Is an Essay Formal or Informal: Characteristics of Each
Essays are common in the world today. They have easily become part of our life.
The need to differentiate all types of essays that can be written has led to a popular question of whether essays are formal or informal. Essays can be both formal and informal.
To start with, formal essays are written for academic and professional purposes. They must be factual, research-based, and written in the third person.
On the other hand, informal essays are written for personal or casual services. They are also known as personal essays. Also, they are subjective and involve the writer giving his or her problem. They must be written in first person voice.
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Features of a Formal Essay
The following are the features that a formal essay should have:
1. Specific Language
Specific terms are preferred in formal essays to general ones. These terms help in providing more information and impact to the reader.
Also, physically concrete language is better than abstract terms because it helps give the reader a clear understanding. For example, instead of saying that “the scene was lovely and beautiful,” you can say that “the bright green grass and the clear blue sky were perfect for a day out.”
When descriptions are needed it is advisable to be as specific as possible.
2. Third Person Voice
Formal essays and any academic writing should always be written in the third person voice unless stated otherwise by the instructors. He, she, they, and one should be used instead of me or us.
Essays should not be referencing you unless in instances you ask for your own opinion which mostly occurs in coursework questions and not essays.
3. Active Voice over Passive Voice
To make the essay clearer and livelier to the audience active voice should be used because it uses fewer words and lays an emphasis on the doer of an action.
On the contrary, passive voice puts the receiver of the action first and puts the doer of the action after the verb or completely excludes the doer something that should only happen if the doer is not important.
In essays, the subjects need to act which is guaranteed by the active voice, unlike the passive voice where the subject is acted upon.
4. Present Tense over Past Tense
The present tense is preferred in essays because it makes it them to read, draws the reader’s attention more than the past tense, and makes information more immediate.
However, some sciences require that essays be written in the past tense. Therefore, you must consult with professors about what tense to use.
5. No clichés
Clichés should not be used in essays because they are not original. Also, they are overused hence making your essay lose originality and creativity.
They are too common and often used and should be avoided. For example, saying “as blind as a bat” is a cliché. Instead, the writer should just say “severe vision problems.”
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Informal Essay characteristics
1. First and Second Person
When writing informal essays, the writer is free to use the first and second person. Therefore, pronouns such as I, us, we, you, and me can be used. They help show the ownership of thoughts and experiences.
2. Stories
When writing an informal essay, telling a story is important. The story has to be personal for it to connect with the audience.
If your informal essay does not connect to the target audience, then it means that it will not serve its purpose.
3. Simple Grammar
Informal essays should not be too complex. The writer should always use simple words that are easy to understand.
One does not need to be an expert to understand the content of your essay.
To add to that, the sentences need to be short. There is no concept in an informal essay that calls for a detailed explanation requiring you to use long sentences to deliver the point home.
Short sentences make your informal essay easy for readers to understand and follow through.
4. Use of Slang, Colloquialisms, and Humour
Slang should be used in informal writing to connect with the audience. However, it is important to ensure that the slang words are well known to avoid giving trouble to readers who may not know the slang.
Colloquialisms or the words and language used in the street should be used to make your informal essay connect with common people.
Also, humour should be used to make the reader of your informal essay laugh. Exaggeration, shock, and misdirection are techniques that you can use to deliver humor in the essay.
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Differences between Formal and Informal Writing
Informal and formal essays can be differentiated using the following factors:
1. Vocabulary
In informal essays, the vocabulary is short, simple, and direct. There is no use of phrasal verbs.
On the other hand, long and hard vocabulary can be used in formal essays. Slangs and contractions are not used.
2. Tone
The tone used in formal essays should be objective. All emotions should be held back and if expressed they should be through the essay arguments.
However, the tone in informal essays is subjective and personal. What this means is that the tone can either be casual, conversational, amusing, or thoughtful.
3. Structure
There are no structure or format rules when it comes to writing informal essays. What you have to do mostly is just write. There is no logical standard or sequence put in place that dictates how the essay should be written.
Contrarily, formal essays have logical sequences and structures. Several formatting methods are required to be followed when writing these essays.
Also, arguments should be made in single paragraphs and points should never mix up. Remember the conclusion should also be a summary of the points discussed earlier.
4. Purpose
Formal essays are mainly used for educational purposes to evaluate and detail analysis.
On the other hand, informal essays’ main purposes are interactions, entertainment, and reflections.
5. Subject/Content
The subject or content of formal essays mainly involves historical events, literature, and knowledge.
On the other hand, the content of informal essays mainly involves personal events and everyday events.
6. Characteristics
Formal essays are usually written using the third person pronouns while informal essays are written using first and second person pronouns.
Also, everyday language and slang can be used in informal essays while official and simple language is used in formal essays.
With over 10 years in academia and academic assistance, Alicia Smart is the epitome of excellence in the writing industry. She is our chief editor and in charge of the writing department at Grade Bees.
