7/30/2019 Formal and Informal Essays

1/2

Formal and Informal Essays

Essays fall into two broad categories: formal and informal. The informal essay is oftencalled the familiar or personal essay.

It is useful to see the similarities between informal and formal essays, as shown in thecomparison chart below.

Characteristic Informal Essay Formal Essay

Authors Viewpoint Usually uses first person;

Directly addresses thereader

Usually uses third-person

pronoun

Subject/Content:

Sources of Evidence

Frequently drawn from life

of the writer and everydayevents

More commonly drawn from

shared historical events orliterature or other forms ofknowledge

Tone Frequently more personaland subjective; may beironic, amusing, thoughtful,

angry, or serious;Conversational and casual

Tends to be removed fromthe subject and appears tobe objective; tends to hold

emotions in check andexpress concerns throughstrong arguments and

powerful rhetorical devices;Academic and often

instructional

Structure Appears to be more looselystructured

Follow a fairly rigidstructure that focuses on

the development of oneclear argument at a time tosupport a clearly stated

thesis

Location of Thesis May appear anywhere inthe essay; may not beexplicitly stated

Usually stated explicitly,generally located in the firstor second paragraph of the

essay

Vocabulary Everyday words;Slang and colloquialisms;

Contractions;

Uses you and I

Technical words accordingto subject;

No slang or contractions;

Avoids you and IPurpose Entertainment; gentle

reflection

Provokes thought and

sometimes action

7/30/2019 Formal and Informal Essays

2/2

The Formal and Informal Essay

ESSAY: FORMAL

The formal essay is a serious written discussion through which a writer conveys a viewpoint ona designated subject.

The purpose of the formal essay is to write about a significant subject by focusing on the ideasrather than the person speaking. Definite structural patterns are associated with different formsof the formal essay (literary essay, classical essay, research essay, report, review). The formalessay is tightly focused on significant subject matter that may be highly specialized or universal.A definite introduction-development-conclusion pattern is used with carefully organizedparagraphs to present a thesis, discuss it, and end with a clear conclusion. It is designed toappeal mostly to an audience that is articulate and concerned. The voice of the writer may bestrong to subdued, objective to subjective, individualistic to universal. The language used isspecialized, controlled, precise, sophisticated and even artistic. The paper offers the reader a

cohesive body of thought leading to a definite point of view. The prose used may employdevices or be straightforward and direct. Just as in the informal essay, narration, description,exposition, or argument and persuasion may characterize the writing. The seriousness of thematter and the distance stance of the writer usually dictate the use of third person. The formalessay is usually more serious than the light-hearted tone of the informal essay. The impactwhich the writer wants for the reader is to think about a subject, to respond to the writers view,and to reach a conclusion related to that subject.

ESSAY: INFORMAL

The informal essay is a lighter approach to a selection of writing on topical ideas or issues.

The purpose of an informal essay is to engage and involve the reader by writing in a casual,entertaining manner about a subject. The informal essay, such as an article or personaldiscussion of a subject, may be light-hearted or serious in tone. The content tends to address atopical or contemporary issue, often personal. The writer, whose own personality is often muchin evidence, has a specific audience in mind e.g. a readership which will be engaged by such astyle of writing. In terms of structure, the informal essay lends itself to the use of innovativeapproaches and organizational choices: for example, quotes, illustrations, opening anecdote,rhetorical questions, narratives, etc., that could lead to the point of the essay in an indirectfashion. The language of this essay is informal, even conversational, uses a variety of stylistictechniques to engage the reader. Still other devices used to reach the audience are personal

anecdotes (narration), vivid images (description), elaborate ideas (exposition), arguments orpleas to create a case (argument/persuasion), satire or irony. All these language devices makethe informal essay accessible to a broad audience. The voice is strongly personal. The informalessay is commonly written in the first person because of the immediacy between writer andtopic.