What is exposition?

http://www.myenglishpages.com/site_php_files/writing-expository.php#.U4ixJXaReVk

The purpose of exposition (or expository writing) is not to primarily to amuse, but to enlighten and
instruct. The objective is to explain and analyze information by presenting an idea, relevant
evidence, and appropriate discussion. Its essential quality is clarity. Most of the writing that you are
required to do at school is expository (reports, tests, essays etc..) Similarly most of the writing you
will do after school will be of this sort.

Examples of expository writing include:

 Reports
 Scientific reports
 Term papers
 Encyclopedia articles

Features of expository writing

The main features include:

 Informative
Expository text is meant to deposit information
 Clarity.
Using words that clearly show what the author is talking about.
 Organization of the text.
A well-written exposition remains focused on its topic and lists events in
chronological order
 Impersonal
Second-person instructions with "you." However, the use of first-person pronouns
should be avoided.
 Unbiased
Expository essays will not overtly reveal the opinion of the writer.

Expository Text Structure

http://essentialeducator.org/?p=14025

Expository Text Structure. There are six common text structure types that are often found in
expository text. Examples of each type are included below.

 Cause-Effect, examples include directions, science texts, explanations

 Chronology/Sequence, examples include recipe steps, history books, biographies
 Compare/Contrast, an example is a political speech; note that this text structure is
sometimes referred to as Pro-Con, such as ideas for and against a topic
 Description/Categorization, an example is a newspaper article
 Problem-Solution, an example is medical information
 Position-Reason, examples include debates, persuading or informing an audience; note that
this text structure is sometimes referred to as Pro-Con or Compare/Contrast

1
Four types of essay: expository, persuasive, analytical, argumentative
http://access-socialstudies.cappelendamm.no/c319365/artikkel/vis.html?tid=382115

For our academic writing purposes we will focus on four types of essay.

1) The expository essay

What is it?
This is a writer’s explanation of a short theme, idea or issue.

The key here is that you are explaining an issue, theme or idea to your intended audience. Your
reaction to a work of literature could be in the form of an expository essay, for example if you
decide to simply explain your personal response to a work. The expository essay can also be used to
give a personal response to a world event, political debate, football game, work of art and so on.

What are its most important qualities?

You want to get and, of course, keep your reader’s attention. So, you should:

 Have a well defined thesis. Start with a thesis statement/research question/statement of

intent. Make sure you answer your question or do what you say you set out to do. Do not
wander from your topic.
 Provide evidence to back up what you are saying. Support your arguments with facts and
reasoning. Do not simply list facts, incorporate these as examples supporting your position,
but at the same time make your point as succinctly as possible.
 The essay should be concise. Make your point and conclude your essay. Don’t make the
mistake of believing that repetition and over-stating your case will score points with your
readers.

2) The persuasive essay

What is it?
This is the type of essay where you try to convince the reader to adopt your position on an issue or
point of view.

Here your rationale, your argument, is most important. You are presenting an opinion and trying to
persuade readers, you want to win readers over to your point of view.

What are its most important qualities?

 Have a definite point of view.

 Maintain the reader’s interest.
 Use sound reasoning.
 Use solid evidence.
 Be aware of your intended audience. How can you win them over?
 Research your topic so your evidence is convincing.
 Don’t get so sentimental or so passionate that you lose the reader, as Irish poet W. B. Yeats
put it:
The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity
 Your purpose is to convince someone else so don’t overdo your language and don’t bore the
reader. And don’t keep repeating your points!
2
  Remember the rules of the good paragraph. One single topic per paragraph, and natural
progression from one to the next.
 End with a strong conclusion.

3) The analytical essay

What is it?
In this type of essay you analyze, examine and interpret such things as an event, book, poem, play or
other work of art.

What are its most important qualities?

Your analytical essay should have an:

 Introduction and presentation of argument

The introductory paragraph is used to tell the reader what text or texts you will be
discussing. Every literary work raises at least one major issue. In your introduction you will
also define the idea or issue of the text that you wish to examine in your analysis. This is
sometimes called the thesis or research question. It is important that you narrow the focus of
your essay.
 Analysis of the text (the longest part of the essay)
The issue you have chosen to analyze is connected to your argument. After stating the
problem, present your argument. When you start analyzing the text, pay attention to the
stylistic devices (the “hows” of the text) the author uses to convey some specific meaning.
You must decide if the author accomplishes his goal of conveying his ideas to the reader. Do
not forget to support your assumptions with examples and reasonable judgment.
 Personal response
Your personal response will show a deeper understanding of the text and by forming a
personal meaning about the text you will get more out of it. Do not make the mistake of
thinking that you only have to have a positive response to a text. If a writer is trying to
convince you of something but fails to do so, in your opinion, your critical personal response
can be very enlightening. The key word here is critical. Base any objections on the text and
use evidence from the text. Personal response should be in evidence throughout the essay,
not tacked on at the end.
 Conclusion (related to the analysis and the argument)
Your conclusion should explain the relation between the analyzed text and the presented
argument.

