The Essay - Angelfire



The Essay

Essay Introduction

In the Short Story Unit you experienced the fascinating world of suspense and human conflict that is revealed through fiction. In the essay unit, you will study selections in non-fiction Just as a short story has certain characteristics, qualities, and elements, an essay has certain characteristics that you must learn.

Talented short story writers create escape or interpretive fiction, however essay writers present their ideas, opinions and experiences in non-fiction. Essayists may instruct, inspire, argue, persuade, describe, criticize, reflect, and even satirize. They manipulate stylistic devices to create a strong impression. Even though the short story has more action, the essay has more ideas. The essay is a form of literature.

The Five Paragraph Essay

A simple model for the relationship between the introduction, the body, and the conclusion is the old newspaper maxim:

"You tell 'em what you're gonna tell 'em, you tell 'em, and then you tell 'em what you told 'em."

Your introduction begins with the general and moves toward the specific, as the sides of the triangle narrow toward a point. Ask yourself how the specific question you are addressing in the essay relates to a greater issue or field. You lay out a plan for what will follow.

The middle section (body) is a sequence of paragraphs that support your thesis, or (in an expository essay) provide the information you promised in your introduction.

What you say in your conclusion should match what you said when you introduced the essay: it should be a restatement (but not a mere repetition) of your thesis, ideally in a way that shows more fully and clearly what you have been arguing. Present your thesis in its final, most persuasive form.

The important thing at this stage is to ensure that you construct paragraphs that are unified: one topic per paragraph, each topic suitably and sufficiently supported. If your outline has been carefully thought out, the sequence of paragraphs will make logical sense.

The Essay

Writing A+ Essays

INTRODUCTIONS

1. “Clincher” statement that catches the reader’s attention

2. Overview of what you plan on discussing in your essay

3. Thesis statement - state your POSITION

4. Transitions smoothly into first paragraph

THESIS STATEMENT

1. Main idea of your entire paper

2. Expresses your position in a full, declarative sentence

3. Controls the focus of the entire paper

4. Points forward to the conclusion

5. Conforms to your reasons, examples, and evidence

A WORKING 3 PART THESIS

Opinion and Fact

Dracula was one of the better films this summer because if its setting, action, and philosophy.

Consequence

Social ostracism, great expense, and personal hardship are three of the unfortunate results of the most dangerous disease of the century - AIDS.

Autobiographical

From my personal experience, I know that poor preparation, alcohol consumption, and insect infestation can cause most family picnics to fail.

AVOIDING MISTAKES IN YOUR INTRODUCTION

• Avoid a purpose statement, such as “The purpose of this...” “Now I shall prove”, "in this paragraph I will tell you" SHOW -DON’T TELL

• Avoid repetition of the title or text

• Avoid complex or difficult questions that may puzzle your reader

• Avoid simple definitions - EXPLAIN

• Avoid artwork or cute lettering

A BEAUTIFUL BODY

PARAGRAPH

• A group of sentences that presents and develops one MAIN IDEA about a topic

• These sentences work together to communicate one MAIN IDEA

MAIN IDEA

• the overall POINT of the PARAGRAPH that is conveyed in the TOPIC SENTENCE

TOPIC SENTENCE

• USUALLY the first sentence of the PARAGRAPH that states the MAIN IDEA stated in each part of the THESIS

• This sentence CONTROLS the ENTIRE PARAGRAPH

• It tells the READER what the reset of the paragraph is ABOUT

• This helps the WRITER focus on the MAIN IDEA and not stray from the MAIN IDEA

• This is more GENERAL than the SUPPORTING DETAILS that follow.

SUPPORTING DETAIL SENTENCES

• Other sentences in the PARAGRAPH that give INFORMATION that SUPPORTS the MAIN IDEA that was stated in the TOPIC SENTENCE

• A paragraph with only 1-2 supporting details is NOT EFFECTIVE and UNACCEPTABLE

• At least THREE details are NEEDED to provide STRONG SUPORT for the MAIN IDEA:

o descriptions

o definitions

o examples

o elaboration

o exploration

• Paragraphs should be AT LEAST 6 sentences, including TRANSITIONS

*WARNING*

Sentences that DO NOT SUPPORT the TOPIC SENTENCE DESTROY the UNITY of the paragraph!

