CHAPTER TWO_=<— Essay Ugoji, Stellamaris C. Introduction The word essay derives from the French infinitive essayer, "to try" or "to attempt". In English essay first means "a trial of "an attempt", and this is still an alternative meaning. The Frenchman Michel de Montaigne (1533-1590) was the first author to describe his work as essays, he used the term to characterize these as "attempts" to put his thoughts into writing , and his essays grew out of his common placing. Inspired in particular by the works of Plutarch. An essay is a patterned expression of a person's view point on a particular subject. It is writing in extended form and is also called composition or continuous writing. Writing is a very important and integral aspect of language proficiency, just like listening, speaking and reading. It involves the expression of the writer's idea in one continuous carefully thought-out and logically arranged pattern. It must also be presented in acceptable and easy-to-understand language. Jn both secondary and tertiary, essays are used to judge the mastery and comprehension of material. Students are asked to explain, comment on, or assess a topic of study in the form of an essay. Writing and reading are the common hallmarks of literary and any one's 35Grammatical Conventions SESE II IO educational achievement may most often be quickly judged by his performance in these two important language skills. It is best to view the techniques of writing, discussed in this module as part of the broader “academic literacy" that are "vital underpinnings to the cultural knowledge required for success in academic communities. The focus of this unit is to present some of the different techniques, features, or approaches of exploring various academic writing task that you will encounter in the course of studies. 1.1 Whatisan Essay An essay, is a piece of writing that gives the author's own argument. BBC English Dictionary defines an essay as a short piece of writing on one particular subject written by a student (1992: p.386) essay is an assembling of several logically arranged paragraphs to make a point work together to present and develop one main point length, an essay covers its topic in greater depth and detail that would be possible in a paragraph. Huxley, a leading essayist notes that "the essay is a literary device for saying almost everytlting about almost anything". And adds that “by tradition, almost by definition, the essay is a short piece". Huxley argues that "essays belong to a literary species whose extreme variability can be studied most effectively reference". These three poles) or worlds in which the essay may exist) are: ° The personal and the autobiographical: The essayists that feel most comfortable in this pole "write fragments of reflective autography and look at the world through the keyhole of anecdote and description". ° The objective, the factual, and the concrete-particular: The essayists that write from this pole "do not speak directly of themselves, but turn their attention outward to some literary ~ or scientific or political theme. Their art consists on setting forth, passing judgment upon, and drawing general conclusions from the relevant data”. ° The abstract-universal: In this pole "we find those essayists who do their work in the world of high abstractions", who are 2Ats of experience. Huxley adds that "the most richly ng essays are those which make the best out of one, not of two, but of all the three worlds in which it is possible for the essay to exist", Parts ofan Essay The English essay, no matter what type has a three part structure namely: The introduction The body The conclusion The Introduction wre The introduction opens the essay. It initiates readers into the essayist wishes to talk about. It should direct reader's attention to specific ideas. This is done in about two or three sentences. It should be expected that only the mentioning of the points is to be done here. In an argument essay, it usually describes or summarizes both sides of the present : situation and says what you are going to do in your essay. All that t is'expected of the writer here is to show his readers what points he intends to deliberate on later, the number of points in an introduction determines the number of paragraphs to be expected within the frame of the body of the essay itself. A few examples may suffice here. Example! Title: Causes of Road Accidents in Nigerian roads. The incidents of road accidents in Nigerian roads have assumed alarming proportions. The major causes of these accidents have been identified to include dangerous over-taking, over-speeding, drunkenness, bad roads, failure to obey road signs and the road unworthiness of some vehicles. In the above paragraph, one can easily note that the writer has six points, which he intends to talk about. These are: 1 Dangerous over-taking. 2. Over-speeding. 