5.1 Essay Basics

For college, an essay is a collection of paragraphs that all work together to express ideas that respond appropriately to the directions and guidelines of a given written assignment. Depending on the instructor, course, or assignment, you might also hear essays called papers, term papers, articles, themes, compositions, reports, writing assignments, and written assessments, but these terms are largely interchangeable at the beginning of college.

Essays and their assignments vary so much that there is no single right kind of essay, so there are no clear answers to questions such as, “How many paragraphs should a college essay have?” or, “How many examples should I use to help convey my ideas?” etc.

But with that said, most essays have a few components in common:

  1. The Introduction: the beginning parts that show what is to come
  2. The Body: the bulk of the essay that says everything the assignment calls for
  3. The Conclusion: the ending parts that emphasize or make sense of what has been said

One rudimentary type of essay that displays these components in a way that’s easy to demonstrate and see is the five-paragraph essay.

The Five-Paragraph Essay

The term “five-paragraph essay” refers to a default structure that consists of the following:

  • One paragraph for the introduction
    • This should clearly state the main idea of the whole essay, also called the essay’s claim or thesis.
    • This should also include a brief mention of the main ideas to come, which is the essay map.
  • Three paragraphs for the body
    • Each paragraph should be about one main point that supports the main idea of the essay (the claim or thesis).
    • The topic sentence of each paragraph should be its main point.
    • The rest of the sentences of each paragraph should explain or support that topic sentence.
  • One paragraph for the conclusion
    • This should clarify the most important ideas or interpretations regarding what the essay has said in the body.

Example Outline of a Five-Paragraph Essay:

  • Introduction:
    • Claim/Thesis: Unleashed dogs on city streets are a dangerous nuisance.
    • Essay Map: They scare cyclists and pedestrians, present traffic hazards, and damage gardens.
  • Body Paragraph 1:
    • Topic Sentence: Dogs can scare cyclists and pedestrians.
    • Support:
      • Cyclists are forced to zigzag on the road.
      • School children panic and turn wildly on their bikes.
      • People who are walking at night freeze in fear.
  • Body Paragraph 2:
    • Topic Sentence: Loose dogs are traffic hazards.
    • Support:
      • Dogs in the street make people swerve their cars.
      • To avoid dogs, drivers run into other cars or pedestrians.
      • Children coaxing dogs across busy streets creates danger.
  • Body Paragraph 3:
    • Topic Sentence: Unleashed dogs damage gardens.
    • Support:
      • They step on flowers and vegetables.
      • They destroy hedges by urinating on them.
      • They mess up lawns by digging holes.
  • Conclusion:
    • Emphasis: The problem of unleashed dogs should be taken seriously by citizens and city council members.

When the above example outline is turned into complete sentences, arranged in paragraphs, and further elaborated for clarity and transition, it becomes a complete five-paragraph essay. You can see a short example below:

Problems Unleashed

With unfamiliar turning lanes branching and numerous traffic lights flashing and aggressive drivers weaving and honking, the last surprise you need as an urban driver is to suddenly see a dog run by in front of you. Unfortunately, given the current ordinances allowing unleashed dogs, this is the case. Unleashed dogs on city streets are a dangerous nuisance. They not only present traffic hazards, but they also scare cyclists and pedestrians, and they damage property such as gardens.

Loose dogs are traffic hazards. Many dogs won’t hesitate to run across busy roads, and as soon as they do, people must suddenly swerve their cars. But the cars swerve where? In crowded city streets, the chances are there to swerve accidentally into other cars or pedestrians. This danger is made worse by the tendency of children, who often don’t know any better, to coax dogs across busy streets. These kinds of dangers are frequent enough for causes that can’t be controlled, and the problem of unleashed dogs, which can be controlled, adds to them unnecessarily.

And these dangers aren’t limited to swerving cars, for dogs can scare cyclists and pedestrians too. When dogs dart across their path, cyclists are forced to zigzag on the road. This leads to wrecks, which for cyclists can cause serious injury. And while adult cyclists might maintain control when confronted with a darting dog, children riding home from school can’t be expected to. They typically panic and turn wildly on their bikes. Even among pedestrians, unleashed dogs present a real danger, for no one can predict how aggressive a loose dog might be. When confronted with such dogs, people who are walking at night freeze in fear.

