Also, fact check all the information you have in your essay, especially when citing other sources.
Essays can come in many different forms. The most common types include the following:
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After you have brainstormed and researched, write down your thesis statement. A thesis statement consists of one or two sentences that sum up the primary subject or argument of your essay.
7. Edit your work.
- Elaborate on each of your main ideas with at least one paragraph each. If your main ideas will require more than one paragraph each, feel free to write more.
- For anything point that takes up two paragraphs or more, it helps to have a brief introductory paragraph.
- Stay as concise as possible.
- Include anecdotal examples if it will help you make your point more clear.
- If you are writing a formal academic essay, avoid using first-person pronouns.
Once you’ve chosen your topic, brainstorm all the different supporting ideas that you can talk about for the topic. Start with the basic facts about your idea, asking questions such as what, where, who, when, why, and how.
When editing, pay attention to the words you use: remove all unnecessary words and work on using strong verbs in place of weak ones.
If you keep these tips in mind, writing an essay will soon become much easier for you and you’ll see your writing (of all kinds) start to improve.
When selecting the best quotations to use in your essay, keep an eye out for specific literary techniques. For example, you could discuss Curley’s wife’s use of a rhetorical question when she says, ‘An’ what am I doin’? Standin’ here talking to a bunch of bindle stiffs’:
- YES – descriptions of her appearance
- AND – other people’s attitudes towards her
- BUT – her position as the only woman on the ranch gives her power as she uses her femininity to advantage
It’s important to set out your line of argument in your introduction, introducing your main points and the general direction your essay will take, but don’t forget to keep something back for the conclusion, too. Yes, you need to summarise your main points, but if you’re just repeating the things you said in your introduction, the essay itself is rendered pointless.
Overall, it is clear that Curley’s wife is a victim and is portrayed as such throughout the novel, in the descriptions of her appearance, her dreams, other people’s judgemental attitudes, and her loneliness and insecurities. However, a character who was a victim and nothing else would be one-dimensional and Curley’s wife is not. Although she suffers in many ways, she is shown to assert herself through the manipulation of her femininity – a small rebellion against the victimisation she experiences.
3. Back up your points with well-analysed quotations
Of course, this is not necessarily the only right way to answer this essay question: as long as you back up your points with evidence from the text, you can take any standpoint that makes sense.
Think about this while you are planning. Your essay is like an argument or a speech – it needs to have a logical structure, with all your points coming together to answer the question. Start with the basics: it is best to choose a few major points which will become your main paragraphs. Three main paragraphs is a good number for an exam essay, since you will be under time pressure. Organise your points in a pattern of YES (agreement with the question) – AND (another ‘YES’ point) – BUT (disagreement or complication) if you agree with the question overall, or YES – BUT – AND if you disagree. This will ensure that you are always focused on your argument and don’t stray too far from the question.
Anyone can write an essay using the tips above, but the thing that really makes it ‘perfect’ is your own unique take on the topic you’re discussing. If you’ve noticed something intriguing or unusual in your reading, point it out: if you find it interesting, chances are the examiner will too.
To return to Of Mice and Men once more, here is an example of the ideal difference between an introduction and a conclusion:
An essay should be neither is too long nor too short. The writing should be simple, direct and clear. The language should not be verbose and involved.
It is a mistake to bring in the matter which is of no use on the subject merely to increase the volume.
Then he/she should construct a mental picture of the whole structure and see where each idea would fit in logically in the best manner possible.
After completion, the essay should be carefully revised, correcting all grammatical mistakes and punctuation. It is a person with an imaginative turn of mind who can write a good essay.
Classification of Essay
The topic of the essay should be treated in a logical and orderly manner so as to form one connected piece, divide it into paragraphs. It should not contain causal and stray reflections jotted down as they come.
What are the important elements of writing an essay? OR Characteristics of a good essay. We can learn here by a simple 4 step process
- Descriptive Essays – They describe a place, natural scenes, persons, animals, town, cities, village etc.
Now the writer should fill the skeleton with flesh and muscles by weaving in the ideas into sentences and the essay will be ready in a finished form.
