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DESCRIPTION
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TRAITS
Key Elements of a Descriptive Essay:
o sense details (more than just sight)
o arranged spatially
o to support a Dominant Impression
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ASSIGNMENT
o To describe a familiar object utilizing
only SENSE DETAILS:
-sight -taste
-sound -touch
-smell

o To describe only the physical characteristics;

o To appeal to the senses; to use concrete

details
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PRACTICE TOPICS
1) Your living room or bedroom (the room in
your home where you spend the most
time);

2) Your automobile;

3) The master bedroom in Edgar Allan Poe’s

“The Tell-Tale Heart”
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PREWRITING
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PREWRITING
1) 5 SENSES
o make 5 lists (one for each sense)
o sight, smell, sound, taste, touch
o under each, list as many relevant details
regarding your topic as possible
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PREWRITING
2) IMPRESSIONS
o from the previous lists, make connections
between items on the previous lists
o group according to likeness
o that is, certain sense details are related by
the impression that they create
o “eerie”
o “messy”
o “feminine”
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PREWRITING
3) DOMINANT IMPRESSION
o the longest list of impressions from the
previous lists will be your dominant
impression,
 the most striking impression concerning your
object
o to this list add
o adjectives
o adverbs
o similes/metaphors
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PREWRITING ***Practice
4) SYNONYMS
o Make a list of synonyms for your Dominant
Impression
o Consult a thesaurus
o “Tidy”:
o neat
o orderly
o organized
o uncluttered
o anal-retentive/obsessive-compulsive
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INTRODUCTION-a run
through of how it should
look, follow along, no
assignment here…yet
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INTRODUCTION
FUNNEL EFFECT
1. Generalize 1st
o Introduce your topic
o Most people, Most college students
2. Narrow your focus
o Some
o Others
3. Focus on you
o Me
4. End with Thesis Statement
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GENERALIZE 1st
-Introduce your topic
-Most college students

NARROW your FOCUS

-Some
-Others

FOCUS on YOU
-Me

THESI
S
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INTRODUCTION
FUNNEL EFFECT: EXAMPLES

1) Owning a car these days is a necessity,

especially for students at a community
college or high school. Looking around the
parking lot at RCK, I usually see three types
of cars: the new, high-end pre-graduation
gift cars, the modified sports cars, and the
run-down first cars. Unfortunately, my car is
one of the latter.... (thesis with clear
Dominant Impression: My gray 1986
Oldsmobile Omega is a junker, especially in
terms of its exterior, interior, and trunk.)
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INTRODUCTION
FUNNEL EFFECT: EXAMPLES

2) Most people have a place to go to feel

refreshed when life gets too tough. (OR) Most
people have a place they visit to get away
from everyday life. It could be a car, a place
in nature, or a room at home. For me it is my
bedroom. (then comes the thesis with clearly
stated Dominant Impression)
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Thesis Statement
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INTRODUCTION
THESIS STATEMENT

o Comes at the end of the first paragraph

(“Funnel Effect”)

TOPIC + MAIN IDEA + SUPPORT

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INTRODUCTION
THESIS STATEMENT

o Example for Descriptive Essay:

o My car is a junker in terms of its….
o Three aspects of my car that make it a junker
are the front seat, the back seat, and the
trunk.

o Contains the Dominant Impression and the 3

aspects/parts of your object that support it.
TOPIC: MY CAR
D.I.: JUNKER
SUPPORT: (1) FRONT SEAT
(2) BACK SEAT
(3) TRUNK
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Dominant Impression
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INTRODUCTION
DOMINANT IMPRESSION

*CHARACTERISTICS of a Dominant Impression:

o *ADJECTIVE or NOUN*
o Declared in thesis statement
o Unifying or controlling aspect; ambiance;
this will link all of your sense details.
o Without this, your details are like marbles
without a jar.
o The first adjective that comes to mind when
you think of your car.
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DOMINANT
IMPRESSION

SENSE DETAIL SENSE DETAIL SENSE DETAIL

ALL SENSE DETAILS RELATE TO & SUPPORT DOMINANT IMPRESSION

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INTRODUCTION
DOMINANT IMPRESSION