SMOOTH TRANSITIONS

The last sentence of each paragraph should reflect:

• what you have just discussed in the paragraph

• signal the change into the next paragraph

CONCLUSIONS

1. Restate the thesis

2. GO BEYOND the thesis by stating something worthwhile:

• reach a judgment

• endorse an issue

• discuss findings

• offer directives

3. Leave the reader with a thought provoking statement

AVOIDING MISTAKES IN YOUR CONCLUSION

• AVOID presenting new IDEAS

• AVOID stopping at an awkward spot or trailing off into meaningless or irrelevant information

• AVOID questions that raise new issues

• AVOID fancy artwork or cute lettering

Devising a Thesis

Using A Canadian Writer’s Reference read section C p. 3 to 35 (it can be downloaded from the English 10-1 PDF Resources folder). Make your own notes. An important concept from these pages is that of the three point thesis:

• generalization

• limited

• focused

The Essay

Lesson 5: Objective 3

Sample Student Essay

The following is a sample of a student essay on fiction techniques and their contribution to the effect of a short story, in this case, "The Veldt" by Ray Bradbury. Students are often asked to write critically about the literature they read. If fact, this is a favoured method of evaluation by English teachers. It is important, therefore that you master the techniques used in this Sample Student essay.

Notice the effective introduction, three point thesis, body paragraphs with topic sentences, restatement of thesis in the conclusion and a citation on separate page showing the source of the story used. Also, note the student uses the present tense and cites his quotations within the essay in parentheses. Notice how the quoted material fits in as part of his own sentence structure, using ellipsis (...) to indicate words that have been left out. See page 257-268 in A Canadian Writer’s Reference for more help with quotations.

[pic]

Student, I.

Eng10E1

Date

Effective Devices Used in "The Veldt"

Short story writers use many techniques to make their fiction come alive for the reader. "The Veldt", a science fiction story by Ray Bradbury, relies on three techniques or devices to create a successful story. He provides a futuristic setting to give the plot a reality or plausibility that might not exist in a more contemporary setting, an initial incident which sets up the conflict, and foreshadowing which hints at the grisly outcome.

The reader's belief in the possibility of the strange plot relies on his acceptance of the robotic home of the Hadley family. If Bradbury had tried to force this plot into a traditional household, the reader might have rejected the premise that violence and death might happen. Because the reader does not have rooms that come alive like Peter and 's bedroom, it is necessary to suspend disbelief in order to accept the macabre plan carried out by the children. Bradbury makes it clear from the beginning

that the story occurs in the future as

"They walked down the hall of their soundproofed Happylife Home which had cost them thirty thousand dollars installed, this house which clothed and fed and rocked them to sleep and played and sang and was good to them." (101)

Without the elements of setting such as the automatic switches, the odorophonics, and the three dimensional screen, the reader might not accept the plot and the story would be a failure.

The initial incident, the event which sets the action in motion, occurs when the reader learns of the 'malfunction' in the nursery. George, the father, is unable to make the African Veldtland disappear and utters, "the fool room is out of order. It won't respond" (106). Programmed to be a peaceful, cheerful, nurturing environment, the nursery has become a wild killing field. Before, the parents had control of the room (and control over their children), but now, they seem powerless. The initial incident begins the chaos and disorder which will escalate. As a result, the reader's interest is piqued not only because the environment in the room is so oppressive and ominous but because of the near panic of the parents.

The third device which is a major tool used by the author is foreshadowing. The screams that "sound familiar" (109) let the reader know that there is violence behind the door. Also, both parents discover a personal article destroyed in the play room which seems to seal their fate and let the reader know that what has happened to George's wallet is also sure to happen to him. Peter's threat that his parents had better not consider closing down the room (110) foreshadows the lengths to which he will go to protect his newly-gained power.

Ray Bradbury's unusual setting, intriguing initial incident, and meaningful foreshadowing help to make a powerful story. The reader plunges into a modernistic household which has become a monster. The shock is strong and complete at the end.

Work Cited

Bradbury, Ray. "The Veldt", Inside Stories. Ed. place: publisher, date. page

The Essay

Essay Theory

In the English language the word essay comes from the French term essai, which means " to try". Essays are an author's attempt to express his/her opinion on a subject. The degree of personal input determines the label that is applied to the essay. When studying the essay as a literary form it is necessary to look at two basic areas: essay subject matter and essay subject manner.

Types of Essays

Only general groupings can be followed for essays because essay form and subject are so nebulous . However, certain forms are distinguishable, and following are some of the major divisions. The amount of personality coloration in essays varies widely, because they are written by individuals, and may range from the almost pure impersonality of the encyclopedia article to the highly personal expression of a writer's thoughts and beliefs in a diary.

There are two primary types of essays:

• informational (expository ) essays

• personal essays

Depending on style and content, essays range from formal to informal and display certain characteristics.