37UIA Drunkenness. Bad roads. Failure to obey road signs. The road unworthiness of some vehicles, DAveY The writer has therefore, directed. our attention to these six dimensions to the question asked. This he has done in a wel structured sentence. One, therefore, expects that in the bedy of the essay he would take each point in a fresh paragraph and expand, or explain or expatiate on it. Because his introduction has shown that he has six distinct points ready for development, we expect that the body of the essay would be made up of not less than six paragraphs, each paragraph taking care of each point. Lifted from Ezeme, T, (2011: p. 200). The Body of the Essay The body is the main part of the essay. The body of the essay deals with the development of the points in the introduction. In this section, the writer has the liberty to expatiate on the points mentioned in the introduction. The body of the essay is divided into paragraphs, each paragraph yielding to a logical treatment of points as they appear in the introduction. In essay writing, what determines quality is not how many facts you have, but how well written are the few facts you have. Since the essay is meant t» bea structur€d, unifies whole, any introduction of fresh ideas i1.:0 the body of the essay that did not appear originally in the introduction wouldamounttoan architectural intrusion. Students are therefore, advised to avoid new ideas they failed initially to incorporate as the introductory stage. The Conclusion The conclusion is the end of the essay. It is a short paragraph-about three sentences. This is the last paragraph of the essay which as the name suggests concludes the essay. Here the writer sums up his points, drives those points home to the reader, explores the ultimate 38Grammatical Conyentions SS implications of his views rests his case. The conclusion of an essay is that part of it likely to remain freshest in our minds. It should therefore be the high point of all the writer has said in the essay either as a summary in fresh and forceful language, an inference drawn from what has gone before or a recapitulation of the points already emphasized. Qualities ofa Good Essay A good essay is:- ea a complete and honest picture of who you are. Never underestimate the ability of trained professionals in their ability to detect a lying high school senior. Be honest about your mistakes and how you overcome them, but don't feel the need to spill secrets that reflect poorly upon you.......a vignette that suggests what you would say if you could meet the staff in person. ......within your length requirement. Write your essay so it is 80% of the maximum length allowed. Keep in mind that your true essay length limitation is not the posted limit, but the attention span of your reader. By keeping length’ to about 80% of the maximum length, you leave room for all of the details the admissions staff want to know while leaving the essay short enough to motivate them to read your work in its entirely. Most importantly, never ever be so arrogant to exceed the length requirements. «heavily polished and proofread. The biggest danger to your college essays are not types or grammatical errors, but rather that your essay does not convey the message that you wanted. Different people can interpret an essay in different ways, and proofreading is a way to ensure that nearly all of those interpretations are positive ones. Six Types of Essays Effectively, writing different types of essays has-become critical to academic success. Essay writing is a common school assignment, a part of standardized tests, and a requirement on college applications. Often on tests, choosing the correct type of essay to write in response to a writing prompt is key to 39‘onyentions 5 getting the question right. Clearly, students can't afford to remain confused about types of essays. There are over a dozen types of ess ‘0 it's easy to get confused. However, rest assured, the number is actually more manageable. Essentially there are four major types of essays with the variations making up the remainder Six major types of Essays Distinguishing between types of essays in simply a matter of determining the writer's goal. Does the writer want to tell about a personal experience, describe something explain an issue, or convince the reader to accept a certain | viewpoint? The six major types of essays address these purposes: 1. Narrative Essays: Telling a Story In a narrative essay, the writer tells a story about a real- lite | experience. While telling a story may sound easy to do, the narrative essay challenges students to think and write about themselves. | When writing a narrative essay, writers should try to involve the | reader by making the story as vivid as possible; The fact that narrative essays are usually written in the first person helps engage the reader. "I" sentences give readers a feeling of being part of the story. A well-crafted narrative essay will also build towards drawing a conclusion or making a personal statement. By its nature, the narrative essay would therefore be a story telling piece that has a plot, a beginning, a culmination point and an ending. In narrative essay, the verbs are deliberately precise and quite vivid. A major point is often made and defined in the opening sentence of the essay or at the last sentence of the opening paragraph of the essay. Here isa sample of a narrative essay written by a candidate in the WAEC Senior Secondary Certificate Examination. It is an answer to a question requiring the candidate to write a story ending with the words- "and I have had to live with this stigma for the rest of my life". In my youth, when I was about twelve years old, | was already looking as mature as a young woman. | was constantly aware of this, due to the fact that I got a lot of attention from the opposite sex. My parents were very strict Christians and we, the children had well - 40Grammatical Conventions eee RAR AA AAA organized lives. By the time | was thirteen, my parents kept a close wateh on me and | never seemed to mind. They constantly drummed | iC into my ears to be careful of the people | moved with, especially | boys. It never seemed important till this fateful event which will | forever be imprinted in my memory. I was in form three when a | senior in our school, who was a boy approached me. Being a junior girl, approached by a senior, I felt very excited and overwhelmed. My friends were green with envy. Throughout that week, I was floating in the clouds and went about dreamily. My