Christian Ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Christian Ethics - Essay Example (MacIntyre 1981, 169-89) In his usage, practices are socially established activities that lead those who participate in them to appreciate certain things as goods and to internalize standards f excellence in achieving them. Practices are done for their own sake, such as friendship, not for additional ends, such as practicing free throws in basketball. Martha Nussbaum recommends the engaged reading f literature as a practice that expands moral perception and empathy. This skill is a necessary component f humanistic education, even for lawyers and scientists. (Nussbaum 1997, 85-112) Diana Fritz Cates argues that the practice f committed friendship trains desires and moral vision in the virtue f compassion. The willingness to engage others, even strangers, in their suffering gains added meaning as a practice within a Christian frame f reference. Maria Antonaccio describes recent attention to "practices" as conscious efforts at moral formation. (Antoncaccio 1998, 69-92) She distinguishes between an "existential" model f askesis advocated by Pierre Hadot's study f Stoic sources, a "therapeutic" model in Nussbaum, and an "aesthetic" approach in Michel Foucault. Antonaccio doubts that these attempts to ground moral development in practical exercises can succeed while their authors refuse to consider a normative theory f human nature and moral ideals. Although theories f human nature or development are unpopular in an era that stresses particularity and pluralism, she writes that "some form f theoretical reflection is necessary in order to judge what form f therapy' human beings need, and to assess critically the processes f formation already underway." Some writings on practices use a faith tradition to specify a normative view f human nature that guides moral and spiritual development. Spiritual practices are being recognized as central to Christian moral formation. Dorothy C. Bass edited a collection f essays on 12 central Christian practices, such as hospitality, keeping Sabbath, and forgiveness, that shape the mind and heart in the Christian way f life. With Craig Dykstra she writes that "when we see some f our ordinary activities as Christian practices, we come to perceive how our daily lives are all tangled up with the things God is doing in the world." Catherine M. Wallace analyzes the virtue f fidelity as a constitutive element f the practice f marriage. Fidelity has more than instrumental value in keeping a marriage intact; more importantly, it does something to the spouses by training their desires and reshaping their identities over time. (Kotva 1997, 272-90) From the perspective f evangelical Christianity, Brad J. Kallenberg writes: "Christianity cannot be explained or understood without reference to a distinctive cluster f practices. In order to participate in the tradition called Christianity one must necessarily participate in these practices." (Kallenberg 1997, 7-29) He highlights certain practices f community moral formation: witness, worship, works f mercy, discernment, and discipleship. Reinhard Hutter points out that Luther redefined the marks f the Church to be practices. There is an

Woman in Gothic Art Essay Example for Free

Woman in Gothic Art Essay When I look at the painting of an anonymous gothic woman created by a yet anonymous artist, the most prominent emotion that I feel is wonder. I think about the peculiar way that the woman is dressed and the facial features that her painter had given her. I know of current gothic art and gothic apparel yet these do not seem to match this particular painting. I believe that the artist wants to tell me something about the woman; it could be her attitude, her position in society, and some other things that were the norm during the times that the painting was drawn. It could be that the artist drew the perception of the woman during a particular point in time for a particular society. That is the primary area that I would like to investigate. I would like to discover what can be drawn from the painting that could be attributed to gothic literature, history, or art that existed during the era when the painting was supposedly created.