Formal essays:

• have a serious purpose

• focus on significant subject matter

• have a literary style varying from stylistically elegant to plain serious prose

Informal essays:

• reflect the writer’s personality and interests entertain the reader

• are written in a lively, light or humorous manner

• use casual, conversational language

A. Informational Essays

The primary purpose of the informational essay is to give information, to teach, to instruct, to explain. It may do this by presenting facts only, or it may present facts backed up by observations of the author, hence adding elements of the author's personality to what is still mainly an information-giving communication. To clarify this further, informational essays may be divided into three categories.

1. Exposition:

This type of informational essay is based on fact, and fact only. Technical or scientific explanations, textbooks, instructions, and 'how to' articles all fall into this category. Very little if any of the writers' personalities will be disclosed in this type of essay since it deals with fact and attempts to clarify meaning. It is organized according to process, classification, or comparison -contrast and uses reasoning by induction, deduction, definition, cause and effect, and analysis.

2. Argument:

This type of informational essay is also based on fact, but the essayist goes beyond this by trying to prove a case or develop an argument. It tries to convince the reader that a specific theory or premise is true or false. It is usually organized from specific facts to a conclusion or conversely from a generalization to specific applications.

3. Persuasion:

Informational essays of persuasion are again based on fact, but the essayists deliberately try to get the readers to take a particular point of view or accept a particular opinion. Their approach will be a mixture of appeal to reason and emotion. Because they have moved beyond using straight fact to include their own personal method of strengthening their argument ,or persuading their readers to agree with them, their personalities have been inserted.

As the essay moves from purely informational to purely personal, the personality of the author becomes almost as important as the information presented.

B. Personal Essays

The primary purpose of the personal essay is to entertain by making the reader "feel at home" with the author, whose person is revealed through his/her writing. They as individuals, are inextricably interwoven among the threads of their ideas, which make up their essays. Personal essays may also be grouped into broad categories.

1. Familiar:

The author gives unique reactions to experiences and contacts in his/her own life. It may in this way be autobiographical in nature.

2. Character:

This portrays individuals, emphasizing particular qualities which the author deems important. It may be written with a moral purpose in mind.

3. Descriptive:

This describes a scene or object , usually using a spatial arrangement. The things chosen as part of the description are coloured by the outlook and personality of the author.

4. Narrative:

It is similar to the descriptive, but in the narrative essay the essayist arranges material chronologically, developing the narrative or the events as they happen in time. Also it is similar to the descriptive in that the events which the writer selects to develop the narrative express his/her personality.

5. Critical:

This is extremely subjective, with the author passing judgment on such things as artistic works, individuals, historical or contemporary events, and social questions.

6. Philosophic or Reflective:

This type of essay presents the personal reflections of the essayist on such subjects as morals, religion, education, and history. The essayist wishes the reader to reflect on the subject, although the reader may or may not agree with the author’s thoughts.

7. Satiric:

Satire may be defined as ridiculing or poking fun at something, with the underlying idea of bringing about a change. This type of essay may be directed at any subject, and its success depends largely on the personality of the author and how it is presented in the essay.

An essay will seldom be a pure example of one of these categories and may fit into two or three. Usually its main development can be identified and it can, for convenience, be placed under one of the above.

Levels of English

Formal English is used by educated people for formal occasions, e.g. graduations, opening ceremonies, formal essays, etc. It has the following characteristics:

• bookish tone, not conversational

• many figures of speech

• complex language not commonly used in conversation

• wide use of allusions

• long, complex sentences

• strict grammatical correctness:

o no short cuts such as contractions (can't, won't, etc,)

o no ellipses [a part omitted and implied, e.g. I am taller than Chris (is)]

o no abbreviations.

• use of many rhetorical devices (rhetorical questions, parallel structure, balanced sentences, repetition for emphasis, etc.)

Informal English (Colloquial English) is comfortable English used by educated people in conversation and informal writing. It’s characteristics are as follows:

• conversational tone, light and personal

• relaxed, simple sentence structure

• few allusions and figures of speech

• use of many "ordinary" words such as contractions, abbreviations

• occasional use of slang (limited)

Non standard English has the following characteristics:

• abundance of slang

• cliches

• grammatical errors

• incorrect pronunciation

• simple or long sentences joined by 'and' or 'then'

Diction

The choice of words in an essay, its diction, contributes to its purpose.

Connotative and Denotative Words

Words in the English language may be classified into words with denotative meanings and connotative meanings. The denotative meaning of a word is its dictionary meaning. A "house," for example, is defined as "a building intended as a dwelling for human beings." The denotation of a word means what the word stands for. It is the precise, literal, factual meaning. A "cat," defined literally according to Webster's New World Dictionary, is "a small, lithe, softfurred animal, domesticated since ancient times and often kept as a pet or for killing mice". A writer will use words with denotative meanings if the purpose is to present exact information.

