How to Write an Essay About an Event

by Jared Lewis, Demand Media

0
A narrative essay takes the reader to an event and tells him why it matters.
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Writin% an essay about an event can be a challen%in% task because it
should& ideally& convey the details o the event to the reader in such a way
that the reader eels as i he is actually e$periencin% it irsthand. #he essay
has to be more than 'ust descriptive& thou%h& so it is necessary to write a
%ood balanced narrative essay that tells the story o the event& and also
provides ade(uate analysis.
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)tep 2
Introduce the event. A stron% introductory para%raph that introduces the
reader to the sub'ect matter includes a descriptive account o some
element or aspect o the event itsel. /or instance& i your essay is about
your e$perience at the "emocratic .ational Convention& you would want to
(uickly pull the reader into the convention by describin% the bu33 o the
crowd& the cool crisp ni%ht air o the stadium& and the aint smell o popcorn
descendin% downward throu%h the bleacher seats rom the concession
stand above. #he introduction should inorm the reader o the event bein%
described and establish the authenticity o the e$perience& and should do
so in a subtle manner.
)tep 4
"ecide what the point o your essay is. A %ood narrative essay will attempt
to persuade or teach& rather than simply describe. Perhaps your %oal in
describin% your e$perience at the "emocratic Convention is to inspire
readers to en%a%e in political action& or teach them the shortcomin%s o the
process. 5our essay should then move %radually toward that action in such
a way that& by the end o the narrative& the readers will be ready to act& or
will clearly see the shortcomin%s o party politics. #his should not
necessarily occur because o lo%ical discourse& but because you have
painted such a vivid picture o the event and its meanin% that emotional
appeal is enou%h to achieve the desired result.
)tep 6
7se the irst person point o view. #his practice is oten re%arded as
unacceptable in essays& but when it comes to describin% an event in a
narrative essay& it can sometimes be a more eective tool or invitin% the
reader to participate. I you are writin% the essay or a school assi%nment&
you should check with the teacher or proessor to make sure this is
acceptable.
)tep 8
Include analysis o the event as you tell the story. 9ne eective way to do
this is to include your own train o thou%ht as you observe the events takin%
place around you. "escribe how the events are impactin% you as you
observe them. A%ain& all o the elements o %ood storytellin% are necessary
here. Include si%hts& sounds& smells and the like in order to convey a
irsthand e$perience.
)tep :
Conclude your essay by reiteratin% your main point. A%ain& this can be
done very subtly& but that it up to your discretion. 5ou can be very blunt
about tellin% the readers to take action& or you can simply appeal to their
emotions by paintin% an eective picture. 5our writin% should invite the
readers into the essay and walk them& step by step& throu%h a narrative o
the event itsel& invitin% them to participate in such a manner that they will
come away rom the e$perience with the same emotions and thou%hts that
you did.
How to Write an Event Essay about a
memory, place or experience
What are Event essays?
Event essays can be personal memories about something that happened in our lives, or they can
be essays that explain some one-time or reoccurring event like a football game, a museum
opening, a college celebration or a trip.
What do I Need to Know about Writing Event Essays?
Essays which explain an event can be either Explaining Essays or Personal Experience essays.
You can use Essay Basics !rgani"ing Essay for help with structuring your essay, as well as the
information below. #he most important thing to remember about when you are writing an essay
about an event is that you need to
Describe the experience so that the reader experiences the event alongside
you.
Lots of descriptive details. You need to make sure the reader sees, hears,
feels, smells and experiences the event vividly.
Use either a chronological (in the order things happened) or topical (parts of
the event) organiation.
4 Points to Remember about Event Essays:
!. Organize around a conict which is reso!ved in some way" "he con#ict
can be internal or external. "he climax of the paper $ill be the revelation and
resolution of the con#ict.
%. #our $a$er shou!d be written c!imactica!!y. "hat means that in the body
of the paper, the least important events are &rst and the most important are
last. "he paragraphs of your paper should actually re#ect this climactic
development. "he longest part of the paper should be the main point.
