.

All courses provide reading guides; many also have booklets of reading material. Your tutor and lecturer are also available for consultation on what readings you might begin with for any particular topic in that subject. Independent research can also uncover useful sources, and evidence of this in your essay can be a pleasing sign of intellectual independence. Make sure, though, that what you come up with is relevant to the topic. Whichever way you proceed, your reading should be purposive and selective. In the case of essay questions that refer to a particular text, you should familiarise yourself thoroughly with this text. Usually, such a text will be a primary text, i. one in which a philosopher writes directly about a philosophical issue. Texts on or about a primary text are called secondary texts.

Many philosophical works will combine these two tasks, and discuss other philosophical texts while also dealing directly with a philosophical issue. Some secondary texts can be helpful to students. However, don't think you will only ever understand a primary text if you have a nice friendly secondary text to take you by the hand through the primary text. More often than not, you need to have a good grasp of the primary text in order to make sense of the secondary text. How much to read? The amount of reading you do should be that which maximises the quality of your thinking - that is, you should not swamp yourself with vast slabs of text that you can't digest, but nor should you starve your mind of ideas to chew over.

There is, of course, no simple rule for determining this optimal amount. Be wary, though, of falling into the vice of looking for excuses not to read some philosopher or text, as in "Oh, that's boring old religious stuff" or "She's one of those obscure literary feminist types", or "In X Department they laugh at you if you mention those authors in tutes". If someone wants a reason not to think, they'll soon come up with one. Most philosophical writings come in either of two forms: books or articles. Articles appear either in books that are edited anthologies or in academic journals, such as Philosophical Quarterly or Australasian Journal of Philosophy.

Some academic journals are also on the internet. Most articles in the journals are written by professional philosophers for professional philosophers; similarly with many books. But by no means let this put you off. Everyone begins philosophy at the deep end - it's really the only kind there is! There are, however, many books written for student audiences. Some of these are general introductions to philosophy as a whole; others are introductions to particular areas or issues eg biomedical ethics or philosophy of science. Among the general introductions are various philosophical dictionaries, encyclopedias and "companions".

These reference works collect short articles on a wide range of topics and can be very useful starting points for newcomers to a topic. Among the most useful of the general reference works are:. Note taking, like your reading, should not be random, but ought to be guided by the topic in question and by your particular lines of response to the issues involved. Note taking for philosophy is very much an individual art, which you develop as you progress. By and large it is not of much use to copy out reams of text as part of your researches. Nor is it generally helpful to read a great number of pages without making any note of what they contain for future reference. But between these two extremes it is up to you to find the mean that best helps you in getting your thoughts together.

The University's Baillieu Library including the Institute of Education Resource Centre , which is open to all members of the University, contains more than 2, years' worth of philosophical writings. The best way to become acquainted with them is by using them, including using the catalogues including the Baillieu's on-line catalogues and subject resources web-pages , following up a work's references and references in the references , intelligent browsing of the shelves, etc. In the main Baillieu Library, the philosophical books are located mostly between — in the Dewey decimal system, and philosophical journals are located in the basement. The Reference section on the ground floor also has some relevant works. The Education Resource Centre also has a good philosophy collection.

In addition to hard-copy philosophical writings, there is also a variety of electronic resources in philosophy, mostly internet-based. The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy was already mentioned above. Links to other useful internet sites such as the Australasian Association of Philosophy website can be found through the Baillieu Library's web-page and the Philosophy Department's web-page. A strong word of warning, however, for the would-be philosophical web-surfer: because anyone can put material on a website, all kinds of stuff, of varying levels of quality, is out there - and new-comers to philosophy are usually not well placed to sort their way through it.

Unless you have a very good understanding of what you're looking for - and what you're not looking for - most of you will be much better off simply carefully reading and thinking about a central text for your course, eg Descartes' First Meditation, rather than wandering about the internet clicking on all the hits for "Descartes". Exercise your mind, not your index finger. It is very important that you plan your essay, so that you have an idea of what you are going to write before you start to write it. Of course, you will most likely alter things in later drafts, but you should still start off by having a plan. Planning your essay includes laying out a structure.

It is very important that your essay has a clearly discernible structure, ie that it is composed of parts and that these parts are logically connected. This helps both you and your reader to be clear about how your discussion develops, stage by stage, as you work through the issues at hand. Poor essay structure is one of the most common weaknesses in student philosophy essays. Taking the time to work on the structure of your essay is time well spent, especially since skill in structuring your thoughts for presentation to others should be among the more enduring things you learn at university. A common trap that students fall into is to start their essay by writing the first sentence, then writing another one that seems to follow that one, then another one that sort of fits after that one, then another that might or might not have some connection with the previous one, and so on until the requisite 1, words are used up.

