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0.3: What is an Essay?

Argument in Action: Academic Writing and Critical Thought · LibreTexts

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    From LibreTexts, under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0, as the source states it; its equations are written in TeX, which the PDF shows typeset. This page at LibreTexts.

    In college writing classes, your instructor may ask you to write an essay. The word 'essay' comes from the French word “essayer,” which means to try or attempt. So what are we trying to attempt when writing an essay? In academic essays, we aim to share ideas, feeling, or claims through writing. Instead of simple reporting of facts, you will write to persuade your reader to accept your ideas. You will also practice rhetoric and information literacy to make your arguments stronger. All this comes together in a short piece of writing that conveys your message in a text we call an essay.

    This page titled 0.3: What is an Essay? was last modified on Sun, 17 May 2026 09:21:07 GMT and is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by LauraLee Miller.