How to Write Political Essay

A political essay deals with political or governmental issues. It is a piece of writing made as a way to practice in interpreting specific political theories. It is usually composed of historical information and statistics and is somewhat similar to writing a rhetorical analysis essay. The purpose of which is for students to demonstrate their ability to argue effectively and logically within defined theoretical frameworks. We've got some tips for you in order to make your writing easier.

Guidelines to Write a Political Essay

1. Create an argument. Political essays often deal with normative issues. The goal of the student is to give a concrete treatment of the basic interpretative facts and give his thoughts on the theoretical problem. As it is an opinion, there is no correct or wrong answer. The student just simply has to persuade his readers by developing a compelling argument which is well substantiated by a comprehensive and insightful interpretative work.

2. Develop a thesis. The goal of the student is to develop a thesis which he should sustain during whole paper. A political essay should be organized in such a way that it will be a thesis emphasizing a conceptual argument. That is, the student should choose a position which is clearly stated, and assemble references to offer the readers some sense of credibility. The textual references will ensure the readers that the student has observed the question in a thoughtful manner.

3. Apply theories learned in the course. Political essays and essays, in general, are technically the application of all the lectures and seminars attended by the student, all the discussions, and all the of the assigned readings. The student then should be able to apply all these theories and lessons learned in school.

4. Define your terms. Political essays are scholarly written documents that give a new perspective on the conceptual sides of main political theories and problems this is why a student who is writing a political essay should define terms used in the document with great precision.

5. Cite sources. When making an argument, the student has to ensure that he substantiates it with facts that are properly cited in the footnotes. The reason for this, aside from not plagiarizing these authors, is to refer the readers to a particular factual claim to its proper reference should they want to read about it further. It also helps to write an essay that is more interesting and informative.

6. Write an outline and several drafts. A good political essay is not crafted overnight. It takes a great amount of critical revisions. The outline should also have a timeline to ensure that you have ample time to make revisions and finalize it accordingly before the due date. Editing and proofreading eliminate weak paragraphs and illogical transitions, and ultimately makes the political essay a well-research and well-written one. 

Other Reminders on Writing a Political Essay

1. Be analytical. A political essay is not just a simple collation of all data and information related to political theories. The student must emphasize an informed argument and ensure that he has made a thorough research so he has enough tools to use for independent and creative thinking. As an example, you can include obvious meanings to arguments, as well as the subtle and even contradictory dimensions of it.

2. Keep it scholarly. The student author must avoid casual language and sloppy argumentations. He has to remember that political essays are an academic type of discourse. A scholarly tone will give the readers the impression that the essay is going to be informative and interesting, without compromising the kind of words and arguments to be included in the essay.

3. Comment on quotes. At some point, the student will have to quote sources and references to build an argument. But after providing the direct quotation, he must ensure to make a commentary on it. After all, the paper has to be an analysis of your research, not a simple compilation of it.

4. Be concise. For a student to avoid filling the political essay with too many quotes, he can paraphrase passages, using paraphrase tool. Although, he has to remember that plagiarism is no way acceptable in the academe and must still cite the original source. The rule still applies that the student has to include a commentary of the paraphrased passage. This is to avoid making your paper strike a reader as a plain summary as it is not supposed to.

5. Explore texts carefully. While the student may oppose arguments, he must avoid bias and recognize both its strengths and weaknesses to engage in advanced forms of interpretative work.

6. Assume non-experts as readers. In writing political essays, make sure to limit the use of jargons and complicated terminologies. And when the student does use it, he must define the terms thoroughly. A good political essay must not only present a well-researched and well-written paper but should be able to educate the reader about political theories. To do so, the student then should craft in a way that is easy to understand by the common mind.

7. Embrace objections. Not everyone will agree with your thesis or arguments. When a reader raises an issue, accept it and rebut accordingly. This process should be able to develop your political essay in a way that you can spot weaknesses and instead make it richer and more penetrating.

Buy essays at GrabMyEssay and get excellent papers on time!

Technical Requirements of a Political Essay

Ultimately, the requirements will be coming from the professor or instructor assigning the political essay. General rules, however, apply starting from presenting the different parts of your argument in a logical order, footnoting original sources used or writing a bibliography for references not included in the footnotes, avoiding plagiarism at all cost and practicing proper citation, meeting the deadline set by the professor or instructor, and following the format prescribed.