You must be familiar with argumentative essays, they are pretty common and one of the absolute favourites of teachers to assign.

But today, we’re going to discuss a subtype of argumentative essays--- analytical essay.

What is an analytical essay?

Well, it’s simple.

As the name suggests, the goal of an analytical essay is to analyse something and explain it in depth to increase understanding.

You can write an analytical essay on different subjects --- analyze a book, play, event, poem, issue, or a piece of art.

However, while tackling such essays don’t simply summarize the topic; instead, you are required to critically examine the details and provide evidence to support your arguments.

When writing about a novel analyze the plot, how the author has portrayed the characters, and the influence it has on the readers.

Analytical essay just like any other type of an essay follows the same outline format.

·         Introduction

·         Body

.         Conclusion

The introductory paragraph introduces the topic and provides relevant background information. It also comprises the hook sentence to grab the reader's attention and lastly the thesis statement --- enough time and effort should be spent on this as your professor will decide whether or not he/she should invest their time reading your essay.

Did you get assigned a cause and effect essay?

Then you must be wondering how to go about it, right?

First things first, let’s understand what cause and effect really means.

Think about how you wake up for school every day. Who wakes you up or should I say what?

You’re most likely to be woken up by the loud alarm that you set on your phone.

Now, “what does that have to do with a cause and effect essay?” you must be wondering.

Well, you waking up by an alarm clock is a cause and effect situation.

In this scenario, the alarm acts as the “cause” and the effect it has is that you wake for school on time without oversleeping.

In a cause and effect relationship, an event which is a cause makes another event occur --- the effect.

A single cause can make more than a single event happen. However, to have some sort of effect, it is necessary that the cause occurs before the effect. And whenever a cause occurs the effect must also take place.

To understand that, I’d suggest that you pay attention to the things around you and how everything in the world is interrelated before diving into writing a cause and effect essay.

What is a cause and effect essay?

High school and college students are often asked to write a cause and effect essay and it is one of the more common types of essays.

Such essays require students to discuss why something took place and the consequences it has had. You can be asked to explain the effect or consequences of an event, decision or an action.

How to craft a cause and effect essay outline?

Before jumping straight to the writing part, it is important that you have an outline to work with. This helps you focus and stay on track.

Start with brainstorming different ideas, shortlist the ones that interest you the most and then create your outline or essay plan.

The introduction serves as the main starting point of any essay. Similar to how people judge a book by its cover, your professor will decide whether or not to invest their time in reading your essay further by looking at your introduction.

The body usually comprises three paragraphs (Body paragraph I, Body paragraph II, Body paragraph III.) for a cause and effect essay; each of these paragraphs should reflect the main idea of your topic.

Leave the reader with a summary of your cause and effect points and ideas. Remind them of the connections between different ideas and how they relate with one another.