Writing essays

» Analysing the Question

» Gathering and organising information
» Planning the essay
» Drafting an outline
» Writing a first draft
» Revising and editing your work
» Producing the final version of the essay

Writing an essay is your chance to make sense of the subject you are studying. It is
the best way of engaging with a topic, and it is only through this kind of engagement
that you will really learn.
An essay is not only a test of your knowledge of a topic. When you write an essay you
are demonstrating your understanding and reinforcing your learning. It is best to break
the job down into smaller tasks which can be completed in a methodical manner. The
amount of effort you put in even before beginning to write will be critical in
determining the quality of the finished essay.
If you read this handout carefully and try to follow the guidelines in it you will learn to
write essays in a way that will benefit you throughout your university career and
beyond.

Analysing the Question:

Long before you begin to write, you will begin thinking about the topic and what you
want to say. What you write will, to a very large extent, be governed by the question
that has been set. Most essay questions are carefully constructed to provide clues as
to how they should be answered. Use these clues to evaluate what you are expected
to do and to write. Careful analysis of the question will in turn help to define your own
purpose. Your analysis is basically an attempt to figure out what the question setter
wants from you and what the essay marker is expecting from you.
Your strongest clues are the verbs in the questions. They often provide very clear
instructions.

Discuss the significance of the comic elements of King Lear.

Define the term ‘Supply and Demand’.

Not all essay titles are as straightforward as the two just given. ‘Discuss’ is a word
much beloved by setters of essay questions as it covers a wide spectrum of meanings.
You will have to look closely at the content or subject mater of the question to help
you decide what information you need to include. The subject matter will determine
how you go about your research and what material you think is relevant. Try to
imagine a sort of shopping list of things that the essay marker will be looking for in the
essay.
Always read questions carefully several times so that you can become familiar with
the key ideas and spot the value-laden words.

Narrate the main events of Charles Haughey’s term of office.

‘Milton’s minor poems are major ones’. Discuss.
Analyse the causes of violence in our society.

Most essay questions tap into a wider issue and you are expected to recognise this
and explore the wider issue. For example, an essay about capital punishment might
tap into the issue of crime and punishment in general, on top of the specific case of
capital punishment.

Some writers on research and essay writing divide essay titles into the following
classes:

Advocacy questions These ask you to explain or illustrate a particular issue,

topic or idea.
Evaluation questions These ask you to explore and evaluate arguments for and
against a
position, topic or issue.
Compare and contrast questions You have to explore and analyse the common
ground and difference
between competing positions, showing why the different
position arise.
The format of the essay you write will be determined by the style of essay title.
Determine what kind of essay you are being asked to write before you write the essay.

Words to Watch For (and their definition, sort of):

Discuss Consider and debate or argue about the pros and cons of a issue. Write
about any conflict
Enumerate List several ideas, aspects events, things, qualities, reasons, etc.
depending on the topic
Evaluate Give your opinion or cite the opinion of an expert. Include evidence to
support the opinion
Explain Make an idea clear. Show logically how a concept is developed. Give the
reason for an event
Illustrate Give concrete examples. Explain clearly by using comparisons and
examples
Interpret Comment upon, give examples, describe and evaluate relationships.
Explain the meaning
Outline Describe main ideas, characteristics or events (but not in list form!)
Prove Support with facts (consult your lecture notes and text books for the
appropriate facts)
State Explain precisely
Relate Show the connections between ideas or events. Provide the larger context
Summarise Give a brief, condensed account. Select the most important facts
and ideas
Trace Show the order of events or progress of an idea, event(s) or work
Define Give the meaning; usually a meaning specific to the subject or course,
keep it short
Describe Give a detailed account. Make a picture with words. list characteristics,
qualities parts
Analyse Break into separate parts and discuss, examine and interpret each part
Contrast Show differences. Set in opposition and highlight incompatibilities and
origins of items
Compare Examine two or more items. Identify similarities and differences. Explore
common themes
Criticise Make judgements (don’t sit on the fence). Criticism often involves analysis

Responding to Questions:

As you write in response to different essay questions, you are thinking in different and
complex ways. You are also becoming better able to see relationships between things.
There are several different analytical thought processes which you may go through in
response to different types of questions; basically these are all tools to help you
organise your thinking and your writing.

