The Essay: Structure, Styles, and History
Theme 3: Resources and Start Closing
Introduction and Conclusion
When writing a text, special care should be taken in the introduction and conclusion. The introduction serves to introduce the topic, the writer’s style, and capture the reader’s attention. The final paragraph aims to leave a lasting impression, reinforce the central message, and provide closure.
Introduction Styles
- Chapeau: A brief introduction summarizing the theme.
- Anecdote: Starts with a concrete story or experience to engage the reader.
- Brief Statements: Uses short, impactful sentences, common in journalism.
- Citation: Begins with a quote from another source, like a famous phrase or proverb.
- Question: Poses a question that the essay will address.
- Analogy: Compares the topic to a different situation for clarity and engagement.
Conclusion Styles
- Synthesis: Summarizes the main ideas of the text.
- Anecdote: Ends with a relevant anecdote or personal experience.
- Short Affirmations: Adds concluding remarks to a finished text.
- Citation: Closes with a direct quote.
- Question: Raises unresolved issues or uses a rhetorical question to emphasize the thesis.
- Analogy: Concludes with a comparison that reinforces the main point.
Item 4: Linguistic and Stylistic Resources in Essays
Subjectivity and Presence of the Sender
The sender always takes a position, often using first-person speech and expressing their opinion. Modalization (e.g., changing register or language variety) can indicate the sender’s stance.
Dialogism and Presence of the Receiver
Essays can incorporate elements of conversation, addressing the reader directly and anticipating their reactions.
Polyphony and Intertextuality
Polyphony: Includes different voices and perspectives, sometimes presenting opposing viewpoints. Intertextuality: Refers to other texts or authors through direct or indirect quotes, well-known expressions, or famous sayings.
Register and Expressive Resources
Essays can combine formal and informal language, using expressive resources to engage the reader. These include:
- Paradox: Seemingly contradictory statements that reveal a deeper truth.
- Irony: Saying the opposite of what is meant, relying on the reader’s understanding of context.
- Humor: Making the message more relatable and enjoyable.
Commonly used resources in essays include evaluating adjectives, adverbs (e.g., well, unfortunately), verbs of opinion (e.g., I think, I believe), periphrasis of obligation and probability, and non-declarative sentence modalities.
The Essay in the 20th Century
Brief Historical Overview
While essays have roots in ancient Greco-Roman epistles and classical authors like Plato and Plutarch, Michel de Montaigne is considered the father of the essay. The Renaissance solidified the genre’s identity, emphasizing a dialectical and rational approach. The Baroque period saw a decline, but the Enlightenment (e.g., Voltaire) revived it. In the 19th century, England saw a distinction between scientific treatises and evaluative essays. The 20th century, particularly after World War II, witnessed a resurgence of the essay with a humanist focus.
The Essay in Catalan Literature
The beginning of the Noucentisme movement in Catalan literature is marked by Eugeni d’Ors’ Glossary, which frequently employed aphorisms, articles, and short essays. The postwar period saw notable works by Josep Ferrater Mora, Jaume Vicens Vives, and Manuel Sanchis Guarner.
Manuel Sanchis Guarner
Manuel Sanchis Guarner (1911-1981) was a Valencian philologist, historian, and folklorist. He was a signatory of the Normes de Castelló (1932) and studied dialectal variations in Catalan. After the Spanish Civil War, he was imprisoned and later moved to Mallorca, where he worked on the development of a unified Catalan language. He authored numerous studies on linguistics, literary history, and essays. His notable works include La Renaixença al País Valencià (1981), Gramàtica Valenciana (1950), and La llengua dels valencians (1962). He received the Honor Award of Catalan Letters in 1974. Guarner faced opposition for his work on the Valencian language and even suffered a bomb attack in 1978.