best essays about history

25 Great Articles and Essays about History

The day the mesozoic died by sean b. carroll, the day the dinosaurs died by douglas preston, neanderthals were people, too by jon mooallem, sleeping with the enemy by elizabeth kolbert, 1491 by charles c. mann, the case against civilization by john lanchester, japanese roots by jared diamond, ten thousand years of solitude by jared diamond, the worst mistake in history by jared diamond, the origins of agriculture by jared diamond, ancient history, divergence by jared diamond, the big dig by elif batuman, easter's end by jared diamond, evolutionary history, restless genes by david dobbs, the search for adam and eve by john tierney, how africa became black by jared diamond, a history of violence by steven pinker, what have we learned, if anything by tony judt, the problem of evil by tony judt, the gun by c.j. chivers, does it help to know history by adam gopnik, 150 great articles and essays.

American History

The arrow of disease by jared diamond, native intelligence by charles c. mann, how slavery really ended in america by adam goodheart, the case for reparations by ta-nehisi coates, last days of the comanches by s. c. gwynne, modern history, a brief history of the corporation by venkat rao, how to get rich by jared diamond, the reunification by klaus wiegrefe, germany's unlikely diplomatic triumph by klaus wiegrefe, guns, germs, and steel by jared diamond, the gun by c. j. chivers, a history of the world in 100 objects by neil macgregor, salt: a world history by mark kurlansky, in the garden of beasts by erik larson, postwar: a history of europe since 1945 by tony judt, bury my heart at wounded knee by dee brown.

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History Essay Examples

Top History Essay Examples To Get Inspired By

Published on: May 4, 2023

Last updated on: Oct 28, 2024

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History essays are a crucial component of many academic programs, helping students to develop their critical thinking, research, and writing skills. 

However, writing a great history essay is not always easy, especially when you are struggling to find the right approach. This is where history essay examples come in handy. 

By reading and examining samples of successful history essays, you can gain inspiration, learn new ways to approach your topic. Moreover, you can develop a better understanding of what makes a great history essay.

In this blog, you will find a range of history essay examples that showcase the best practices in history essay writing. 

Read on to find useful examples.

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Sample History Essays

Explore our collection of excellent history paper examples about various history essay topics . Download the pdf examples for free and read to get inspiration for your own essay.

History Essay Samples for Middle School

The Impact of Ancient Civilizations on Modern Society

The Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire

The Causes and Consequences of the American Revolution

History Writing Samples for High School Students

The Impact of the Industrial Revolution on Society

Grade 10 History Essay Example: World War 1 Causes and Effects

Grade 12 History Essay Example: The Impact of Technology on World War II

Ancient History Essay Examples

The Societal and Political Structures of the Maya Civilization

The Role of Phoenicians in the Development of Ancient Mediterranean World

The Contributions of the Indus Civilization

Medieval History Essay Examples

The Crusades Motivations and Consequences

The Beginning of Islamic Golden Age

The Black Death

Modern History Essay Examples

The Suez Crisis and the End of British Dominance

The Rise of China as an Economic Powerhouse

World History Essay Examples

The Role of the Silk Road in Shaping Global Trade and Culture

The Rise and Fall of the Ottoman Empire

The Legacy of Ancient Greek Philosophy and Thought

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American History Essay Examples

The Civil Rights Movement and its Impact on American Society

The American Civil War and its Aftermath

The Role of Women in American Society Throughout History

African History Essay Examples

The Impact of Colonialism on African Societies

The Rise and Fall of the Mali Empire

European History Essay Examples

The Protestant Reformation and the Rise of Protestantism in Europe

The French Revolution and its Impact on European Politics and Society

The Cold War and the Division of Europe

Argumentative History Essay Examples

Was the US Civil War Primarily About Slavery or States

The Effects of British Colonization on Colonies

Art History Essay Examples 

The Influence of Greek and Roman Art on Neoclassicism

The Depiction of Women in Art Throughout History

The Role of Art in the Propaganda of Fascist Regimes

How to Use History Essay Examples

History essay examples are a valuable tool for students looking for inspiration and guidance on how to approach their own essays. 

By analyzing successful essays, you can learn effective writing techniques that can be expected in a high-quality history essay. 

Here are some tips that will help you take full advantage of the samples above.

Tips for Effectively Using History Essay Examples

• Analyze the Structure:

Pay close attention to how the essay is organized, including the introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion. Look for how the author transitions between paragraphs and the use of evidence to support their argument.

• Study the Thesis Statement:

The thesis statement is the backbone of any successful history essay. Analyze how the author crafted their thesis statement, and consider how you can apply this to your own writing.

• Take Note of the Evidence: 

Effective history essays rely on using strong evidence to support their arguments. Take note of the sources and types of evidence used in the essay. Consider how you can apply similar evidence to support your own arguments.

• Pay Attention to the Formatting and Other Academic Formalities:

The sample essays also demonstrate how you can incorporate academic formalities and standards while keeping the essay engaging. See how these essays fulfill academic standards and try to follow them in your own writing.

• Practice Writing:

While analyzing history essay examples can be helpful, it is important to also practice writing your own essays. Use the examples as inspiration, but try to craft your own unique approach to your topic. 

History essays are an essential aspect of learning and understanding the past. By using history essay examples, students can gain inspiration on how to develop their history essays effectively. 

Furthermore, following the tips outlined in this blog, students can effectively analyze these essay samples and learn from them. 

However, writing a history essay can still be challenging. 

Looking for an online essay writing service that specializes in history essays? Look no further!

Our history essay writing service is your go-to source for well-researched and expertly crafted papers.

And for an extra edge in your academic journey, explore our AI essay writing tool . Make history with your grades by choosing our online essay writing service and harnessing the potential of our AI essay writing tool.

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40 Best Essays of All Time (Including Links & Writing Tips)

I wanted to improve my writing skills. I thought that reading the forty best essays of all time would bring me closer to my goal.

I had little money (buying forty collections of essays was out of the question) so I’ve found them online instead. I’ve hacked through piles of them, and finally, I’ve found the great ones. Now I want to share the whole list with you (with the addition of my notes about writing). Each item on the list has a direct link to the essay, so please click away and indulge yourself. Also, next to each essay, there’s an image of the book that contains the original work.

About this essay list:

Reading essays is like indulging in candy; once you start, it’s hard to stop. I sought out essays that were not only well-crafted but also impactful. These pieces genuinely shifted my perspective. Whether you’re diving in for enjoyment or to hone your writing, these essays promise to leave an imprint. It’s fascinating how an essay can resonate with you, and even if details fade, its essence remains. I haven’t ranked them in any way; they’re all stellar. Skim through, explore the summaries, and pick up some writing tips along the way. For more essay gems, consider “Best American Essays” by Joyce Carol Oates or “101 Essays That Will Change The Way You Think” curated by Brianna Wiest.

40 Best Essays of All Time (With Links And Writing Tips)

1. david sedaris – laugh, kookaburra.

A great family drama takes place against the backdrop of the Australian wilderness. And the Kookaburra laughs… This is one of the top essays of the lot. It’s a great mixture of family reminiscences, travel writing, and advice on what’s most important in life. You’ll also learn an awful lot about the curious culture of the Aussies.

Writing tips from the essay:

• Use analogies (you can make it funny or dramatic to achieve a better effect): “Don’t be afraid,” the waiter said, and he talked to the kookaburra in a soothing, respectful voice, the way you might to a child with a switchblade in his hand”.
• You can touch a few cognate stories in one piece of writing . Reveal the layers gradually. Intertwine them and arrange for a grand finale where everything is finally clear.
• Be on the side of the reader. Become their friend and tell the story naturally, like around the dinner table.
• Use short, punchy sentences. Tell only as much as is required to make your point vivid.
• Conjure sentences that create actual feelings: “I had on a sweater and a jacket, but they weren’t quite enough, and I shivered as we walked toward the body, and saw that it was a . . . what, exactly?”
• You may ask a few tough questions in a row to provoke interest and let the reader think.

2. Charles D’Ambrosio – Documents

Do you think your life punches you in the face all too often? After reading this essay, you will change your mind. Reading about loss and hardships often makes us sad at first, but then enables us to feel grateful for our lives . D’Ambrosio shares his documents (poems, letters) that had a major impact on his life, and brilliantly shows how not to let go of the past.

• The most powerful stories are about your family and the childhood moments that shaped your life.
• You don’t need to build up tension and pussyfoot around the crux of the matter. Instead, surprise the reader by telling it like it is: “The poem was an allegory about his desire to leave our family.” Or: “My father had three sons. I’m the eldest; Danny, the youngest, killed himself sixteen years ago”.
• You can use real documents and quotes from your family and friends. It makes it so much more personal and relatable.
• Don’t cringe before the long sentence if you know it’s a strong one.
• At the end of the essay, you may come back to the first theme to close the circuit.
• Using slightly poetic language is acceptable, as long as it improves the story.

3. E. B. White – Once more to the lake

What does it mean to be a father? Can you see your younger self, reflected in your child? This beautiful essay tells the story of the author, his son, and their traditional stay at a placid lake hidden within the forests of Maine. This place of nature is filled with sunshine and childhood memories. It also provides for one of the greatest meditations on nature and the passing of time.

• Use sophisticated language, but not at the expense of readability.
• Use vivid language to trigger the mirror neurons in the reader’s brain: “I took along my son, who had never had any fresh water up his nose and who had seen lily pads only from train windows”.
• It’s important to mention universal feelings that are rarely talked about (it helps to create a bond between two minds): “You remember one thing, and that suddenly reminds you of another thing. I guess I remembered clearest of all the early mornings when the lake was cool and motionless”.
• Animate the inanimate: “this constant and trustworthy body of water”.
• Mentioning tales of yore is a good way to add some mystery and timelessness to your piece.
• Using double, or even triple “and” in one sentence is fine. It can make the sentence sing.

4. Zadie Smith – Fail Better

Aspiring writers feel tremendous pressure to perform. The daily quota of words often turns out to be nothing more than gibberish. What then? Also, should the writer please the reader or should she be fully independent? What does it mean to be a writer, anyway? This essay is an attempt to answer these questions, but its contents are not only meant for scribblers. Within it, you’ll find some great notes about literary criticism, how we treat art , and the responsibility of the reader.

• A perfect novel ? There’s no such thing.
• The novel always reflects the inner world of the writer. That’s why we’re fascinated with writers.
• Writing is not simply about craftsmanship, but about taking your reader to the unknown lands. In the words of Christopher Hitchens: “Your ideal authors ought to pull you from the foundering of your previous existence, not smilingly guide you into a friendly and peaceable harbor.”
• Style comes from your unique personality and the perception of the world. It takes time to develop it.
• Never try to tell it all. “All” can never be put into language. Take a part of it and tell it the best you can.
• Avoid being cliché. Try to infuse new life into your writing .
• Writing is about your way of being. It’s your game. Paradoxically, if you try to please everyone, your writing will become less appealing. You’ll lose the interest of the readers. This rule doesn’t apply in the business world where you have to write for a specific person (a target audience).
• As a reader, you have responsibilities too. According to the critics, every thirty years, there’s just a handful of great novels. Maybe it’s true. But there’s also an element of personal connection between the reader and the writer. That’s why for one person a novel is a marvel, while for the other, nothing special at all. That’s why you have to search and find the author who will touch you.

5. Virginia Woolf – Death of the Moth

Amid an ordinary day, sitting in a room of her own, Virginia Woolf tells about the epic struggle for survival and the evanescence of life. This short essay is truly powerful. In the beginning, the atmosphere is happy. Life is in full force. And then, suddenly, it fades away. This sense of melancholy would mark the last years of Woolf’s life.

• The melody of language… A good sentence is like music: “Moths that fly by day are not properly to be called moths; they do not excite that pleasant sense of dark autumn nights and ivy-blossom which the commonest yellow- underwing asleep in the shadow of the curtain never fails to rouse in us”.
• You can show the grandest in the mundane (for example, the moth at your window and the drama of life and death).
• Using simple comparisons makes the style more lucid: “Being intent on other matters I watched these futile attempts for a time without thinking, unconsciously waiting for him to resume his flight, as one waits for a machine, that has stopped momentarily, to start again without considering the reason of its failure”.

6. Meghan Daum – My Misspent Youth

Many of us, at some point or another, dream about living in New York. Meghan Daum’s take on the subject differs slightly from what you might expect. There’s no glamour, no Broadway shows, and no fancy restaurants. Instead, there’s the sullen reality of living in one of the most expensive cities in the world. You’ll get all the juicy details about credit cards, overdue payments, and scrambling for survival. It’s a word of warning. But it’s also a great story about shattered fantasies of living in a big city. Word on the street is: “You ain’t promised mañana in the rotten manzana.”

• You can paint a picture of your former self. What did that person believe in? What kind of world did he or she live in?
• “The day that turned your life around” is a good theme you may use in a story. Memories of a special day are filled with emotions. Strong emotions often breed strong writing.
• Use cultural references and relevant slang to create a context for your story.
• You can tell all the details of the story, even if in some people’s eyes you’ll look like the dumbest motherfucker that ever lived. It adds to the originality.
• Say it in a new way: “In this mindset, the dollars spent, like the mechanics of a machine no one bothers to understand, become an abstraction, an intangible avenue toward self-expression, a mere vehicle of style”.
• You can mix your personal story with the zeitgeist or the ethos of the time.

7. Roger Ebert – Go Gentle Into That Good Night

Probably the greatest film critic of all time, Roger Ebert, tells us not to rage against the dying of the light. This essay is full of courage, erudition, and humanism. From it, we learn about what it means to be dying (Hitchens’ “Mortality” is another great work on that theme). But there’s so much more. It’s a great celebration of life too. It’s about not giving up, and sticking to your principles until the very end. It brings to mind the famous scene from Dead Poets Society where John Keating (Robin Williams) tells his students: “Carpe, carpe diem, seize the day boys, make your lives extraordinary”.

• Start with a powerful sentence: “I know it is coming, and I do not fear it, because I believe there is nothing on the other side of death to fear.”
• Use quotes to prove your point -”‘Ask someone how they feel about death’, he said, ‘and they’ll tell you everyone’s gonna die’. Ask them, ‘In the next 30 seconds?’ No, no, no, that’s not gonna happen”.
• Admit the basic truths about reality in a childlike way (especially after pondering quantum physics) – “I believe my wristwatch exists, and even when I am unconscious, it is ticking all the same. You have to start somewhere”.
• Let other thinkers prove your point. Use quotes and ideas from your favorite authors and friends.

