Organizing
an Essay
There are many elements that must
come together to create a good essay. The topic should be clear and
interesting. The author’s voice should come through, but not be a distraction.
There should be no errors in grammar, spelling, punctuation, or capitalization.
Organization is one of the most important elements of an essay that is often
overlooked. An organized essay is clear, focused, logical and effective.
Organization
makes it easier to understand the thesis. To illustrate, imagine putting
together a bike. Having all of the necessary tools, parts, and directions will
make the job easier to complete than if the parts are spread across the room
and the tools are located all over the house. The same logic applies to writing
an essay. When all the parts of an essay are in some sort of order, it is both
easier for the writer to put the essay together and for the reader to
understand the main ideas presented in the essay.
Although
organization makes tasks easier to complete, there is not just one way of
organizing. For example, there are hundreds of ways to organize a kitchen. The
glasses can go in the cupboard to the right of the sink or to the left of it.
The silverware can be placed in any number of drawers. Pots and pans can be hung
on hooks over the island in the center of the kitchen or hidden in cupboard
space beneath the counter. It does not matter as much where these items are
placed, but that they are organized in a logical manner. Essays, like kitchens,
can also be organized in different ways. There are three common strategies;
however, it is important to note that these are broad categories. Variations of
these strategies can be used, and they may be combined with one another.
Strategy
1. Reverse Outlining
If your paper is
about Huckleberry Finn, a working thesis might be: "In Huckleberry Finn,
Mark Twain develops a contrast between life on the river and life on the
shore." However, you might feel uncertain if your paper really follows
through on the thesis as promised.
This paper may
benefit from reverse outlining. Your aim is to create an outline of what you've
already written, as opposed to the kind of outline that you make before you
begin to write. The reverse outline will help you evaluate the strengths and
weaknesses of both your organization and your argument.
Read the draft and take
notes
Read your draft over, and as you do so, make very brief notes in the margin about what each paragraph is trying to accomplish.
Read your draft over, and as you do so, make very brief notes in the margin about what each paragraph is trying to accomplish.
Outline the Draft
After you've read through the entire draft, transfer the brief notes to a fresh sheet of paper, listing them in the order in which they appear. The outline might look like this:
After you've read through the entire draft, transfer the brief notes to a fresh sheet of paper, listing them in the order in which they appear. The outline might look like this:
- Paragraph
1: Intro
- Paragraph
2: Background on Huck Finn
- Paragraph
3: River for Huck and Jim
- Paragraph
4: Shore and laws for Huck and Jim
- Paragraph
5: Shore and family, school
- Paragraph
6: River and freedom, democracy
- Paragraph
7: River and shore similarities
- Paragraph
8: Conclusion
Examine the
Outline
Look for repetition and other organizational problems. In the reverse outline above, there's a problem somewhere in Paragraphs 3-7, where the potential for repetition is high because you keep moving back and forth between river and shore.
Look for repetition and other organizational problems. In the reverse outline above, there's a problem somewhere in Paragraphs 3-7, where the potential for repetition is high because you keep moving back and forth between river and shore.
Re-examine the Thesis,
the Outline, and the Draft Together
Look closely at the outline and see how well it supports the argument in your thesis statement. You should be able to see which paragraphs need rewriting, reordering or rejecting. You may find some paragraphs are tangential or irrelevant or that some paragraphs have more than one idea and need to be separated.
Look closely at the outline and see how well it supports the argument in your thesis statement. You should be able to see which paragraphs need rewriting, reordering or rejecting. You may find some paragraphs are tangential or irrelevant or that some paragraphs have more than one idea and need to be separated.
Strategy
2. Talk It Out
If your paper is
about President Roosevelt's New Deal, and your working thesis is: "The New
Deal was actually a conservative defense of American capitalism." This
strategy forces to explain your thinking to someone else.
Find a Friend, your
T.A., your Professor, a relative, a Writing Center tutor, or any sympathetic
and intelligent listener.
People are more accustomed to talking than writing, so it might be beneficial to explain your thinking out loud to someone before organizing the essay. Talking to someone about your ideas may also relieve pressure and anxiety about your topic.
People are more accustomed to talking than writing, so it might be beneficial to explain your thinking out loud to someone before organizing the essay. Talking to someone about your ideas may also relieve pressure and anxiety about your topic.
Explain What Your Paper
Is About
Pay attention to how you explain your argument verbally. It is likely that the order in which you present your ideas and evidence to your listener is a logical way to arrange them in your paper. Let's say that you begin (as you did above) with the working thesis. As you continue to explain, you realize that even though your draft doesn't mention "private enterprise" until the last two paragraphs, you begin to talk about it right away. This fact should tell you that you probably need to discuss private enterprise near the beginning.
