Religion and Science

Religion and Science

A review essay should not be considered a ‘review’ in the popular sense; it is not about whether you liked or didn’t like the article. The word “critical” describes your attitude when you read the article. This attitude is best described as “detached evaluation,” meaning that you weigh the coherence of the reading, the completeness of its data, and so on, before you accept or reject it. Unlike a straightforward summary or book report, a review essay is primarily devoted to critical discussion of the text. The critical essay is informative; it emphasizes the work being studied rather than the feelings and opinions of the person writing about the literary work. The difference between feelings and facts is simple – it does not matter what you believe about a book or article; what matters is what you can prove about it, drawing upon evidence found in the text itself, in in critical discussions of the text, etc.. Criticism does not mean you have to “attack” the work or the author; it simply means you are thinking critically about it, exploring it and discussing your findings.Your essays should have four main parts: 1) Introduction. The introduction to a review essay indicates the general line of argument that the essay writer will pursue.

Use your opening paragraph to situate the article in the context in which it is written, identify the author’s main thesis and approach, and preview your own critical response. Be economical: this paragraph should require no more than half a page. 2) Summary. Limit the space you devote to a summary of the article to 1-2 paragraphs. Remember that you cannot possibly relate all of the points the author has made; focus on the central argument and on claims that are most significant to us as participants in the discipline. Note that as you develop your critical discussion, you can elaborate further upon important points the text has raised. In grading the paper, I look for a summary that is concise and clearly written. Limit the length of your summary by concentrating on: A brief statement of the author’s main idea (i.e., thesis or theme) An outline of the important “facts” and lines of reasoning the author used to support the main idea A summary of the author’s explicit or implied values A presentation of the author’s conclusion or suggestions for action 3) Critical Discussion. The most important part of your essay. Evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of the article should include: An assessment of the “facts” presented on the basis of correctness, relevance, and whether or not pertinent facts were omitted An evaluation or judgment of the logical consistency of the author’s argument – in other words, this is not about whether you, personally, happen to ‘agree’ or ‘disagree,’ it is not a matter of personal opinion. Rather, your evaluation of the argument should be based on its coherence and supporting evidence. You may choose to assess whether the article makes an important or useful contribution, whether the evidence supports the author’s thesis, whether the author has considered alternative explanations for the same outcome, or whether the argument is internally consistent. Support your arguments with evidence. Note that I weigh the critical discussion most heavily when grading the paper. 4) Conclusion. Restatement of the key points of your essay and, in particular, of your own position. State explicitly the reason(s) why you hold that position by outlining the consistent facts and showing the relative insignificance of contrary facts. Coherently state your position by integrating your evaluations of the work you read. (Note: word count does not include name, title, or bibliography. Points will be deducted for needless repetition of article titles or other distracting attempts to lengthen essays with “filler” text.)