Essays in the Real World

November 19th, 2012
Marilyn · Staff Recommendations

Do you remember having to write an essay to get into college? How about that English Composition class many of us have had to take at one time or another, where we learned about the introduction, body, and conclusion of the classic five-paragraph essay? In these classes, common assignments are descriptive, narrative, expository and argumentative essays. These tortured memories are passed down through generations, and the damage done to essays as a genre is unmeasured and unknowable.

“My favorite thing to read are essays,” said no one, ever. However, the truth is that some of our sharpest commentators and humorists are essayists. Rather than write an essay about how great some of these contemporary collections of essays are, I will simply list some of my favorites: