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For this assignment, you will use various writing processes to develop an essay on a personal topic. You will be given an opportunity to explore the topic in rough form, but the final version of the essay will be in standard written English.
The project is designed to help you meet several objectives that are important for a successful writer. It will help you to
- explore a focused topic in writing,
- demonstrate awareness of an audience and purpose through language and style choices,
- use topic sentences and appropriate transitions, and
- use standard written English when appropriate.
Objective I. Explore a focused topic in writing.
For writers, developing a clear focus is an essential part of the writing process. For readers, a clear focus is essential for their understanding of a writer’s message and purpose. The following section of the Handbook will introduce you to the factors that are important for creating a piece of writing with a clear focus.
Specifically, this section will offer answers to these questions:
- What is an essay?
- How do I focus my ideas?
- What is a thesis statement?
- Does a personal essay have to have a thesis statement?
- Where should I place my thesis statement?
- How do I use my thesis statement to talk to other people?
- How is a thesis statement like a claim?
1. What is an essay?
An essay is a relatively short piece of nonfiction prose that explores an idea or topic. Essays are written for many reasons. For example, an essay may recount an event, develop a position on an issue, or describe a person, place, or thing.
Notice that this description does not specify a format. (Even length is left vague.) The organization, the length, the style, the tone—often these are determined not by any template but by an author making choices in response to purpose, context, and audience.
In the past, one choice may have been made for you. In grades K-12, some instructors assign the five-paragraph theme: introductory paragraph, three body paragraphs, concluding paragraph. That organization may have worked as a school exercise, but going forward you cannot always rely upon that template. In reality, essays have as many paragraphs as they need to have. If you are exploring a complex issue, five paragraphs may not be enough. On the other hand, under some circumstances even fewer than five paragraphs may be appropriate. Always keep in mind that your instructors will provide specific guidance on the appropriate length and format for particular writing assignments.
2. How do I focus my ideas?
Initially, you may be unsure about what you want to say, and you may have to do some preliminary writing to begin to develop your viewpoint. But even before that, you may need to write a bit to make certain that the subject is narrow enough to be manageable. This writing in order to establish a focus is something that you do for yourself, without being concerned about how it will come across to an audience. As you write informally (even a bulle