i am a wheel essay

Nature centres into balls, And her proud ephemerals, Fast to surface and outside, Scan the profile of the sphere; Knew they what that signified, A new genesis were here.

T he eye is the first circle; the horizon which it forms is the second; and throughout nature this primary figure is repeated without end. It is the highest emblem in the cipher of the world. St. Augustine described the nature of God as a circle whose centre was everywhere, and its circumference nowhere. We are all our lifetime reading the copious sense of this first of forms. One moral we have already deduced, in considering the circular or compensatory character of every human action. Another analogy we shall now trace; that every action admits of being outdone. Our life is an apprenticeship to the truth, that around every circle another can be drawn; that there is no end in nature, but every end is a beginning; that there is always another dawn risen on mid-noon, and under every deep a lower deep opens.

This fact, as far as it symbolizes the moral fact of the Unattainable, the flying Perfect, around which the hands of man can never meet, at once the inspirer and the condemner of every success, may conveniently serve us to connect many illustrations of human power in every department.

There are no fixtures in nature. The universe is fluid and volatile. Permanence is but a word of degrees. Our globe seen by God is a transparent law, not a mass of facts. The law dissolves the fact and holds it fluid. Our culture is the predominance of an idea which draws after it this train of cities and institutions. Let us rise into another idea: they will disappear. The Greek sculpture is all melted away, as if it had been statues of ice; here and there a solitary figure or fragment remaining, as we see flecks and scraps of snow left in cold dells and mountain clefts, in June and July. For the genius that created it creates now somewhat else. The Greek letters last a little longer, but are already passing under the same sentence, and tumbling into the inevitable pit which the creation of new thought opens for all that is old. The new continents are built out of the ruins of an old planet; the new races fed out of the decomposition of the foregoing. New arts destroy the old. See the investment of capital in aqueducts made useless by hydraulics; fortifications, by gunpowder; roads and canals, by railways; sails, by steam; steam by electricity.

You admire this tower of granite, weathering the hurts of so many ages. Yet a little waving hand built this huge wall, and that which builds is better than that which is built. The hand that built can topple it down much faster. Better than the hand, and nimbler, was the invisible thought which wrought through it; and thus ever, behind the coarse effect, is a fine cause, which, being narrowly seen, is itself the effect of a finer cause. Every thing looks permanent until its secret is known. A rich estate appears to women a firm and lasting fact; to a merchant, one easily created out of any materials, and easily lost. An orchard, good tillage, good grounds, seem a fixture, like a gold mine, or a river, to a citizen; but to a large farmer, not much more fixed than the state of the crop. Nature looks provokingly stable and secular, but it has a cause like all the rest; and when once I comprehend that, will these fields stretch so immovably wide, these leaves hang so individually considerable? Permanence is a word of degrees. Every thing is medial. Moons are no more bounds to spiritual power than bat-balls.

The key to every man is his thought. Sturdy and defying though he look, he has a helm which he obeys, which is the idea after which all his facts are classified. He can only be reformed by showing him a new idea which commands his own. The life of man is a self-evolving circle, which, from a ring imperceptibly small, rushes on all sides outwards to new and larger circles, and that without end. The extent to which this generation of circles, wheel without wheel, will go, depends on the force or truth of the individual soul. For it is the inert effort of each thought, having formed itself into a circular wave of circumstance, — as, for instance, an empire, rules of an art, a local usage, a religious rite, — to heap itself on that ridge, and to solidify and hem in the life. But if the soul is quick and strong, it bursts over that boundary on all sides, and expands another orbit on the great deep, which also runs up into a high wave, with attempt again to stop and to bind. But the heart refuses to be imprisoned; in its first and narrowest pulses, it already tends outward with a vast force, and to immense and innumerable expansions.

Every ultimate fact is only the first of a new series. Every general law only a particular fact of some more general law presently to disclose itself. There is no outside, no inclosing wall, no circumference to us. The man finishes his story, — how good! how final! how it puts a new face on all things! He fills the sky. Lo! on the other side rises also a man, and draws a circle around the circle we had just pronounced the outline of the sphere. Then already is our first speaker not man, but only a first speaker. His only redress is forthwith to draw a circle outside of his antagonist. And so men do by themselves. The result of to-day, which haunts the mind and cannot be escaped, will presently be abridged into a word, and the principle that seemed to explain nature will itself be included as one example of a bolder generalization. In the thought of to-morrow there is a power to upheave all thy creed, all the creeds, all the literatures, of the nations, and marshal thee to a heaven which no epic dream has yet depicted. Every man is not so much a workman in the world, as he is a suggestion of that he should be. Men walk as prophecies of the next age.

Step by step we scale this mysterious ladder: the steps are actions; the new prospect is power. Every several result is threatened and judged by that which follows. Every one seems to be contradicted by the new; it is only limited by the new. The new statement is always hated by the old, and, to those dwelling in the old, comes like an abyss of skepticism. But the eye soon gets wonted to it, for the eye and it are effects of one cause; then its innocency and benefit appear, and presently, all its energy spent, it pales and dwindles before the revelation of the new hour.

Fear not the new generalization. Does the fact look crass and material, threatening to degrade thy theory of spirit? Resist it not; it goes to refine and raise thy theory of matter just as much.

There are no fixtures to men, if we appeal to consciousness. Every man supposes himself not to be fully understood; and if there is any truth in him, if he rests at last on the divine soul, I see not how it can be otherwise. The last chamber, the last closet, he must feel, was never opened; there is always a residuum unknown, unanalyzable. That is, every man believes that he has a greater possibility.

Our moods do not believe in each other. To-day I am full of thoughts, and can write what I please. I see no reason why I should not have the same thought, the same power of expression, to-morrow. What I write, whilst I write it, seems the most natural thing in the world; but yesterday I saw a dreary vacuity in this direction in which now I see so much; and a month hence, I doubt not, I shall wonder who he was that wrote so many continuous pages. Alas for this infirm faith, this will not strenuous, this vast ebb of a vast flow! I am God in nature; I am a weed by the wall.

The continual effort to raise himself above himself, to work a pitch above his last height, betrays itself in a man's relations. We thirst for approbation, yet cannot forgive the approver. The sweet of nature is love; yet, if I have a friend, I am tormented by my imperfections. The love of me accuses the other party. If he were high enough to slight me, then could I love him, and rise by my affection to new heights. A man's growth is seen in the successive choirs of his friends. For every friend whom he loses for truth, he gains a better. I thought, as I walked in the woods and mused on my friends, why should I play with them this game of idolatry? I know and see too well, when not voluntarily blind, the speedy limits of persons called high and worthy. Rich, noble, and great they are by the liberality of our speech, but truth is sad. O blessed Spirit, whom I forsake for these, they are not thou! Every personal consideration that we allow costs us heavenly state. We sell the thrones of angels for a short and turbulent pleasure.