The result is usually a weak, rambling essay. There are, of course, no hard and fast rules about how to structure a philosophy essay. Again, it is a skill you develop through practice, and much will depend on the particular topic at hand. Nonetheless, it might be helpful to begin by developing an essay structure around the basic distinction between your exposition and your critical discussion as discussed above. In this it will be important that you make clear who is putting forward which point, that is, make it clear whether you are presenting your own thoughts or are expounding someone else's. Again, confusion in this regard is a common problem in student essays.

It can often help your structuring if you provide headings for different sections possibly numbered or lettered. Again, this helps both your reader to follow your discussion and you to develop your thoughts. At each stage, show clearly the logical relations between and the reasons for your points, so that your reader can see clearly why you say what you say and can see clearly the development in your discussion. Another key to structuring your essay can be found in the old adage "Tell 'em what you're gonna tell 'em. Tell 'em. Then tell 'em what you've told 'em", which provides you with a ready-made structure: Introduction, Main Body, and Conclusion.

In your Introduction, first introduce the issues the essay is concerned with. In doing so, try to state briefly just what the problem is and if there is space why it is a problem. This also applies, of course, to issues covered in text-focused essay topics. Next, tell the reader what it is that you are going to do about those problems in the Main Body. This is usually done by giving a brief sketch or overview of the main points you will present, a "pre-capitulation", so to speak, of your essay's structure. This is one way of showing your reader that you have a grasp indeed, it helps you get a grasp of your essay as a structured and integrated whole, and gives them some idea of what to expect by giving them an idea of how you have decided to answer the question.

Of course, for reasons of space, your Introduction might not be very long, but something along these lines is likely to be useful. In your Main Body, do what you've said you'll do. Here is where you should present your exposition s and your critical discussion s. Thus, it is here that the main philosophical substance of your essay is to be found. Of course, what that substance is and how you will present it will depend on the particular topic before you. But, whatever the topic, make clear at each stage just what it is you are doing. You can be quite explicit about this. eg "I shall now present Descartes' ontological argument for the existence of God, as it is presented in his Fifth Meditation.

There will be three stages to this presentation. A distinct Conclusion is perhaps not always necessary, if your Main Body has clearly "played out" your argument. So you don't always have to present a grand summation or definitive judgement at the end. Still, often for your own sake, try to state to yourself what it is your essay has achieved and see if it would be appropriate to say so explicitly. Don't feel that you must come up with earth-shattering conclusions. Of course, utter banality or triviality are not good goals, either. Also, your essay doesn't always have to conclude with a "solution" to a problem. Sometimes, simply clarifying an issue or problem is a worthy achievement and can merit first-class honours. A good conclusion to a philosophy essay, then, will usually combine a realistic assessment of the ambit and cogency of its claims with a plausible proposal that those claims have some philosophical substance.

What you write in your essay should always be relevant to the question posed. This is another common problem in student essays, so continually ask yourself "Am I addressing the question here? However, I shall argue that there are, in fact, several different scientific methods and that these are neither unified nor consistent. You would be ill-advised, for example, to proceed thus: "What is scientific method? This is a question asked by many great minds. But what is a mind? In this essay, I shall discuss the views of Thomas Aquinas on the nature of mind. This requirement of relevance is not intended as an authoritarian constraint on your intellectual freedom. It is part of the skill of paying sustained and focused attention to something put before you - which is one of the most important skills you can develop at university.

If you do have other philosophical interests that you want to pursue such as Aquinas on mind , then please do pursue them, in addition to writing your essay on the set topic. At no stage does the requirement of relevance prevent you from pursuing your other interests. There might be occasions when you want to quote other philosophers and writers apart from when you are quoting them because they are the subject of your essay. There are two basic reasons why you might want to do this. First, you might quote someone because their words constitute a good or exemplary expression or articulation of an idea you are dealing with, whether as its proponent, critic, or simply its chronicler. eg "As Nietzsche succinctly put the point, 'There are no moral phenomena at all, only a moral interpretation of phenomena'.

But be clear about what you think the quote means and be careful about what you are doing with the quote. It won't do all the work for you. The second reason you might want to quote a philosopher is because you think their words constitute an "authoritative statement" of a view. Here you want to use the fact that, eg Bertrand Russell maintained that there are two kinds of knowledge of things namely, knowledge by acquaintance and knowledge by description in support of your claim that there are two such kinds of knowledge of things.