• Compare and Contrast

There are several ways of approaching an essay like this. You might have decided to
take each element in turn and write about all the different aspects. Or you might take
each of the elements you have decided to compare and contrast and analyse them
with respect to the main headings. Remember that you must explore why certain
positions appeal to different approaches, and how the nature of the evidence appealed
to by each approach varies.

• Narration

In a narration you do not have to include everything that happened. You should
summarise the main events in the correct order. Telling the story of an event, process,
discovery or creative work is a good way of remembering it. In answering this kind of
question you need to explore your own thoughts and impressions.

• Cause and Effect

It is often important to think in terms of cause and effect, especially in History courses.
It is also another crucial way of learning and developing our thought processes. Essay
questions are often framed in this way:
What have been the effects of Information Technology on the organisation of work?
This kind of essay gives you a chance to ask questions, to explore ideas and
possibilities, to use your imagination and to be inventive. You can put quite a lot of
original thinking into this kind of writing. However, you must have evidence for what
you write!

• Evaluation

If you are asked to evaluate a position or discuss a proposal, avoid where possible just
presenting a variety of opinions leading to a conclusion ‘that there a are number of
views on this issue’. If you can, choose one or two positions as correct, or as the
closest to correct and show how the arguments lead to that conclusion. Remember
that the truth never lies ‘somewhere in the middle’. This is the sloppiest form of
analysis and should be left to people like Joe Duffy and Pat Kenny whose job it is to
have no opinion.

Theories and Opinions:

In your studies you will come across theories. A theory is a principle suggested to
explain observed facts and phenomena. All disciplines have underlying doctrines and
principles which are expressed as theories. Some theories are more difficult than
others to understand. If you are examining some theories, you will need to practice
explaining them to yourself and others. What does the theory really mean and what is
its significance? Whose theory is it? If you are invited to offer your own opinions or
comment on someone else’s opinion, do so by all means. You may be asked to
compare different theories or you may wish to contrast an established theory with a
new one of your own. But be sure that you understand the theory properly first. If you
understand it you will be able to explain it to a child! It is the different theories and
opinions in your subjects that are often the focus of essays. Theories can be right as
well as wrong, as can opinions, so assess the theories and opinions you are dealing
with.

Explanation and Argument:

Argument in this case means a reason urged in support of a theory, opinion or

position. It can also refer to discussion of a question or a debate.
Explanation means ‘making clear’, ‘illustrating the meaning of’. If you have to
explain a principle, concept, event, issue, theory or procedure, you will increase you
own understanding. You may then want to take it a step further to persuade someone
that this is the best way of doing or thinking about something. You will then have to
defend your stance by developing a well-thought out and reasoned argument. This is
very good practice and will help you to decide on your own approach to the subject.
Make sure that your essay has arguments and they are well explained.

Defining Your Purpose:

Once you thoroughly evaluated the question, you need to move on to define your own
purpose. Your purpose should be your personal statement of intent. Remember to
consider your reader here; what do you want them to think by the end of your essay?
Think of your purpose as your ultimate goal; it will depend on certain decisions you
make. If you are asked to take a stance, which stance will you take? If you are
comparing two ideas, which aspects will you chose to compare? Will you agree or
disagree with the statement which forms the basis of your essay. Once you have
identified your purpose, try to keep it clearly in mind as you write. If you are clear
about your purpose, this will evident to your reader ..... and that will mean higher
marks!

Planning Your Work:

The first stage in planning your work is to find out what you already know.

• Brainstorming

Brainstorming is a way of stimulating ideas and finding answers to problems. It will

help you find out how much you already know about a topic and increase your
confidence in your existing knowledge. It will also help to clarify the direction your
essay will take. You will need a blank piece of paper, a clear desk and some free time.
Clear your mind of everything apart from your essay question. Write down your
thoughts, perhaps in the form of a spider diagram, mind map or other patterned notes;
as a list; or simply randomly on the page.