These are some of the most severe problems with unleashed dogs, but there are others still worthy of concern, such as the damage unleashed dogs do to lawns and gardens. Property owners invest significant time and money into the value of their lawns, but dogs can’t understand or respect that. Let loose without a leash, dogs will simply act like the animals they are. They will step on flowers and vegetables, destroy hedges by urinating on them, and mess up lawns by digging holes.

With the city ordinances as they currently stand, unleashed dogs are allowed to cause danger, injury, fear, and property damage. But this doesn’t have to be the case. The problem of unleashed dogs should be taken seriously by citizens and city council members. We would be wise to stop letting dogs take responsibility for their actions, and start taking responsibility ourselves.

Keep in mind that the five-paragraph essay is a rudimentary essay form. It is excellent for demonstrating the key parts of a general essay, and it can address many types of short writing assignments in college, but it is too limited to sustain the more complex kinds of discussions many of the higher-level college essays need to develop and present. the five-paragraph essay shows that you can form a basic thesis statement, organize your paragraphs, find evidence, and maybe even introduce an argument. In college, you will develop these writing skills.

For those kinds of essays, you will need a deeper and more complete understanding of the general essay structure (below), as well as an understanding of various writing modes and strategies, research, and format. As you continue reading and writing, these skills will be improved upon.

Complete General Essay Structure

The following explains how to write an essay using a general essay structure at a far more complete level and with far more depth than the five-paragraph essay. This complete general essay structure can be applied to many of the essay assignments that you will encounter in many of your college classes, regardless of subject matter. Although innumerable alterations and variations are possible in successful essays, these concepts are foundational, and they merit your understanding and application as a writing student.

Also note that there is no set number of paragraphs using a complete general essay structure, as there is in the five-paragraph essay (one introductory, three body, and one concluding). A good introduction can be broken up into more than one paragraph, as can a conclusion, and body paragraphs might number more than three. But this complete general essay structure can indeed be achieved in five paragraphs as well. Here are the components of a complete general essay structure:

Title

The title may seem inconsequential in the grand scheme of writing a lengthy paper. However, a good title can work in your favor by catching your reader’s attention and helping to stand out. Titles are an opportunity to control the interpretation of your essay. When publishing, a title that grabs attention and succinctly summarizes the topic performs better.

  • Use a phrase that identifies the subject.
  • Consider a title that also suggests the main claim, or thesis (see below, and see the section Thesis for more information)
  • Remember that the title is the writer’s main opportunity to control interpretation.
  • Be creative in coming up with a title but consider your audience!
  • Don’t use a phrase that could easily apply to all the other students’ essays, such as the number or title of the assignment.

The Introduction

This paragraph is the “first impression” paragraph. It needs to make an impression on the reader so that he or she becomes interested, understands your goal in the paper, and wants to read on. The intro often ends with the thesis.

  • The Introduction gives the audience a stark impression of what the essay is about.
  • Begin by drawing your reader in: offer a statement that will pique their interest in your topic
    • Immediately offer a glimpse at a specific idea, example, or scenario that delves deep into a fascinating aspect of your subject. This is often called “the attention grabber.”
    • In choosing this glimpse, consider that which is surprising, counter-intuitive, or vivid.
    • Don’t use false questions, such as those about the reader’s personal experience, those that have obvious answers, or those for which you won’t attempt specific or compelling answers.
  • Context: Explain the subject you just introduced.
    • Give a larger understanding of the glimpse above, such as what the important issue is, or why it is significant.
    • Don’t get detailed. Save details for the body paragraphs.
  • Main Claim or Thesis: State the main claim or thesis of your entire essay in a single sentence.
    • Your main claim or thesis is your position or point about the subject, often confirming or denying a proposition.
    • For more details on thesis statements, see the section Thesis.
    • Don’t use a question or a fragment as a main claim or thesis.
    • Don’t confuse the subject with the main claim or thesis.
  • Essay Map: Briefly name the three or more main points of the paragraphs to come, using the same order.
    • Don’t reference your essay. State your main points by discussing the subject itself rather than by discussing the essay you’re writing.
    • Don’t get detailed here either.