However, be very careful in doing this, for the nature of philosophical authority is not so simple here. That is to say, what really matters is not that Bertrand Russell the man held that view; what matters are his reasons for holding that view. So, when quoting philosophers for this second reason, be careful that you appreciate in what exactly the authority lies - which means that you should show that you appreciate why Russell maintained that thesis. Of course, you can't provide long arguments for every claim you make or want to make use of; every essay will have its enabling but unargued assumptions. But at least be clear about these. Hollingdale Harmondsworth: Penguin, [first German ed. Philosophy is by its nature a relatively abstract and generalising business. Note that abstractness and generality are not the same thing.

Nor do vagueness and obscurity automatically attend them. Sometimes a longish series of general ideas and abstract reasonings can become difficult for the reader and often the writer to follow. It can often help, therefore, to use some concrete or specific examples in your discussion. Note that there can be different levels of concreteness and specificity in examples. Examples can be taken from history, current events, literature, and so on, or can be entirely your own invention. Exactly what examples you employ and just how and why you use them will, of course, depend on the case. Some uses might be: illustration of a position, problem or idea to help make it clearer; evidence for, perhaps even proof of, a proposition; a counter-example; a case-study to be returned to at various points during the essay; or a problem for a theory or viewpoint to be applied to.

Again, be clear about what the example is and how and why you use it. Be careful not to get distracted by, or bogged down in, your examples. Brevity is usually best. There's another old saying: "If you can't say what you mean, then you can't mean what you say" - and this very much applies to philosophical writing. Thus, in writing philosophically, you must write clearly and precisely. This means that good philosophical writing requires a good grasp of the language in which it is written, including its grammar and vocabulary. See Section 9. A high standard of writing skills is to be expected of Arts graduates.

Indeed, this sort of skill will last longer than your memory of, for example, the three parts of the Platonic soul though it is also hoped that some of the content of what you study will also stick. So use your time at university in all your subjects to develop these skills further. Having a mastery of a good range of terms, being sensitive to the subtleties of their meaning, and being able to construct grammatically correct and properly punctuated sentences are essential to the clear articulation and development of your thoughts. Think of grammar, not as some old-fashioned set of rules of linguistic etiquette, but rather as the "internal logic" of a sentence, that is, as the relationships between the words within a sentence which enable them to combine to make sense.

Virtually all sentences in philosophical writing are declarative ie. make statements , as opposed to interrogative, imperative or exclamatory types of sentences. There is some place, though, for interrogative sentences, ie. Note that, in contrast, this guide, which is not in the essay genre, contains many imperative sentences, ie. As you craft each declarative sentence in your essay, remember the basics of sentence construction. Make clear what the sentence is about its subject and what you are saying about it the predicate. Make clear what the principal verb is in the predicate, since it is what usually does the main work in saying something about the subject. Where a sentence consists of more than one clause as many do in philosophical writing , make clear what work each clause is doing.

Attend closely, then, to each and every sentence you write so that its sense is clear and is the sense you intend it to have. Think carefully about what it is you want each particular sentence to do in relation to both those sentences immediately surrounding it and the essay as a whole and structure your sentence so that it does what you want it to do. To help you with your own sentence construction skills, when reading others' philosophical works or indeed any writing attend closely to the construction of each sentence so as to be alive to all the subtleties of the text. Good punctuation is an essential part of sentence construction.

Its role is to help to display the grammar of a sentence so that its meaning is clear. As an example of how punctuation can fundamentally change the grammar and, hence, meaning of a sentence, compare i "Philosophers, who argue for the identity of mind and brain, often fail to appreciate the radical consequences of that thesis. Only the punctuation differs in the two strings of identical words, and yet the meanings of the sentences are very different. Confusions over this sort of thing are common weaknesses in student essays, and leave readers asking themselves "What exactly is this student trying to say? It will be assumed that you can spell - which is not a matter of pressing the "spell-check" key on a word-processor. A good dictionary and a good thesaurus should always be within reach as you write your essay.

Also, try to shorten and simplify sentences where you can do so without sacrificing the subtlety and inherent complexity of the discussion. Where a sentence is becoming too long or complex, it is likely that too many ideas are being bundled up together too closely. Stop and separate your ideas out. If an idea is a good or important one, it will usually deserve its own sentence. Your "intra-sentential logic" should work very closely with the "inter-sentential logic" of your essay, ie. with the logical relations between your sentences. This "inter-sentential logic" is what "logic" is usually taken to refer to. For example, to enable sentences P and Q to work together to yield sentence R as a conclusion, you need to make clear that there are elements within P and Q which connect up to yield R.

