Expository Writing: The Guide To Writing An Expository Essay |
Posted: March 24, 2020 |
Expository essays are frequently assigned in English classes and are evaluated in various standardized exams. But what exactly is an expository essay, and how do you write a good one? In this article, we’ll tell you everything you need to know to pen a high-scoring expository paper. What Is an Expository Essay? An expository essay requires you to investigate an idea, gather supporting evidence, and present your point of view on a topic. You may be wondering how this differs from a persuasive essay. While both essay types require you to provide evidence to support a claim, persuasive essays are more argumentative. A persuasive essay includes a counterargument, which addresses and rebuts an opposing viewpoint. Expository essays, on the other hand, focus on clearly explaining and supporting your point of view. Below, we’ll look at how to construct the expository essay piece by piece. For clarity, we’ll focus on a somewhat formulaic process for expository writing. Once you’ve mastered these basics, you can take risks and sprinkle more creativity throughout your essays. The introduction frames the topic of your essay. It also provides readers with any necessary background information or context. Grabber/Hook - A compelling sentence or two that draws readers into your essay. Background Information (as needed) - Any basic information the reader needs to know about the topic to understand your essay. Thesis Statement - This is the most important sentence of your entire essay. See below for more information. The thesis statement is the roadmap for your entire essay, so it must be clear and concise. It should state your point of view on the topic. The thesis may also briefly mention the supporting evidence you’ll expand on in the body of the essay. Students should read more literature because it improves vocabulary, reading comprehension, and empathy. The writer’s viewpoint is immediately clear: Students should read more literature. The writer also indicates that her supporting evidence will mention several benefits of reading literature: improved vocabulary, better reading comprehension, and increased empathy. Most likely, each of these points will form one of the writer’s body paragraphs. If your teacher (or a standardized test) assigns you a topic, here’s another way to think of a thesis statement: The thesis is your answer to the question being asked. Let’s say you receive a prompt that says, “Your community is thinking of starting a program encouraging people to limit car usage. This prompt is essentially asking, “How would limiting car usage benefit your community? This approach ensures that you’re on topic and directly addressing the prompt. Once you’ve clearly stated your point of view, it’s time to support it. To do this, you’ll need evidence. Sometimes, this will mean doing your own research. On other occasions, especially exams, you’ll be provided with relevant resources. These may include newspaper articles, primary sources, photos, or even audio recordings. Your job is to sort through these resources and find evidence that supports your thesis. It’s important to note that if you can’t find evidence supporting your thesis, you’ll need to change it. Strong evidence may include research findings, quotes from experts, and statistics. Make sure that your evidence is from credible sources and clearly supports your thesis statement. This post was written by Essay Freelance Writers. After finding your supporting evidence, you’ll organize it into body paragraphs, typically three of them. Each body paragraph should focus on one general idea. In addition, each of these general ideas should be logically connected to your thesis statement. https://essayfreelancewriters.com/blog/how-to-write-an-analytical-essay/ should start with a topic sentence that introduces the idea that the body paragraph will elaborate upon. Remember our sample thesis about students reading more literature? After the topic sentence, the paragraph should introduce 2-3 pieces of evidence supporting this idea. If a piece of evidence doesn’t clearly relate to the body paragraph’s topic sentence, it needs to be moved or deleted. When you introduce a piece of evidence, follow it up with a sentence analyzing the evidence in your own words. Explain the connection between the evidence and your thesis statement. How does it support your point of view? How do you interpret this evidence? Remember that essays don’t only reflect your writing skills; they also reflect your critical thinking skills. Instead of merely quoting evidence, you must also explain your thought process. The final sentence of the body paragraph should remind readers of the paragraph’s main point and connect it to the next paragraph. Transitions are important because they help readers follow your train of thought without confusion. They smoothly guide readers through your paper. Like stories, essays have a beginning, middle, and end. The introduction is your beginning, the body paragraphs form the middle, and the conclusion brings the paper to an end. The conclusion synthesizes the information included in your essay. As the name suggests, it also draws a conclusion from the information presented. Instead of simply restating the thesis, you should revisit the thesis in light of the supporting evidence you’ve provided. Do not introduce any new information in the conclusion. Remember that the conclusion is your last chance to make an impression on the reader. It should be logical and convincing. Try to end with a strong and/or memorable final sentence. If you include each of these pieces, you’ll have a clear, logical, and effective expository essay. Once you become comfortable following this formula, you may wish to vary it or infuse it with your own style. Just make sure that all the essential pieces are present in your essay. Before you can effectively assemble an expository essay, you’ll need to gather information and plan your approach.
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