China and the Central African Republic

China and the Central African Republic I-Introduction Central African Republic is a landlocked country bordered in the south by the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Republic of the Congo, in the north by Chad, Sudan in the east and Cameroon in the west. It gained its independence in August 13th 1960 and Bangui is the capital. The two official languages are French and Sango. Francois is Yangonvouda-Bozize current the President took the power during a coup in March 2003 [The Economist US (2005)]. Since its independence, the Central African Republic has been destabilized and further impoverished due to a cycle of political-military uprisings and violence [HAC, (2011); UNICEF, (2008); The Economist, (2008)]. Constitutional order was restored in 2005[UNICEF, (2008)]; however, the overall situation until now in the country remains volatile, marked by tensions among and within political parties, a precarious socio-economic situation, deteriorating humanitarian conditions and insecurity in the north of the country due to activities of rebel and criminal groups [UNICEF, (2008)]. The United Nations implemented a Peace-building Office in the Central African Republic (BINUCA), in an attempt to promote peace and stability in the country and reduce cross-border insecurity [UNICEF, (2008)]; This was carried out to encourage national dialogue and reconciliation and furthermore to help the Central African Republic enact military reforms, implement human rights policies, train civilian police, and disarm, demobilize and reintegrate former fighters. Besides that, the CAR is surrounded by countries like Chad, Sudan and DRC, which have been destabilized for a long time by civil wars. These lead many refugees to seek for shelter in CAR [The Economist, (2005)].All those characteristics create a volatile political situation and an uncertain climate for foreign investment. The CAR is blessed with many natural resources such as diamonds, timber, uranium, oil, iron, gold and hydropower [Africa.com, (2008)].However, it is still rated among the poorest countries in the world. Its economy is disadvantaged due to its landlocked position, which isolates it from foreign suppliers and markets and contributes to high import prices. It has the potential to become a major agricultural product exporter. It also has hydroelectric potential that could be developed for export to neighboring countries that have power shortages. The relations between China and the CAR have evolved saw tooth since the early 60s. On several occasions, the CAR broke and re-established its ties with the People Republic of China. Since the arrival in power of President Bozize, it seems that the CAR and China are enjoying steady and smooth relations. Yet the country is still facing to challenges regarding to its socio-economic situation. Nothing is so much said nor written about China and the Central African Republic. What is really going on between the two countries? China has invested in it, especially in terms of infrastructure. Does the government gain from it? What about the population? Is CAR really benefited from that relation? In what extent China can help the CAR to come out from the cycle of poverty? II-Central African Republic (C.A.R): 2.1Facts and figures According to the United Nations Human Development Index, the CAR now ranks 172 out of 177 least developed countries in the world [UNDP,(2006)]. Two-thirds of the population live under the line of poverty, less than half are literate, and the average life expectancy hovers around 40 years, resulting in a very young population with almost fifty percent under the age of 18, and only four percent aged 60 and over[UNDP, (2006)]. The CAR is really affected by AIDS that is why the life expectancy is constantly falling and dropped below 40 according to the UNDP Report on Human Development 2006. Per capita income is USD 456. POPULATION 4,422,000 SIZE 622,984 km ² CAPITAL CITY Bangui LANGUAGES French and Sango (officials languages);TRIBAL LANGUAGES LARGEST CITIES Bangui and Bimbo RELIGION 35% Tribal beliefs, 25% Protestant, 25% Catholic, 15% Muslim MONETARY UNIT Franc NATURAL RESOURCES Diamonds, uranium, timber, gold, hydropower AGRICULTURE Cotton, coffee, tobacco, cassava, yams, millet, corn, banana; timber EXPORT COMMODITIES diamonds, timber, cotton, coffee, tobacco IMPORT COMMODITIES food, textiles, petroleum products, machinery, electrical equipment, motor vehicles, chemicals, pharmaceuticals INDUSTRY Gold and diamond mining, logging, brewing, textiles, footwear, assembly of bicycles and motorcycles 2.2 Political and economic situations The CAR is blessed with natural resources to use and develop in order to come out of its cycle of poverty. However, three decades of mismanagement, from the 60s when it gained its independence until 1993 which seen the organization democratic elections for the first time, most of the time under military rule and one decade of chronic unrest and political fights (1993- 2003) led the country to bankruptcy [International Crisis Group, (2007)]. Francois Bozize gained the power in March 2003 by a coup and overthrown Ange-Felix Patasse [International Crisis Group, (2007)]. Due to the chronic instability since 10 years this makes very difficult for CARs governments to follow-up a long term economic development strategy that is why the country is currently facing a lack of modern transportation network which represents the chokepoint for the development of its economy. For instance, the length to reach Bangui the capital city is about 12 to 14 days of river transportation [CAR, (2009)]. Why is CARs economy always under threat of strangulation? Geographically, the CAR is trapped in an unstable triangle and surrounded by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan and Chad that which are destroyed by many years of civil wars [IMF, (2010); The Economist, (2008); UNHCR, (2000)]. Furthermore, shipment arrivals are often delayed or canceled because of rebels attacks [HAC, (2011)] that are causing so much trouble in the region. The nation of CAR is principally agrarian [International Crisis Group, (2007)]. In 2003, agriculture accounted for 60.8% of the countrys GDP [UNCTAD, (2005)]; crops primarily including cotton, food crops such as cassava, yams, bananas, maize; coffee and tobacco. In 2004, the agricultural labour force accounted for 69% [UNCTAD, (2005)]. The population of CAR is engaged in subsistence farming with 56% attributed to the agricultural sector in 2006. In 2002, timber accounted for about 30% of export earnings. The CAR is blessed with a huge unexploited natural resources in the form of uranium, gold, diamonds and others minerals [Investment Climate Report, (1995)]. In 2010, its main exports were diamonds, cotton, timber, coffee and tobacco. Diamonds are the main natural resources being currently developed [Investment Climate Report, (1995)]: in 2002, the CAR was able to export 50% of its diamonds earnings [Crisis Group Africa, (2010)]. In 2003 and 2006, industry contributed for respectively 24.9% and 15% for the latter of the countrys GDP; breweries, diamond mining and sawmill represent the bulk of the sector. Due to the oversized government bureaucracy and its landlocked position, services accounted only for 29% of GDP in 2006. The same year, its main importer of goods was France and represented for 17.6% and they mainly exports goods toward Belgium (40.4%) [Investment Climate Report, (1995); UNCTD. (2005)]. In 2000, the percentage of population with access to electricity accounted for 5% only [UNCTAD, (2005)]. The CAR really lack of electricity supply. The main and only hydroelectric plants are based in Boali. Mostly, fuel supplies are transported in via the Ubangui River or trucked through Cameroon, resulting in frequent shortages of gasoline, jet fuel and diesel. The countrys transportation and communication network is limited; it does not possess a railroad, however it has only 650 kilometers of paved road. It does not possess any domestic air service, except charters, so very limited internationally. Furthermore, commercial traffic on the Ubangui River is very rough even impossible from December to May or June, due to ongoing conflicts in the region that sometimes prevented shipments from moving between Kinshasa (capital of DRC) and Bangui. The telephone system functions, albeit imperfectly. The CAR possesses only one television station that has been built since the independence, an d four radio stationsare currently operating in the country. Numerous newspapers and pamphlets are published on a regular basis, and at least one company has begun providing Internet service. In terms of economic, the C.A.R. has made slow progress; its budget and external trade are deficiency due to many constraints like the poor infrastructure that it is facing, economic mismanagement and scarce private investment, as well as a limited tax base and adverse external conditions have led the country to a desperate situation. Its debt burden is considerable, as well as its per capita gross national product (GNP). The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have implemented some structural and interest-free credits as well to support investments in the agriculture, livestock, and transportation sectors, unfortunately these have had limited impact. The World Bank and IMF are now encouraging the government to concentrate exclusively on implementing much-needed economic reforms to jumpstart the economy and defining its fundamental priorities with the aim of alleviating poverty. As a result, many of the state-owned business entities have been privatized and limited e fforts have been made to standardize and simplify labor and investment codes and to address problems of corruption. The C.A.R. Government has adopted the Central African Economic and Monetary Community (CEMAC) Charter of Investment, and is in the process of adopting a new labor code. Furthermore the CAR received debt relief in June 2009 by the World Bank and the IMF [IMF, (2010)].It reached the final completion-point stage of the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Initiative [IMF, (2010)]. Since its independence, the CAR has been unstable and endured several coups; David Dacko ended the Bokassa era in a coup in 1979 [International Crisis Group, (2007)]. David Dacko was overthrown by a coup led by the General Andre Kolingba two years later. For the first time, he allowed multi-party presidential elections in 1993 and was defeated in the first round by his successor Ange-Felix Patasse. However, 1997 the discontent of unpaid soldiers resulted in a successive wave of strikes and uprisings from the latter [International Crisis Group, (2007)]. . The same year the French troop pulled out and Paris financed a group of French-speaking African countries to create a peacekeeping force. This leads to the creation of the UN Mission to the Central African Republic, or Minurca [International Crisis Group, (2008)]. In 1999 Ange-Felix Patasse won the elections a second time however there were allegations of electoral fraud. He went into exile in Togo after being overthrown in a coup in 2003 by General Bozize the current president of the CAR. The legacy of years of unrest has generated an illegal weapons proliferation across the CAR. Rebels armed groups are active in the volatile north. The unrest has displaced tens of thousands of Central Africans; many of them have crossed the border into Chad. Under Bozize era, some progress towards ending the conflict was made in 2008, when peace talks led to an agreement committing two of the main rebel groups to disarm [IMF,(2010)]. The process culminated with the creation of a national unity government incorporating two rebel leaders in early 2009. 