How often must we learn this lesson? Men cease to interest us when we find their limitations. The only sin is limitation. As soon as you once come up with a man's limitations, it is all over with him. Has he talents? has he enterprise? has he knowledge? it boots not. Infinitely alluring and attractive was he to you yesterday, a great hope, a sea to swim in; now, you have found his shores, found it a pond, and you care not if you never see it again.

Each new step we take in thought reconciles twenty seemingly discordant facts, as expressions of one law. Aristotle and Plato are reckoned the respective heads of two schools. A wise man will see that Aristotle Platonizes. By going one step farther back in thought, discordant opinions are reconciled, by being seen to be two extremes of one principle, and we can never go so far back as to preclude a still higher vision.

Beware when the great God lets loose a thinker on this planet. Then all things are at risk. It is as when a conflagration has broken out in a great city, and no man knows what is safe, or where it will end. There is not a piece of science, but its flank may be turned to-morrow; there is not any literary reputation, not the so-called eternal names of fame, that may not be revised and condemned. The very hopes of man, the thoughts of his heart, the religion of nations, the manners and morals of mankind, are all at the mercy of a new generalization. Generalization is always a new influx of the divinity into the mind. Hence the thrill that attends it.

Valor consists in the power of self-recovery, so that a man cannot have his flank turned, cannot be out-generalled, but put him where you will, he stands. This can only be by his preferring truth to his past apprehension of truth; and his alert acceptance of it, from whatever quarter; the intrepid conviction that his laws, his relations to society, his Christianity, his world, may at any time be superseded and decease.

There are degrees in idealism. We learn first to play with it academically, as the magnet was once a toy. Then we see in the heyday of youth and poetry that it may be true, that it is true in gleams and fragments. Then, its countenance waxes stern and grand, and we see that it must be true. It now shows itself ethical and practical. We learn that God IS that he is in me; and that all things are shadows of him. The idealism of Berkeley is only a crude statement of the idealism of Jesus, and that again is a crude statement of the fact, that all nature is the rapid efflux of goodness executing and organizing itself. Much more obviously is history and the state of the world at any one time directly dependent on the intellectual classification then existing in the minds of men. The things which are dear to men at this hour are so on account of the ideas which have emerged on their mental horizon, and which cause the present order of things as a tree bears its apples. A new degree of culture would instantly revolutionize the entire system of human pursuits.

Conversation is a game of circles. In conversation we pluck up the _termini_ which bound the common of silence on every side. The parties are not to be judged by the spirit they partake and even express under this Pentecost. To-morrow they will have receded from this high-water mark. To-morrow you shall find them stooping under the old pack-saddles. Yet let us enjoy the cloven flame whilst it glows on our walls. When each new speaker strikes a new light, emancipates us from the oppression of the last speaker, to oppress us with the greatness and exclusiveness of his own thought, then yields us to another redeemer, we seem to recover our rights, to become men. O, what truths profound and executable only in ages and orbs are supposed in the announcement of every truth! In common hours, society sits cold and statuesque. We all stand waiting, empty, — knowing, possibly, that we can be full, surrounded by mighty symbols which are not symbols to us, but prose and trivial toys. Then cometh the god, and converts the statues into fiery men, and by a flash of his eye burns up the veil which shrouded all things, and the meaning of the very furniture, of cup and saucer, of chair and clock and tester, is manifest. The facts which loomed so large in the fogs of yesterday, — property, climate, breeding, personal beauty, and the like, have strangely changed their proportions. All that we reckoned settled shakes and rattles; and literatures, cities, climates, religions, leave their foundations, and dance before our eyes. And yet here again see the swift circumspection! Good as is discourse, silence is better, and shames it. The length of the discourse indicates the distance of thought betwixt the speaker and the hearer. If they were at a perfect understanding in any part, no words would be necessary thereon. If at one in all parts, no words would be suffered.

Literature is a point outside of our hodiernal circle, through which a new one may be described. The use of literature is to afford us a platform whence we may command a view of our present life, a purchase by which we may move it. We fill ourselves with ancient learning, install ourselves the best we can in Greek, in Punic, in Roman houses, only that we may wiselier see French, English, and American houses and modes of living. In like manner, we see literature best from the midst of wild nature, or from the din of affairs, or from a high religion. The field cannot be well seen from within the field. The astronomer must have his diameter of the earth's orbit as a base to find the parallax of any star.

Therefore we value the poet. All the argument and all the wisdom is not in the encyclopaedia, or the treatise on metaphysics, or the Body of Divinity, but in the sonnet or the play. In my daily work I incline to repeat my old steps, and do not believe in remedial force, in the power of change and reform. But some Petrarch or Ariosto, filled with the new wine of his imagination, writes me an ode or a brisk romance, full of daring thought and action. He smites and arouses me with his shrill tones, breaks up my whole chain of habits, and I open my eye on my own possibilities. He claps wings to the sides of all the solid old lumber of the world, and I am capable once more of choosing a straight path in theory and practice.

We have the same need to command a view of the religion of the world. We can never see Christianity from the catechism: — from the pastures, from a boat in the pond, from amidst the songs of wood-birds, we possibly may. Cleansed by the elemental light and wind, steeped in the sea of beautiful forms which the field offers us, we may chance to cast a right glance back upon biography. Christianity is rightly dear to the best of mankind; yet was there never a young philosopher whose breeding had fallen into the Christian church, by whom that brave text of Paul's was not specially prized: — "Then shall also the Son be subject unto Him who put all things under him, that God may be all in all." Let the claims and virtues of persons be never so great and welcome, the instinct of man presses eagerly onward to the impersonal and illimitable, and gladly arms itself against the dogmatism of bigots with this generous word out of the book itself.

The natural world may be conceived of as a system of concentric circles, and we now and then detect in nature slight dislocations, which apprize us that this surface on which we now stand is not fixed, but sliding. These manifold tenacious qualities, this chemistry and vegetation, these metals and animals, which seem to stand there for their own sake, are means and methods only, — are words of God, and as fugitive as other words. Has the naturalist or chemist learned his craft, who has explored the gravity of atoms and the elective affinities, who has not yet discerned the deeper law whereof this is only a partial or approximate statement, namely, that like draws to like; and that the goods which belong to you gravitate to you, and need not be pursued with pains and cost? Yet is that statement approximate also, and not final. Omnipresence is a higher fact. Not through subtle, subterranean channels need friend and fact be drawn to their counterpart, but, rightly considered, these things proceed from the eternal generation of the soul. Cause and effect are two sides of one fact.

The same law of eternal procession ranges all that we call the virtues, and extinguishes each in the light of a better. The great man will not be prudent in the popular sense; all his prudence will be so much deduction from his grandeur. But it behooves each to see, when he sacrifices prudence , to what god he devotes it; if to ease and pleasure, he had better be prudent still; if to a great trust, he can well spare his mule and panniers who has a winged chariot instead. Geoffrey draws on his boots to go through the woods, that his feet may be safer from the bite of snakes; Aaron never thinks of such a peril. In many years neither is harmed by such an accident. Yet it seems to me, that, with every precaution you take against such an evil, you put yourself into the power of the evil. I suppose that the highest prudence is the lowest prudence . Is this too sudden a rushing from the centre to the verge of our orbit? Think how many times we shall fall back into pitiful calculations before we take up our rest in the great sentiment, or make the verge of to-day the new centre. Besides, your bravest sentiment is familiar to the humblest men. The poor and the low have their way of expressing the last facts of philosophy as well as you. "Blessed be nothing," and "the worse things are, the better they are," are proverbs which express the transcendentalism of common life.