Tips for writing analytical essays:

 Be well organized. Plan what you want to write before you start. It is a good idea to know
exactly what your conclusion is going to be before you start to write. When you know where
you are going, you tend to get there in a well organized way with logical progression.
 Analytical essays normally use the present tense. When talking about a text, write about it in
the present tense.
 Be “objective”: avoid using the first person too much. For example, instead of saying “I
think Louisa is imaginative because…”, try: “It appears that Louisa has a vivid imagination,
because…”.
 Do not use slang or colloquial language (the language of informal speech).
 Do not use contractions.
 Avoid using “etc.” This is an expression that is generally used by writers who have nothing
more to say.
 Create an original title, do not use the title of the text.

3
  Analysis does not mean retelling the story. Many students fall into the trap of telling the
reader what is happening in the text instead of analyzing it. Analysis aims to explain how the
writer makes us see what he or she wants us to see, the effect of the writing techniques, the
text’s themes and your personal response to these.

4) The argumentative essay

What is it?
This is the type of essay where you prove that your opinion, theory or hypothesis about an issue is
correct or more truthful than those of others. In short, it is very similar to the persuasive essay (see
above), but the difference is that you are arguing for your opinion as opposed to others, rather than
directly trying to persuade someone to adopt your point of view.

What are its most important qualities?

 The argument should be focused

 The argument should be a clear statement (a question cannot be an argument)
 It should be a topic that you can support with solid evidence
 The argumentative essay should be based on pros and cons (see below)
 Structure your approach well (see below)
 Use good transition words/phrases (see below)
 Be aware of your intended audience. How can you win them over?
 Research your topic so your evidence is convincing.
 Don’t overdo your language and don’t bore the reader. And don’t keep repeating your
points!
 Remember the rules of the good paragraph. One single topic per paragraph, and natural
progression from one to the next.
 End with a strong conclusion.

Tips for writing argumentative essays:

1) Make a list of the pros and cons in your plan before you start writing. Choose the most important
that support your argument (the pros) and the most important to refute (the cons) and focus on them.

2) The argumentative essay has three approaches. Choose the one that you find most effective for
your argument. Do you find it better to “sell” your argument first and then present the counter
arguments and refute them? Or do you prefer to save the best for last?

 Approach 1:
Thesis statement (main argument):
Pro idea 1
Pro idea 2
Con(s) + Refutation(s): these are the opinions of others that you disagree with. You must
clearly specify these opinions if you are to refute them convincingly.
Conclusion
 Approach 2:
Thesis statement:
Con(s) + Refutation(s)
Pro idea 1
Pro idea 2
Conclusion

4
  Approach 3
Thesis statement:
Con idea 1 and the your refutation
Con idea 2 and the your refutation
Con idea 3 and the your refutation
Conclusion

3) Use good transition words when moving between arguments and most importantly when moving
from pros to cons and vice versa. For example:

 While I have shown that.... other may say

 Opponents of this idea claim / maintain that …
 Those who disagree claim that …
 While some people may disagree with this idea...

When you want to refute or counter the cons you may start with:

 However,
 Nonetheless,
 but
 On the other hand,
 This claim notwithstanding

If you want to mark your total disagreement:

 After seeing this evidence, it is impossible to agree with what they say
 Their argument is irrelevant
 Contrary to what they might think ...

These are just a few suggestions. You can, of course, come up with many good transitions of your
own.

4) Use facts, statistics, quotes and examples to convince your readers of your argument

ARGUMENTATIVE ESSAY
http://www.buowl.boun.edu.tr/students/types%20of%20essays/ARGUMENTATIVE%20ESSAY.ht
m

Written by Oya Ozagac, September 2004

Definition: In this kind of essay, we not only give information but also present an argument with
the PROS (supporting ideas) and CONS (opposing ideas) of an argumentative issue. We should
clearly take our stand and write as if we are trying to persuade an opposing audience to adopt new
beliefs or behavior. The primary objective is to persuade people to change beliefs that many of them
do not want to change.

Choosing an argumentative topic is not an easy task. The topic should be such that

 it should be narrowed down

5
 X Marijuana should be considered illegal. (Not a good topic because it is too general. In
some medical cases, marijuana is prescribed by the doctors and the patients are encouraged
to use it in case of suffering from too much pain)

√ Selling and using marijuana in public places should be considered illegal.

 it should contain an argument

X We should decide whether we want a bicycle or a car. (our stand is not clear: do we
support having bicycles or cars?)

