Assignment : Narrative Essay

The narrative should have an engaging opening, an introduction that includes the main point you wish to make, at least three body paragraphs that tell the story, and a concluding paragraph that offers a strong close to the essay and reveals the meaning or significance of the story.

In The White Album (1979), Joan Didion wrote, "We tell ourselves stories in order to live." Stories help us understand our lives, and they help us connect our experiences in some meaningful way with other people's lives. Think about the stories that were told to you and about you as you were growing up.

How did they shape your vision of yourself and your world? Words and stories are powerful; most parents, teachers, ministers, salesmen, and politicians realize this fact. How will you use this knowledge in telling your story?

Choose one of the following topics and begin brainstorming ideas:

Tell about a time when you changed from being a child to an adult.

Tell about a time when you lost something important.

Tell about a time when you gained something precious.

Tell about a time when you figured out how the world works.

Tell about an embarrassing moment.

Tell about a moment of victory.

Tell about an opportunity not taken.

Tell about a time when reality was different from your expectations.

Here's an alternative topic if you prefer to focus on a special memory that does not fit one of the above topics:

A Moment Captured

Memories are powerful. In fact, we are our memories. And most families tell stories over and over, ensuring those memories are not forgotten.

What story is told most often about you?

Is it funny? Scary?

Can you remember every detail, even if you weren't old enough at the time to recall the actual event?

Sometimes there's one image, like an old, faded snapshot that hangs around in your memory, reminding you of a story that's been told so often until it's almost more myth than reality. Try to imagine that time and what was happening.

Craft a five-paragraph essay to tell the story.

As you jot down ideas, ask yourself what point you want to make in the essay, and then craft the thesis statement from that main point.

Use a focusing event opening in your introduction.

In writing the story of your memory, use the five senses, and make the picture come alive again and help the reader visualize the events.
Include a strong ending.