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Essay Writing

The Essay Writing Process

In Greek legend, the goddess of wisdom, Athena, was born fully armed from the head of Zeus. Unfortunately, this is the only recorded instance of instant wisdom. Especially in the medium of the written word, the communication of complex ideas is a process—a process that requires thinking and rethinking, working and reworking. The student who claims to have dashed off an 'A' essay at one in the morning the night before it was due is either a liar or a genius.

This document has been formulated to assist you in learning to write effective, intelligent essays. It is divided into the following parts:

PART I: Types of Essays
PART II: Developing a Thesis from a Topic
PART III: Introductions
PART IV: The Body Paragraphs
PART V: The Rebuttal
PART VI: The Conclusion
PART VII: Writing an Exam Essay
PART VIII: Stylistic Considerations
PART IX: Sentence and Paragraph Structure
PART X: Sample Essays
PART XI: Using Quotations
PART XII: Sample Essay Template

PART I: Types of Essays

The Expository Essay
The function of the expository essay is to explain, or to acquaint your reader with a body of knowledge. By explaining a topic to the reader, you are demonstrating your own knowledge.
For example, if you are asked to write an essay about taming dragons, you decide what you plan to concentrate on, create a paragraph structure, and describe the process step by step. An essay becomes more complicated when a position has to be defended, as in a persuasive essay.
The Persuasive Essay
The persuasive essay must choose a side, make a case for it, consider and refute alternative arguments, and prove to the undecided reader that the opinion it presents is the best one. You must be aware of other sides and be fair to them; dismissing them completely will weaken your own argument.
It is always best to take a side that you believe in, preferably...