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The Definition Essay

The descriptive essay is essentially a creative exercise, relying much more upon the ability of the writer to instil in the reader a fully realised sensual connection with whatever is being described.

Getting started on a Creative Essay

You will have been learning to assimilate the basic skills required for writing a creative essay from your earliest schooldays, when you were encouraged to employ descriptive passages in your stories. That may seem a long time ago but like riding a bike once learnt it is never forgotten!

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Before beginning to write you need to have a firm grasp of the audience for whom you are writing and the purpose behind it. This is obvious, if you think about it, because you would write very differently for, say, a teenage audience from how you would write for a retired person. This is not an ageist statement, it is a simple fact, since though possible, it would be unusual for both to respond to the same approach even if the topic is the same. For example, if you were to describe a busy shopping centre at Christmas, you would choose to emphasise different aspects depending on your audience, age being only on of the determining factors.

After you are sure for whom you are writing, you need to make a list of everything you can think of which might aid the description. After this, begin to organise your ideas into paragraphs each addressing a different aspect of the description.

Creating a Descriptive Essay

A descriptive essay needs to appeal to as many of the senses as possible in order to make the reader feel that they are actually involved in the scene. Employ linguistic devices such as semantic fields, structural and temporal variation and varying syntax to help capture and hold your reader’s interest.

You should also make comprehensive and effective use of literary devices such as metaphors and similes to aid your description: likening a scene or object to another can create an effective juxtaposition aiding the overall creative effect. For example, comparing shoppers hurrying about to bees in a hive would be appealing to several senses at once and help the reader realise the picture you are painting.

Remember, that the prime purpose of a descriptive essay is to make use of language, structure and technique in order to create a vibrant and emotive visualisation of a scene, whether it is part of a longer work or to be read in isolation. Often, the descriptive essay is used to asses the writer’s ability not only to describe a scene but also to involve the emotions of the reader, so give this additional aspect of the descriptive essay an equal amount of space and thought in writing the piece. A successful descriptive essay not only helps the reader to imagine they are present but actually makes them feel that they are there. This is a challenge, of course, but one which makes the writing of a descriptive essay an exciting and interesting academic exercise.