2.3 A Modest recovery Since 2004 the Central African Republic has been able to achieve a modest economic growth [IMF, (2010)]; firstly, it gained full debt relief from the IMF and the World Bank in June 2009. Secondly it concluded a current Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility programme in June 2010. This successfully led to the achievement of a three-year programme with the IMF especially after the success of the Emergency Post-Conflict Assistance Programs. Furthermore, the CARs government implemented a macroeconomic management policies and necessary structural reforms that led to a modest recovery from the economic shock in 2009. The government worked hard to further strengthen the credibility of public financial management, enhance public infrastructure, and intensify foreign donors and the private sector investment climate [US department, (2010)] as well. Since President Bozize leads the CAR some encouraging result has been noticed by the Internationals institutions like IMF or World Bank. The CARs government understood that it was its priority to restore security and peace in the country. The government established what it called the â€Å"inclusive political dialogue† that gathered the political opposition and the government together to seek for security and peace for the country. That initiative was successful in the extent that it was part of the demobilization, the disarmament and reintegration program which led to the smooth conduct of the elections in 2010 [IMF, (2010)]. In terms of building infrastructure and climate investment the CARs government has a lot to do in order to unlock the countrys economic situation. The government has no other choice than on the one hand relying on foreign partners and on the other hand must engage coherent and filmy policies over the long term to come out of its cycle of poverty [IMF, (2010)]. III- Chinese engagement with the CAR 3.1- The political relations AT many occasions the CAR cut off and resumed its diplomatic relations with the PRC and Taiwan. The diplomatic ties between China and the Central African Republic experienced ups and downs: In 1962, the CAR recognized Taiwan as part of Chinas territory and established for the first time diplomatic ties with the island. Two years later, it broke off its diplomatic link with Taiwan and established diplomatic relations with China. The CAR resumed diplomatic ties Taiwan third times. Leaders of both side exchanged high levelcontacts. These underline the importance a state attaches to its relations with another. 3.2 Trade and Economic Relations In November 2000, China and Central Africa Republic signed an agreement on trade, economic and technical cooperation [Chinese Foreign Ministry, (2006)]. In August 2004, both countries signed a bilateral cooperation agreement in fields such as energy, infrastructure and agriculture[Holslag, (2006)]. Today, China is an important commercial partner for the CAR.In 2002, trade volume between both nations accounted for US$ 1.944 million with US$ 0.687 stemming from Chinas export and US$ 1.257 million from the Chinas import. The CAR mainly exports timber and cotton to China and imports principally footwear, textiles and electrical and mechanical products from China [Chinese Foreign Ministry, (2006)]. China has been an active investor in the Central African Republic, especially in construction, and has been involved in a number of joint cooperative ventures with the government, covering health, agriculture, stock-breeding, communications and trade .It undertook numerous projects in CAR and built for instance the Boali agricultural technological station, a training center for straw-bamboo weaving handcrafts, the new stadium, a clinic in the presidential house, the Bangui hospital and agricultural project, the extension work of the Pingpo Radio Transmitting Station, etc[Chinese Foreign Ministry, (2006)]. During his visit in China in 2009, President Francois Bozize called on China to invest in its country 3.3 Exchanges in other fields After signing a joint communiquà © in August 20th, China and the CAR signed in November 1976 an agreement on sending Chinese medical teams to Central Africa Republic. In June 1980 both countries signed an agreement on cultural cooperation and renewed it in June 1998 look for the number of students in China. Since 1997, China has begun to accept Central African students for study and on the job training. Today both parties acknowledge the necessity for the CAR to enhance its self-development ability as well as its local Human Resources training IV- China- CAR: Why the slow progress? One wonders what is happening in Central African Republic as the country is blessed with natural resources but still ranking as one the poorest in the world. International news portrays it as a â€Å"phantom state† [African report, (2007)]. Since the resuming of bilateral cooperation with China in 1998, the relation is experiencing smoothly and slowly evolution. In 2009, during a high level visit to China President Francois Bozize spoke to his Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao and expressly called for Chinese investment in its country [BBC, (2009); AFP, (2009); China consulate, (2011)]. China is now an important economic partner for the CAR [BBC, (2009)]. However in an article published in 2009, the BBC wrote that the â€Å"CAR is a much less valuable economic partner to China†. Considering that statement one wonders whether China really considers the CAR as a less valuable partner. How the Chinese governments perceive the CAR? How does the CAR perceive the Chinese involvement in the country? The CARs government welcomes the Chinese aid in spite the political instability in the country, especially in the north [African Report, (2007)].However, China doesnt deter to invest in it by building the new 20.000 seats-stadium, schools, hospitals, etc. Regarding to that assistance, can it be stated that the CAR is â€Å"a much less valuable† for China? The CARs situation is peculiar and really needs from the scholars, journalist, central African leaders, the civil society, all the stakeholders as well, further attention.

