Basics of essay writing - Body

The body paragraphs will explain your essay's topic. Each of the main ideas that you listed in your outline will become a paragraph in your essay. If your outline contained three main ideas, you will have three body paragraphs. Start by writing down one of your main ideas, in sentence form.

If your essay topic is a new university in your hometown, one of your main ideas may be "population growth of town" you might say this:

The new university will cause a boom in the population of Fort Myers.

Build on your paragraph by including each of the supporting ideas from your outline In the body of the essay, all the preparation up to this point comes to fruition. The topic you have chosen must now be explained, described, or argued.

Each body paragraph will have the same basic structure.

  1. Start by writing down one of your main ideas, in sentence form. If your main idea is "reduces freeway congestion," you might say this: Public transportation reduces freeway congestion.
  2. Next, write down each of your supporting points for that main idea, but leave four or five lines in between each point.
  3. In the space under each point, write down some elaboration for that point. Elaboration can be further description or explanation or discussion.
    Supporting Point
    Commuters appreciate the cost savings of taking public transportation rather than driving.
    Elaboration
    Less driving time means less maintenance expense, such as oil changes.
    Of course, less driving time means savings on gasoline as well. In many cases, these savings amount to more than the cost of riding public transportation.
  4. If you wish, include a summary sentence for each paragraph. This is not generally needed, however, and such sentences have a tendency to sound stilted, so be cautious about using them.

Each main body paragraph will focus on a single idea, reason, or example that supports your thesis. Each paragraph will have a clear topic sentence (a mini thesis that states the main idea of the paragraph). You should try to use details and specific examples to make your ideas clear and convincing.

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