Essay Writing
What is an Essay?
An essay is "an analytic or interpretive literary composition," according to one dictionary. 

Arnold Lazarus and H. Wendell Smith, writing in A Glossary of Literature and Composition (1983, Urbana, IL: National Council of Teachers of English), define an essay as follows:

From the French essai, literally "attempt." Brief non-fiction reflections in prose. . . . As distinguished from the article or feature story, both of which, however informal, are devoted mostly to informing, the essay (also known as familiar essay and personal essay) is devoted to entertaining, or reflecting, or inspiring. It tends to be relaxed and philosophic, or witty, or poetic, or all of these at once. . . . The style of an essay is both informal and urbane--the voice of a civilized speaker in conversation with a civilized audience. . . .

In writing an essay, no matter how commonplace the topic, the writer strives for unusual treatment. An anecdote or a personal experience ("narrative hook") or an appropriate quotation may introduce feelings and opinions that are further illuminated and supported with appropriate examples. Above all, the reader is led to discover the main drift, attitude, theme. To qualify as an essay, in fact, the piece of writing must make a point expressly or by implication (109).

The English word assay also comes from the French essai.  To assay is to "try" or to "weigh," as in assaying the contents of ore for gold. We might say that, in an essay, you are trying out ideas, weighing thoughts, with the intention of discovering which are most valuable, or useful, or important.

Today we use the term to refer to non-fiction writing focused upon a single, controlling idea (thesis) which is developed in detail (support).  Essays are short compositions that generally reflect the knowledge and/or opinions of the author. 

An effective essay has several characteristics:

  • RELEVANCE
    Does the essay answer the question(s) that prompted it?  Because most essays are written in response to an assignment, a good essay must meet the criteria of the assignment. Read your topic carefully. If you have questions about your topic, talk to your instructor.
     
  • ORGANIZATION
    The essay has a distinct and recognizable beginning, middle, and end.  The ideas are presented in a specifically chosen order and flow smoothly together.
     
  • FOCUS
    Does the essay have one clearly articulated focus?  The thesis statement, usually found in the introductory paragraph, should clearly state the focus of the essay. Every paragraph in the essay should explain and develop the thesis statement. The thesis of the essay needs to be specific and narrow enough to be addressed in the required length of the essay.
    • Format of an Essay
    Regardless of its purpose, all essays have generally the same form.  Some might be longer than others, but there are three parts to every essay: the introduction, the body and the conclusion.
  • Read Basic Essay Format to learn about the three parts of an essay: the introduction, the body and the conclusion.
  • View the Structure of the Five Paragraph Essay to see an example of an outline expanded to a full essay.

    • Freshman Composition courses use the five paragraph essay model, employing a thesis and support pattern, to teach students necessary writing and thinking skills. While students may never again write a rigidly structured, five paragraph essay after leaving the academic world, there are some valid reasons for teaching writing using the essay form.  The five paragraph essay is short enough to allow students to practice their writing skills quickly and learn techniques to improve their writing in a short period of time.  The essay format gives students a valuable organizational pattern.  Students can practice creating a purpose to write, defining an audience, and different writing strategies.  The thinking, organizing, and writing skills necessary to produce a five paragraph essay are the same skills that are used to write essay examinations and papers for college classes, prepare reports and memos in the workplace, or write an analysis on the job.

    Finding Your Writing Process
    Ready to begin?  Before you start to write, please view Finding Your Focus: The Writing Process.  This is a Power Point presentation that acquaints students with the steps that constitute the writing process, including strategies for brainstorming, drafting, revising, and proofreading. (Note: you need Power Point on your computer to view this presentation.)

    Marla DeSoto
    Last edited: 5/19/2005