8. George Orwell – Shooting an Elephant

Even after one reading, you’ll remember this one for years. The story, set in British Burma, is about shooting an elephant (it’s not for the squeamish). It’s also the most powerful denunciation of colonialism ever put into writing. Orwell, apparently a free representative of British rule, feels to be nothing more than a puppet succumbing to the whim of the mob.

• The first sentence is the most important one: “In Moulmein, in Lower Burma, I was hated by large numbers of people — the only time in my life that I have been important enough for this to happen to me”.
• You can use just the first paragraph to set the stage for the whole piece of prose.
• Use beautiful language that stirs the imagination: “I remember that it was a cloudy, stuffy morning at the beginning of the rains.” Or: “I watched him beating his bunch of grass against his knees, with that preoccupied grandmotherly air that elephants have.”
• If you’ve ever been to war, you will have a story to tell: “(Never tell me, by the way, that the dead look peaceful. Most of the corpses I have seen looked devilish.)”
• Use simple words, and admit the sad truth only you can perceive: “They did not like me, but with the magical rifle in my hands I was momentarily worth watching”.
• Share words of wisdom to add texture to the writing: “I perceived at this moment that when the white man turns tyrant it is his freedom that he destroys.”
• I highly recommend reading everything written by Orwell, especially if you’re looking for the best essay collections on Amazon or Goodreads.

9. George Orwell – A Hanging

It’s just another day in Burma – time to hang a man. Without much ado, Orwell recounts the grim reality of taking another person’s life. A man is taken from his cage and in a few minutes, he’s going to be hanged. The most horrible thing is the normality of it. It’s a powerful story about human nature. Also, there’s an extraordinary incident with the dog, but I won’t get ahead of myself.

• Create brilliant, yet short descriptions of characters: “He was a Hindu, a puny wisp of a man, with a shaven head and vague liquid eyes. He had a thick, sprouting mustache, absurdly too big for his body, rather like the mustache of a comic man on the films”.
• Understand and share the felt presence of a unique experience: “It is curious, but till that moment I had never realized what it means to destroy a healthy, conscious man”.
• Make your readers hear the sound that will stay with them forever: “And then when the noose was fixed, the prisoner began crying out on his god. It was a high, reiterated cry of “Ram! Ram! Ram! Ram!”
• Make the ending original by refusing the tendency to seek closure or summing it up.

10. Christopher Hitchens – Assassins of The Mind

In one of the greatest essays written in defense of free speech, Christopher Hitchens shares many examples of how modern media kneel to the explicit threats of violence posed by Islamic extremists. He recounts the story of his friend, Salman Rushdie, author of Satanic Verses who, for many years, had to watch over his shoulder because of the fatwa of Ayatollah Khomeini. With his usual wit, Hitchens shares various examples of people who died because of their opinions and of editors who refuse to publish anything related to Islam because of fear (and it was written long before the Charlie Hebdo massacre). After reading the essay, you realize that freedom of expression is one of the most precious things we have and that we have to fight for it. I highly recommend all essay collections penned by Hitchens, especially the ones written for Vanity Fair.

• Assume that the readers will know the cultural references. When they do, their self-esteem goes up – they are a part of an insider group.
• When proving your point, give a variety of real-life examples from eclectic sources. Leave no room for ambiguity or vagueness. Research and overall knowledge are essential here.
• Use italics to emphasize a specific word or phrase (here I use the underlining): “We live now in a climate where every publisher and editor and politician has to weigh in advance the possibility of violent Muslim reprisal. In consequence, several things have not happened.”
• Think about how to make it sound more original: “So there is now a hidden partner in our cultural and academic and publishing and the broadcasting world: a shadowy figure that has, uninvited, drawn up a chair to the table.”

11. Christopher Hitchens – The New Commandments

It’s high time to shatter the tablets and amend the biblical rules of conduct. Watch, as Christopher Hitchens slays one commandment after the other on moral, as well as historical grounds. For example, did you know that there are many versions of the divine law dictated by God to Moses which you can find in the Bible? Aren’t we thus empowered to write our version of a proper moral code? If you approach it with an open mind, this essay may change the way you think about the Bible and religion.

• Take the iconoclastic approach. Have a party on the hallowed soil.
• Use humor to undermine orthodox ideas (it seems to be the best way to deal with an established authority).
• Use sarcasm and irony when appropriate (or not): “Nobody is opposed to a day of rest. The international Communist movement got its start by proclaiming a strike for an eight-hour day on May 1, 1886, against Christian employers who used child labor seven days a week”.
• Defeat God on legal grounds: “Wise lawmakers know that it is a mistake to promulgate legislation that is impossible to obey”.
• Be ruthless in the logic of your argument. Provide evidence.

12. Phillip Lopate – Against Joie de Vivre

While reading this fantastic essay, this quote from Slavoj Žižek kept coming back to me: “I think that the only life of deep satisfaction is a life of eternal struggle, especially struggle with oneself. If you want to remain happy, just remain stupid. Authentic masters are never happy; happiness is a category of slaves”. I can bear the onus of happiness or joie de vivre for some time. But this force enables me to get free and wallow in the sweet feelings of melancholy and nostalgia. By reading this work of Lopate, you’ll enter into the world of an intelligent man who finds most social rituals a drag. It’s worth exploring.

• Go against the grain. Be flamboyant and controversial (if you can handle it).
• Treat the paragraph like a group of thoughts on one theme. Next paragraph, next theme.
• Use references to other artists to set the context and enrich the prose: “These sunny little canvases with their talented innocence, the third-generation spirit of Montmartre, bore testimony to a love of life so unbending as to leave an impression of rigid narrow-mindedness as extreme as any Savonarola. Their rejection of sorrow was total”.
• Capture the emotions in life that are universal, yet remain unspoken.
• Don’t be afraid to share your intimate experiences.

13. Philip Larkin – The Pleasure Principle

This piece comes from the Required Writing collection of personal essays. Larkin argues that reading in verse should be a source of intimate pleasure – not a medley of unintelligible thoughts that only the author can (or can’t?) decipher. It’s a sobering take on modern poetry and a great call to action for all those involved in it. Well worth a read.

• Write about complicated ideas (such as poetry) simply. You can change how people look at things if you express yourself enough.
• Go boldly. The reader wants a bold writer: “We seem to be producing a new kind of bad poetry, not the old kind that tries to move the reader and fails, but one that does not even try”.
• Play with words and sentence length. Create music: “It is time some of you playboys realized, says the judge, that reading a poem is hard work. Fourteen days in stir. Next case”.
• Persuade the reader to take action. Here, direct language is the most effective.

14. Sigmund Freud – Thoughts for the Times on War and Death

This essay reveals Freud’s disillusionment with the whole project of Western civilization. How the peaceful European countries could engage in a war that would eventually cost over 17 million lives? What stirs people to kill each other? Is it their nature, or are they puppets of imperial forces with agendas of their own? From the perspective of time, this work by Freud doesn’t seem to be fully accurate. Even so, it’s well worth your time.

• Commence with long words derived from Latin. Get grandiloquent, make your argument incontrovertible, and leave your audience discombobulated.
• Use unending sentences, so that the reader feels confused, yet impressed.
• Say it well: “In this way, he enjoyed the blue sea and the grey; the beauty of snow-covered mountains and green meadowlands; the magic of northern forests and the splendor of southern vegetation; the mood evoked by landscapes that recall great historical events, and the silence of untouched nature”.
• Human nature is a subject that never gets dry.

15. Zadie Smith – Some Notes on Attunement

“You are privy to a great becoming, but you recognize nothing” – Francis Dolarhyde. This one is about the elusiveness of change occurring within you. For Zadie, it was hard to attune to the vibes of Joni Mitchell – especially her Blue album. But eventually, she grew up to appreciate her genius, and all the other things changed as well. This top essay is all about the relationship between humans, and art. We shouldn’t like art because we’re supposed to. We should like it because it has an instantaneous, emotional effect on us. Although, according to Stansfield (Gary Oldman) in Léon, liking Beethoven is rather mandatory.

• Build an expectation of what’s coming: “The first time I heard her I didn’t hear her at all”.
• Don’t be afraid of repetition if it feels good.
• Psychedelic drugs let you appreciate things you never appreciated.
• Intertwine a personal journey with philosophical musings.
• Show rather than tell: “My friends pitied their eyes. The same look the faithful give you as you hand them back their “literature” and close the door in their faces”.
• Let the poets speak for you: “That time is past, / And all its aching joys are now no
• more, / And all its dizzy raptures”.
• By voicing your anxieties, you can heal the anxieties of the reader. In that way, you say: “I’m just like you. I’m your friend in this struggle”.
• Admit your flaws to make your persona more relatable.

16. Annie Dillard – Total Eclipse

My imagination was always stirred by the scene of the solar eclipse in Pharaoh, by Boleslaw Prus. I wondered about the shock of the disoriented crowd when they saw how their ruler could switch off the light. Getting immersed in this essay by Annie Dillard has a similar effect. It produces amazement and some kind of primeval fear. It’s not only the environment that changes; it’s your mind and the perception of the world. After the eclipse, nothing is going to be the same again.

• Yet again, the power of the first sentence draws you in: “It had been like dying, that sliding down the mountain pass”.
• Don’t miss the extraordinary scene. Then describe it: “Up in the sky, like a crater from some distant cataclysm, was a hollow ring”.
• Use colloquial language. Write as you talk. Short sentences often win.
• Contrast the numinous with the mundane to enthrall the reader.

17. Édouard Levé – When I Look at a Strawberry, I Think of a Tongue

This suicidally beautiful essay will teach you a lot about the appreciation of life and the struggle with mental illness. It’s a collection of personal, apparently unrelated thoughts that show us the rich interior of the author. You look at the real-time thoughts of another person, and then recognize the same patterns within yourself… It sounds like a confession of a person who’s about to take their life, and it’s striking in its originality.

• Use the stream-of-consciousness technique and put random thoughts on paper. Then, polish them: “I have attempted suicide once, I’ve been tempted four times to attempt it”.
• Place the treasure deep within the story: “When I look at a strawberry, I think of a tongue, when I lick one, of a kiss”.
• Don’t worry about what people might think. The more you expose, the more powerful the writing. Readers also take part in the great drama. They experience universal emotions that mostly stay inside.  You can translate them into writing.

18. Gloria E. Anzaldúa – How to Tame a Wild Tongue

Anzaldúa, who was born in south Texas, had to struggle to find her true identity. She was American, but her culture was grounded in Mexico. In this way, she and her people were not fully respected in either of the countries. This essay is an account of her journey of becoming the ambassador of the Chicano (Mexican-American) culture. It’s full of anecdotes, interesting references, and different shades of Spanish. It’s a window into a new cultural dimension that you’ve never experienced before.

• If your mother tongue is not English, but you write in English, use some of your unique homeland vocabulary.
• You come from a rich cultural heritage. You can share it with people who never heard about it, and are not even looking for it, but it is of immense value to them when they discover it.
• Never forget about your identity. It is precious. It is a part of who you are. Even if you migrate, try to preserve it. Use it to your best advantage and become the voice of other people in the same situation.
• Tell them what’s really on your mind: “So if you want to hurt me, talk badly about my language. Ethnic identity is twin skin to linguistic identity – I am my language”.

19. Kurt Vonnegut – Dispatch From A Man Without a Country

In terms of style, this essay is flawless. It’s simple, conversational, humorous, and yet, full of wisdom. And when Vonnegut becomes a teacher and draws an axis of “beginning – end”, and, “good fortune – bad fortune” to explain literature, it becomes outright hilarious. It’s hard to find an author with such a down-to-earth approach. He doesn’t need to get intellectual to prove a point. And the point could be summed up by the quote from Great Expectations – “On the Rampage, Pip, and off the Rampage, Pip – such is Life!”

• Start with a curious question: “Do you know what a twerp is?”
• Surprise your readers with uncanny analogies: “I am from a family of artists. Here I am, making a living in the arts. It has not been a rebellion. It’s as though I had taken over the family Esso station.”
• Use your natural language without too many special effects. In time, the style will crystalize.
• An amusing lesson in writing from Mr. Vonnegut: “Here is a lesson in creative writing. First rule: Do not use semicolons. They are transvestite hermaphrodites representing absolutely nothing. All they do is show you’ve been to college”.
• You can put actual images or vignettes between the paragraphs to illustrate something.

20. Mary Ruefle – On Fear

Most psychologists and gurus agree that fear is the greatest enemy of success or any creative activity. It’s programmed into our minds to keep us away from imaginary harm. Mary Ruefle takes on this basic human emotion with flair. She explores fear from so many angles (especially in the world of poetry-writing) that at the end of this personal essay, you will look at it, dissect it, untangle it, and hopefully be able to say “f**k you” the next time your brain is trying to stop you.

• Research your subject thoroughly. Ask people, have interviews, get expert opinions, and gather as much information as possible. Then scavenge through the fields of data, and pull out the golden bits that will let your prose shine.
• Use powerful quotes to add color to your story: “The poet who embarks on the creation of the poem (as I know by experience), begins with the aimless sensation of a hunter about to embark on a night hunt through the remotest of forests. Unaccountable dread stirs in his heart”. – Lorca.
• Writing advice from the essay: “One of the fears a young writer has is not being able to write as well as he or she wants to, the fear of not being able to sound like X or Y, a favorite author. But out of fear, hopefully, is born a young writer’s voice”.

21. Susan Sontag – Against Interpretation

In this highly intellectual essay, Sontag fights for art and its interpretation. It’s a great lesson, especially for critics and interpreters who endlessly chew on works that simply defy interpretation. Why don’t we just leave the art alone? I always hated it when at school they asked me: “What did the author have in mind when he did X or Y?” Iēsous Pantocrator! Hell if I know! I will judge it through my subjective experience!

• Leave the art alone: “Today is such a time, when the project of interpretation is reactionary, stifling. Like the fumes of the automobile and heavy industry which befoul the urban atmosphere, the effusion of interpretations of art today poisons our sensibilities”.
• When you have something really important to say, style matters less.
• There’s no use in creating a second meaning or inviting interpretation of our art. Just leave it be and let it speak for itself.

22. Nora Ephron – A Few Words About Breasts

This is a heartwarming, coming-of-age story about a young girl who waits in vain for her breasts to grow. It’s simply a humorous and pleasurable read. The size of breasts is a big deal for women. If you’re a man, you may peek into the mind of a woman and learn many interesting things. If you’re a woman, maybe you’ll be able to relate and at last, be at peace with your bosom.