• Finding out what you need to know

As a result of brainstorming, some further questions will arise. These questions will
serve as the basis of your research; they are what you need to know in order to write
the essay successfully. If you have a list of question, it will help you to avoid the time
wasting activity of indiscriminate reading. It is too easy to surround yourself with a pile
of books at the last minute in order to get some information. Last minute reading will
always involve the books in the library that everyone else has rejected as being of no
use. The good books will already have been checked out by the more organised
students.
As you read, more questions will arise, you can use these new questions to further
guide your research, but resist the temptation to stray from the essay topic; remember
your definition of purpose.
The time spent brainstorming and posing questions will leave you in a much better
position to gather material for your essay and should reduce the amount of time you
have to spend organising and drafting your work

• Gathering material

Some of the information that you have gained from your reading will be in your head
while some will probably be in the form of notes. Ultimately you want all your material
in one place before you start drafting your essay. When you are trying to put together
a large amount of information, it is easy to become undisciplined and simply copy
down everything you find that is related to the topic. This is not helping you to learn.
The best notes are made after you have finished a section in a book or even after you
have closed the book. The notes will not only serve as reminders but also form part of
the learning process.
If you come across something that you don’t understand, instead of simply copying it
down, try to work out what it means. Spend time making sense of the difficult phrases,
terms, theories or concepts. Ask yourself how this new idea fits in with your existing
knowledge of the subject. In this way the depth of your understanding of the subject
will increase enormously. You will gain new insights and relate new knowledge to
existing concepts and ideas allowing you to make new connections and breakthroughs
in understanding.

• Organising information

The form and shape of your notes is not that important, but the thought which goes
into them is crucial. It may be useful to discuss with other people the techniques that
work for them. Here are a few suggestions:

• Use index cards with one main point on each. Additional

information may be added later and new index cards can be added
to the set of cards. The cards can also be cross-referenced or
colour coded.
• Use ordinary paper for your notes but leave plenty of space
between each main point. Later, you can cut up the pieces of
paper and stick all the pieces that relate to each other on clean
sheets of paper.
• Make mind-maps, spider diagrams or other patterned notes — one
piece of paper for each main point.
• Use one piece of paper for each of your questions and queries
(adding more as new questions emerge) and fill in the answers on
the paper as you find them.

Experiment until you find the system that suits you best. Make sure that the task of
organising material is complete before beginning to write your essay. Always make a
note of the source of your information and acknowledge the source in the essay.

Planning Your Essay:

You are already used to the idea of planning in other areas of your life - avoiding
lectures, going drinking, meeting new partners and keeping them from each other,
getting money to buy more drink. You make plans to help ensure that everything will
work out alright in the end and so that you can maintain some control over your life.
If you have gathered and organised your research material, you will already have a
good idea of the shape of your essay and will have laid the foundations for the
planning stage.
You now have to pull together all the information that you have gathered and create a
structure for your work. Although you have masses of information, you are unlikely to
be able to deal effectively with more than a handful of points along with the
introduction and summary.
The essay should consist broadly of three parts:

• Introduction Briefly explain the purpose and content of the essay.

• Main body Address the results of your research into the

 questions, supporting your ideas with examples,
references, etc.

• Conclusion Pull the essay together by giving an insightful

synopsis of your main arguments. Perhaps you could
state one good, strong new idea that points to a new
direction of investigation or you could suggest further
action or study.

One of the best ways of planning an essay is to create an outline. An outline consists
of the bare bones of your essay which you will ‘flesh-out’ in the first draft. The outline
should move from the main (or more general) points down to the specific points or
examples in support of your argument. It is important that writing moves in this way:
from general to specific, from assertion to proof.

- Indicate the main, general or abstract points with Roman numerals,

I, II, III etc.
- Support these with more specific statements, represented by A, B,
C, D etc.
- Give examples and more precise information (1, 2, 3).
- Offer quotations, references (a, b, c) to hold the reader’s interest -
and thus get better marks.
- Give even more specific details (i, ii, iii) to help bring the subject
alive.

You may not follow your plan exactly; writing will stimulate your thinking. As you write,
allow yourself to bring new ideas into the plan; to revise your plan and to refine the
structure of the essay. Improve your style through your choice of words and phrases as
you write.

The next stage is an important one in the learning process. Drafting is when you begin
transforming your notes and plans into a coherent, logical piece of work consisting of
sentences and paragraphs. Don’t worry too much at this stage about speling, or
punctuation; or getting the, like, y’know, style right. Concentrate on getting your
thoughts down on paper in the right order. Write the draft quickly and let your
thoughts flow. Leave plenty of space on the page for your revisions. Writing a draft has
the following benefits:

- You can write quickly without worrying too much about spelling,
style or punctuation and so get your thoughts on paper freely.
- Writing a draft helps you understand your topic and develop your
ideas.
- Writing a draft gives you an opportunity to see mistakes and to
check your work.
- You can make sure that you really have answered the question.
- You can try out different approaches as you go and so improve the
final essay.
- Writing a draft gives you a much needed sense of accomplishment.
- Writing a draft helps you get started without the fear of criticism.
After you have written your draft, leave it aside for at least 24 hours. It is important to
put some distance between you and the draft so that you can come to the task of
revising it with a fresh eye. otherwise you will read not what is on the page but what
you intended to put on the page.