Consider the following example: "Infanticide is the intentional killing of a human being. However, murder is regarded by all cultures as morally abhorrent. Therefore, people who commit infanticide should be punished. If you are concerned to write not only clearly and precisely, but also with some degree of grace and style and I hope you are , it's still best to get the clarity and precision right first, in a plain, straightforward way, and then to polish things up afterwards to get the style and grace you want. But don't sacrifice clarity and precision for the sake of style and grace - be prepared to sacrifice that beautiful turn of phrase if its presence is going to send your discussion down an awkward path of reasoning.

Aim to hit the nail on the head rather than make a loud bang. What you are likely to find, however, is that a philosophy essay which really is clear and precise will have a large measure of grace and style in its very clarity and precision. Remember that obscurity is not a sign of profundity. Some profound thought may well be difficult to follow, but that doesn't mean that one can achieve profundity merely through producing obscure, difficult-to-read writing. Your marker is interested in what's actually in your essay, not what's possibly inside your head or indeed what's possibly in some book you happen to have referred to in your essay.

So avoid hinting at or alluding suggestively to ideas, especially where they are meant to do some important work in your essay. Instead, lay them out explicitly and directly. Of course, you won't have space to spell out every single idea, so work out which ideas do the most important work and make sure that you at least get those ideas clearly articulated. In expounding a text or problem that ultimately just is vague, muddled, or obscure, try to convey such vagueness, muddle or obscurity clearly, rather than simply reproducing it in your own writing. That is, be clear that and how a text or problem has such features, and then perhaps do your best to make matters clearer.

Despite these stern pronouncements, don't be afraid of sometimes saying things which happen to sound a little odd, if you have tried various formulations and think you have now expressed your ideas just as they should be expressed. Philosophy is often an exploratory business, and new ways of seeing and saying things can sometimes be a part of that exploration. The need for clarity and precision in philosophical writing sometimes means that you need to stipulate your own meaning for a term. When you want to use a particular word in a particular way for the purposes of your essay - as a "technical term" - be clear about it.

Be wary, though, of inventing too many neologisms or being too idiosyncratic in your stipulations. With regard to what "authorial pronoun" to adopt in a philosophy essay, it's standard to write plainly in the first person singular "I", "me", "my", etc. rather than use the royal "we" as in "we shall argue that Nonetheless, stick closer to "I argue", "I suggest", "my definition", etc. A philosophy essay is still something more intellectual and formal than a personal reminiscence, polemic, or proclamation. In terms of audience, it's probably best to think of your reader as someone who is intelligent, open to discussion and knows a little about the topic you're writing on, but perhaps is not quite clear or decided about the issues, or needs convincing of the view you want to put forward, or is curious about what you think about the issues.

Try also to use non-discriminatory language, ie. language which does not express or imply inequality of worth between people on the basis of sex, gender, race, ethnicity, sexuality, and so on. As you write, you will be considering carefully your choice of words to express your thoughts. You will almost always find that it is possible to avoid discriminatory language by rephrasing your sentences. There are many guides to good writing available. Anyone who writes whether in the humanities or the sciences, whether beginners or experienced professionals will do well to have some on hand. Most good bookshops and libraries will have some. Among the most consulted works are check for the latest editions :. Closely related to the above points about English expression is the importance of having a good grasp of what can rather generally be called "the vocabulary of logical argument".

These sorts of terms are crucial in articulating clearly and cogently a logical line of argument. Such argumentation will, of course, be of central importance in whatever discipline you are studying, indeed in any sphere of life that requires effective thinking and communication. I have in mind terms such as these grouped a little loosely :. all, any, every, most, some, none, a, an, the that, this, it, he, she, they if. not, is, are therefore, thus, hence, so, because, since, follows, entails, implies, infer, consequence, conditional upon moreover, furthermore which, that, whose and, but, however, despite, notwithstanding, nevertheless, even, though, still possibly, necessarily, can, must, may, might, ought, should true, false, probable, certain sound, unsound, valid, invalid, fallacious, supported, proved, contradicted, rebutted, refuted, negated logical, illogical, reasonable, unreasonable, rational, irrational assumption, premise, belief, claim, proposition argument, reason, reasoning, evidence, proof.