• Touch an interesting subject and establish a strong connection with the readers (in that case, women with small breasts). Let your personality shine through the written piece. If you are lighthearted, show it.
• Use hyphens to create an impression of real talk: “My house was full of apples and peaches and milk and homemade chocolate chip cookies – which were nice, and good for you, but-not-right-before-dinner-or-you’ll-spoil-your-appetite.”
• Use present tense when you tell a story to add more life to it.
• Share the pronounced, memorable traits of characters: “A previous girlfriend named Solange, who was famous throughout Beverly Hills High School for having no pigment in her right eyebrow, had knitted them for him (angora dice)”.

23. Carl Sagan – Does Truth Matter – Science, Pseudoscience, and Civilization

Carl Sagan was one of the greatest proponents of skepticism, and an author of numerous books, including one of my all-time favorites – The Demon-Haunted World . He was also a renowned physicist and the host of the fantastic Cosmos: A Personal Voyage series, which inspired a whole generation to uncover the mysteries of the cosmos. He was also a dedicated weed smoker – clearly ahead of his time. The essay that you’re about to read is a crystallization of his views about true science, and why you should check the evidence before believing in UFOs or similar sorts of crap.

• Tell people the brutal truth they need to hear. Be the one who spells it out for them.
• Give a multitude of examples to prove your point. Giving hard facts helps to establish trust with the readers and show the veracity of your arguments.
• Recommend a good book that will change your reader’s minds – How We Know What Isn’t So: The Fallibility of Human Reason in Everyday Life

24. Paul Graham – How To Do What You Love

How To Do What You Love should be read by every college student and young adult. The Internet is flooded with a large number of articles and videos that are supposed to tell you what to do with your life. Most of them are worthless, but this one is different. It’s sincere, and there’s no hidden agenda behind it. There’s so much we take for granted – what we study, where we work, what we do in our free time… Surely we have another two hundred years to figure it out, right? Life’s too short to be so naïve. Please, read the essay and let it help you gain fulfillment from your work.

• Ask simple, yet thought-provoking questions (especially at the beginning of the paragraph) to engage the reader: “How much are you supposed to like what you do?”
• Let the readers question their basic assumptions: “Prestige is like a powerful magnet that warps even your beliefs about what you enjoy. It causes you to work not on what you like, but what you’d like to like”.
• If you’re writing for a younger audience, you can act as a mentor. It’s beneficial for younger people to read a few words of advice from a person with experience.

25. John Jeremiah Sullivan – Mister Lytle

A young, aspiring writer is about to become a nurse of a fading writer – Mister Lytle (Andrew Nelson Lytle), and there will be trouble. This essay by Sullivan is probably my favorite one from the whole list. The amount of beautiful sentences it contains is just overwhelming. But that’s just a part of its charm. It also takes you to the Old South which has an incredible atmosphere. It’s grim and tawny but you want to stay there for a while.

• Short, distinct sentences are often the most powerful ones: “He had a deathbed, in other words. He didn’t go suddenly”.
• Stay consistent with the mood of the story. When reading Mister Lytle you are immersed in that southern, forsaken, gloomy world, and it’s a pleasure.
• The spectacular language that captures it all: “His French was superb, but his accent in English was best—that extinct mid-Southern, land-grant pioneer speech, with its tinges of the abandoned Celtic urban Northeast (“boned” for burned) and its raw gentility”.
• This essay is just too good. You have to read it.

26. Joan Didion – On Self Respect

Normally, with that title, you would expect some straightforward advice about how to improve your character and get on with your goddamn life – but not from Joan Didion. From the very beginning, you can feel the depth of her thinking, and the unmistakable style of a true woman who’s been hurt. You can learn more from this essay than from whole books about self-improvement . It reminds me of the scene from True Detective, where Frank Semyon tells Ray Velcoro to “own it” after he realizes he killed the wrong man all these years ago. I guess we all have to “own it”, recognize our mistakes, and move forward sometimes.

• Share your moral advice: “Character — the willingness to accept responsibility for one’s own life — is the source from which self-respect springs”.
• It’s worth exploring the subject further from a different angle. It doesn’t matter how many people have already written on self-respect or self-reliance – you can still write passionately about it.
• Whatever happens, you must take responsibility for it. Brave the storms of discontent.

27. Susan Sontag – Notes on Camp

I’ve never read anything so thorough and lucid about an artistic current. After reading this essay, you will know what camp is. But not only that – you will learn about so many artists you’ve never heard of. You will follow their traces and go to places where you’ve never been before. You will vastly increase your appreciation of art. It’s interesting how something written as a list could be so amazing. All the listicles we usually see on the web simply cannot compare with it.

• Talking about artistic sensibilities is a tough job. When you read the essay, you will see how much research, thought and raw intellect came into it. But that’s one of the reasons why people still read it today, even though it was written in 1964.
• You can choose an unorthodox way of expression in the medium for which you produce. For example, Notes on Camp is a listicle – one of the most popular content formats on the web. But in the olden days, it was uncommon to see it in print form.
• Just think about what is camp: “And third among the great creative sensibilities is Camp: the sensibility of failed seriousness, of the theatricalization of experience. Camp refuses both the harmonies of traditional seriousness and the risks of fully identifying with extreme states of feeling”.

28. Ralph Waldo Emerson – Self-Reliance

That’s the oldest one from the lot. Written in 1841, it still inspires generations of people. It will let you understand what it means to be self-made. It contains some of the most memorable quotes of all time. I don’t know why, but this one especially touched me: “Every true man is a cause, a country, and an age; requires infinite spaces and numbers and time fully to accomplish his design, and posterity seems to follow his steps as a train of clients”. Now isn’t it purely individualistic, American thought? Emerson told me (and he will tell you) to do something amazing with my life. The language it contains is a bit archaic, but that just adds to the weight of the argument. You can consider it to be a meeting with a great philosopher who shaped the ethos of the modern United States.

• You can start with a powerful poem that will set the stage for your work.
• Be free in your creative flow. Do not wait for the approval of others: “What I must do is all that concerns me, not what the people think. This rule, equally arduous in actual and in intellectual life, may serve for the whole distinction between greatness and meanness”.
• Use rhetorical questions to strengthen your argument: “I hear a preacher announce for his text and topic the expediency of one of the institutions of his church. Do I not know beforehand that not possibly say a new and spontaneous word?”

29. David Foster Wallace – Consider The Lobster

When you want simple field notes about a food festival, you needn’t send there the formidable David Foster Wallace. He sees right through the hypocrisy and cruelty behind killing hundreds of thousands of innocent lobsters – by boiling them alive. This essay uncovers some of the worst traits of modern American people. There are no apologies or hedging one’s bets. There’s just plain truth that stabs you in the eye like a lobster claw. After reading this essay, you may reconsider the whole animal-eating business.

• When it’s important, say it plainly and stagger the reader: “[Lobsters] survive right up until they’re boiled. Most of us have been in supermarkets or restaurants that feature tanks of live lobster, from which you can pick out your supper while it watches you point”.
• In your writing, put exact quotes of the people you’ve been interviewing (including slang and grammatical errors). It makes it more vivid, and interesting.
• You can use humor in serious situations to make your story grotesque.
• Use captions to expound on interesting points of your essay.

30. David Foster Wallace – The Nature of the Fun

The famous novelist and author of the most powerful commencement speech ever done is going to tell you about the joys and sorrows of writing a work of fiction. It’s like taking care of a mutant child that constantly oozes smelly liquids. But you love that child and you want others to love it too. It’s a very humorous account of what it means to be an author. If you ever plan to write a novel, you should read that one. And the story about the Chinese farmer is just priceless.

• Base your point on a chimerical analogy. Here, the writer’s unfinished work is a “hideously damaged infant”.
• Even in expository writing, you may share an interesting story to keep things lively.
• Share your true emotions (even when you think they won’t interest anyone). Often, that’s exactly what will interest the reader.
• Read the whole essay for marvelous advice on writing fiction.

31. Margaret Atwood – Attitude

This is not an essay per se, but I included it on the list for the sake of variety. It was delivered as a commencement speech at The University of Toronto, and it’s about keeping the right attitude. Soon after leaving university, most graduates have to forget about safety, parties, and travel and start a new life – one filled with a painful routine that will last until they drop. Atwood says that you don’t have to accept that. You can choose how you react to everything that happens to you (and you don’t have to stay in that dead-end job for the rest of your days).

• At times, we are all too eager to persuade, but the strongest persuasion is not forceful. It’s subtle. It speaks to the heart. It affects you gradually.
• You may be tempted to talk about a subject by first stating what it is not, rather than what it is. Try to avoid that.
• Simple advice for writers (and life in general): “When faced with the inevitable, you always have a choice. You may not be able to alter reality, but you can alter your attitude towards it”.

32. Jo Ann Beard – The Fourth State of Matter

Read that one as soon as possible. It’s one of the most masterful and impactful essays you’ll ever read. It’s like a good horror – a slow build-up, and then your jaw drops to the ground. To summarize the story would be to spoil it, so I recommend that you just dig in and devour this essay in one sitting. It’s a perfect example of “show, don’t tell” writing, where the actions of characters are enough to create the right effect. No need for flowery adjectives here.

• The best story you will tell is going to come from your personal experience.
• Use mysteries that will nag the reader. For example, at the beginning of the essay, we learn about the “vanished husband” but there’s no explanation. We have to keep reading to get the answer.
• Explain it in simple terms: “You’ve got your solid, your liquid, your gas, and then your plasma”. Why complicate?

33. Terence McKenna – Tryptamine Hallucinogens and Consciousness

To me, Terence McKenna was one of the most interesting thinkers of the twentieth century. His many lectures (now available on YouTube) attracted millions of people who suspect that consciousness holds secrets yet to be unveiled. McKenna consumed psychedelic drugs for most of his life and it shows (in a positive way). Many people consider him a looney, and a hippie, but he was so much more than that. He dared to go into the abyss of his psyche and come back to tell the tale. He also wrote many books (the most famous being Food Of The Gods ), built a huge botanical garden in Hawaii , lived with shamans, and was a connoisseur of all things enigmatic and obscure. Take a look at this essay, and learn more about the explorations of the subconscious mind.

• Become the original thinker, but remember that it may require extraordinary measures: “I call myself an explorer rather than a scientist because the area that I’m looking at contains insufficient data to support even the dream of being a science”.
• Learn new words every day to make your thoughts lucid.
• Come up with the most outlandish ideas to push the envelope of what’s possible. Don’t take things for granted or become intellectually lazy. Question everything.

34. Eudora Welty – The Little Store

By reading this little-known essay, you will be transported into the world of the old American South. It’s a remembrance of trips to the little store in a little town. It’s warm and straightforward, and when you read it, you feel like a child once more. All these beautiful memories live inside of us. They lay somewhere deep in our minds, hidden from sight. The work by Eudora Welty is an attempt to uncover some of them and let you get reacquainted with some smells and tastes of the past.

• When you’re from the South, flaunt it. It’s still good old English but sometimes it sounds so foreign. I can hear the Southern accent too: “There were almost tangible smells – licorice recently sucked in a child’s cheek, dill-pickle brine that had leaked through a paper sack in a fresh trail across the wooden floor, ammonia-loaded ice that had been hoisted from wet Croker sacks and slammed into the icebox with its sweet butter at the door, and perhaps the smell of still-untrapped mice”.
• Yet again, never forget your roots.
• Childhood stories can be the most powerful ones. You can write about how they shaped you.

35. John McPhee – The Search for Marvin Gardens

The Search for Marvin Gardens contains many layers of meaning. It’s a story about a Monopoly championship, but also, it’s the author’s search for the lost streets visible on the board of the famous board game. It also presents a historical perspective on the rise and fall of civilizations, and on Atlantic City, which once was a lively place, and then, slowly declined, the streets filled with dirt and broken windows.

• There’s nothing like irony: “A sign- ‘Slow, Children at Play’- has been bent backward by an automobile”.
• Telling the story in apparently unrelated fragments is sometimes better than telling the whole thing in a logical order.
• Creativity is everything. The best writing may come just from connecting two ideas and mixing them to achieve a great effect. Shush! The muse is whispering.

36. Maxine Hong Kingston – No Name Woman

A dead body at the bottom of the well makes for a beautiful literary device. The first line of Orhan Pamuk’s novel My Name Is Red delivers it perfectly: “I am nothing but a corpse now, a body at the bottom of a well”. There’s something creepy about the idea of the well. Just think about the “It puts the lotion in the basket” scene from The Silence of the Lambs. In the first paragraph of Kingston’s essay, we learn about a suicide committed by uncommon means of jumping into the well. But this time it’s a real story. Who was this woman? Why did she do it? Read the essay.

• Mysterious death always gets attention. The macabre details are like daiquiris on a hot day – you savor them – you don’t let them spill.
• One sentence can speak volumes: “But the rare urge west had fixed upon our family, and so my aunt crossed boundaries not delineated in space”.
• It’s interesting to write about cultural differences – especially if you have the relevant experience. Something normal for us is unthinkable for others. Show this different world.
• The subject of sex is never boring.

37. Joan Didion – On Keeping A Notebook

Slouching Towards Bethlehem is one of the most famous collections of essays of all time. In it, you will find a curious piece called On Keeping A Notebook. It’s not only a meditation about keeping a journal. It’s also Didion’s reconciliation with her past self. After reading it, you will seriously reconsider your life’s choices and look at your life from a wider perspective.

• When you write things down in your journal, be more specific – unless you want to write a deep essay about it years later.
• Use the beauty of the language to relate to the past: “I have already lost touch with a couple of people I used to be; one of them, a seventeen-year-old, presents little threat, although it would be of some interest to me to know again what it feels like to sit on a river levee drinking vodka-and-orange-juice and listening to Les Paul and Mary Ford and their echoes sing ‘How High the Moon’ on the car radio”.
• Drop some brand names if you want to feel posh.

38. Joan Didion – Goodbye To All That

This one touched me because I also lived in New York City for a while. I don’t know why, but stories about life in NYC are so often full of charm and this eerie-melancholy-jazz feeling. They are powerful. They go like this: “There was a hard blizzard in NYC. As the sound of sirens faded, Tony descended into the dark world of hustlers and pimps.” That’s pulp literature but in the context of NYC, it always sounds cool. Anyway, this essay is amazing in too many ways. You just have to read it.

• Talk about New York City. They will read it.
• Talk about the human experience: “It did occur to me to call the desk and ask that the air conditioner be turned off, I never called, because I did not know how much to tip whoever might come—was anyone ever so young?”
• Look back at your life and reexamine it. Draw lessons from it.

