The Essay

“An essay is a group of paragraphs that develops one central idea.”

Smalley and Reutten
Since a paragraph develops only one idea, the topics being developed are by necessity limited. Often topics
are too broad to be developed in a single paragraph. This is when it becomes necessary to write an essay.
An essay is a more formal composition than a paragraph. Each part of the essay has a specific function:
Introduction - Usually one paragraph that introduces the topic for discussion and the central idea (thesis
statement) of the essay.
Developmental paragraphs - or body of the essay, these develop various aspects of the topic and the thesis
statement; discussing causes, effects, reasons, examples, processes, classifications, or points of comparison
and contrast. They may also describe or narrate.
Conclusion - This paragraph concludes the ideas developed in the essay, and is the closing word.
In total, an essay can be from two or three paragraphs long, up to twenty or thirty. In most classes of EFL in
most levels (barring the highest), you would not give your students an essay assignment of more than six
paragraphs in total, so that is what we will work on here.
I. Thesis Statement
The essay centers around one idea, also called the thesis statement.
The thesis statement should be expressed in a complete sentence. Not a thesis statement. My life in the
Jungle.
Thesis Statement: My life in the Jungle was the beginning of my travels.
It contains an expression of attitude, opinion or idea about a topic that can be argued or explored in the
essay. It does not offer both sides of an argument.
Not a thesis statement: I am going to discuss Shakespeare's plays. Thesis statement: Shakespeare's plays
were influential across the globe.
It should express an opinion, NOT a fact. It should be a point of view that is arguable, explainable and/or
provable,
Not a thesis statement: There ar e pros and cons to going backpacking.
Thesis statement: Backpacking is a dangerous form of traveling.
The thesis statement should express only one idea. If it includes more, you run the risk of lacking form and
concentration in your essay.
Is the following a thesis statement? Write Y for yes, N for no- if no, write the correct form of the thesis
statement below.
1. I will discuss the various traditions of bread making around the world.
2. Owning dogs is a lifetime commitment.
3. Stamp collecting is a worthwhile hobby.
4. The differences between Peruvian and Chilean Spanish.
5. The properties of snow.
The thesis statement is found in the introductory paragraph. The introductory paragraph should introduce the
topic, indicate how the topic will be developed, and be inviting enough for the reader to want to continue
reading.
The introductory paragraph is often the most difficult to write as it is normally the first tackled. There are
various different ways to write the introductory paragraph; here arc four examples:
1) The About-Face. This tactic is designed to show the reader from the beginning that the writer
understands his subject. By starting with a comment that is the exact opposite of what the writer will
conclude, he sets the scene for the discussions or arguments in the main body of the essay, and provides
an inroad for the thesis statement. This is usually made up of a couple of sentences outlining a particular
point of view, which the writer then proceeds to disagree with in his thesis statement.
E.g., "The Internet is blamed for many things. Providing access to child pornography, increased
availability of unsuitable stimuli for children and, in many cases, a drain of research time. Of course, with
no restrictions on who can make their own website and many parents clueless as to how to stop their
children from looking up unsuitable material, the Internet is a minefield of unimaginable proportions. But
 when weighed against all the good it can do- speed up research, communication, open up channels of
knowledge heretofore unavailable in many parts of the world, it would seem that the bad really outweighs
the good."
2) The Joke Story. In this introductory paragraph, the writer starts by describing a joke or story that is
pertinent to his thesis statement. This should generate interest in the reader and capture their attention. In
this way, too, a rather dry topic can be brought to life with a little humor or anecdotal shrewdness.
For example: For seven weeks, I was stuck in a closet. It might sound unrealistic but there it is... every
word true. It happened like this- I was twelve, and going through a particularly nasty stage of
adolescence where I wanted to pick on my little brother. At five, he was inquisitive beyond my patience
and I'd recently seen him wandering into my room to play with my knick knacks or just look for some
fraternal advice. This particular day I decided to hide in my closet and wait for him to wander in, and
hopefully scare the beejeezus out of him. Duly I closed the door on myself; peering out of the keyhole
and waited... little did I know that luck was not on my side. My father had soundproofed my room for me
as a birthday gift, so I could play my drum kit in peace, and so he could relax in peace in the room next
door. As my small brother entered the doorway, peering in, I prepared to pounce, and accidentally (in my
excitement) turned the door handle the wrong way. I somehow managed to pull the doorknob off,
locking myself in. I tried banging on the door, but, being soundproofed, my wee brother went about
his business none the wiser. I then spent the next seven weeks howling myself hoarse to no avail and
reaching through a loose floorboard below to grasp whatever food was graspable in the pantry below
me- 1 survived for 49 days on dry cornflakes and marmalade, and an old bottle of lime cordial and
water my mum kept for my grandpa. Just goes to show- love your family, don't play tricks on them.
3) The Quotation. Especially when inspiration is far off, starting with a quote from an outside source
can help to start you off. In addition, it can introduce the topic in a way in which the writer himself is
not entirely comfortable with but which is more acceptable, if it is done under the name of someone
else.
E.g. "In a New Yorker staff memorandum, Wolcott Gibbs once wrote: 'Funny names belong to the
past. ... Any character called Mrs. Middlebottom or Joe Zilch should summarily be changed to
something else'. Many writers, nevertheless, have a weakness for exotic or outrageous names. A
Nikolai Gogol story would never have gotten past Mr Gibbs into the New Yorker-Gogol was fond of
such zingcrs as the troika driver Grigory Doyezhai-ne-doyc-desh (drive to where you won't get).
(Taken from Characterisation, Macauley and Lanning) Writers such as Dickens, Waugh and the
Bronte sisters would never have become famous if "normal" character names had been the fashion.
4) The Funnel. The funnel approach is what many students arc taught in English language schools.
You may find many text books in your EFL classroom expect this kind of approach as an acceptable
essay opening-mimicking the shape of a funnel; the introduction starts broad and narrows to the
specific point, or thesis statement. The approach is to open with a general statement about the topic
and then work towards the more detailed at, or near, the end. The opening statement should be
congenial as well as general.
E.g. Walk around a market on a hot summers' day and you will see a beautiful sight: children
begging their mothers for fruit or a trinket, real country folk selling their wares and fat lazy bees
buzzing overhead. But, do you ever think about where that produce comes from? How long it has
been there? Of course we're aware that supermarkets keep fruits and vegetables frozen for up to two
months before they finally appear on the shelves but what about market produce? How clean and
safe is it? Not very, is my view.