'. (!ow down and describe moments very vivid!y so that anyone $ho is
not there can picture themselves being there and experiencing that moment
$ith you. (ho$ ho$ you feel rather than telling about it. )hat $ere you
thinking* doing* saying* that $ould sho$ ho$ you feel* )hat details of the
setting or of other people could sho$ the emotion*
+. %owever& don't s$end so much time or s$ace on the detai!s that you
(orget to te!! the signi)cance o( the memory" "hat is the main point of
the paper. ,t might be that you $ill $rite these details do$n as you are
thinking about the event, but you $ill need to cut them out later in order to
focus on the main action.
Event Essay *o$ics
tri$ with (ami!y activity you did with a $arent accident
relationship $ith
grandparent
hobby illness
memories about special
gift
event $hich $ent $rong
$hen you lost trust in
someone
emotional event
event $hich $ent better than
expected
sports memory
$hen you $on
something
family reunion
friend $ho taught you
something
disappointment embarrassing moment fearful moment
unexpected -oy special aunt or uncle sibling
doing something $ith
family
something you $ished could
happen again
collecting something
vacation place moment in nature animal
something you learned something you lost or found ob-ect you treasure
*i$s (or E+$ository Essays
(unset on Lake.. transcending moment in your life. /xplain the process of your
thoughts and ho$ this led you to think or act di0erently. Use concrete images
1glittering light on the $ater1 rather than 1beautiful sunset.1
(ource2 3irginiaLynne, 4456Y, via 7ub8ages
4hinese .doption Day. .n experience $hen there $as a ma-or change in your life,
like $hen , adopted a daughter from 4hina.
(ource2 3irginiaLynne, 4456Y, via 7ub8ages
4omputer Desk. . place $hich has meaning for you, like my desk $here , $rite.
(ource2 3irginiaLynne, 4456Y, via 7ub8ages
Dad and 9ids playing piano. . reoccuring event is one $hich happened over and
over, like this one $ith my husband playing piano $ith our t$o little girls. "ell this in
vivid detail to make it memorable.
(ource2 3irginiaLynne, 4456Y, via 7ub8ages
:ossil 7unting. . one5time event, like this fossil trip $e took to a special fossil rich
area. "ell this in chronological order $ith rich details. (lo$ do$n the time and add
conversation to make it more real to the reader.
(ource2 3irginiaLynne, 4456Y, via 7ub8ages
:ather and Daughter on 6each. . relationship2 explain not only $hat happened but
$hat it meant to you.
(ource2 3irginiaLynne, 4456Y, via 7ub8ages
,hrono!ogica! Event Essay Oraganization and Esam$!e
Chronological $essay illustration %&merican 'hildhood% by anne (illard.
Best for a single moment of time with intense action, whether that is internal or external action or
for an event which unfolds in time--like a museum visit.
"ells story in the order it happened
"ells story suspensefully
/xplains the meaning after the climax, or lets events sho$ the meaning, or
uses another memory or analogy to illustrate the meaning (in ;.merican
4hildhood< the author uses a football illustration to talk about thro$ing
sno$balls at cars and also directly tells you the meaning in a fe$ provocative
sentences2 1, got in trouble thro$ing sno$balls, and have seldom been
happier since1 (8ar. %) and 1...you have to #ing yourself at $hat you=re doing,
you have to point yourself, forget yourself, aim, dive...1 (8ar. !'), 1nothing
has re>uired so much of me...1 (par %!).
?ight include a frame introduction $hich gives background for the main
memory and then end $ith a conclusion $hich summaries the meaning
(football intro and description of the setting and characters in ;.merican
4hildhood<@ conclusion restates the meaning. Aotice the last couple of
sentences are kind of an ironic comment on the story.
Event Essay Oraganization around a -eta$hor.Re$eated use o(
Ob/ect or Event
$illustrations from essay )!n Being a *eal +esterner,- by #obias +oolf
+orks best for several memories which are related to one ob.ect or event
(everal memories relating to one ob-ect, person or emotion (ri#e2 getting it,
mother=s ob-ection, playing $ith it, acting like sniper, loading, 3ietnam
comparison5po$er, shooting s>uirrel, mother=s reaction, his reaction,
continued fascination)
?emories told in chronological order, but are also climactic55the most
important memory (shooting the s>uirrel and the aftermath) is longer and
told in more detail.