Essay --

She climbed into the car and slowly slid the key into the ignition. After placing the car in reverse and backing out of the poorly placed parking spot, she realized she had no idea where she could possibly go. She slammed the car into park and stared at the concrete wall in front of her. An underground parking garage, she thought, how suiting†¦how long could I sit here before this place is considered a cemetery? She sat there contemplating the last six months, and everything that had led her to this tomb-like cement cell. She thought of her husband, or rather the man she married. She remembered how kind he used to be. She had met Vincent in her junior year of college at Yale. He was smart, funny, handsome, and genuinely interested in her – everything that, at the time, she believed a man should be. Over the years he stopped being all of those things. He became pushy, while simultaneously paying her no attention. Luncheons, book clubs, gossip; she had quickly become so accustomed to these mundane things. She almost laughed remembering how boring her life had been before she met her. She was jolted from her daydreams of the past by a rapping at her window. Serena†¦ â€Å"Please Ana come back. I’m so sorry you saw that just please come back. It wasn’t what it looked like I swear!† Serena begged. Ana had never seen Serena this distressed looking, nor did she care. She gave her a solemn glance before she placed the car calmly into reverse and backed out of the parking space, ignoring the woman banging on the hood, begging her not to leave. She then drove up, out of the garage, and away from her tomb. She had no idea where she was going, but hell, anywhere was better than that place. The sunlight struck her hard ... ...ts. Serena covered herself with a nearby robe and ran toward her, but she couldn’t hear anything but her own heartbeat in her ears. She had been paralyzed by what she saw. She could feel the hole begin to rip in her chest as she turned to run back down the steep stairs to the parking garage. She couldn’t tell if anyone was following her or not. I’ve got to get out of here, she thought, anywhere but here. She opened her eyes and looked into the window of the diner, and she finally decided that she needed coffee. As she walked to the bar seat, a small and bouncy redhead came out of the kitchen and greeted her. â€Å"Hey there! My name is Angela.† she said with a warm smile. â€Å"You look like you could use some coffee. And on a night as dead as this, I could use some company.† What a beautiful smile, Ana thought, this could be the start of something beautiful.

Case Study on Euthanasia: Elderly cancer patient

In most evangelical Christian opinions, in cases where patients are terminally ill, death appears imminent and treatment offers no medical hope for a cure, it could be argued that it is morally appropriate to request the withdrawal of life-support systems, allowing natural death to occur. In such cases, every effort should be made to keep the patient free of pain and suffering, with emotional and spiritual support being provided until the patient dies.But in this case where the cancer patient seems to still have a chance, although quite small, it is critical that we not only understand what is going on in the world around us but that we also understand what the Bible clearly teaches about, life, death, pain, suffering, and the value of each human life. First, the Bible teaches that we are made in the image of God and therefore, every human life is sacred (Genesis 1:26). In Psalm 139:13-16 we learn that each of us is fearfully and wonderfully made. God himself has knit us together in our mother's womb.We must be very important to Him if He has taken such care to bring us into existence. Second, the Bible is very clear that God is sovereign over life, death and judgement. In Deuteronomy 32:39 The Lord says, â€Å"See now that I myself am He! There is no god besides me, I put to death and I bring to life, I have wounded and I will heal, and no one can deliver out of my hand. † Psalm 139:16 says that it is God who has ordained all of our days before there is even one of them. Paul says essentially the same thing in Ephesians 1:11. Third, God's purposes are beyond our understanding.We often appeal to God as to why some tragedy has happened to us or someone we know. Yet listen to Job's reply to the Lord in Job 42:1-3: I know that you can do all things; no plan of yours can be thwarted. [You asked,] ‘Who is this that obscures My counsel without knowledge? ‘ Surely I spoke of things I did not understand,things too wonderful for me to know. We forget that our minds are finite and His is infinite. We cannot always expect to understand all of what God is about. To think that we can step in and declare that someone's life is no longer worth living is simply not our decision to make.Only God knows when it is time. In Isaiah 55:8-9 the Lord declares, â€Å"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts. † Fourth, our bodies belong to God anyway. Paul reminds us in 1 Corinthians 6:15,19 that we are members of Christ's body and that we have been bought with a price. Therefore we should glorify God with our bodies. Lastly, suffering draws us closer to God.In light of the euthanasia controversy, listen to Paul's words from 2 Corinthians 1:8 We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life. Indeed, in our hearts we felt the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead. Joni Earickson Tada's book ‘When is it Right to Die? ’ (Zondervan, 1992) shows her testimony and clear thinking is in stark contrast to the conventional wisdom of the world today. Being a Christian and having pro-life sympathies, I believe this Christian daughter should take the same wisdom and proceed with dialysis.

