ESSAY

An essay has been defined in a variety of ways. One definition is a "prose composition with a focused subject of discussion" or a "long, systematic discourse". It is difficult to define the genre into which essays fall. Aldous Huxley, a leading essayist, gives guidance on the subject. He notes that "the essay is a literary device for saying almost everything about almost anything", and adds that "by tradition, almost by definition, the essay is a short piece". Furthermore, Huxley argues that "essays belong to a literary species whose extreme variability can be studied most effectively within a three-poled frame of reference". These three poles (or worlds in which the essay may exist) are:

The personal and the autobiographical: The essayists that feel most comfortable in this pole "write fragments of reflective autobiography and look at the world through the keyhole of anecdote and description".

The objective, the factual, and the concrete-particular: The essayists that write from this pole "do not speak directly of themselves, but turn their attention outward to some literary or scientific or political theme. Their art consists on setting forth, passing judgment upon, and drawing general conclusions from the relevant data".

The abstract-universal: In this pole "we find those essayists who do their work in the world of high abstractions", who are never personal and who seldom mention the particular facts of experience.

Huxley adds that "the most richly satisfying essays are those which make the best not of one, not of two, but of all the three worlds in which it is possible for the essay to exist". The word essay derives from the French infinitive essayer, "to try" or "to attempt". In English essay first meant "a trial" or "an attempt", and this is still an alternative meaning. The Frenchman Michel de Montaigne (15331592) was the first author to describe his work as essays; he used the term to characterize these as "attempts" to put his thoughts into writing, and his essays grew out of his common placing. Inspired in particular by the works of Plutarch, a translation of whose Oeuvres Morales(Moral works) into French had just been published

by Jacques Amyot, Montaigne began to compose his essays in 1572; the first edition, entitled Essais, was published in two volumes in 1580. For the rest of his life he continued revising previously published essays and composing new ones. Francis Bacon's essays, published in book form in 1597, 1612, and 1625, were the first works in English that described themselves as essays. Ben Jonson first used the word essayist in English in 1609, according to the Oxford English Dictionary.

TYPE OF ESSAY
Admission Essay This is the type of essay you may need to write after you graduate from high school. An admission essay is a type of persuasive essay. It is used by college students in an attempt to convince the dean of admissions that they are right for their school. Research Essay This essay is usually dreaded by students from junior high school to college. The research essay is a very formal essay that requires the individual to do rigorous research about a topic and right a factual essay about it. Position Essay This essay is not quite as hard as a research essay, but it may require one to read anothers findings from their research. After reading the findings the individual should write an essay expressing their position in the findings whether it is in agreement or not. Process Essay This essay may also be quite informal. The reason being is because the writer is explaining how a task is done, step by step, to their readers.

Expository Essay The main function of the expository essay is to explain, or to acquaint your reader with something; it can be used to describe, explain or present some information. In order to write an expository essay, preparation and background research will be required. This will arm you with facts and information that will be subsequently conveyed to your reader. Expository writing will also require you to show understanding of the chosen topic this is why many professors and tutors choose this essay type to check how well a student has mastered a given topic/

Persuasive Essay If you have to persuade your reader about something, your essay becomes a persuasive one. With this type of writing you will need not only to prove your point, but will also have to persuade your opposition that your viewpoint is logical and well founded, and thus better. In this case, you are no longer merely showing what you know; you are convincing the reader that you are correct in your viewpoint.

Informal Essay The informal essay is a type of essay written mainly for enjoyment. This is not to say that it cannot be informative or persuasive; however, it is a less formal statement with a more relaxed expression of opinion, observation or humor. A good informal essay has a relaxed style but retains a strong structure, though the structure may be less rigid than a formal paper.

Review A review may be either formal or informal, depending on the context. Its goal is to evaluate a specific piece, perhaps a novel or movie. This implies that the reviewer's personal opinion plays a significant role in the process. Despite a degree of subjectivity, a certain objective standard needs to be maintained and, as in a persuasive essay, your assertions need to be proved.

Literary Essay This type of essay is thought to be one of the most challenging of all. Literary essays are used to analyze specific parts of a book or poem in order to show the deeper meaning a person has found in the book. Argumentative Essay The art of argumentation is not an easy skill to acquire. Many people might think that if one simply has an opinion, one can argue it effectively, and these folks are always surprised when others don't agree with them because their logic seems so correct. Additionally, writers of argumentation often forget that their primary purpose in an argument is to "win" it to sway the reader to accept their point of view. It is easy to call names, easy to ignore the point of view or research of others, and extremely easy to accept one's own opinion as gospel, even if the writer has not checked his or her premise in a couple of years, or, as is the case for many young writers, never questioned the beliefs inherited from others.

Cause and Effect Essay The cause and effect essay includes some elements of writing that might be considered more professional than those a descriptive or narrative essay might include. It is very important, for instance, that your tone be reasonable, and that your presentation be factual and believable. Sources are often required in a cause/effect paper, and your choice of these sources is important as they reflect on the validity of your paper.

Compare and Contrast Essay This type of essay is used by individuals that wish to show the differences or similarities between two or several things. Sources: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Essay
http://www.privatewriting.com/types-of-essays.html

THE PHILIPPINE WOMENS UNIVERSITY

ART APPRECIATION
Ma. Teresa A. Gacot BSA