At school and university, pupils (and students) are regularly faced with written papers: essays, summaries, and speeches. Some of them deal with them quickly, while others sit for hours and can’t figure out what is expected of them. But it’s not about inspiration, or even about understanding the topic. The key to a good text is knowing the structure, basic requirements and stylistics. This is the only way to write a really high-quality, interesting paper. In this article, we will talk about essays. You will get sensible tips and recommendations and learn what pitfalls you encounter when writing an essay.
What is an essay?
An essay is a short prose paper written in free form. The author seeks to reveal a specific topic, express personal impressions and thoughts, and inspire the reader to think about the situation described in the essay. You will not need to look for how to make an essay look longer on google docs, because the essay is a small work. If you don’t want to do such a paper, visit on the website.
In general, the following features of an essay are distinguished:
Consideration of a narrow topic or problem. If there is a lot of abstract reasoning in the work and the author tries to cover a large range of events, it can hardly be classified as an essay.
Subjectivism and literary-critical style of narration. When the text of an essay hooks the reader, arouses genuine emotions (whether it is approval of the author’s position or complete disagreement with it), it means that the goal of writing is achieved.
The feelings and worldview of the author, his personality, rather than a dry narration of the course of events come to the fore.
Types of essays
According to the content essays are divided into artistic, historical, spiritual-religious, philosophical and so on. It is also worth paying attention to the form of the essay: notes, personal diary, letter, review or miniature.
Essay description. Represents a description of an object, a picture, a person or an animal. The usual description of the object will not be enough. The emphasis is on the feelings of the one who is narrating. The descriptive essay should not resort to analysis or criticism. It is enough to express a subjective evaluation, to give the description an emotional coloring.
Narrative essay. Everything here is based on the presentation of events and the observance of chronological order. A narrative essay necessarily has a plot, a culmination and a denouement. Naturally, it is impossible to do without a conflict situation (the foundation of the essay).
The essay is a comparison. Its purpose is to reveal this or that concept by means of comparison with a related concept, searching for common features and differences.
Essay illustration. The task of the author – to expound and prove his unique idea. Clear examples, precise data, and personal observations are used.
As you can see, the text of an essay can have different purposes. However, any essay is written approximately according to the same plan. Depending on the genre and method of presentation, some deviations are allowed. You should also find out how to list something in an essay, what is a title page in an essay, how to ask a question in an essay, and so on. This will help you create a competent paper.
Essay outline
Introduction. An essay, like any other written work, has an introduction. When writing the introduction, the author seeks to interest the reader, to induce a full reading of the work. The introductory part highlights the topic of the essay, containing a memorable quote or rhetorical question. The main thing is to create an emotional coloring and transition to the essence of the narrative.
Main part. Here different positions about the central problem are considered and proved. The main part includes several paragraphs. A separate paragraph has three sections: the thesis, argumentation, and sub-conclusion. Proper argumentation plays a special role in creating an essay. A talented author knows how to convince the truth of a point of view, makes you look at an event from different angles. When making an argument, you need to formulate statements, make explanations, and give examples.
Conclusion. The case is nearing a logical conclusion. Once again, the problem is formulated and the conclusion is drawn. With the final sentences it is necessary to add integrity to the whole picture, to cause the reader to reflect on what he has read.
Common mistakes when writing an essay
Typos and mistakes. You need to reread the essay several times to be sure that all phrases and expressions are appropriate and correct. Unfortunate turns of phrase, semantic and spelling errors will spoil any essay.
Too much volume. The longer the sentence, the more difficult it is to grasp its meaning. Thoughts in the form of short concise sentences have a greater effect than long phrases. You can write a great diagnostic essay if you avoid this mistake.