Every student knows how many papers he or she has to write every week. The fact is that academic life is closely related to various assignments. Your papers are a way to learn something new, consolidate your knowledge and skills, and develop your eloquence. In addition, constant practice helps to better cope with papers. One of the most common assignments is the cause-and-effect essay. What is this paper, and why should students write it? Let's find this out.
What Is a Cause and Effect Essay?
So let's get to grips with basic terminology. This paper is a classic 5-paragraph essay that allows you to compare and analyze the factors and causes of certain effects. As a rule, such a paper is needed to train students' logical skills. That is why you should know about such a task in advance and practice.
What Is the Purpose of Writing a Cause and Effect Essay?
Any task has a certain subtext and purpose. This is logical since the educational process aims to ensure that students can acquire versatile skills and analyze every aspect, regardless of the situation. Therefore, this type of essay is aimed at several key aspects:
- Why did event 1 happen?
- What happened as a result of event 1?
- What might happen as a result of event 2?
Your essay aims to identify causal relationships and those factors that served as a starting point for change. Students can analyze various situations, natural phenomena, chemical reactions, and even historical events thanks to this task. For example, such an essay is perfect for identifying the causes and consequences of World War II for Germany.
How to Write a Cause and Effect Essay?
And here is the main question that worries all beginners. However, the devil is not as black as he's painted. First of all, you should understand that such a paper is a classic 5-paragraph essay, divided into three main parts: intro, body, and conclusion. Your introduction should be a kind of hook and an opportunity to describe those aspects mentioned in the main part. Your intro is like a mini-marketing campaign.
Your body paragraphs are meant to describe all causes and effects. For example, let's say you want to describe some volcanic eruptions in Japan. Then you should choose several reasons. For example, let's say the eruption was caused by recent seismic activity, chemical reaction, or fracture of tectonic plates.
Let's say you decide to write an essay and describe the reasons for any political conflict. Then you should pay attention to the statements of politicians, certain diplomatic actions, political sanctions, and public speeches that led to the escalation of the conflict. Writing a cause and effect essay can be a great experience, especially knowing all the basic rules.
Top Tips for Beginners
Do Not Use More Than 3-4 Causes and Effects
The point is that your essay has a word limit. In addition, each body paragraph must be reserved for specific causes and effects. This is why you should choose the most important aspects of your paper and focus on them. However, you can always consult with your professor and clarify any detail of your paper.
Use Only Solid Causes and Effects
As a rule, this type of essay aims to learn to identify logical sequences and patterns that led to certain effects. This is why you have to learn to distinguish between important and secondary causes. For example, let's say you want to describe the causes of an accident at a nuclear power plant. First, analyze the data that is available on the Internet. Then, highlight the main causes, such as team errors, power unit defects, natural disasters, or a failure in the reactor control system.
Try to Predict Results
One of the main purposes of your paper is the ability to predict certain results and actions that will occur if a certain chain of actions happens. In general, your task is to analyze certain patterns to use logical thinking and identify all possible effects. This is a key feature of this essay.
Polish Your Paper
Here's the most obvious tip. Any student should be extremely responsible in the editing and proofreading process. Read each sentence and try to identify any errors or inaccuracies. You may even want to read your paper aloud several times if you are unsure of the result. This strategy works great when you are tired and not ready to identify errors visually.