Those houses were built in the early '50's.

That cat was nearly hit by an automobile yesterday.

The connotative meaning of a word is what the word suggests. The word "home," for example, though it means the same as "house," suggests something more than "a building intended as a dwelling." It means in its connotative sense "a place where an individual's affections are centred." The word cat has also the connotative meaning of a spiteful woman. Two words, therefore, may share the same denotative meaning, but they may have connotative meanings quite different. Consider the words in the following list. Observe the shades of meaning around the denotative meaning.

o imitate, copy, forge, mirror, counterfeit, reproduce

o small, little, stunted, puny, dwarfish, tiny

o stout, corpulent, fat, obese, plump, chubby, fleshy

o thin, slender, slim, lean, lank, gaunt, emaciated

o dog, mongrel, pup, puppy, mutt, canine, whelp

What do the following words connotate to you personally?

|church |oily |mother |honesty |rose |ocean |

|snow |love |eternal |youth |test |examination |

General and Specific Words

Words may be classified also as general or specific. A general word names a group or class. A specific word names a member of a class or group, i.e. a particular object, quality, or event. The word emotion, for example, names a class. The words joy, love, hate, jealousy, sorrow, on the other hand, name a particular emotion. Identify the general and specific words in the following sentences:

Those animals are very hungry.

Those lions are very hungry.

Most students who applied for that position were well educated.

Most of the graduate students who applied for the teaching assistantship were working for their doctorate.

In the yard were some trees and many flowers.

In the back yard were an oak tree, a towering pine, and three chestnut trees. There were also several pots of roses and three beds of violets.

Thesis Statement

There's this diner over in Newport News, the Blue Star. They have all these neon signs, which are really cool. And they're open most all of the time. I like eggs. I think they might serve them there. The House of Eggs serves eggs 24 hours a day--breakfast, lunch, and dinner. But it doesn't have all the chrome like the diner. My sink has lots of chrome. But my sink is dirty. And it doesn't have eggs. A platypus is the only mammal that lays eggs. But this is a digression; rather, the Blue Star is in such a pretty part of town. The House of Eggs is on Military Highway. I'm really hungry. You?

What are we talking about? It's hard to tell. The reason? We have no thesis statement (or main idea). This opening paragraph, disjointed as it is, could lead into a discussion of values and aesthetics, such as what constitutes the ideal diner or how much chrome is pleasurable. It could also become an evaluation, or perhaps a comparison and contrast essay. It could even be an argument: an argument to go to the Blue Star Diner for a late-night snack. Without a thesis statement we'll never know. Hence, we can see that a thesis is of some valuable use, if not entirely necessary.

A thesis statement is a sentence, two sentences, or a number of sentences, which provides a focus for an essay. It will generally be found within the closing lines of the first paragraph of an essay, but it can also occur in the second paragraph or even on a later page. Its primary purpose is to convey the author's purpose and attitude.

Truly effective thesis statements are specific. For example, what does "Gun control is essential" do as a thesis? It's so broad that the reader has no idea what to expect in the rest of the paper. Also, it offers no sense of the author's angle; there are many reasons why gun control could be essential. The reader needs to know which one (s) the author espouses. Strive to be specific when developing your thesis statements. Also, a thesis statement should be NARROW enough to be proved within the confines of whatever length you intend to make your essay. For example, a thesis of a 3-page paper and a 20-page paper are going be different. The 3-pager will have to be much narrower.

Whatever you call it, a thesis statement may take any number of forms; it may, in fact, be carried over through an entire paragraph or developed over a number of pages, but you must consider the over-all length of your essay. If you are writing a fifty page paper you might have room to write a three page introduction that conveys a sense of your thesis; however, if you are only writing a three or four page essay it will be very important to keep your introduction concise and well within the first or second paragraph.

Further, it may not always be useful to think of "Thesis Statements" as the name for that controlling statement. It might imply an amount of weight that can make it more difficult to compose the essay. Perhaps a better way to consider your "thesis statement" would be as an "introductory statement" or a "topic sentence" (or sentences). In any case, there are certain things it must do and, generally, it is necessary for something approximating a thesis statement to occur.

But consider: all effective writing has some sort of controlling idea, but not all writing has an explicit thesis. For example, memoirs and reflection papers will have some sort of main point, but that main point may not necessarily be stated. Whether or not you state the thesis depends upon what type of writing you're doing.

The thesis statement serves three functions:

1. The thesis narrows the topic to a single idea that you want readers to gain from your paper.

2. The thesis names the topic and asserts something about it, conveying your purpose, your opinion, and your attitude. Make sure your thesis does more than simply state an opinion or generalization; it should introduce elements that offer an explanation of your beliefs.