One man's justice is another's injustice; one man's beauty, another's ugliness; one man's wisdom, another's folly; as one beholds the same objects from a higher point. One man thinks justice consists in paying debts, and has no measure in his abhorrence of another who is very remiss in this duty, and makes the creditor wait tediously. But that second man has his own way of looking at things; asks himself which debt must I pay first, the debt to the rich, or the debt to the poor? the debt of money, or the debt of thought to mankind, of genius to nature? For you, O broker! there is no other principle but arithmetic. For me, commerce is of trivial import; love, faith, truth of character, the aspiration of man, these are sacred; nor can I detach one duty, like you, from all other duties, and concentrate my forces mechanically on the payment of moneys. Let me live onward; you shall find that, though slower, the progress of my character will liquidate all these debts without injustice to higher claims. If a man should dedicate himself to the payment of notes, would not this be injustice? Does he owe no debt but money? And are all claims on him to be postponed to a landlord's or a banker's?

There is no virtue which is final; all are initial. The virtues of society are vices of the saint. The terror of reform is the discovery that we must cast away our virtues, or what we have always esteemed such, into the same pit that has consumed our grosser vices.

"Forgive his crimes, forgive his virtues too, Those smaller faults, half converts to the right."

It is the highest power of divine moments that they abolish our contritions also. I accuse myself of sloth and unprofitableness day by day; but when these waves of God flow into me, I no longer reckon lost time. I no longer poorly compute my possible achievement by what remains to me of the month or the year; for these moments confer a sort of omnipresence and omnipotence which asks nothing of duration, but sees that the energy of the mind is commensurate with the work to be done, without time.

And thus, O circular philosopher, I hear some reader exclaim, you have arrived at a fine Pyrrhonism, at an equivalence and indifferency of all actions, and would fain teach us that, _if we are true_, forsooth, our crimes may be lively stones out of which we shall construct the temple of the true God!

I am not careful to justify myself. I own I am gladdened by seeing the predominance of the saccharine principle throughout vegetable nature, and not less by beholding in morals that unrestrained inundation of the principle of good into every chink and hole that selfishness has left open, yea, into selfishness and sin itself; so that no evil is pure, nor hell itself without its extreme satisfactions. But lest I should mislead any when I have my own head and obey my whims, let me remind the reader that I am only an experimenter. Do not set the least value on what I do, or the least discredit on what I do not, as if I pretended to settle any thing as true or false. I unsettle all things. No facts are to me sacred; none are profane; I simply experiment, an endless seeker, with no Past at my back.

Yet this incessant movement and progression which all things partake could never become sensible to us but by contrast to some principle of fixture or stability in the soul. Whilst the eternal generation of circles proceeds, the eternal generator abides. That central life is somewhat superior to creation, superior to knowledge and thought, and contains all its circles. For ever it labors to create a life and thought as large and excellent as itself; but in vain; for that which is made instructs how to make a better.

Thus there is no sleep, no pause, no preservation, but all things renew, germinate, and spring. Why should we import rags and relics into the new hour? Nature abhors the old, and old age seems the only disease; all others run into this one. We call it by many names, — fever, intemperance, insanity, stupidity, and crime; they are all forms of old age; they are rest, conservatism, appropriation, inertia, not newness, not the way onward. We grizzle every day. I see no need of it. Whilst we converse with what is above us, we do not grow old, but grow young. Infancy, youth, receptive, aspiring, with religious eye looking upward, counts itself nothing, and abandons itself to the instruction flowing from all sides. But the man and woman of seventy assume to know all, they have outlived their hope, they renounce aspiration, accept the actual for the necessary, and talk down to the young. Let them, then, become organs of the Holy Ghost; let them be lovers; let them behold truth; and their eyes are uplifted, their wrinkles smoothed, they are perfumed again with hope and power. This old age ought not to creep on a human mind. In nature every moment is new; the past is always swallowed and forgotten; the coming only is sacred. Nothing is secure but life, transition, the energizing spirit. No love can be bound by oath or covenant to secure it against a higher love. No truth so sublime but it may be trivial to-morrow in the light of new thoughts. People wish to be settled; only as far as they are unsettled is there any hope for them.

Life is a series of surprises. We do not guess to-day the mood, the pleasure, the power of to-morrow, when we are building up our being. Of lower states, — of acts of routine and sense, — we can tell somewhat; but the masterpieces of God, the total growths and universal movements of the soul, he hideth; they are incalculable. I can know that truth is divine and helpful; but how it shall help me I can have no guess, for _so to be_ is the sole inlet of _so to know._ The new position of the advancing man has all the powers of the old, yet has them all new. It carries in its bosom all the energies of the past, yet is itself an exhalation of the morning. I cast away in this new moment all my once hoarded knowledge, as vacant and vain. Now, for the first time, seem I to know any thing rightly. The simplest words, — we do not know what they mean, except when we love and aspire.

The difference between talents and character is adroitness to keep the old and trodden round, and power and courage to make a new road to new and better goals. Character makes an overpowering present; a cheerful, determined hour, which fortifies all the company, by making them see that much is possible and excellent that was not thought of. Character dulls the impression of particular events. When we see the conqueror, we do not think much of any one battle or success. We see that we had exaggerated the difficulty. It was easy to him. The great man is not convulsible or tormentable; events pass over him without much impression. People say sometimes, 'See what I have overcome; see how cheerful I am; see how completely I have triumphed over these black events.' Not if they still remind me of the black event. True conquest is the causing the calamity to fade and disappear, as an early cloud of insignificant result in a history so large and advancing.

The one thing which we seek with insatiable desire is to forget ourselves, to be surprised out of our propriety, to lose our sempiternal memory, and to do something without knowing how or why; in short, to draw a new circle. Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm. The way of life is wonderful: it is by abandonment. The great moments of history are the facilities of performance through the strength of ideas, as the works of genius and religion. "A man," said Oliver Cromwell, "never rises so high as when he knows not whither he is going." Dreams and drunkenness, the use of opium and alcohol are the semblance and counterfeit of this oracular genius, and hence their dangerous attraction for men. For the like reason, they ask the aid of wild passions, as in gaming and war, to ape in some manner these flames and generosities of the heart.

Ralph Waldo Emerson left the ministry to pursue a career in writing and public speaking. Emerson became one of America's best known and best-loved 19th-century figures. More About Emerson

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"Every man has his own courage, and is betrayed because he seeks in himself the courage of other persons." – Ralph Waldo Emerson

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In “Self-Reliance,” philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson argues that polite society has an adverse effect on one’s personal growth. Self-sufficiency, he writes, gives one the freedom to discover one’strue self and attain true independence.

