Essay Writing

https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/608/1/
Overview
The essay is a commonly assigned form of writing that every student will encounter while in
academia. Therefore, it is wise for the student to become capable and comfortable with this
type of writing early on in his/her training.
Essays can be a rewarding and challenging type of writing and are often assigned either to
be done in class, which requires previous planning and practice (and a bit of creativity) on
the part of the student, or as homework, which likewise demands a certain amount of
preparation. Many poorly crafted essays have been produced on account of a lack of
preparation and confidence. However, students can avoid the discomfort often associated
with essay writing by understanding some common genres within essay writing.
What is an essay?
Though the word essay has come to be understood as a type of writing in Modern English,
its origins provide us with some useful insights. The word comes into the English language
through the French influence on Middle English; tracing it back further, we find that the
French form of the word comes from the Latin verb exigere, which means "to examine, test,
or (literally) to drive out." Through the excavation of this ancient word, we are able to unearth
the essence of the academic essay: to encourage students to test or examine their ideas
concerning a particular topic.
Essays are shorter pieces of writing that often require the student to hone a number of skills
such as close reading, analysis, comparison and contrast, persuasion, conciseness, clarity,
and exposition. As is evidenced by this list of attributes, there is much to be gained by the
student who strives to succeed at essay writing.
The purpose of an essay is to encourage students to develop ideas and concepts in their
writing with the direction of little more than their own thoughts (it may be helpful to view the
essay as the converse of a research paper). Therefore, essays are (by nature) concise and
require clarity in purpose and direction. This means that there is no room for the students
thoughts to wander or stray from his or her purpose; the writing must be deliberate and
interesting.
Descriptive Essays
What is a descriptive essay?
The descriptive essay is a genre of essay that asks the student to describe something
object, person, place, experience, emotion, situation, etc. This genre encourages the
students ability to create a written account of a particular experience. What is more, this
genre allows for a great deal of artistic freedom (the goal of which is to paint an image that
is vivid and moving in the mind of the reader).
One might benefit from keeping in mind this simple maxim: If the reader is unable to clearly
form an impression of the thing that you are describing, try, try again!

Here are some guidelines for writing a descriptive essay.

Take time to brainstorm
If your instructor asks you to describe your favorite food, make sure that you jot down some
ideas before you begin describing it. For instance, if you choose pizza, you might start by
writing down a few words: sauce, cheese, crust, pepperoni, sausage, spices, hot, melted,
etc. Once you have written down some words, you can begin by compiling descriptive lists
for each one.
Use clear and concise language.
This means that words are chosen carefully, particularly for their relevancy in relation to that
which you are intending to describe.
Choose vivid language.
Why use horse when you can choose stallion? Why not use tempestuous instead of violent?
Or why not miserly in place of cheap? Such choices form a firmer image in the mind of the
reader and often times offer nuanced meanings that serve better ones purpose.
Use your senses!
Remember, if you are describing something, you need to be appealing to the senses of the
reader. Explain how the thing smelled, felt, sounded, tasted, or looked. Embellish the
moment with senses.
What were you thinking?!
If you can describe emotions or feelings related to your topic, you will connect with the reader
on a deeper level. Many have felt crushing loss in their lives, or ecstatic joy, or mild
complacency. Tap into this emotional reservoir in order to achieve your full descriptive
potential.
Leave the reader with a clear impression.
One of your goals is to evoke a strong sense of familiarity and appreciation in the reader. If
your reader can walk away from the essay craving the very pizza you just described, you
are on your way to writing effective descriptive essays.
Be organized!
It is easy to fall into an incoherent rambling of emotions and senses when writing a
descriptive essay. However, you must strive to present an organized and logical description
if the reader is to come away from the essay with a cogent sense of what it is you are
attempting to describe.
Narrative Essays
What is a narrative essay?
When writing a narrative essay, one might think of it as telling a story. These essays are
often anecdotal, experiential, and personalallowing students to express themselves in a
creative and, quite often, moving ways.
Guidelines for writing a narrative essay.
If written as a story, the essay should include all the parts of a story.
This means that you must include an introduction, plot, characters, setting, climax, and
conclusion.
When would a narrative essay not be written as a story?
A good example of this is when an instructor asks a student to write a book report. Obviously,
this would not necessarily follow the pattern of a story and would focus on providing an
informative narrative for the reader.
The essay should have a purpose.
Make a point! Think of this as the thesis of your story. If there is no point to what you are
narrating, why narrate it at all?

 The essay should be written from a clear point of view.

