ENG 111Expository Writing

The Personal Essay

Today’s Opening Writing AssignmentYou will have 15-20 minutes to work on the

following:

Make a list of ten beliefs that you held when you were 5 or 10 years old.

Which of these beliefs do you still hold as passionately today?

Which of these beliefs do you think you will still have at 80 years old? Why?

Are some types of beliefs tied to age?

What role does life experience or the beliefs of others play in refining values?

IntroductionPersonal writing as defined in this lesson of study covers many possible variations and combinations of essay types. 

Why write a personal response essay?

Rarely during your college career do you have the opportunity to write about one of your favorite subjects--yourself!

Lesson ObjectivesUpon successful completion of this module, you will have:

1. Analyzed samples of personal essay writing. 2. Examined characteristics of a personal essay. 3. Selected a suitable topic, developed a working outline,

generated appropriate supporting details, and completed a rough draft of a personal essay based on criteria established by the instructor.

4. Evaluated the essays of classmates. 5. Used feedback to revise, edit, and produce a coherent,

grammatically correct personal essay. 6. Produced a final draft in correct writing form for a personal

essay. 7. Understand that writing is a continual process and requires

editing, revision, and reflection.

What is Personal Writing?

Personal writing varies by genre and topics. However, the writings have these characteristics in common:

Personal essays primarily contain subjective responses--an individual's reaction to something--event, person, place, concept, usually without the use of other resources.

Personal responses are classified as nonfiction, describing or explaining something that is based in fact as opposed to fictional writing, which is "made up" or imaginative.

Because of the focus on the writer, the personal essay often requires the use of the personal pronoun "I."

What is a Personal Essay?Published writers often speak of the Personal Essay genre with profound respect for the authenticity, vulnerability, and poignancy that comes from allowing readers into their lives.

As readers and writers, if we believe in certain shared strands of meaning that hold all of humanity together, these commonalities are often articulated through the stories of our lives.

After all, though our individual narratives vary widely, the themes are often the same: romance, family, growing up, nature, spirituality, neighbors, home, war, and death, for example.

These common experiences often create a sense of community, and the personal essay can yield moments of profound clarity as the writer and the reader share complex understanding through local turns of phrase.

Characteristics of the Personal Essay

Authentic voice. The writer must create a narrative persona (or stance) that the reader believes authentic, or else the text risks coming off as trite or condescending.

Narrative coherence. Most often covered in literary settings, the feature of narrative coherence regards the business of telling stories well: vivid description, controlled and appropriate pacing, subtle transitions, lively dialogue, and rich character development, for example. A personal essay generally relates a story and lessons learned; thus, if the storytelling fails, the whole essay usually fails.

Communal relevance. At the end of the essay, the reader has the right to ask “ So what?” and have it answered. A writer does not merely tell a story for personal reasons, but in order to communicate a larger truth to the reader; the story is the vehicle on which this truth, often metaphorically, rides.

∗ Notes are modified from the VLC, "This I Believe, Inc.", and course textbooks.

Small Group ActivityLet’s switch gears for a moment. You need a writing utensil and a piece of paper.You will be split up into pairs. More directions will follow as you pair up.

Ready?

It’s Always in the Details

The primary purpose of descriptive writing is to describe a  person, place or thing in such away that a picture is formed in the reader's mind.

It does not tell the reader that the flower is beautiful; it shows the reader that the flower is beautiful.  The reader feels like he/she is a part of the writer's experience of the subject.

Descriptive writing is used in all modes of writing (Expository, Narrative, and Persuasive) to create a vivid and lasting impression of the person, place or thing.

Characteristics of Good Descriptive Writing

1.Good descriptive writing includes many vivid sensory details that paint a picture and appeals to all of the reader's senses of sight, hearing, touch, smell and taste when appropriate.   Descriptive writing may also paint pictures of the feelings the person, place or thing invokes in the writer.  

2.Good descriptive writing often makes use of figurative language such as analogies, similes and metaphors to help paint the picture in the reader's mind.

Continued…3.Good descriptive writing uses precise language.  General

adjectives, nouns, and passive verbs do not have a place in good descriptive writing.  Use specific adjectives and nouns and strong action verbs to give life to the picture you are painting in the reader's mind

4.Good descriptive writing is organized.  Some ways to organize descriptive writing include: chronological (time), spatial (location), and order of importance.  When describing a person, you might begin with a physical description, followed by how that person thinks, feels and acts.

Writing GroupsI will split the class in half so we have four people in each writing group.

Move into those groups now.

Share your writing from the beginning of class with each other.

RemindersBe sure to turn in “You as a Writer” before you leave.

May 31- “Critical Reader” assignment due

Before you leave, complete the “Self-Assessment” Assignment.