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Who Am I Essay: Writing Tips and Sample

Your “Who am I?” essay is a paper where you describe yourself as a person. Mention what inspires and motivates you, what you love and don’t love, your goals and wishes, etc.

In this article, you’ll learn how to write this personal essay. (And please don’t miss a ready-made example to understand what to describe in your work!)

How to Write a “Who Am I” Essay

You’re that person who knows you best, but writing about yourself is still challenging:

You read a writing prompt for a college application or scholarship , and you aren’t sure if you understand it in detail. How do you know what exactly to mention in your essay? You can’t find words to describe your nature and skills. How do you know if that particular accomplishment or story from your life is worth including?

Stick with us here for practical tips on writing a “Who Am I” essay, with a free template to follow.

How to start?

Ask any writer, and they will tell you that the hardest part of the writing process is to start it. It’s a kind of writer’s block when you stare at a blank screen and don’t know what to write. Below are several ideas that can help you craft a compelling essay about yourself:

• Think about one sentence that would describe you best. (A technique some authors use for inspiration: Answer the question, “What would friends write on your grave?” or “What do you want the world to remember about you?” You can start an essay with that phrase.
• In the introduction, describe yourself in general . (Be truthful and honest.)
• Discuss one or two of your hobbies. (Choose those you’re most passionate about, those influencing your mood — and maybe your skills — most.)
•   Highlight your achievements but don’t boast. ( Be reflective by analyzing and evaluating what you’ve achieved.)
• Add some personality to the essay. (Tell anecdotes, include examples, and be creative to keep readers engaged with your story.)

Short Essay About “Who I Am” Sample

You’re welcome to use the below template from our professional writer for crafting your future “Who am I” essays. Here it goes:

Actionable Tips to Improve Your Paper

Ready to start writing? Consider these helpful tips on crafting a person essay about who I am:

1) Understand your audience

Who will read your essay? Is it a college admission officer who knows nothing about you? Or, maybe it’s your school teacher with some background of who you are? Do you plan to publish your reflection for your social media followers or blog readers?

Depending on the audience, your story may change. Add details about what interests your readers: What would they want to know? Understanding your readers will make your essay more compelling (1). It will be easier for you to engage them and make them emotionally connected to your story.

2) Don’t be afraid to look vulnerable

Allow the readers to see your inner feelings. Sincerity and reflection are the new black, you know. It’s okay to speak about your strengths, weaknesses, or worries to the audience. That’s what differentiates you from other people, thus making you an individual.

Here’s the big secret:

Admission committees appreciate students’ understanding of their weaknesses and areas to grow. Communicate the willingness to change and grow. You’re just a human, after all.

Write about what you want to develop in yourself. Or, tell about life experiences that have changed or influenced you most.

3) Proofread and edit your essay

Once your essay is ready, it’s time to proofread and edit it. Here’s a short checklist of the details to fix if any:

• Grammar and punctuation mistakes (verb tenses, sentence structure)
• Spelling errors and inconsistencies in names or terms
• Incorrect capitalization
• No logical flow or transitions between paragraphs
• Excessive wordiness and repetition
• Biased language
• Too much passive voice and redundant adverbs
• Too sophisticated words and phrases that have simpler alternatives

That’s It: Your “Who Am I” Essay Is Ready

In this blog post, we tried to cover all the core details of personal essay writing. Now you know how to start it, what elements to include, and how to craft it for better readability and emotional connection with the audience.

We hope our 500-word essay example will help you write your perfect story about yourself. If you still have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask our professional writers for help.

References:

• https://summer.harvard.edu/blog/12-strategies-to-writing-the-perfect-college-essay/
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Essay On Who Am I: Find Best Writing Tips & Example

Writing a ‘Who Am I’ essay is not just an assignment for students or a personal practice for individuals. It is a transformative journey of self-reflection, a path to understanding one’s self, identity, beliefs, values, and experiences. This process of introspection can lead to profound personal growth and a deeper awareness of oneself.

We have discussed everything in this blog if you are starting with it and looking for the best examples. Continue reading to explore all the things you need to know to complete your essay that sounds good to you and your professor to earn good grades.

Table of Contents

How Do I Write an Essay About Who I Am?

When it comes to starting with an essay, you must be aware of yourself. It will help you understand what you need to include in your essay, such as your beliefs and values, what you have experienced while being with someone or something, your identity, etc.

All the things discussed in the paragraph above will help you with an effective start to your essay writing, as it needs some points that you should be discussing about yourself.

The Best Tips For Who Am I Essay Writing

The tips for “who am I” essay writing will provide you with a roadmap to know yourself. Suppose you want to accomplish all your goals using the best tips, and it will help you with the goals that you have introduced in your writing of knowing yourself. Below, we have discussed all the tips that you must follow to complete your writing an essay for your own self.

• Collecting your thoughts means getting to know what you want to add to your essay. You may have something that differentiates you from others, and for that, you must focus on it, as it will help you collect your thoughts.
• Honesty: it will help you write whatever you want to express, such as your vulnerability. Do not be afraid about it at all because it will work for you as a self-reflection and improve yourself as you will get to know more about yourself.
• You can be specific about yourself, telling your readers, or recording your message by giving examples of your life.
• When it comes to writing your ‘Who Am I’ essay, remember that your creativity has no bounds. There are no rigid rules to follow. You can complete your writing using any medium that suits you, whether it’s a customized journal , an online tool like Google Docs, or any other method that sparks your creativity. This freedom empowers you to exceed expectations and craft a unique and engaging essay.
• As a student, seeking feedback from your family, friends, or other trusted individuals can greatly enhance your essay. While your initial draft may be tentative, receiving feedback can guide you toward a final draft that is well-crafted, easy to comprehend, and encompasses all the information you wish to convey.
• Review the entire essay and edit it. When you revise, you will find some changes, such as grammar mistakes and writing complete thoughts, as readers need to understand.
• When you weave a narrative in your essay, it becomes more than just a piece of writing. It becomes a story that captivates the reader, making your work more interesting and relatable. The beauty of storytelling lies in its ability to create vivid images in the reader’s mind, leaving a lasting impression.

What Should I Write About Who I Am?

When it comes to writing about who I am, you can include everything from your experience and values to beliefs. It will help you a lot and provide all the facts you must include while expressing; this way, you can get it done the right way and make things work for you.

So, you must work on it to make it work for you and include everything about yourself. This is one of the top and one of the only ways that will help you a lot and provide you with the top thing that you are looking to have for you. Suppose you are a student yet and want to write a piece of paper by discussing all for yourself.

The more you are clear about your purpose in writing it, the more you will be able to write a better copy so you can complete the work as efficiently as possible. This is why you should have all these things for yourself and complete the essay you want.  If you do not do it the right way, it will be difficult for you to complete it and work on it effectively as you are looking to have for you.

What Is An Example Of Who I Am?

