‹ Go back to educational blog

Freedom Essay – What to Expect

January 28, 2020

Writing an essay has never been simple especially if you have an abstract subject to cover, for example, freedom. This academic assignment aims to show how you understand the concept of freedom, how it can be applied to your own life and what it means to be free. Today we will discuss all of these concepts, will introduce you to the most common rules of writing a freedom essay, and will also provide a great example of such a paper.

Are you ready? Then let’s get started!

One of the most difficult parts of a previously assigned topic is whether you like it or not – you need to cover it. The task becomes even more challenging when such abstract topics as freedom occur. Luckily, today I’ll tell you how I have managed this assignment and got an A+, praise from my teacher, and respect from my classmates. Hopefully, my experience will help you with writing your own freedom essay.

Do you know the movie ‘Braveheart’ with Mel Gibson? I remember watching it many times and every time the main character screamed ‘Freedom’ during tortures I was wondering how is it possible to suffer or even die for freedom. What’s the point of fighting if you eventually die?

Many years later I was asked to write a freedom essay and remembered about ‘Braveheart’. I decided to watch it again and only being a teenager I realized what freedom really meant. Then I opened a dictionary and looked for the definition of ‘freedom’. Only when you know what the topic is about it’s possible to write a solid work.

Freedom is a right to make a decision or choice and to be yourself. The perception of the word ‘freedom’ has greatly changed throughout cultures and epochs. That is why I decided to pick several meanings of this word – in a psychological, philosophical, and juridical context.

When writing a freedom essay the first rule is to consider it a story, and not retelling of all the facts that you have collected.

Why is it so hard to write a freedom essay?

It is not surprising why students don’t like these sorts of academic assignments. I remember the first time I had to write an essay – I literally hated it! And here are the most obvious reasons why it was so difficult for me to write an essay:

  • When you’re given a certain topic and you don’t like it, it’s rather difficult to concentrate. And if the tutor doesn’t want to change the topic, it may be too challenging to find the ideas out of the air;
  • Often teachers want students to write only what the teachers themselves think. Where to find freedom of speech and expression?
  • All I thought was getting an A instead of concentrating on the knowledge and skills I could learn from the task;
  • I didn’t find the topic interesting and wanted to finish the paper as soon as possible;
  • I wanted to scroll my newsfeed, and not to write a freedom essay;
  • It was necessary to oblige the rules concerning size, style, format, and word count.

When I wrote down all the above reasons it became obvious that to get a high grade and to enjoy the process, I needed to use a different approach. Because when you like writing, it’s much simpler to deal with the assignment and the result will surely exceed all of your expectations!

Tips on writing a flawless freedom essay

So, the first thing I did was a list of my own rules that would help with creating a personalized essay and would teach me how not to be afraid of the task. And I will gladly share them with you.

But start with approaching your freedom essay as if it is a blog post, not an academic paper for a grade. If you feel good when posting something, you’ll surely find it simpler to complete the task.

So, here are my time-tested rules that can be applied not only to a freedom essay but also to any other creative writing:

  1. Love writing. Even if freedom is not your favorite topic, you can always find an idea or concept that would catch your interest – stick to it and render any way you like!
  2. Your opinion is important. There is no need to agree with others or to stay silent when you disagree. Be yourself and rebel. If you find the ‘freedom’ topic a way to express yourself, do it!
  3. Put all the limits aside. Never stick to a single point or source. Before writing an essay explore the subject, read various points of view and explore what other people have to say. And don’t forget to take a rest if you feel that you don’t know what to write about: never force yourself to write if you’re not in the mood;
  4. Tutors love quotes because they add value to your essay and show that you’ve researched multiple sources. If quotes sound inappropriate, you can also paraphrase ideas. But don’t forget to reference them according to requirements of the formatting style;
  5. It’s always better to start with the body paragraphs and only then to work on the introduction and conclusion. Write the main paragraphs of your freedom essay, mark the arguments and list the most important points of an essay. Only then I start writing the beginning and the end of my work. I remember once starting with an introduction and eventually, I had to rewrite it anew;
  6. Writing is real freedom because you can be anyone you want to! Don’t evaluate or measure yourself – just write down all the ideas that pop in your head – even if it’s just a phrase or a sentence. Later you’ll include them to an essay. There’s no need to write a freedom essay in one sitting – write it for days or weeks (just make sure you’re not late with the deadlines). Inspiration comes and goes, so there is no way you can force it to linger for hours;
  7. Avoid plagiarism. Often students feel tempted to copy paragraphs or even full essays online. Unfortunately, in most of the cases tutors find out and the result is more than awful. We are all unique, and your freedom essay should render your own ideas!
  8. Explore the topic from A to Z. The task is not only to paraphrase what you have read about but also to come up with a new idea or your own vision of the matter. See what others have to say about freedom and listen to your inner voice.

The best part of a freedom essay is that it may come in multiple variations. For example, you can write about:

  • Freedom of actions;
  • Freedom of speech;
  • Free people;
  • Free time, and much more.

Freedom has multiple hypostases, so you can always choose the one you’re interested in the most.

Freedom of speech – essay example

I have chosen this topic even though I knew that it’s rather controversial. I believe that freedom of speech is an illusion and politicians only try to deprive us of this right. We need to pay attention to what we post on social media, what we tell each other in public places or even at home. And here’s my example of an essay on freedom of speech.

I would like to start with defining the word ‘freedom’ because without knowing a definition it’s rather difficult to evaluate the concept. According to the thesaurus, it is the power to act, speak or think the way a person wants. Its synonyms are ‘liberty’, ‘sovereignty’, and ‘independence’. Thus, freedom of speech is a chance to express beliefs, thoughts, and complaints without fear of being persecuted.

But do we have such freedom? Are you sure that the news we hear or see on the radio, TV, websites, printed sources, and even social media is 100% truth? I doubt it. There’s always someone standing behind this: editors correct parts they find inappropriate or may refuse to publish the text. There are only a few people, who prefer telling the truth without fear of being judged or even murdered.

Luckily, some countries are doing their best to allow their citizens to speak freely without any limits and censorship. The first example was Ancient Greece: people were free to express themselves, to tell everything they thought about politicians, country and each other.

The United States has also introduced citizens to the First Amendment, which gives Americans the right to discuss everything freely. However, it doesn’t mean that all speech types are protected by the amendment: it’s not allowed to humiliate or defame others, threaten, publish child pornography, and other similar aspects. Unprotected speeches also include provocative materials, which motivate others to break the law.

Freedom of speech is an essential part of the democratic world. However, not all countries allow citizens to share their thoughts freely. And while these types of countries exist, we can’t say that there is such a thing as absolute and pure freedom of speech.