Social studies essay structure. Essay on social studies Unified State Exam structure of cliché phrases typical mistakes. How to Write an Essay on Social Studies

Tips for working with task C9.

When choosing a topic, a graduate should be guided by the following considerations: “I am sure that ...

1) I understand the meaning of the statement;
2) I know what the main problems of social science are related to this topic;
3) I will be able to express my attitude to the statement;
4) I know the terms;
5) I can give examples from history, public life, own experience».

1) the essay should begin with a clear and precise definition of personal position: “I agree with this opinion”; “I cannot agree with this statement”; “There is something in this statement that I agree with, and that. which seems controversial to me";
2) in the next sentence it is appropriate to formulate an understanding of the statement that became the topic of the essay;
3) the main part of the essay is a relatively detailed statement of your own opinion regarding the problem posed;
4) it is advisable that each paragraph of the essay contains only one main idea;
5) the final sentence (paragraph) summarizes the results of the work.

Example 1

“It is not the art of acquiring that one should learn, but the art of spending.” (I. Sgobey)
1. The author argues that consumers need to learn how to spend their income rationally before purchasing goods and services.
2. It's about on issues related to consumer economics.
3. I completely agree (disagree) with this statement.
4. Terms: income and expenses, limited resources, family budget, consumer behavior, consumption structure.
5. Examples: Russian nobles of the 18th - early 20th centuries... who lived “beyond their means”; some “new Russians” of the 1990s.

Additional information welcome:

1) brief information about the author of the statement (for example: I. Kant, the founder of German classical philosophy);
2) the names of his predecessors, followers or scientific opponents;
3) descriptions of different points of view on the problem or different approaches to solving it;
4) indications of the polysemy of the concepts and terms used with justification for the meaning in which they are used in the essay;
5) instructions on alternative options solving the problem.

So, the topic has been chosen. The next step is to properly structure your thoughts. In general, the structure of an essay might look like this.

"Under a pile of money may be buried human soul"(N. Hawthorne, American writer, XIX century)

1. Write the title of the topic and the name of the author again.
I paragraph
The statement of N. Hawthorne, an American writer, points to the problem of human immorality. This problem is also relevant for modern society. In our time, immorality has become so strongly integrated into a person’s personality that it leads to the commission of crimes.

II paragraph
Presentation of the author's point of view on the issue. The outstanding American writer N. Hawthorne in his statement talks about the influence of money on a person’s life, on his character, on his moral qualities. One cannot but agree with N. Hawthorne's point of view. As a person becomes richer, he “loses” his moral and ethical qualities. By receiving money, a person gains power. And having gained power over others, a person is deprived of all rationality.

III paragraph(theoretical justification of the point of view)
Morality is the degree to which an individual assimilates the moral values ​​of society. The moral consciousness of a person is a reflection in the consciousness of a person of his attitude towards moral standards. This statement can be confirmed by statements (opinions) famous people(examples are given - quotes) Many active individuals discussed human morality, for example. Carlyle Thomas, who argued that “Cash is not the only connection between man and man.” There are sayings about that. that “money has no morals,” “money spoils a person.” And it’s difficult to resist this. Because in fact, this is how it is.

IV. Examples
The problem of the influence of money on personality was also touched upon famous writers. In his story “Hero of Our Time,” M. Yu. Lermontov reveals the essence of people who, at the head of everything, set the goal of acquiring wealth at any cost. So. the brother of the main character, in order to get a horse, decided to give his sister At the same time, the gypsy came up with a plan according to which it was conditionally impossible to involve him in committing an inhumane act.

V. Argumentation(own experience).

The influence of money on a person can be observed in Everyday life, you just have to turn on the TV. On any channel you can see news that talks about a crime committed for selfish purposes. There are so many court cases in which relatives go to extreme measures (including murder) in order to obtain a will.

VI. Conclusion

Returning to the topic raised, I can say that the problem of immorality in the country, as it was, will remain so until then. until the state establishes supervision over the observance of moral norms, since the problem of immorality is too great and cannot be “destroyed” without government intervention.

For other materials for essays and more, see the section

Essay structure 1. Quote. 2. The problem raised by the author; its relevance. 3. The meaning of the statement. 4. Own point of view. 5. Argumentation at the theoretical level. 6. At least two examples from social practice, history and/or literature confirming the correctness of the opinions expressed. 7. Conclusion.