The samples will help you understand better and provide you with a clear image you want to have for you to write an essay on “Who am I.” follow the sample to help you get a better idea for yourself if you have already written you can get an inspiration to help you get a better idea as you are ready in the search for. Check it with an example to start writing your own.

Here is an example of a “Who Am I” essay

I am a 16-year-old student at a local high school, and my passion is in music, art, writing, and literature. I am also a member of the school’s debate team and the environmental club, which is an excellent opportunity for me to understand a particular topic that is highlighted at the current time; with the same, I have learned to have clear and concise communication while being in the groups or even strangers. The best thing that you will love about me is to pursue my journey of learning to work.

However, I started my journey when I realized that I needed to come up with a goal, but it was not easy enough to start. I asked for help and started writing prayer journals to record all my thoughts. As the days passed, I passed my higher studies with good grades, and then I received an offer from an NGO to pursue a course that had the science of life system, including an English language program. I accepted that call as my career opportunity and spent around 2 years with them. There, I learned a lot to improve myself and came up with a new version of my life.

Now, I was a little more mature, and I could ask questions about my good or bad, and I demanded a regular professional course. As agreed on that, I pursued my professional course and completed it. Studying in a good environment and having good friends like my family helped me and taught me some lessons. It was a fantastic journey as I was the first to complete such a course from a populist university in my family. My university is situated on the lap of mountains and at a remote location, about 45-50 km, where thousands of students meet and come from different places.

As I completed my course, I moved to do internships at media houses, local new portals, and community portals, including information technology companies (IT). Now I have a job, and I am pursuing my higher studies, which are going to be finished. In this learning phase, I sometimes lost because I did not perform well; it may be because of my background; facing such problems, I have realized that I need to improve myself by walking through the poor beliefs and thoughts that my community or a bad company during my upbringing have poured into my mind.

The God Almighty is always with me to guide and provide me with great opportunities. I am continuing with this journey to improve, learn, and give back something great to my community so they, too, can accomplish their full potential. However,  I am a hard worker and always strive to achieve my goals by defeating the bad in me.

It is essential to make a difference in the world, and I hope to use my skills and talents to help others who are in need.

I am a kind and compassionate person. I am always willing to help others in need. I am also a good listener and always there for my friends and family.

I am still growing and learning, but I am proud of the person I am becoming. I am excited to see what the future holds.

This is just one example of a “Who Am I” essay. There are many different ways to write this type of essay. The most important thing is to be honest and authentic and to write about what is truly important to you.

Final Thoughts

Essay on “Who Am I” is a story of yourself that tells about you without hiding things. So, you should start your story with all the things, whether they are good or bad, and learn or make mistakes that teach. You just need to collect all your thoughts and pour them into a diary . It will record them, help you review them, tell you about all the things, all the prayers you made, the help you got, etc. following each thing as framed above will help you a lot and provide you with your “Who Am I” essay to complete it effectively.

If you are looking for the best tips and want to continue with your journey, whether as a student or individual. We can help you with the best thing you want to have for you to complete your essay. Connect with our team right now to help you get the journals, diaries, papers, etc, at the best price you want.

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The Ferris Wheel of My Life

By Helene Sula

The other day when I revealed that we're moving to Nashville a lot of you were like, cool, now what? Well, to be honest, we don't have all the answers, but we are trying to figure it out. I am freaking out just a smidge. The first reason being because I've never moved out of Dallas. The second? Well, we're doing it kind of quickly. As in, we're trying to move by August 1st.

This is a lofty goal since Michael has never even stepped foot in the state of Tennessee. You guys have asked me some questions so I thought today I'd do some explaining.

Are you leaving Dallas for good? No, we love Texas, our family, and our friends and have every intention of moving back.

Then why are you leaving? Because we want to go on an adventure and why not? This is fairly hard to answer in just a paragraph or two, but if you read this , you'll get the general idea of why. YOLO? …Sorry.

Are you selling your house? No, we are renting it. Just in case something happens and this was the worst idea we've ever had, we can move back fairly easily.

Are you taking the dogs? Hell yes. They are my children! Where I go, they go.

Have you ever been to Nashville? Yes, a couple times for work. Both were very brief stays.

Where will you live? You tell me…! We haven't picked out a place yet, but we're working on it. Suggestions welcome.

Do you own cowboy boots? I'm from Texas. We invented them.

Do you have any friends there? Yes, a few. If you want to be friends that would be awesome. 

How will you listen to EDM music in Nashville? I don't know, I'm going to have to beg my friends Steve Aoki and David Guetta to come play in Nashville.

What about your job? I work 100% from home, and now Michael will too.

Will you visit Dallas? I will of course be visiting often! My 10 year high school reunion is coming up, I'm in a wedding, my mom has a book signing (she's cooler than me) and I'm sure I'll be back all the time. Have to visit this one from time to time too!

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Helene Sula

I believe that one trip can change your life. It did for me. I'm a self proclaimed home body that quit her job, moved abroad, and more often than not, lives out of a carry-on bag. If I'm not traveling, I'm most likely re-reading Harry Potter or watching "Midnight in Paris" while snuggling my dogs. I'm a digital marketing expert who turned my love of travel into a full-time career. And I help others do it too.

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Fort Worth church brings worship to bar, taps into where people are

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Rev. Phil Heinze remembers having lunch with an intern at Hot Damn, Tamales! on Magnolia Avenue in the early 2000s and talking about the future of the church.

He still recalls the question his lunchmate asked him: “How are you going to reach people who are never going to come to church?”

“What if we were to bring church to them?” Heinze answered on that day, over 20 years ago. 

In 2000, about 45% of Americans identified as practicing Christians, according to Barna’s State of the Church report . Over the past two decades, that number decreased by almost half. Now, 8 in 10 Americans say religion is losing influence in public life, according to a recent study by Pew Research Center. 

Heinze’s conversation over lunch brewed into the idea of Kyrie Pub Church, a worshiping community “for the wicked and thirsty” that meets at a bar in Fort Worth. The church aims to get people curious about faith and make worship accessible to people who might have had negative experiences attending church services. 

“We’ve had a lot of people just wander in, and had all kinds of beautiful moments, especially with people who have been hurt by the church and would never think about going to church ever again,” Heinze said.

Kyrie Pub Church is affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Heinze, who founded the group in 2010, also is a pastor at Calvary Lutheran Church in Richland Hills. However, Kyrie Pub Church describes itself as interdenominational and has clergy and attendees from different Protestant denominational backgrounds. 

Views on alcohol vary among Christian denominations. Kyrie Pub Church doesn’t encourage or discourage alcohol consumption, according to its website . 

“If you say you’re Christian, and you are meeting in a bar, I think that just confuses people,” said Kristin Klade, pastor of the church. “I hope that there’s not a misconception that we’re encouraging sinfulness.” 

Playing the guitar at services is 73-year-old Guthrie Kennard, a musician who has been coming to Kyrie Pub Church for the past four years. Kennard grew up Southern Baptist. He stopped attending church as a teenager because he felt judged for having long hair. 