3. The thesis statement provides a concise preview of how you will arrange your ideas in the essay. Thesis and organization can go hand-in-hand from the beginning. You can use your thesis to set up the entire paper.

Also, a thesis statement shouldn't be a FACT. What are you proving, if it's already widely accepted? Further, your thesis statement should not say, "My paper is about. . .", as it is already abundantly clear that your paper is about a particular topic if, in fact, the paper is written. You do not need to tell the reader that your essay is about what it already tells.

Some Questions For When You Consider Your Thesis

• Does your thesis do more than just provide a fact?

• Does your thesis say something new, innovative, or interesting?

• Where have you located your thesis? Why?

• Is your thesis appropriate to the length of your essay?

• Could you be more explicit or specific?Are you using broad generalizations to cover for a lack of knowledge?

The Essay

Transitional Devices

A good transition looks backward to the previous paragraph and forward to the next paragraph. In doing so, it shows the relationship between the two paragraphs (amplification, evaluation, contrast, conclusion, etc.)

Oppositional transitions

However...(contrasting aspect of topic)

But...(questioning an assumption in the previous paragraph)

Yet...(previous statement is limited in some way: counterargument, clarification, expansion follows)

On the other hand...(the other side is about to be represented, often the weaker side)

By contrast...(signals contrasting aspect of topic)

It is not the case that...(signals disagreement)

Aggregative transitions (A good aggregative transition shows how the new subtopic is related to the general topic.)

Consider...(illustration of topic; invites reader to join in withwriter)

As for...(signals minor addition to topic; sometimes used ironically)

X did not simply do Y; he/she/it also did Z...(signals additional item which is related to the main topic in a different way than previously discussed items)

For example...(illustration of topic)

X is...("X" being a codeword for the major topic)

Evaluative transitions

What gets less attention, however,...(signals that commonly or deliberately ignored aspect of topic is about to be emphasized)

It is my view that...(signals shift from description to explicit authorial opinion or evaluation)

The mistake here is...(signals coming critique of items or events in last paragraph)

Likeness-emphasizing transitions

Similarly...(parallel example follows)

As is the case with X, so it is with Y...(begins an analogy)

In much the same way...(completes an analogy)

Chronological transitions

Next...(next step in a temporal sequence)

In the future...(signals consequences or authorial proposal coming up)

Once X had happened, Y was inevitable...(connects past event with event about to be discussed)

Logical transitions

Thus...

Hence...(signals conclusion of argument; use sparingly)

This X shows that Y...(paragraph will elaborate upon the significance of the last paragraph's topic)

If X, then Y...(signals logical reasoning; the completion of a syllogism)

When X, then Y...(emphasizes consequences of X)

Working with Quotations

Quotations that constitute fewer than five lines in your paper should be set off with quotation marks [ “ ” ] and be incorporated within the normal flow of your text. For material exceeding that length, omit the quotation marks and indent the quoted language one inch from your left-hand margin. If an indented quotation is taken entirely from one paragraph, the first line should be even with all the other lines in that quotation; however, if an indented quotation comes from two or more paragraphs, indent the first line of each paragraph an additional one-quarter inch.

If quotation marks appear within the text of a quotation that already has the usual double-quote marks [ “ ” ] around it (a quote-within-a-quote), set off that inner quotation with single-quote marks [ ‘ ’ ] . Such a quote-within-a-quote within an indented quotation is marked with double-quote marks.

The usual practice is to place periods and commas inside quotation marks, regardless of logic. Other punctuation marks — question marks, exclamation marks, semicolons, and colons — go where logic would dictate. Thus, we might see the following sentences in a paper about Robert Frost:

The first two lines of this stanza, "My little horse must think it queer / To stop without a farmhouse near," remind us of a nursery rhyme.

(Note, also, the slash mark / (with a space on either side) to denote the poem's line-break.) But observe the placement of this semicolon:

There is a hint of the nursery rhyme in the line "My little horse must think it queer"; however, the poem then quickly turns darkly serious.

Pay close attention to the placement of commas and periods in the use of citations.

Preparing a Works Cited Section

Once you have found the sources you intend to use, you will need to identify them for your reader. For each BOOK you use, write a separate listing (on an index card or in some handy format available in your laptop computer or your notebook — whatever is convenient and cannot be lost), giving:

1. the name of the author or authors;

2. title;

3. editor, translator, compiler, if any;

4. edition, if it is not the first (i.e., 2nd ed., rev. ed.);

5. place and date of the book's publication; and

6. the name of the book's publisher.

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