Pay attention to how you explain your argument verbally. It is likely that the order in which you present your ideas and evidence to your listener is a logical way to arrange them in your paper. Let's say that you begin (as you did above) with the working thesis. As you continue to explain, you realize that even though your draft doesn't mention "private enterprise" until the last two paragraphs, you begin to talk about it right away. This fact should tell you that you probably need to discuss private enterprise near the beginning.
Take Notes
You and your listener should keep track of the way you explain your paper. If you don't, you probably won't remember what you've talked about. Compare the structure of the argument in the notes to the structure of the draft you've written.
You and your listener should keep track of the way you explain your paper. If you don't, you probably won't remember what you've talked about. Compare the structure of the argument in the notes to the structure of the draft you've written.
Get Your Listener to
Ask Questions
As the writer, it is in your interest to receive constructive criticism so that your draft will become stronger. You want your listener to say things like, "Would you mind explaining that point about being both conservative and liberal again? I wasn't sure I followed" or "What kind of economic principle is government relief? Do you consider it a good or bad thing?" Questions you can't answer may signal an unnecessary tangent or an area needing further development in the draft. Questions you need to think about will probably make you realize that you need to explain more your paper. In short, you want to know if your listener fully understands you; if not, chances are your readers won't, either. 2
As the writer, it is in your interest to receive constructive criticism so that your draft will become stronger. You want your listener to say things like, "Would you mind explaining that point about being both conservative and liberal again? I wasn't sure I followed" or "What kind of economic principle is government relief? Do you consider it a good or bad thing?" Questions you can't answer may signal an unnecessary tangent or an area needing further development in the draft. Questions you need to think about will probably make you realize that you need to explain more your paper. In short, you want to know if your listener fully understands you; if not, chances are your readers won't, either. 2
Strategy
3. Paragraphs
Readers need
paragraph breaks in order to organize their reading. Writers need paragraph
breaks to organize their writing. A paragraph break indicates a change in
focus, topic, specificity, point of view, or rhetorical strategy. The paragraph
should have one main idea; the topic sentence expresses this idea. The
paragraph should be organized either spatially, chronologically, or logically.
The movement may be from general to specific, specific to general, or general
to specific to general. All paragraphs must contain developed ideas:
comparisons, examples, explanations, definitions, causes, effects, processes,
or descriptions. There are several concluding strategies which may be combined
or used singly, depending on the assignment’s length and purpose:
- a summary
of the main points
- a hook and
return to the introductory “attention-getter” to frame the essay
- a web
conclusion which relates the topic to a larger context of a greater
significance
- a proposal
calling for action or further examination of the topic
- a question
which provokes the reader
- a quote
- a vivid
image or compelling narrative
Put Paragraphs into
Sections
You should be able to group your paragraphs so that they make a particular point or argument that supports your thesis. If any paragraph, besides the introduction or conclusion, cannot fit into any section, you may have to ask yourself whether it belongs in the essay.
You should be able to group your paragraphs so that they make a particular point or argument that supports your thesis. If any paragraph, besides the introduction or conclusion, cannot fit into any section, you may have to ask yourself whether it belongs in the essay.
Re-examine each
Section
Assuming you have more than one paragraph under each section, try to distinguish between them. Perhaps you have two arguments in favor of that can be distinguished from each other by author, logic, ethical principles invoked, etc. Write down the distinctions -- they will help you formulate clear topic sentences.
Assuming you have more than one paragraph under each section, try to distinguish between them. Perhaps you have two arguments in favor of that can be distinguished from each other by author, logic, ethical principles invoked, etc. Write down the distinctions -- they will help you formulate clear topic sentences.
Re-examine the Entire
Argument
Which section do you want to appear first? Why? Which Second? Why? In what order should the paragraphs appear in each section? Look for an order that makes the strongest possible argument. 4
Which section do you want to appear first? Why? Which Second? Why? In what order should the paragraphs appear in each section? Look for an order that makes the strongest possible argument. 4
Sources
This Study Guide tackles the topic
of revision for exams. Many of the ideas it contains are from discussions with
students who have come for study consultations provided by Learning
Development.
Revision is a personal, individual
process
Revision must be one of the most
individualised processes within academic life. Students begin it with:
·
different sets of knowledge and
understandings;
·
different responses to the stress of
the revision and exam period;
·
different preferred revision
techniques; and
·
different psychological and life
contexts into which to fit the revision.
While it is possible to get ideas
from others and from books, about how to revise, you also need to get to know
what your own personal strengths and weaknesses are. How much do you already
know? How do you revise? What are the factors that usually cause problems for
you in managing your revision?
“Revision is a thinking
process that occurs anytime you are working on a writing project. It means you
look at your writing with a “fresh eye”—that is, reseeing your writing in ways
that will enable you to make more effective choices throughout your essay.
Revision often entails rethinking what you have written and asking yourself
questions about its effectiveness.
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar