Types of Essays — a Guide
Love it or hate it, but you have to write essays regardless of your academic level. All types of essays have their unique purpose and format, which can correlate with different countries. Those countries have diverse traditions and history, and under no circumstances should one underestimate their importance. The same goes for essay types. Whatever you have to write, you must follow the instructions. This article sheds light on every type of essays writing, striving to explain their objectives and other no less vital attributes.
What Is Essay Writing and Its Types?
It is is a complicated process of composing a document following a specific format and structure. It requires robust critical thinking and research abilities.
An essay is a logically-structured text that has its objectives and follows the requirements.
It would be reasonable to mention widely accepted types. However, we find this list too oversimplified. Although people always google, “what are the 4 types of essays,” writing tasks are usually divided like this:
- Narrative
- Descriptive
- Argumentative
- Compare and contrast
- Expository
Being a student, you will have to write all these types of essays. You have to know their structures and what they mean. Let us take a closer look at each of them.
Narrative
Believe it or not, a narrative piece is the most artistic assignment because you have the freedom of choice. You can bring up anything your heart desires.
Usually, people must write academic tasks per the formal writing rules, and if you are not a widely appreciated scholar, you can’t write manuscripts from your perspective. However, a narrative task allows you to do that. The only thing you have to follow is a creative approach.
Descriptive
Descriptive essays are among the most assigned types of essays. The reason is simple: this category is universal and can apply to any aspect of our lives. Writing a descriptive piece provides the readers with an in-depth analysis of a thing, such as an object, event, term, etc. To stay clear and help your audience visualize your essay’s focal components, use metaphors, analogies, and personifications. Prolific authors use these literary devices to furnish the text and make it more readable. After all, English is one of the most affluent languages when it comes to vocabulary.
Argumentative
An argumentative, often mistaken with a persuasive, is the essay type that requires critical thinking and a specific position from you. You don’t only describe something or go on about your summer. Here, you tend to be a full-metal researcher and delve into the topic to know what it’s about. Argumentative essays are great because they develop your research abilities and help you sort evidence.
When you can compose an argumentative piece, you are likely to be assigned a persuasive essay, which is one of the most complicated types of essays. Persuasive writing tasks aim to convince the reader of the argument you try to convey in a thesis statement. Persuasive essays demand a thorough analysis of the topic to increase the likelihood of convincing the audience.
Compare and contrast
This one belongs to the kinds of essay that are assigned occasionally. Mainly because it is akin to an expository essay, and teachers prefer to assign the latter. A compare and contrast piece’s focal goal is to reveal the differences and similarities between things. This essay is a bit tricky, as it requires an unusual approach, especially when it comes to the two subjects. That said, you can’t choose completely different commodities and disclose their dissimilarities. Although this essay kind helps understand two topics simultaneously, it is quite difficult to depict them well, precisely because of a small word count.
Expository essay
An expository essay. It is the most assigned type because of the flexible volume and several categories. Expository writing is divided into 5 types of essays:
- Critical analysis essay
It is a manuscript that focuses on the writer’s understanding of the topic. The writing process is straightforward. As a student, you get an assignment from a professor to read a specific chapter from the book or an academic article. Then you have to interpret the written piece, analyzing valuable and arguable elements. - Cause and effect essay
This category is frequently assigned because it develops the comprehension of interrelated things. Writing this task, you have to correlate one thing with another, providing your reader with conclusions. The range of topics is vast, and you can write about essential subjects, such as the causes and effects of World War II in the US. - Reflective essay
Most types of essay writing require being objective and formal. On the contrary, a reflective piece relies on your response. Coupled with a narrative piece, these types of essay writing allow you to write from the first-person perspective. Still, you have to use scholarly material. But you have to use them only to back up your statements. - Explanatory essay
When you have to describe the process of how something works, it’s called an explanatory writing task. The topics might go something, like “how are vegan patties made, how to write a term paper, how to research the topic,” etc. - Definition essay
Many students think that this is one of the easiest types of essays because, “You can paraphrase the terms from the dictionary and voila, the work is done.” However, if you do that, you are likely to fail. Why? At first, because of the plagiarism. Plagiarism is not tolerated by educational institutions. Secondly, you have to interpret the topic. Neglecting to do that, you jeopardize your grade. To find the golden middle, you must provide the reader with the term’s official definition, citing the source, and interpreting it.
We hope that this classification answers your question about how many and what types of essays are there that students should know about.
Other Types of Essay Writing
Aside from the most prominent essay types, take into account two additional ones. Although they are seldom assigned, you shouldn’t underrate their significance. They are:
- Admission essay
To get accepted to college, you have to write an application document. It plays a significant role in your admission process. If your piece stands out, officers approve your application. To craft a thought-provoking piece, you have to explain why you have chosen that course, what you want to become, and other critical questions. - Scholarship essay
To receive financial aid, you have to prove that you deserve it. A scholarship piece reflects your opinion about how this sum will help you attain your goals, etc.
Tips for Handling All Types of Essays for Middle School Students
If you are a middle school student, you are likely to get broad topics. Teachers won’t require writing amazing things from you because this is not even the beginning of your academic career. The most useful tips to make your writing quick and productive are:
- Mind the essay type
For instance, don’t confuse a narrative with a descriptive essay. Control your first-person usage all the time. Even try to reduce the use of it. Instead, stick to the formal language. - Wear your educator’s shoes
Think about what they would want to see in your doc. - Write in plain English
No need to look up complicated words.
Tips for Coping with All Types of Essays in High School
High school means higher expectations from students. Here, you have to make sure to:
- Stick to the proper structure and format
A five-paragraph essay is a standard structure. The format depends on the discipline. Check it before completing the assignment. - Develop your vocabulary
You will need to have plenty of personal statements and reflections. Make sure to know several synonyms for a single word. - Learn more complicated grammar
Formal language appreciates it.
Tips for Dealing with All Types of Essays in College
When you are in college, you have to demonstrate your proficiency in composing essays on different topics. To be able to succeed in writing them, consider paying attention to these brief hints:
- Research-research-research
Remember to dive into the subject to make sure you understand it. - Cite properly
No academic fraud is acceptable. Don’t forget to include every source on the works cited page. - Be specific
Get rid of being general. Narrow down the topic to make an accurate piece.
This article focused on demonstrating all the essay types with their exclusive goals. Don’t forget that we have these types of essay with examples in our sample section. There, you can look at the most common tasks students are assigned to. If you face problems with finishing any of them, feel free to contact our team, and we will alleviate your writing struggles in the blink of an eye!