Writing an essay

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• MBO
• Studiejaar 1

Writing an essay

An essay: is defined as "a short piece of writing that expresses information as well as the writer's opinion."

To write an essay, you should generally:

1- Decide what kind of essay to write                                                                      2-  Brainstorm your topic

3- Research the topic.                                                                                                     4-  Develop a thesis

5- Outline your essay                                                                                                       6-  Write your essay

7- Edit your writing to check spelling and grammar

1- Decide what kind of essay to write

Narrative essay.                                                     Persuasive essay

Expository essay                                                  Descriptive essay

Argumentative essay                              Compare and contrast essay

Problem - solution essay

 2- Brainstorm your topic

Brainstorming is the process in which you come up with the essay topic. You need to simply sit and think of ideas during this phase.

Write down everything that comes to mind as you can always narrow those topics down later.

3- Research the topic.

Once you have done your brainstorming and chosen your topic, you may need to do some research to write a good essay. 

Go to the library or search online for information about your topic. Interview people who might be experts in the subject.

 4- Develop a thesis

Your thesis statement is the main point of your essay. It is essentially one sentence that says what the essay is about. For example, your thesis statement might be "Dogs are descended from wolves." You can then use this as the basic premise to write your entire essay, remembering that all of the different points throughout need to lead back to this one main thesis. You should usually state your thesis in your introductory paragraph.

The thesis statement should be broad enough that you have enough to say about it, but not so broad that you can't be thorough.

5- Outline your essay 

The next step is to outline what you are going to write about. This means you want to essentially draw the skeleton of your paper. Writing an outline can help to ensure your paper is logical, well organized and flows properly.

If you've been tasked with an argumentative essay, 

Start by writing the thesis statement at the top, and then write a topic sentence for each paragraph below that. This means you should know exactly what each of your paragraphs is going to be about before you write them.

Don't jumble too many ideas in each paragraph or the reader may become confused.

Ensure you have transitions between paragraphs so the reader understands how the paper flows from one idea to the next.

Fill in supporting facts from your research under each paragraph. Make sure each paragraph ties back to your thesis and creates a cohesive, understandable essay.

Fill in supporting facts from your research under each paragraph. Make sure each paragraph ties back to your thesis and creates a cohesive, understandable essay.

 6- Write your essay

Once you have an outline, it's time to start writing. Write based on the outline itself, fleshing out your basic skeleton to create a whole, cohesive and clear essay.

7- Edit your writing to check spelling and grammar

Check for grammar, punctuation and spelling errors. You cannot always count on spell check to recognize every spelling error. Sometimes, you can spell a word incorrectly but your misspelling will also be a word, such as spelling "from" as "form."

The structure of an essay

Introduction : 

• General statement or orientation to topic
  
• Thesis statement
  
•  Brief summary of the main topics/arguments/points made in the essay
  

DO – Pay Attention to Your Introductory Paragraph

Because this is the first paragraph of your essay it is your opportunity to give the reader the best first impression possible. The introductory paragraph not only gives the reader an idea of what you will talk about but also shows them how you will talk about it. Put a disproportionate amount of effort into this – more than the 20% a simple calculation would suggest – and you will be rewarded accordingly.

DO NOT – Use Passive Voice or I/My

Active voice, wherein the subjects direct actions rather than let the actions "happen to" them – "he scored a 97%" instead of "he was given a 97%" – is a much more powerful and attention-grabbing way to write. At the same time, unless it is a personal narrative, avoid personal pronouns like I, My, or Me. Try instead to be more general and you will have your reader hooked.

Body

Body paragraphs 

• Topic sentence A.    
• Supporting sentencesupporting sentence
  
• supporting sentence
  
• supporting sentence
  

DO – Tie Things Together

The first sentence – the topic sentence - of your body paragraphs needs to have a lot individual pieces to be truly effective. Not only should it open with a transition that signals the change from one idea to the next but also it should (ideally) also have a common thread which ties all of the body paragraphs together. For example, if you used "first" in the first body paragraph then you should used "secondly" in the second or "on the one hand" and "on the other hand" accordingly.

DO NOT – Be Too General

Examples should be relevant to the thesis and so should the explanatory details you provide for them. It can be hard to summarize the full richness of a given example in just a few lines so make them count. If you are trying to explain why George Washington is a great example of a strong leader, for instance, his childhood adventure with the cherry tree (though interesting in another essay) should probably be skipped over.

Conclusion

Restatement or summary of the main points made in the body paragraphs and a final comment (if appropriate)

DO – Be Powerful

The conclusion paragraph can be a difficult paragraph to write effectively but, as it is your last chance to convince or otherwise impress the reader, it is worth investing some time in. Take this opportunity to restate your thesis with confidence; if you present your argument as "obvious" then the reader might just do the same.

DO NOT – Copy the First Paragraph

Although you can reuse the same key words in the conclusion as you did in the introduction, try not to copy whole phrases word for word. Instead, try to use this last paragraph to really show your skills as a writer by being as artful in your rephrasing as possible.

Choose one topic and write an essay.

1. How is social media changing parent and child relationships?
2. Does social media negatively impact teenagers social lives?
3. Is going on a study abroad worth it?
4. Is homework good or bad for student achievement?
5. Should the death penalty be legal in all states?
6. Does legalization of marijuana reduce crime?
7. Do violent images, music, and games cause people to act out violently
8. What causes the break-up of marriages?