How to Write Definite Thoughts
April 21, 2011 | Law Essay
In writing good law essays definite thoughts should ideally translate into definitely expressed words. Since legal topics are generally broad and complex, it is a matter of necessity to define your thoughts well in the law essay. Without accurate definitions, your arguments might get strayed and wander out in the cold aimlessly in your law essay.
Here are three simple but effective techniques on how to define your terms in the law essay:
- Genus-species definition
This definition appears like an inverted pyramid – from a broad idea down to its class or its members.Example:
Law is a body or rules and principles applied to a community, in contradistinction to morality, which is a body of relative principles.
In the example, you can see that morality is defined distinctively to emphasise the definition of law. Morality is one of the aspects of law (referred to as moral law). In applying this technique to the law essay, you must be able to give a clear distinction between the two ideas. The genus-species definition usually is used to bring out the uniqueness of the main term in the law essay. - Defining through the use of synonyms
In law essays, the use of synonyms has many advantages. This will make your law essay more understandable with lesser words used. There are certain legal terms that cannot be understood by the average readers, thus, you must use synonymous terms so that you can be well understood. The use of synonyms simply involves the use of a similar word for the main term. - Definition by illustration
The use of illustrations in law essays explains a legal term or concept by showing a relevant situation of legal significance that exposes its essential attributes. It is not enough that you will just present legal articles in law essays like talking to a tree in wintertime. When you are putting legal articles or statements, you must be able to demonstrate how these legal concepts or articles are actually implemented, intensely debated upon, or otherwise judicially resolved.
In conclusion, the use of definitions is mainly dependent on how you frame your thoughts. Thus, the techniques in using definitions for your law essay must be consistent with how you structure your ideas in the essay.
