The Expository Essay

Introduction
This unit will introduce you to expository essay writing. It will explain to you
what is meant by expository (informative) essay. It will also describe the different
parts of an expository essay.

Objectives of the lecture

By the end of this unit you should be able to:
 Define an expository (informative) essay.
 Recognize the structure of expository essay.
 Practice writing the different parts of an expository essay.

Key Terms
You will find the following key words and phrases in this unit. Watch for these
words and make sure that you understand what they mean and how they are
used in this unit.

 Expository or informative essay

 Introductory paragraph

 Hook

 Building statement

 Thesis statement

 Body paragraphs

 Topic sentence

 Supporting sentence(s)

 Concluding sentence

 Concluding paragraph
  Restated thesis

 Summary of main ideas

 Final thought

What is an expository or informative essay?

Try to discuss with your colleague(s) what you think an expository or
informative essay is.

An expository or informative essay is a type of essay that describes a particular set

of events, facts, or situations and attempts to explain why these are found in one
or more specific situations and contexts.

The aim of the expository essay is to familiarize the reader with a body of
knowledge (Wilkinson & Hommes, 2010). As a writer of an expository essay
therefore, your goal is to explain something to your audience by critically
looking at an idea and providing facts or evidence in its support in a clear and
concise manner.

Structure of an expository essay

An expository essay is composed of several paragraphs, with each paragraph
playing a specific role. Assuming we had a 5-paragraph essay, the following
could be its structure:

 Paragraph 1: Introductory paragraph or Introduction

 Paragraphs 2-4: Body paragraphs or Main body

 Paragraph 5: Concluding paragraph or conclusion

This is illustrated in Figure 4.1 below. However, take note that some essays can
be longer than 5 paragraphs depending on the number of points that you as a
writer want to raise in your body paragraphs or main body.

Figure 4.1: Illustration of structure of a 5-paragraph expository essay

Source: Chin, Reid, Wray, & Yomazaki (2012)

The Introductory paragraph

In the first paragraph of your expository essay, you should introduce the reader
to the essay topic. Your should do the following:
 Create the reader’s interest to wish to continue to read your essay
 Outline your essay’s main ideas
 Suggest the order in which these main ideas will be presented within the
body of your essay.
Make sure that you incorporate the following three main elements in the
introduction of your essay:
 A hook
 A building statement which can be made up of one or more sentences
 A thesis statement.

The Hook
The hook is the opening sentence or sentences of your essay introduction.
Through the hook, you as a writer should achieve three things. Firstly, you
should catch the attention of your reader who is most likely also to be your
lecturer. You should also introduce your essay in an interesting manner. Finally,
you should aim at encouraging your reader to continue to read your essay.
In order to hook the reader, you can use one of the following strategies:
 You can open your essay with an eye-catching statement by using an
interesting idea or an idea that seems to be opposing the thesis of the essay.
 You can also open your essay introduction with an interesting statistic that
uses a factual (i.e. not made up) detail that is not widely known.
 You can start your introduction with a quotation from an expert on the
topic. A quotation from an expert ensures that you start your essay with a
powerfully worded statement in a knowledgeable and authoritative
manner.

Building statement
A building statement may comprise of one or more sentences that should follow
immediately after your hooking sentence. The building statement enables you
the writer to provide background information in order to provide the reader
with some context about the topic or to make them familiar to it. Your building
statement should build towards the thesis statement.

The thesis statement

Your thesis statement should be the last part of your introductory paragraph. The
thesis statement is probably the most important element in your essay because of
three main things:
 Through it, you as a writer present the topic of your entire essay
 It also provides you the opportunity to state your position on the topic.
 It also enables you to outline the ideas that you will develop and discuss in
the body paragraphs of your essay to support your position on the topic.
You therefore need to list these ideas in the same order they are developed
and discussed in the body paragraphs of the essay in order to give your
reader a clear preview of what each of the body paragraphs will be about.
In short essays, the thesis statement is usually one sentence long. Below is an
example of a thesis statement.

Solar power is improving people’s lives in developing countries by providing

safe and efficient light, linking them to the global mobile community, and
increasing their independence.