Choosing a Statement When choosing statements for an essay, you must be sure that you have a grasp of the basic concepts of the basic science to which it relates; clearly understand the meaning of the statement; you can express your own opinion (fully or partially agree with the statement or refute it); you know the social science terms necessary to competently substantiate a personal position at a theoretical level (the terms and concepts used must clearly correspond to the topic of the essay and not go beyond it); you will be able to give examples from social practice, history, literature, as well as personal life experience to confirm your own opinion.

The main problems of basic social sciences and humanities Philosophy The relationship between matter and consciousness. Space and time as forms of being. Movement and development as ways of existence. The problem of the essence of consciousness. Features of the human psyche. The relationship between the conscious and the unconscious. The infinity of the process of cognition. The question of the knowability of the world: agnosticism and gnosticism. The relationship between the subject and the object of cognition. The relationship between sensory experience and rational thinking, their basic forms.

Social psychology Interpersonal communication, its essence and tasks to be solved. The essence and barriers of interpersonal communication and possible options for their elimination. Intrapersonal conflict– conflict social roles one man. Interaction, communication between people, building their relationships. Psychological climate of the team. A man among people. Essential characteristics small group. Relationships between the individual and the group. Features of group formation. Roles, norms and personality status. Self-control as the correlation of one’s behavior with the norms of society or group. Self-determination as choosing your own position.

relevance of the problem After formulating the problem, it is necessary to indicate the relevance of the problem in modern conditions. To do this, you can use cliche phrases: This problem is relevant in the conditions. . . . . . globalization public relations; . . . formation of a unified information, educational, economic space; . . . exacerbation global problems modernity; . . . special controversial scientific discoveries and inventions; . . . development international integration; . . . modern market economy; . . . development and overcoming the global economic crisis; . . . strict differentiation of society; . . . open social structure modern society; . . . formation rule of law; . . . overcoming the spiritual and moral crisis; . . . dialogue of cultures; . . . the need to preserve one's own identity and traditional spiritual values.

3. Formulation of the main idea of ​​the statement Next, you need to reveal the meaning of the statement, but you should not repeat the statement verbatim. In this case, you can use the following clichés: “The meaning of this statement is that. . . “The author draws our attention to the fact that. . . "The author is convinced that. . . »

Determining your position on the statement Here you can agree with the author completely, you can partially refute a certain part of the statement, or argue with the author, expressing the opposite opinion. In this case, you can use cliche phrases: “I agree with the author that. . . "One cannot but agree with the author of this statement about. . . "The author was right in asserting that. . . “In my opinion, the author quite clearly reflected the picture in his statement modern Russia(modern society... the situation that has developed in society... one of the problems of our time)” “I beg to differ with the author’s opinion that. . . ""Partly, I share the author's point of view on the matter. . . , nose. . . I can’t agree” “Haven’t you thought about the fact that. . . ? »

Argumentation of your own opinion Next, you should justify your own opinion on this issue. To do this, you need to select arguments (evidence), that is, remember the basic terms and theoretical positions. Argumentation should be carried out at two levels: 1. Theoretical level- its basis is social science knowledge (concepts, terms, contradictions, directions of scientific thought, relationships, as well as the opinions of scientists and thinkers). 2. Empirical level - two options are possible here: a) using examples from history, literature and events in society; b) appeal to personal experience.

Conclusion Finally, you need to formulate a conclusion. The conclusion should not coincide verbatim with the judgment given for justification: it brings together in one or two sentences the main ideas of the arguments and sums up the reasoning, confirming the correctness or incorrectness of the judgment that was the topic of the essay. To formulate a problematic conclusion, cliche phrases can be used: “Thus, a conclusion can be drawn. . . » «Summing common feature, I would like to note that. . . »

example A person has freedom of choice, because otherwise advice, admonitions, edifications, rewards and punishments would be meaningless.” (F. Aquinas)

The problem raised by the author, its relevance The problem of conscious regulation of people's behavior is relevant in the conditions of modern society, characterized by increasing interdependence and interconnection of people with each other.

