Department of English • Jahangirnagar University

ENG 1205 • Advanced Reading and Writing

Batch 52 • 2024 • Mashrur Shahid Hossain
Writing Essay Phase 3

W7. Writing an Essay

An essay is a group of related paragraphs about one subject, organized to entertain, inform, or
persuade. An essay consists of three parts: the introduction, the body, and the conclusion. With
'essay' we here mean short composition.

The Introduction
The introduction, that is, the opening paragraph, of an essay has two main purposes: to grab the
reader's attention, and to introduce the thesis statement of the essay.

1. GRABBER
The opening sentences of an essay must have the ability to pull the readers in (i.e. to grab their
attention) so that the readers might feel interested to read your writing. Here are some techniques to
help you write catchy grabbers.
 Begin with a quotation
 The quotation must be relevant and authentic.
 Identify the person you quote if s/he is not famous enough to be recognized by the reader.
 Make sure your quotation is short—a sentence or two at the most.
 Don't use this opening with all the questions in an exam.
 Describe a personal experience
 Make the opening sentence dramatic.
 Keep it brief and tight.
 Connect it with a 'transition sentence' to the thesis statement.
 Ask a question
 Ask a question to get immediately to the point of your thesis statement.
 Thesis statement, however, should not be worded as question.
 Give a startling fact or statistics
 Be sure your facts are indeed facts and not opinions.
Fact: The Washington Post is published in Washington, D.C.
Opinion: I think the Washington Post is a great newspaper.
 Use only specific, not general, facts.

2. THESIS STATEMENT
The thesis statement is a sentence (or, two sentences) that sums up what the essay is about. Usually
the thesis statement is the last sentence of the first paragraph, i.e. the Introduction.
The thesis statement is, in fact, like a big topic sentence. It gives the point of the entire essay,
whereas the topic sentence gives the point of a paragraph.
 WRITING: GENERAL ● W7. WRITING AN ESSAY ● COMPILATION: MSH ● 2 of 10

2.1 Faults in writing thesis statement

Too-narrow thesis statement
Too narrow: Hamburger is food.
Discussible: Hamburger is highly popular food.
Too narrow: My cat is declawed.
Discussible: A declawed cat makes a good indoor pet.

Too-broad thesis statement

Too broad: I have 30 cousins in my family, each with a distinct personality.
Narrowed: My twin cousins, Mitu and Ritu, differ greatly in personality, politics, and career
goals.

The uncommitted thesis statement

A thesis statement that does not plainly state the writer's opinion on the subject might not
interest the reader.
Uncommitted: One wonders what makes some parents abuse their children.
Good: Parents who abuse their children should be held accountable for their acts in
court.
Uncommitted: I love chess.
Good: Chess is a popular sport among students because it is cheap, engrossing, and can
be played almost anywhere.

The unclear thesis statement

An unclear thesis statement is wordy, fuzzy, or pompous, i.e. full of unnecessary words. Keep
in mind that your aim as a writer is to express yourself, not primarily to impress the reader. If
you speak your heart and mind on the page, your writing will automatically become quite
impressive.
Unclear: Walking is an ideal exercise of which old and young make no difference as far as
being able to improve a physical condition that is not particularly good.
Clear: Walking is an ideal exercise for both young and old people who are not in top
physical condition.
Unclear: The culinary art that I mastered from due hours of observation of my
grandmother's methods instilled in me the rare disciplines of patience,
cleanliness, and timing in all endeavours.
Clear: Learning how to cook from my grandmother taught me the importance of
patience, cleanliness, and timing.

2.2 The Good Thesis Statement

A good thesis statement overcomes all the four faults discussed above. Therefore, a good thesis
statement—
 has a discussible edge
 presents a manageable topic
 gives the writer's committed opinion
 is clearly written.
Read the following pair of thesis statement and cast your vote for the better one:
1. My fishing trip was disappointing.
2. Thunderstorm, vicious mosquitoes, and bad food made my fishing trip disappointing.

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Clearly (?), the second one should get 100% vote. Let us examine why?

