If you decide to study English or another subject within Arts and Humanities at university there will be lots of essay writing. It’s a challenging skill to master due to the fact that it requires both creativity and rational planning. However, if you take care to do these things every time you write an essay, you’ll have the chance to achieve success:
1. Plan
This may sound time-consuming, however, if the writer has an effective plan you’ll be able to save yourself time when it comes to writing your essay, because you’ll be able to see where your answer will lead and you won’t write yourself into the wrong direction. Don’t worry if you’re stuck at first , just record a few ideas anyway and you’ll be surprised by what will follow. I find it easiest to draw a mind map and each bubble’ representing one of my principal paragraphs. I then write quotations which can be used in my study of the bubble.
As an example, suppose I were answering the question “To what extent is Curley’s wife depicted as a person of victimization in Of Mice and Men?’ I might begin with a mental map that looks something like this:
Join Us https://ventsmagazine.com/2022/09/02/6-best-ways-to-write-an-essay/ website
You can continue to add to the plan by crossing things out and connecting different bubbles when you notice relationships between them. Although you may not have the time to develop an elaborate plan in the circumstances of examination, it could be helpful just to sketch out a short one with some keywords, so you aren’t frightened and get off-topic while writing your essay. If you’re not comfortable with the mind map style you have plenty of other options to consider: you can make a table or flowchart, or simply the list of bullet points.
2. Maintain a clear structure
Be aware of this when you are planning. Your essay can be described as an argument or speech. It has to be structured in a rational way, and all your arguments coming together to answer the question. Begin with the basics: It is best to select a few major points which will become your main paragraphs. Three main paragraphs can be a good quantity for an essay that you will need to pass, since you will be under pressure to write in a short time. Make sure you organize your arguments in a order that is”YES” (agreement of the question) – AND (another “YES” argument) But (disagreement or complicated) if you agree with the whole question or YES – BUT and if you don’t agree. This is to ensure you’re focused on your arguments and not deviate too much from the issue.
For example, you could arrange questions like the Of Mice and Men sample to be structured as follows:
To what extent is Curley’s wife shown as an innocent victim in Of Mice and Men?’
- YES – description of the appearance
- And, the attitude of others toward her
- But – her position as the only woman on the ranch confers her with power as she uses her femininity to advantage
If you wanted to write a longer essay, you could include additional paragraphs in the “YES/AND” section, perhaps talking about the ways that Curley’s wife shares her vulnerability and fears, and also shares her fantasies with the other characters. On the other hand, you could increase the length of your essay by including another paragraph with the word ‘BUT’ on her naive and manipulative streak.
Of course, this is not necessarily the only correct way in answering the question Insofar as you justify your ideas by citing your text, you’ll be able take any standpoint that is reasonable.
3. Keep your point in mind with well-studied quotes
You would never write a science report without having evidence to back your claims therefore why should it be any different with an essay? Even though you’ren’t needed to support every point you make with the use of a quote, there’s certainly no harm in trying. A thorough reading of your quotes can enhance your understanding of the question and is sure to impress the examiners.
If you’re deciding which quotations to incorporate into your essay, be sure to keep an eye out for specific literary techniques. For instance, you can examine the use of Curley’s wife’s rhetorical question in the sentence: writes, “What is my job? Standin’ here talking to the bindle stiffs’:
The rhetorical question “An’ what am I doing?” signifies that Curley’s wife is very anxious she is questioning her own life choices. Additionally, the fact she doesn’t expect anyone to respond to her query reveals her loneliness.
Other literary techniques to look out for include:
- Tricolon – a group of three words , phrases or words that are placed near to each other for emphasis
- Tautology – using various words which refer to the same concept, eg ‘frightening’ and frightening.
- Parallelism – ABAB structure. It is usually a sign of shift from one concept to another
- Chiasmus – ABBA structure that draws attention to that phrase
- Polysyndeton Many conjunctions can be found in the form of a sentence
- Asyndeton – lack of conjunctions and can accelerate the pace of an entire sentence
- Polyptoton – utilizing the same word in different forms for focus, for instance “done,” and “doing.”
- Alliteration , repetition of the exact sound. Different forms of alliteration are assonance (similar vowel sounds) as well as plosive (‘b'”, “d”, and “p the sounds) as well as sibilance (‘s sounds)
- Anaphora: repetition of words; typically used in order to emphasize one particular aspect.
Do not fret if you are unable to locate all of these literary techniques in the work that you’re looking at – you can consider more obvious effects that include metaphor, simile and onomatopoeia. It’s not an issue if you’re unable to recall all of the names in the long list – it’s imperative to understand how the literary techniques and their significance to the subject than to be able to use the correct terminology.
4. Create and be original all the way through
Everyone could write an essay following the guidelines above, but the thing that really makes it “perfect” is the unique way you approach it on the subject that you’re talking about. If you’ve noticed something intriguing or interesting in your study, point it out: if you find it fascinating then the person who is reading it will too.
Creative writing and essay writing are more closely linked than you’d think. keep the notion of making a speech or a debate in mind and you’re bound to draw the reader’s attention.
It’s vital to clearly define your argument in your introduction. informing your readers of your main points, and the general direction that your essay will go, but don’t forget that you should keep something for the end of your essay Also. You must summarize your main points, however, if you’re just repeating the things you said in the introduction, the essay itself becomes meaningless.
Then think of it as the final climax of your speech, the point everything else has been leading up to, rather than the boring plenary at the top of the interesting stuff.
For those looking to go back to Of Mice and Men once further, here’s an illustration of the perfect distinction between an introduction and a closing:
Introduction:
in John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men, the wife of Curley is shown as a ambiguous character. She is portrayed as a cruel attractive, seductive woman or as a lonely woman who is one of the victims of her society’s behavior. Although she does appear to be a victim of sexual power, it’s evident that Curley’s wife mostly an innocent victim. This interpretation is confirmed from Steinbeck’s depiction of her look, other persons’ views, her desires and her apparent lack of confidence and loneliness.
Conclusion:
Overall, it’s evident that Curley’s wife is a victim , and is described as such throughout the novel, including description of her physical appearance, dreams, other people’s judgemental attitudes as well as her feelings of loneliness and insecurity. Yet, a character was a victim and nothing else would be a one-dimensional character and Curley’s wife certainly isn’t. Although she’s a victim in many ways it is revealed that she can assert herself through manipulation of her femininity . This is a small rebellion against the victimisation she faces.
The two essays both refer back repeatedly to questions and summarize the main arguments of the essay However, the final paragraph introduces something that is not introduced in the main body of the essay but complicates the simple summary which is provided inside the opening.
Comments are closed.