Most of these are quite simple terms, but they are crucial in argumentative or discursive writing of all kinds. Many are themselves the subject of study in logic, a branch of philosophy. The sloppy use of these sorts of terms is another common weakness in students' philosophy essays. Pay close and careful attention to how you employ them. Moreover, pay close and careful attention to how the authors you read use them. For further discussion of some of these terms and others, see:. It is virtually essential that you write a first draft of your essay and then work on that draft to work towards your finished essay. Indeed, several drafts may well be necessary in order to produce your best possible work. Before you start writing the philosophy essay, you need to understand what the assignment entails by paying close attention to prompts, e.

compare, describe, discuss, evaluate, etc. You should have a rough idea of what you want to do, and then make a statement on what you want to prove. Another essential thing to take into consideration is the methods you will use to support your arguments. Proper planning is required for you to write an excellent philosophy paper. You need to understand the requirements of your assignment and also consider the right tone for your audience. While writing a philosophy essay, it is crucial that you demonstrate your knowledge on the subject matter, argue critically , and do in-depth research on the topic you are handling.

Before you start writing a philosophy paper, ensure you read thoroughly all the texts relevant to the question you are about to answer. Also, take some moment to think about the issue so that you may come up with sufficient information for your paper. The following philosophy essay tips are essential when crafting your piece:. Crafting the structure of a philosophy paper might be difficult especially if you are not conversant with writing. A good structure makes it easy for the reader to understand it. It is important that you familiarize yourself with philosophy essay examples and guidelines so that you may make the structure of your philosophy essay obvious to the reader.

You can conclude your philosophy paper by restating your thesis and giving a summary of the important points in your paper. Convince the reader that the arguments you have made support your thesis. An outline is a summary of the important points of a text. The outline of a philosophy paper should have a clear introduction about the paper, arguments supporting your position, and a conclusion giving a summary of your paper. The style of a philosophy paper is distinct from other subjects. Therefore, when writing this paper, it is important to note the following aspects which constitute the structure:. Writing an introduction can be tricky if you are not used to it. A good beginning should have brief background information, a thesis statement, and should convince your reader to read your entire paper.

The body of your philosophy paper should contain the following: a description of the theories and concepts to be discussed, your arguments supporting your thesis, identification of potential objections and your responses to them. The best conclusion of an academic essay entails two aspects. First, you need to re-state your thesis statement, and finally, give a summary of pertinent points in your paper. You should clarify the importance of the topic and show how your work is significant in the paper. Want assistance in writing your philosophy essay paper? You can contact us now for your help.

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As you write your philosophy essay, remember that philosophy is one of the most ancient areas of knowledge — it emerged in the 7th-6th centuries BC in India, China, and Ancient Greece. Many essays on philosophy introduce a more formal definition of philosophy — a form of spiritual activity, aimed at posing, analyzing, and resolving fundamental issues, related to the development of a holistic view of the world and the place of humans in it. Humanity's most prominent philosophers are Aristotle, Descartes, Confucius, Plato, Kant, Locke, Nietzsche, Socrates, and many others. Do you want some helpful tips for your essay?

Our philosophy essay samples have plenty! Check samples of essays below for more info. Life without principle is an essay by Henry David Thoreau. It is an attempt to establish a righteous living. Thoreau offers a program that would help the reader live a righteous life. In this essay, Thoreau discusses his personal experience, the economy, and his…. Thomas More was a layman, a member of Parliament, and he also was a lawyer. He was also accused of conspiring against the king. One of the ways More defended himself was to produce a letter to a nun instructing her not to get involved in politics. This letter is…. Pythagoras is an ancient Ionian Greek philosopher and the founder of Pythagoreanism. His political teachings were influential in Magna Graecia and beyond, influencing the works of Plato and Aristotle and later Western philosophy.

Platonic conception of Pythagoras The Platonic conception of Pythagouras is often described as a rebel, a man…. Martin Heidegge was born into a catholic family in His early education was sponsored by the church and took place in Konstanz. He then moved to Freiburg, where he studied philosophy. After a year, he left the seminary for health reasons and decided to change his major. Although he…. It is intended to replace subjectivity, opinion, and intuition in making value judgments. His work in this area had profound implications for law and public policy.

Among other things, utilitarianism provided a…. Pacifism is a movement for social and political change that opposes war. Other prominent groups that promote pacifism include the International Committee of Women…. There are many books by Bertrand Russell that you can read. You can read Problems of Philosophy or A History of Western Philosophy. You can also read his Autobiography. These books will give you a better idea of his life and philosophy. The collection will be published in 35 volumes…. Soren Kierkegaard was an author and philosopher who struggled with a variety of ways to communicate his thoughts.