Revising Your Essay:

After your time for reflection there will be a number of things in your draft that you will
want to change. If you knew what you wanted to say before you started writing, your
draft will probably be in good shape. If you have done your research thoroughly and
planned carefully you are unlikely to have to make major revisions. However, it is
possible that a new idea will occur to you as you read through the draft or that you
may become aware of errors in your argument.
Your reader needs to be led carefully through your material. Think of your essay as a
maze through which the reader must find the way to the end. Try to make the second
draft sharper, more interesting, better organised and, above all, livelier - but avoid
trying to make jokes, leave that to professionals.
When you are finally finished revising and are satisfied with the content of your essay,
you can concentrate on making it presentable. Proof-read your work carefully, looking
at every word. Make sure every sentence reads well and is logically connected with
the sentence before and after it.
In proof reading, make sure that you read very carefully. You can do this by reading the
essay aloud, or by covering the page you are reading with a blank sheet, only
revealing the line you are reading rather than any following line, this will encourage
you to analyse the text line by line. You should also pay attention to the kind of
mistakes that have been pointed out to you before in essays you have submitted.
Have you used its and it’s properly? Are there words you are prone to misspelling (like
independent) or misusing (like disinterested)? Divide up the proof reading task so that
you read for punctuation only once and spelling only the next time etc. This will make
you proof reading far more effective.

When you have made all the necessary corrections you are ready to prepare the final
draft. If you can, use a word processor to produce the final version, but make sure that
you back up regularly. Some day you may lose an entire essay and be really angry. So
get in to the habit of backing up regularly and keeping a copy of your work on a floppy
or zip disk as well as on the hard drive. If you are using a spell checker, make sure it is
set on our spelling system and not the US English system.

Presenting the essay:

The key to presenting an essay is to put the reader first. Remember that you are trying
to persuade the reader to think of things the way you do. Making it easy for the reader
will help convince them.
Always make sure that your essay looks well:

• Use a clear and unfussy font.

• Type on one side of the page only, use double spacing with an extra space
between each paragraph.
• The first line of each paragraph should be indented.
• Number the pages and you should consider inserting a header with a short
version of the essay title and your name in it.

When it comes to binding the essay, remember that simple is best. Fancy binding is
irritating as it just makes the essay itself hard to access. The person you have handed
the essay in to wants to be able to write notes on the pages of the essay itself so the
pages have to be easy to get at. The easiest system is to submit an essay stapled with
a covering page with the title of the essay and your name (as well as any other
relevant information). For Investigating Language, a cover sheet is provided.
Finally, keep a copy of the essay yourself. It is not unknown for essays to go missing
and without a copy of the essay you will not be able to replace the lost essay.

Use the following checklist to make sure that you have done everything possible to
make sure you are submitting a quality product.

• Spelling, grammar and punctuation are all correct.

• Pages are numbered.
• Name, essay title and course are included on the front page.
• Handwriting or printout is clear and easy to read.
• There is plenty of space and wide margins for marker’s comments.
• Thought and ideas flow logically.
• The essay answers the question(s).
• Any instructions about format or structure have been followed.
• References and bibliography are provided in the correct format.

You may like to add more items to the list as some courses may have slightly different
requirements.

Review:

The process of writing an essay is as important as the essay itself as it helps you
assimilate and express ideas. Every essay that you write should bring about some
change in you, a shift in approach to a subject, the seed of a new idea, the successful
expression of something important to you. A methodical approach will result not only
in a better essay, but it will enable you to gain the greatest possible benefits from your
studies.

In this handout we have gone into the details of developing and producing an essay.
You have seen how important it is to spend time preparing yourself before you gather
material, how important it is to gather and organise material effectively. You have also
seen how vital it is to plan your essay and to write a first draft; also how important it is
to take care in producing the final draft. If you follow the advice in this handout you
will be able to write an excellent essay.
 Format and Rules for Essay Writing:

I. Introduction — Outline what you are going to say.

A. State your argument or thesis.
B. Pose a question which you intend to answer.
C. Give your reasons for focusing on certain aspects of the topic.
D. Use a quote to communicate your main ideas.

