The sections below present several organizational templates for essays: the chronological approach, the compare-and-contrast approach, and the problems-methods-solutions approach. Begin your next sentence like this: "To be convinced by my claim, the first thing a reader needs to know is. A thesis statement is a sentence that sums up the central point of your paper or essay. They may also form part of a university application. Some students find it helpful to write out their ideas in full sentences, while others prefer to summarize them in short phrases, structure of a essay.
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Published on September 18, by Jack Caulfield. Revised on October 15, The basic structure of an essay always consists of an introductiona bodyand a conclusion. But for many students, the most difficult part of structuring an essay is deciding how to organize information within the body. This article provides useful templates and tips to help you outline your essaymake decisions about your structure, and organize your text logically. Table of contents The basics of essay structure Chronological structure Compare-and-contrast structure Problems-methods-solutions structure Signposting to clarify your structure Frequently asked questions about essay structure. There are a few general principles that can guide you here.
The first is that your argument should move from the simplest claim to the most complex. The body of a good argumentative essay often begins with simple and widely accepted claims, and then moves towards more complex and contentious ones. For example, you might begin by describing a generally accepted philosophical concept, and then apply it to a new topic. The grounding in the general concept will allow the reader to understand your unique application of it. The second principle is that background information should appear towards the beginning of your essay. General background is structure of a essay in the introduction.
If you have additional background to present, this information will usually come at the start of the body. The third principle is that everything in your essay should be relevant to the thesis, structure of a essay. Ask yourself whether each piece of information advances your argument or provides necessary background. The sections below present several organizational templates for essays: the chronological approach, the compare-and-contrast approach, and the problems-methods-solutions approach. The chronological approach sometimes called the cause-and-effect approach is probably the simplest way to structure an essay. It just means discussing events in the order in which they occurred, discussing how they are related i.
the cause and effect involved as you go. A chronological approach can be useful when your essay is about a series of events. Explore the tabs below to see a general template and a specific example outline from an essay on the invention of the printing press. Scribbr Plagiarism Checker. Essays with two or more main subjects are often structured around comparing and contrasting. For example, a literary analysis essay might compare two different texts, and an argumentative essay might compare the strengths of different arguments. There are two main ways of structuring a compare-and-contrast essay: the alternating method, and the block method. In the alternating method, each paragraph compares your subjects in terms of a specific point of comparison.
These points of comparison are therefore what defines each paragraph. The tabs below show a general template for this structure, and a specific example for an essay comparing and contrasting distance learning with traditional classroom learning. In the block method, each subject is covered all in one go, potentially across multiple paragraphs, structure of a essay. For example, you might write two paragraphs about your first subject and then two structure of a essay your second subject, making comparisons back to the first. The tabs again show a general template, followed by another essay on distance learning, this time with the body structured in blocks.
An essay that concerns a specific problem practical or theoretical may be structured according to the problems-methods-solutions approach. This is just what it sounds like: You define the problem, characterize a method or theory that may solve it, and finally analyze the problem, using this method or theory to arrive structure of a essay a solution. If the problem is theoretical, structure of a essay, the solution might be the analysis you present in the essay itself; otherwise, you might just present a proposed solution. The tabs below show a template for this structure and an example outline for an essay about the problem of fake news. Signposting means guiding the reader through your essay with language that describes or hints at the structure of what follows.
It can help you clarify your structure for yourself as well as helping your reader follow your ideas, structure of a essay. In longer essays whose body is split into multiple named sections, the introduction often ends with an overview of the rest of the essay. This gives a brief description of the main idea or argument of each section. The overview allows the reader to immediately understand what will be covered in the essay and in what order. Though it describes what comes later in the text, it is generally written in the present tense. Transition words and phrases are used throughout all good essays to link structure of a essay different ideas.
They help guide the reader through your text, and structure of a essay essay that uses them effectively will be much easier to follow. Because Hitler failed to respond to the British ultimatum, France and the UK declared war on Germany. Although it was an outcome the Allies had hoped to avoid, they were prepared to back up their ultimatum in order to combat the existential threat posed by the Third Reich. Transition sentences may be included to transition between different paragraphs or sections of an essay. A good transition sentence moves the reader on to the next topic while indicating how it relates to the previous one. Howeverstructure of a essay, considering the issue of personal interaction among students presents a different picture, structure of a essay.
