Academic Writing: Guide Sections
Writing Your Personal Opinion about Any Topic Effectively
A response essay requires a writer to provide his personal opinion about something and justify that opinion with facts. It involves writing in response to something or as a reaction to something and hence, it is also known as a reaction essay.
In order to write a response essay, it is important to first form an opinion about the matter. This would require one to understand the matter at hand thoroughly before starting off.
While reading, one should make a note of the responses he experiences. This would include making a note of what one liked, what one disliked, what arouse feelings of fear, anger, love, hatred, etc. Making mental notes of these responses will help when forming a final opinion as well as justifying the response essay.
The next step in writing a response essay is to answer the following questions:
- How does the writer feel about the issue under consideration?
- Is the writer in favor of or against the issue being discussed?
- Does the writer have something to add about the issue based on his personal experience, similar incidents, etc.?
- How does the writer evaluate the situation in general?
These and similar questions should be asked to formulate an opinion along with the mental notes made while reading the matter for writing the response essay.
Once an opinion is formed and a stand is taken, the writer can begin writing the response essay. The introductory paragraph of the response essay should contain a thesis statement that asserts one's point of view. The rest of the response essay will serve as a means to support this thesis statement.
Since this is a response essay that expresses personal opinion, it is important to use "I" throughout. This means the response essay should consist of many statements starting with "I think", "I believe", "I am sure", "In my opinion", etc.
Response essay writing can become easy if one takes the time to understand his opinion regarding a matter and the reason for taking that stand.