Essay Terms – Flashcards

A piece of writing that gives your thoughts (commentary) about a subject. All essays you will write in this unit will have at least four paragraphs: an introduction. two body paragraphs, and a concluding paragraph.

The first paragraph in an essay. It includes the thesis, most often at the end.

A middle paragraph in an essay. It includes a point you want to make that support your thesis.

The last paragraph in your essay. It may sum up your ideas, reflect on what you said in your essay, say more commentary about your subject, or give a personal statement about the subject. Your conclusion is all commentary and does not include concrete detail. It does not repeat key words from your paper and especially not from your thesis and introductory paragraph. It gives a finished feeling to your whole essay.

A sentence with a subject and opinion (also called commentary). This comes somewhere in your introductory paragraph and most often at the end.

The process of getting your concrete details down on paper before you organize your essay into paragraphs. You can use any or all of the following: bubble clusters, spider diagrams, outlines, line clustering, or columns.

Specific details that form the backbone or core of your body paragraphs . Synonyms for concrete details include facts, specifics, proof, evidence, quotations, paraphrasing, or plot references

Your opinion or comment about something; not concrete detail. Synonyms include opinion, insight, analysis, interpretation, inference, personal response, feelings, evaluation, and reflection.

The first sentence in a body paragraph. This must have a subject and opinion (commentary) for the paragraph. It does the same thing for the body paragraph that the thesis does for the whole essay.

The last sentence in a body paragraph. It is all commentary, it does not repeat key words =, and gives a finished feeling to the paragraph.

A word/ sentence that smoothly connects two ideas or sections of writing.

The first version of your essay (also called the rough draft)

The final version of your essay.

Written response and reactions to a partner's paper.

One sentence of concrete detail and two sentences of commentary. It is the smallest unified group of thoughts you can write.

A list of books/ articles referred to in a piece of writing.

A device used at the beginning of a piece of writing designed to grab the reader's attention.