family, especially my parents and my elder sister noticed the difference in my behavior and questioned me. At first, 1 denied everything, at least to my parents. But later confided in my sister who was also senior in the school. She was furious and warned me never to have anything to do with boys, especially the senior ones. I didn't take heed but instead I insulted her. She left me alone sympathetically. The boy, whose name was Femi continued to pester me. Every day, he came to my class bringing all kinds of gifts which I declined. Although secretly in my heart, I was thrilled and wanted to have an affair with him, but coming from a Christian family 1 was reluctant. It was finally on valentine day (which was a great occasion in my school) I ) never really expected anything from him or anyone, but he came to | my class with his friends with different gifts: cakes, cards, stuffed ) dolls, ice cream, jewellery, it was lovely. He asked me again to have | anaffair with him and | agreed. | The relationship was going on well to the disapproval of many. My sister reported to my parents who forbade me to see him but | still continued to see him. As some people say, "I was in the last heaven". My sister later told me that he had another girlfriend who was a senior student and whom he planned to marry. I was upset and planned to ask him. | did, and he denied it and claimed he had broken up with the girl. I took his words and the relationship continued. As the saying goes, "All that glitters isn't gold", Everything turned sour finally, ithappened on this fateful night when there was a party and he invited me. I asked my parents and they reluctantly gave me their 41Gran matical Conventions eS consent, They made me promise to come home before ten that night The party was quite interesting although | was about the only junior there. 1 wasn't really bothered since | was in the company of Femi He drank quite a lot of alcohol that night and when it was time to go. volunteered to drive but he said no, he didn't take me home straight but he stopped by the beach. He said he needed to "dear his head” That was when everything went out of hands. Femi started fondling with my clothes and | told him to stop it but he wouldn't In the end he raped me! (although many people would not call it rape). He took me home and after, he apologized profusely saying he lost control. 1 went home feeling upset and afraid that | might be pregnant. 1 phoned him that night and told him my fears. He told me not to worry since it was my first time and "girls don't get pregnant after their first time", he said the relationship turned sour and it was obvious he wasn't really interested in me anymore. This was when | found out that I was pregnant. [ told him and he told me to abort the baby and J refused. This was when he told me that he had made up with his former girl friend and that they were getting married after graduation which was in three weeks time. 1 was shattered. I needed to talk to someone. I told my sister who told my parents. They decided I had to have the baby, | had it and they allowed me to go back to school. The boy never got to marry the girl because she found out that he was promiscuous. So she married someone else. | am now married with two other children but I wish | had listened to my family when they were giving me their advice. | made a terrible mistake and | realize it every time | see my child, | have no choice but to remember these mistakes and of course I have had to live with this stigma for the rest of my life. Lifted from Ezeme, T. (2011: p. 207-209). 2. Descriptive Essays: Painting a Picture The major goal of description is to create a clear picture in the mind of the reader. The technique attempts to portray the author's idea or 4 42Grammatical Conyentions SEE ES Rese ee ee experience by presenting them in clear dei ils that appeal to the human sensory organs. A description is an « \empt to transfer (or at least evoke a sense of the transfer) of somco:. 's experience and idea to others who probably do not have such experience. It derives its name from its reliance on descriptive words | portray a clear mental picture. Of its subject and if the description is effective, the writer succeeds in simulating his experience in the reader. Effective descriptions can make us go through emotions of fear, anger, joy, depression, love and hatred without the writer overtly compelling us to feel so. The writer only needs to covertly stoke our feelings with carefully chosen descriptive words and our common experience will trigger the feelings. Both fiction and non-fiction writers exploit this strategy. The next time you read or listen to Martin Luther's "[ havea dream" observe how he builds up the feeling of equality asa realizable dream: as simple as little children holding hands and playing together. The volume of filth in any random chapter ofArmah's the beautiful ones are not yet born may leave you in nausea, You may laugh out more than usual ask you read through the uncommon foolery of sancho and the comic dementia of his master. But you may not remember that these great writers built up images of their subjects with words in order to create these emotions in us: they simply described and allowed us "to feel it". Note that a good sense of observation is crucial for effective description. This is because you can only describe appropriately what you have ‘properly observed or experienced through the senses. Essentially there are two types of description, the objective which is also known as the factual description and the impressionic which is also regarded as subjective description. Sample Descriptive Essay The Great Wall of China China is the largest country