It will be only three paragraphs long, including an introductory paragraph and two body paragraphs. Each paragraph should consist of no more than 6-10 sentences.

Each of these body paragraphs will begin with a transition phrase and a topic sentence stating the main idea; you’ll then add supporting details and finish with a conclusion sentence that wraps up the paragraph.

1, Post an outline and a description of your favorite place in only three paragraphs.

2, The essay is in MLA format, so use this heading in the upper, left-hand corner: Your first name / Eng 100 / Descriptive Essay / Date

3, Give it an original title, centered below the heading.

4, Size 12 font. Single-spaced is fine. Don’t worry about inserting page numbers.

5, Introductory paragraph: Open by stating where this favorite place is set (1-2 sentences). It can be anywhere, open or enclosed space. Make sure it’s a manageable location, of course. Give some background (3-4 sentences) about your history with this place. What makes it special to you? Close your Intro with a Thesis Sentence stating clearly what your essay accomplishes.

6, Body Paragraphs: You’ll write two paragraphs of 6-10 sentences each. Each paragraph include some of your senses: the abilities to see, hear, touch, smell, and taste. Don’t forget to label these senses using brackets, e.g., [SIGHT].

7, Within the Body Paragraphs, you will also use four literary/rhetorical techniques: personification, simile, metaphor, and alliteration. Don’t forget to label these techniques, e.g., [SIMILE].

8, Conclusion: Instead of a conclusion paragraph, here simply write a closing, summative sentence at the end of your second body paragraph.

9, One prohibition: please choose a location more original than Disneyland or Disney World. Most readers already know these places. Thanks!

Sample outline and description mini-essay

OUTLINE

I. Introductory paragraph

1. Opening about New Orleans

2. Background about my first visit

3. Thesis sentence stating purpose of mini-essay

II. First body paragraph about the French Quarter

1. Transition phrase and topic sentence stating main idea of paragraph

2. Supporting details

i. Sight

ii. Smell

iii. Taste

iv. Alliteration

3. Conclusion to paragraph

III. Second body paragraph about the cemeteries

1. Transition phrase and topic sentence stating main idea of paragraph

2. Supporting details

i. Metaphor

ii. Sound

iii. Personification

iv. Simile

3. Conclusion to paragraph and to mini-essay

MINI-ESSAY

J. H.
English 100–Prof. Davis
Descriptive Essay
September 5, 2016

The Big Easy

My favorite place is New Orleans, Louisiana, specifically the French Quarter [OPENING]. On my first trip here, I was a very young adult traveling for the first time on a business trip. New Orleans enchanted me on that first visit; I couldn’t wait to return [BACKGROUND]. Please accompany me down memory lane to my favorite place. This essay conveys the magic, majesty, and tragedy of New Orleans using my personal experience and four rhetorical terms [THESIS SENTENCE].

Let’s visit the French Quarter first [TRANSITION PHRASE & TOPIC SENTENCE]. The intricate scroll-work of the wrought iron balconies and gates, the beautiful gardens and parks with elaborate statuary, and the grand St. Louis Cathedral are all picturesque [SIGHT]. The smells [SMELL] here can overwhelm the senses: seafood and heavy pepper in the jambalaya; damp, swampy odors from the waterfront; the aroma of thick cigarette smoke and booze from any bar in the Quarter at any given time. Comparable to the rich smells are the flavors [TASTE], for tantalizing treats tempt every tongue [ALLITERATION]. Thus, you have experienced the French Quarter as I have [CONCLUSION].

Next, let’s visit the many cemeteries [TRANSITION PHRASE & TOPIC SENTENCE], known as “Cities of the Dead,” for they are the New York skyline [METAPHOR] of cemeteries, each with massive mausoleums and headstones. Even in the cemeteries, a saxophone can often be heard [SOUND] wailing [PERSONIFICATION] into the wee hours of the night. The music drifting over the tombstones is like [SIMILE] the keening of a mother whose child has been sold; tragically, New Orleans was once the biggest slave market of the south. New Orleans is a haunting place, appealing to our emotions and senses in so many ways. It calls me now to visit again [CLOSING].