The word ‘essay’ literally means an attempt and an essay is an exercise in composition wherein you are to express your thoughts in good English. Precisely speaking, it is a written composition giving expression to one’s own personal ideas on some topic.
Characteristics of a Good Essay
1. Unity:
ADVERTISEMENTS:
An essay must develop one thought with a definite purpose and the subject should be clearly defined in the mind and kept in view throughout.
2. Order:
The essay should follow a certain order and come to a definite conclusion.
3. Brevity:
ADVERTISEMENTS:
An essay, especially a school essay, should not be long and it should be a brief exercise, concisely expressed.
4. Style:
The style of an essay must be dignified and literary. Slang terms and free and easy constructions should be avoided.
5. Personal touch:
ADVERTISEMENTS:
An essay should express the personal feelings and ideas of the writer, as an essay is a written composition giving expression to personal ideas or opinions on a subject.
If one wants to write good essays, one must acquire the habit of reading. As all knowledge does not come from books, we should observe and learn much from the life around us. We can also improve the skill of writing essays by conversing with others.
You should have a clear and accurate conception of the subject of the essay before you attempt to write on it,
ADVERTISEMENTS:
This should be followed by collecting material for your essay before you can write it. All essays should be divided into paragraphs.
Structure of an Essay should have three parts – the Introduction, the Body of the Essay and the Conclusion,
Chapters, Essays and other prose compositions are broken up into paragraphs to make their meaning easier. A number of sentences grouped together and relating to one topic or a group of related sentences that develop single point or idea is called a paragraph.
ADVERTISEMENTS:
Paragraphs may be short or long. A paragraph ma) consist of a single sentence or many sentences.
1. Unity:
Every sentence in the paragraph must be closely connected with the main topic of the paragraph the paragraph and every part of’ it must express on theme or topic.
ADVERTISEMENTS:
2. Order:
Events must be related in the order o their occurrence and all ideas should be connected with the leading idea and arranged according to their importance of order.
3. Variety:
In order to avoid monotony, the paragraphs of a composition should be of different lengths and not always of the same sentence construction.
To write a good story, one must have the whole plot clear in one’s mind. The main points should be arranged in their proper order. While writing a story, important items should not be omitted. The leading points should be emphasized. One should not dwell too long on minor details and should not repeat oneself.
There are several different kinds of letters. There are certain formats which apply to all the letters. They are explained below:
1. Heading, consisting of (a) the writer’s address, (b) the date
2. Salutation
3. The body of the letter
4. The courteous leave-taking or conclusion
5. The signature
6. The superscription on the envelope.
1. The Heading:
The heading informs the reader where and when the letter was written. The where is the writer’s full postal address and the when gives the date on which the letter was written.
2. Salutation:
(i) To members of one’s family: My dear Mother Dear Mother Dear Father
My dear Father Dear Uncle
(ii) To friends: Dear Rakesh Dear Sohan etc.
1. Letter should be divided into paragraphs unless it is very short.
2. The language of the letter should be simple and direct.
3. Think out what you want to say and before you start writing the letter, put down your points in some logical order.
4. Commas, full stops and semi colons should be put in their proper places.
Leave-taking phrase must be written below the last words of the letter and to the left side of the page.
Note: The first word of subscription must begin with a capital letter; e.g., sincerely yours
1. The passage should be read fairly quickly.
2. This should be followed by a second reading, a little slowly, to know the details.
3. Now study the questions thoroughly and turn to the relevant portions of the passage.
4. Read them again and then rewrite them in your own words.
5. Do not pick up the original language. Write in your own style using your own words.
6. If meanings of any words or phrases are to be given, care should be taken to use the same part of speech.