Learn what a formal essay is. Study the formal essay format and types of formal papers. Discover how to write a formal essay, and examine a formal essay example.
Updated: 11/21/2023
Formal Essay Format, Types & Example
Table of Contents
- What Is a Formal Essay?
- Types of Formal Essays
- Formal Essay Format
- How to Write a Formal Essay
- Formal Essay Example
- Lesson Summary
- FAQs
- Activities
Formal Essay Practice
This lesson explained the function and structure of various types of formal essays. Learning to write good formal essays effectively and quickly will be invaluable not just on the LSAT but throughout your university career and beyond. Let's look at some more ways you can supplement your new knowledge.
Part One: Practice Essays
If you are putting a lot of hours into studying, it is in your best interests to allocate some of that time to essay practice. Work your way through the types of formal essays given in this lesson (exemplification essays, compare and contrast essays, cause and effect essays, and argument essays). Choose a prompt for each one beforehand. Then, give yourself 40 minutes to write one essay. Make it as clear and persuasive as you can, and be sure to include an introduction with a hook and thesis, body paragraphs, and an effective conclusion. You may find this task difficult at first, but keep practicing! Being able to respond quickly and eloquently to a prompt you have never seen before is the basis for many examinations.
Part Two: Editing Your Work
When you've finished writing a practice essay, give yourself a break! But after a couple of hours, or even the next day, revisit your writing with a critical eye. Notice any mistakes you may have made, or sentences that don't flow well. Rewrite the essay in a new and improved form. You will not always have time to edit your work in real time during exams, but becoming familiar with mistakes you make frequently, or even just the process of editing, will help you become a stronger writer in the long run.
What is a formal essay example?
Examples of formal essays include a compare and contrast essay, a cause and effect essay, an expository essay, and a argumentative essay.
What are the five parts of an essay?
There are five paragraphs in most formal essays. The first paragraph introduces the topic and evidence. The three body paragraphs include the evidence or argument. The conclusion paragraph summarizes the paper.
Are formal essays personal?
Formal essays are not personal. They do not include personal opinions. Formal essays are used to inform or educate the audience.
Table of Contents
- What Is a Formal Essay?
- Types of Formal Essays
- Formal Essay Format
- How to Write a Formal Essay
- Formal Essay Example
- Lesson Summary
An essay is a short piece of non-fiction writing that dives into a particular subject matter. So what is a formal essay? A formal essay is an essay that uses more formality than other kinds of writing. This type of writing requires evidence from respectable, unbiased sources to back up the claims presented.
The author takes a step back and objectively presents the material. These types of essays are popular in academia and research.
The purpose of a formal essay is to present a strong argumentative case to the reader. The author will present valid evidence to support their thesis statement, or the concept they are arguing in favor of. The goal of the formal essay is to prove the point of the author in an effective, non-emotional manner. The author will critically evaluate the thesis, arguing their point in specific details.
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There are four main types of formal essays, or papers, this lesson will cover. These four types of formal essays are:
- The expository essay
- The compare and contrast essay
- The cause and effect essay
- The argumentative essay
Expository essays define or explain a concept to the reader. There is no argument made with this type of essay. A complex idea is broken down into easier-to-understand components in the body paragraphs. A topic that would be covered in this type of essay is how a vaccine works or how cancer cells develop in the body.
The compare and contrast essay will take two ideas and do a side-by-side analysis for the reader. This type of essay will look at the similarities and differences between two different things. An example of a topic that would be suitable in this type of essay could be moose versus elk.
The cause and effect essay looks at the relationship between two concepts. The author will show the reader how two concepts, events, or people affected each other. This type of essay is usually organized chronologically. An example topic for this essay would be the COVID-19 pandemic and the rising cost of houses in 2020.
The argumentative essay, or persuasive essay, has the author prove a controversial point. The author of this type of essay will try to persuade the reader on a particular subject matter using clearly defined evidence in the body paragraphs. An example of this would be defending climate change or a tax on the wealthy.
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The formal essay has a clear format, regardless of its purpose. These essays are written in the third person perspective and refrain from using personal pronouns. They use formal language and avoid slang terms and colloquialisms. These essays are not emotional pieces and instead focus on academically presenting facts.
These essays are usually written in a five-paragraph format, but additional body paragraphs will be added as needed. The five-paragraph format is:
- Introductory paragraph
- Body paragraphs
- Conclusion paragraph
The formal essay will begin with an introductory paragraph. This paragraph will set the scene for the formal paper and will introduce the topic of the essay. The introductory paragraph contains a hook and a thesis statement. The hook comes at the beginning of the paragraph. It is a catchy opening statement that grabs the attention of the reader. It can be a fact, statistic, question or any other statement that will get the reader interested in the topic.
The thesis statement is the last sentence of the introduction paragraph and it serves to summarize the entire paper in one sentence. It will introduce the main concept the author is trying to prove, as well as any important supporting details. This is the most important sentence in the paper and will be referenced again in the conclusion paragraph.
The body paragraphs make up the bulk of the formal essay. There are at least three body paragraphs, but there may be more depending on the length of the formal paper. Each body paragraph will present a new piece of evidence to support the main idea that is being proven in the paper. Every body paragraph will start with a topic sentence. The topic sentence will introduce the main idea of that particular body paragraph. Each body paragraph must have a transition sentence that helps one paragraph lead smoothly into the next one.