“It’s not that I’ve ever quit loving God or anything. I just didn’t want to be around these people,” Kennard said. “I’m not saying those other people are not good people. It’s just that it wasn’t for me.”

Anyone can attend Kyrie Pub Church services at 5 p.m. Sunday evenings at Shaw’s Patio Bar & Grill, 1051 W. Magnolia Ave. Service attendees gather out on the patio to listen to worship music and sermons from clergy and receive communion. Drinking is neither encouraged nor discouraged. Learn more at the church’s website . 

Dreama Lumpkins travels from Crowley to Fort Worth for Kyrie Pub Church. She started coming to the service after leaving her church in October 2022 due to its stance on LGBTQ+ issues and abortion. Lumpkins said she felt uncomfortable because she has family and friends who are a part of the LGBTQ+ community.

“I would often come home (from her former church) on Sunday afternoon and feel very disillusioned or apart from the community. I felt like I was kind of putting on a mask,” Lumpkins said. “It just felt wrong to be going to a place that thought they were wrong the way they were living their life.” 

John Lobley has been a regular at Kyrie Pub Church for 11 years. Lobley said he was agnostic until he was 40 years old. 

He said he likes the idea of spending his Sunday attending service at his Presbyterian church in the morning and continuing worship in the evening with Kyrie Pub Church. 

“It’s just a comfortable setting for me. We sit around and debate certain things and we have Bible study. But we’re not trying to outdo each other in our faith,” Lobley said. 

About 30 to 40 people regularly attend Kyrie Pub Church. Lobley thought that the church would have grown to hundreds by now, but people visit for different reasons, he said. Some are looking for a church home while others are passing through. 

For Heinze, that’s OK. 

“We’re here for the moment and we’ll just live in that moment,” Heinze said. “And if a person comes back, wonderful. If not, then we’re here for a reason.” 

  Marissa Greene is a Report for America corps member, covering faith for the Fort Worth Report. You can contact her at [email protected] or @marissaygreene . 

At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here .

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by Marissa Greene, Fort Worth Report June 9, 2024

This <a target="_blank" href="https://fortworthreport.org/2024/06/09/fort-worth-church-brings-worship-to-bar-taps-into-where-people-are/">article</a> first appeared on <a target="_blank" href="https://fortworthreport.org">Fort Worth Report</a> and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.<img src="https://i0.wp.com/fortworthreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/cropped-favicon.png?fit=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1" style="width:1em;height:1em;margin-left:10px;"><img id="republication-tracker-tool-source" src="https://fortworthreport.org/?republication-pixel=true&post=134241" style="width:1px;height:1px;">

Marissa Greene Faith Reporter

Marissa Greene is a Report for America corps member and covers faith in Tarrant County for the Fort Worth Report. Greene got her start in journalism at Austin Community College, where she spearheaded the... More by Marissa Greene

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Quality of Life Self Care Wheel Essay Example

Being in recovery, I understand the importance of having balance in all the other areas of my life. Without balance, things easily become unmanageable and overwhelming which consequently makes me feel defeated. In the past I did not take care of myself like I should have; however, the more I practice self-care the more I am able to fully grasp the importance of it and see how it could have benefited me tremendously in the past. Self-care helps me preserve my well-being and find happiness. I can easily get run down if I do not take care of myself and I have experience how that lessens the overall quality of my life. Self-care, for me, definitely is a necessity but also a process. I am seeing more and more that I cannot put myself in a situation where I am putting everyone else’s needs above mine. 

I have always tried to not let my psychological life become of greater or less importance than all the other areas of my life. It is tricky how to know when I have done all I can to care for my mental health and to not go overboard with it. When it comes to mental health, there are just some things that take longer to work on than others and it is easy to be harsh on myself about why I have not been able to just get to the solution already. I have learned tools to not be so hard on myself and to not let my emotions about myself get the best of me. I have, in the past, found it difficult to be self-aware about certain things I am thinking or feeling which has caused my behaviors to not match up with my morals and values; but, I have been able to work on this by using my past experiences as a tool to stay in tune to how particular instances have made me feel, think, and behave. In addition, I am learning to understand myself more as well as how to cope with life challenges and changes that occur. 

When it comes to my emotional life, I have not always been the kindest to myself; however, I am learning to love myself more and I have been actively gaining more and more self esteem. Affirmations and esteem-able acts have really helped to increase how I feel about myself. Due to my past of being extremely codependent and a tendency to put everyone else’s feelings before my own I have been learning to not put my emotional self-care on the back burner. Throughout my life I have suffered through things, especially relationships at my own expense. My happiness and self-worth has become too important to me to where I am no longer willing to save someone’s feelings and protect them from getting hurt. I have to make sure I check myself daily because if I let my emotions get the best of me then it could very easily affect how I feel in other areas of my life. I have been able to keep caring for myself emotionally by continuing to do what is best for me despite if it may be hard at time or if I am fearful of hurting someone else. 

Spirituality is something that I have always kind of known about but I never really understood what it meant to be “spiritual”. I was clueless on how to establish peace and harmony in my life; in addition, I always wanted to find connection and meaning. Everyday, through enlarging my spiritual life, I am finding those things more and more. For the longest time I thought it meant the same thing as viewing religion and I had a very prejudiced view on the matter. For me, staying active with my spiritual life is what keeps me grounded enough to be able to care for myself in all the other areas of my life. 

I have always been a social person and I used to find it extremely difficult to spend time alone or focus on doing things for myself. My personal life has become almost like a safe haven because without my space away from the chaos of life and people I do not think I would be able to deal with what life throws at me. I have been getting to know myself more when I get time to myself because I am able to figure out my preferences for things and I can engage in finding hobbies and ways to pass my time. I still find it difficult to balance my “me” time with all the other areas of my life. 

As for my professional life, I am assistant house manager of the sober living I also live at; furthermore, it is sometimes difficult to find balance and set up boundaries since I live at the place I also technically work. I have been learning the importance of communicating my needs especially when I need time off; unfortunately, it is still a work in progress and sometimes I still struggle. I have always overworked myself when I have a job so I am learning I cannot do that to myself because if work consumes me then I will be discontent in all the other areas of my life. 

Physically, I do not take care of myself as I should and I can see how it affects my mood and ability to handle life. Eating healthy and exercising are things I have always really struggled with; as well as, my body image and weight which affects my mental and emotional health as well. There is a lot more I could do to take care of myself physically because I have experienced if I am feeling bad about myself physically then I also feel bad about myself in other aspects. Being unhappy physically and health wise definitely takes a toll on the quality of all other areas in my life; that being said, I have been trying to be more mindful about the food I am putting into my body. 

Overall, there are different things I have to continue to work on. Self-care is a continuous process because there is always going to be something I could improve on. It is very important for me to keep balance in every area because I believe all the areas affect each other; moreover, if one area is being cared for more than another then there will be areas of self care which I will slack on. I can see how not taking care of myself when in the helping profession could easily cause a burn out. In order to stay happy I need balance in caring for myself in every area of my life because without self-care I will be irritable, restless, and discontent and everything becomes too much to handle.