You will note that the thesis statement above shows that:
 “Solar power” is the topic of the essay.
 The writer’s position on this topic is that it is “improving people’s lives in
developing countries.”
 The writer gives three main ideas to support this position: a) it is providing
safe and efficient light; b) it is linking people from these countries to the
global mobile community; and c) it is “increasing their independence.”Each
of these three main ideas is what the writer will explain in detail in separate
body paragraphs: a) in the first body paragraph; b) in the next body
paragraph; and c) in the last body paragraph.
We should see the thesis statement as a brief response to the essay question that
triggered the writing as illustrated below.

Question: Write an essay in which you explain how solar power as an

alternative form of energy is being used successfully in the world today.
Thesis statement: Solar power is improving people’s lives in developing
countries by providing safe and efficient light, linking them to the global
mobile community, and increasing their independence.

Activity a

Read the following thesis statements. Where possible, identify the topic of the
essay, the writer’s position or opinion or approach, and three main ideas.
Decide whether each of these theses statements have all the three parts or
not. Where you note that some parts are missing, try to rewrite them on your
own in order to improve them.

i. The Internet has caused daily print newspapers to fail and may cause some
of these newspapers to close.

Ii. Social research has changed dramatically since the early 1990s for a number
of reasons.

Iii. This is because smart phones allow us to connect to the Internet, provide
a range of useful and entertaining applications, and combine the functions of
several electronic devices.

Body paragraphs
In each body paragraph, you should explain in detail one of the main ideas that
you stated in your thesis statement during the introduction.

Your thesis statement must comprise three parts:

 A topic sentence
 Supporting sentences

 A concluding sentence.

The topic sentence should be the opening statement in your body paragraph in
which you express the topic of the paragraph and provide a controlling idea
about the topic. All the information that you provide in this paragraph should
support the controlling idea.

In the supporting sentences you explain and develop the topic sentence. Here
you present logical thoughts, evidence, statistics, opinions and/or experiences of
experts, and explanations in support of the controlling idea.

End your body paragraph with a concluding sentence which brings the argument
of the particular paragraph to an end.

Activity 4b
Read the sample body paragraph below and identify the topic sentence and
three supporting statements that the writer makes in support of the topic
sentence. Also identify the concluding sentence.
Working in a tobacco processing plant could be the worst job a person could
ever dream of. First of all, the work is physically demanding. For ten hours a
night, an average tobacco factory worker lifts hundreds of bales rolled down
a metal track and stacks them onto wooden skids in a tractor trailer, with
each bale weighing 50 kilograms on average. The second bad feature of a
tobacco factory job is the pay. On average, a worker gets a monthly salary
of about K282, 600.00 with no compensation for working the night shift.
Finally, working conditions in most tobacco processing factory are not
unfavourable. On average a worker on night shift is limited to two
ten-minute breaks and an unpaid half hour for lunch. Due to the nocturnal
nature of the job, workers are forced to spend most of their break time
outside on the loading dock in unfavourable temperatures. If a worker has
 no common interests with fellow workers, he or she is likely to be left feeling
very lonely and isolated. This is why most tobacco factory workers leave the
job only a few months later after the date they were first employed.

The Concluding paragraph

You should end your essay by reviewing the main ideas from each body
paragraph and leaving the reader with a final thought. Your conclusion must
consist of three elements:

 a restated thesis

 a summary of main ideas

 and a final thought.

At the start of the concluding paragraph, you should restate your thesis using
words that are different from those used in the introductory paragraph.

You must also summarize the main ideas discussed in your body paragraphs in
your concluding paragraph as a reminder to your reader.

You should end the conclusion of your essay by presenting a final thought on the
topic, for example, by stating an opinion, a solution, or a prediction. The
purpose of the final thought is for you to leave a strong impression on your
reader and encourage them to think further about the topic.

Activity 4c
Go through the sample conclusion below and identify the restated thesis, the
summary of main ideas and the writer’s final thought.
In summary, solar power is making a significant difference to the lives of
people in the developing world. By providing safe, clean and efficient light,
it is removing dangers from people’s homes while brightening their
evenings. In addition, the ability to charge a cellphone allows people to
communicate with the world and grow their businesses. The increased time
and money available give people the means to take control of their lives and
build for the future. The evidence certainly shows that in parts of the world
where there is abundant sunlight, harnessing solar energy can be key to
improving the lives of many people.