Should all of my points be backed up with evidence?

Dear Cordia, I would say to this, as much as you can, as it makes your work thorough and credible. If you don't have obvious evidence to use, you could find a theory or comparative example instead.

The short answer to this question is yes. The rule of English Literature GCSE and A level is that not only are the examiners looking for detailed and original interpretations and careful analysis of language, but the main focus should be the relationship between these two. The evidence you furnish for your interpretation should be the analysis of the language, the connection should be evident and elaborated because one without the other will not allow you to gain the marks you'll need to achieve the top grades. All the points you make in an essay should be backed up by evidence from the text so that you show the examiner you know the text well, and by doing this you should hopefully be able to not only explore the language on a deeper level, but also connect relevant context and literary theories that help you achieve the very top band of marks.

If you've got a point to make, prove it. It makes the writing more credible and, also, the reader can then go and verify your points. There are many different ways to back up your points, so the writing doesn't feel stale, but as a rule of thumb; If you have a point to make, and you have the quote/text/line/study to back it up, mention it. Even if its in annotations.

Hi Cordia,

This is a great question!

It is more effective to make a point that is backed up with evidence in order to identify your point in the text and demonstrate how you've reached to the point you wish to make. I strongly recommend using text based evidence (e.g. quotes) when essay writing, however, you could also try referring to a particular theme or literary devise that is conveyed or emphasised (these are also examples of evidence). Do not feel restricted to analysing quotations alone; experiment.

Hope this helps.

Hi Cordia,

Backing up your points with evidence is an essential part of making a convincing argument. You need to always be trying to find ways of linking your ideas to the concrete reality of the text you are discussing, to ensure that the relevance of what you're saying is clear. So yes, always try to include evidence if you can (remember 'PEE': Point, Evidence, Explanation). And you should ask yourself - if there isn't evidence to back up the point I am making, could this mean that the point actually isn't accurate/pertinent anyway?

Best of luck!

Yes. In order for you to really convince the examiner that your argument is convincing it must be supported. For example in History this must be supported by a specific fact or figure. I place particular evidence on the word specific for A Level History, as general figures do not meet the requirements of most exam boards, they are looking for specific "bullets" of evidence to absolutely strengthen your argument to the fullest.

Regarding English Literature, a full quotation is not always necessary. Sometimes it is more effective to break down quotes and do single word analysis. This should be direct and link back to your point.

It is absolutely essential to use evidence to develop and strengthen your points. Without them you merely have statements that are left to fend for themselves.

Hi Cordia,

When writing an analytical paragraph on a specific text you should always use evidence from the text. By using evidence, you are showing the examiner that you have skills in selecting relevant evidence, and you can demonstrate that your point is valid.

Absolutely! Supporting your point/answer with evidence allows you to explore your idea further. Without evidence (preferably in the form of a quotation), you will not be able to analyse the writer's craft and this severely limits marks. Use the structure of P.E.T.A.L in your paragraphs: make a point in response to the question, support with evidence, identify any techniques employed by the writer, analyse the effect of these, link everything back nicely to the question.

Hi Cordia,

Totally! Whether answering a language or literature exam questions, your answer needs to show that you have found the evidence in the text.

Remember, to gain those higher grades, you will not just have to make a point and show the evidence but you will need to use the evidence to relate to some of the 'big ideas' of the text; perhaps the poet's view of war, the author's view of society or, as in Shakespeare's 'Romeo and Juliet' , his view of love and hate or youth and age perhaps. In a language question, relate the evidence to what the author is saying and what are the big ideas of the text.

I hope this helps and please get in touch if you have any further questions : )

Here's the general answer...

If you want to persuade someone that you know what you are talking about, or that they should believe you, then you do need to use evidence. This is how it works in a critical essay or exam answer for GCSE or A-level Literature or Language (which applies as well if you are in Y7-9)...

If you think about it, why should anyone just take what you have to say at face value, whether in an essay or in life? It can help to think of your English essays as like a conversation in which you are trying to convince someone of your point of view, where you back up your arguments, so that they don't just reply to your point with, 'Really? How do I know that's true?' or 'How does THAT work?!' This is the purpose of evidence in English and in life. You can improve your English essays just by keeping that in mind. It is also how examiners think.