The meaning of the statement The main manifestation of the consciousness of human behavior, Thomas Aquinas considers the ability of a person to determine his behavior in accordance with his personal free choice. The author is confident that only in this case should he be held responsible for his actions, only then do social sanctions make sense and are able to influence the individual.

For argumentation at a theoretical level, it is necessary to reveal theses and concepts: Methods of conscious regulation of human behavior. Freedom and responsibility in human behavior. The limits within which the choice is made. The role of social sanctions in the formation of a certain type of behavior of people in society.

Examples A soldier executing an order is not responsible for his actions if he is on duty, since he does not have freedom of choice. 2. An insane mentally ill person due to mental disorder is not able to make an informed choice of behavior, therefore the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation does not consider him as a subject of a crime and does not provide for his criminal liability.

Paragraph 1: 1) Definition of science (depending on the chosen topic): “This statement belongs to the section of social science philosophy / social psychology / sociology / political science / law” 2) Definition of the topic/problem: “This statement addresses the problem...” This quote touches on an important problem... " 3) Explanation of the choice of topic: "This topic is interesting to me because... (for example: “it is relevant for modern society, reflects the processes of globalization/marginalization”, etc., etc.) “I chose this topic because. . . "

Paragraph 2: 1) Explanation of the author’s point of view: “The author of this statement... (so-and-so)... tried to convey a thought to us...” or “The author.. (so-and-so)... expresses the opinion that. . " 2) My own assessment: "One cannot but agree that... " "I share the point of view..." "I share the author’s point of view only in part... " "I cannot agree with the author because...”

Paragraph 3 (arguments): 1) Theoretical argumentation: terms, concepts. “Based on the definition (of social stratification/consciousness/civil law, etc.)... it follows...” 2) Examples from history and political life. 3) Argumentation with reference to modern social reality. Conclusion “Thus...” “So we have come to a conclusion...”

The author raises the problem…. . . indicate which one. This problem is relevant in the conditions. . (eternal) is still relevant, since its solution. . . The author is convinced that... . . . (The author draws our attention...) I agree with the author (partially agree, disagree, ready to argue) What? With what? In what part? In my opinion, the author clearly reflected in his statement (picture, situation, problem, etc.) Arguments (at the theoretical level - terms, concepts, opinions of scientists) (empirical level - examples from history, literature, and social reality) Conclusion . To summarize, I would like to note... . . . Thus, we can conclude. . . .

What plan to follow when writing an essay, how to build the correct structure and much, much more SUPER useful for you - on this page!

WHAT CHANGED IN 2020

Briefly about essay structure 2020

1. If there is a specific block, then we turn to it immediately. BUT! There may be an extremely “narrow” “bad” quote in your favorite block, which means you need to look for a quote from another social studies block.

2. Select a quote.

3. Let’s compare the quote and the block from the social studies course, it is listed next to the quote! We immediately begin to think in terms of this block (sociology, political science, economics, etc.)

4. We make a draft list of terms that need to be reflected in the essay. BUT only those that coincide with the topic of the essay!

5. If we cannot make a list of terms (at least 3 terms), then we choose another quote that we can open.

6. We write out the quotation on the draft and underline the KEY words, on the basis of which we build the KEY IDEAS raised by the author.

THIS IS THE FIRST PARAGRAPH OF THE ESSAY – THE MOST IMPORTANT CRITERION, if it gets 0, then the whole essay gets 0!

7. We derive theoretical judgments from key ideas (2 exactly), accompanying them with terms from the list.

THIS IS THE SECOND PARAGRAPH OF THE ESSAY – THEORETICAL ARGUMENTATION

• Need to clarify...
• Researchers understand...
• The following types are distinguished...
• The classification is based on...

8. For each theoretical proposition, we select an illustrative example. Various sources! History, literature, social experience, books, films.

Examples should not be of the same type and abstract. Must clearly reflect theoretical judgments. You must show why you are using this fact as an illustrative argument!

