Rishi Ram Paudyal

A job of a good descriptive essay is to describe – describe in such a way that the reader can visualise. It can describe anything – people, places, objects, things, situations, experiences, feelings and emotions. It allows the writer an extensive artistic freedom. It is written in a logical and organised order (coherently and cohesively) with an introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion. It incorporates vivid and detailed descriptions that appeal to the reader.

Different strategies can be adopted to compose descriptive essays. The first thing to begin with is to brainstorm about the topic and note down some ideas. Brainstorming allows full freedom to release ideas from the brain which might not be in sequence or order. When noted down on a piece of paper or a board, the unseen ideas can be seen.

Then it might be a good idea to separate them in different lists or categories so that each item can have its own description. For example, if someone wants to write a descriptive essay on a school, they could include, teachers, students, classrooms, library, computer lab, hall, playground, garden, environment, staff members, canteen, bus service, and extra-curricular activities.

The third thing is to use all your senses, i.e. sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch. Note down what you see, what they look like. For example, chubby, wrinkled, bright, dull, muddy, and clean. Take note of what you hear, what the sound is like. For instance, crying, laughing, whispering, grumbling, buzzing, and barking. Likewise jot down what you smell, what the smell is like. For example, musty, sweet, dusty, rotten, strange, and smoky. In like manner, include what you taste, what the taste is like. For example, sweet, salty, sour, bitter, spicy, and unpleasant. Similarly, note down what you touch, what it feels like. For instance, soft, coarse, thick, thin, moist and slippery.

The fourth thing is to use clear, concise, precise and vivid language. A descriptive essay becomes livelier when there is the use of figurative language. A language can be made figurative with the use of similes, metaphors, and personification. A simile compares one thing or person with another different thing or person or animal with the use of 'like' and 'as' and makes the language more interesting. For example, 'He is as brave as a lion' is more interesting than simply saying 'He is brave'.

Likewise, metaphor compares one thing or person with another different thing or person or animal directly without using 'as' or 'like' so as to assign the similar characteristics. For example, 'He is a lion'. Here 'he' is directly compared with 'a lion'. Next, personification gives human traits to non-living things. For example, 'Her smile said, "I love you". Here 'her smile' has been represented as a person who can speak. This has made the sentence very captivating. Further, spatial order, describing things as they appear or as they are, adds beauty to the essay. For example, words like above, below, next to, nearby, in front and behind bring vividness in the mind. Next, if different time periods are mentioned, they are to be put in a chronological order.

So a descriptive essay is a rich artistic work which is clear to understand, interesting and creates mental images in the minds of the reader.