It’s not too narrow. It gives three reasons why the fishing trip was disappointing; one
reason would not have been enough for a short composition.
It’s not too broad. The three topics – thunderstorm, vicious mosquitoes, and bad food – can
be nicely covered in a short essay. You don't have to write a book.
It’s committed. We know what the writer‘s opinion is of the fishing trip: it was
disappointing.
It’s not unclear. The language is plain and straightforward with no wordiness or
pompousness.
It has key words suggesting The writer knows what support to provide (i.e. three points) and in
the structure of the essay what order (first, thunder-storm, second, vicious mosquitoes, and last
bad food).
.
The Body
The body of an essay consists of all the sub-ideas that prove your thesis statement. Each sub-idea is
expressed in a separate paragraph with its own topic sentence. Read the following outlines of two
essays. Each has a thesis statement and topic sentences that make up the body of the essay. Note that
in each of the following outline:
 the 'topic' of all the topic sentences are already mentioned in the thesis statement, and
 the topics are ordered the way they are ordered in the thesis statement.

Thesis statement Following three easy rules may help prevent burglaries of your home when you are
out.
1st topic sentence Ask a neighbour to pick up your morning newspaper from the front of your
house.
2nd topic sentence Leave on some lights in the house.
3rd topic sentence Let friends and neighbours know that you will be gone.

Thesis statement After my father‘s death, I discovered three ways to deal with grief: accept the
grief, hold on to hope, and keep busy.
1st topic sentence I simply accepted what had happened.
2nd topic sentence I held on to the hope that life still offered some goodness.
3rd topic sentence I kept busy with schoolwork and some social life.

activity 1

Write three topic sentences for each of the following thesis statement.

Though learning language is difficult and strenuous, it is interesting and fun also.

ONE.

TWO.

THREE.

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 WRITING: GENERAL ● W7. WRITING AN ESSAY ● COMPILATION: MSH ● 4 of 10

Being fanatically patriotic can be dangerous.

ONE.

TWO.

THREE.

The Conclusion
The conclusion of your essay summarizes your opinions and leaves the reader with a final thought. A
good conclusion does not leave the reader dangling. Keep in mind some tips:
 A conclusion is a summary of the essay, but don't just repeat; rephrase your
decision/opinion.
 A conclusion should not be too long. The shorter your conclusion is, the neater and more
faultless it is.
 A conclusion must not introduce any new idea.
 A conclusion is the thing which the reader can remember most vividly. And it is after
reading the conclusion, examiners give you score. So get careful about it. Make it catchy
and logically complete.
Below are conclusions for the burglary essay and for the essay on overcoming grief:
 Following these three rules may not guarantee that your house will not be burglarized, but at
least you will know that you've done your best to prevent a burglar from stealing your
treasures. Mental peace is something that counts.
 Of course, I still get sad times when I think of my dad. But I now cherish the memories of him,
as he would want me to do. I also know that Dad would want me to live my life to the fullest,
just as he did.

The Title
Think you are the instructor. You have to read and grade 25 essays on the topic ―Your last vacation‖
by tomorrow. You come across two: One is titled ―How I Spent My Vacation Last Year,‖ and the
other, ―Cooking Potatoes in a Forest.‖ Which do you think you‘d read first?
Chances are you‘d go for the potato essay because the title has something different and
imagination in it. It is therefore important that your title, like your introduction, should be catchy,
interesting, and imaginative enough to attract the reader to read your writing. This is the very thing
the movie producers, the authors, the ad makers, and newspaper editors do.
Yes, a title is usually not a complete sentence. It states the topic of your essay. But, of course:
 Your title should be imaginative
 It must be relevant to your essay
 And it must give the reader idea what s/he is going to read about.

activity 2
Underline the title in each pair that makes you want to read the whole work.

1. Credit Cards / The Danger in Your Back Pocket 2. Acne is Bad / The Teenager’s Burden
4. A Bad Airplane Trip / Turbulence at 35,000 Feet! 3. Divorce Hurts / Divorce
5. At heart, a squirrel / Aunt Shammi 6. Revolution / Re-love-ution

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 WRITING: GENERAL ● W7. WRITING AN ESSAY ● COMPILATION: MSH ● 5 of 10