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Home — Essay Samples — Life — Who Am I — Who Am I: Creative Writing

Who Am I: Creative Writing

• Categories: About Myself Who Am I

About this sample

Words: 1040 |

Updated: 21 November, 2023

Words: 1040 | Pages: 2 | 6 min read

Table of contents

Prompt examples for the "who am i" essays, "who am i" essay examples.

• Self-Reflection and Identity Explore the concept of self-reflection and the journey to discovering one's identity. How has self-awareness evolved throughout your life, and what factors have contributed to your understanding of who you are?
• Emotions and Self-Perception Discuss your emotional landscape and its impact on your self-perception. How do you experience and express emotions? How do they shape your self-image and interactions with others?
• Self-Esteem and Self-Obsession Examine the dynamics of self-esteem and self-obsession in your life. How has your self-esteem evolved over time, and how does it relate to your self-obsession or self-care? Share personal experiences that illustrate this evolution.
• Social Interactions and Introversion Reflect on your social interactions and introverted tendencies. How do you navigate social situations, and what happens when you step out of your comfort zone? Discuss the balance between introversion and extroversion in your life.
• Leadership and Taking Charge Describe your experiences with leadership and taking charge in various situations. How do you approach leadership roles, and what qualities make you effective in these roles? Share examples of when you've assumed leadership and its impact on those around you.

Who am I: Creative Essay

Works cited.

• Akhtar, S., & Akhtar, F. (2016). A critical study of self-concept and self-esteem. Journal of Humanities and Social Science, 21(7), 15-22.
• Benson, K. (2007). The power of personality types in career success. Journal of Employment Counseling, 44(3), 98-104.
• Cassidy, S., & Eachus, P. (2002). Developing the computer user self-efficacy (CUSE) scale: Investigating the relationship between computer self-efficacy, gender and experience with computers. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 26(2), 133-153.
• Costa, P. T., & McCrae, R. R. (1992). Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI-R) and NEO Five-Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI) professional manual. Psychological Assessment Resources.
• Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2008). Self-determination theory: A macrotheory of human motivation, development, and health. Canadian Psychology/Psychologie canadienne, 49(3), 182-185.
• Friedman, H. S. (2010). Personality, disease, and self-healing: An integrative perspective. The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, 16(1), 5-9.
• Howard, L. W., & Ferris, G. R. (1996). The employment interview context: Social and situational influences on interviewer decisions. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 26(24), 2153-2174.
• McAdams, D. P. (1993). The stories we live by: Personal myths and the making of the self. Guilford Press.
• Swami, V. (2008). The influence of body weight on self-perceptions and partner preferences. Sex Roles, 58(9-10), 651-654.
• Tversky, A., & Kahneman, D. (1974). Judgment under uncertainty: Heuristics and biases. Science, 185(4157), 1124-1131.

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No stopping us once we started rolling along

Most of the roughly 25 members of the Sweethearts Roller Skating Club in 1950. The writer is in the front row, third from the right.  Credit: Calderone Family Photo

It’s been quite a ride. I was born at home, not in a hospital, in 1933 and grew up in Freeport. We were the younger members of the “Greatest Generation.” We lived through the Great Depression and World War II along with ration stamp books, blackout curtains and air raid wardens.

Growing up, my friends and I looked for pleasure in small ways. I received my first pair of roller skates at the age of 8, probably a hand-me-down from my sister Ethel. They were metal and could be adjusted to my foot length. They had a clamp on each side. With the help of a roller-skate key, which I wore around my neck, the skates could be tightened if they became loose.

My neighborhood friends, classmates and I skated to friends’ nearby homes and along Main Street in Freeport Village. Randall Park was open at night only once a year, in July, and we took advantage of it, skating on the cement basketball court. As we grew older, we continued our love of skating and gravitated on Friday nights to the Mineola Roller Skating Rink, home of the Earl Van Horn Dance and Figure Skating Club.

Kids came from near and far, riding public buses that cost 25 cents each way to the rink. We were met at the entrance to be “measured.” Our skirts could be no more than two inches above the knee, or we were not admitted. Once inside, you brought your own shoe skates or rented a pair. The counterman kept all the skates in perfect condition. I owned my own, as did most of my friends. Beginners used the small rink, and the larger rink was for everyone else. Four floor guards skated backward all night in case someone fell. No speeding was allowed.

Bobbie Weedon played a large organ encased in glass as we skated round and round. We glided to dance music such as straight and circle waltzes. Couples skated to the Collegiate Shag and Fourteen Step. Twenty-one numbers were announced by a neon sign, some for ladies only, men only or couples. They also had “trio,” when either two girls and one boy or two boys and one girl would skate together.

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The guys bought us girls candy bars, such as Milky Ways, and soft drinks. Each week, the rink owners produced a newsletter, “Bumps and Falls.”

We had a girls’ skating club with about 25 members called the “Sweethearts Roller Skating Club.” Our outfits were handmade. As club president, I bought bright red pinwheel corduroy material, which I brought to a seamstress. We were all measured, and the girls paid $5 for each outfit, including the seamstress’ work.

The rink was a mecca for teenagers, adults and servicemen from Mitchel Field. We also traveled to other rinks such as Wal-Cliffe on Johnson Avenue in Elmont and one on Staten Island, but Mineola was the queen rink and home to us. In summer, we changed our wooden wheels to metal ones made for the cement floor at Jones Beach Roller Skating.

Many a romance blossomed with neighborhood boys at the Mineola rink. Several skating couples went on to long, happy marriages. I invited my future husband one night, but his buddies thought it was a racetrack rather than a skating dance hall, and I never asked him to skate again.

Overall, it was a peaceful time, one to remember for creating lifelong friendships and memories.

Reader Norma Larsen Calderone lives in Centerport.

SEND AN ESSAY about life on Long Island (about 550 words) to [email protected] . Essays will be edited and may be republished in all media. Include your full name, address and telephone numbers.

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• Knowledge Base
• How to structure an essay: Templates and tips

How to Structure an Essay | Tips & Templates

Published on September 18, 2020 by Jack Caulfield . Revised on July 23, 2023.

The basic structure of an essay always consists of an introduction , a body , and a conclusion . But for many students, the most difficult part of structuring an essay is deciding how to organize information within the body.

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Table of contents

The basics of essay structure, chronological structure, compare-and-contrast structure, problems-methods-solutions structure, signposting to clarify your structure, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about essay structure.

There are two main things to keep in mind when working on your essay structure: making sure to include the right information in each part, and deciding how you’ll organize the information within the body.

Parts of an essay

The three parts that make up all essays are described in the table below.

Order of information

You’ll also have to consider how to present information within the body. There are a few general principles that can guide you here.

The first is that your argument should move from the simplest claim to the most complex . The body of a good argumentative essay often begins with simple and widely accepted claims, and then moves towards more complex and contentious ones.