in Asia and the world's most populous nation, ft also has one of the world's oldest and, continuous civilizations. The Chinese have occupied their vast territory for 43Grammatical Conventions SES ak Sele a ei ke thousands of years and China boasts numerous achievements in a variety of disciplines. The country has produced many great thinkers and philosophers, and numerous artists and inventors from China have introduced creations that have changed perhaps billions of lives. Some of these creations include the compass, gunpowder, paper and printing, porcelain and silk. But perhaps the most well-known and recognized symbol of China is the Great Wall. The Great Wall, or Chang Cheng in Chinese, is massive. If begins in the east at the Yellow Sea, travels near China's capital, Beijing, and continues west through numerous provinces. For thousands of miles, it winds like a snake through China's varied terrain. Smaller walls extend from the main wall. According to conservative estimates, the Great Wall's length is approximately 2,400 miles, its thickness ranges from 15-30 feet wide, and it reaches in height to about 25 feet. For many centuries’, the Great Wall has been considered one of the world's wonders. Although itis often mistakenly thought ofas a single wall, the is a series of walls that were constructed, reconstructed and expanded over several centuries and. depending on the location, using different materials. The massive construction project was the idea of China's first emperor, Shi Huangdi, who ended more than 250 years of regional fighting between several independent states, and united China. Once in control, Shi Huangdi wanted to maintain his power and position. The idea to create a massive wall along the northern border of the country was conceived by the emperor to bar assailants from kingdoms to the north of China. Construction of the Great Wall continued Jong after the reign of Shi Huangdi, particularly during the Han and the Ming dynasties, During these periods, features such as watch towers, gates, and garrisons were added or enhanced and the Wall's design was unified, The Great Wall is of great significance as it reflects much of China's extensive history. The wall helped define 44Grammatical Conventions SEES ICO IK the empire and mark a boundary between the Chinese and foreigners. The great emperor, Shi Huangdi, wanted to keep the Chinese people togetherandat the same time isolate the foreigners’, especially those to the north. The Great Will survives today, more than 2,000 years alter its initial construction. It attracts thousands of visitors from all over the world each day, being one of the most toured and significant monuments in the world. This has helped boost China's economy- through tourism and foreign exchange. The Great Wall is undeniably one of humankind's most prominent and enduring architectural feats. It is a testament to a__ people's ability to plan, organize, create and work diligently together. The wall is a monument to the Chinese civilization, one that came at great costs and through countless sacrifices. Lifted from Nwajiaku, I. (2013: pp.158-159). Expository Essays: Just the facts the expository essay is an informative piece of writing that presents a balanced analysis of a°” topic. Inan expository essay, the writer explains or defines the topic, using facts, statistics, and examples. Expository writing encompasses a wide range of essay, variations, such as the comparison and contrast essay, ‘the cause and effect essay, and the "how to" or process essay. Because expository essays are based on facts and not personal feelings, writers don't reveal their emotions or write in the first person. The writer would consciously strive to lay bare something for a reader to enable him acquires a deeper understanding of the nature of sucha thing or in addition an expository essay demands that issues are very logically examined. This process may entail providing new information and highlighting their implications. The major different between descriptive essay, and expository essay is that descriptive tells what something looks like while expository tells what the thing actually is laboratory reports, project reports, term papers, and other research reports are good examples of the expository essay. A good example of an expository essay is provided. AGrammatical Conventions FEI III III Sample Expository Essay Antibiotics Among scientific discoveries that were made throughout humankind's history, some are well-known and instantly come to mind when one is asked to name the most important scientific discoveries of all time, while others can be easily overlooked regardless of the tremendous impact they may have had on the world. Antibiotics can be named as an example of one of such discoveries; though they have revolutionized today's medicine, they are not the first to come to one's mind when talking about science. Antibiotics were invented by Alexander Flemming, in 1928, Antibiotics are chemical substances produced by various micro- organisms and other living systems, and capable of inhibiting the growth of dangerous bacteria, viruses, and so on. Before the epoch of antibiotics began, there was not much that could done for patients suffering from different infections, and deal rates were much higher than today. For instance, the Streptococcus pyogenes bacteria had caused about a half of post-birth deaths (Cleary); Staphylococcus aureus was fatal 80% of cases. Tuberculosis and pneumonia bacteria were famous killers as well. Today, the discovery of antibiotics h; enabled medicine to treat this communicable disease (Tulkens) together with other diseases that were once considered terminal. Antibiotics can be bacteriostatic (those that prevent bacteria from multiplying) (Dodd) or bactericidal -those which exterminate the bacteria. They penetrate a bacterial cell surface, causing changes in their mode of reproduction (Tidkens). Antibiotics can be prescribed to patients in various forms, such as topical application, orally, parentally, or as injections, Antibiotics are usually manufactured in two ways. One of them is natural and is known as biosynthesis; the , other one is synthetic, Among the most commonly use antibiotics one can name Penicillin, Cephalosporin's, Aminoglycosides, ARGrammatical Conventions SEO I RR I I Tetracycline's, and Polypeptides Bacitracin. Despite all their efficiency and advantages, antibiotics are often called a necessary evil. The truth is that drugs have the potential to be both beneficial and harmful for the human health. Antibiotics are able to kill sensitive bacteria which are necessary for the normal condition of one's body; for example, the use of antibiotics negatively affects bacteria which live in intestines, thus causing dysbiosis. Besides, antibiotics do not always kill all harmful bacteria, allowing resistant ones to survive; this creates problems for the future treatment of similar diseases (Prober). Antibiotics often cause allergic reactions, such as rashes, severe anemia, stomach disorders, deafness and many others. Antibiotics are a beneficial discovery of the human genius. They help to cure diseases that had once been considered terminal, and are easily available in the modern world. At the same time, antibiotics are often treated as a necessary evil due to their negative side effects and the potential harm they can inflict on the human body. Lifted from Nwajiaku, I. (2013: 166-167) Another Sample Expository Essay: The Art of Healthy Feeding Obesity among adults and teenagers is considered to be one of the most common and disturbing problems all over the world, a: least in economically prospering countries. Though food manufacturers notify customers about the nutritional value and the amounts of proteins, fats, and carbohydrates, contained in every product, this does not contribute into decreasing the scope of the obesity issue. Nutritionists say that the origins of the problem lay not only in what people eat, but actually in how they eat. This essay focuses on the most common eating habits and offers alternatives to each of them. For some reason, many people tend to think that if they consume bigger portions or calorie food, they will feel full longer; so, during their lunch breaks, they eat as much as they can, and then return to their offices. While those who have active professions such as construction workers or woodsmen burn calories faster and thus are 47Grammatical Conventi SHINEE io em = less exposed to obesity, man}! office workers can be categorized as being connected to risk, as they sit down at a desk for many hours after eating. Eating at night is even worse, because a person not simply lie in bed, but all processes in their body, including food digesting, slow down. An effective alternative is to eat more often, but in smaller portions, and to chew food thoroughly in this case satiety will occur sooner, and last longer, than if you were swallowing big bites. Opposed to popular opinion, fats are actually useful and beneficial for the human organism. At the same time, this does not mean that youcan eatall fatty food with no limit-, fats and saturated fats, taken excessively, increases the heart disease and obesity, because | gram of fat has about: as many ‘calories per gram as carbohydrates and proteins (MD). On the other hand, a healthy diet should include monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. Monounsaturated fats are contained in such products as oil, peanut oil, and olive oil, as well as avocados, nuts, and seeds. Polyunsaturated fats, including Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acids, can be found in tatty fish such as salmon, herring, mackerel, anchovies, and sardines (Help guide). One ‘should also try different types of protein, simultaneously moving away from making it the center of your daily meal. Many people who try to lose weight will make excessive efforts involving personal will power, forbidding themselves those products that they want. When you recognize certain foods as prohibited, your body will start to want more of it. In this case, if you fall into the temptation you will most likely experience a strong feeling of guilt or failure. In most: cases; reducing portions of "banned" products and eating them rarely rather than usually is a more effective measure: you do not feel like you have to sacrifice your favorite food in favor of healthy nutrition. And as time flows, you will discover that your craving for such food decreases, though a lot of people share the myth that healthy nutrition means counting calories and panicking about every sip of beer or chocolate, it is not true. The secret is not what people eat, but 48Grammatical Conventions Sea aa ae how they eat. Most often what they need is nota diet, but a revision of their feeding habits. This includes split meals in smaller portions, a more protein and carbohydrates, and reducing ving up, food which is favored but not health. Lifted from Nwajiaku, I. (2013: 166-167) The Argumentative Essay An argument is a method of persuasion in which the writer or speaker tries to change someone else's beliefs, ideas, or actions through the use of logical proofs. It is concerned with the orderly and effective presentation of opinions in order to persuade the reader or listener to hold the same opinion as the writer or listener. The effectiveness of an argument lies in proving the probability that