39. George Orwell – Reflections on Gandhi

George Orwell could see things as they were. No exaggeration, no romanticism – just facts. He recognized totalitarianism and communism for what they were and shared his worries through books like 1984 and Animal Farm . He took the same sober approach when dealing with saints and sages. Today, we regard Gandhi as one of the greatest political leaders of the twentieth century – and rightfully so. But did you know that when asked about the Jews during World War II, Gandhi said that they should commit collective suicide and that it: “would have aroused the world and the people of Germany to Hitler’s violence.” He also recommended utter pacifism in 1942, during the Japanese invasion, even though he knew it would cost millions of lives. But overall he was a good guy. Read the essay and broaden your perspective on the Bapu of the Indian Nation.

• Share a philosophical thought that stops the reader for a moment: “No doubt alcohol, tobacco, and so forth are things that a saint must avoid, but sainthood is also a thing that human beings must avoid”.
• Be straightforward in your writing – no mannerisms, no attempts to create ‘style’, and no invocations of the numinous – unless you feel the mystical vibe.

40. George Orwell – Politics and the English Language

Let Mr. Orwell give you some writing tips. Written in 1946, this essay is still one of the most helpful documents on writing in English. Orwell was probably the first person who exposed the deliberate vagueness of political language. He was very serious about it and I admire his efforts to slay all unclear sentences (including ones written by distinguished professors). But it’s good to make it humorous too from time to time. My favorite examples of that would be the immortal Soft Language sketch by George Carlin or the “Romans Go Home” scene from Monty Python’s Life of Brian. Overall, it’s a great essay filled with examples from many written materials. It’s a must-read for any writer.

• Listen to the master: “This mixture of vagueness and sheer incompetence is the most marked characteristic of modern English prose.” Do something about it.
• This essay is all about writing better, so go to the source if you want the goodies.

Other Essays You May Find Interesting

The list that I’ve prepared is by no means complete. The literary world is full of exciting essays and you’ll never know which one is going to change your life. I’ve found reading essays very rewarding because sometimes, a single one means more than reading a whole book. It’s almost like wandering around and peeking into the minds of the greatest writers and thinkers that ever lived. To make this list more comprehensive, below I included more essays you may find interesting.

Oliver Sacks – On Libraries

One of the greatest contributors to the knowledge about the human mind, Oliver Sacks meditates on the value of libraries and his love of books.

Noam Chomsky – The Responsibility of Intellectuals

Chomsky did probably more than anyone else to define the role of the intelligentsia in the modern world . There is a war of ideas over there – good and bad – intellectuals are going to be those who ought to be fighting for the former.

Sam Harris – The Riddle of The Gun

Sam Harris, now a famous philosopher and neuroscientist, takes on the problem of gun control in the United States. His thoughts are clear of prejudice. After reading this, you’ll appreciate the value of logical discourse overheated, irrational debate that more often than not has real implications on policy.

Tim Ferriss – Some Practical Thoughts on Suicide

This piece was written as a blog post , but it’s worth your time. The author of the NYT bestseller The 4-Hour Workweek shares an emotional story about how he almost killed himself, and what can you do to save yourself or your friends from suicide.

Edward Said – Reflections on Exile

The life of Edward Said was a truly fascinating one. Born in Jerusalem, he lived between Palestine and Egypt and finally settled down in the United States, where he completed his most famous work – Orientalism. In this essay, he shares his thoughts about what it means to be in exile.

Richard Feynman – It’s as Simple as One, Two, Three…

Richard Feynman is one of the most interesting minds of the twentieth century. He was a brilliant physicist, but also an undeniably great communicator of science, an artist, and a traveler. By reading this essay, you can observe his thought process when he tries to figure out what affects our perception of time. It’s a truly fascinating read.

Rabindranath Tagore – The Religion of The Forest

I like to think about Tagore as my spiritual Friend. His poems are just marvelous. They are like some of the Persian verses that praise love, nature, and the unity of all things. By reading this short essay, you will learn a lot about Indian philosophy and its relation to its Western counterpart.

Richard Dawkins – Letter To His 10-Year-Old Daughter

Every father should be able to articulate his philosophy of life to his children. With this letter that’s similar to what you find in the Paris Review essays , the famed atheist and defender of reason, Richard Dawkins, does exactly that. It’s beautifully written and stresses the importance of looking at evidence when we’re trying to make sense of the world.

Albert Camus – The Minotaur (or, The Stop In Oran)

Each person requires a period of solitude – a period when one’s able to gather thoughts and make sense of life. There are many places where you may attempt to find quietude. Albert Camus tells about his favorite one.

Koty Neelis – 21 Incredible Life Lessons From Anthony Bourdain

I included it as the last one because it’s not really an essay, but I just had to put it somewhere. In this listicle, you’ll find the 21 most original thoughts of the high-profile cook, writer, and TV host, Anthony Bourdain. Some of them are shocking, others are funny, but they’re all worth checking out.

Lucius Annaeus Seneca – On the Shortness of Life

It’s similar to the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam because it praises life. Seneca shares some of his stoic philosophy and tells you not to waste your time on stupidities. Drink! – for once dead you shall never return.

Bertrand Russell – In Praise of Idleness

This old essay is a must-read for modern humans. We are so preoccupied with our work, our phones, and all the media input we drown in our business. Bertrand Russell tells you to chill out a bit – maybe it will do you some good.

James Baldwin – Stranger in the Village

It’s an essay on the author’s experiences as an African-American in a Swiss village, exploring race, identity, and alienation while highlighting the complexities of racial dynamics and the quest for belonging.

Bonus – More writing tips from two great books

The mission to improve my writing skills took me further than just going through the essays. I’ve come across some great books on writing too. I highly recommend you read them in their entirety. They’re written beautifully and contain lots of useful knowledge. Below you’ll find random (but useful) notes that I took from The Sense of Style and On Writing.

The Sense of Style – By Steven Pinker

• Style manuals are full of inconsistencies. Following their advice might not be the best idea. They might make your prose boring.
• Grammarians from all eras condemn students for not knowing grammar. But it just evolves. It cannot be rigid.
• “Nothing worth learning can be taught” – Oscar Wilde. It’s hard to learn to write from a manual – you have to read, write, and analyze.
• Good writing makes you imagine things and feel them for yourself – use word pictures.
• Don’t fear using voluptuous words.
• Phonesthetics – or how the words sound.
• Use parallel language (consistency of tense).
• Good writing finishes strong.
• Write to someone. Never write for no one in mind. Try to show people your view of the world.
• Don’t tell everything you are going to say in summary (signposting) – be logical, but be conversational.
• Don’t be pompous.
• Don’t use quotation marks where they don’t “belong”. Be confident about your style.
• Don’t hedge your claims (research first, and then tell it like it is).
• Avoid clichés and meta-concepts (concepts about concepts). Be more straightforward!
• Not prevention – but prevents or prevented – don’t use dead nouns.
• Be more vivid while using your mother tongue – don’t use passive where it’s not needed. Direct the reader’s gaze to something in the world.
• The curse of knowledge – the reader doesn’t know what you know – beware of that.
• Explain technical terms.
• Use examples when you explain a difficult term.
• If you ever say “I think I understand this” it probably means you don’t.
• It’s better to underestimate the lingo of your readers than to overestimate it.
• Functional fixedness – if we know some object (or idea) well, we tend to see it in terms of usage, not just as an object.
• Use concrete language instead of an abstraction.
• Show your work to people before you publish (get feedback!).
• Wait for a few days and then revise, revise, revise. Think about clarity and the sound of sentences. Then show it to someone. Then revise one more time. Then publish (if it’s to be serious work).
• Look at it from the perspective of other people.
• Omit needless words.
• Put the heaviest words at the end of the sentence.
• It’s good to use the passive, but only when appropriate.
• Check all text for cohesion. Make sure that the sentences flow gently.
• In expository work, go from general to more specific. But in journalism start from the big news and then give more details.
• Use the paragraph break to give the reader a moment to take a breath.
• Use the verb instead of a noun (make it more active) – not “cancellation”, but “canceled”. But after you introduce the action, you can refer to it with a noun.
• Avoid too many negations.
• If you write about why something is so, don’t spend too much time writing about why it is not.

On Writing Well – By William Zinsser

• Writing is a craft. You need to sit down every day and practice your craft.
• You should re-write and polish your prose a lot.
• Throw out all the clutter. Don’t keep it because you like it. Aim for readability.
• Look at the best examples of English literature . There’s hardly any needless garbage there.
• Use shorter expressions. Don’t add extra words that don’t bring any value to your work.
• Don’t use pompous language. Use simple language and say plainly what’s going on (“because” equals “because”).
• The media and politics are full of cluttered prose (because it helps them to cover up for their mistakes).
• You can’t add style to your work (and especially, don’t add fancy words to create an illusion of style). That will look fake. You need to develop a style.
• Write in the “I” mode. Write to a friend or just for yourself. Show your personality. There is a person behind the writing.
• Choose your words carefully. Use the dictionary to learn different shades of meaning.
• Remember about phonology. Make music with words .
• The lead is essential. Pull the reader in. Otherwise, your article is dead.
• You don’t have to make the final judgment on any topic. Just pick the right angle.
• Do your research. Not just obvious research, but a deep one.
• When it’s time to stop, stop. And finish strong. Think about the last sentence. Surprise them.
• Use quotations. Ask people. Get them talking.
• If you write about travel, it must be significant to the reader. Don’t bother with the obvious. Choose your words with special care. Avoid travel clichés at all costs. Don’t tell that the sand was white and there were rocks on the beach. Look for the right detail.
• If you want to learn how to write about art, travel, science, etc. – read the best examples available. Learn from the masters.
• Concentrate on one big idea (“Let’s not go peeing down both legs”).
• “The reader has to feel that the writer is feeling good.”
• One very helpful question: “What is the piece really about?” (Not just “What the piece is about?”)

Now immerse yourself in the world of essays

By reading the essays from the list above, you’ll become a better writer , a better reader, but also a better person. An essay is a special form of writing. It is the only literary form that I know of that is an absolute requirement for career or educational advancement. Nowadays, you can use an AI essay writer or an AI essay generator that will get the writing done for you, but if you have personal integrity and strong moral principles, avoid doing this at all costs. For me as a writer, the effect of these authors’ masterpieces is often deeply personal. You won’t be able to find the beautiful thoughts they contain in any other literary form. I hope you enjoy the read and that it will inspire you to do your writing. This list is only an attempt to share some of the best essays available online. Next up, you may want to check the list of magazines and websites that accept personal essays .

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The Top 10 Essays Since 1950

Robert Atwan, the founder of The Best American Essays series, picks the 10 best essays of the postwar period. Links to the essays are provided when available.

Fortunately, when I worked with Joyce Carol Oates on The Best American Essays of the Century (that’s the last century, by the way), we weren’t restricted to ten selections. So to make my list of the top ten essays since 1950 less impossible, I decided to exclude all the great examples of New Journalism--Tom Wolfe, Gay Talese, Michael Herr, and many others can be reserved for another list. I also decided to include only American writers, so such outstanding English-language essayists as Chris Arthur and Tim Robinson are missing, though they have appeared in The Best American Essays series. And I selected essays , not essayists . A list of the top ten essayists since 1950 would feature some different writers.

To my mind, the best essays are deeply personal (that doesn’t necessarily mean autobiographical) and deeply engaged with issues and ideas. And the best essays show that the name of the genre is also a verb, so they demonstrate a mind in process--reflecting, trying-out, essaying.

James Baldwin, "Notes of a Native Son" (originally appeared in Harper’s , 1955)

“I had never thought of myself as an essayist,” wrote James Baldwin, who was finishing his novel Giovanni’s Room while he worked on what would become one of the great American essays. Against a violent historical background, Baldwin recalls his deeply troubled relationship with his father and explores his growing awareness of himself as a black American. Some today may question the relevance of the essay in our brave new “post-racial” world, though Baldwin considered the essay still relevant in 1984 and, had he lived to see it, the election of Barak Obama may not have changed his mind. However you view the racial politics, the prose is undeniably hypnotic, beautifully modulated and yet full of urgency. Langston Hughes nailed it when he described Baldwin’s “illuminating intensity.” The essay was collected in Notes of a Native Son courageously (at the time) published by Beacon Press in 1955.

Norman Mailer, "The White Negro" (originally appeared in Dissent , 1957)

An essay that packed an enormous wallop at the time may make some of us cringe today with its hyperbolic dialectics and hyperventilated metaphysics. But Mailer’s attempt to define the “hipster”–in what reads in part like a prose version of Ginsberg’s “Howl”–is suddenly relevant again, as new essays keep appearing with a similar definitional purpose, though no one would mistake Mailer’s hipster (“a philosophical psychopath”) for the ones we now find in Mailer’s old Brooklyn neighborhoods. Odd, how terms can bounce back into life with an entirely different set of connotations. What might Mailer call the new hipsters? Squares?

Read the essay here .

Susan Sontag, "Notes on 'Camp'" (originally appeared in Partisan Review , 1964)

Like Mailer’s “White Negro,” Sontag’s groundbreaking essay was an ambitious attempt to define a modern sensibility, in this case “camp,” a word that was then almost exclusively associated with the gay world. I was familiar with it as an undergraduate, hearing it used often by a set of friends, department store window decorators in Manhattan. Before I heard Sontag—thirty-one, glamorous, dressed entirely in black-- read the essay on publication at a Partisan Review gathering, I had simply interpreted “campy” as an exaggerated style or over-the-top behavior. But after Sontag unpacked the concept, with the help of Oscar Wilde, I began to see the cultural world in a different light. “The whole point of camp,” she writes, “is to dethrone the serious.” Her essay, collected in Against Interpretation (1966), is not in itself an example of camp.

John McPhee, "The Search for Marvin Gardens" (originally appeared in The New Yorker , 1972)

“Go. I roll the dice—a six and a two. Through the air I move my token, the flatiron, to Vermont Avenue, where dog packs range.” And so we move, in this brilliantly conceived essay, from a series of Monopoly games to a decaying Atlantic City, the once renowned resort town that inspired America’s most popular board game. As the games progress and as properties are rapidly snapped up, McPhee juxtaposes the well-known sites on the board—Atlantic Avenue, Park Place—with actual visits to their crumbling locations. He goes to jail, not just in the game but in fact, portraying what life has now become in a city that in better days was a Boardwalk Empire. At essay’s end, he finds the elusive Marvin Gardens. The essay was collected in Pieces of the Frame (1975).

Read the essay here (subscription required).

