Your essay must be between 4 and 6pages long, double-spaced (except the gap between paragraphs) in a 12-point font. Essays shorter than 4 pages lose points in accordance with the percentage of the paper missing. E.g. A three-page paper is 25% too short so it receives 0 for 25% of its grade. If your essay is short then it is unlikely to pass.
Crucial Advice: all essays must utilize the relevant assigned readings, even if they are not explicitly mentioned. You must decide what is relevant, which is part of the task. Essays that make no mention of our readings will lose points and likely fail. You MUST prove you have done your readings.
Crucial advice #2:if you don’t believe a conclusion then you must reject the argument for the conclusion. You cannot ignore the argument and just attack the conclusion. People believe things for a reason: it is those reasons you must discuss, reject, or support for more reasons. Rejecting the conclusion without addressing the reasons for the conclusion will lose you points! (And it means you’re not listening to the person.)