1. First and foremost: ● Read the task carefully. ● Make sure you do what you have to ● Check the syllabus for what is expected of you ● The deadline is important. No late submission ● Papers are made up of 3 parts – Introduction – Body – Conclusion

2. Start with an efficient short intro Examples: [always state what you argue for] ● In this paper I am going to argue against Mandelbaum's claim that the US has intervened selflessly and that it creates financial and political stability in the world. ● This paper assesses the future of NATO and argues that given certain conditions, NATO has a bright future.

3. What is a good argument like? ● A well-argued essay is judged by the quality of the argument not by the position you take. ● Bring two or three points to support your position ● Every paragraph should start with a claim (What is your point? What do you want to prove?) and continue with a evidence or proof for such a claim. ● The rest of the paragraphs should expand on the idea, i. e. show how that claim supports your argument.

4. What is a good argument like? Evidence to support your position: Data Logical argument (see below) Scene from the movie (if it is a movie-based assignment): explain how it examplifies your point.

5. What is a good argument like? ● Position to support: American hegemony increases world security ● Supporting argument: – The current situation in Iraq proves otherwise. After American invasion, Iraq is in a political vacuum. US occupation forces still fight insurgents, the Iraqi government is weak and its existence is only due to US presence. If America leaves, there is a high likelihood the the power vacuum in the region will give ground to a larger war between power-hungry Iran, the Kurds who desire an independent state for long and....

6. How to start writing? ● Read the exercise carefully ● Take a piece of paper and try to collect your arguments in bulletpoints (if you do not know whether you want to argue for and against, collect arguments for both) ● Take the side that is easier to prove (not necessarily the one that you agree with) ● Do not waste too much time on the introductory and concluding sentences (but have both nonetheless) ● Write your essay and try to allocate time for reading it again.

7. What you should not do ● Do not use questions. Most questions can be replaced with a statement E.g. The post-war reconstruction in Iraq is a lucrative business. And guess who got the best deals? US companies! Write instead: The post-war reconstruction in Iraq is a lucrative business and most reconstruction contracts were offerred to American companies.

8. What you should not do ● DON'T use exclamation marks. ● DON'T use hyperbole or emotional statements. (i. e. get outrage out of your system before you start the assignment). ● DON'T use words expressing (strong) emotions. E.g. Collossal, huge, bombastic ● DON'T state the obvious: e.g „the world is complex.” ● DON'T use … at the end of a sentence. Finish your thought instead.

9. What you should not do USE formal English (no slang or colloquial expressions) DON'T make comments for me – don’t speak out of the text. e.g. Bush became president in 2001 (sorry, I am not sure I remember this date correctly) and was reelected in 2004.

10. What you should not do ● DON'T be general when you argue. E.g. The US is not a benevolent hegemon. Hegemons tend to be bad, so the US is bad. ● DON'T overuse ”I” ● DON’T use I believe, I think, at least as far as I know, I might be wrong but... E.g. I believe the United States is not a benign hegemon. (Note: that this statement is good without I believe) ● Good: I argue that..., I prove that...

11. How do you know your argument sucks? ● Would sombody convince you with this argument? ● Is it an argument or just an opinion? Do you support your claim? ● If you want to use too much of „I think” „I believe” etc. it is either a bad argument (because you cannot explain your opinion) or you should think about how to logically support your claim to turn it into a good argument

12. Conclusion Write a short concluding paragraph E.g. In this essay I argued that…..