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(Read part one of "The Nitty-Gritty Essay" here.)
I'm not sure what the deal is, but people have a fixation with five-paragraph essays. It's as if five is some magical number that a good essay must have. However, that couldn't be further from the truth. Some essays simply aren't worth five paragraphs, and can suffice with three or even four paragraphs. Some need ten or more. For those writers who struggle with composition, it's what's in the paragraphs that counts, and how long the paragraphs are.
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Okay, let's be honest. I'll go on record and say it. Some students are naturally more gifted at writing
essays than others. Oftentimes these are the students to whom writing
simply springs forth. It doesn't matter if it's narrative, persuasive,
expository or descriptive, these students' paragraphs simply flow
and their choice of words seems innate. These students naturally gravitate
to the honors level classes, expanding their essays in ways that make
teachers' eyes tear up with joy.
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Teacher/novelist Michele Dunaway has some provocative thoughts on how essay-writing is traditionally taught to students.
For a site that thrives on vocabulary and words, the idea that the essay must die may be akin to blasphemy. We writers often cite the essay as our first foray into discovering our individual voice; it's our first official step towards being able to express ourselves through prose.
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