About Narrative Essay
About Narrative Essay Narrative essay is a popular topic on the Continuous Writing section and students should take note that this topic has appeared in the SPM examination almost every year since the paper was introduced. Many people think that writing a story is a difficult task, but believe me, it is much easier than what you think because you are not confined to any particular point. Therefore, you are free to voice out everything that is in your mind. A narrative essay is a piece of writing that recreates an experience through time.
It can be based on one of your own experiences, either past or present, or it can be based on the experience of someone else. In the exam if you choose to write a narrative essay, it simply means that you are telling a story, which is meaningful and important to you. It describes how a certain event that happened to you. A good narrative isn’t an enjoyable or amusing story, but has a point to make, an idea to pass on. Guidelines 1. Before writing the essay you should identify the experience that you want to write about.
Think about the experience is significant and spend a good deal of time drafting your recollections about the details of the experience. Finally, create an outline of the basic parts of your narrative. 2. The story should have an introduction that clearly indicates what kind of narrative essay it is (an event or recurring activity, a personal experience, or an observation), and it should have a conclusion that makes a point. 3. It’s okay to include anecdotes. The author should describe the person, the scene, or the event in some detail.
The occasion or person described must be suggestive in that your description and thoughts lead the reader to reflect on the human experience. 4. It’s okay to include dialogue as long as you know how to punctuate it correctly and as long as you avoid using too much of it. 5. The point of view in narrative essay is usually first person. The use of “I” invites your reader into an intimate discussion. Plot The plot is very important in the narrative essay as it is the basic structure as the story and the whole story revolves around the plot. A good plot has an OPENING, MIDDLE and an ENDING.
Let us look at the different stages in writing a narrative essay. 1. OPENING (Orientation) Introduction of plot ,setting, character 2. Climax (MIDDLE) 3. Resolution (ENDING) Closing of the story. Character You must have strong characters in your story and the description of such characters should help make your story credible that is reasonably true to life, clearly differentiated from each other so that you do not mix them up and finally vividly presented so that the reader can easily visualize them. Therefore present your characters sharply and clearly by using significant details which readily give a clue to the nature of each person. Read the description about the following characters: Siti Norhaliza could have been in her early twenties. I just guessed by her physical appearance. She wore a headdress but was not a scarf. It looked so beautiful and may have been designed by an exclusive designer. She looked elegant. Her dress was in a form of an evening frock usually worn by little princess. Her large eyes were as bright as the sun. The lighting system hindered the colour identification of her eyes. They might have been brown or black. Her cheeks were rosy as embarrassment caught up with her.
She realized that she was the centre of attention and attraction. She spoke with a good manner and the way she sang was amazing. The description of the character mentioned above was written in precise manner. Siti Norhaliza was described as a very beautiful and elegant figure. She is a young lady where it was mentioned as in her early twenties and has her rosy cheeks. Her beauty caught the attention of everyone. She spoke in a good manner and sang amazingly. The vivid expressions written give a clear picture about that beautiful young singer that arouses your interest to read further.
Methods of Opening and Ending There are a few ways to open and to end an essay. Some Types of Opening The opening sentence of your essay is very important. Your duty is to get the reader interested right from the start. A lifeless, stereotype or dull sentence may damp your reader’s interest. Keep the opening short and do not get carried away. Here are some guidelines of how you should start your essay. i. Describe the background to your story to establish clearly your characters and situation. Example: I usually sleep well. That night however, was different. Keeping my eyes closed didn’t help.
It was probably the thought of the SPM examination that was keeping me awake. ii. Describe the setting to create the mood for your story. Example: it was a warm night. There had been no rain for the past week. I was lying down on the couch watching the late night movie. iii. Use direct speech to make a living beginning, especially if the character says something that grabs the reader’s attention. Example: “May God answer my prayer and lead me to the right way! ” she whispered, raising her hand in oath. iv. Use words which convey sounds to start on dramatic note. Example: Bang! Bang.
There’s a loud banging sound coming from the backyard of the bungalow. v. Use proverb or quotation relevant to the theme. Example: ‘Where there is a will there is a way’. I kept on walking in the dark. It was windy. Then, out of the darkness suddenly, ……… To End the Essay The ending must be a logical conclusion to the story. In the end the reader is told how everything works out. With this, the story is brought to a satisfactory conclusion. Your conclusion should be a logical outcome of all, the action that took place before. Make it short so as not to take away the excitement that you created earlier.
Try to be original! Try not to use very cliched ending, that is, endings that have been used again and again, for example: … thank God it is all over. … and then I fainted. Be imaginative, end your story in an unexpected way by creating a ‘twist’ at the end. However, remember that ‘unexpected’ does not mean ‘illogical’. Here is an example of how to end the story. ………………………………. It was my happiest moment. I felt relieved to be able to escape from the flood. Splashing the water around us, we soon attracted the attention of the rescuer. We were rescued and taken to the evacuation centre.