The structure of an essay is divided into an introduction that presents your topic and thesis statementa body containing your in-depth analysis and arguments, and a conclusion wrapping up your ideas. The structure of the body is flexible, but you should always spend some time thinking about how you can organize your essay to best serve your ideas. Instead, it should be centered on an overarching argument summarized in your thesis statement that every part of the essay relates to. The way you structure your essay is crucial to presenting your argument coherently, structure of a essay.
A well-structured essay helps your reader follow the logic of your ideas and understand structure of a essay overall point. Comparisons in essays are generally structured in one of two ways:. You should try to follow your outline as you write your essay, structure of a essay. Have a language expert improve your writing. Check your paper for plagiarism in 10 minutes. Do the check. Generate your APA citations for free! APA Citation Generator. Home Knowledge Base Essay How to structure an essay: Templates and tips. How to structure an essay: Templates and tips Published on September 18, by Jack Caulfield. What is your plagiarism score?
Compare your paper with over 60 billion web pages and 30 million publications. Template Example Alternating essay outline template Introduction Hook Background Thesis statement First point of comparison Subject 1 Subject 2 Second point of comparison Subject 1 Subject 2 Third point of comparison Subject 1 Subject 2 Conclusion Synthesis of arguments Importance of topic Strong closing statement. Template Example Block essay outline template Introduction Hook Background Thesis statement First subject Point 1 Point 2 First subject, continued Point 3 Point 4 Second subject Point 1 compare Point 2 compare Second subject, continued Point 3 compare Point 4 compare Conclusion Synthesis of arguments Importance of topic Strong closing statement.
What is the structure of an essay? Why is structure important in an essay? How do I compare and contrast in a structured way? Comparisons in essays are generally structured in one of two ways: The alternating method, where you compare your subjects side by side according to one specific aspect at a time. The block method, where you cover each subject separately in its entirety. Do I have to stick to my essay outline as I write? Is this article helpful? Jack Caulfield Jack is a Brit based in Amsterdam, with an MA in comparative literature. He writes and edits for Scribbr, and reads a lot of books in his spare time.
Other students also liked, structure of a essay. You should start with an outline of its structure, but you can change the organization as you write. They help the reader understand connections between ideas. Presents your topic Provides background Gives your thesis statement. Core arguments and analysis Presents evidence e. quotes One main point per paragraph Each paragraph starts with a topic sentence All paragraphs relate to your thesis.
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the cause and effect involved as you go. A chronological approach can be useful when your essay is about a series of events. Explore the tabs below to see a general template and a specific example outline from an essay on the invention of the printing press. Scribbr Plagiarism Checker. Essays with two or more main subjects are often structured around comparing and contrasting. For example, a literary analysis essay might compare two different texts, and an argumentative essay might compare the strengths of different arguments. There are two main ways of structuring a compare-and-contrast essay: the alternating method, and the block method.
In the alternating method, each paragraph compares your subjects in terms of a specific point of comparison. These points of comparison are therefore what defines each paragraph. The tabs below show a general template for this structure, and a specific example for an essay comparing and contrasting distance learning with traditional classroom learning. In the block method, each subject is covered all in one go, potentially across multiple paragraphs. For example, you might write two paragraphs about your first subject and then two about your second subject, making comparisons back to the first. The tabs again show a general template, followed by another essay on distance learning, this time with the body structured in blocks.
An essay that concerns a specific problem practical or theoretical may be structured according to the problems-methods-solutions approach. This is just what it sounds like: You define the problem, characterize a method or theory that may solve it, and finally analyze the problem, using this method or theory to arrive at a solution. If the problem is theoretical, the solution might be the analysis you present in the essay itself; otherwise, you might just present a proposed solution. The tabs below show a template for this structure and an example outline for an essay about the problem of fake news. Signposting means guiding the reader through your essay with language that describes or hints at the structure of what follows. It can help you clarify your structure for yourself as well as helping your reader follow your ideas.
In longer essays whose body is split into multiple named sections, the introduction often ends with an overview of the rest of the essay. This gives a brief description of the main idea or argument of each section. The overview allows the reader to immediately understand what will be covered in the essay and in what order. Though it describes what comes later in the text, it is generally written in the present tense. Transition words and phrases are used throughout all good essays to link together different ideas. They help guide the reader through your text, and an essay that uses them effectively will be much easier to follow. Because Hitler failed to respond to the British ultimatum, France and the UK declared war on Germany. Although it was an outcome the Allies had hoped to avoid, they were prepared to back up their ultimatum in order to combat the existential threat posed by the Third Reich.