what you are saying is as you say it. No one ever asks for an absolute proof which is difficult even in the physical sciences. What is important is for the truth to be probable. In argumentation, the audience may have been impelled to act in a certain way either by the sheer emotionality of the presentation or by a clear conviction of the reasonableness of the argument. In other words, -argumentation may be a combination of logic and eloquence, facts and opinions, half-truths and outright falsehood or logical fallacies. The presentation of an argument requires some skill. The presenter is saddled with the task of winning over to his side an. audience, many of whose members probably already have their own views about the topic. Therefore the presenter must plan his strategy beforehand and present his points with some fact and a certain degree of conviction. It is only by so doing thathe can succeed in dislodging contrary views, attitudes and opinions and replaces them with his own. An argumentative essay topic usually has two sides: a statement, which is the proposition and its contradiction. The presenter or writer is naturally expected to take adefinite position. Either he supports the proposition or he opposes it. There should be no sitting on the fence, By this we mean that it would be nonsensical to shift from Supporting the proposition to opposing it. Any presenter who does 49Grammatical Conventions JORIS IS SO IH so would be running himself down. To effectively present an argument, the following steps should be observed. i, Study the proposition (topic) carefully. ii. Choose a position or definite point of view to form the focus of your argument; iii. Assemble and present your facts and opinions systematically to justify your position; iv. Attack, when necessary, points likely to be presented by the opposing side and defend very stoutly (but tactfully) any of your points subjected to attack by the opposing side; v. Avoid any attach on the person of the opponent; attack issues, not persons; vi. Be logical, fair and reasonable by first acknowledging your audience's likely objections before tactfully refuting or disproving them, where necessary; vii. Be composed, cheerful and articulate in your presentation. Lack of composure can ruin a well prepared argument and possibly lead to inarticulateness or total loss of speech; viii. | Avoid unnecessary and excessively vigorous body movements that tend to’ distract rather than sustain the interest of the audience in your presentation; ix. Inthe final analysis, leave no one in doubt about your point of view by re-stating your position at the end of the argument. Sample of Argumentative Essay Parental Control as a Necessary Measure in the Upbringing of Modern Children: Living in the 21st. century is: conjuncted:;;with a seeming!) unceasing consumption of information. A wide variety of means, such as television or the Internet; ‘allows pedple to access data they require or desire with ease. However, not all information is useful and beneficial; camouflaged) or. uncovered’ violence and pornography makes up a significant part of the information available, and underage youth are most vulnerable to materials of this kind. Dueto the fact that their ethical principles are in aprocess BanGrammatical Conventions ae of intense forming, and their outlooks have not reached their full fruition, children and teenagers can be negatively influenced by obscene content. Reasonable parental control over information that children consume is necessary. While adults can distinguish between right and wrong and safely navigate through information provided by the media, teenagers and children are much more sensitive and exposed to its dangers. The superfluity of easily accessible pornography and other content connected to sex is the first and foremost reason for establishing parental supervision over underage youth's media involvement. Pornography can inflict severe psychological damage to a youth's developing personality and cause serious behavioral deviations. Among the most common dangers are addictions to pornography, understanding sex as an act detached from morality and relationships, or sexual solicitation (Margolies). Special software, such as PicBlock or Safe Screen, can be used to minimize the risk of viewing pornographic content by accident on the Internet. The password should not be set on the computer, because forbidden material only becomes even more attractive for children. Spending time on the Internet together with a child or a teenager could become a sufficient security measure. Violence in different forms, advertised and displayed in an attractive way is another manifestation of an offensive against children's clear psyche. This refers mostly to popular movies and video games. Such movies as Undisputed or Devil's Rejects, and especially video games, such as Prototype, Assassin's Creed, Manhunt, and many others show violent actions as justified, with many types of embroidery. Children tend to adopt and reproduce behavioral patterns they observe in real life. It may result in aggression towards peers, parents, and so on. For example, one needs tolookno further than 16-year-old teen shooting classmates with a shotgun in California (USA Today) this year, or a boy shooting his teacher and then himself in front of his class in 2011 in Sao Paulo, Brazil (Worden). Talking about behavioral norms that are acceptable and unacceptable in civilized society is a way to help children distinguish between right and wrong behavior. Numerous websites and forums 51Grammatical Conventions SER use explicit vocabulary and raise disputable topics, such as sectarian disputes, radical political revolutionary content, or