>> Your argument
There is no ‘right answer’ to any question that you’ll be asked – that’s one of the wonderful things about studying English. You’re free to pursuse any plausible argument you like, provided that you can support it by adequate quoatation and reference. It’s fine to use ‘I think’ and ‘I feel’, so long as you don’t over-use them, and it’s certainly better than constantly regurgitating other critics’ views.
An argument is the evidence of your reaction and engagement with the work, author and subject in hand. Try to balance your knowledge of the historical context, reading secondary criticism (which will make you aware of some of the relevant criticial issues and debates), and the knowledge you've gained from your lessons.
When you're preparing for an esay, don't decide on your point of view or argument too soon: it's likely that being too sure what you want to say will prevent you thinking of more interesting and more pertinent issues.
In thinking of how to begin an essay, it is often helpful to start from a question that just wouldn’t go away while you were reading.
Remember to question your own assumptions and starting points, too; just as all writing has a style, all argument proceeds from a point of view, whether or not it is an explicit or an examined one. It is important not to ingnore the issue entirely, and to be able to defend the position you have chosen to adopt.