It is quite common for narrative essays to be written from the standpoint of the author;
however, this is not the sole perspective to be considered. Creativity in narrative essays
often times manifests itself in the form of authorial perspective.
Use clear and concise language throughout the essay.
Much like the descriptive essay, narrative essays are effective when the language is
carefully, particularly, and artfully chosen. Use specific language to evoke specific emotions
and senses in the reader.
The use of the first person pronoun I is welcomed.
Do not abuse this guideline! Though it is welcomed it is not necessarynor should it be
overused for lack of clearer diction.
As always, be organized!
Have a clear introduction that sets the tone for the remainder of the essay. Do not leave the
reader guessing about the purpose of your narrative. Remember, you are in control of the
essay, so guide it where you desire (just make sure your audience can follow your lead.)
Expository Essays
What is an expository essay?
The expository essay is a genre of essay that requires the student to investigate an idea,
evaluate evidence, expound on the idea, and set forth an argument concerning that idea in
a clear and concise manner. This can be accomplished through comparison and contrast,
definition, example, the analysis of cause and effect, etc.
The key here is that you are explaining an issue, theme or idea to your intended audience.
Your reaction to a work of literature could be in the form of an expository essay, for example
if you decide to simply explain your personal response to a work. The expository essay can
also be used to give a personal response to a world event, political debate, football game,
work of art and so on.
What are its most important qualities?
You want to get and, of course, keep your readers attention. So, you should:
Have a well defined thesis.Start with a thesis statement/research question/statement
of intent. Make sure you answer your question or do what you say you set out to do.
Do not wander from your topic.
Provide evidence to back up what you are saying. Support your arguments with facts
and reasoning. Do not simply list facts, incorporate these as examples supporting
your position, but at the same time make your point as succinctly as possible.
The essay should be concise. Make your point and conclude your essay. Dont make
the mistake of believing that repetition and over-stating your case will score points
with your readers.
The structure of the expository essay is held together by the following.
A clear, concise, and defined thesis statement that occurs in the first
paragraph of the essay.
It is essential that this thesis statement be appropriately narrowed to follow the guidelines
set forth in the assignment. If the student does not master this portion of the essay, it will be
quite difficult to compose an effective or persuasive essay.
Clear and logical transitions between the introduction, body, and conclusion.
Transitions are the mortar that holds the foundation of the essay together. Without logical
progression of thought, the reader is unable to follow the essays argument, and the structure
will collapse.

 Body paragraphs that include evidential support.

Each paragraph should be limited to the exposition of one general idea. This will allow for
clarity and direction throughout the essay. What is more, such conciseness creates an ease
of readability for ones audience. It is important to note that each paragraph in the body of
the essay must have some logical connection to the thesis statement in the opening
paragraph.
Evidential support (whether factual, logical, statistical, or anecdotal).
Often times, students are required to write expository essays with little or no preparation;
therefore, such essays do not typically allow for a great deal of statistical or factual evidence.
A bit of creativity!
Though creativity and artfulness are not always associated with essay writing, it is an art
form nonetheless. Try not to get stuck on the formulaic nature of expository writing at the
expense of writing something interesting. Remember, though you may not be crafting the
next great novel, you are attempting to leave a lasting impression on the people evaluating
your essay.
A conclusion that does not simply restate the thesis, but readdresses it in light
of the evidence provided.
It is at this point of the essay that students will inevitably begin to struggle. This is the portion
of the essay that will leave the most immediate impression on the mind of the reader.
Therefore, it must be effective and logical. Do not introduce any new information into the
conclusion; rather, synthesize and come to a conclusion concerning the information
presented in the body of the essay.
A complete argument
Perhaps it is helpful to think of an essay in terms of a conversation or debate with a
classmate. If I were to discuss the cause of the Great Depression and its current effect on
those who lived through the tumultuous time, there would be a beginning, middle, and end
to the conversation. In fact, if I were to end the exposition in the middle of my second point,
questions would arise concerning the current effects on those who lived through the
Depression. Therefore, the expository essay must be complete, and logically so, leaving no
doubt as to its intent or argument.
The five-paragraph Essay
A common method for writing an expository essay is the five-paragraph approach. This is,
however, by no means the only formula for writing such essays. If it sounds straightforward,
that is because it is; in fact, the method consists of:
1. an introductory paragraph
2. three evidentiary body paragraphs
3. a conclusin
Persuasive Essays
What is a persuasive essay?
This is the type of essay where you try to convince the reader to adopt your position on an
issue or point of view.Here your rationale, your argument, is most important. You are
presenting an opinion and trying to persuade readers, you want to win readers over to your
point of view.

What are its most important qualities?

Have a definite point of view.

Maintain the readers interest.
Use sound reasoning.
Use solid evidence.
Be aware of your intended audience. How can you win them over?
Research your topic so your evidence is convincing.
Dont get so sentimental or so passionate that you lose the reader, as Irish poet W.B.
Yeats put it: The best lack all conviction, while the worst are full of passionate
intensity.
ur purpose is to convince someone else so dont overdo your language and dont
bore the reader. And dont keep repeating your points!
Remember the rules of the good paragraph. One single topic per paragraph, and
natural progression from one to the next.
End with a strong conclusion.

