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

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

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

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