But you specifically asked if ALL your 'points' need evidence - good question! In a bit more detail...

No Need for Evidence

Two places where you do not need to put any evidence are in your introduction and conclusion.

That is because the intro is essentially a list of the points you are going to make to answer the question and any bits and pieces your reader needs to know to understand where you are coming from overall. The main body of your essay is where you then take your reader on a tour of your thoughts, exploring the evidence together. How is evidence relevant to the intro? You need to have thought your evidence through first in order to get to your points in the first place!

In your conclusion, you'll be stepping back to look at all that exploring of evidence you did in the main body of your essay and asking yourself, 'So what?' overall. You can use that moment to add up all your points and see if there are any overall big ideas which tie them all together, or sum up what was most interesting to you overall. No evidence is needed to sum up your best light-bulb moments here, but of course your closing ideas rely on you having explored the evidence before.

Yes Please to Evidence

So the place you DO always need evidence is in each of your main body paragaphs. You're going to make a point, or a claim, and then you're going to tell us what gave you the idea for that claim, which will be a combination of the evidence you looked at and your exploration or analysis of it. The evidence, as you know, can be a combination of paraphrasing of what's happened in a novel/play/poem and quotations from it. It's worth nothing that if the evidence isn't there, then the chances are that you are talking about the text as if it is real life, not a text created by a writer, which is a habit some students easily slip into.

Many schools and students like to use structures/reminders like PEE (point evidence exploration) or PETAL (point evidence technique analysis link) paragraphs. The key with making these work for you is a) to understand what job the evidence is doing, for real, and b) to know that you have to EEP before you PEE. So the simple answer to your question (after all this writing!) is that you need to start with your evidence, explore it and generate your point from that work.

If your question relates to persuasive writing rather than a critical essay, then it's the same for where the evidence goes, but how you plan it is a bit different, because we tend to 1) brainstorm our points first, then 2) see what evidence we can think of for each one, before 3) prioritising the strongest and 4) setting them out, combining our evidence with 5) plenty of rhetorical techniques and emotional writing to manipulate our reader into agreeing with us.

Drop me a line if you'd like to go through some examples together to see how this can work for you.

Hello Cordia, Thank you for your question. Some things are common knowledge and so it is not necessary to back those things up as evidence. For instance to say that older people generally get grey hair is common knowledge. However if you were to discuss something that was less well known or perhaps controversial you would want to provide evidence.

Here is an example, if you were discussing whether cats were more intelligent than dogs, you would want to provide some research rather than just anecdotes about the behaviour of dogs and cats. If you were writing about dogs and cats as an entertainment piece it is important to write funny anecdotes but if it was a scientific essay then you would need to find studies and possibly experiments from reputable sources that had been peer reviewed.

I hope this answers our question.

Yes! Evidence is key for making your point a true assertion. Without evidence, your point is merely speculation and is unlikely to get high marks. When including evidence, make sure it is from a reliable source, relevant and up to date!

Yes, both in English Language and English Literature. For the Language question (Q2) in the AQA Language Exam I would include an actual quote and for the Structure question (Q3 )you can make a line or paragraph reference. In the AQA Literature exam, don't worry about having to learn lots of quotes - a detailed reference to a line in a poem or a play or paraphrasing is just as good as a quote. It's your explanation of the job that is done by the technique or the effect it has on the reader that will earn you marks.

Yes! This is how you access the higher grades.

As Lucy has said, it's always best to find the evidence first and then work from there.

Remember, the examiner doesn't want you to retell the plot, for example, they want to know your ideas. Ideas can be very difficult to put across without evidence. Also- if you cannot remember full quotations, you can paraphrase them.

Absolutely, if you have evidence to match your point you can then explain it fully.

Sometimes you may have an idea but find it hard to find evidence to match it...this can sometimes be due to rushed planning so make sure you look for evidence first! Ask yourself what the question is focusing on and where you can spot that in the text!