Last Updated on August 9, 2024 by sanjjeett
‘True ease in writing comes from art not chance.
As those move easiest who have learnt to dance’. Alexander Pope
Writing a good composition is just like creating a piece of good art. Just as any budding artist goes about perfecting his art, following some basic ground rules, similarly a budding writer goes about refining his art, by writing different types of composition. This art is not difficult to perfect and once the methodology is understood, one derives a great sense of satisfaction, which stands us in good stead in life. To write a good composition on any subject you are basically required to plan and structure the paragraphs, to make the composition interesting and appealing, while adhering to some basic rules of Grammar. It is not necessary that the composition be written in superfluous language, with big difficult words. To be meaningful it should be written to a plan, with a line of continuity, expressing the feeling of the writer in plain simple English.
A meaningful composition therefore must be
- written to a plan.
- have a line of continuity throughout the composition.
- not have high-flown language, or slang.
- have an interesting and good Introduction and Conclusion.
In the case of students especially those preparing for ICSE English language Paper 1, writing a composition of 350 to 400 words in an essay and a letter is the most important part of the paper. The objective of this question is to test the ability of the examinee, in writing well-organised, clear and accurate English.
What is an essay?
An essay is a short prose, a composition reflecting your ideas or thoughts on any given subject. It should be creative so as to catch the reader’s attention and logically presented in well laid out paragraphs with proper spelling and punctuation marks. An essay is therefore
- an organised collection of YOUR IDEAS and thoughts.
- nicely written in structured paragraphs.
- logically presented.
An essay basically consists of three parts: - Introduction (Beginning)
- Body
- Conclusion (Ending)
- Introduction (Beginning): Being the first paragraph of your composition, it should introduce the topic to the reader, in a manner that arouses his interest. Besides laying down the foundation, it must outline the key points of your composition.
- Body: This is the main part of the composition where specific ideas, reflections, illustrations, arguments, etc. are presented. The topic is developed by presenting each idea or thought in specific paragraphs.
- Conclusion: This is the last and the most important paragraph of your composition, for it has the potential to leave a good or a bad impression on the mind of the reader. Here you satisfy the interest aroused by you in the beginning of the composition.
