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Illustrative Essays. Essay 2- ENG 1510. Whether or not religious beliefs should be taught in school is a growing debate. Can you think of a time that something else was debated about schools?. What is Illustration?.
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Illustrative Essays Essay 2- ENG 1510
Whether or not religious beliefs should be taught in school is a growing debate. Can you think of a time that something else was debated about schools?
What is Illustration? • Using specific situations to reveal the essential characteristics of a topic or reinforce the thesis • Using examples to make abstract ideas concrete • Connect the audience with experiences
Characteristics of Illustration • Uses examples to support generalizations • Usually there are generalizations in the thesis • Examples to explain or clarify the unfamiliar • Unfamiliar topics • Difficult concepts • Abstract Terms • Maintain the Reader’s Interest • Events and circumstances that allow the audience to imagine themselves there
Characteristics of Illustration (Cont.) • Takes audience into account • Series of related examples vs. one extended example • Comparing cars= several examples • Consequences of dropping out of school= 1 long example • Type of examples • Technical examples vs. personal story • Carefully selected examples • Relevant • Accurate • Representative • Striking
Characteristics of Illustration (cont.) • Organize Details Effectively • How to organize examples • How to organize the details supporting your examples
How to Choose the Best Illustration • Decide on a topic • Do some research • Choose your position • Write your working thesis • Decide whether one extended example or multiple short examples would be most effective. • Decide on the most important point/s of your essay • Go back to the research and find stories and examples
How to pick • Consider • What is the emotional impact of the illustration? • Will this help support my thesis? Or detract? • Is the example representative? • It will only help if the intelligent reader cannot see through it • Did this support your thesis? Even if you have a great story or example, it needs to be eliminated if it does not fit the criteria above.
Writing the Essay • Be sure to have • Your citations in order and format figured out • Strong introduction ending in the thesis statement • Transitions between ideas • Well defined topic for each paragraph that supports the thesis statement • As many paragraphs as you need to make your point well • Well written conclusion which restates the thesis and wraps up all loose ends. • Revised and Edited your paper- They are expected to be essentially error free