The conclusion paragraph is the last in the formal essay. This final paragraph will summarize the entire essay without introducing any new information. The thesis statement should be restated to remind the reader of the purpose of the paper. It should not be written verbatim as that may be repetitive for the reader. The conclusion paragraph is the last chance for the author to set the tone of the essay and to clearly state the essay's purpose.
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There are seven steps on how to write a formal essay from start to finish. The steps are:
- Brainstorm and select a topic.
- Research as necessary.
- Write the thesis statement.
- Create an outline of what the paper will look like and what will be contained in each paragraph.
- Write the body paragraphs.
- Write the introduction and conclusion paragraphs.
- Edit and polish the essay for the final draft.
These steps should be used to create a well-established formal essay.
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The best way to understand a formal essay is to see an example of a formal paper. The following is an example of a formal essay or paper:
Vaccines are an essential part of the health of children. Many children follow a strict vaccine schedule that allows them to build an acquired immunity to a variety of diseases. Diseases such as polio and pumps have been nearly eradicated with the use of vaccines. The COVID-19 vaccine should be mandated in schools as it will provide a safe environment and promote herd immunity, and because many vaccines are already mandated.
If children are vaccinated against COVID-19, it doesn't only offer protection to them. It also protects the adults in their families who are more at risk for developing severe complications. Vaccinating children for COVID-19 provides a safe environment for those who are around them.
The COVID-19 vaccine should be mandated in schools because it will reduce the spread of infection in the classroom. Increasing the number of children who are vaccinated will increase herd immunity. This will decrease community spread and ensure that children can safely attend school.
Vaccines are already mandated for children to be in school. The concept of vaccination to keep children healthy and prevent communicable diseases has already been introduced. MMR, polio, and hepatitis A are required in certain states. Due to the rapid spread of COVID-19, it stands to reason that this vaccine should also be mandated for children to attend school.
Vaccines keep children healthy while in close contact with their peers and the adults that take care of them. This form of preventative medicine is not new, and many vaccines are already required in school. Requiring the COVID-19 vaccine in the school setting would keep kids safe by promoting herd immunity and reducing school transmission.
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A formal essay is a form of objective essay writing. Expository writing is used to explain or inform the reader on a particular topic. Compare and contrast essays will compare and contrast two or more topics. The cause and effect essay will see how two topics are related. The argumentative essay will prove a point on a controversial topic.
Most formal essays have five paragraphs. This includes an introduction paragraph, conclusion paragraph, and at least 3 body paragraphs. The body paragraphs will provide specific evidence to back up the author's main point. The thesis statement is the last sentence in the introduction paragraph. It serves as a summary of the paper.
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Video Transcript
Definition of Formal Essay
A formal essay is a piece of writing that informs or persuades its audience.
There are other kinds of essays. For example, the narrative essay relays a story with a moral or lesson. The personal essay illustrates the writer's opinion on a topic. A formal essay is more objective than the narrative or personal essay because it is usually based on provable facts and examples.
Format of the Formal Essay
In general, a formal essay is at least five paragraphs long and contains an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion.
The introduction is the first paragraph of a formal essay and should include three things. The first item of the introduction is the hook, or the part that grabs your reader's attention. Some common hooks include statistics, quotations from famous people, or strong questions. After the hook, you should have two or three sentences of background information on your topic. Your introduction paragraph should end with the thesis statement, which is the main idea of your essay.
The following paragraphs, not including the last one, are known as the body paragraphs. These paragraphs contain the details that support your thesis statement. These body paragraphs start with a topic sentence, which is one sentence that connects back to your thesis statement and outlines the paragraph. Next, you provide an example from your life, a common experience, or a source, and then you provide a few sentences of analysis or explanation of your example. Then you end with a concluding sentence that summarizes the paragraph and/or transitions into the next paragraph.
The conclusion is the last paragraph of the paper and includes two things: a restatement of your thesis statement, which emphasizes your main idea, and a summary of your main points.
Now, let's look at different types of formal essays.
Examples of Formal Essays
Even though all formal essays are similar in structure, there are different kinds of formal essays.
One type of formal essay is the illustration or exemplification essay. In this kind of formal essay, you will illustrate a fact through examples. This is also called expository writing. For instance, you could write an illustration essay that focuses on how stress affects students. You would give examples from your life experience to illustrate your thesis statement.
Another type of formal essay is the compare and contrast essay. In this kind of formal essay, you compare and contrast two things. In a compare and contrast essay, it is important that you write about the similarities and differences between the two items. For example, you could compare and contrast two novels you've read.
Another type of essay is the cause and effect essay, where you explore the causes and/or effects of something. You can usually choose whether to focus on the causes, effects, or both. For example, you might write about the causes of climate change or the effects of the Vietnam War.
The last essay type we will talk about is the argument essay. In this kind of essay, you will persuade your reader to take your side on a controversial topic. In this kind of essay, it's important that you choose a topic that has two sides. For example, writing about the timeline of the Iraq War wouldn't be an argument because there is one generally accepted timeline. Taking a side on whether the war was good or bad would be an argument because there are two sides.
Lesson Summary
A formal essay is designed to inform or persuade its audience. All formal essays should be at least five paragraphs and include an introduction, several body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Some common types of formal essays include the illustration essay, the compare and contrast essay, the cause and effect essay, and the argument essay.
Learning Outcomes
When you are done, you should be able to:
- Explain what a formal essay is and how it differs from other essay types
- Describe the components and format of the formal essay
- Name the types of formal essays and state their purposes
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Formal Essay Format, Types & Example
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