To prepare an essay you need to consult an extensive bibliography.
Essay is a term that has multiple meanings. It is used, for example, when referring to the practices that are carried out before premiering a play or musical show in the presence of the public . There are also so-called clinical trials , which consist of experimental evaluations based on a product, medication or technique in order to measure its effectiveness and safety, and chemical trials , which allow controlling the concentration and all kinds of specific properties of a substance or material.
The essay is also a genre of literature viewed from the perspective of didactics , and that has received an important influence from both liberal thought and journalism . In the words of the Spanish philosopher José Ortega y Gasset , the essay is a science that lacks explicit proof.
Essay origin
The origin of the essay is found in the epideictic style of the now forgotten Greco-Roman oratory , with which it shares several characteristics: free theme, simple and natural style, subjectivity, mixture of different elements (quotes, anecdotes, proverbs) and unsystematicism (there is no a pre-established order, unlike informative text), among others.
The French writer Michel de Montaigne , history scholars say, was one of the most outstanding references of the essay genre in its beginnings, starting with the publication of "Essais" in 1580 . Later, together with Francis Bacon , he established the historical and stylistic principles of the genre, and placed it among the natural literary genres, along with the other four traditional ones ( narrative, dramatic, lyrical and didactic ).
The exposition of a topic in an essay must be detailed.
Its structure
It is also interesting to note that the simplest structure of the essay contemplates three large phases: the introduction (where the topic and the author's thesis or opinion are presented), the development (segment intended to support and prove the thesis proposed) and the conclusion ( where the content is deepened based on the ideas presented).
From the perspective of literary genres , it can be said that the essay is a text written in prose in which a specific topic is analyzed and developed clearly. Its purpose is to show the author's personal perspective on that matter and the reasons why he has arrived at that way of seeing it. For an essay to be of good quality, it is necessary that the aesthetic goal is not above the reflective goal or subordinate to it: both must be carefully intertwined.
Throughout the body paragraphs of an essay, in short, the author presents his hypotheses , theories or arguments on a certain topic. Your comments may include reflection and criticism after a review of the topic ; a refutation or counterpoint using various data and sources; or a description of a context, to name just a few possibilities.
The tone of the writing depends on the essayist. The premise is that your position on the central issue is expressed clearly , beyond the focus . The writer, on the other hand, usually leaves the door open for a controversy or discussion based on the interpretation he puts into his text.
An author can demonstrate his erudition and specialization in an essay.
Differences between the essay and the treatise
An essay differs from a treatise by moving away from dogmatism and showing in great detail the process of formation of a certain idea, giving this development as much importance as the final judgment made about it. Furthermore, it is a text that does not persuade but invites the reader to think and create their own analysis , based on recommended readings or comparative judgments.
The principles of essay rhetoric require that the author , called an essayist , attempt to influence his readers through systems of reasoning and questioning. While reading you should adopt the author's way of thinking or at least understand it as a possible way of analyzing things. It is also an intellectual confession of the writer, for this reason it is normal that in this genre the first person is used as a narrative voice .
Another fundamental point is that non-technical language is used so that anyone can understand the text; At this point it differs from a manual or a scientific text written for a group of students or professionals in an area.
Some types
These are some of the most well-known types of tests:
- Scientific essay : Poses questions regarding a topic of scientific origin. It is a text that does not present an answer but rather criticizes and questions something that can be considered conclusive. That is, it tries to rationally explain a precise topic in a specific scientific field.
- Descriptive essay : Presents in an extensive way a point of view on a topic raised by a certain author. In it, different opinions of various thinkers on the chosen topic are compared and own conclusions are drawn about it. For a text to fall into this category, it must meet certain requirements: be concise, restricted, clear, brief, coherent and creative.
- Journalistic essay : The result of an investigation is presented from the perspective of an editorial writer. It is also called chronicle, although it is not entirely correct since the latter shows historical events that occurred in a chronological order, while the journalistic essay has subjective content.
It should be noted that the speech , the press article and the dissertation are didactic genres that are related to the essay.