JAMR 27 Making your Essay Topic Work

1. JAMR 27 Making your Essay Topic Work Ida Elisabeth Koch Guest Professor, Lund University 19 November 2013

2. Instructions for final essay to be submitted not later than 16 January 2014 at 12:00 to Therese.Nyholm@jur.lu.se As appears from Syllabus for JAMR27 students choose for themselves a human rights topic for the essay. The topic is to be approved by the course responsible. The topic can have a general or a more substantial character depending on the student’s interest and focus. Thus, it can relate to the general textbook or to articles provided by lecturers and guest lecturers on substantial human rights issues. The topic needs to be a human rights topic in a broad sense, i.e. a topic covered by the lectures and the course material. What is required is that students take their own approach to the chosen topic. Thus, a general essay about the right to education or fair trial which is merely a repetition of a textbook or article is not acceptable. The student is supposed to add something to the text or raise questions to the text. Another approach could be to comment on and maybe even criticize case law either from the UN treaty bodies or the COE treaty bodies. Essays on the African and the Inter American protection system are of course also most welcome. Also, General Comments from treaty bodies may serve as an inspiration to students in their choice of topics. • I hope that this answers most of your questions. If you feel the need to raise more questions let me know. I that case we can probably insert a 1 hour session in the schedule where you can come up with your additional questions.

3. Continued Instructions for final essay to be submitted not later than 16 January 2014 at 12:00 to Therese.Nyholm@jur.lu.se That can be done in a variety of ways. Students can choose their own country as subject to further analysis in a certain human rights context or even compare two or more countries’ ways of protecting a certain right. Also, students can choose to develop or question human rights notions such as margin of appreciation, proportionality, justiciability etc. The tripartite typology (respect, protect, fulfil) may also be questioned (not repeated) and since the course has a treaty crossing character the notion of indivisibility might also be explored. Another approach could be to comment on and maybe even criticize case law either from the UN treaty bodies or the COE treaty bodies. Essays on the African and the Inter American protection system are of course also most welcome. Also, General Comments from treaty bodies may serve as an inspiration to students in their choice of topics.

4. Continued Instructions for final essay to be submitted not later than 16 January 2014 at 12:00 to Therese.Nyholm@jur.lu.se I In general, students should not choose a topic which is very broad. Broad topics are not ideal for in depth analysis in short essays. Students should rather choose a narrow or more specific topic which will allow for in depth analysis, interpretation or criticism. There are no specific requirements with regard to the structure of the essay. The paper is deliberately designated an essay i.e. a more free-style paper. The students may for inspiration with regard to format and structure have a look at a couple of news-paper feature articles. That also has as an implication that a firm conclusion is not required. An open ended conclusion which point at new questions and topics to be analysed on the basis of the essay is absolutely acceptable. You are writing an essay, not a thesis. The final essay should be written in Timers New Roman and should be no longer than 5000 words and no shorter than 4000 words. For information about assessment cf. Syllabus for JAMR27.

5. Introduction Presentation of topic Research question/topic Possible hypothesis Delimitations Reasons for choice of topic Relevance and topicality Structure of the essay

6. From outline to index Outline as a tool, which develops into a product Helps to navigate Helps to divide different parts, relate them them to one another and to place them in a logic order Makes it possible to write several places at a time Need for concurrent revision

7. Pieces of advice Draft your outline as soon as possible Take research question as your basis Keep focused Take notes Do not bury yourself in literature Write from day one (writing produces thinking) Plagiarism References Good (legal) English language Revision and proof reading

8. More pieces of Advice Make notes. Write to yourself Do not overwork. End your day by deciding what’s up for tomorrow Write everyday- from day one. Most of it will end up in the paper basquet, but WRITE nevertheless Writing produces thinking Language. Keep it simple. If you do not understand what you are writing others will not either Conclude along the way if possible

9. Structure. Example Introduction Theory and methodology Description of the legal sources and (empirical) material Analysis Conclusion Comment: Meant as an example, there are other ways to structure. A more free-style structure may fit the essay style better

10. Bibliography (only references that you have actually used) Abbreviations. Use consequently after the first mentioning Acknowledgements Pagenumbers

11. Other issues Footnotes or endnotes What to put into footnotes Not too many. Proportion between text and notes

12. Conclusion Summary of result Have I answered my research question? Assesment of significance and possible impact Perspectives