Writing a high-quality essay requires you to understand the parts and the structure of an essay. The
parts include the introduction, body, and a conclusion. Organizing the body of an essay can be
challenging. Although there are a variety of ways to structure an essay, deciding on the structure and
how to use it can help you develop writing and communication skills to use in academics or in your
career. In this blog post, we will discuss on the parts of an essay, the different types of essays, examples
of essay structures, and some important tips in structuring your essay.
- Parts of an essay
Introduction
Every essay starts with an introduction. This is where you introduce your topic of discussion to your
reader and summarize the points you tend to include in the body of your essay briefly. In the
introduction, you state your thesis. A thesis is the most important part of an essay as it states the point
of the writer and thus it must take a clear stance and should not have terms such as “seems to” or
possibly could as these terms show uncertainty.
The best way to write your summary is by taking it as a summary of your essay. Your thesis makes and
supports your essay’s point in one concise sentence. Once you are done writing your essay, proofread
the essay and ensure that your thesis is clearly stated in the introduction. In case it is not clear, you can
rewrite it to ensure it meets the intended purpose. Consider writing an interesting introduction to
capture the attention of your readers to keep them reading your essay to the end.
Body
The body of an essay is the part where you elaborate on your analysis, argument, research, and
evidence to support your thesis. It should be organized into different paragraphs with each paragraph
concentrating on a different aspect of the topic. It can include citations and quotations to reference
materials from which you borrowed your data.
You can refer to your thesis if you are not sure whether to include a certain point or detail in the body of
your essay. If the detail supports your thesis, it should be included in the body but if it does not, then
you should leave it out. Your thesis should act as a guide on what to include in your essay and thus
everything in the body should relate to your thesis. You can keep the body of your essay organized and
engaging by ensuring all your paragraphs begin with a topic sentence and relate to your thesis.
Conclusion
A conclusion is the last part of an essay where you summarize the ideas discussed in the body. The
conclusion should bring together the major points of your essay showing how they relate. The main
purpose of a conclusion is to summarize the main points of your argument and draw a final decision or
judgment concerning your research problem. In some cases, the conclusion attempts to connect the
essay to broader issues or areas of further study.
Please note that you are not supposed to introduce any new ideas in the conclusion. The conclusion
should act as a reminder of what has been discussed in the body of your essay. You can also refer back
to the introduction to prove to the examiner that you have discussed the topic thoroughly.
- Types of essays
There are different types of essays. Although each type of essay can take a different format, the
structure will always be the same. Despite the nature of your essay, it must have an introduction, a
body, and a conclusion. The basic essay structure will always remain the same even when the
instructions are different. The following are the most common types of essays.
Narrative essays.
A narrative essay tells a story. The story can either be fictional or non-fictional. Narrative essays test the
writer’s ability to express their experience in a creative and compelling way by following an appropriate
narrative structure. Your tutor will use a narrative essay to test your ability to tell a story in a clear and
interesting way.
When compelling a narrative essay, you are expected to think about where your essay starts and where
it ends. You must use eye-catching language and a satisfying pace when writing a narrative essay to win
the attention of the reader.
Descriptive essays
A descriptive essay gives a vivid, detailed description of something, a place, or an object. In some cases,
it gives a detailed description of something more abstract like an emotion. Together with narrative
essays, these are the most creative types of essays in the academic writing field.
Descriptive essays test your ability to use language in an original and creative way to convey an image in
the mind of the reader of what you are describing. As a writer, you are expected to use words to create
clear, descriptive images.
Expository essays
Expository essays are fact-based essays focused on proving a writer’s point by communicating factual
information. They require exploring a particular subject matter and presenting your findings by building
a well-structured and objective argument. In simple words, an expository essay provides a clear, focused
explanation of a topic, process, or set of ideas. Essays in this category do not set out to prove a point but
rather to give a balanced view of their subject matter.
Expository essays are usually short assignments assigned to students to test their composition skills or
their understanding of a certain subject. They involve less research and original arguments as compared
to argumentative essays.
Persuasive essays
A persuasive essay is an essay that presents logical arguments with an emotional appeal to convince
readers of your point of view using solid evidence such as research, stating facts, examples, and quotes
from experts. They can be a form of academic writing and personal writing. Most persuasive essays
begin with a question that the writer spends the essays arguing in favor of or in opposition to. The writer
makes a firm statement and back-up the statement with a combination of data, research, and anecdotal
When writing a persuasive essay, informing a reader is not enough as you are expected to use language
that convinces the reader that your way of thinking is the best. Persuasive writing is very important in
the world of business as advertising, website copywriting, and general branding rely heavily on
persuasive writing to convince potential customers.