Classifying Essays by Purpose
Within these two broad categories, essays can be further classified according to the writer's purpose: to inform, to persuade, to tell a story, convey a sense of place, or to analyze an idea.
In a peruasasiveb essay the writer triesbto convice readersoto accept his In a persuasive convin e or her opinion or to take a course of action. "Letter from Birmingham City Jail" by Martin Luther King, Jr. (p. 1109) is a persuasive essay In a descriptive essay, the writer uses sensory details to present a portrait of a person, a place, or an object. "Nature" by Ralph Waldo Emerson(p. 366) is a descriptive essay an expository essay, the writer explains an issue or process"Onomatopoeia" by William Safire(p. 1378) is an expository essay,