The essays listed below are all out of 40 marks (16 AO1 and 24 AO2) and written with A Level notes, using my standard A Level plan (below), in 40 minutes… the amount of time you will have in the final examination.
Obviously enough, these answers represent one possible approach and are only intended to give students an idea of what a reasonable answer might look like. There are other approaches that would be equally good!
PLANNING
“Fail to plan and you are planning to fail…”
Although the exams won’t allow for a lot of planning time, spending significant time planning through the course is essential because it trains your mind, helping you to absorb and understand what a good essay feels like. I always say that in a weekly essay it is much better to spend over an hour planning and then limit writing to 40 minutes than to write for 2 hours without a plan! An unplanned essay, however detailed, is pretty useless because the only thing you have done is to write out your notes in a different way.
What would a good essay look like then?
https://divinityphilosophy.net/2019/05/30/trade-c-video-simple/
Introduction: CONTENT: What is the question about – define your terms. CONTEXT: Why is this question being asked and why is it important? COMMENT: Introduce your line of reasoning then as the last sentence of the Introduction, state your…
THESIS, a clear statement of what your argument (answer) will be, using the wording of the question. TIP: don’t use “I” or the hackneyed “this essay will argue…” just state your thesis.
Paragraph 1: The strongest Reason in support of your argument.
- State your POINT, then EXPLAIN it using plenty of examples and references to scholars who Agree – EVIDENCE – then ANALYSE and EVALUATE the evidence, showing how it supports your Thesis, showing how it relates to your argument. Make sure the last sentence makes a LINK back to the Thesis.
Paragraph 2: The next strongest Reason in support of your argument.
- State your POINT, then EXPLAIN it using plenty of examples and references to scholars who Agree – EVIDENCE – then ANALYSE and EVALUATE the evidence, showing how it supports your Thesis, showing how it relates to your argument. Make sure the last sentence makes a LINK back to the Thesis.
NB: You can add as many paragraphs as you have points to make in support of your thesis – or time to write them!
COUNTERCLAIM: Who would Disagree with your argument & why do you disagree with them?
- EXPLAIN the objection using EVIDENCE then ANALYSE and EVALUATE their position and rebut it with evidence and scholarship, concluding that you do not accept it because… LINK back to your Thesis.
NB: You can add as many counterclaims as there are that need dealing with – or as you have time to write them!
Conclusion: TEA – Repeat your Thesis and best Evidence, make a call to Action.
For more detailed advice on how to write good A Level essays, take my A Level Masterclass, a unique online-course that takes you through it step by step…
Practice Questions
Here is a very long list of potential essay-questions for the OCR A Level, each based on the specification and particularly the questions for discussion points…
https://divinityphilosophy.net/2018/05/11/ocr-h573-potential-questions-the-very-long-list/
Model Essays…
These model essays are written by me, a teacher with 22 years experience and two Masters’ degrees! They are NOT intended to be what a student should be able to achieve in 40 minutes under exam-conditions… but rather give you an idea of how the question could be answered using the information available to you in an hour or so when you know what you are doing. Many people find them useful.
![Critically compare the logical and evidential aspects of the problem of evil as challenges to belief. [40]](https://divinityphilosophy.files.wordpress.com/2020/04/religious-experience.jpg?w=400&h=400&crop=1)
![“It is more likely that the universe was the result of chance than that it was designed.” Discuss [40]](https://divinityphilosophy.files.wordpress.com/2018/02/space.png?w=800&h=800&crop=1)
![Secularists who say that Christianity is a source of unhappiness are wrong. Discuss [40]](https://divinityphilosophy.files.wordpress.com/2020/04/webp.net-resizeimage-102.jpg?w=400&h=400&crop=1)
Topic by topic…
Ancient Philosophical Influences
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2019/09/30/platos-theory-of-the-forms-is-unconvincing-discuss-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2020/06/03/platos-theory-of-the-forms-is-unconvincing-discuss-40-2/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2021/10/14/assess-aristotles-four-causes-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2019/09/30/critically-compare-platos-philosophical-approach-with-that-of-aristotle-40/
Soul, Mind & Body
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2022/12/10/there-is-no-such-thing-as-a-soul-discuss-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2019/11/18/critically-assess-the-claim-that-human-beings-have-an-immortal-soul-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2018/01/04/religious-faith-requires-belief-in-a-separate-soul-discuss-40/
Arguments from Observation
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2017/03/12/critically-evaluate-the-kalam-argument-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2019/11/18/aquinas-cosmological-argument-proves-that-god-exists-critically-evaluate-this-statement-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2022/01/09/to-what-extent-does-aquinas-cosmological-argument-successfully-reach-the-conclusion-that-there-is-a-transcendent-creator-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2020/06/03/aquinas-first-cause-argument-successfully-proves-the-existence-of-god-discuss-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2017/03/12/critically-evaluate-the-classical-teleological-argument-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2017/03/12/critically-evaluate-aquinas-fifth-way-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2023/03/05/it-is-more-likely-that-the-universe-was-the-result-of-chance-than-that-it-was-designed-discuss-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2020/01/13/critically-compare-the-cosmological-and-teleological-arguments-for-gods-existence-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2018/07/05/to-what-extent-does-hume-successfully-argue-that-observation-does-not-prove-the-existence-of-god-40/
