Personal Essay Criteria

(narrating, describing, & reflecting on an experience)

 Due Monday, June 7.

* [Minimum requirement] Think of an experience (or experiences) related to your topic that you can narrate and reflect upon. This experience might be something you’ve done in the past or it might be something you’ve done recently. 

* [Minimum requirement] Write a personal essay that is 500 words or fewer in length (twelve-point font, double-spaced.) (Why 500 words or fewer? That's the length of most college essays. So consider this essay practice for that essay.)

* [Minimum requirement] Give your personal essay an appropriate and imaginative title.

* [Minimum requirement] Make a visual object (a map, a photograph, a drawing, a painting, a sculpture, a collage) that depicts/represents the experience.

·        Narration: Narrate a specific experience (along the way describe and reflect. Bring the experience alive and bring your thoughts & feelings alive for the reader.  (Make sure there are transitions between sentences and paragraphs.

·        Description: As you tell the story, describe the experience by presenting engaging, vivid sensory imagery (sight, sounds, textures, smells, and/or tastes). The descriptions will create a tone and mood. They will lead to thoughts and feelings about the images.

·        Reflection: Reflect on the meaning of the experience to you. Reflect on what you have seen and felt. Develop these thoughts and feelings. Think about prior experiences, memories. Think about your research. Reflect on it all. Make meaning.

·        Command of writing conventions: Proofread. Write properly punctuated and complete sentences. Choose words carefully; use them correctly; spell them correctly. There should be no run-on sentences and no homophone errors. If your essay contains dialogue, remember that each utterance should be given its own paragraph.

·        Command of personal style: Philip Lopate says, “the hallmark of the personal essay is its intimacy.   The writer seems to be speaking directly into your ear, confiding everything from gossip to wisdom....”  I want to hear you—the thoughtful, observant, reflective you—on the page. The style of this essay should convey intimacy with the reader and care with language.