Personal Essay Directions and Topics--Fall '19
There are two components to the essay:
1. The personal essay itself
2. Reflection on the essay
Essay will be graded on the following:
· Must create a scene.
Think 80% scene, 20% reflection/analysis in terms of the essay's composition.
Use at least some dialogue to create a scene
Use concrete, sensory detail to create vivid, clear, directed imagery
Employ three of the senses (if all five)
Strong sense of setting (using aforementioned sensory details)
Must have a clear sense of the relationship with the reader
Consider writing to a specific person (e.g. think of someone specific as your reader, rather than someone anonymous)
Think about the audience for Elena Ferrante's My Brilliant Friend or the audience for Notes from Underground
· Must be honest; don't try to sell yourself to me like you might in a college app. Personal essays are far more compelling when they reveal a person's flaws, uncertainties, misgivings, insecurities, etc.
Probably should have some sort of conflict—can be with another person, a situation or with yourself
· Demonstrate a personal investment in the topic (topic concerns your past or present life in some way)
· Something changes or is revealed in the essay (it could be something literally changes in the physical world and/or something changes in terms of how you see the world/understand yourself)
· Mechanics! As always, it’s crucial to spell words properly, get your grammar right, use words correctly, indent the essay properly, etc.
Essay must have a title--something that grabs the reader and relates to a theme or subject of the essay
· 900 words for personal essay: NO MORE! (points will be deducted if you exceed the word count)
Please answer the following questions in your reflection on the essay:
Approx. 1 page reflection on essay (250-350 words)
a. Describe the process of writing this essay: How long did it take you to begin the essay? Did you do several freewrites and then edit or edit as you wrote? Did you write in several chunks or all at once? etc
b. What are you proud of in the essay?
c. What was challenging about writing it?
d. How long did this essay take you to write?
e. What questions do you have for me?
·Please include your reflection on the essay when you post your essay on turnitin.com
Put the reflection at the end of your essay
Make it clear where your essay ends and your reflection begins
Topic is freedom . . . or the loss thereof
a. Make sure you pick an episode or incident from your life that you can adequately describe in 900 words. In other words, you’ll create a complete “scene” in approximately 3 pages.
b. Remember that your essay should be approximately 80%-90% scene and 10%-20% analysis.
Here are some suggestions to help you shape/come up with a topic for your essay:
a) Re-work one of your freewrites on freedom/loss of freedom into an essay. You can also see if it's possible to take ideas from both and shape them into one essay.
b) How has school given or taken freedom away from you? What have you unexpectedly gained or lost coming here?
Because personal essays often require some critical distance, you might also consider how your middle or even grade school shaped you instead of high school.
c) Describe a complicated relationship, one which has changed you in some way.
d) Think of two different worlds or communities that you belong to. Could be school friends vs. home friends; family vs. school; two different cultures you belong to.
Are you a different person—do you wear a different identity in these two cultures? How do these two identities conflict/interact? What is the cost or consequence of this conflict/interaction? Have you gained freedom or lost it as a result of being part of these two worlds?
e) Describe an experience in nature where you felt free.
f) Describe an experience traveling to a new place.
g) Describe a scene where you were in conflict with yourself. Perhaps you wanted something but sabotaged yourself. Perhaps you treated another person poorly--and knew it--but still continued to treat that person poorly. Did you find a way to break free from that kind of behavior or do you still behave this way from time to time? If so, why? (These prompts are inspired by Notes from the Underground.)
Note: It's more important for you to be invested in your essay than to have a strict definition of freedom. In other words, you can use the term "freedom" loosely and creatively in your writing.
Length:
3 pages for personal essay (900 words): NO MORE! (points will be deducted if you exceed the word count)
Approx. 1 page reflecting on essay (250-350 words)
Note: If you're mentioning anyone from the College Prep community, and you think that person might not want to be mentioned in your essay, then please change their name and one small physical detail.
Due: October 14th
***Important: Please post your essay on turnitin.com
Class ID #: 22466314
Class password: English
*** Please make sure to read and sign a copy of the creative writing contract.
Creative checklist:
Click below for a couple sample essays from published writers. They're a bit longer than the ones you'll be writing, but not much.