During the process of narrative writing, it’s essential to list any sounds, feelings, tastes that the writer experienced in the story. The writer ought to draw the reader while refraining from making the narrative story sound like another summary. Make use of transitional words in order to make the flow and easy to perceive.
When it comes to the question of ‘‘how to start a narrative essay’’, the introduction starts with a hook (a leading statement about the story that grabs the attention of the reader). Then you continue with setting the scene: when did the event occur? Where? Under what circumstances? Having the ability to answer these questions will enable the reader to dig deep into the story and will be fascinated by it until the end. The introduction ends with a thesis statement that lets the reader know the truths or insightful experience stemming from your story.
Selecting a topic may be the most challenging thing to do. Here are a few ideas to assist you to brainstorm topics:
There you have it. For those students bothered with questions such as “what is a narrative essay” or “what is narrative writing” the information provided above will assist you to know what a narrative essay, as well as descriptive essay, is and what is involved in writing it. You are supposed to narrate a story that has a specific point to be made. Your audience has to get a vivid idea or learn a lesson from your paper. Also, make use of emotional language.
How to Start a Narrative Essay: A Simple Guide
While writing your essay, you need to be driven by passion and utilize concrete details. Narrative writing offers students a great opportunity to score highly by telling a good story with passion, without having to concentrate on areas like persuasive writing and literary analysis.
One important thing to remember is that you should pay more attention to the plot
- Narrative writing guidelines recommend beginning your narrative essay examples with an interesting quote, fact or even a question. Your readers will be intrigued and thus have the urge to read the rest of your story.
- Refrain from long-winded sentences in your introductory paragraph.
- With this kind of essay, you are supposed to write from your own viewpoint. Therefore, make use of suitable words that will express your mindset.
- Narrative essay examples are written in the first person narrative – follow this for your essay too.
- A Memorable Journey
- A Significant Misunderstanding
- An Embarrassing Event
- Your First Day At Work
- An Unexpected Encounter
- An Encounter With Someone You Were Afraid Of
Anyone can write an essay using the tips above, but the thing that really makes it ‘perfect’ is your own unique take on the topic you’re discussing. If you’ve noticed something intriguing or unusual in your reading, point it out: if you find it interesting, chances are the examiner will too.
Overall, it is clear that Curley’s wife is a victim and is portrayed as such throughout the novel, in the descriptions of her appearance, her dreams, other people’s judgemental attitudes, and her loneliness and insecurities. However, a character who was a victim and nothing else would be one-dimensional and Curley’s wife is not. Although she suffers in many ways, she is shown to assert herself through the manipulation of her femininity – a small rebellion against the victimisation she experiences.
For example, you could structure the Of Mice and Men sample question as follows:
Creative writing and essay writing are more closely linked than you might imagine
3. Back up your points with well-analysed quotations
Don’t worry if you can’t locate all of these literary devices in the work you’re analysing – you can also discuss more obvious effects, like metaphor, simile and onomatopoeia. It’s not a problem if you can’t remember all the long names – it’s far more important to explain the effect of the literary techniques and their relevance to the question than to use the correct terminology.
Y ou can keep adding to this plan, crossing bits out and linking the different bubbles when you spot connections between them. Even though you won’t have time to make such a detailed plan under exam conditions, it can be helpful just to sketch a brief one, including a few key words, so that you don’t panic and go off topic when writing your essay. If you don’t like the mind map format, there are plenty of others to choose from: you could make a table, a flowchart, or simply a list of bullet points.
In John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men, Curley’s wife is portrayed as an ambiguous character. She could be viewed either as a cruel, seductive temptress or a lonely woman who is a victim of her society’s attitudes. Though she does seem to wield a form of sexual power, it is clear that Curley’s wife is largely a victim. This interpretation is supported by Steinbeck’s description of her appearance, other people’s attitudes, her dreams, and her evident loneliness and insecurity.
- YES – descriptions of her appearance
- AND – other people’s attitudes towards her
- BUT – her position as the only woman on the ranch gives her power as she uses her femininity to advantage