A model essay 1

Lord of the Flies is Within

Modern history has shown us the evil that exists in human beings. Governments use torture and
murder to discourage dissent; mass killing has been an everyday phenomenon; and ‗terrorism‘ has
taken such an extreme form that children bomb people. In his masterpiece, Lord of the Flies (1966),
William Golding exposes the range of evil the human beings, even as children, can possess and
display. The novel describes a group of schoolboys shipwrecked on an island with no authority
figures to control their behaviour. One of the boys, Jack Merridew, soon yields to dark forces
within himself and gradually appears as what we may call a savage. First, Jack kills a living
creature; then, he rebels against the group leader; and finally, he seizes power and sets up his own
murderous society. Jack‘s steady corruption symbolizes the presence of evil in all of us that needs
only a subtle incitement to come into being.
The first stage in Jack‘s downfall is his killing of a living creature. In chapter 1, Jack aims at a
pig but is unable to kill. His upraised arm pauses ―because of the enormity of the knife descending
and cutting into living flesh, because of the unbearable blood,‖ and the pig escapes. Three chapters
later, however, Jack leads some boys on a successful hunt. He returns triumphantly with a freshly
killed pig and reports excitedly to the others, ―I cut the pig‘s throat.‖ Yet Jack twitches as he says
this, and he wipes his bloody hands on his shorts as if eager to remove the stains. The process of
degeneration starts, but there is still some ‗civilization‘ left in him.
After the initial act of killing the pig, Jack‘s refusal to cooperate with Ralph shows us that this
civilized part is rapidly disappearing. With no adults around, Ralph has made some rules. One is
that a signal fire must be kept burning. But Jack tempts the boys watching the fire to go hunting,
and the fire goes out. Another rule is that at a meeting, only the person holding a special seashell
has the right to speak. In Chapter 5, another boy is speaking when Jack rudely tells him to shut up.
Ralph accuses Jack of breaking the rules. Jack shouts: ―Bollocks to the rules! We‘re strong – we
hunt! If there‘s a beast, we‘ll hunt it down. We‘ll close in and beat and beat and beat –!‖ he gives a
―wild whoop‖ and leaps off the platform, throwing the meeting into chaos. Jack is now much
more savage than civilized.
The most obvious proof of Jack‘s corruption comes in Chapter 8, when he establishes his own
murderous society. Insisting that Ralph is not a ―proper chief‖ because he does not hunt, Jack asks
for a new election. When he again loses, Jack announces, ―I‘m going off by myself. [...] Anyone
who wants to hunt when I do can come too.‖ Eventually, nearly all the boys join Jack‘s ―tribe.‖
Following his example, they paint their faces like savages, sacrifice to ―the beast,‖ brutally murder
two of their schoolmates, and nearly succeed in killing Ralph as well. Jack has now become
completely savage – and so have the others.
This moral deterioration of Jack must remind us that of Kurtz in Joseph Conrad‘s Heart of
Darkness. In both cases, a ‗civilized‘ person degenerates into what we may call a ‗beast‘ when the
veneer of civilization is removed. The situation is, however, far grimmer in Lord of the Flies not
only because it involves children but because it seems to offer a much bleaker vision of life and
humanity. The way Jack and his gang succumb into savagery suggests how easily can the so-called
civilization lose its nature when human is removed from the aspects of ‗civilization,‘ aspects like
judicial system and police and so on that make human practice self-restraint and remain ‗civilized.‘
The final death of Jack does not proffer any sense of victory, rather deepens the tragic sense of the
unavoidable predicaments of life.
Through Jack Merridew, then, Golding shows how easily moral laws can be forgotten. Freed
from grown-ups and their rules, Jack learns to kill living things, defy authority, and lead a tribe of
murdering savages. Jack‘s example is frightening reminder of humanity‘s potential for evil. The
―beast‖ the boys try to hunt and kill is actually within every human being.
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 WRITING: GENERAL ● W7. WRITING AN ESSAY ● COMPILATION: MSH ● 6 of 10

Now answer these questions

1. Does the essay have a thesis statement? If it has, underline the sentence(s). If not, supply.

2. What is the purpose of the first sentence(s) of the introductory paragraph?

3. Which sentence of the introductory paragraph does contain the plan of development?

4. Do all the paragraphs have topic sentence? If yes, underline them. If not, provide.

5. Note that the essay uses both the time order and emphatic order to organize its
supporting points. List four major transitions that the essay uses in its supporting
paragraphs. What is the purpose of using them?

6. Does the concluding paragraph include two (or more) final thoughts? Is the conclusion
satisfactory?

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Planning an Essay
When you write an essay, planning is crucial for success. You should plan your essay by outlining. There
are two ways in which you can outline your essay.

