When should you avoid using exclamation marks?

The use of exclamation marks should be avoided in an essay for your history class because such academic writing requires a formal tone and clear, precise language. Exclamation marks can undermine the seriousness of the content and may make the writing appear more casual or overly emotional, which is not appropriate in scholarly contexts. In academic essays, it's essential to convey information and arguments in a straightforward manner, relying on strong evidence rather than emotional emphasis. Other contexts, such as informal emails or personal letters, can allow for more expressive punctuation like exclamation marks, as they do not typically follow the same formal constraints.