He believed his contemporaries had too much knowledge and needed to strip it away in order to become more aware of their inwardness. At the same time, he felt that things and…. Fiction is really any context or narration that is attained from imagination or not found utterly on history. Reality Fiction can be communicated in different forms, such as animations, writings, performances, films, television programs, video games and role-playing games. Fiction composition has for on occasion been ignored by psychology researchers…. Philosophy is a discipline that teaches those who study how to live a happy and meaningful life and how to find the reality in any case how to live a happy and meaningful life. Philosophy is useful to students in a variety of ways.

Some of the advantages of studying…. Consequently, the goal is to keep the person healthy from anxieties that arise from potentially serious causes while also giving them a positive outlook on life Kadhani and Prabhu The analysis of information is known as epistemology. The logic of understanding and belief is known as epistemic logic. Its primary purpose is to shed light on the flaws in the transfer of knowledge and the truth value of propositions. It is based on the properties of truth as a…. Sometimes you will receive account related emails. Home Free Essay Samples Philosophy Essays on Philosophy As you write your philosophy essay, remember that philosophy is one of the most ancient areas of knowledge — it emerged in the 7th-6th centuries BC in India, China, and Ancient Greece.

Book Life Without Principle Life without principle is an essay by Henry David Thoreau. In this essay, Thoreau discusses his personal experience, the economy, and his… Life Without Principle. Words: Pages: 3. Continue reading. The Life of Thomas More Thomas More was a layman, a member of Parliament, and he also was a lawyer. This letter is… Thomas More. Words: Pages: 4. The Influence of Pythagoras Pythagoras is an ancient Ionian Greek philosopher and the founder of Pythagoreanism. Platonic conception of Pythagoras The Platonic conception of Pythagouras is often described as a rebel, a man… Pythagoras.

The Life and Philosophy of Martin Heidegge Martin Heidegge was born into a catholic family in Although he… Martin Heidegge. Among other things, utilitarianism provided a… Jeremy Bentham. The Historical Roots of Pacifism Pacifism is a movement for social and political change that opposes war. Other prominent groups that promote pacifism include the International Committee of Women… Pacifism. Words: Pages: 2. Found a perfect essay sample but want a unique one? Request writing help from expert writer in you fied! Learn more! Books by Bertrand Russell There are many books by Bertrand Russell that you can read. Bertrand Russell. Soren Kierkegaard Soren Kierkegaard was an author and philosopher who struggled with a variety of ways to communicate his thoughts.

At the same time, he felt that things and… Kierkegaard. Function of Fiction Fiction is really any context or narration that is attained from imagination or not found utterly on history. Fiction composition has for on occasion been ignored by psychology researchers… Fiction Reality. Words: Pages: 5. Studying philosophy has a number of advantages. Some of the advantages of studying… Study. Words: Pages: 6. Defense… Existence People. The S5 System of Epistemology The analysis of information is known as epistemology. It is based on the properties of truth as a… Epistemology Logic. Calculate the Price. Type of service. Type of problem. Academic level. High School Freshman College 1st year Sophomore College 2nd year Junior College 3rd year Senior College 4th year Master's Doctoral Bachelor's College Graduate MBA Medical Law Associate's.

Number of problems Number of questions Number of slides Pages. Philosophical Concepts. Philosophical Theories. Philosophical Works. John Locke Enlightenment Nationalism Philosophy of Education Allegory of The Cave Acceptance Bad Faith Confucianism Conscience Deontology Epistemology Ethics Existence Existence of God Free Will Future Good and Evil Human Nature Humanism Hypocrisy Immortality Meaning Meaning of Life Metaphysics Personal Ethics Personal Identity Personal Philosophy Philosophy of Life Political Philosophy Reality Self Reflection Time Truth Virtue. We use cookies to provide you with the most relevant offers only. Learn more in our Cookie Policy before accepting. Sorry, but you cannot copy from our website.

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Note that there can be different levels of concreteness and specificity in examples. If you experience problems submitting work via the VLE by the deadline, you should email your essay s as an attachment to philosophy york. Proper planning is required for you to write an excellent philosophy paper. Before you start writing the philosophy essay, you need to understand what the assignment entails by paying close attention to prompts, e. It can often help your structuring if you provide headings for different sections possibly numbered or lettered. Strunk and E. Write My Essay.

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