1. Prepare a scratch outline. This should consist a short statement of the thesis followed by the main
supporting points or the thesis. Here is a sample outline for the essay “Lord of the Flies is within”:
Main point: Jack’s gradual degeneration symbolizes the evil in us.
Supporting point 1. Killing a living creature
Supporting point 2. Defying/Rebellion against the authority/leader
Supporting point 3. Creating own murderous gang/society
Supporting point 4. Evil is within human being which erupts easily when human is free of
restraint.
Concluding comment All humans have potential for evil.
Do not underestimate the value of this initial outline—or the work involving in making this outline. Be
prepared to do a good deal of plain hard thinking at this first and most important stage of your paper.

2. Prepare a detailed outline. A detail outline includes finished thesis statement and supposed topic
sentences of the supporting paragraphs. It may also include the chief sentence of the concluding
paragraph. The outline which follows may serve as a guide. Instructors may ask you to submit a copy
of this form either before you actually write an essay or along with your finished essay.

Form for planning an essay

To write an effective essay, it will be useful to use a form like the one that follows.

Opening remarks
Thesis statement
Introduction
Plan of development

Topic sentence 1

Specific supporting evidence

Topic sentence 2
Body
Specific supporting evidence

Topic sentence 3

Specific supporting evidence

Conclusion Summary, and/or closing remarks

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 WRITING: GENERAL ● W7. WRITING AN ESSAY ● COMPILATION: MSH ● 8 of 10

Writing essay: Worksheet

1 Skimming for main ideas: Read this paragraph. Do you think the topic and the topic sentence
specified below are correct?

Life on U.S. college campus is always changing. One change these days is that there are more foreign
students than ever before, especially in certain majors and in graduate schools. There are almost half a million
foreign students in colleges and universities in the United States. Over 100,000 international students attended
graduate school—more than 25 percent (%) of the total graduate enrollment. Most if these students are studying
business and management. Almost as many are majoring in engineering. Other practical courses—mathematics,
computer science, and some life sciences (such as biology)—are also popular majors. Not many foreign students
are majoring in the humanities (literature, art, drama, philosophy, etc.) or the social sciences (anthropology,
psychology, and so on), probably because they don’t believe these fields offer the best job opportunities.

Topic: foreign students in the United States

Topic sentence: One change these days is that there are more foreign students than ever before,
especially in certain majors and in graduate schools.

Topic introducer: …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

2 Following essay organization: Read the following short composition and do the tasks that follow.

A For many years in the United States, most undergraduate students (in their first four years of college) were 18
to 22 years old. They attended college full time, lived in a dormitory on campus, and expected many “extras” from
their colleges, not just classes. But things began to change in the 1970s and are very different now. Today, these
“traditional” students are less than one-quarter (1/4) of all college students. These days the nontraditional students
are the majority; they are different from traditional undergraduates in several ways. They are older. Many attend
college part time because they have families and jobs. Most live off campus, not in dorms. These nontraditional
students don’t want the extras that colleges usually offer. They aren’t interested in the sports, entertainment,
religious groups, and museums that are part of most U.S. colleges. They want mainly good-quality classes, day or
night, at a low cost. They also hope for easy parking, short registration lines, and polite service. Both time and
money are important to them.
B Psychological tests reflect different learning styles in this new student population, too. Each person has a
certain learning style, and about 60 percent (%) of the new students these days prefer the sensing style. This
means that they are very practical. They prefer a practice-to-theory method of learning—experience first and ideas
after that. They often have difficulty with reading and writing and are unsure of themselves. Most of these students
are attending college because they want to have a good job and make a lot of money.
C In contrast, other students (but not as many) prefer the intuitive learning style. These students love ideas.
They prefer a theory-to-practice method of learning and enjoy independent, creative thinking. These “intuitives”
are not very practical. They are attending college because they want to create unique works of art or study
philosophy or someday help in the field of science.
D There is, however, a drawback for the students who prefer the sensing style of learning. A majority of college
professors prefer the intuitive learning style. These teachers value independent thinking and creative ideas.
Students in the sensing group are at a disadvantage because their way of thinking doesn’t match their teachers’.
E In another way, also, students these days are different from students in the past. In the 1960s and 1970s,
many students demonstrated against the government and hoped to make big changes in society. In the 1980s,
most students were interested only in their studies and future jobs. Today, students seem to be a combination of
the two: They want to make good money when they graduate, but they’re also interested in helping society. Many
students today are volunteering in the community. They are working to help people, without payment. For
example, they tutor (teach privately) children in trouble, or they work with organizations for homeless people. In
these ways, they hope to make change sin society.