Polish your writing with Grammarly Write with Grammarly. This structure has stood the test of time for one simple reason: It works. It all starts here. This is also where you state your thesis. An easy way to write your thesis statement is to think of it as a summary of your essay. When you proofread your finished essay, make sure your thesis is clearly stated in your introduction paragraph. Each body paragraph should focus on one supporting argument for your thesis by discussing related data, content, or events. If the detail supports your thesis, it should be in your essay. Your thesis statement is the core of your basic essay structure, so everything else in the essay needs to relate to it in some way.
Because your reader is now familiar with your thesis, the summary in your conclusion paragraph can be more direct and conclusive than the one in your intro paragraph. In high school, you were probably taught to write five-paragraph essays. This is a solid essay structure to work with, but in college, you generally have more flexibility with assignment lengths and formats. Now, consider five the minimum—not the standard—number of paragraphs you should include in your essays. For example, you could also treat an advertisement or political cartoon as a text. The goal of a rhetorical analysis is to explain the effect a piece of writing or oratory has on its audience, how successful it is, and the devices and appeals it uses to achieve its goals.
You should try to follow your outline as you write your essay. If you have to hand in your essay outline , you may be given specific guidelines stating whether you have to use full sentences. When writing an essay outline for yourself, the choice is yours. Some students find it helpful to write out their ideas in full sentences, while others prefer to summarize them in short phrases. You will sometimes be asked to hand in an essay outline before you start writing your essay. Your supervisor wants to see that you have a clear idea of your structure so that writing will go smoothly. Even when you do not have to hand it in, writing an essay outline is an important part of the writing process.
Comparisons in essays are generally structured in one of two ways:. Comparing and contrasting is also a useful approach in all kinds of academic writing : You might compare different studies in a literature review , weigh up different arguments in an argumentative essay , or consider different theoretical approaches in a theoretical framework. The key difference is that a narrative essay is designed to tell a complete story, while a descriptive essay is meant to convey an intense description of a particular place, object, or concept. Narrative and descriptive essays both allow you to write more personally and creatively than other kinds of essays , and similar writing skills can apply to both. What kind of story is relevant, interesting, and possible to tell within the word count?
The best kind of story for a narrative essay is one you can use to reflect on a particular theme or lesson, or that takes a surprising turn somewhere along the way. The point of a narrative essay is how you tell the story and the point you make with it, not the subject of the story itself. Narrative essays are usually assigned as writing exercises at high school or in university composition classes. They may also form part of a university application. When you are prompted to tell a story about your own life or experiences, a narrative essay is usually the right response. The majority of the essays written at university are some sort of argumentative essay. In composition classes you might be given assignments that specifically test your ability to write an argumentative essay.
At college level, you must properly cite your sources in all essays , research papers , and other academic texts except exams and in-class exercises. Add a citation whenever you quote , paraphrase , or summarize information or ideas from a source. You should also give full source details in a bibliography or reference list at the end of your text. The exact format of your citations depends on which citation style you are instructed to use. The most common styles are APA , MLA , and Chicago. An argumentative essay tends to be a longer essay involving independent research, and aims to make an original argument about a topic.
Its thesis statement makes a contentious claim that must be supported in an objective, evidence-based way. Rather, it aims to explain something e. Expository essays are often shorter assignments and rely less on research. An expository essay is a common assignment in high-school and university composition classes. It might be assigned as coursework, in class, or as part of an exam. Sometimes you might not be told explicitly to write an expository essay. An expository essay is a broad form that varies in length according to the scope of the assignment.
Expository essays are often assigned as a writing exercise or as part of an exam, in which case a five-paragraph essay of around words may be appropriate. Want to contact us directly? No problem. We are always here for you. Scribbr specializes in editing study-related documents. We proofread:. The Scribbr Citation Generator is developed using the open-source Citation Style Language CSL project. You can find all the citation styles and locales used in the Scribbr Citation Generator in our publicly accessible repository on Github. Frequently asked questions See all. Home Frequently asked questions What is the structure of an essay?
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