1. Reading and Writing Essays
Chapter 9 –
Reading and Writing Essays
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Opening Activity
Throughout your academic career, you will have to write a number of essays. Reflect on that, and then discuss the following questions:
What types of essays have you written in the past?
Which essay was your favorite, and why?
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Learning Outcomes
By the time you finish reading and studying this chapter, you should be able to:
LO1 Understand essays.
LO2 Read and respond to essays (identify the main parts and outline the essay).
LO3 Plan an essay.
LO4 Write the first draft.
LO5 Revise the writing.
LO6 Edit the writing.
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© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

4. Understanding Essays
Essays may be longer, but just like paragraphs, they can be broken into manageable chunks.
Paragraph Structure
Essay Structure
Topic Sentence
Names the topic and focus
Introduction
Introduces the topic
Provides background information
Identifies the thesis
Body Sentences
Provide supporting details
Follow a pattern of organization
Body Paragraphs
Supports or develops the main idea or thesis
Follows one or more patterns of organization
Closing Sentence
Wraps up the paragraph
Conclusion
Summarizes the key ideas
Restates the main idea or thesis
Provides final thoughts or analysis
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5. Understanding Essays
Although essays and paragraphs are similar, they have some key differences.
Paragraphs
Paragraphs are built from sentences.
A paragraph opens with a topic sentence and ends with a closing sentence.
The topic sentence establishes the focus of the paragraph by identifying the topic and expressing a special idea or feeling about it.
Body sentences support the topic sentence through details.
The closing sentence brings the paragraph to a logical end.
Essays
Essays are built from paragraphs.
An essay begins with an opening paragraph and ends with a closing paragraph.
The opening paragraph establishes the focus of the essay in a thesis.
Middle paragraphs support the thesis statement through main points (in topic sentences) and details.
The closing paragraph brings the essay to a logical end and is called the conclusion.
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6. Understanding Essays
The three basic types of essays each serve a different writing purpose.
Narrative Essays
Recreate real or imagined experiences
Argument Essays
Use reason and logic to convince readers of a certain position, belief, or conclusion
Expository Essays
(or Informational Writing)
Inform readers about a certain topic
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7. Reading and Responding to Essays
To understand an essay, identify its main parts:
Opening
Is usually the first paragraph
Generally contains background information, the topic, and the thesis statement
Middle
Is constructed to support the thesis statement
Includes topic sentences that identify key supporting points
Contains common supporting points, such as reasons, facts and statistics, examples, and explanations
Closing
Restates, reinforces, or sums up the thesis statement
Can include more than one closing thought
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8. Reading and Responding to Essays
Creating an outline will help you keep track of important parts of your essay.
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9. Planning An Essay Planning your essay requires the following steps:
Choosing a Topic
Forming a Thesis Statement
Gathering and Organizing Support
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Planning An Essay
As the controlling idea of your essay, your thesis statement should include:
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11. Writing the First Draft
Refer to your plan to help you write your first draft. Use the following opening strategies to help you start your essay in an interesting way.
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12. Writing the First Draft
Make an important final impression. Consider closing your essay with one of the following strategies.
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Revising the Writing
Improve your writing by:
Revising to make sure you include transition words between paragraphs (see Table 9.1)
Using a revising checklist, like the one included below
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Editing the Writing
Edit the revised draft of your writing by checking for spelling, grammar, and usage.
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Closing Activity
Practice the steps of planning an essay:
1. What is your stance on an issue currently being discussed in the news. To clarify your thoughts, discuss what you know with a classmate.
2. Create a thesis statement that reflects your position.
3. Create a simplified outline of an essay that supports your thesis statement.
4. Check to make sure your thesis statement is clear and that you have a logical order for your outline.
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Skumer, 2014/Used under license from Shutterstock.com