II. The body of the essay

A. Order your main points effectively.
1. Make sure your order is logical and clear to your reader.
a. Refer back to your purpose or definition
b. Use subheadings or numbering if necessary or appropriate

2. If understanding one point depends on an explanation of another

make, sure you provide a sufficient explanation

B. Present your points as clearly as possible.

1. Use new paragraphs for each main point.
a. Use a key sentence to sum up the main idea of the paragraph
b. The other sentences should explain or illustrate the main point
c. Each sentence should have a purpose of its own
i. Each sentence should lead the reader naturally onto the next
ii. Each sentence should follow on naturally from the previous
one
iii Use appropriate and varied sentences to link paragraphs

2. Don’t assume too much.

a. Always explain obscure references
b. Always support general statements with specific reasons or
examples
i. Give examples or use quotations where necessary
ii. Cite statistics, use diagrams or tables where appropriate
iii. Always be very careful in appealing to ‘common knowledge’

C. Balance your main points.

1. Decide whether all your main points should receive equal attention.
a. You may decide to examine one aspect more closely than another
b. Some points may need more or less emphasis

2. Make sure your essay will be the right length.

a. You may have to reduce the number of points if your essay is too
long; eliminate the least important points first
b. You may have to include more points to make a short essay longer

3. Refer back to your purpose.

 a. Check whether your points all relate to your purpose
b. Learn to cut unnecessary material

II. Conclusion

A. Draw together and summarise what you have said in the main body.

B. Relate back to the Introduction.

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Avoiding Plagiarism! by Sharon Williams.

(URL: http://sja.ucdavis.edu/SJA/pdf/plagiarism.pdf)

Writers sometimes plagiarise ideas from outside sources without realising that they are doing so. Put
simply, you plagiarise if you present other writer's words, ideas or strategies as your own. Plagiarism
will result in failure for your essay. You do not plagiarise if you "provide citations for all direct
quotations and paraphrases, for borrowed ideas, and for facts that do not belong to general knowledge"
(Crews and VanSant, 407).

General advice for using sources:

The best way to avoid plagiarism is to keep control of your argument. You should include ideas from
other sources only when those ideas add weight to your argument. Keep the following suggestions in
mind when you are using material from other sources:

° Select carefully. Quotations should give weight to your argument. In general, do not select quotations
which only repeat points you have already made.
° Be sure to integrate all ideas from other sources into your own discussion. Introduce direct quotations
with your own words. After quoting, explain the significance of quotations.
° Avoid quoting more than is needed. Most of the time, brief quotations suffice.
° Use direct quotations only when the author's wording is necessary or particularly effective. Some
disciplines discourage direct quotations. Check with your lecturer.
° If you are using material cited by an author and you do not have the original source, introduce the
quotation with a phrase such as "as is quoted in...."
° End citation alone is not sufficient for direct quotations; place all direct quotations within quotation
marks. Be sure to copy quotations exactly as they appear.
° To avoid any unintentional failure to cite sources, include all citation information on index cards and in
your first draft.

At all times, stay in control of your argument and let your own voice speak for you.

A common pitfall: the note-taking stage

Plagiarism often starts with the note-taking stage of the research process. If possible, have a clear
question in mind before heading off to the library so you will not waste time taking extraneous notes.
When taking notes, be sure to distinguish between paraphrases and direct quotations. When you are
copying a direct quotation, be extremely precise. Note all the information you will need for the citation
and copy the quotation exactly as it appears. Some writers use only direct quotations when note-taking
so there can be no confusion as to whether a note is a paraphrase or a direct quotation. Other writers
colour-code notes: one colour for paraphrases, another for quotations. To ensure that you are not
copying wording or sentence structure when paraphrasing, you might find it helpful to put the source
material aside.

Examples:
Sometimes writers do not recognise when their use of other writers' ideas constitutes plagiarism.
Versions of the following source can help you see the difference between acceptable paraphrasing and
plagiarism (taken from The Bedford Handbook for Writers, 508).
Original source #1

If the existence of a signing ape was unsettling for linguists, it was also startling news for animal
behaviourists (Davis 26).

o Version A
The existence of a signing ape unsettled linguists and startled animal behaviourists (Davis, 26).