sexual relationships, in a provocative or obscene manner. Based on such information, children may develop a wrong understanding of such topics as religion, racial tolerance, sex, familial relationships, and so on. Parents should keep an eye on what their children read and should discuss sound, debatable topics with them. A copious amount of available information through media today poses new challenges for the upbringing of young people. In this modern era parents should establish moderate control of their children’s activities to ensure that their psychological development continues correctly, since underage youths’ principles and outlook are in the process of forming, thus unstable and easily suggestible. The reasons why such contro! must be enabled are the superfluity of obscene sexual content on the Web, violence demonstrated attractively in the media, and uncensored vocabulary in provocative and debatable topics within different forums. (Sample essays all culled fromhttp://academichelp.net/samples/essay. Lifted from Nwajiaku, I. (2013: 170-172) Persuasive Essays: Convince me While like an expository essay in its presentation of facts; the goal of the persuasive essay is to convince the reader to accept the writer's point of view or recommendation. The writer must build a case using facts and logic, as well as examples, expert opinion, and sound reasoning. The writer should present all sides of the argument, but must be able to communicate clearly and without equivocation why a certain position is correct. Some writers classify this technique either as a sub-type or an appendage of the argumentative technique Nwajiaku, (2013; p. 138, Uwandu, 1997: p, 63). The two technique share many characteristics and even a common goal of swaying opinion in a particular direction. However, there is a major distinction between the two techniques that justifies their treatment as distinct techniques. The argumentative technique focuses on validating a stance with evidence while the persuasive technique focuses on skillfully convincing the reader to change his attitude or 52G cal Conventions. SEO SEI OR accept the writer's beliefs. The persuasive technique is a veiled argument and it firmly relies on emotive appeal to reasoning. The technique requires chronological presentation and a logical progression to the conclusion. To further illustrate persuasion and distinguish it from arguments; let us consider the professions of public relations, marketing, advertising and even the work of the clergy. These are professions that require effective persuasive skills. If a marketer engages a potential buyer in an argument rather than persuasion, he may lose the potential sale. The language of advertisement does not engage us in arguments; it rather saturates us with images and emotions mat would make us buy the advertised goods even before thinking of what we are doing. An effective persuasive technique should help the writer to win over converts, customers, supporters, etc, and this is why the technique should predominate in the professions of persuasion (Ndimele, 2007: pp. 258-259). Critical/Analytical Essay In this type of essay you analyze, examine and interpret such things as an event, book, poem, play or other work of art. Qualities of a Good Narrative Essay I. What can it take to make a reader say, "I can see it happening in front of me now?" It takes adequate content, suitable and an interesting organization; good expressive ability and a good sense of writing mechanics and grammar to make a reader say that: ths Content ie Take care not to discuss too many events or actions. Use only relevant details that you can handle, bearing in mind the limited time you have. ii. Events narrated must be convincing and realistic i.e real to life (except for folk tales), The reader should be lead to believe that what he is reading is true. iii. The story must use words and expressions that show lots of actions, sounds and movements. Such indication of actions 53 iSORES Casey from one incident to the other, from one action to the other. iv The narrative must be told in such a way that the events occurred, Consequently, people's thoughts, fears, surprise and joys should be shared with the reader. The writer must therefore select such details that should stir the readers emotions. Organization There should be a clear story line. Here the chronological order of presentation where the orderly account of events is given is advocated. Such an essay often makes use of the flash back and the "in medias res" techniques of telling a story Ibe, (2010: p. 106). In "medias res story telling method, the writer begins with the present and then goes back to the beginning of the story and relates everything that had happened and in chronological order, that leads to the present condition. Paragraphs must be well written and should be properly linked? The story should move quickly, from one incident to another. The story should move towards success or failure, or it may move towards the solution of a problem. It may even lead to something the writer has learnt from experience, iii. Expression i. To be able to narrate well, the writer must have story-telling ability or else the account will be tedious and boring. ii. Simple and uncomplicated language should be used. iii. The past tense should be used. This is because, what you are writing about had happened in the past. iv. The first person singular 'I' should be preferred. v. Include humour (funny things) and anecdotes, (short stories) to enrich the narrative, vi. Use transitional expressions, but not too many. Examples include; "besides", "finally", "moreover", and "again". vii. Include proverbs, figures of speech, maxims, 54