√ If we are under the age of 30 and want a healthy life, we should definitely get a bicycle
instead of a car.

X Are you one of those who thinks cheating is not good for students? (a question cannot be
an argument)

√ Cheating helps students learn.

X Considering its geological position, Turkey has an important geopolitical role in the EU.
(facts cannot be arguments)

√ Considering its geopolitical role, we can clearly say that the EU cannot be without Turkey.

 it should be a topic that can be adequately supported (with statistics, outside source citations,
etc.)

X I feel that writing an argumentative essay is definitely a challenging task. (feelings cannot
be supported; we cannot persuade other people)

If you believe that you can find enough evidence to support your idea and refute others effectively,
you can choose challenging topics as well. You can enjoy writing about such topics:

Cheating is beneficial for students.

Murat 124 is a very good choice for conscientious drivers.

Stress is good for the human body.

Polygamy is quite natural.

For women, there is no need for men.

6
Organization: All argumentative topics have PROs and CONs. Before starting writing, it is
imperative to make a list of these ideas and choose the most suitable ones among them for
supporting and refuting.

There are three possible organization patterns:

Pattern 1:

Thesis statement:

PRO idea 1

PRO idea 2

CON(s) + Refutation(s)

Conclusion

Pattern 2:

Thesis statement:

CON(s) + Refutation(s)

PRO idea 1

PRO idea 2

Conclusion

Pattern 3:

Thesis statement:

CON idea 1 -----> Refutation

CON idea 2 -----> Refutation

CON idea 3 -----> Refutation

7
 Conclusion

The sample essay has been written according to the third pattern.

Thesis: Do Reiki instead of taking medicine.

Counter arguments Refutation

1. People should trust medicine -----> Reiki is also scientifically proven and
since it is effective and does not have side effects. (refutation
scientifically proven. method: insufficient claim)
2. Serious illnesses such as -----> Medicine also cannot treat serious
HIV/AIDS and cancer cannot be illnesses if not diagnosed at an early stage.
treated without medicine. (refutation method: opponents are
partially correct)
3. Reiki, like alternative healing -----> Reiki requires less time if done regularly.
methods, requires a lot of time. (refutation method: opponents are
completely wrong)

Supporting our ideas: This is the most important part when persuading others. We are asking some
people to change their beliefs or actions. We should be supporting our ideas with such facts,
statistics and/or authorities that there should not be room for any doubts. Here are some faulty
supports we should avoid:

Thesis: Leaving the university and starting to work is good for the adolescent because …

 Feelings, emotional arguments (… it makes one feel much better.)

 Irrelevant examples (wandering off the topic) (… he would then be able to take his girlfriend
to expensive restaurants.)
 Oversimplification (… only then would he understand what it means to be an adult.)
 Hasty generalizations (... it is a widely known fact that all adolescents look forward to
earning money.)
 Unreliable, even false outside sources (… according to www.doubtme.com, 80% of working
men wish they quit school when they were at university and started working at an earlier
age.)

For more mistakes in the logic of arguments, see Fallacies.

Refuting opposing arguments: Before we start saying that the opponents are wrong, we should
specify their opposing ideas. Otherwise, it would be like hitting the other person with eyes closed.

8
We should see clearly what we are hitting and be prepared beforehand so that he cannot hit us back.
We can do this by knowing what we are refuting.

e.g. X Some people may say that adolescents should not leave university education;
however, they are wrong. (what they say is not wrong. Maybe their supporting idea is wrong
/irrelevant /insufficient. We should state their supporting idea specifically to be able to refute
it.)

√ Some people may say that adolescents should not leave university education
because they are not physically and psychologically mature enough to cope with the
problems of the real world. However, they forget one fact: adolescents can vote or start
driving at the age of 18 (in some countries even before that age!), which proves that they are
considered physically and psychologically mature at that age.

Language: Signposts gain importance in the argumentative essay. They enable the readers to follow
our arguments easily.

When pointing out opposing arguments (CONs):

Opponents of this idea claim / maintain that …

Those who disagree / are against these ideas may say / assert that …

Some people may disagree with this idea.

When stating specifically why they think like that:

The put forward this idea because …

They claim that … since …

Reaching the turning point:

However,

but

On the other hand,

When refuting the opposing idea, we may use the following strategies:

 compromise but prove that their argument is not powerful enough:

They have a point in thinking like that.

9
 To a certain extent they are right.

 completely disagree:

After seeing this evidence, there is no way we can agree with what they say.

 say that their argument is irrelevant to the topic:

What we are discussing here is not what they are trying to prove.

Their argument is irrelevant.

10