Comment:
◊ Plagiarism. Even though the writer has cited the source, the writer has not used quotation marks
around the direct quotation "the existence of a signing ape". In addition, the phrase "unsettled linguists
and startled animal behaviourists" closely resembles the wording of the source.

o Version B
If the presence of a sign-language-using chimp was disturbing for scientists studying language, it
was also surprising to scientists studying animal behaviour (Davis, 26).

Comment:
◊ Still plagiarism. Even though the writer has substituted synonyms and cited the source, the writer is
plagiarising because the source's sentence structure is unchanged.

o Version C
According to Flora Davis, linguists and animal behaviourists were unprepared for the news that a
chimp could communicate with its trainers through sign language (Davis, 26).
Comment
◊ No plagiarism. This is an appropriate paraphrase of the original sentence.
Original Source #2

The joker in the European pack was Italy. For a time, hopes were entertained of her as a force
against Germany, but these disappeared under Mussolini. In 1935 Italy made a belated attempt to
participate in the scramble for Africa by invading Ethiopia. It was clearly a breach of the covenant of
the League of Nations for one of its members to attack another. France and Great Britain, the
Mediterranean powers, and the African powers were bound to take the lead against Italy at the
league. But they did so feebly and half-heartedly because they did not want to alienate a possible
ally against Germany. The result was the worst possible: the league failed to check aggression,
Ethiopia lost her independence, and Italy was alienated after all (J. M. Roberts, History of the World.
New York: Knopf, 1976, p. 845).

o Version A
Italy, one might say, was the joker in the European deck. When she invaded Ethiopia, it was clearly a
breach of the covenant of the League of Nations, yet the efforts of England and France to take the
lead against her were feeble and half- hearted. It appears that those great powers had no wish to
alienate a possible ally against Hitler's rearmed Germany.

Comment:
◊ Plagiarism. The writer has taken entire phrases from the source, and there is no citation. The writer's
interweaving of his or her own language does not mean that the writer is innocent of plagiarism.

o Version B
Italy was the joker in the European deck. Under Mussolini in 1935, she made a belated attempt to
participate in the scramble for Africa by invading Ethiopia. As J. M. Roberts points out, this violated
the covenant of the League of Nations (Roberts, 845). But France and Britain, not wanting to
alienate a possible ally against Germany, put up only feeble and half-hearted opposition to the
Ethiopian adventure. The outcome, as Roberts observes, was "the worst possible: the league failed
to check aggression, Ethiopia lost her independence, and Italy was alienated after all" (Roberts,
845).

Comment:
◊ Still plagiarism. Even though the writer has used two correct citations from the source, he or she has
not cited other phrases.

o Version C:
Much has been written about German rearmament and militarism in the period 1933-39. But
Germany's dominance in Europe was by no means a foregone conclusion. The fact is that the
 balance of power might have been tipped against Hitler if one or two things had turned out
differently. Take Italy's gravitation toward an alliance with Germany, for example. That alliance
seemed so very far from inevitable that Britain and France actually muted their criticism of the
Ethiopian invasion in the hope of remaining friends with Italy. They opposed the Italians in the
League of Nations, as J. M. Roberts observes, "feebly and half-heartedly because they did not want
to alienate a possible ally against Germany" (Roberts, 845). Suppose Italy, France, and Britain had
retained a certain common interest. Would Hitler have been able to get away with his remarkable
bluffing bullying in the later Thirties?
Comment:
◊ No plagiarism. The writer properly acknowledges the one use of Roberts's ideas. (Note that the writer
has chosen to use only one idea from the source and has integrated that idea into his or her own
argument.)

A final note:
Learning how to use the ideas of others to add weight to your ideas involves effort and a commitment
to academic honesty. It is not always clear exactly when or how to use sources and sometimes you will
need advice. Since your lecturers are most familiar with the expectations of their disciplines, they are
the best people to ask.

Works cited:
Crews, Frederick and Ann Jessie VanSant. The Random House Handbook, 4th edition. New York: Random
House, 1984.
Fowler, H. Ramsey and Jane Aaron. The Little Brown Handbook. Glenview, Ill.: Scott, Foreman and Co.,
1989.
Hacker, Diana. The Bedford Handbook for Writers. Boston: St. Martin's Press, 1991.