*HOW TO CREATE a Dominant Impression:

o Write the 5 senses on a blank sheet of paper

with room beneath each to write;
o Then, list as many details that appeal to a
particular sense under its name;
o Go from the front of the car to the back &
from the outside to the inside;
o Then, see which details are related to each
other, that paint a similar picture of the
object, and group them together;
o What these details relate to will be your
Dominant Impression.
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INTRODUCTION
DOMINANT IMPRESSION: EXAMPLES

ROOM:
o oasis of peace,
o tranquil refuge,
o feminine/masculine,
o reflects personality (*you must briefly define
your personality; use the appropriate
adjective before the word “personality”:
creative personality, artistic temperament),
o reflects my musical tastes,
o disaster area,
o pig sty
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INTRODUCTION
DOMINANT IMPRESSION: EXAMPLES

CAR:
o total embarrassment, Bondo Buggy,
o off-road monster,
o Junk Mobile,
o typical college student’s (in terms of mess,
neglect, ...),
o typical first car (in terms of price,
efficiency...),
o “The Black Beauty,” “The Polar Bear”
o giant toy, sporty car, Daddy’s car,
o accessorized car (“Pimp My Ride”) (tricked
out)
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BODY
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BODY
3 Body paragraphs
(3 paragraphs = 3 parts of your object)
o TOPIC SENTENCE –
o starts each paragraph
o reiterates your thesis, Dominant Impression
o DESCRIPTION –
o sense details, figurative language
o that supports only your Dominant Impression
o CLINCHER SENTENCE –
o ends, wraps up the paragraph
o reiterates your Dominant Impression
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BODY: DO’s
Qualities of a Strong Descriptive Essay

1)*** DESCRIBE—DO NOT LIST!!

o Describe items found in your car/room;
o Lists do not describe; lists are more
exemplary than descriptive;
o This is a descriptive essay using sense
details, not an illustrative essay using
reasons;
o Show rather than tell
o Make us see, smell, taste, feel, hear it as
you want us to…to fit your Dominant
Impression
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BODY: DO’s
Qualities of a Strong Descriptive Essay

2) SENSE DETAILS only:

o Appeal to the 5 senses, not just sight
o Appeal to as many of the 5 that are relevant
o Consult your prewriting lists
 Relying solely on sight  leads to LISTS

o Number, size, shape, texture, material,

odor/scent, taste, sound
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BODY: DO’s
Qualities of a Strong Descriptive Essay

3) SIMILES & METAPHORS:

o use similes & metaphors to reinforce your D.I.
o EX: “The smell is like…” OR “The smell reminds
me of wet, moldy leaves soaking in a crammed rain
gutter for a month. (not a pleasing D.I.)
o rust = cancer, leprosy, flesh-eating bacteria;
o “angry red beast:” headlights = giant glaring eyes,
grill=hungry chrome jaws, bumper=chin with battle
scars (continue the metaphor throughout, only
those details that support “beastly”)
o *Warning: Similes only support your sense details;
they do NOT replace the need for sense details.
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BODY: DO’s
Qualities of a Strong Descriptive Essay

4) Relate all SENSE DETAILS to your

DOMINANT IMPRESSION:
o all details should reinforce your D.I.
o if it does not, omit the detail
o all sense details and metaphors should
support a single impression
o this is NOT a “word picture” in which you
describe every aspect of your car
o instead, focus your description on your D.I.
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BODY
Relate all SENSE DETAILS to your DOMINANT IMPRESSION

o Repeat THESIS:
o “Another aspect of my room that makes it a
pig sty is….”
o at the start of each paragraph

o ADJECTIVES and ADVERBS that are

synonymous with your Dominant Impression
o ADJ: busy = hectic, energetic, bustling,
crowded, swarming, packed, jammed,
overrun, popular, populous, active, lively
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BODY: DO’s
Qualities of a Strong Descriptive Essay

5) Use TRANSITIONS:
o between sentences (logically or spatially connect
details in each sentence) AND
o between paragraphs (repeat thesis)

6) Use proper PN REFERENCE:

o *especially when generalizing in Introduction
o Everyone has a place he/she could call his/her own.
o see how the use of “he/she” gets old fast
o so go plural: Most people have a place they could call
their own.
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BODY: DO’s
Qualities of a Strong Descriptive Essay

7) DICTION:—use creative, selective, and

pointed details & words (employ
concrete/specific word choice)

8) Include an INTRODUCTION (see above) and

a CONCLUSION (see below or consult the
textbook)

9) Have a CLEAR VISION of the object (best to

visit the place you will describe)
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BODY: DO’s
Qualities of a Strong Descriptive Essay

