THE ESSAY

• From the French ‘essai’ - attempt• English ‘assay’ – ‘try’ or ‘to

weigh’

An effective essay has…

• RELEVANCEThe essay answers the question(s) that prompted it.

  • 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 should clearly state the focus of

the essay. Every paragraph in the essay should explain and

develop the thesis statement.

Typical Essay Outline:Introductory Paragraph:

grab attention

state thesis (often, not always)

Body Paragraphs:build points

develop ideas

support main claimsConcluding Paragraph:

restate thesis

leave reader with something to think about

WHERE DO I START ?!?

Define the purpose of your essay:To inform?

To persuade? To evaluate?

Begin to gather information:1) What do I know from personal experience?

2) What do the ‘experts’ say? RESEARCH SKILLS!

3) What information do I have from the text that I am studying that connects to this topic?

BRAINSTORM:

There is no wrong answer at this point !

RESEARCH:

Identify Main Topic: ____________________

  

Come up with a Question/ Information Problem?

Brainstorm Key Words (to help you search)

Take Point Form Notes (to avoid plagiarism)

RECORD YOUR SOURCES FOR EVERYTHING!

Assess your resources…

…check and double check for bias!

Go ‘text-hunting’ AND/OR use the notes that you already have

Make sure to answer:

BE SPECIFIC IN YOUR EXAMPLES

Now you are almost ready to write….

…but there are still a few things to keep in mind…

KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE

• What do they know?

• What are their values and beliefs?

• What motivates them?

HOW WILL YOU APPEAL TO THEM?

LOGOS – no NOT the product kind

• Logos refers to the soundness of the argument

• Facts, statistics, examples, and authoritative statements

• Supporting evidence must be:

unified, specific, sufficient, and accurate

PATHOS

• Sensitivity, the emotional appeal of the language

• Appeals to audience needs, values, attitudes

• Encourages them to commit to a viewpoint or a course of action

PATHOS continued…

• Word choice is important for the connotation (emotional appeal of the word)

Advertising and propaganda often appeal to emotion and hope to exclude logic as in the following example:

Experience the power. Bold, yet subtle. Clean. Masculine. The scent for the man who’s in charge.

ETHOS

• The establishment of credibility and integrity of the writer

• Convince readers that you know what you are talking about

• Logical argument that takes opposing viewpoints into account

Plan, Plan, Plan!

-logical order?

-transitions?

-does it all connect back to the thesis?

Essay Outline

First Impressions…• Your introduction is your only chance to make a

first impression• Open with a general/catchy statement that will

interest your audience – convince them to spend some time with you

• Create a road map of your argument/essay • Ensure that you have a specific thesis – you need to

make your position clear

HINT: This paragraph should be rewritten at least once after you finish the first draft of your essay

BODY PARAGRAPH OPTION #1:

BLOCK METHOD:discuss everything relevant about one topic before moving on to the next topic

EX) Comparing two newspapers:Paragraph A: Toronto Sun Paragraph B: National Post

B: National Post

International news International news

National news National news

Local news Local news

OPTION #2) Point by point method:

alternating from one aspect of the first subject to the same aspect of the next subject

EXAMPLE:Paragraph 1) Everything about local

a) Sun’s local newsb) Post’s local news

Paragraph 2) Everything about nationala) Sun’s nationalb) Post’s national (etc. for

p3)

HOW TO WRITE AN EFFECTIVE CONCLUSION

DO:

Implicitly restate your thesis

Emphasize the importance of your topic by placing it in a larger context

Offer suggestions for the future based on what you have argued

DO NOT:

Introduce new material OR leave the reader feeling that something is missing

EDIT

EDIT, EDIT, EDIT!1. Decide what your thesis is. Is there a way that you can

state your main idea more clearly? 2. Make sure that you have included specific proof and

clear explanations3. Next, look at how you have organized the paper. Do you

make strong connections between the points that you are making in your essay?

4. If you haven't drawn a clear correlation between your points, you may need to rearrange them, revise your materials, or substitute better evidence to support your thesis.

5. Check all your quotations to make sure each supports your thesis and that you have properly used signal phrases, indentations (necessary for longer quotations), and citations in parentheses (MLA style).

THIS IS NOT TRUE!

ALSO NOT TRUE!

Good luck!