English 1201 Essay Unit Types of Essays 6

English 1201 Essay Unit

Types of Essay’s (6) (1) Expository – writing that explains ex: Comparative Essay (2) Narrative – has a purpose for telling; a true event; a single incident (3) Memoir – a person’s story about his or her life (4) Descriptive – writing that creates images of people, places, objects (5) Argumentative – a rational argument which uses evidence (6) Persuasive- writing that attempts to convince the audience to adopt a certain point of view or to act in a certain way - Often closes with a call to action

Purpose for Writing l The three “E’s” l l l To explain To educate To entertain You also want to: Inform Analyze Tell a story Describe

Thesis Statement l l A sentence or two which gives the main idea of the essay. To his closest associates, he was a brilliant planner, public speaker, strategist and motivator. To many of his countrymen, he was the symbol of hope, a man who would reinstate his country as a world power. But to the rest of the world, Adolph Hitler was a madman, a fiendish, brutal megalomaniac whose regime caused untold suffering and unspeakable horror for millions and nearly wiped out an entire race.

Answer l To his closest associates, he was a brilliant planner, public speaker, strategist and motivator. To many of his countrymen, he was the symbol of hope, a man who would reinstate his country as a world power. But to the rest of the world, Adolph Hitler was a madman, a fiendish, brutal megalomaniac whose regime caused untold suffering and unspeakable horror for millions and nearly wiped out an entire race.

Topic Sentence l l l A topic sentence is to a paragraph what a thesis statement is to an entire essay The topic sentence tells what is in the paragraph. It can be positioned at either the beginning or end of a paragraph, but is often at the beginning.

Example l Teacher’s are human. I know, I’ve made a few laughs; I’ve made a few cry. I’ve seen them register the whole spectrum of human emotions.

Answer l Teacher’s are human. I know, I’ve made a few laughs; I’ve made a few cry. I’ve seen them register the whole spectrum of human emotions.

Coherence l l Arranging one’s ideas in some logical order Showing the relationship between the ideas through the use of l l Transitional words Pronouns Synonyms Parallel Structure

Transitional Words Contrast - But - However - Although Comparison - Similarly - Likewise Explanation - For example - Incidentally

Transition l l Word’s or phrases which help to achieve a smooth, carry-over within sentences, between sentences, and between paragraphs. To say that you can’t fairy base a grade for a whole course on the exam is ridiculous. In the first place, colleges regularly offer credit by special examination. In the second place, you’re probably thinking of a normal one-hour exam, but I am talking about a special exam – it can last five or six hours, if you like. And don’t give me that old excuse that some things taught in a course can’t be measured by an examination.

Pronoun Reference - Use of pronoun in one sentence to refer to a noun in a preceding sentence.

Parallel Structure l l Requires that all ideas presented in a series or list have the same grammatical form. For example: l Going to school, listening to teachers, and homework are not my idea of a good time (NO) l Going to school, listening to teachers, and doing homework are not my idea of a good time. (YES)