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Whether you know it or not, most of you have worked on critiques. Writing a critique is a common practice at all academic levels. However, even with this much experience, many students start out on the wrong foot and make common mistakes in their critiques. They make it more opinion-based than factual one. I know it is true that critique is all about your opinion about something, but that opinion should be objective and dispassionate.
In truth, it is harder to get rid of the mistakes that you make in writing a critique, totally. However, having knowledge of the common mistakes that you make may help you lessen them. Considering this, today’s article is all about describing the 10 common mistakes that you must avoid in your critique. So, let’s start today’s discussion by defining critique writing first.
What Does It Mean By Critique Writing?
Critique writing is writing in which you formally analyse and evaluate a text, production, or composition. The critique is either in one’s own words or someone else’s. Many writers take it as an opportunity to point out the mistakes present in the manuscript. But in fact, it is more than this. It is about conducting a systematic analysis of a scholarly article or book. You give an overview of its strengths, weaknesses, and limitations.
Top 10 Common Mistakes To Avoid In A Critique
From the discussion above, you have got a good idea of the meaning of writing a critique. It means your base is set. Now, let’s move on to our main topic, i.e., mistakes to avoid in a critique. Although there are many mistakes that you need to avoid as a writer, a brief description of the top 10 common ones is as follows:
1. Not Paying Proper Attention To The Thesis Statement
The critique writing mainly depends on the thesis statement of the paper that you are going to evaluate. All your arguments and pieces of evidence are going to circulate around that thesis. But what do most students do? They just do not pay proper attention to the thesis statement. Due to this, they are unable to understand what they are going to critique and why. Therefore, as a student, you must fully avoid this and understand the thesis statement.
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2. Knowing The Target Audience
Before writing a critique, ask yourself: Are the topic and thesis statements reasonable for your audience? This question is very important, which many students neglect. Ultimately, it is your audience who is going to read the critique and decide its fate. So, it is necessary that you do not make the mistake of underestimating your audience or not paying close attention to it. Write your critique while having your audience and context in mind.
3. No Background To The Problem
Another mistake that most writers make in critique writing is that they do not provide enough background information on the problem. They just start giving comments on the scholarly article once they start writing. It is a very wrong practice, and the writer must set the tone of the writing first.
4. Not Giving The Facts
One of the most common mistakes which I have seen in critique papers is that the writers take them as opinion-based papers or essays. So, instead of giving concrete pieces of evidence, the writers give opinions. This practice is not good because such papers are not critiqued papers. They become more like argumentative essays.
5. Writer’s Bias
Showing bias toward a topic is another common mistake that writers must avoid making. It means that the writers lean toward a certain topic more than required and do not maintain a balance of opinion. It is called writer’s bias. For example, writing a religious critique paper. When writing this paper, your beliefs may restrict you from evaluating the paper objectively.
6. The Illogical Placing Of The Arguments
Placing of the arguments means the section of the critique paper in which a particular comment or argument about the article comes. Many students make a mistake in this placement, which disturbs the overall structure of the critique paper. So, you must avoid this and ensure that the reasons and arguments fit together logically.
7. Inadequate Addressing Of Opposition
Opposition means opposing ideas in the research article. When writing a critique, the writers mostly lean towards one side of the paper. They lose the thread of objectivity and look to give arguments on one side of the paper. This inadequate addressing of the opposing ideas gives rise to the writer’s bias and must be avoided in a critique.
8. Unconvincing Arguments
Giving unconvincing and evidence-less arguments is another common mistake most writers make in their critique papers. Remember that when you critique something, you come up with solid facts and figures in support of your view of the problem or topic. So, all your arguments must be backed with concrete pieces of evidence and arguments.
9. Not Mentioning The Quotations From The Original Paper
Writing a critique is useless if you do not mention quotations from the original paper. The reason is that when you are critiquing someone’s writing, you must mention the full background and original words of the author. Having such quotations in the paper ensures that you have read the original paper and know how to critique it.
10. Poor Citations Of The Critique
Is the critique cited carefully and fully? Does the critique contain all the references used in writing it? If yes, then it is okay. However, it has been seen that by taking it as an opinion-based paper, the writers do not properly cite the critique writing. This approach is very wrong, and you must not practice it in your critique.
Also Read: Are Citations Essential To Make Sure That Your Dissertation Paper Has Valid Points?
Conclusion
Conclusively, a critique paper analyses and evaluates the ideas and thesis statement of a scholarly article. Even the students have been writing since the early years of their academic life; they still make mistakes. It is why the top 10 common mistakes that they must avoid when writing a critique are mentioned above. So, read them and avoid them to enjoy a good readership of your critique. Still, facing issues? Hire our top writers by clicking here.