THIS IS THE THIRD PARAGRAPH OF THE ESSAY – PRACTICAL ARGUMENTATION

• As an example…
• Firstly (if we say, firstly, then it must be, secondly; if we say on the one hand, then on the other side!)
• Experience...illustrates

9. In the conclusion, it is necessary to formulate and show how/why the ideas raised by the author in the quotation are important (we go from bottom to top of the essay)

PARAGRAPH - ENDING

• The importance of development….
• Thus,
• Hence…

10. Slogan phrase as the logical conclusion of creative thought.

An essay is an option for creative work:

• I hope,
• I think it's important
• I think it is necessary...
• This will improve…
• Will create the preconditions for improvement...

Here is a specific DETAILED plan for how to write an essay on the Unified State Exam in social studies. It consists of 7 important points.

Essay writing plan

1. Quote.
2. The problem raised by the author; its relevance.
3. The meaning of the statement.
4. Own point of view.
5. Argumentation at the theoretical level.
6. At least two examples from social practice, history and/or literature confirming the correctness of the opinions expressed.
7. Conclusion.

How to write a social studies essay in 2020 - webinar

1. Choice of statement

• When choosing statements for an essay, you must be sure that you know the basic concepts of the basic science to which it relates;
• clearly understand the meaning of the statement;
• you can express your own opinion (fully or partially agree with the statement or refute it);
• you know the social science terms necessary to competently substantiate a personal position at a theoretical level (the terms and concepts used must clearly correspond to the topic of the essay and not go beyond it);
• you will be able to give examples from social practice, history, literature, as well as personal life experience to confirm your own opinion.

2. Definition of the problem of the statement.

For a clearer formulation of the problem, we offer a list of possible formulations of problems that occur most often.

After formulating the problem, it is necessary to indicate the relevance of the problem in modern conditions. To do this, you can use cliche phrases:

• This problem is relevant in the conditions...
• ...globalization of social relations;
• ...formation of a unified information, educational, economic space;
• ...exacerbation of global problems of our time;
• ...the special controversial nature of scientific discoveries and inventions;
• ...development of international integration;
• ...modern market economy;
• ...development and overcoming the global economic crisis;
• ...strict differentiation of society;
• ...the open social structure of modern society;
• ...formation of the rule of law;
• ...overcoming the spiritual and moral crisis;
• ...dialogue of cultures;
• ...the need to preserve one's own identity and traditional spiritual values.

The problem must be revisited periodically throughout the essay writing process. This is necessary in order to correctly reveal its content, and also not to accidentally go beyond the scope of the problem and not get carried away by reasoning that is not related to the meaning of this statement (this is one of the most common mistakes in many exam essays).

3. Formulation of the main idea of ​​the statement

• “The meaning of this statement is that...”
• “The author draws our attention to the fact that...”
• “The author is convinced that...”

4. Determining your position on the statement

• “I agree with the author that...”
• “One cannot but agree with the author of this statement regarding...”
• “The author was right in asserting that...”
• “In my opinion, the author quite clearly reflected in his statement the picture of modern Russia (modern society... the situation that has developed in society... one of the problems of our time)”
  “I beg to differ with the author’s opinion that...”
• “Partly, I share the author’s point of view regarding..., but with... I can’t agree”
• “Have you ever thought about the fact that...?”

5-6. Argumentation of your own opinion

Argumentation must be carried out at two levels:

1. Theoretical level - its basis is social science knowledge (concepts,
terms, contradictions, directions of scientific thought, relationships, as well as opinions
scientists, thinkers).

Cliché phrases:

• Let's consider the statement from the point of view of economic (political, sociological...) theory...
• Let's turn to the theoretical meaning of the statement...
• In economic (political, sociological...) theory, this statement has its basis...

2. Empirical level - There are two options here:

1. using examples from history, literature and events in society;
2. appeal to personal experience.

When selecting facts, examples from public life and personal social experience, mentally answer the following questions:

• Do they confirm my opinion?
• Could they be interpreted differently?
• Do they not contradict the thesis I expressed?
• Are they convincing?

The proposed form will allow you to strictly control the adequacy of the arguments presented and prevent “drifting away from the topic.”

7. Conclusion

Finally, you need to formulate a conclusion. The conclusion should not coincide verbatim with the judgment given for justification: it brings together in one or two sentences the main ideas of the arguments and sums up the reasoning, confirming the correctness or incorrectness of the judgment that was the topic of the essay.