The Body

The Body of the Essay is where you fully develop the main idea or thesis outlined in the introduction. Each paragraph within the body of the essay enlarges one major point in the development of the overall argument (although some points may consist of several sub-points, each of which will need its own paragraph). It should also support those points with evidence.

Remember to make sure that you focus on a single idea, reason, or example that supports your thesis in each body paragraph. Your topic sentence (a mini thesis that states the main idea of the paragraph), should contain details and specific examples to make your ideas clear and convincing).

  • The Body forms the support for your main claim or thesis.
  • Keep in mind that you are not limited to three body paragraphs only, but that three body paragraphs form a good base regardless.
  • Give each main point a separate paragraph. Aim for at least three body paragraphs, which means you should have at least three main points that support your main claim or thesis.
  • Clearly state the main point in each paragraph in the form of a topic sentence. Use topic sentences and supporting sentences in each paragraph. For more information on the structure of a paragraph, see the section Paragraph Basics.
  • Remember that separate paragraphs not only help the audience read, but also help writers see their ideas as clarified segments, each of which needs to be completed, connected, and organized.
  • Explain the evidence’s significance. Highlight the way the main point shows the logical steps in the argument and link back to the claim you make in your thesis statement.
  • For details and strategies about how best to connect paragraphs, see the section Transitions.
  • Don’t combine two different focal points into the same paragraph, even if they are about the same subject.
  • Don’t contradict the order of your Essay Map from the Introduction, even if minor points require paragraphs in between the main points.
  • Don’t veer away from supporting your main claim or thesis. If any necessary minor point appears to do this, immediately follow it up by conveying its support to your thesis.

The Conclusion

Many people struggle with the conclusion, not knowing how to end a paper without simply restating the paper’s thesis and main points. In fact, one of the earliest ways that we learn to write conclusions involves the “summarize and restate” method of repeating the points that you have already discussed.

While that method can be an effective way to begin perhaps a conclusion, the strongest conclusions will go beyond rehashing the key ideas from the paper. Just as the intro is the first impression, the conclusion is the last impression–and you do want your writing to make a lasting impression.

  • The Conclusion brings your essay to its final and most significant point. Use any one or combination of the following components.
    • What is the significance of the ideas you developed in this paper?
    • How does your paper affect you, others like you, people in your community, or people in other communities?
    • What must be done about this topic?
    • What further research or ideas could be studied?
  • Emphasis: Find a new way to encapsulate the most important ideas that have been conveyed in the essay.
    • One good strategy is to use a brief and poignant phrase or quotation.
    • Another good strategy is to use a metaphor: a description of an interesting image that stands for an important idea.
    • Don’t re-state the introduction or be redundant.
    • Don’t bring up new details or issues.
    • Don’t end on a minor point
  • Humility: Be honest in admitting shortcomings in your ideas, explanations, or comprehensiveness.
    • Don’t weaken your essay here with contradiction, false humility, self-deprecation, or un-rebutted opposition.
    • Don’t issue commands, get aggressive, or sound exclamatory in the Conclusion.
  • Elevation: Hint at higher, nobler possibilities relating to your subject.
    • For more information, see the section Rhythms of Three.
  • Combine or rearrange Emphasis, Humility, and Elevation as needed.

Attributions

The Writing Textbook by Josh Woods, editor and contributor, as well as an unnamed author (by request from the original publisher), and other authors named separately is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.

A Guide to Rhetoric, Genre, and Success in First-Year Writing by Melanie Gagich & Emilie Zickel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.

This chapter has additions, edits, and organization by James Charles Devlin.

 

License

Icon for the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License

Delving Into Writing and Rhetoric Copyright © by James Charles Devlin is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.

Share This Book