You might consider an essay as a boring assignment, but it is the timeless form in all literature. Aldous Huxley calls an essay a literary device for saying everything about anything. It is written to express your ideas or simply inform the reader of a particular topic. To convince the reader of your viewpoint, it consists of several components that make the discussion logical. The main parts of an essay include an introduction, body paragraphs and a conclusion meant to serve the purpose.
In a standard essay, five paragraphs are enough to provide adequate information to the reader. Regardless of the discipline, writing essays is one of the most important course modules in colleges and universities. It allows learners to acquire knowledge and practise critical thinking skills.
For instance, they go through the research process and evaluate information to ensure credibility and relevance. For such students, there is a lot of information to explore in the upcoming lines. Continue reading to learn about essay format with specific reference to its essential parts.
Table of Contents
What Is Essay Format?
A basic essay format is a framework that must be followed up on when writing your essays. It is an introduction, body paragraphs and a conclusion. This way you can compile your ideas coherently. However, it should not be rigid but there must be room for flexibility. Keep this basic format in mind and let’s explore the essential parts of an essay.
However, if the guide below is not enough for writing an excellent essay that can stand as a unique sample among all others, then essay writing services can help in crafting unexampled documents. It will assist you in securing an A grade.
Let’s talk about parts of an essay structure without which you can’t claim to write a standard essay.
1. Introduction
An introduction is one of the important parts of an essay that the reader will have to encounter in your write-up. It should be approximately 10% of your word count. Remember within the first five minutes of reading, the reader will decide whether the remaining text should be considered or not.
So, you need to put the utmost energy into compiling this hook. Here, you will explain your position and how you are going to argue the case in the context. This way essay becomes the answer to a question rather than just being informative content.
Below, we will discuss the important components of the introduction. The outcome is you can write a perfectly well-structured preface.
Background Information
It is important to provide some background information in a wider context. These parts of an essay will allow the reader to know where they lie within the field. It is a very small part of the introduction. Don’t fall into the trap of writing long paragraphs, which is nothing but making some basis for the remaining discussion.
It can be a little bit wider but not universal. That’s why avoid starting it with general phrases like “In the field of nursing” or “In the context of plant physiology” …etc. Rather, state the specific area you are going to touch. There is nothing wrong in starting with the general statement, but it should be diverted to the main topic of discussion.
Define Key Terms
It is not about quoting the terms from the dictionary. We all have access to these wordbooks. Rather, there are many words in academics to make it convincing for the reader. Remember that you are defining ambiguous terms related to your topic. So, the expression of the text should be comprehensive.
Sometimes, quoting direct phrases from a dictionary may not be easily understood by the reader. So, even if you are copying the same lines in these parts of an essay, always add some explanation of the text. Define all the essential terms that you will be using below to prevent any confusion and misunderstanding.
Present A Road Map of The Context
The basic purpose of writing introduction parts of an essay is to introduce your essay. You need to define what is the conclusion and how you draw that conclusion. Here you are not supposed to give a spoiler alert to the reader. It is a detective novel where the suspense throughout the write-up will divert the reader to a meaningful conclusion. Rather, it will irritate the readers instead of addressing their concerns. Simply outline your main argument and how to conclude.
To define the central argument in these parts of an essay, a term called “thesis statement” is used. Consider it like a “mega argument” and all others as “mini arguments” that you will state in each body paragraph.
Wisconsin University defines the key features of a good thesis statement.
- It should define your topic or the main focus of the discussion.
- It must address your research question.
- It should present an overview of supporting arguments.
- It should not be too general or too broad.
- It must provide sufficient information to the reader.
- It should be written in a formal academic style.
- It should be clear and comprehensive.
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Confirm Your Position
Generally, this part is almost covered in crafting the road map, as we stated above. However, it also deserves some additional attention. So, define your position to the reader by using phrases like “The purpose of the essay”, “In the context below we will discuss” …. etc.
It will be difficult to defend your position if you have not stated it clearly. That’s why we have structured your introduction well. For instance, outline your central point, answer the research question and give evidence to support your answer. This whole organisation will make your position clear.
Consequently, you can defend the presented argument easily in these parts of an essay. Here you must engage in the scholarly debate to show the reader that your position is supported by the shreds of evidence and analysis. Once again it is only possible if you define it prior.
Parts of an Essay Examples
The University of Hull presents an example of an essay introduction. It will help you to understand all the key points that we discussed above.