To formulate a problematic conclusion, cliche phrases can be used:

• “Thus, we can conclude...”
• “To summarize, I would like to note that...”
• In conclusion, we can conclude that...
• Based on all of the above, it can be argued that...

In addition, an additional advantage of the essay is the inclusion in it

• brief information about the author of the statement (for example, “outstanding French philosopher-educator”,
  “great Russian thinker of the Silver Age”, “famous existentialist philosopher”, “founder
  idealistic direction in philosophy”, etc.);
• descriptions of different points of view on a problem or different approaches to solving it;
• indications of the polysemy of the concepts and terms used with justification for the meaning in which they
  used in essays;
• indications of alternative solutions to the problem.

And in conclusion. Let's watch a webinar that discusses the structure of writing a mini-essay, provides exercises for training, and discusses evaluation criteria:

The most common mistakes when writing essays

• The saddest situation is that there is no plan at all. The man was afraid to write it, got confused, and stupidly didn’t have time to rewrite it from the draft. The draft is not checked on any Unified State Examination, is everyone aware? Neither an appeal nor tears change this situation.
• “Required” items are highlighted incorrectly. Yes, with the innovations it has become more scary, but it’s still worth a try. For example, to cover the topic “Political Parties” the following features were taken as “mandatory” points in the exam: political parties How public organizations, functions of political parties and classification/types of political parties. That's bad. Do you know which points are required for this topic?
• There are less than 3 points in the plan or none of the points are disclosed in the subparagraphs.“If you don’t know the rules, you won’t get points.” Learn the criteria.
• Plans for legacy templates no one needs it, it's a waste of time and points. There is no need to write the first paragraph with the question: “What is a market?” - this formulation is long outdated.
• There is no need to try to “stand out” or “show a special view of the world.” This is not a casting, this is just one of the tasks of the Unified State Exam.
• Spelling errors don't bother anyone, but if you can’t formulate a thought, your points will be reduced
• The plan is written off-topic or does not cover the topic “in essence”.

In this article you will learn how to write an essay on social studies. Examples are attached.

First of all, it is necessary to understand that in order to learn how to write an essay in social studies, it takes quite a long time. It is impossible to write an essay without preliminary preparation that would be rated by experts. high score. Sustainable skills good results appear after 2-3 months of work (about 15-20 essays written). It is systematic training and determination that bring high results. You need to hone your skills in practice with the direct help and careful supervision of a teacher.

Video - how to write an essay on social studies

If you haven't tried essay writing yet, watch the video.

Unlike an essay on literature or the Russian language, where the minimum amount of work is clearly specified and general reflection is allowed (“philosophizing” without specification), in an essay on social science the volume is not limited, but its structure and content are fundamentally different. A social studies essay is actually an answer to the question: “Do I agree with this statement and why?” That is why an essay on social science must contain strict argumentation, scientificity and specificity. At the same time, it should be noted that very paradoxical, unusual statements that require imaginative thinking and a non-standard approach to revealing the problem are often used as the topic of an essay. This inevitably leaves its mark on the essay writing style and requires maximum concentration of effort and attention.

I would also like to add that the exam essay is assessed by specific people. In order for an expert, who checks from 50 to 80 papers a day, to mark an essay as worthy of attention, this essay must not only meet all the requirements set out below, but also be distinguished by a certain originality, originality and originality - this is implied by the genre of the essay itself. Therefore, it is necessary not only to present scientific and factual material on the topic, but also to pleasantly surprise you with the originality and flexibility of your thinking.

Algorithm for writing essays during the Unified State Exam

1. First of all, during the exam you need to properly manage your time. Practice shows that writing an essay requires spending at least 1-1.5 hours out of the 3.5 hours allotted for the Unified State Exam in Social Studies. It is most advisable to start writing an essay after all other KIM tasks have been completed, because this type work requires maximum concentration of the graduate’s efforts.
2. Carefully read all the topics offered to choose from.
3. Select topics that are understandable, i.e. – the student must clearly understand what this statement is about, what the author wanted to say with this phrase. In order to remove doubts about whether he understands the topic correctly, the graduate must restate the phrase in his own words, defining main idea. The student can do this orally or in a draft.
4. From the selected understandable statements, it is necessary to choose one topic - the one that the student knows best. It is necessary to note the fact that examinees often choose topics that are easy, in their opinion, but which turn out to be difficult when covering the topic due to the limited scientific and factual material on this issue (in other words, the phrase itself says everything, nothing can be added). In such cases, the essay is reduced to a simple statement of the meaning of the statement in different versions and is evaluated by experts due to poor evidence base low. Therefore, you need to choose the topic of the essay so that the student, when writing it, can fully demonstrate the completeness of his knowledge and the depth of his thoughts (i.e., the topic must be winning).
5. When choosing an essay topic, you need to pay attention to what social science this statement is attributed. Practice shows that a number of phrases can refer to several sciences at once. For example, I. Goethe’s statement “Man is determined not only by natural qualities, but also acquired ones” may belong to both philosophy and social psychology, and sociology. Accordingly, the content of the essay should vary depending on this, i.e. must be consistent with said basic science.
6. There is no need to write the entire essay as a draft. Firstly, due to limited time, and secondly, due to the fact that at the time of writing an essay some thoughts come, and at the time of rewriting - others, and redoing a finished text is much more difficult than creating a new one. In the draft, the graduate makes only an outline of his essay, approximate brief sketches of the meaning of the phrase, his argumentation, the points of view of scientists, concepts and theoretical positions that he is going to present in his work, as well as approximate order their arrangement one after another, taking into account the semantic logic of the essay.
7. IN mandatory the student must express his personal attitude to the chosen topic in a clearly defined formulation (“I agree”, “I disagree”, “I don’t completely agree”, “I agree, but partially” or phrases that are similar in meaning and meaning). Availability personal attitude is one of the criteria on the basis of which experts evaluate essays.
8. Without fail, the graduate must state his understanding of the meaning of the statement. Those. The high school student explains in his own words what the author wanted to say with this phrase. It is more advisable to do this at the very beginning of the essay. And if you combine the requirements of this paragraph with the provisions of the previous one, then this is what, for example, the beginning of an essay on philosophy “Before talking about the benefit of satisfying needs, you need to decide what needs constitute the benefit” will look like: “I completely agree with the statement of the great Russian writer of the second halfXIX– beginningXXcenturies L.N. Tolstoy, in which he talks about real and imaginary needs."
9. You need to be very careful in selecting arguments to support your point of view. Arguments must be convincing and justified. Data from relevant sciences are used as arguments, historical facts, facts from public life. Argumentation personal nature(examples from personal life) are rated the lowest, so their use as evidence is undesirable. It should be remembered that any personal example can easily be “transformed” into an example from public life, from social practice, if you write about it in a third person (for example, not “The saleswoman in the store was rude to me, thereby violating my consumer rights”, A “Let’s say that the saleswoman was rude to citizen S. Thus, she violated his rights as a consumer.” The number of arguments in an essay is not limited, but 3-5 arguments are most optimal for revealing the topic. It should also be remembered that examples from history are most appropriate in political science, partly in legal and sociological topics, as well as in philosophical topics related to theory social progress. Examples from social practice (public life) - in sociological, economic, legal topics. Data from the relevant sciences must be used when choosing any of the topics.
10. The use of terms, concepts, and definitions in an essay must be competent and appropriate in relation to the chosen topic and science. The essay should not be overloaded with terminology, especially if these concepts are not related to the chosen problem. Unfortunately, some graduates try to insert as many terms as possible into their work, violating the principle of expediency and reasonable sufficiency. Thus, they show that they have not learned to correctly use scientific terminology. The term should be mentioned appropriately; such a mention should indicate its correct understanding.
11. It is very welcome if a graduate in his essay indicates the points of view of other researchers on the issues under consideration, provides a link to different interpretations problem and various ways to solve it (if possible). Indication of other points of view can be direct (for example: “Lenin thought this way:..., and Trotsky thought differently:..., and Stalin did not agree with both of them:...”), but can be indirect, non-specific, non-personalized: “A number of researchers think this way:..., others think differently:..., and some suggest something completely different:....”
12. It is very welcome if the essay indicates who the author of this statement was. The indication should be brief but precise (see example in paragraph 8). If, when arguing your position on this issue, it is appropriate to mention the views of the author of the phrase, this must be done.
13. Arguments must be presented in strict sequence, the internal logic of presentation in the essay must be clearly visible. The student should not jump from one to another and return to the first again without explanation and internal connection, connecting the individual provisions of his work.
14. The essay must end with a conclusion that briefly summarizes the thoughts and reasoning: “Thus, based on all of the above, it can be argued that the author was right in his statement.”