Analytical Essays
What is an analytical essay?
In this type of essay you analyze, examine and interpret such things as an event, book,
poem, play or other work of art.
What are its most important qualities?
Your analytical essay should have an:
Introduction and presentation of argument
The introductory paragraph is used to tell the reader what text or texts you will be
discussing. Every literary work raises at least one major issue. In your introduction you
will also define the idea or issue of the text that you wish to examine in your analysis.
This is sometimes called the thesis or research question. It is important that you narrow
the focus of your essay.
Analysis of the text (the longest part of the essay)
The issue you have chosen to analyze is connected to your argument. After stating the
problem, present your argument. When you start analyzing the text, pay attention to the
stylistic devices (the hows of the text) the author uses to convey some specific
meaning. You must decide if the author accomplishes his goal of conveying his ideas to
the reader. Do not forget to support your assumptions with examples and reasonable
judgment.
Personal response
Your personal response will show a deeper understanding of the text and by forming a
personal meaning about the text you will get more out of it. Do not make the mistake of
thinking that you only have to have a positive response to a text. If a writer is trying to
convince you of something but fails to do so, in your opinion, your critical personal
response can be very enlightening. The key word here is critical. Base any objections
on the text and use evidence from the text. Personal response should be in evidence
throughout the essay, not tacked on at the end.
Conclusion (related to the analysis and the argument)
Your conclusion should explain the relation between the analyzed text and the presented
argument.

Tips for writing analytical essays:

Be well organized. Plan what you want to write before you start. It is a good idea to
know exactly what your conclusion is going to be before you start to write. When you
know where you are going, you tend to get there in a well organized way with logical
progression.
Analytical essays normally use the present tense. When talking about a text, write
about it in the present tense.
Be objective: avoid using the first person too much. For example, instead of saying
I think Louisa is imaginative because, try: It appears that Louisa has a vivid
imagination, because.
Do not use slang or colloquial language (the language of informal speech).
Do not use contractions.
Avoid using etc. This is an expression that is generally used by writers who have
nothing more to say.
Create an original title, do not use the title of the text.
Analysis does not mean retelling the story. Many students fall into the trap of telling
the reader what is happening in the text instead of analyzing it. Analysis aims to
explain how the writer makes us see what he or she wants us to see, the effect of
the writing techniques, the texts themes and your personal response to these.

Argumentative Essays
What is an argumentative essay?
The argumentative essay is a genre of writing that requires the student to investigate a topic;
collect, generate, and evaluate evidence; and establish a position on the topic in a concise
manner. This is the type of essay where you prove that your opinion, theory or hypothesis
about an issue is correct or more truthful than those of others. In short, it is very similar to
the persuasive essay (see above), but the difference is that you are arguing for your opinion
as opposed to others, rather than directly trying to persuade someone to adopt your point of
view.
Some confusion may occur between the argumentative essay and the expository essay.
These two genres are similar, but the argumentative essay differs from the expository essay
in the amount of pre-writing (invention) and research involved. The argumentative essay is
commonly assigned as a capstone or final project in first year writing or advanced
composition courses and involves lengthy, detailed research. Expository essays involve less
research and are shorter in length. Expository essays are often used for in-class writing
exercises or tests, such as the GED or GRE.
Argumentative essay assignments generally call for extensive research of literature or
previously published material. Argumentative assignments may also require empirical
research where the student collects data through interviews, surveys, observations, or
experiments. Detailed research allows the student to learn about the topic and to understand
different points of view regarding the topic so that she/he may choose a position and support
it with the evidence collected during research. Regardless of the amount or type of research
involved, argumentative essays must establish a clear thesis and follow sound reasoning.

The structure of the argumentative essay is held together by the following.

A clear, concise, and defined thesis statement that occurs in the first
paragraph of the essay.

