Instructions

1. Before you begin, please review Organizational Patterns (Essay Types).

"Organizational Patterns (Essay Types)

Argument

An argument is an attempt to persuade or convince an audience by presenting reasoning supported by evidence. See A Writer's Reference A3 and A4 and/or this course's Writing Process, Writing Arguments, Grammar and Style, and Argument Essay Overview pages for more information and examples.

Cause-Effect

Cause-effect explores why things happen and/or what results from them happening. See Excelsior OWL's Cause & Effect Essay section for an overview of this pattern. Click on the plus sign beside Cause & Effect Essay on the side navagation menu for additional guidance and examples.

Classification

Classification sorts a subjects into groups, types, or categories and gives characteristics and examples of each category. See Excelsior OWL's Classification & Division Essay sectionLinks to an external site. for an overview of this pattern. Click on the plus sign beside Cause & Effect Essay on the side navagation menu for additional guidance and examples.

Chronology

Chronology traces a subject's history from an earlier point in time to a later point in time. It follows chronological (time) order and uses transition words related to time (first, next, then, finally, etc.). In a chronology essay, the thesis makes a point about the history discussed, often revealing change over time. Each body paragraph focuses on a particular period of time. A sample chronology essay (that also utilizes comparison-contrast) can be found here Download here.

Comparison-Contrast

Comparison-contrast explores similarities and/or differences. See UNC Writing Center's Comparing and Contrasting resource for an overview of this pattern, and click here Download here for an example that uses point-by-point organization.

Problem-Solution

A problem-solution essay examines a problem, reveals who is affected by it and how, and presents one or more potential solutions. It can resemble a cause-effect essay that allows for discussion of solutions, or it can resemble an argument essay that advocates for a particular solution (after first discussing the problem). OWL Cation discusses the "argument in favor of a solution" approach here.

Pro-Con

A pro-con essay is a variation of an argument. Rather than defend a particular position or advocate for a particular course of action, it presents multiple perspectives on a debatable issue or shows both the advantages and disadvantages of a course of action. Think of it as a neutral argument. The thesis will reflect the different perspectives presented, and each body paragraph will offer reasoning for (pro) or against a position/for a different position (con). Try to group "pro" paragraphs and "con" paragraphs together rather than alternating between the two. A sample pro-con essay can be found here Download here.

Mixed Patterns

Organizational patterns are guides meant to assist you in structuring your essay in a logical way. They are not molds that must be rigidly ahdered to. As such, an essay may blend elements of different patterns. In my chronology example, for instance, I explored similarities and differences between comic book superheroes and dominant cultural values (comparison-contrast) across different eras (chronology). When employing mixed patterns such as these, the key is coherence. Your essay's ideas must have a strong enough connection to one another so that the essay forms a cohesive whole. It should not read as several unrelated mini-essays stitched together.

1. and confirm which type of essay you will be writing. This may have changed since the Research Proposal depending on the sources that you located. As this is a research essay, the type of essay that you write must be one that your research can support.
2. Next, check the feedback that you received on your Annotated Bibliography. If you were advised to replace sources because they did not meet evaluation criteria or add sources because you did not have enough of them, please do so before proceeding. Barring those situations, you must use a majority of the sources gathered for the Annotated Bibliography in your research essay. You may drop a source if it did not prove as useful as expected and/or add a source if one is needed to cover an additional point. If you missed the Annotated Bibliography, you must speak to your instructor.
3. Gather your sources and annotate and/or take separate notes on them. Isolate information that can contribute to your research essay.
4. Determine your essay's thesis. What point will you be making about your topic? As a reminder, a good thesis should make a clear point about your topic that your essay can support. It is a statement, not a question. It should not be a mere announcement of the topic (i.e. "This essay will discuss...").
5. Next, break your thesis down into topic sentences. This essay will be longer than the two that preceded it, so you will need at least five topic sentences (excluding the conclusion). Depending on the type of essay you are writing, topic sentences may be reasons, causes, effects, etc. Once you have identified topic sentences, order them logically. If applicable, past comes before present and causes come before effects.
6. Finally, once you have gathered these ideas, you are ready to complete the outline. (https://docs.google.com/document/d/1a9bnFT2FhPAYcGqQ0Sm4Et7HuLMr7vtqcY7NjRyLp3A/edit?usp=sharing) read the directions, andfill in the outline template. When you are finished,savethe document,closeit, anduploadthe file.