10) Have a CAREFUL SELECTION of DETAILS

o only those that support your DI

11) Maintain a consistent point-of-view (POV)

o no second person POV “you”
o your room, your car, your impression, your
details  your POV (speak from the “I”)
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BODY: DO’s
Qualities of a Strong Descriptive Essay

12) COHERENCE:
o develop a logical flow of ideas/details
o “camera angle” -- spatial organization

13) Paragraph Structure:

o 3 Body paragraphs = 3 parts of car/room
o do NOT arrange the essay around the senses (each
paragraph is not one of the senses)

14) *REMEMBER:
o this is NOT a “why” or “because” essay which is
supported with reasons
o instead, use aspect, feature, characteristic, portion
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BODY
TAKE THE HINT

o SENSE DETAILS ONLY

o ONLY THOSE SENSE DETAILS THAT

SUPPORT YOUR DOMINANT IMPRESSION

o IF ANY DETAIL DOES NOT SUPPORT YOUR

DOMINANT IMPRESSION—NO MATTER HOW
“COOL” OR INTERESTING IT MAY BE—OMIT

IT FROM THIS ESSAY

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SENSE
DETAIL SENSE LISTS
DETAIL
SENSE SENSE
DETAIL DETAIL

DOMINANT
SENSE SENSE
IMPRESSION
DETAIL DETAIL

SENSE SENSE
DETAIL DETAIL
SENSE
DETAIL
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BODY: DON’Ts

1) ***DO NOT LIST items found in your car/room;

this does not describe; lists are more exemplary
than descriptive (this is a descriptive essay using
sense details, not an illustrative essay using
reasons) (show rather than tell)

2) Do NOT just throw ideas onto the page; make

sure you have a Dominant Impression -- a clear
purpose, a point; be a movie director and limit
what you want the audience to see, to see it/them
from your perspective
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BODY: DON’Ts
3) Do NOT describe emotions, feelings,
personality (these are not sense details)

4) Do NOT use pat expressions/clichés (rough

around the edges), contractions (I’ve, it’s),
poor diction (“things,” “a lot”), or
abbreviations (especially CD=compact disc)

5) *NUMBERS: 3+ syllables/numerals = 350, 1

or 2 syllables/numerals = six, twenty-five;
year = 1998, 2005)
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CONCLUSION
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CONCLUSION
PURPOSE of CONCLUDING PARAGRAPHS

o To stress the importance/relevance of your

thesis (SO WHAT?!)
o To repeat your purpose
o To repeat your thesis (moral, point, lesson,
Dominant Impression)
o To repeat your main ideas
o To give the essay a sense of
completeness/finality
o To leave the reader with a final impression
(*this is your last chance to convince/persuade
the reader, so make the most of it!)
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CONCLUSION
SUGGESTIONS

o Discuss in full the lesson learned

o Suggest larger implications of your findings
o Suggest future papers or research
o Refer back to your purpose and/or scenario
mentioned in your Introduction
o Pose rhetorical questions
o Offer a 3rd side to the issue
o End with a CLINCHER SENTENCE
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CONCLUSION
CLINCHER SENTENCE

o Just as you ended each Body paragraph with a

concluding sentence that wrapped up that
point/paragraph, so too will you end the entire
essay
o (Thesis Statement : Topic Sentence :: Clincher
Sentence : Paragraph Clincher Sentence)
o Avoid the empty cliché
o Wrap it all up
o Relate to your point (for example, if you wrote
a process paper on making a PB&J sandwich,
end by saying that you are now hungry for one)
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VISUAL IMPRESSIONS
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BEDROOM #1
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BEDROOM #2
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BEDROOM #3
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CAR #1
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CAR #2
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CAR #3
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CAR #4
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Descriptive Essay
VS
Example Essay
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Descriptive Essay VS Example Essay

o SENSE DETAILS o REASONS

o Dominant Impression o Argument/Claim

o BODY STRUCTURE: o BODY STRUCTURE:

o 3 Body paragraphs o 3 Body paragraphs
o 3 parts of the room/car o 3 reasons
o Each supported by: o Each supported by:
o sense details ONLY o examples
o metaphors to support DI o descriptive details
o narratives
o types/roles
o LISTS = prohibited o LISTS = permissible
o SHOW o TELL
o SPATIAL ORDER o EMPHATIC ORDER