In the first paragraph of an argument essay, students should set the context by reviewing
the topic in a general way. Next the author should explain why the topic is important
(exigence) or why readers should care about the issue. Lastly, students should present the
thesis statement. It is essential that this thesis statement be appropriately narrowed to follow
the guidelines set forth in the assignment. If the student does not master this portion of the
essay, it will be quite difficult to compose an effective or persuasive essay.
Clear and logical transitions between the introduction, body, and conclusion.
Transitions are the mortar that holds the foundation of the essay together. Without logical
progression of thought, the reader is unable to follow the essays argument, and the structure
will collapse. Transitions should wrap up the idea from the previous section and introduce
the idea that is to follow in the next section.
Body paragraphs that include evidential support.
Each paragraph should be limited to the discussion of one general idea. This will allow for
clarity and direction throughout the essay. In addition, such conciseness creates an ease of
readability for ones audience. It is important to note that each paragraph in the body of the
essay must have some logical connection to the thesis statement in the opening paragraph.
Some paragraphs will directly support the thesis statement with evidence collected during
research. It is also important to explain how and why the evidence supports the thesis
(warrant).
However, argumentative essays should also consider and explain differing points of view
regarding the topic. Depending on the length of the assignment, students should dedicate
one or two paragraphs of an argumentative essay to discussing conflicting opinions on the
topic. Rather than explaining how these differing opinions are wrong outright, students
should note how opinions that do not align with their thesis might not be well informed or
how they might be out of date.
Evidential support (whether factual, logical, statistical, or anecdotal).
The argumentative essay requires well-researched, accurate, detailed, and current
information to support the thesis statement and consider other points of view. Some factual,
logical, statistical, or anecdotal evidence should support the thesis. However, students must
consider multiple points of view when collecting evidence. As noted in the paragraph above,
a successful and well-rounded argumentative essay will also discuss opinions not aligning
with the thesis. It is unethical to exclude evidence that may not support the thesis. It is not
the students job to point out how other positions are wrong outright, but rather to explain
how other positions may not be well informed or up to date on the topic.
A conclusion that does not simply restate the thesis, but readdresses it in light
of the evidence provided.
It is at this point of the essay that students may begin to struggle. This is the portion of the
essay that will leave the most immediate impression on the mind of the reader. Therefore, it
must be effective and logical. Do not introduce any new information into the conclusion;
rather, synthesize the information presented in the body of the essay. Restate why the topic
is important, review the main points, and review your thesis. You may also want to include
a short discussion of more research that should be completed in light of your work.
What are its most important qualities?

The argument should be focused

The argument should be a clear statement (a question cannot be an argument)
It should be a topic that you can support with solid evidence

The argumentative essay should be based on pros and cons (see below)
Structure your approach well (see below)
Use good transition words/phrases (see below)
Be aware of your intended audience. How can you win them over?
Research your topic so your evidence is convincing.
Dont overdo your language and dont bore the reader. And dont keep repeating
your points!
Remember the rules of the good paragraph. One single topic per paragraph, and
natural progression from one to the next.
End with a strong conclusion.

Tips for writing argumentative essays:

1) Make a list of the pros and cons in your plan before you start writing. Choose the most
important that support your argument (the pros) and the most important to refute (the
cons) and focus on them.
2) The argumentative essay has three approaches. Choose the one that you find most
effective for your argument. Do you find it better to sell your argument first and then
present the counter arguments and refute them? Or do you prefer to save the best for
last?

Approach 1:
Thesis statement (main argument):
Pro idea 1
Pro idea 2
Con(s) + Refutation(s): these are the opinions of others that you disagree with. You
must clearly specify these opinions if you are to refute them convincingly.
Conclusion
Approach 2:
Thesis statement:
Con(s) + Refutation(s)
Pro idea 1
Pro idea 2
Conclusion
Approach 3
Thesis statement:
Con idea 1 and the your refutation
Con idea 2 and the your refutation
Con idea 3 and the your refutation
Conclusion
3) Use good transition words when moving between arguments and most importantly
when moving from pros to cons and vice versa. For example:

While I have shown that.... other may say

Opponents of this idea claim / maintain that
Those who disagree claim that
While some people may disagree with this idea...
When you want to refute or counter the cons you may start with:

However,
Nonetheless,

but
On the other hand,
This claim notwithstanding
If you want to mark your total disagreement:

After seeing this evidence, it is impossible to agree with what they say
Their argument is irrelevant
Contrary to what they might think ...
These are just a few suggestions. You can, of course, come up with many good transitions
of your own.
4) Use facts, statistics, quotes and examples to convince your readers of your argument
A complete argument
Perhaps it is helpful to think of an essay in terms of a conversation or debate with a
classmate. If I were to discuss the cause of World War II and its current effect on those who
lived through the tumultuous time, there would be a beginning, middle, and end to the
conversation. In fact, if I were to end the argument in the middle of my second point,
questions would arise concerning the current effects on those who lived through the conflict.
Therefore, the argumentative essay must be complete, and logically so, leaving no doubt as
to its intent or argument.
The five-paragraph essay
A common method for writing an argumentative essay is the five-paragraph approach. This
is, however, by no means the only formula for writing such essays. If it sounds
straightforward, that is because it is; in fact, the method consists of (a) an introductory
paragraph (b) three evidentiary body paragraphs that may include discussion of opposing
views and (c) a conclusion.
Longer argumentative essays
Complex issues and detailed research call for complex and detailed essays. Argumentative
essays discussing a number of research sources or empirical research will most certainly
be longer than five paragraphs. Authors may have to discuss the context surrounding the
topic, sources of information and their credibility, as well as a number of different opinions
on the issue before concluding the essay. Many of these factors will be determined by the
assignment.
Adapted by Nohra Vargas, Ma in ELT