What Is the Outline of an Essay?

An essay outline is a short-form version of an essay. You note down the topic, the essay's main arguments, and the conclusion before you write the actual essay. It is not to be confused with the essay's draft, which is the initial version of the essay. You may be wondering what the importance of writing an essay outline is. Here are five reasons: It will help you organize your thoughts from your notes. This saves your memory for other things. It helps you understand the flow of thoughts in the essay. This enables you to structure it in the most effective way. This helps you incorporate everything you want to include. In the research process, you will encounter many points you could use. It is easy to miss some issues, but with an outline, you eliminate that risk. It will help you increase the speed of your writing and the quality of your essay. The deliberation that goes into making an outline allows you to organize your thoughts so that you present them effectively. This makes the writing process go smoother. Some professors ask for an outline of your essay. Learning how to write an essay outline will help you present your essay in the best possible light.

Essay Outline Format

The essay format of most essays is similar. The instructions may direct you on how many paragraphs to have, but the standard is a 5 paragraph essay. Elements Generally, there are three elements to every essay: an introduction, a body, and a conclusion. Whatever information is presented in these portions should be appropriately cited to avoid plagiarism. There are several referencing styles like Harvard, APA, and MLA. Referencing Styles A citation is an acknowledgment that you are using someone else's ideas in your work. Generally, you should only use one referencing style in a paper. Two common referencing styles are MLA and APA. Usually, MLA formatting is used in humanities while APA is used in sciences like social sciences. However, most teachers or institutions have a specific referencing style they prefer, so it's best to follow their instructions.
-Introduction
An introduction in an outline will contain three main components: v -The Title
You don't have to come up with the title when you are in the process of making the outline. Many times, the title that you come up with encompasses the contents of the essay, so it may be the last part of the outline you fill out.
-The Thesis
This is the claim your essay is making. Usually, the thesis depends on the purpose of the essay. The thesis should be something arguable, not a fact. An emotionally charged thesis is one way to hook the reader.
-The Hook
How do you intend to hook the reader to the essay? There are several recommended ways to make a reader attached to an essay. You could use an anecdote, a joke, or a little known interesting fact. A hook draws the reader in. The introduction introduces your reader to the essay. Explain what the reader is going to read about in the most interesting way so that they are motivated to go on reading.
-Body
The body contains the meat of the essay. This is where you make your case for the topic. You introduce arguments, counterarguments, the evidence, etc. A standard five-paragraph essay has three body paragraphs. You don't want to present too many ideas. In an essay outline, your outline body can have the topic sentence, the evidence, and a paragraph conclusion on how the topic relates to the essay. The body varies depending on the type of essay. A narrative essay will have a body with paragraphs that progress through the narrative. An argumentative essay's paragraphs will have arguments and counterarguments. Understand the assignment so the body matches the type of essay you are writing. There are three ways you can organize your arguments: Chronological order – This is when the ideas are organized in order of time. This order is especially crucial for narratives. Anticlimactic order – This is where you organize your arguments from the least potent to the strongest. You are essentially saving the best for last. It's also called the emphatic order. Climactic order – This is the opposite of the anticlimactic order. Here, you organize your ideas from the strongest to the weakest. Many college essays follow this format.
-Conclusion
This is a summary of what was covered in the essay. It reiterates the essay and summarizes the goal of the essay. Your conclusion can also direct your reader to other sources for further study.