How to write an essay?
One of the non-standard types of individual creative work is considered to be an essay, which is often used in the modern system of higher education. Many confuse this genre with the result, although these forms differ significantly.
Nowadays, this type of work is often required to be included in the package of documents when applying for a job or university. Comparison of written essays of different authors allows you to choose the most worthy from the mass of applicants. Those who could present themselves best depicted their achievements most vividly. If you have thought, ‘Oh, I wish someone could write my essays for me’ because you got lost while preparing – this article is for you.
Types of essays
There are several classifications of this genre. The first case divides the essay into portrait, problem, and road.
A portrait essay describes any person’s life, famous or not. Probably, such work is similar to writing a portrait. But if the artist acts with the help of a brush and paints, the essayist applies verbal strokes. He must depict not only the appearance but also explore the inner world of his hero, conveying the traits of character and temperament imbued with his hopes and dreams. For a while, the writer must forget about himself and become the one whose life he explores. The ability to empathize plays an important role here.
A travel essay captures exciting events that happened to the author during a trip. It can be a description of the area, a story about meetings with different people, or unusual circumstances that deserve to be in the spotlight.
Recently my aunt returned from Paris and brought some exciting notes about pigeons and Parisian streets. I had not noticed her inclination to writing before, but I must admit that her first experiments were exciting. I even wanted to urgently fly to the capital of France to see everything with my own eyes.
The problem essay is interesting for its sharp conflict, which is solved with the help of qualitative analysis of various information. The author can give statistics as an example, focus on artistic means, and at the end, necessarily summarizes everything said and offers his way to overcome the dissonance.
Travel essay
The second classification divides the essay into sociological, journalistic, and artistic.
A sociological essay is, of course, an analysis of a significant social problem. For example, the increase in the number of suicides among schoolchildren. Such an essay should be as objective as possible and based on facts and figures. However, the language of such an essay should be vivacious and exciting because its problems should reach the minds of people around.
A journalistic essay is similar to a sociological essay but already has a pronounced author’s position. The essayist, in this case, not only presents the problem for consideration but also expresses his point of view. He can directly plunge into the world or the situation that will be described. It is best to address narrow problems and offer the population tangible help. For example, please help them by informing them of the necessary phone numbers and addresses.
An artistic essay speaks for itself. Here, not so many facts will be important as their impact on readers. Focusing on the details (facial expressions, gestures) is recommended when describing the characters. The main task here is an emotional impact.
Genre essay
Of course, the division of essays continues because there are about fifty. Our task with you is to figure out how to create an article yourself and what tips you need to consider.
How to write an essay?
- Choosing a topic
This is one of the most challenging stages. How to choose a problem that will concern not only the author and a narrow circle of people but the whole society? What aspects to focus on to interest the public, attract them to a large-scale discussion, and not leave them indifferent? Fortunately, there are a lot of them. Watch the news, ride public transport or wait in line at a savings bank/clinic. People themselves will tell you the ground for research. The main thing is to be attentive and observant, not pass by live material for creativity.
Over the past few weeks, we have identified several topics:
- Increased infant mortality
- Low qualification of doctors (especially in the veterinary hospital)
- The lack of particular areas for walking dogs
- Collecting information
Sometimes it is enough to surf the Internet to find actual figures and data. Sometimes it is worth visiting an institution or getting access to an archive. Everything, of course, depends on the scale of your problem and the level of professionalism. But the main thing is to describe reality. Now you can find a lot of information on the Internet, but where is the guarantee of its reliability and quality? Save your time and the time of those people who will read you. It is better to serve the common good than to chase the imaginary laurels of a writer and feed people with instant noodles. Perhaps, each of us has been in such a situation when we want to get to the actual state of things. Let’s help each other.
- Outline of the essay
Your story must be highly logical and consistent. Our thought, if not enclosed in a narrow framework, can generate unimaginable chaos. Is it good? For a psychotherapist – maybe. But the reading stream of consciousness in literature is difficult and tedious. An essay is a rather slender genre, like only the regular clothes that match the season. First, put forward the central thesis, give an example of the accumulated and collected information, then remember the conclusions.
- Characters
Since the essay is not an essay, it should contain the main characters. Whether it will be the prosecutor and the accused or your neighbors in the country – it does not matter. The main thing is that these characters do not look one-sided and plasticine. They should look like real people whom we meet every day. One of the essential qualities of images is purposefulness and completeness. It is not enough to describe one personality you know. Social orientation calls for creating multifaceted characters that absorb many people’s qualities. Of course, please do not abuse it too much and turn the hero into Pandora’s box.
Your hero is a representative of a particular stratum of the population. He is the face of his era and his country. Therefore, it is better to highlight its main characteristics in advance, reflecting your main idea to a greater extent.
Draw his clothes, and remember the speech, revealing his characteristics and the features of the sphere where he has to live. Be sure to give examples of situations in which your character finds himself. But be bright. In the essay, a few broad strokes are enough to make everything fall into place.
Essay features
- Contrast
Touching upon a socially significant problem, remember that there are always two sides to the coin. Whatever your opinion, you must show all the pros and cons, the pros and cons, the black and white sides. Even if this leads to insoluble contradictions, this is the essence of the essay: to portray the subject through the prism of dialectics. No one says that everything in life is straightforward. Remember the ancient Greek tragedies that make every viewer experience the strongest catharsis. Is the problem of King Oedipus unambiguous? Is it possible to judge him by placing a dominant? So the essay should be given a complete picture of reality, no matter how cunning it may be.
- Originality and presence of zest
Agree that most of the topics that come to your mind have long been heard from TV screens and abound on the Internet. Sometimes it becomes disgusting when you look for answers to questions and see the repetition of the same thoughts. Now it is called rewriting. Or it is copywriting. But we forget that an essay is a literature. An article is a work of art. Even if they are the best quality, copies are optional and exciting to everyone. People need something they have yet to see or read before. They need a fresh look at the problem, unusual thoughts, and interesting facts.
There is a lot of information on any subject, but usually, a person clicks on the first available links that are similar in diverse content. And sometimes, you come across a memorable text you want to save. We should strive for this: to become unique, exclusive, and unsurpassed.
No one forbids using third-party information, but it should be selected carefully and not from the first five sources that the search engine gives. Be active in reading additional literature, conducting your experiments, and conducting research. Of course, we cannot know everything. But we can observe, analyze, and synthesize. We can conclude and suggest new ways forward. We can develop our projects and help people, introduce them to something new, and share what we have already gone through and what we have faced once. Innovation is the way to success. And do not be afraid to do something wrong.
- Subjective opinion
Since you are expressing your opinion on the mentioned problem, be sincere. If you disagree, then you disagree. You should only hide it if you have figured it out. Often it is impossible to formulate a particular position. Reveal the problem in the whole spectrum of colors, look at it from different angles, share your opinion, and do not impose it on others.