Joan Didion, "The White Album" (originally appeared in New West , 1979)

Huey Newton, Eldridge Cleaver, and the Black Panthers, a recording session with Jim Morrison and the Doors, the San Francisco State riots, the Manson murders—all of these, and much more, figure prominently in Didion’s brilliant mosaic distillation (or phantasmagoric album) of California life in the late 1960s. Yet despite a cast of characters larger than most Hollywood epics, “The White Album” is a highly personal essay, right down to Didion’s report of her psychiatric tests as an outpatient in a Santa Monica hospital in the summer of 1968. “We tell ourselves stories in order to live,” the essay famously begins, and as it progresses nervously through cuts and flashes of reportage, with transcripts, interviews, and testimonies, we realize that all of our stories are questionable, “the imposition of a narrative line upon disparate images.” Portions of the essay appeared in installments in 1968-69 but it wasn’t until 1979 that Didion published the complete essay in New West magazine; it then became the lead essay of her book, The White Album (1979).

Annie Dillard, "Total Eclipse" (originally appeared in Antaeus , 1982)

In her introduction to The Best American Essays 1988 , Annie Dillard claims that “The essay can do everything a poem can do, and everything a short story can do—everything but fake it.” Her essay “Total Eclipse” easily makes her case for the imaginative power of a genre that is still undervalued as a branch of imaginative literature. “Total Eclipse” has it all—the climactic intensity of short fiction, the interwoven imagery of poetry, and the meditative dynamics of the personal essay: “This was the universe about which we have read so much and never before felt: the universe as a clockwork of loose spheres flung at stupefying, unauthorized speeds.” The essay, which first appeared in Antaeus in 1982 was collected in Teaching a Stone to Talk (1982), a slim volume that ranks among the best essay collections of the past fifty years.

Phillip Lopate, "Against Joie de Vivre" (originally appeared in Ploughshares , 1986)

This is an essay that made me glad I’d started The Best American Essays the year before. I’d been looking for essays that grew out of a vibrant Montaignean spirit—personal essays that were witty, conversational, reflective, confessional, and yet always about something worth discussing. And here was exactly what I’d been looking for. I might have found such writing several decades earlier but in the 80s it was relatively rare; Lopate had found a creative way to insert the old familiar essay into the contemporary world: “Over the years,” Lopate begins, “I have developed a distaste for the spectacle of joie de vivre , the knack of knowing how to live.” He goes on to dissect in comic yet astute detail the rituals of the modern dinner party. The essay was selected by Gay Talese for The Best American Essays 1987 and collected in Against Joie de Vivre in 1989 .

Edward Hoagland, "Heaven and Nature" (originally appeared in Harper’s, 1988)

“The best essayist of my generation,” is how John Updike described Edward Hoagland, who must be one of the most prolific essayists of our time as well. “Essays,” Hoagland wrote, “are how we speak to one another in print—caroming thoughts not merely in order to convey a certain packet of information, but with a special edge or bounce of personal character in a kind of public letter.” I could easily have selected many other Hoagland essays for this list (such as “The Courage of Turtles”), but I’m especially fond of “Heaven and Nature,” which shows Hoagland at his best, balancing the public and private, the well-crafted general observation with the clinching vivid example. The essay, selected by Geoffrey Wolff for The Best American Essays 1989 and collected in Heart’s Desire (1988), is an unforgettable meditation not so much on suicide as on how we remarkably manage to stay alive.

Jo Ann Beard, "The Fourth State of Matter" (originally appeared in The New Yorker , 1996)

A question for nonfiction writing students: When writing a true story based on actual events, how does the narrator create dramatic tension when most readers can be expected to know what happens in the end? To see how skillfully this can be done turn to Jo Ann Beard’s astonishing personal story about a graduate student’s murderous rampage on the University of Iowa campus in 1991. “Plasma is the fourth state of matter,” writes Beard, who worked in the U of I’s physics department at the time of the incident, “You’ve got your solid, your liquid, your gas, and there’s your plasma. In outer space there’s the plasmasphere and the plasmapause.” Besides plasma, in this emotion-packed essay you will find entangled in all the tension a lovable, dying collie, invasive squirrels, an estranged husband, the seriously disturbed gunman, and his victims, one of them among the author’s dearest friends. Selected by Ian Frazier for The Best American Essays 1997 , the essay was collected in Beard’s award-winning volume, The Boys of My Youth (1998).

David Foster Wallace, "Consider the Lobster" (originally appeared in Gourmet , 2004)

They may at first look like magazine articles—those factually-driven, expansive pieces on the Illinois State Fair, a luxury cruise ship, the adult video awards, or John McCain’s 2000 presidential campaign—but once you uncover the disguise and get inside them you are in the midst of essayistic genius. One of David Foster Wallace’s shortest and most essayistic is his “coverage” of the annual Maine Lobster Festival, “Consider the Lobster.” The Festival becomes much more than an occasion to observe “the World’s Largest Lobster Cooker” in action as Wallace poses an uncomfortable question to readers of the upscale food magazine: “Is it all right to boil a sentient creature alive just for our gustatory pleasure?” Don’t gloss over the footnotes. Susan Orlean selected the essay for The Best American Essays 2004 and Wallace collected it in Consider the Lobster and Other Essays (2005).

Read the essay here . (Note: the electronic version from Gourmet magazine’s archives differs from the essay that appears in The Best American Essays and in his book, Consider the Lobster. )

I wish I could include twenty more essays but these ten in themselves comprise a wonderful and wide-ranging mini-anthology, one that showcases some of the most outstanding literary voices of our time. Readers who’d like to see more of the best essays since 1950 should take a look at The Best American Essays of the Century (2000).

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Make Lists, Not War

The meta-lists website, best essays of all time – ranked.

A reader suggested I create a meta-list of the best essays of all time, so I did.  I found over 12 best essays lists and several essay anthologies and combined the essays into one meta-list.  The meta-list below includes every essay that was on at least two of the original source lists. They are organized by rank, that is, with the essays on the most lists at the top. To see the same list organized chronologically, go HERE .

Note 1:  Some of the essays are actually chapters from books.  In such cases, I have identified the source book.

Note 2: Some of the essays are book-length, such as Virginia Woolf’s A Room of One’s Own .  One book listed as an essay by two listers – Fernando Pessoa’s The Book of Disquiet – is also regularly categorized as a work of fiction.

On 11 lists James Baldwin – Notes of a Native Son (1955)

On 6 lists George Orwell – Shooting an Elephant (1936) E.B. White – Once More to the Lake (1941) Joan Didion – Goodbye To All That (1968)

On 5 lists Joan Didion – On Keeping A Notebook (1968) Annie Dillard – Total Eclipse (1982) Jo Ann Beard – The Fourth State of Matter (1996) David Foster Wallace – A Supposedly Fun Thing I Will Never Do Again (1996)

On 4 lists William Hazlitt – On the Pleasure of Hating (1823) Ralph Waldo Emerson – Self-Reliance (1841) Virginia Woolf – A Room of One’s Own (1928) Virginia Woolf – The Death of a Moth (1942) George Orwell – Such, Such Were the Joys (1952) Joan Didion – In Bed (1968) Amy Tan – Mother Tongue (1991) David Foster Wallace – Consider The Lobster (2005)

On 3 lists Jonathan Swift – A Modest Proposal  (1729) Virginia Woolf – Street Haunting: A London Adventure (1930) John McPhee – The Search for Marvin Gardens (1972) Joan Didion – The White Album (1968-1978) Eudora Welty – The Little Store (1978) Phillip Lopate – Against Joie de Vivre (1989)

On 2 lists Sei Shonagon – Hateful Things (from The Pillow Book ) (1002) Yoshida Kenko – Essays in Idleness (1332) Michel de Montaigne – On Some Verses of Virgil (1580) Robert Burton – Anatomy of Melancholy (1621) John Milton – Areopagitica  (1644) William Hazlitt – On Going a Journey (1822) Charles Lamb – The Superannuated Man (1823) Henry David Thoreau – Civil Disobedience (1849) Henry David Thoreau – Where I Lived, and What I Lived For (from  Walden ) (1854) Henry David Thoreau – Economy (from  Walden ) (1854) Henry David Thoreau – Walking (1861) Robert Louis Stevenson – The Lantern-Bearers (1888) Zora Neale Hurston – How It Feels to Be Colored Me (1928) George Orwell – A Hanging (1931) Junichiro Tanizaki – In Praise of Shadows (1933) Fernando Pessoa – The Book of Disquiet (1935) James Agee and Walker Evans – Let Us Now Praise Famous Men (1941) Simone Weil – On Human Personality (1943) M.F.K. Fisher – The Flaw (1943) Vladimir Nabokov – Speak, Memory (1951, revised 1966) Mary McCarthy – Artists in Uniform: A Story (1953) E.B. White – Goodbye to Forty-Eighth Street (1957) Martin Luther King, Jr. – Letter from Birmingham Jail (1963) Joseph Mitchell – Joe Gould’s Secret (1964) Susan Sontag – Against Interpretation (1966) Edward Hoagland – The Courage of Turtles (1970) Annie Dillard – Seeing (from  Pilgrim at Tinker Creek ) (1974) Maxine Hong Kingston – No Name Woman (from The Woman Warrior ) (1976) Roland Barthes – Camera Lucida: Reflections on Photography (1982) Annie Dillard – Living Like Weasels (1982) Gloria E. Anzaldúa – How to Tame a Wild Tongue (1987) Italo Calvino – Exactitude (1988) Richard Rodriguez – Late Victorians (1990) David Wojnarowicz – Being Queer in America: A Journal of Disintegration (1991) Seymour Krim – To My Brothers & Sisters in the Failure Business (1991) Anne Carson – The Anthropology of Water (1995) Susan Sontag – Regarding the Pain of Others (2003) Etel Adnan – In the Heart of the Heart of Another Country (2005) Paul LaFarge – Destroy All Monsters (2006) Brian Doyle – Joyas Voladoras (2012)

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Home — Essay Samples — History

Essays on History

History is a fascinating subject that helps us understand the past and how it shapes our present. Writing an essay on history can be both exciting and challenging. Whether you're tasked with writing about a specific event, person, or period, our collection of history essay examples can guide you in crafting your own piece.

Why Choose History Essays?

History essays allow you to explore significant events and their impacts on society. They encourage critical thinking and help you develop your research skills. By analyzing different perspectives on historical events, you can gain deeper insights into human behavior and societal changes over time.

Selecting an Essay from Our Collection

When browsing through our history essay examples, consider what interests you most. Are you drawn to ancient civilizations, major wars, or influential leaders? Look for essays that resonate with your curiosity or align with your assignment guidelines. Take note of the structure, arguments presented, and use of evidence in these examples; they will be valuable when writing your own essay.

How to Write Your Own History Essay

Writing your own history essay based on our examples is easier than it sounds! Start by choosing a topic that excites you. Next, read through the essays you've selected carefully. Notice how each one introduces its topic, presents arguments, supports them with evidence, and concludes effectively.

Once you're familiar with the format and style of these essays, outline your thoughts. A good structure typically includes an introduction that sets up your thesis statement—what you'll argue throughout the paper—followed by body paragraphs that provide supporting details.

Your conclusion should summarize key points while reflecting on their significance in a broader context. As you're drafting your essay, don't hesitate to refer back to the examples for inspiration or clarification; they are there to help you!

Edit and Refine Your Work

After completing your first draft, take some time away from it before revisiting for edits. This distance allows for a fresh perspective when reviewing grammar issues or unclear sentences. Aim for clarity but don’t stress too much about perfection—your voice matters too! Incorporating personal insights can make your work stand out while still honoring historical facts.

A Final Touch

If possible, ask someone else to read over your finished essay before submitting it—another set of eyes can catch mistakes you've missed or suggest improvements! By following these steps using our examples as guides, you'll not only complete an engaging history essay but also enjoy the process of learning more about significant moments in time.

Dive into our collection today and start exploring topics that inspire you!

What Does The Elephant Symbolize in Shooting an Elephant? Analyzing The Deeper Meaning

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Triumphs in Europe and The Pacific: Key Takeaways from World War Ii

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John Lewis: a Lasting Impact on Racial Justice and The Fight for Black Freedom

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Exploring Ancient Egyptian Religion: Core Beliefs, Rituals, and Their Cultural Significance

Was jfk a good president an in-depth analysis of his legacy and impact, why cassius seeks brutus' alliance in the conspiracy against caesar, exploring the milinda panha: key questions in buddhist philosophy, why the 20th century arrived in texas at spindletop: the dawn of oil and economic transformation, where does number the stars take place exploring the setting of lois lowry's novel, the comfort of different skies: isabel wilkerson's narratives on african american migration, what did anne frank call her diary exploring the significance of kitty, a poem: the grand ode to aten, topics in this category.

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History - Free Essay Examples And Topic Ideas

History is the study of past events, particularly how they relate to humans. An essay on history could examine significant historical periods, explore the impact of historical events on contemporary society, or discuss the methodologies and challenges of historical inquiry and interpretation. We’ve gathered an extensive assortment of free essay samples on the topic of History you can find at Papersowl. You can use our samples for inspiration to write your own essay, research paper, or just to explore a new topic for yourself.

