Exposition essay

Chapter 1. Exposition essay

Purpose

The purpose of an exposition essay is to express and explain the reasons for your opinion. When a question asks you to write an exposition essay you need to demonstrate, not only that you have an opinion, but also that you can give reasons and support your opinions.

Tone

You must always use a formal tone and register when you are writing an exposition essay. Remember that you are communicating in a style that objectively and concisely explains your opinion.

Features of an exposition essay

• Formal tone - avoid slang and colloquialisms and use formal language wherever possible.
• Third person - avoid I.
• Opinion - you must have a thesis, answering the question "yes" or "no" is not good enough. After your brainstorm, try to come up with a general summary of your ideas or find a commonality in your points. Refer to Topic 1 Chapter 3 for more practical information on how to choose theses.
• Strict structure.

Hints for writing effective exposition essays

• You cannot be wrong in English, as long as you have evidence to support your opinion. How you support your opinion is more important than the opinion itself.
• As the audience already knows that the composition is an exposition essay, you do not need to tell them that it is your opinion, because this is what they are expecting. This is important because you should use language that is confident. Avoid approximations such as "probably", "perhaps" and "maybe" - be assertive and use "is".
• Using quotes is a great way to demonstrate a really good knowledge of a text or subject. Be sure to know how your teacher expects you to cite other people"s work and do this accurately.
• When you are planning, make sure that you have understood exactly what the question is asking you and what the marking guidelines mean. Refer to Topic 1 Chapter 2 for more practical information.
• When you are editing, do more than check for spelling mistakes and grammatical errors. Always ask, "Am I fulfilling the requirements for this task?"

Structure

Introduction (refer to Topic 1 Chapter 5 for more detail)

• Answer the question
• Briefly outline points
• Introduce thesis
• Note: You should not include anything in your introduction that is not addressed in the body of your composition.

Body/paragraphs (refer to Topic 1 Chapter 4 for more detail)

• Topic sentence
• Supporting points and elaboration
• Linking sentence
• Note: refer to the question as often as possible. A good way to do this is to consistently use the keywords from the question and from your introduction throughout your essay.

Conclusion (refer to Topic 1 Chapter 5 for more detail)

• Answer the question according to your thesis.
• Bring together all your information in a more general way than in the introduction.