Paragraph and Essay Form
In this course (and in the rest of college), you will write paragraphs and essays. Each kind of writing has a basic structure.
PARAGRAPH FORM
A paragraph has three necessary parts: the topic sentence, the body, and the concluding sentence.
| PARAGRAPH PART | PURPOSE OF THE PARAGRAPH PART |
|---|---|
| 1. The topic sentence | states the main point. The topic sentence is often the first sentence of the paragraph. |
| 2. The body | supports (shows, explains, or proves) the main point with support sentences that contain facts and details. |
| 3. The concluding sentence | reminds readers of the main point and often makes an observation. |
ESSAY FORM
An essay is a piece of writing that examines a topic in more depth than a paragraph. A short essay may have four or five paragraphs, totaling three hundred to six hundred words. A long essay may be many pages long, depending on what the essay needs to accomplish, such as persuading someone to do something, using research to make a point, or explaining a complex concept.
An essay has three necessary parts: the introduction, the body, and the conclusion.
| ESSAY PART | PURPOSE OF THE ESSAY PART |
|---|---|
| 1. The introduction | states the main point, or thesis, generally in a single, strong statement. The introduction may be a single paragraph or multiple paragraphs. |
| 2. The body | supports (shows, explains, or proves) the main point. It generally has at least three support paragraphs, each containing facts and details that develop the main point. Each support paragraph has a topic sentence that supports the thesis statement. |
| 3. The conclusion | reminds readers of the main point and makes an observation. Often, it also summarizes and reinforces the support. |
The following diagram shows how the parts of an essay correspond to the parts of a paragraph.