Arguments from Reason
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2017/03/21/critically-evaluate-the-ontological-argument-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2020/09/29/st-anselm-succeeded-in-demonstrating-gods-existence-from-reason-alone-discuss-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2022/06/26/gaunilo-shows-that-atheists-are-not-fools-discuss/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2019/05/01/critically-assess-kants-criticisms-of-the-ontological-argument-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2022/07/12/assess-the-view-that-the-ontological-argument-depends-on-logical-fallacies-that-cannot-be-overcome/
Religious Experience
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2022/06/01/critically-evaluate-william-james-definition-of-religious-experience/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2017/03/12/religious-experience-is-a-good-pointer-to-the-existence-of-god-discuss-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2020/04/03/critically-evaluate-the-view-that-religious-experience-is-the-best-basis-for-belief-in-god-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2020/04/02/although-it-is-reasonable-to-believe-in-god-on-the-basis-of-a-religious-experience-you-yourself-have-had-it-is-wrong-to-believe-on-the-basis-of-other-peoples-reports-crit/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2022/06/01/corporate-religious-experiences-are-less-reliable-than-individual-religious-experiences-discuss/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2023/01/02/conversion-experiences-do-not-provide-a-basis-for-belief-in-god-discuss-40/
Problem of Evil & Suffering (also DCT Augustine’s teaching on Human Nature)
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2017/03/12/irenaeus-successfully-defends-god-against-charges-of-creating-or-allowing-evil-and-suffering-discuss-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2023/03/05/critically-compare-the-logical-and-evidential-aspects-of-the-problem-of-evil-as-challenges-to-belief-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2018/03/11/critically-evaluate-st-augustines-theodicy/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2021/04/16/critically-evaluate-st-augustines-attempt-to-resolve-the-logical-problem-of-evil-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2018/01/04/augustines-theory-of-original-sin-has-no-place-in-the-21st-century-world-discuss-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2022/03/23/critically-assess-the-significance-of-augustines-teaching-on-human-relationships-before-the-fall-40/
Nature of God
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2018/09/14/the-arguments-for-the-existence-of-god-do-nothing-to-support-the-god-people-actually-worship-critically-evaluate-this-statement-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2020/10/16/critically-assess-the-belief-that-god-is-omnipotent-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2018/09/26/an-omnipotent-god-could-have-created-free-beings-who-always-choose-what-is-right-discuss-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2018/11/07/can-god-act-in-the-world-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2017/10/20/boethius-proved-that-gods-omniscience-is-compatible-with-human-free-will-discuss-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2021/04/27/human-freedom-is-not-compatible-with-divine-omniscience-discuss-40/
DCT Secularism
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2023/02/19/secularists-who-say-that-christianity-is-a-source-of-unhappiness-are-wrong-discuss-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2017/10/30/religion-will-have-no-place-in-22nd-century-britain-discuss-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2018/12/17/secularism-does-not-pose-a-threat-to-christianity-evaluate-this-statement-40/
DCT Marxism & Liberation Theology
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2018/01/17/no-true-christian-could-embrace-marxism-discuss-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2019/01/28/orthodoxy-is-more-important-than-orthopraxis-discuss-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2021/02/09/christians-should-not-show-favouritism-or-prioritize-one-group-over-another-discuss-40/
Religious Language
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2018/02/01/the-via-negativa-is-the-best-way-to-approach-religious-language-discuss-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2018/06/26/the-best-approach-to-understanding-religious-language-is-through-the-cataphatic-way-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2018/04/18/religious-language-is-meaningless-discuss-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2019/04/03/a-symbolic-understanding-of-religious-language-renders-religious-discourse-incomprehensible-critically-evaluate-this-claim-40/
Natural Law
Situation Ethics
Kantian Ethics
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2020/10/16/kantian-ethics-is-the-most-useful-approach-to-making-decisions-in-business-evaluate-this-statement-40/
- https://divinityphilosophy.net/2017/03/12/a-kantian-approach-to-issues-arising-from-sexual-ethics-is-the-most-useful-discuss-40/
Utilitarianism
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About Me
Hi, I’m Charlotte Vardy and I teach Religious Studies, as well as running student and teacher events, writing textbooks and resources…
Logos 