DEFINITION
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
Define what your term means -- to you.
o Your perspective, opinion, experience…
Discuss your 3 most significant characteristics, aspects, features, traits – to you.
o Positive or negative.
o Strengths or weaknesses.
 kindness, compassion, thoughtfulness, gentleness, generosity
 humanity, sympathy, empathy, charity, open-mindedness
 intelligence, aptitude, ingenuity, athleticism
 honesty, sincerity, perseverance, hard-work, drive,
 family, love, warmth, self-sacrifice, God, holiness, tradition
 selfishness, egocentricity, narcissism, materialism
 viciousness, vindictiveness, dishonesty, lying, cheating, stealing
 depression, loneliness, isolation, debt, greed, gluttony, indulgence, waste, decadence
*** The list of abstractions on the PowerPoint can be used as a “checklist” for this essay. That is, if you
are having a difficult time thinking of traits to describe your term, you can use that list to help you find
characteristics that define it. ***

This is NOT a “reasons” essay or a “types” essay;
o Instead, it IS a “characteristics” paper in which you are defining a term through your personal
understanding.
 This is NOT a research paper, either.
o Use your own beliefs, feelings, and experiences.
o If you use a quote from a song, place quotation marks around it and place the band in the
parenthetical.
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OUTLINE
I. INTRODUCTION:
 Opening generalization or quote
 deductively narrow toward Thesis
 tip your hat to the minor characteristics
 Thesis = Definition
o personal understanding of the term
o TERM + CLASS + CHARACTERISTICS
o *characteristics = “3 of a kind”
 3 nouns OR 3 adjectives
 Don’t mix = faulty parallelism
o However, the term can be defined in terms of (3 most important, defining traits).
o However, the three most significant traits of the term are….
II. BODY:
 each paragraph = 1 characteristic, trait, feature, attribute
 (3 traits total = 3 Body paragraphs)
 (save the “best” for last – emphatic order)
(1) NAME the trait in a strong Topic Sentence
o One characteristic of (the term) is ________.
o While __ and __ are major characteristics of me, __ is truly the most significant.
(2) EXPLAIN briefly the trait
o Briefly clarify what you mean by the trait
3 – 3 characteristics
o That is to say, ….
2 – 2 examples per characteristic
(3) ILLUSTRATE the trait
1 – 1 characteristic per paragraph
o Use descriptive examples
 BE SPECIFIC:
 relate a specific, detailed instance in which your thoughts, words, or actions clearly
illustrate the trait you are discussing in a paragraph
o 2 detailed instances per trait **
o This is the biggest part of the paragraph.
o For instance, For example
(4) END the paragraph with a Clincher Sentence/Warrant Statement
o Reiterate your Topic Sentence (not verbatim)
o Thus, Therefore
III. CONCLUSION:
 Bring the essay full-circle
 Repeat the opening gambit
 Repeat the minor characteristics
 Repeat the major characteristics
 SO WHAT?!
o What does this definition mean, teach you about the term?
 End with a Clincher Sentence