"ie these memories together $ith a main theme (po$er55ho$ the hunger for
po$er has shaped himB his po$erlessness to change the past55the man can=t
help the boy)
E+$ectations 0n(u!)!!ed Organization o( Event Essay
Expectations Unfulfilled $illustrations from essay,/00 1iles Per 2our,- by *ick Bragg
&lso called Expectations *eversed, this is good for any event which had an unexpected outcome,
whether better or worse than you expected. #his can also be done as %expectations fulfilled% but
that is generally a weaker way to use this method.
(et up $ith a clear and vivid description of the expectation of a particular
event (getting car $ill ful&ll every desire)
?ay foreshado$ the disaster
Ceality of $hat happens (the unexpected event) is the body of the paper55
vivid description of $hat really happens (accident)
Ce#ection on experience and $hat it means in conclusion (sometimes $ith
ironic ending as it is in this story)
0se 1rame 2tory (or Event Essay Organization
Frame Story--use of conflict3resolution $illustrations from student essay )'alling 2ome, by
4ean Brandt-
5otice that this story is also organi"ed as expectations unfulfilled--you might use more than one
organi"ing tool in an essay.
6eginning frame of expectations (car ride to the mall) "his essay uses
di0erent car rides to frame the opening and conclusion55in addition, there is a
car ride in the middle as $ell55a transition to the second half)
:irst con#ictBresolution (should she steal buttonByes)
(econd con#ictBresolution (external con#ict $ith manager55he catches her and
calls police)
"hird con#ictBresolution (external con#ict $ith authority55police and parents55
resolution is her realiation of her $rong choice)
/nding frameB expectations unful&lled again (car trip home55t$ist in this
con#ict is that she is forgiven. ,t isn=t -ust the mall trip $hich had an
unexpected resolution@ her expectations of $hat her parent=s $ill say and do
are reversed as $ell).
2am$!e Event Essay Read with Pictures
%ow to use a 1rame in your Introduction and ,onc!usion
6rames are an excellent way to help you organi"e your intro and conclusion and make your
significance clear. #hey are a way to automatically improve your essay and make the
organi"ation a bit more sophisticated.
6rame intros and conclusions are a good way for students to easily show the significance of an
event. +hile %'alling 2ome% uses frames of car rides to provide structure to the present memory,
a more common use of frames is to use a present-day memory as the starting point for
introducing a past memory $which will be the main part of the paper-. 6or example, a student
wants to write about a memory of a fight with her sister when she is young. #his fight and the
lecture by her mother afterwards leads her to reali"e how much she really loves her sister. #he
conflict3resolution of the fight will be the body of her paper. #o put the memory in context and
show significance, she can use a conversation with her sister now as the opening and the
conclusion. 7t works something like this
Intro2 4onversation $ith sister55maybe the start of a &ght. "ransition
sentence $ould be something like551, suddenly remembered...1 ,t could be
that the conversation ends and then she re#ects on it and remembers the
past.
3ody2 story of the &ght and con#ict resolution
,onc!usion2 /ither come back to the conversation $ith her sister and decide
to end the coming &ght because of remembering this past event, or you
could possibly decide to call her up again. .s an alternative, this could be a
re#ection on the present relationship and ho$ the experience of $hat $as
learned about sisterhood in the &ght $hen young has made them close no$.
#he frame can be used in lots of situations--it can also be a way of starting in the middle of the
action and getting the reader8s attention, then flashing back to what caused that action. 6or
example, in an accident paper, you can start at the moment of the accident and describe it vividly,
then go back in the body of the paper and tell what led up to the accident. #he conclusion is
easy--tell what happened afterwards and what it meant.
Editing and Revising Event Essays
&fter you have completed your rough draft, get a friend to help you Peer Edit your paper and
then use my *evising #ips for editing your final paper. You might want to check out my
9entence 9tarters list for help in making your sentences clearer and more connected. 7n addition,
many students need help with the : 'omma *ules and writing Parallelism in lists. 7f you have
included conversation in your Event Essay, you should also look at how to ;se Punctuation in
'onversation.