Do you find yourself constantly questioning everything around you? Do you want to know the purpose of life? Do have strong opinions about human behavior? If so, congratulations—you are a philosopher! The International Philosophy Olympiad (IPO) is geared to help young philosophers fine-tune their essay writing skills, deeply engage with philosophical concepts, and think critically about the world around them. If you’re thinking about entering IPO, here are some things you should know to write a winning essay: Carefully read your prompt and break it down to make sure you understand it. IPO shares several philosophy prompts with applicants. Each prompt contains a quote from a relevant philosopher with a set of premises and a conclusion. Start by circling important words in your prompt and defining them as best as you can. Once you’ve established a basic understanding of what the prompt means, you can dissect its arguments. Try summarizing the prompt in several sentences, with each sentence describing one of the author’s key points, or premises. The last sentence should summarize the author’s main argument, or conclusion. Remember, if you misunderstand the prompt, your entire essay will be flop! So, read carefully. Formulate an opinion. One of the most important things you should know is that your essay doesn’t have to agree or disagree with everything from your prompt. Rather, it can point out the ideas you agree with, and the part of the argument you believe is flawed. This is why re-writing the author’s prompt comes in handy. It helps you create a more nuanced opinion that will make your essay stand out. Write an outline. The IPO has an essay guide for contestants to help them understand its expectations. They, too, emphasize the importance of writing an outline before working on your essay. Here is a basic structure you can use to write your outline: Introduction: State your topic, react to it, define any relevant terms, and state your thesis. Argument 1: Include evidence, key examples, and analyses. Subsection to Argument 1: Further elaborate on your argument by sharing additional evidence, key examples, and analyses. Counterargument 1: State a relevant objection, reply to it, and explain why your argument is still valid. Argument 2: Include evidence, key examples, and analyses. Subsection to Argument 2: Further elaborate on your argument by sharing additional evidence, key examples, and analyses. Counterargument 2: State a relevant objection, reply to it, and explain why your argument is still valid. Conclusion: Restate your thesis and discuss the implications of your argument. Remember, IPO gives you a set amount of time to write your essay, so try to devote about 1/3 of your time to outlining, and 2/3 to writing, proof-reading, and editing. Focus on clarity. IPO isn’t looking for flowery language or beautiful imagery. It wants you to write clearly, concisely, and persuasively. So don’t waste time: simply say what you mean and mean what you say. As the great Aristotle once said, “To write well, express yourself like the common people, but think like a wise man.” If you want to show of your essay writing skills to IPO, write like Aristotle: be brave, be bold, and don’t be afraid to challenge complex issues.
