Two of the best ways to provide evidence for and illustrations of your arguments are quotations and examples. Choose quotations from primary or secondary sources that are either particularly well-expressed ideas or are good examples of a view that you wish to endorse or dispute.
I have never read an essay that had too many interesting quotations or too many good examples. I have often read essays that contained none of either. However, you should also avoid going to the other extreme of simply stringing quotations together. Choose quotations carefully and always make it clear what they illustrate and what you think of them. Do you agree or disagree with the person you are quoting? Why?
When making a general point always give an example of what you mean. An example might be a person, an argument, a book, an event, or something else, depending on what the general
point you are making is.