Rhetorical Traditions from Antiquity to Contemporary Public Discourse

Public speaking, a vital instrument of communication, has profoundly shaped societies from ancient civilizations to the present day. Rooted deeply in Western traditions and the practices of Ancient Greece, public speaking remains a cornerstone of societal interaction. It enables individuals to connect, influence decisions, and inspire societal change. This essay explores the historical evolution of public speaking, its critical role in history, and its enduring impact on contemporary society. Historical Foundations of Public Speaking The origins of public speaking trace […]

History of the Battle for Civil Rights

It is impossible to discuss the history of the battle for civil rights for Hispanics without including Black Americans. Minorites of all backgrounds had to band together in order to fight back against the white man’s system of oppression. The battle for civil rights in the south, particularly in the state of Texas, is often associated with Texas's two largest ethnic minorities: African Americans and Hispanic people, particularly Mexican Americans. Mexican Americans have made efforts to bring about better social […]

Music and Activism: Tools for Black Empowerment

In the complex tapestry of American history, the struggle for racial equality has been a persistent and profound theme. This essay seeks to delve into the volatile and deeply entrenched race issues within American society, particularly focusing on how the African American community has used both music and activism as powerful tools for promoting black empowerment and equality. By examining the cultural significance of the film "Krush Groove" and the documentary "The Black Power Mixtape 1967-1975," this essay will explore […]

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Reconstruction Era Analysis in Aftershock: Beyond the Civil War

The documentary "Aftershock: Beyond the Civil War," directed by David Padrusch and aired on the History Channel in 2006, delves into the tumultuous period following the American Civil War. This film is segmented into various series that depict the complex social and political dynamics of the Reconstruction era. During this time, America grappled with a deadly conflict between races, driven by deep-seated discrimination and the aftermath of war. The documentary's primary focus is to illuminate the far-reaching consequences that ensued […]

History Civlization i

Athenian Democracy Democracy is a governing system in which supremacy and power is vested in the hands of the people. It is exercised through voting to determine the will of the majority. Athens was an example of a democratic city as described by Pericles who once said that it respected the will of the majority (Thucydides 58). Pericles argued that Athens City was democratic simply by the fact that power was based on majority but not social stratification, favoritism or […]

The Rise and Legacy of Ancient Greece

Dramatic mountain peaks and azure seas cradled the birth of ancient Greek civilization, where geography shaped destiny. This geographic setting, with its limited arable land, compelled the Greeks to become adept seafarers, fostering a civilization that was both isolated and interconnected through maritime trade. Unlike their contemporaries, the Greeks did not develop as a unified empire but rather as a collection of independent city-states, or poleis, each with its own distinct identity and governance. This essay explores the intricate tapestry […]

The Role of Yellow Journalism in the Spanish-American War

Introduction The Spanish-American War, a conflict that erupted in 1898, was significantly influenced by the sensationalist style of reporting known as yellow journalism. This form of journalism prioritized eye-catching headlines and exaggerated stories over factual accuracy, playing a critical role in shaping public opinion and ultimately leading to war. Initiated by Joseph Pulitzer in 1896 with the introduction of the "Yellow Kid" cartoon, yellow journalism was characterized by its emotional language, dramatic sympathy, misleading headlines, and a plethora of images […]

Modern Chinese Social Change

The rise of China to become one of the most influential nations on Earth is not merely a result of recent developments but a culmination of centuries of historical evolution, marked by struggle, reform, and strategic adaptation. Today, China is recognized for its diverse economy, substantial population, technological advancements, and formidable military capabilities, particularly in Asia. This essay explores the historical journey of China from the mid-20th century to the present, highlighting the significant reforms and challenges that have shaped […]

The Vietnam War in U.S History

The Vietnam War, often referred to as the longest and most controversial conflict in U.S. history, was a watershed moment that highlighted the nation's struggle against the spread of communism and exposed deep divisions within American society. Initially, the United States entered Vietnam with the intent to prevent the fall of the country to a communist regime, a policy rooted in the broader strategy of containment during the Cold War. However, this involvement led to numerous fateful battles that claimed […]

Mummification in Ancient Egypt: a Journey into Immortality

Ancient Egypt's eternal sleepers still captivate modern minds. Emerging over 4,500 years ago, this intricate practice was not merely a method of preserving bodies but a profound reflection of the ancient Egyptians' beliefs about life, death, and the afterlife. This essay delves into the history and process of mummification, exploring who was deemed worthy of such an honor and why this practice was central to Egyptian civilization. Origins and Evolution Mummification began around 3500 B.C., driven by the Egyptian belief […]

The Trail of Tears: a Tragic Chapter in American History

Introduction The Trail of Tears stands as one of the most tragic and poignant events in American history, marking a period when the United States government forcibly removed Native American tribes from their ancestral lands. This essay explores the significant impact of the Trail of Tears on Native American tribes, emphasizing the grave injustices and hardships they endured. The central thesis revolves around the abuse of governmental power, the cultural and societal losses experienced by the Native Americans, and the […]

Impact of Martin Luther King Jr.’s Death on the Civil Rights Movement

Freedom's flame burned bright across the South as African Americans rose up to claim their rights in the 1950s and 60s. At the forefront of this movement was Martin Luther King Jr., a leader whose philosophy of non-violence was central to his strategy for combating segregation and advocating for civil and political rights. Born out of a profound desire for equality, the Civil Rights Movement sought to dismantle the systemic barriers that disenfranchised African Americans. However, the assassination of Dr. […]

An Iconic Female Ruler in History – Cleopatra

One of the most iconic female rulers in history, Cleopatra has made a name for herself by using her charm, wit, and cunning and rose to become the last active leader of the Ptolemaic Kingdom. She became known throughout history as a seductress who captured the hearts of two of the most powerful members of the Roman Empire, Julius Caesar, and Mark Anthony. Together with her brother, she was named as the successor of the Ptolemaic Kingdom in her teenage […]

Julius Caesar in History

Julius Caesar was born on July 13, 100 BC. He was a controversial figure of ancient Rome. A military general and a Roman politician, he changed the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire. Julius Caesar greatly changed Rome's economy and significantly enlarged Rome's territories, which made the Roman Empire one of the largest in history. Julius Caesar was a very talented individual who had mastered different areas of knowledge, along with being very popular with the common people of Rome. […]

The Legacy of Sacrifice

IntroductionThe civil rights movement in the United States was a pivotal era in the nation's history, marked by the courageous actions and ultimate sacrifices of many individuals who believed in the fundamental principle of equality for all. These individuals, often regarded as martyrs, laid down their lives in the struggle against racial injustice, influencing the movement in profound ways and leaving a legacy that resonates to this day. A martyr, by definition, is someone who is killed because of their […]

Costa Rica’s Rich Cultural and Historical Tapestry

Nestled between Panama and Nicaragua, Costa Rica is a small yet culturally vibrant nation, boasting a compelling history that spans thousands of years. Known for its lush landscapes and rich biodiversity, Costa Rica has evolved significantly from its indigenous origins to its present-day status as a beacon of democracy and environmental stewardship in Central America. This essay explores the historical journey of Costa Rica, highlighting its transformation from a land of indigenous tribes to a nation known for its agricultural […]

World War II: a Transformative Epoch in Human History

Like a global earthquake, World War II's aftershocks continue to shape our modern world. The war involved 16 Allied nations fighting against seven Axis powers, and it resulted in the tragic loss of 40 to 50 million lives, marking it as the deadliest conflict in recorded history. This essay explores the profound impact of World War II, examining the roles of key nations and the pivotal events that shaped its outcome. Nazi Germany's Role Nazi Germany, under the leadership of […]

The Black Death: a Historical Catastrophe

The Black Death, one of the most monumental epidemics in human history, obliterated millions of lives and spread its devastation across Europe and Afro-Eurasian countries. Commencing in the 1330s and persisting until the mid-1350s, this catastrophic event reshaped societies, cultures, and economies. The infectious disease, which raged through Afro-Eurasia in the mid-fourteenth century, left indelible marks on the world, altering the general way of life in Europe, Asia, and Africa. The population collapse was unprecedented in affected regions, including England, […]

Fascinating History of the Industrial Revolution

The fascinating history of the Industrial Revolution begins with a brief understanding of what Pre-Industrial Revolution life was like in the early 1700s. Most of the people during this time period lived in rural areas and worked on their family's farm. Their success in farming was very weather dependent and they made everything themselves from the plots of land around them. Not only was the pace of manufacturing slow, but it was done by hand using very basic tools. Products […]

The Greek Genocide: a Forgotten Chapter

Introduction The Greek Genocide, an atrocity that occurred during and after World War I, from 1914 to 1923, remains one of the lesser-known episodes of mass extermination in modern European history. Perpetrated by the Ottoman Empire, this systematic campaign resulted in the deaths of countless Greek civilians through forced deportations, death marches, and other brutal measures. The roots of this genocide trace back to the rise of the Young Turk movement in 1908, which sought to replace the reign of […]

World War One Social and Cultural Ramifications

Introduction World War I, often referred to as the Great War, marked a pivotal turning point in global history, profoundly reshaping societies, economies, and political landscapes. This essay explores the transformative effects of the war, focusing on societal changes, particularly in gender roles, political dynamics, and military innovations. The war not only disrupted the status quo but also laid the groundwork for future geopolitical tensions and social movements. By examining these shifts, we gain insight into how World War I […]

The Role of Geography in the Rise of Ancient Greek Civilization

Democracy's first breaths mingled with philosophical discourse and athletic glory in the cradle of Western civilization. However, the geographical setting of this remarkable civilization is often overlooked as a crucial factor in its development. The unique geographical features of ancient Greece played a pivotal role in shaping its political, social, and economic structures, thereby facilitating the emergence of a great civilization. This essay will explore how Greece's geography significantly contributed to its development, focusing on its islands, mountains, seas, and […]

How did Slavery Cause the Civil War

Brother fought brother as Civil War carved new nation from old wounds. It was a conflict that divided the nation into two factions: the Union, known as "the North," and the Confederate States of America, or "the South." This war not only shaped the trajectory of the nation but also laid the foundation for the modern United States. Had the North not secured victory, the country might look drastically different today. To understand the Civil War, it's crucial to examine […]

Reconstruction after the Civil War

Following the Union's triumph in the American Civil War, the country faced some of the most pressing concerns shaping its future course; this period is known as the Reconstruction Period. One of these critical problems was how to restore America and the nation after the horrors of the Civil War. Approximately six million men died throughout the war due to sickness, starvation, accidents, and actual battle. During the war's shock and fear, the United States also faced significant challenges in […]

The Struggle for Equality: a Journey through African American History

In U.S. history, debates about equality for African Americans have deeply influenced the nation's social and political evolution. This quest for equality has been approached from myriad angles, with numerous individuals dedicating their lives to this cause. African Americans were forcibly brought to the New World in chains, considered only 3/5ths of a person according to the original Constitution, and the United States fought a tragic civil war to triumphantly end the institution of slavery. However, even after the Civil […]

The Role of Slavery in America’s Development

Revolution and transformation swept through pre-Civil War America, forging new identities beyond British colonial shadows. Among the many factors influencing this growth, slavery played a pivotal role in molding the nation's economy, concept of liberty, and cultural landscape. As Lonnie Bunch III, the director of the Smithsonian Institution, aptly stated, African Americans were instrumental in compelling America to live up to its stated ideals. This essay explores how slavery contributed to America's development by enhancing economic growth, reshaping notions of […]

Colonial Tensions: Unrest and Inequality in 17th Century America

Introduction The late seventeenth century was a period of considerable growth as well as heightened tensions within the European colonies in America. This era was marked by a transition in governance due to the imposition of salutary neglect, which compelled colonists to create their forms of local government. While some colonial governments thrived, others found themselves mired in instability and conflict. The large indigenous populations, who perceived the colonists as usurpers of their ancestral lands, further exacerbated these tensions. Economic […]

The Legacy of Change: Women’s Roles in Post-Revolutionary America

Introduction The American Revolutionary War was a pivotal moment in history, not only for the nation's quest for independence but also for the evolving roles of women in society. Although the conflict provided a new lens through which women's roles in politics and the household were viewed, the anticipated lasting changes were largely unrealized after the war concluded. The entrenched practice of coverture, which regarded women as the property of their husbands and subject to their authority, remained a significant […]

Artistic Innovation in Ancient Egyptian Society

Millennia later, the artistic legacy of ancient Egyptian craftsmen continues to captivate global audiences with its mysterious beauty and symbolic depth. From its monumental pyramids to its intricate hieroglyphs, this art form is instantly recognizable and deeply influential. Understanding the characteristics and evolution of Egyptian art requires exploring its historical context, religious significance, and unique stylistic conventions. This essay will argue that the distinctive features of ancient Egyptian art—such as its adherence to religious themes, symbolic representation, and innovative techniques—form […]

The Indian Removal Act and its Complex Legacy

The contentious debate surrounding President Andrew Jackson's Native American policies of the 1830s, particularly the Indian Removal Act and its tragic aftermath known as the Trail of Tears, continues to challenge historians' interpretations of this pivotal period in American history. While contemporary scholarship overwhelmingly condemns the human cost of these policies, a thorough analysis reveals a complex historical reality: despite the immediate and severe suffering inflicted upon Native American tribes, the forced relocation may have inadvertently shielded them from even […]

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How to write an essay about history, understanding the scope and context of historical events.

When writing an essay about history, it's crucial to first understand the scope and context of the historical events you are discussing. History is not just a series of dates and events but a complex interplay of social, political, economic, and cultural factors. Begin by defining the time period or event you are focusing on and consider the broader context in which it occurred. Research the background, the key figures involved, and the prevailing societal norms and beliefs of the time. This foundational knowledge will help you create a comprehensive and insightful essay.

Developing a Thesis Statement

Your essay should be guided by a clear and concise thesis statement. This statement should present a specific argument or perspective on the historical topic you have chosen. Whether you are examining the causes of a war, the impact of a political movement, or the significance of a cultural shift, your thesis should offer a unique viewpoint supported by historical evidence. It should set the direction for your essay and provide a roadmap for your argument.

Gathering and Analyzing Historical Evidence

An effective history essay relies on a careful selection of historical evidence to support its arguments. This evidence can come from primary sources (like letters, speeches, or diaries) or secondary sources (like scholarly articles or history books). Gather a variety of sources to provide a well-rounded perspective on your topic. Analyze these sources critically, assessing their reliability and bias, and use them to support your thesis. The way you interpret and present this evidence is crucial to the strength of your argument.

Connecting Past Events to Larger Historical Themes

In your essay, strive to connect the specific events or periods you are discussing to larger historical themes or trends. This could involve exploring how a particular event fits into the broader narrative of history, its long-term consequences, or its relevance to present-day issues. Demonstrating these connections can provide a deeper understanding of the significance of historical events and highlight the continuity and change over time.

Concluding Your Essay

Conclude your essay by summarizing the main points of your analysis and restating your thesis in light of the evidence and discussion provided. Your conclusion should tie together the various strands of your argument and reinforce the overall point of your essay. It's also an opportunity to reflect on the broader implications of your findings or to suggest areas for further research or exploration.

Reviewing and Refining Your Essay

After completing your essay, it's important to review and edit your work. Ensure that your arguments are clear and coherent, and that your essay is structured logically. Pay attention to the clarity of your writing, and make sure your essay is free from grammatical and spelling errors. Consider seeking feedback from peers, teachers, or tutors to further refine and strengthen your essay. A well-written history essay should not only convey information about the past but also demonstrate your ability to think critically about historical events and their impacts.

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Essay Samples on History

They say that history never repeats and does not provide us with new facts. When you have to work with a college history assignment, things often seem challenging and require additional analysis and exploration of more than one chronology. If your history subject sounds too confusing to you or you cannot narrow things down, see our free history essay examples. These will help you learn more about how a specific event can be approached or how to analyze historical personalities as an option. As you browse through our free offerings, pay attention to how citations have been used and how each date plays an essential role. Following good structure is paramount for a successful essay on history because you must operate with the dates. Even if you must write a cause-and-effect history essay, you always start with the already existing causes. Choose at least one history essay sample that is close to your college task and explore how it has been written. Start with the introduction paragraph and do your best to identify the thesis statement or an assumption that has been made. It will help you overcome writer’s block and structure your history essay in a more efficient way.

Navigating the 21st Century: Understanding of Modern Learning

The 21st century has ushered in a new era of unprecedented change, progress, and innovation. As the world evolves at an astonishing pace, so too must the methods of learning and education. This essay delves into the essence of the 21st century as it pertains...