Many newspapers and magazines feature stories about the private lives

Many newspapers and magazines feature stories about the private lives of famous people. We know what they eat,where they buy their clothes and who they love. We also often see pictures of them in private situations. Is it appropriate for a magazine or newspaper to give this kind of private information about people? Give reasons for your answers. Everybody is interested to read the newspaper daily and also they used to read weekly or monthly magazine. Most of the people without fail used to read newspaper .People intention to read news paper to know about current affair and future development but the news paper and magazine are giving celebrities and famous person’ personal life instead of giving relevant news. In my opinion people hate this kind of inappropriate news. The news paper and magazine are publishing others personal life because of business. in fact people is not interested to know about others life. some people is interested to read about sports,science,business and politics.Moreover news paper and magazine should find relevant news for our society then only people like to read the news paper otherwise the ratio of buying newspaper will declined over period of time. The news reporter s are always seeing the news about celebrities personal life or their personal picture, which is not help our society, it may impact their business in their future. in addition the celebrities and famous people should not allow their personal life and should not discuss with media because it is not useful for people.Instead of going personal life,Reporters will collect the information like† How there are achieved their life and what is the secret of success† so this kind of things will help for our society. To sum up, The news paper and magazine should give good article, find out new information, which will help them to enhance the people knowledge and also the business will grow up. As far as my concern, may be people look at the news paper for others privacy but not interested to read anyone.

How to Write a Capturing Introduction for a Literary Analysis Paper

How to Write a Capturing Introduction for a Literary Analysis Paper How to Write a Capturing Introduction for a Literary Analysis Paper If you are writing a literary analysis essay it is very important that you find a way to grab your reader’s attention right from the beginning. You want to draw a reader in so that they are eager to find out what you have to say about a particular literary piece. You also want to make sure that your opening paragraph is: well-organized; gives your reader a clear indication of what your thesis or idea is; written in such a way that there is a logical progression of ideas from one sentence to the next. You may be asking yourself how you can fit all of these things into one paragraph without making it â€Å"stuffed†. Here are some tips that you can use to help you. Keep in Mind What You Are Writing and What You Are Writing about This sounds easy but it is one rule that many essayists tend to forget about. You want to keep in mind that a literary analysis paper is specifically designed to look at a particular piece of writing. Your goal, as an author, is to come up with a definitive idea regarding a piece of literature and express that idea or conclusion to your reader. It doesn’t have to be boring, and it doesn’t have to be rigid or inflexible but it does have to have a specific idea or thesis and utilize examples and information from the piece itself to support your arguments. You also need to keep the tone professional rather than conversational. An essay is more of a formal style of writing and the language you use should reflect that. Once you have figured out what you want to write about, it is time to write your opening paragraph. Remember That Your Opening Line Must Be the Most Critical Your opening line is perhaps the most critical part of your essay because it is what makes your reader want to continue. Think about it like a headline for a news article. Some headlines and opening lines immediately make you want to read more. They build excitement for the reader. Others may be more passive or less entertaining. You want to be sure that when you write, your opening sentence falls into the first category. To achieve this goal, you may want to use one of the following opening variants: A passage from the piece you are writing about; A relevant quote from someone famous. This can either be directly related to the piece or illustrate your thesis about the piece; A question that may provoke thought or emotion in your reader. From there you can continue and outline what your thesis is. Keep in mind that the arguments you will be making to illustrate your point will come later in the essay itself and do not need to be mentioned in the opening paragraph. If you structure it properly you may find that your opening paragraph flows well and feels neither rushed nor overloaded. Avoid Unnecessary Words and Phrases Of course, it is important to know what not to do when writing your essay’s opening paragraph. This is the time when language is especially important. A good opening paragraph will have language that is very precise and which can create a clear impression of what you are trying to say. Therefore, you must avoid the number of unnecessary words that do not support or illustrate your point and that may cause vague impression in the reader. It is also important to place your thesis statement in the proper position in your opening paragraph. Placing it at the end of the introductory paragraph will help ensure that your reader recognizes it for what it is: the central, unifying idea that will pull your custom written essay  together.