Expository Writing
Exposition is a type of oral or written discourse that is
used to explain, describe, give information or inform. The creator of an
expository text can not assume that the reader or listener has prior knowledge
or prior understanding of the topic that is being discussed. One important
point to keep in mind for the author is to try to use words that clearly show
what they are talking about rather then blatantly telling the reader what is
being discussed. Since clarity requires strong organization, one of the most
important mechanisms that can be used to improve our skills in exposition is to
provide directions to improve the organization of the text.
In order to give you more information about oral and written
exposition we have provided you with eight different examples of expository
organizational patterns. You will find that most of these organizational
patterns are very familiar to you. You may have never really considered them to
be "kind" of organizational patterns.
Let's think about the type of writing that most of us
encounter in our daily lives. When you pick up and read a non-fiction book,
magazines, or newspaper article the author uses expository writing to inform
you, the reader, about the topic. At school, students are required to submit
school exams and research papers as a means for their teachers to grade their
progress. Finally, at work, people are required to produce business reports and
memorandums to inform their superiors and co-workers about the occurrences that
take place at other levels of the company. In addition, oral exposition is
primarily observed in oral academic presentations, business talks, and speeches
that are delivered to a group of people. As each of these different cases
illustrate, expository writing and speech surround us in our everyday lives.
The primary intent of the Expository Writing Program contained at this web site
will be to help move students closer to mastering the hows, whens, and wheres
to select different oral and written expository styles for a variety of real
world contexts.
Students will greatly benefit from understanding the varying
types of oral and writing styles they can use for academic and workplace
activities. The following information discusses the different types of writing
that can be used and provides you with examples of some expository writing
prompts that you may expect to encounter.
Expository writing is writing that seeks to explain,
illuminate or 'expose' (which is where the word 'expository' comes from). This
type of writing can include essays, newspaper and magazine articles,
instruction manuals, textbooks, encyclopedia articles and other forms of
writing, so long as they seek to explain. Expository writing differs from other
forms of writing, such as fiction and poetry. In fact, this lesson itself is an
example of expository writing.
The expository essay is a tool that is often used in the
academic world. If you've attended school, it's highly likely you've written
one. Most expository essays have an introductory paragraph in which a thesis or
objective is stated, several main body paragraphs that prove or explain what is
in the introduction, and a concluding paragraph in which everything is summed
up.
When writing an expository essay, it's important to write
with the assumption that your audience has little to no background knowledge
about the main topic. Your duty as the writer is to provide the reader with as
much information as you can. The reader should feel as if he or she has learned
something after reading your essay.
There are different types of expository writing that are
used for different purposes. Let's take a look at some examples. First, a descriptive
essay can be used when the writer wants to describe the characteristics or
features of a person, place, thing, process, event, etc. Descriptive essays,
more than other types of expository writing, seek to stimulate the reader's
senses.
For example, if you wanted to describe what chocolate chip
cookies are like, you might write: 'Chocolate chip cookies are one of the most
popular desserts in the world. They can either be crispy or soft and have a
sweet smell to them reminiscent of a bakery. They taste rich and melt in your
mouth. When they bake, they 'wrinkle' up in the oven, and the combination of
the nooks and crannies in the dough with the mouth-watering chocolate chips on
top make them hard to resist.' These several sentences have aptly described
chocolate chip cookies using sight, smell, taste and touch. You could also
describe a process, such as running a marathon, in which you told the reader
about how much you sweated, how you lost your breath going up hills, how you
couldn't see three feet in front of you because of the fog, etc.