• 21St Century

The Essential Role of Human Values in the 21st Century

The 21st century presents a myriad of challenges and opportunities that call for a renewed emphasis on human values as guiding principles to shape individual behaviors, societal norms, and global interactions. In an era marked by technological advancements, cultural diversification, and interconnectedness, the role of...

The Dynamic Role of Media in the 21st Century

The 21st century has ushered in a new era of media that transcends traditional boundaries, transforming the way information is disseminated, consumed, and shared. In this age of digitalization and connectivity, media in the 21st century holds unprecedented power to shape public opinion, influence cultural...

• Role of Media

Human Values in 21st Century: A Blueprint for a Better World

The 21st century presents a unique set of challenges and opportunities that demand a reevaluation of the values that guide human behavior. In this era of rapid technological advancements, cultural diversification, and interconnectedness, the importance of human values in the 21st century cannot be overstated....

Feminism in the 21st Century: Empowerment and Progress

The 21st century has witnessed a remarkable evolution in the feminist movement, with women and gender equality advocates making significant strides towards dismantling barriers, challenging stereotypes, and reshaping societal norms. Feminism in the 21st century is characterized by a global and intersectional approach that transcends...

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Education in the 21st Century: Navigating a Transformative Landscape

The 21st century has brought about profound changes in every aspect of human life, including education. The traditional classroom model is being reshaped by rapid technological advancements, shifts in pedagogical approaches, and evolving societal demands. Education in the 21st century is not only about imparting...

• Technology in Education

The Cuban Missile Crisis: Lessons in Diplomacy and Deterrence

The Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 stands as one of the most intense and dangerous episodes of the Cold War era. This essay delves into the multifaceted aspects of the crisis, exploring the causes, the decisions made by key players, and the lessons that have...

• Cuban Missile Crisis

Communication in the 21st Century: Navigating the Digital Age

The 21st century has witnessed an unprecedented transformation in the way people communicate. Rapid technological advancements have reshaped the landscape of communication in the 21st century, enabling instant global connectivity, diverse modes of expression, and new challenges and opportunities. This essay explores the multifaceted nature...

• Communication

Beauty in the 21st Century: Embracing Diversity and Empowerment

The concept of beauty has evolved significantly in the 21st century, reflecting a cultural shift towards inclusivity, diversity, and empowerment. No longer confined to narrow standards, beauty in the 21st century celebrates individuality, challenges stereotypes, and embraces a broader range of ideals. This essay explores...

Advantages of 21st Century Learning: A Transformative Educational Landscape

The 21st century has brought about a paradigm shift in education, ushering in a new era of learning that is characterized by innovation, technology integration, and a focus on holistic skill development. The advantages of 21st century learning are manifold, revolutionizing the educational landscape and...

Exploring the Impact of 21st Century Technology

The 21st century has witnessed a technological revolution that has reshaped every facet of human existence. From communication to commerce, education to entertainment, the influence of 21st century technology is pervasive and transformative. This essay delves into the profound impact of technology in this era,...

• Modern Technology

The 21st Century Teacher: Education's Transformative

The role of a teacher has evolved significantly in the 21st century, reflecting the dynamic changes in education, technology, and the needs of modern learners. The 21st century teacher is not merely an instructor but a guide, mentor, and facilitator of learning. This essay delves...

Nurturing 21st Century Skills: Preparing for Success in the Modern World

The 21st century is characterized by rapid technological advancements, shifting global dynamics, and a growing need for individuals to possess a distinct set of skills that go beyond traditional academics. The acquisition of 21st century skills has become a critical component of education, enabling individuals...

Transforming Education in the 21st Century

Education in the 21st century has undergone a profound transformation, driven by the rapid advancement of technology, changing societal demands, and a growing recognition of the need for holistic skill development. This essay delves into the landscape of 21st century education, exploring the key features...

The 2020 Mark: Reflecting on a New Decade of Transformation

The transition into the new decade marked by 2020 was a moment of anticipation and reflection. As the previous decade drew to a close, and the dawn of the 2020s emerged, I found myself looking both backward and forward, considering the lessons learned and the...

The 1967 Referendum: A Landmark Moment in Australian History

The year 1967 marked a pivotal moment in Australian history with the landmark referendum that sought to address the exclusion and discrimination faced by Indigenous Australians. The referendum, which took place on May 27th, 1967, aimed to amend the Australian Constitution to empower the federal...

• World History

Christopher Columbus: A Summary of His Legacy and Impact

Christopher Columbus, an Italian explorer, is a figure of historical significance whose voyages across the Atlantic Ocean reshaped the course of world history. His expeditions opened the door to exploration, colonization, and the exchange of cultures between the Eastern and Western Hemispheres. This essay provides...

• American History
• Christopher Columbus

American and French Revolution: Compare and Contrast

The American and French Revolutions are two of the most significant events in modern history, each with its own unique context, causes, and outcomes. In this essay, we will delve into a comparative analysis of the American and French Revolutions, examining their similarities, differences, and...

• American Revolution
• French Revolution

Why Did the Roman Empire Fall

The fall of the Roman Empire is a complex historical puzzle that has captivated scholars and historians for centuries. The decline and eventual collapse of a once-mighty civilization raise questions about the factors that contributed to its downfall. This essay will delve into the multifaceted...

• Roman Empire

Why Brutus is Considered a Tragic Hero in "Julius Caesar"

William Shakespeare's play "Julius Caesar" introduces us to a character whose internal conflict and tragic downfall epitomize the concept of a tragic hero: Marcus Brutus. In this essay, we will delve into why Brutus is a tragic hero, examining his noble qualities, his tragic flaw,...

• Julius Caesar
• Tragic Hero

What Makes America Great: Values, Diversity, and Collective Aspirations

What makes America great? This question has been at the heart of national discourse and global curiosity for centuries. While perspectives may vary, the greatness of America can be attributed to its foundational values, cultural diversity, and the collective pursuit of progress. This essay will...

• American Democracy

What Does America Mean to Me: A Personal Reflection

America, a land of diverse landscapes, cultures, and opportunities, holds a unique place in my heart. As I ponder the question of what America means to me, I am reminded of the values, ideals, and experiences that shape my perception of this nation. This essay...

What Can We Learn From History: Lessons for the Present and Future

What can we learn from history? History serves as a powerful teacher, offering us valuable insights into the past to guide our present actions and shape our future endeavors. This essay explores the lessons we can glean from history, highlighting the importance of understanding context,...

Was the Reign of Terror Justified: An Examination

The Reign of Terror, a tumultuous period during the French Revolution, has been a subject of historical debate for centuries. Marked by widespread political violence, executions, and radical measures, this era prompts the question of whether the Reign of Terror can be deemed justified. This...

• Reign of Terror

Was Alexander the Great Really Great: an Analysis

Alexander the Great, a historical figure renowned for his military conquests and influence on world history, is often hailed as one of the greatest leaders of all time. However, the question of whether Alexander the Great was really great is a matter of debate among...

• Alexander The Great

Unveiling Mythical Narratives: Differences Between "Troy" and "The Iliad"

Mythical tales have captivated human imagination for centuries, evolving across time and mediums. "Troy" and "The Iliad" are two narratives that share the backdrop of the Trojan War, yet diverge in their interpretations and portrayals. This essay delves into the core differences between "Troy," a...

The Devastating Aftermath: An Analysis of the Bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki

World War II marked a pivotal moment in human history, characterized by unprecedented destruction and loss of life. One of the most controversial events of this era was the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, two Japanese cities, by the United States in August 1945. This...

• Atomic Bomb

North or South: Who Killed the Reconstruction

The period of Reconstruction following the American Civil War was marked by both hope and contention, as the nation grappled with the aftermath of slavery and the quest for racial equality. The question of whether the North or the South was responsible for the demise...

• Reconstruction Era of The United States

Life in the 90s vs Today: A Comparative Analysis

The transition from the 1990s to the present day has brought about significant changes in various aspects of daily life. Technological advancements, shifts in cultural norms, and evolving social dynamics have shaped the way we live, work, and interact. This essay explores the differences and...

• 20Th Century

How Violent Was the Old West: the Myth and Reality

The perception of the Old West as a lawless and violent era has been shaped by popular culture, literature, and movies. While conflicts, shootouts, and clashes between settlers and Native Americans did occur, the level of violence in the Old West is more complex than...

• History of The United States

How America Has Changed Over Time: Exploring Key Historical Moments

America, the land of opportunity and the pursuit of freedom, has undergone profound transformations over the course of its history. From its colonial origins to its present-day complexities, the United States has experienced social, political, and cultural shifts that have shaped its identity and trajectory....

Exploring the Positive and Negative Effects of Imperialism

Welcome to this insightful essay that delves into the multifaceted topic of imperialism. In this essay, we will examine the positive and negative effects of imperialism on both the colonizing and colonized nations. Imperialism, characterized by a powerful nation extending its influence over weaker territories,...

• Imperialism

Exploring the Impacts of the Scientific Revolution on Society

The Scientific Revolution of the 16th to 18th centuries marked a monumental shift in human understanding, reshaping the way we perceive the natural world and our place within it. The impacts of this revolution were far-reaching and profound, touching virtually every aspect of society. This...

• Scientific Revolution

Abigail Adams' Letter to John Adams: A Glimpse into History

Abigail Adams' letter to her husband John Adams is a remarkable piece of historical correspondence that provides valuable insights into the thoughts and perspectives of women during the early years of the United States. Written in 1776, amidst the revolutionary fervor and discussions about the...

• Abigail Adams
• John Quincy Adams

"Night" by Elie Wiesel: A Literary Analysis of the Memoir

"Night," authored by Elie Wiesel, is a poignant and harrowing account of one man's journey through the Holocaust. This literary masterpiece not only serves as a historical testimony but also delves into profound themes of human resilience, the loss of innocence, and the enduring power...

• Elie Wiesel

Why Is Black History Month Important: Recognizing and Celebrating Cultural Contributions

As February approaches each year, the question of "why is Black History Month important?" becomes a topic of conversation and reflection. This essay delves into the reasons behind the importance of Black History Month, shedding light on its role in recognizing the historical, cultural, and...

• African American History

"The Crucible": about Abigail Williams, Manipulation and Fear

Introduction In Arthur Miller's renowned play, "The Crucible," Abigail Williams stands out as a complex and central character. Set against the backdrop of the Salem witch trials in the 17th century, the essay aims to delve into the character of Abigail Williams, examining her role...

• Abigail Williams
• The Crucible

McCarthyism and "The Crucible": A Comparative Analysis

Introduction Arthur Miller’s "The Crucible," a dramatic reimagining of the Salem witch trials, was penned during a political climate thick with the fear and paranoia of McCarthyism. In the early 1950s, Senator Joseph McCarthy’s fervent hunt for Communists in the United States mirrored the witch...

• Comparative Analysis
• Mccarthyism

"The Crucible" Character: A Deep Dive into Abigail Williams

Introduction The Crucible, a dramatic play written by Arthur Miller in 1953, is a powerful work that uses the Salem witch trials of the 1690s to critique the McCarthyism of Miller's own time. Central to this play is the crucible character Abigail Williams, whose actions...

The Impact of Technology on Art: A Modern Renaissance

Introduction The influence of technology on art is an evolving narrative that reflects the symbiotic relationship between human creativity and innovative tools. From the early use of simple tools to create cave paintings to the digital art technologies of today, the integration of technology in...

• Art History
• Impact of Technology
• Renaissance

John Proctor's Evolution: A "Crucible" Character Analysis

Introduction In Arthur Miller's iconic play "The Crucible," the characters are at the heart of the drama. The individuals involved are not merely simple archetypes; they are complex, multi-faceted beings whose actions and development drive the narrative. This crucible character analysis essay will focus on...

• Character Analysis
• John Proctor

John Proctor: The Moral Center of "The Crucible"

Introduction Arthur Miller’s "The Crucible" is an enduring work that examines the terrible consequences of mass hysteria, fueled by fear and accusations. Central to this play is the character of John Proctor, a man who embodies the struggle for honesty and human dignity in the...

Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley National Monument: Honoring the Civil Rights Movement's Legacy

The Legacy of Emmett Till On July 27, 2023, President Joe Biden signed a proclamation establishing the Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley National Monument in Mississippi and Illinois. This historic designation honors 14-year-old Emmett Till, who was brutally murdered in a racist attack in 1955,...

• Civil Rights Movement
• Emmett Till

Rhetorical Analysis of 'I Have a Dream' Speech by Martin Luther King

The 'I Have a Dream' speech is one of the most famous speeches in American history. It was also one of the 'greatest demonstrations of freedom in the history of our nation', according to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and it changed the world and...

• Martin Luther King I Have a Dream

Rosa Parks and the Civil Rights Movement: a Catalyst for Change

Rosa Parks, an iconic figure in the Civil Rights Movement, is celebrated for her pivotal role in challenging racial segregation and sparking a wave of resistance against injustice. This essay examines the profound impact of Rosa Parks on the Civil Rights Movement, her courageous act...

Martin Luther King's 'I Have a Dream' Speech: Analysis of Rhetoric

Dr. Martin Luther King's 'I Have a Dream' speech is analysed in this essay as one of the most influential and admired speeches of the 20th century. King now no longer totally remarks on controversial topics, but eloquently expresses his opinion except being offensive. King's...

• Martin Luther King

Martin Luther King and Literary Emotions: 'I Have a Dream' Analysis

“I have a dream” is a phenomenal speech by Dr. Martin Luther King Junior that electrified America. This speech was delivered during the March of Washington for Jobs and Freedom on August 28, 1963, at the steps of Lincoln Memorial. Lincoln Memorial was built to...

Song 'Imagine' and 'I Have a Dream' Speech: Summary and Comparison

“Dream.” This particular word from Martin Luther King’s iconic speech, where he calls for civil and economic rights and the possible future that has no racism, has been interpreted in several unique ways. As address other elements, in portraying the theme of peace and harmony....

Was the Reconstruction Era a Success or Failure: A Look Through Sport

The competitive sport of basketball traces its origins to a game known as peach basketball. In 1891, Dr. James Naismith invented basketball at Springfield College, Massachusetts. Initially, peach baskets without openings at the bottom served as goals, requiring the use of ladders to retrieve the...

Living and Working Conditions During The Industrial Revolution

Introduction The 18th-century Industrial Revolution in Great Britain marked a profound shift in society, transitioning from an agrarian-based economy to an industrial one. The advent of powered machines and mass production revolutionized manufacturing, leading to an influx of people from rural areas to burgeoning urban...

