The Personal Narrative Essay

A narrative is simply a story. A personal narrative is a true story, focusing largely on the writer's own life.

For Essay #2, the Personal Narrative, you will be writing a short essay, at least 3-4 pages (roughly 750-1000 words) in length, about a significant event in your own life. This event need not-and probably should not-be inherently, overly dramatic. Sometimes the most influential moments in our lives are smaller moments, events that we may not recognize as influential until years after the experience. In the personal narrative essay, you will want to tell the story as accurately as you can-search your deep memory-and tell the story from your own perspective. You will also want to exercise your selectivity as a writer, choosing to summarize background information/exposition, and really dramatize important scenes for the reader.

During the course of this unit, you will want to read the examples of the Personal Narrative in Chapter 2. You will want to start brainstorming ideas for your own personal narrative, and--by the end of Unit 5--you will want to have selected a significant event that you wish to focus on in this essay.

Personal Narrative, Part 2

By the end of this unit, you will want to have a complete, rough draft of your personal narrative essay. (Remember the this essay should be at least 3-4 pages in length or at least 750-1000 words.) I recommend that you re-read the examples in Chapter 2, and read the lecture notes on this website, before you begin drafting.

Personal Narrative, Part 3

In this unit, you will want to revise your own work to the best possible quality. I strongly recommend that in addition to reviewing your work yourself, you find yourself an outside reader-someone who will read your work and offer you suggestions for revisions.

You have two options in choosing an outside reader:

1.) You can find someone on your own to read your work (ie. your spouse, one of your kids, a friend, a neighbor).

2.) You can sign up for the Peer Review Option by emailing me. (I'll set up an email list, so that you and 2-3 of your classmates can email each other your drafts and get feedback.)

Attachment:- the personal narrative essay.rar