What is an essay?
   A piece of prose writing…
   … discussing a specific topic;
   … producing an organized, coherent 
    argument based on a plan; 
   … expressing an original/individual 
    viewpoint on the topic under discussion.
        Things to avoid:
   Being off subject—i.e. discussing a topic not 
    related to the one proposed by the essay question.
   Writing a chaotic essay—i.e. a piece of writing 
    in which the elements of your argument are not 
    logically linked (1) to each other or (2) to the topic. 
   Engage in plagiarism—i.e. using someone’s 
    ideas, words, or texts, without duly acknowledging 
    them and therefore implying said ideas are your 
    own. 
   Sample essay question
  ‘Beckett est essentiellement 
  tragique’ (Eugène Ionesco). 
  Discuss this comment, with 
  reference to En attendant Godot.
          Preliminaries
   Consider the wording of the title carefully.
   Look up terms which are unclear.
   Consider the structure of the question: 
    Quotation (Ionesco) + Question (discussion + 
     specifies the work to be discussed: En attendant 
     Godot).
      Analysis of the quotation:
   ‘Beckett est essentiellement tragique’ (Eugène Ionesco). 
   Try to situate the quotation: find out more about its 
    author 
    In this case: the French-Romanian playwright Eugène 
      Ionesco, a contemporary of Beckett’s.
   A statement: ask yourself whether you agree or not.
   Analyse the structure:
    ‘Beckett…’: reflects the general nature of the statement—not 
      a specific work by Beckett, but his work as a whole;
    ‘…est essentiellement’: there may be room for other 
      elements (comic, for instance);
    ‘…tragique’: the term is being used is its generic, dramatic 
      sense.