• British Industrial Revolution
• Industrial Revolution

Child Labor During the Industrial Revolution and the Passage Of Labor Legislation

Introduction There has been many events in history that has had either a positive or negative effects worldwide. One of those events was the passage of labor legislation during the Industrial Age, and it had a positive effect on society today. The aim of this...

• Child Labour

"Up from Slavery" by Booker T. Washington: a Reading Response

Introduction Throughout Booker T. Washington’s biography Up from Slavery, the approach that he takes in searching for unification between races brings the audience closer to the concern of life after emancipation. The endless struggle that Washington faces to pave a way from a plantation to...

Totalitarian Regimes of Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union

Introduction This paper talks about the similarities and differences in the totalitarian elements of rule between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union. Totalitarianism is defined as a form of government in which all societal resources are monopolized by the state to control all aspects of...

• Adolf Hitler
• Joseph Stalin
• Totalitarianism

Significance of Black Inventions That Changed the World

Introduction Many people have heard about famous inventions, such as the lightbulb, the steam engine, and the iPhone. The list is, in fact, endless and impressive. However, although we use many products and inventions in our lives, we don't give thought to who made it...

Examining Historical Accuracy in 'Hidden Figures'

Introduction While most of the events that occurred in the movie Hidden Figures is accurate, there are some parts of the movie that are historically inaccurate. The character, Al Harrison, is based on multiple people. The character Al Harrison, is based on three different directors...

• Hidden Figures
• Katherine Johnson

Treatment of Women in STEM and Overcoming Discrimination

Introduction Personal circumstances can be classified as intimate conditions that can affect a person’s way of life, attitude, and success. These circumstances may be positive or negative and may influence someone’s career, relationships and day-to-day activities. For some, race and/or sex may invoke privilege or...

• Gender Discrimination
• Racial Profiling

Hidden Figures in Space Race: Black Women in STEM

Introduction It was Malcolm X who was most famously credited with saying that “The most disrespected person in America is the black woman. The most unprotected person in America is the black woman. The most neglected person in America is the black woman.” Since the...

• Space Exploration

Historiographical Discourse Around Marxism and Marx's Ideas

Introduction This essay will discuss a gobbet written by Karl Marx in the Communist Manifesto in 1848. It is a very short gobbet, but the subject matter is incredibly loaded and the historiographical discourse that surrounds the notion presented by Marx here is very wide....

• Historiography

Historiographical Records of Twentieth-Century Belfast

Introduction Testimony gleaned from autobiographies and oral histories can enrich our understanding of the cultural, social, and economic life of twentieth-century Belfast. Recording the history of any town with a contentious memory can be difficult and this has certainly proven to be the case in...

Microhistory: Unveiling the Past Through Unconventional Narratives

Introduction During the period between two world wars there was a radical departure from the traditional mainstream historiography which mainly focused on the high-level politics and diplomacy, warfare, and the lives of great statesman. On the contrary they tried to focus on the lives and...

Exploring Oppression in 'Disgrace' and 'The Handmaid’s Tale'

Introduction 'The Handmaid's Tale' and 'Disgrace' focus on oppression’s grip on the human mind and spirit and how this affects hope. In Disgrace, Coetzee’s characters are more successful in suppressing the individuality and identity of women as he explicitly uses the female body to express...

• Disgrace by J.M. Coetzee
• The Handmaid's Tale

Depiction of Black People in 'Cry, the Beloved Country'

Introduction Between white and black individuals there has been a thought black people are worse than white people. Black and white people are both equal and we should not view them as different just because one has darker or lighter skin than the other. We...

• Cry, the Beloved Country

Exploring E.B. White's Works and Their Social Reflections

Introduction In E.B White’s books Stuart Little and Charlotte’s Web, White writes about characters and the ways they adapt to changes in their lives, which can also be seen throughout the 1950s during a time of segregation and racism. The purpose of this paper is...

• Charlotte’s Web

Medieval Europe and Khmer Empire: Comparative Analysis of the Two Societies

In the annals of history, Medieval Europe and the Khmer Empire stand as two distinct societies, existing simultaneously on opposite corners of the globe. Despite their geographical and cultural disparities, they share numerous similarities and differences in their daily ways of life. Khmer Empire and...

• Medieval Europe
• Middle Ages

Europe's Cultural Mosaic: Exploring the Diverse Traditions and Beliefs

Europe, or The Old Continent during the Exploration Era, has been a relatively small home compared to other mainlands. Although taking up only one-fifteenth of the world’s land area, it holds some of the most sophisticated and advanced technology and culture at some point in...

Discovering the Beauty and Diversity of Asia

Asia is one of the many continents in our world. Having a population of 4.5 billion overall, and is accompanied by two of the most highly populated countries in the world. China and India are found in Asia, both having a rather large population. Being...

Crime and Punishment in Medieval Europe: Exploring the Dark Side

Crime and punishment Throughout the medieval period, people committed numerous crimes varying from theft, treason, rape, and highway robbery. These few crimes largely show that the main cause of common crime was connected to poverty. Medieval life was characterized by poverty for the vast majority...

The Devastating Impact of Atomic Bombs: Hiroshima and Nagasaki

Without learning our past, whether that be filled with justice finally being restored or injustice, we must learn it in order to move forward. As Martin Luther King jr. has once said in his book from strength to love, “We are not makers of history;...

• History of Asia

The Roman Games: an Ancient Form of Entertainment 

Who started the Roman Games? The Roman Games started in about 105 BCE. In northern Italy, the public held games, which consisted of events like chariot races and gladiator games this was used as a sacrifice to the gods. Then Romans kept on doing this...

• Ancient Rome

The Life and Reign of Tsar Nicholas II: the Last Emperor of Russia

When Nicholas II was thrust into the role of Tsar following his father’s death, there were many factors outside of his own skill set that created conflict and sparked a revolution. While Nicholas did not possess many important qualities that may have made a difference,...

• Influential Person
• Russian Empire

Under the Influece of British Empire: India During 1807-1907

Under the rule of the British, India’s political landscape, economy and society did experience significant reforms. These reconstructions prompted debates where some perceive British rule to have been beneficial and contributed to India’s reindustrialization. Apologists such as Niall Ferguson for colonialism argue that the British...

• British Empire
• British History

Politicians as the Decision Makers Must Share the Blame

Throughout world war 1, 1914, there were several campaigns fought by the ANZAC’s. The most well-known was the Gallipoli campaign of 1914 fought by the British allies against the Turkish forces. The campaign caused several heavy casualties. Most individuals now days would say that these...

• Politicians

Controversies Surrounding the Figure of the Egyptian Queen Cleopatra

Throughout history, Cleopatra is a historical figure of much debate and interest. In modern times, Cleopatra has the potential to be a mainstream role model when considering the debates on her ethnicity, race, and her intelligence. As an infamous woman, it is likely easier to...

• Famous Person
• Historical Figures

Analysis of the Global-Scaled Impact of the Russian Revolution

The Russian Revolution had many impacts on the world around it. When the United States entered the conflict, many things started to change. The Revolution was now beginning to become something larger. From there on, it helped contribute to World War ll. The effects of...

Roman Republic and Roman Empire: Governance and Successes

The Roman Empire and the Roman Republic are two of the most significant periods in the history of the world, and their impact can still be felt today. The Roman Republic was established in 509 BCE and lasted for almost five centuries, until it was...

• Roman Republic

Mayan Civilization: Exploring the Complexities of Maya Society

The Maya are indigenous people, whose civilization was in south eastern and Northern Central America. This area included all of the Yucatan Peninsula, Quintana Roo, Campeche, Tabasco, and Chiapas in Mexico. These territories are now in the modern-day countries of Guatemala and Belize, and the...

• Ancient Civilizations
• Mayan Civilization
• Mesoamerica

The Cloudy Mirror: Tension and Conflict in the Writings of Sima Qian

The Cloudy Mirror is a collection and analyzation of the writings of Sima Qian collected and written by Stephen W. Durrant. Within this book we see a detailed coverage of the writings of Sima Qian. As well as the background and causes to the tensions...

• History of China
• Literature Review

Discussion of Whether the World War II Caused the British Empire to Collapse

The British Empire was one of the most important Empires in history, as it brought about great changes in many parts of the world. For millions of people the world today is how it is because of the British Empire. The British Empire over the...

The Rise and Fall of the British Empire: a Historical Perspective

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How to Write a History Essay, According to a History Professor

• History classes almost always include an essay assignment.
• Focus your paper by asking a historical question and then answering it.
• Your introduction can make or break your essay.
• When in doubt, reach out to your history professor for guidance.

In nearly every history class, you’ll need to write an essay . But what if you’ve never written a history paper? Or what if you’re a history major who struggles with essay questions?

I’ve written over 100 history papers between my undergraduate education and grad school — and I’ve graded more than 1,500 history essays, supervised over 100 capstone research papers, and sat on more than 10 graduate thesis committees.

Here’s my best advice on how to write a history paper.

How to Write a History Essay in 6 Simple Steps

You have the prompt or assignment ready to go, but you’re stuck thinking, “How do I start a history essay?” Before you start typing, take a few steps to make the process easier.

Whether you’re writing a three-page source analysis or a 15-page research paper , understanding how to start a history essay can set you up for success.

Step 1: Understand the History Paper Format

You may be assigned one of several types of history papers. The most common are persuasive essays and research papers. History professors might also ask you to write an analytical paper focused on a particular source or an essay that reviews secondary sources.

Spend some time reading the assignment. If it’s unclear what type of history paper format your professor wants, ask.

Regardless of the type of paper you’re writing, it will need an argument. A strong argument can save a mediocre paper — and a weak argument can harm an otherwise solid paper.

Your paper will also need an introduction that sets up the topic and argument, body paragraphs that present your evidence, and a conclusion .

Step 2: Choose a History Paper Topic

If you’re lucky, the professor will give you a list of history paper topics for your essay. If not, you’ll need to come up with your own.

What’s the best way to choose a topic? Start by asking your professor for recommendations. They’ll have the best ideas, and doing this can save you a lot of time.

Alternatively, start with your sources. Most history papers require a solid group of primary sources. Decide which sources you want to use and craft a topic around the sources.

Finally, consider starting with a debate. Is there a pressing question your paper can address?

Before continuing, run your topic by your professor for feedback. Most students either choose a topic so broad it could be a doctoral dissertation or so narrow it won’t hit the page limit. Your professor can help you craft a focused, successful topic. This step can also save you a ton of time later on.

Step 3: Write Your History Essay Outline

It’s time to start writing, right? Not yet. You’ll want to create a history essay outline before you jump into the first draft.

You might have learned how to outline an essay back in high school. If that format works for you, use it. I found it easier to draft outlines based on the primary source quotations I planned to incorporate in my paper. As a result, my outlines looked more like a list of quotes, organized roughly into sections.

As you work on your outline, think about your argument. You don’t need your finished argument yet — that might wait until revisions. But consider your perspective on the sources and topic.

Jot down general thoughts about the topic, and formulate a central question your paper will answer. This planning step can also help to ensure you aren’t leaving out key material.

Step 4: Start Your Rough Draft

It’s finally time to start drafting! Some students prefer starting with the body paragraphs of their essay, while others like writing the introduction first. Find what works best for you.

Use your outline to incorporate quotes into the body paragraphs, and make sure you analyze the quotes as well.

When drafting, think of your history essay as a lawyer would a case: The introduction is your opening statement, the body paragraphs are your evidence, and the conclusion is your closing statement.

When writing a conclusion for a history essay, make sure to tie the evidence back to your central argument, or thesis statement .

Don’t stress too much about finding the perfect words for your first draft — you’ll have time later to polish it during revisions. Some people call this draft the “sloppy copy.”

Step 5: Revise, Revise, Revise

Once you have a first draft, begin working on the second draft. Revising your paper will make it much stronger and more engaging to read.

During revisions, look for any errors or incomplete sentences. Track down missing footnotes, and pay attention to your argument and evidence. This is the time to make sure all your body paragraphs have topic sentences and that your paper meets the requirements of the assignment.

If you have time, take a day off from the paper and come back to it with fresh eyes. Then, keep revising.

Step 6: Spend Extra Time on the Introduction

No matter the length of your paper, one paragraph will determine your final grade: the introduction.

The intro sets up the scope of your paper, the central question you’ll answer, your approach, and your argument.

In a short paper, the intro might only be a single paragraph. In a longer paper, it’s usually several paragraphs. The introduction for my doctoral dissertation, for example, was 28 pages!

Use your introduction wisely. Make a strong statement of your argument. Then, write and rewrite your argument until it’s as clear as possible.

If you’re struggling, consider this approach: Figure out the central question your paper addresses and write a one-sentence answer to the question. In a typical 3-to-5-page paper, my shortcut argument was to say “X happened because of A, B, and C.” Then, use body paragraphs to discuss and analyze A, B, and C.

Tips for Taking Your History Essay to the Next Level

You’ve gone through every step of how to write a history essay and, somehow, you still have time before the due date. How can you take your essay to the next level? Here are some tips.

• Talk to Your Professor: Each professor looks for something different in papers. Some prioritize the argument, while others want to see engagement with the sources. Ask your professor what elements they prioritize. Also, get feedback on your topic, your argument, or a draft. If your professor will read a draft, take them up on the offer.
• Write a Question — and Answer It: A strong history essay starts with a question. “Why did Rome fall?” “What caused the Protestant Reformation?” “What factors shaped the civil rights movement?” Your question can be broad, but work on narrowing it. Some examples: “What role did the Vandal invasions play in the fall of Rome?” “How did the Lollard movement influence the Reformation?” “How successful was the NAACP legal strategy?”
• Hone Your Argument: In a history paper, the argument is generally about why or how historical events (or historical changes) took place. Your argument should state your answer to a historical question. How do you know if you have a strong argument? A reasonable person should be able to disagree. Your goal is to persuade the reader that your interpretation has the strongest evidence.
• Address Counterarguments: Every argument has holes — and every history paper has counterarguments. Is there evidence that doesn’t fit your argument? Address it. Your professor knows the counterarguments, so it’s better to address them head-on. Take your typical five-paragraph essay and add a paragraph before the conclusion that addresses these counterarguments.
• Ask Someone to Read Your Essay: If you have time, asking a friend or peer to read your essay can help tremendously, especially when you can ask someone in the class. Ask your reader to point out anything that doesn’t make sense, and get feedback on your argument. See whether they notice any counterarguments you don’t address. You can later repay the favor by reading one of their papers.

Congratulations — you finished your history essay! When your professor hands back your paper, be sure to read their comments closely. Pay attention to the strengths and weaknesses in your paper. And use this experience to write an even stronger essay next time.