Although your instructor may not require a title for an essay written as an hour test, you must have a title for an essay written out of class. The title must be inviting and informative. Avoid dull and vague titles (An Analysis of The Illiad or Hamlet's Character). Instead use title which give your reader a clear idea of your subject (The Role of the Gods in The Illiad or Hamlet as a Tragic Hero).

A title should not be a complete sentence, and it should not end with a period. You should, in fact, ordinarily avoid titles which require question marks or exclamation marks. Do not underline your own title or place it in quotation marks. If your title includes the title of a novel, play, or long poem, that title within your own title should be underlined or in italics; if your title includes the title of a short story or short poem, the title of the story or poem should be placed in quotation marks.