 Underline the topic sentence of each paragraph:

 Suggest a title for the essay: ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

 Is there any thesis statement in the essay? Underline.

 Circle all the transitional words used to move from paragraph to paragraph. Could you say the
purpose of each of the words?

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3 Reading an essay: Read the following essay and do the tasks that follow.

The Importance of Good Manners

Keep your elbows off of the table. Don’t shout to the elders. Say “please.” Most of us have
heard our parents say these phrases many times before. Did our parents simply enjoy enforcing these
rules, or do good manners actually have a purpose in life? As we grow, manners, or the socially
correct way of acting, became more and more important. Good manners are necessary to succeed in
business, social, and family situations.
In the work place, good manners can make the difference between getting a job and staying
unemployed. When calling to set up an interview, one should be polite and professional to the
person answering the phone. Arriving at the interview on time and well dressed is another way to
impress the boss. Wearing jeans or shorts is not appropriate. Several days after the interview it is
polite to send a letter thanking the interviewer for her or his time. Having good manners like these
will impress people in business situations, and can increase one’s success in the work place.
Manners are also important in social situations such as parties. When a friend calls with a party
invitation, one should check the date and either accept or decline. Responding promptly to an
invitation is an example of good social manners. When attending the party, one should not bring
people along who weren’t invited. A guest who shows up with five or six other people will probably
not be invited again. When leaving the party it is polite to thank the host and ask if she or he needs
any help cleaning up. Friends feel appreciated when they are treated this way.
It is easy to forget about using good manners with family members, but manners become very
important when people live together. We can be considerate to relatives by remembering to relay
phone messages. It can be upsetting when messages are forgotten or written down wrong. Another
problem can result from borrowing items without asking or returning them. One should always ask
permission to borrow something, like clothes or even toothpaste. Being polite and returning
borrowed items quickly will keep family members happy. Another way to respect family members
with good manners is to knock on doors before entering a room because people appreciate having
some privacy. This type of behaviour will improve relationships and keep the house peaceful.
Many people believe that using good manners is not important, or is an old-fashioned way of
behaving. However, parents realize that manners are important and they teach their children how to
be polite so that they can achieve many things. Although sitting up straight and remembering to say
“thank you” may seem like a lot of trouble, using good manners will keep employers, friends, and
family members happy.

1. Does the essay have a thesis statement? If it has, underline the sentence(s). If not, supply.
2. The first two/three sentences of the paragraph works as a grabber. Which of the following techniques
do you think is used here to make the introduction interesting?
a. Presenting startling facts or statistics e. Incident or story
b. Quotations f. Examples
c. Stating importance of topic g. Questions
d. Dramatic elements h. Describing personal experience
4. Which sentence of the introductory paragraph does contain the plan of development?
5. Write the outline of the essay on a separate piece of paper and attach.
6. Do all the paragraphs have topic sentence? If yes, underline them. If not, provide.
7. Note that the essay uses the emphatic order to organize its supporting points. List four major
transitions that the essay uses in its supporting paragraphs. What is the purpose of using them?
8. Is there any sentence(s) in the concluding paragraph that summarizes the three supporting points? If it
has, underline. If not, supply.
9. Is the conclusion satisfactory? Does it sum up the whole essay in a different way?

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 WRITING: GENERAL ● W7. WRITING AN ESSAY ● COMPILATION: MSH ● 10 of 10

4 Writing an essay: Write an essay on any one of the following topics. First decide which pattern you
will follow. Then you may modify the topic and narrow down the focus. In the essay, (i) underline the
thesis statement and all topic sentences, (iii) Double-underline the plan of development if any, and
(iii) Circle the transitional expressions.

a) How you see yourself ten years from now

b) “Mothers should not work outside‖
c) “Business is business‖
d) Difference between Men and Women in Workplace
e) AI
f) Media and Morality
g) Sexual Harassment
h) ―Go West‖: dangerous, or progressive?
i) Neo-colonialism
j) Why Study History (or Philosophy, or Anthropology)?
k) Fads and fashions
l) Campus ragging

Pattern:
The Essay:

Chillax!!!
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