Essay Examples on the topic of:

Philosophy “Revolution is a barbaric way of progress” (J. Jaures)

For the highest score

I completely agree with the statement of the famous French socialist, historian and politician first half of the twentieth century by Jean Jaurès, in which he talks about the features of the revolutionary path of social progress, about distinctive features revolution. Indeed, revolution is one of the ways of progress, movement forward to better and more complex forms of organization social order. But since a revolution is a radical disruption of the entire existing system, a transformation of all or most aspects of social life, occurring in a short period of time, this form of progress is always accompanied by big amount victims and violence.

If we remember the revolutionary year of 1917 in Russia, we will see that both revolutions entailed the most severe confrontation in society and the country, which resulted in a terrible Civil War, accompanied by unprecedented bitterness, millions of dead and injured, unprecedented devastation in the national economy.

If we remember the Great French Revolution, we will also see the rampant Jacobin terror, the guillotine, “working” seven days a week, and a series of incessant revolutionary wars.

If we remember the English bourgeois revolution, we will also see civil war, repression against dissidents.

And when we look at the history of the United States, we will see that both bourgeois revolutions, which took place in this country, took the form of war: first - the War of Independence, and then - the Civil War.

The list of examples from history can go on and on, but wherever a revolution occurs - in China, Iran, the Netherlands, etc. – everywhere it was accompanied by violence, i.e. barbarism from the perspective of a civilized person.

And even though other thinkers exalted revolution (such as Karl Marx, who argued that revolutions are the locomotives of history), even though reactionaries and conservatives denied the role of revolutions in social progress, the point of view of J. Jaurès is closer to me: yes, revolution is a way of progress, a movement for the better, but carried out by barbaric methods, that is, with the use of cruelty, blood and violence. Happiness cannot be created through violence!

For a small point

In his quote, the author talks about revolution and progress. Revolution is a way of transforming reality into a short time, and progress is moving forward. Revolution is not progress. After all, progress is reform. It cannot be said that the revolution does not produce positive results - for example, the Russian revolution allowed workers and peasants to get rid of a difficult situation. But by definition, revolution is not progress, because progress is all that is good, and revolution is all that is bad. I disagree with the author who classifies revolution as progress.

Essay outline

Introduction
1) A clear indication of the problem of the statement:
“The statement I have chosen concerns the problem...”
“The problem with this statement is...”
2) Explanation of the choice of topic (what is the significance or relevance of this topic)
“Everyone is concerned about the question...”
“The RELEVANCE of this topic lies in...”
3) Reveal the meaning of the statement from the point of view of social science, 1-2 sentences
4) Introduction of the author and his point of view
“The author argued (said, thought) from such a point of view...”
5) Your own interpretation of this phrase, YOUR OWN POINT OF VIEW (DO YOU AGREE OR NOT)
“I think...” “I agree with the author of the statement...”
6) Expressing your position, moving on to the main part of the essay

P.S. It would be a plus if in the introduction you provide information about the author of the statement and insert a definition of the chosen field of the essay (philosophy, politics, economics, law, etc.)

Argumentation:
1) Theoretical argumentation of the problem. At least 3 aspects of the theoretical discussion of the topic must be presented.
For example: reveal the concept itself, give examples, analyze features, functions, classifications, properties.
2) Practical argument or example from public life

Every graduate who is interested in preparing for the Unified State Exam in social studies will be faced with the task of writing an essay. From several proposed quotes, the student must choose one thesis and write an essay. There will be some changes to this final challenge in 2018. Now you can get a maximum of 6 primary points for a correctly completed essay (until 2018, the maximum possible score was 5 primary points). The word “problem” (which is raised by the author) has been replaced by the word “idea”. But this is completely unprincipled. The main thing is that the value of the essay has increased, which means you need to double your efforts to get maximum score.

So, the value of the mini-essay has increased, so you need to take the most significant task of the exam seriously. First, you should study the criteria for assessing essays in social studies in 2018.

