How many words in 45 minutes?

[mike12345678]

I have an English essay on Wednesday and have about 45 minutes in which to write an essay on Hamlet and i need to know roughly how many words i should have to be able to prepare an essay.
thankyou

[someth1ng]

About 900 should be a good amount.

[starshine02]

Depends how fast you write i guess but around 1.5 to 2 pages typed should be enough

[deswa1]

Is this your prepared response or how much you want to write on the day? If you're fast, in 45 minutes you could hit above 1200 words in the actual test though most people wouldn't write this much. When preparing though, write less because you need to write an intro etc. that suits the question perfectly (don't rewrite a memorised intro). Also, I know this wasn't your question but for Hamlet I wouldn't really focus on memorising just one essay because the scope of questions is so large (given that it is a critical study). Instead, have an essay but also have general quotes and techniques ready for each of the key themes and scenes in the play (i.e. know the whole play). Then you will be prepared for any essay question.

[mike12345678]

yeaa thanx for that everyone

and deswa im not focusing on just one essay :P im actually reading over heaps of notes over many different themes and making sure i have enough 'readings of the play' to try and cover a wide range of questions. also since its a 2 period task, the first period we can plan it and the second lesson we need to write it so i should be able to use all my notes in order to create a good plan based on the question.

also why not create a prepared intro? normally i remember the first few sentences where i introduce the play and talk about universal themes and textual integrity and so on then on exam day i change it to mould the question and relate the themes to the question which i think works for me

thanx for all your help once again

[enoilgam]

Most people can do between 900-1100 words in 45mins. If you are a fast writer, you could probably push it out to 1300 although that would be cutting things extremely close. I tried to keep things at under 1200.

[deswa1]

yeaa thanx for that everyone

and deswa im not focusing on just one essay :P im actually reading over heaps of notes over many different themes and making sure i have enough 'readings of the play' to try and cover a wide range of questions. also since its a 2 period task, the first period we can plan it and the second lesson we need to write it so i should be able to use all my notes in order to create a good plan based on the question.

also why not create a prepared intro? normally i remember the first few sentences where i introduce the play and talk about universal themes and textual integrity and so on then on exam day i change it to mould the question and relate the themes to the question which i think works for me

thanx for all your help once again

Oh sorry, I didn't mean don't have any idea for an intro. Its just that too many people rewrite a practice intro that has no real relevance to the question. The fundamental point of an intro (particularly the first few lines) is to address the question and demonstrate your line of argument, which should be created on the day to suit that particular question.

[slyhunter]

I recommend any essay to be at least 800 words

but don't waffle it

[Gary_Oak]

I can like write up to 600-700 words max...... i usually have the habit of using a laptop at school for all my subjects. Often i would screwed over essay type of writing. And every time i write for more than 30 minutes, my wrists get sore

[mirinbrah1]

My teachers said 600-800 words can get you a band 5, don't stress over it.