2. Body Paragraphs
In an essay, the body paragraphs are written to support the thesis statement. To define each point, you will develop one or more paragraphs with specific details. Such explanations may be given from books, websites, scholarly articles, peer journals, personal experience, etc. Remember you have to convince the reader of your stance in this part of an essay. So, just stuffing the content with scholarly information will not bring fruitful outcomes.
Rather your critical analysis of the topic is essential. This is how you can tie the ideas and draw the conclusion. All the body paragraphs should be aligned in the manner presented in the thesis statement. Refer to the essential steps of writing body paragraphs below for more information.
Topic Sentence
Every first sentence of each body paragraph is a mini-thesis central argument. It establishes the main point of the paragraph. Consider it like a summary of a whole paragraph. The reader will be able to understand the remaining context with this hook. If this summary is too complex, it will confuse the reader. Also, you will be required to explain it long-windedly in the remaining paragraph.
Unpack Your Topic Sentence
Here, develop the claim of the topic sentence by expanding on all the individual parts. Dewel, in the main discussion, address your topic sentence in this part of the essay. You can write as many sentences as you want. However, if there are several points to discuss then each paragraph should cover a single point. Break the paragraph where a new point arises in the discussion. Here you will need to revise your topic sentence to present only one major idea per paragraph.
Give the Evidence
Prove your topic sentence by providing relevant arguments, data, facts, and statistics from reputable sources in the discipline. You can use both primary and secondary sources in this part of an essay. However, never leave body paragraph evidence hanging.
It is important to use linking sentences or transitions that can connect your ideas. You can also do this by commenting and expanding your argument. However, you are also allowed to debunk the argument by presenting a strong counterargument.
Bind Up the Discussion
Never think of leaving the previous discussion hanging and directly jumping to a new point. Crafting such parts of an essay in this way will not only confuse the reader but also make it difficult to comprehend. That’s why you will provide a short conclusion or summary of each paragraph that can bind up to the previous context. It will ensure the isolation of various aspects discussed concerning the central point.
Following are some of the essential strategies for crafting compelling body paragraphs.
- Break down the complex topic sentences into many parts.
- Use transitions right before the topic sentence of the next paragraph.
- Be concise, and avoid writing long paragraphs that can bore the reader.
- Don’t repeat the same information between various paragraphs.
3. Conclusion
The conclusion of an essay is written to bind up all the information of the above passage. A new topic or idea that was not discussed in the paper should not be part of the conclusion. So, it is a crucial component of your essay whose importance should not be overlooked. For instance, the introduction parts of an essay should always be,
- Describe the key arguments of the above discussion.
- Answer the research question.
- Restate the research question.
- It should not consist of any in-text reference.
- Use the introduction as a frame when referring to the conclusion.
- Include keywords from the research question.
Some of the common phrases used to start the conclusion parts of an essay include,
- As we have seen.
- In conclusion.
- In short.
- In summary.
- It has been discussed.
What Are the Six Stages in Essay Writing?
Understanding the various stages of different parts of an essay will allow you to creatively run wild across the whole write-up. These essential stages include,
- Prewriting
- Planning
- Drafting
- Revising
- Editing
- Submission
What Are The 5 Parts of An Essay?
The part of an essay may vary depending on the discipline or university guidelines. However, 5 essential parts of an essay in order include,
- The introduction
- Writer’s argument
- Counter argument
- Refutation
- Conclusion
What Are The 3 Main Sections of An Essay?
An essay is usually written in a continuous flow without using any section headings. It may seem unstructured, but a good essay usually consists of three main sections. The basic pattern of parts of an essay involves,
- Introduction
- Body paragraphs
- Conclusion
What Are The 7 Elements of An Essay?
Most students are fearful of writing essays as they consider them to be one of the most difficult academic assignments. It may be because the discussion is meant to convince the reader of the writer’s viewpoint. Having distorted ideas in their mind, they don’t know how to ensure the logical flow of discussion on the final piece of paper. That’s why understanding the basic elements will help them to make the writing task easier. Find below the basic 7 elements of an essay.
- Introduction
- Stating your subject
- Gather evidence
- Thesis statement
- Body paragraphs
- Conclusion
- Proofreading
Conclusion
An essay is written to demonstrate the critical skills of the learner. This way, the writer can discuss a particular stance by providing related arguments. In writing an essay, the discussion must flow logically so the reader is not confused. That’s why various parts of an essay are important. Each part plays a particular role by providing a specific part of the information.
In the above guide, we have discussed these essential parts so that you can craft your essay perfectly. Considering the main framework of the introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion, every related detail has been discussed. However, if you are stressed about writing multiple projects with tight deadlines, then availing essay writing help online can grant some ease. These professionals will ensure timely delivery and take care of quality specifically.