1. The main criterion: revealing the meaning of the statement. It is necessary to correctly identify the idea put forward by the author and (or) put forward a thesis on the topic, which will be substantiated with the help of arguments. If there are 0 points for this item, the entire work is not counted.
2. Lack of theoretical justification for your point of view. It is necessary to explain the meaning of the concepts given in the quotation, using theory (definitions and statements from textbooks), reasoning (cause-and-effect justification for what you think about this) and conclusions (your opinion, supported by arguments). If there is no theoretical content, the result is 0.
3. New criterion! Factual error: if (from the point of view of the science of social science) you presented an erroneous position, made an incorrect conclusion, illogical reasoning, mixed up a term, etc., then you face 0.
4. Thematic incompatibility of an example or fact with the topic, conclusion and reasoning. Only those arguments that correspond to the stated topic will be counted. Incorrectly displayed and incomplete statements will also not be counted. You can get as much as 2 points for this point if both examples are correct. Facts must be formulated in detail and accurately, because a mistake can cost you the loss of points. Examples can be given from personal experience, other items ( fiction, history, geography), media (from magazines, newspapers, television and radio programs).

Essay plan

In order to write an essay for the maximum score according to the above criteria, first of all, you need to strictly adhere to the format or structure of the essay. So, the essay plan for the Unified State Exam in social studies is as follows:

• Identification of the problem and its interpretation.
• Agree or disagree with the author’s position (explain why)
• Argumentation of one's own position.
• Conclusion

We will examine each of these points in detail in the next paragraph.

Structure and writing algorithm

Problem Identification

When identifying a problem, the graduate should, first of all, comprehend the thesis proposed by the author and highlight some problem (idea) in it. More often than not, quotes include a variety of issues and their interpretations. It is better for the student to stop at one and consider it in detail, following further the points of the essay structure. You can highlight several problems (ideas) contained in the thesis and reveal them, but, in my opinion, the time frame of the exam will not allow you to thoroughly reveal several ideas at once and give arguments to them. You can identify the problem using cliche phrases, for example:

• In his statement, the author wanted to draw attention to the problem associated with...;
• The main idea formulated by the author of the quote..., I see...;

It is important that the words “problem” and (or) “idea” are included in the essay, otherwise they may be given 0 points for their absence. In the process of explaining the problem raised by the author, it is necessary to use social scientific terms and give them definitions; include material that was included in school curriculum course.

Your opinion

In the second paragraph you should write about agreement or disagreement with the author about the problem. Just saying “agree” or “disagree” is not enough. Here it is important to write the reason on which you rely. This reason may generalize the arguments that follow. The cliche phrases are obvious:

• “I completely agree/disagree with the author’s opinion...”
• “It’s hard to disagree with the author’s opinion...”

You can also include theory from a social studies course at this point. With its help, you will competently and reasonably explain why you adhere to your voiced opinion. Please note that it is easier to agree than to prove the opposite, so if you are not confident in yourself, do not run into ideological polemics with invisible examiners, but do your job impartially and detachedly. It is not at all necessary to express your real views on certain issues.

Arguments

The next point is the most complex and voluminous part of the essay. Making suitable arguments is often difficult. You need to give at least 2 arguments that CLEARLY illustrate this problem. The main thing at this point is specificity. Examples containing “a lot of water” will be scored 0 points. Your arguments can be examples from fiction and scientific literature (history, chemistry, biology and other disciplines), biographies of great people, situations from films, TV series, life and personal experience. It is important to consider that these statements should be from different sources, for example, from personal experience and fiction. You cannot get the maximum score for examples taken from one area. Let's say that even if both arguments taken from books perfectly illustrate the problem, you will not be able to get the maximum score. Each argument should have a separate paragraph. Cliché phrases:

• “To confirm my point of view, I will give the following argument...”
• “An argument that can confirm my point of view is...”

Conclusion

The last point is the conclusion. The conclusion summarizes the thoughts given above. This part is no different from what you have to write in essays on the Russian language and literature. Cliché phrases:

• “Thus, we can conclude that...”,
• “To summarize, I would like to note that...”

It will be enough to write 2-3 sentences in the output.

Essay example

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