[Note the bibliographic style of this essay, it is different to system recommended at

the end of this hand out. The style above is called the MLA (Modern Languages
Association) style and the style below is the APA (American Psychological Association)
style]
 Bibliography for your Essay (APA format)

Book

• Author(s) (year). Title. Place Published:Publisher.

Simpson, H. (1997). My life as a cross dresser. Springfield: D’Oh Books.
Simpson, H. and M. Simpson (1998). The Dangers of South Park. Springfield: D’Oh
Books.

Journal

• Author(s) (year). “Title”. Journal Volume: Pages:

Flanders, N. (1996). “My Life of Crime”. Armageddon 666: 123 - 456.
Bouvier, P. and S. Bouvier (1968). “The Benefits of Smoking”. McGyver Magazine
68: 1 - 6.

Edited Book

• Editor(s) (year). Title, Series Title, Place Published:Publisher

Wiggum, R., T. Flanders, R. Flanders and L. Hutz, (Eds) (1993). Law for the
Amateur. Springfield: D’Oh Books.
Wiggum, R., T. Flanders R. Flanders and L. Hutz, (Eds) (1993). Law for the pre-
pubescent. Cheap Law Handbooks. Springfield: D’Oh Books.

Conference proceedings

• Author(s) (Year of Conference). “Title”. Conference Name, Conference

Location, Publisher.
Bob, S. (1976). “Krusty as a metaphor for ennui and alienation in post-modern
society”. In Proceedings of the fifteenth Clowns and Clowning conference,
Springfield, Shelbyville: Shelbyville Publications.

Book Section / Chapter

• Author(s) (Year). “Title”. In Editor(s). Book Title. City:Publisher. Volume: Pages.

Krabappel, E. (1976). “The Joys of Being a Single Teacher”. In Skinner and
Brockman. (Eds.) My Two Cents Worth on Teaching. Springfield: D’Oh Books,
Vol. 2, pp. 73 - 124.

Internet Document

• Author(s) (Year). Internet Document Title. URL. Date downloaded/accessed.

Gumble, B. (1985). “Drink, Memory and ...”.
http://www.springfield.com/~drugs/moe.html. Date downloaded: 29/02/2001. If
you can find no author, use Anonymous as the name.
 Citations

As has been pointed out (Simpson, 1997, p. 666), Springfield has many attractions.
As has often been pointed out (Krabappel, 1976; Simpson, 1997 and Simpson and
Simpson, 1998), Springfield has many attractions to lure the average American
psychopath.

Simpson (1997) draws our attention to the emasculation that may occur when a man’s
wife joins the police force:
Marge, you being a cop makes you a man! Which makes me the woman - and
I have no interest in that, besides occasionally wearing the underwear which,
as we discussed, is strictly a comfort thing. (p. 174)

Wiggum et al (1993, p. 69) makes a similar point but in a more turgid manner.
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Baldwin, D. A. (1991). “Infants' contribution to the achievement of joint

reference”. Child Development 62: 875 - 890.
Brown, R. (1957). “Linguistic determinism and the part of speech”. Journal
of Abnormal and Social Psychology 55: 1 - 5.
Cheng, L. L. (1991). On the Typology of Wh-Questions. Ph.D. Dissertation,
MIT. Distributed by MIT Working Papers in Linguistics.
Chomsky, N. (1970). “Remarks on nominalization”. In R. A. Jacobs and P.
Rosenbaum (Eds.), Readings in English Transformational
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Chomsky, N. (1977). “On Wh-movement”. In P. Culicover, T. Wasow and A.
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Chomsky, N. (1986). Barriers. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Chomsky, N. (1995). The Minimalist Programme. Cambridge, MA: MIT
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Cummings, S. (2001). First Words: An Investigation of the Nature of
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downloaded: 30/05/2001.
Gentner, D. (1982). “Why nouns are learned before verbs: linguistic
relativity versus natural partitioning”. In S. A. Kuczaj II (Ed.),
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In P. Fletcher and B. MacWhinney (Eds), The Handbook of Child
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Kayne, R. (1994). The Antisymmetry of Syntax. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Kernis, M. H., D. P. Cornell, C. R. Sun, A. Berry and T. Harlow. (1993).
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Yamada, Jeni (1988). “The Independence of Language: Evidence from a
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