Extended Definition Essay with Interview
Timeline:
Week of Feb. 1-6: Complete interview
Feb. 9: Outline due – email at any time
Feb. 10: Class time available for Peer Review. Bring something to share.
Feb. 13: First draft due by email.
Before March 3: Final Draft due by email
The Extended Definition essay is all about sharing an individual’s connotation – their
ideas about a thing or concept that exists in the real world. In this particular essay, you
are required to learn the key ideas of another person and then explain those ideas in an
essay.
It’s crucial to choose an appropriate topic for the definition essay. For this assignment,
I’ve set the topic – you will not narrow it or change it significantly.
Use some of the skills you developed writing the Summary Paper – quoting and
paraphrasing, using Signal Phrases. Here’s a big difference, though: in the Summary
Paper, the Body should NOT contain your opinion. The Definition essay is much more
flexible. You can combine your connotation with your interviewee’s connotation if you
want, or limit your opinion to the Conclusion.
Requirements of Definition Essay
Length: 550 - 700 words – 2 1! 2 to 4 pages.
Format: Must be typed and double-spaced.
Title: Please AVOID a title that restates the topic (eg, “The Ideal Girlfriend”).
Quotations: Do include a few strong quotes from your interviewee – be sure
that they agree with your chosen quotes!
More Advice about the Definition Paper: Introduction
Be sure to name your Interviewee and mention your relationship in the Intro. A strong
Thesis Statement will follow a pattern something like:
“To Jasmine, the ideal boyfriend is generous, reliable and above all honest.”
“My sister told me that a good husband has many qualities, but the most
important is being a responsible man.”
“I was surprised to learn about my husband’s ideas of the perfect wife.”
“My neighbors have been married for 35 years, so I enjoyed leaning about Abby’s
definition of the ideal partner. I agreed with her, but not completely.”
“Phillip and I agree that the perfect girlfriend is kind and beautiful, but we
disagree on the importance of religion.”
“My little brother is only 14, so his definition of the ‘ideal’ girlfriend – sexy,
wealthy, and a fan of video games - is not very wise. I disagreed with him on
almost every point.”
Also useful in the Intro – to give a formal definition of your topic, something like
“Everyone knows the meaning of the word ‘wife.’ As the Longman Dictionary says, a wife
is ‘a woman a man is married to.’ However, in reality, there are many deeper dimensions
to this simple word.”