For example, you might begin by describing a generally accepted philosophical concept, and then apply it to a new topic. The grounding in the general concept will allow the reader to understand your unique application of it.

The second principle is that background information should appear towards the beginning of your essay . General background is presented in the introduction. If you have additional background to present, this information will usually come at the start of the body.

The third principle is that everything in your essay should be relevant to the thesis . Ask yourself whether each piece of information advances your argument or provides necessary background. And make sure that the text clearly expresses each piece of information’s relevance.

The sections below present several organizational templates for essays: the chronological approach, the compare-and-contrast approach, and the problems-methods-solutions approach.

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The chronological approach (sometimes called the cause-and-effect approach) is probably the simplest way to structure an essay. It just means discussing events in the order in which they occurred, discussing how they are related (i.e. the cause and effect involved) as you go.

A chronological approach can be useful when your essay is about a series of events. Don’t rule out other approaches, though—even when the chronological approach is the obvious one, you might be able to bring out more with a different structure.

Explore the tabs below to see a general template and a specific example outline from an essay on the invention of the printing press.

• Thesis statement
• Discussion of event/period
• Consequences
• Importance of topic
• Strong closing statement
• Claim that the printing press marks the end of the Middle Ages
• Background on the low levels of literacy before the printing press
• Thesis statement: The invention of the printing press increased circulation of information in Europe, paving the way for the Reformation
• High levels of illiteracy in medieval Europe
• Literacy and thus knowledge and education were mainly the domain of religious and political elites
• Consequence: this discouraged political and religious change
• Invention of the printing press in 1440 by Johannes Gutenberg
• Implications of the new technology for book production
• Consequence: Rapid spread of the technology and the printing of the Gutenberg Bible
• Trend for translating the Bible into vernacular languages during the years following the printing press’s invention
• Luther’s own translation of the Bible during the Reformation
• Consequence: The large-scale effects the Reformation would have on religion and politics
• Summarize the history described
• Stress the significance of the printing press to the events of this period

Essays with two or more main subjects are often structured around comparing and contrasting . For example, a literary analysis essay might compare two different texts, and an argumentative essay might compare the strengths of different arguments.

There are two main ways of structuring a compare-and-contrast essay: the alternating method, and the block method.

Alternating

In the alternating method, each paragraph compares your subjects in terms of a specific point of comparison. These points of comparison are therefore what defines each paragraph.

The tabs below show a general template for this structure, and a specific example for an essay comparing and contrasting distance learning with traditional classroom learning.

• Synthesis of arguments
• Topical relevance of distance learning in lockdown
• Increasing prevalence of distance learning over the last decade
• Thesis statement: While distance learning has certain advantages, it introduces multiple new accessibility issues that must be addressed for it to be as effective as classroom learning
• Classroom learning: Ease of identifying difficulties and privately discussing them
• Distance learning: Difficulty of noticing and unobtrusively helping
• Classroom learning: Difficulties accessing the classroom (disability, distance travelled from home)
• Distance learning: Difficulties with online work (lack of tech literacy, unreliable connection, distractions)
• Classroom learning: Tends to encourage personal engagement among students and with teacher, more relaxed social environment
• Distance learning: Greater ability to reach out to teacher privately
• Sum up, emphasize that distance learning introduces more difficulties than it solves
• Stress the importance of addressing issues with distance learning as it becomes increasingly common
• Distance learning may prove to be the future, but it still has a long way to go

In the block method, each subject is covered all in one go, potentially across multiple paragraphs. For example, you might write two paragraphs about your first subject and then two about your second subject, making comparisons back to the first.

The tabs again show a general template, followed by another essay on distance learning, this time with the body structured in blocks.

• Point 1 (compare)
• Point 2 (compare)
• Point 3 (compare)
• Point 4 (compare)
• Advantages: Flexibility, accessibility
• Disadvantages: Discomfort, challenges for those with poor internet or tech literacy
• Advantages: Potential for teacher to discuss issues with a student in a separate private call
• Disadvantages: Difficulty of identifying struggling students and aiding them unobtrusively, lack of personal interaction among students
• Advantages: More accessible to those with low tech literacy, equality of all sharing one learning environment
• Disadvantages: Students must live close enough to attend, commutes may vary, classrooms not always accessible for disabled students
• Advantages: Ease of picking up on signs a student is struggling, more personal interaction among students
• Disadvantages: May be harder for students to approach teacher privately in person to raise issues

An essay that concerns a specific problem (practical or theoretical) may be structured according to the problems-methods-solutions approach.

This is just what it sounds like: You define the problem, characterize a method or theory that may solve it, and finally analyze the problem, using this method or theory to arrive at a solution. If the problem is theoretical, the solution might be the analysis you present in the essay itself; otherwise, you might just present a proposed solution.

The tabs below show a template for this structure and an example outline for an essay about the problem of fake news.

• Introduce the problem
• Provide background
• Describe your approach to solving it
• Define the problem precisely
• Describe why it’s important
• Indicate previous approaches to the problem
• Present your new approach, and why it’s better
• Apply the new method or theory to the problem
• Indicate the solution you arrive at by doing so
• Assess (potential or actual) effectiveness of solution
• Describe the implications
• Problem: The growth of “fake news” online
• Prevalence of polarized/conspiracy-focused news sources online
• Thesis statement: Rather than attempting to stamp out online fake news through social media moderation, an effective approach to combating it must work with educational institutions to improve media literacy
• Definition: Deliberate disinformation designed to spread virally online
• Popularization of the term, growth of the phenomenon
• Previous approaches: Labeling and moderation on social media platforms
• Critique: This approach feeds conspiracies; the real solution is to improve media literacy so users can better identify fake news
• Greater emphasis should be placed on media literacy education in schools
• This allows people to assess news sources independently, rather than just being told which ones to trust
• This is a long-term solution but could be highly effective
• It would require significant organization and investment, but would equip people to judge news sources more effectively
• Rather than trying to contain the spread of fake news, we must teach the next generation not to fall for it

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Signposting means guiding the reader through your essay with language that describes or hints at the structure of what follows.  It can help you clarify your structure for yourself as well as helping your reader follow your ideas.

The essay overview

In longer essays whose body is split into multiple named sections, the introduction often ends with an overview of the rest of the essay. This gives a brief description of the main idea or argument of each section.

The overview allows the reader to immediately understand what will be covered in the essay and in what order. Though it describes what  comes later in the text, it is generally written in the present tense . The following example is from a literary analysis essay on Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein .

Transitions

Transition words and phrases are used throughout all good essays to link together different ideas. They help guide the reader through your text, and an essay that uses them effectively will be much easier to follow.

Various different relationships can be expressed by transition words, as shown in this example.

Because Hitler failed to respond to the British ultimatum, France and the UK declared war on Germany. Although it was an outcome the Allies had hoped to avoid, they were prepared to back up their ultimatum in order to combat the existential threat posed by the Third Reich.

Transition sentences may be included to transition between different paragraphs or sections of an essay. A good transition sentence moves the reader on to the next topic while indicating how it relates to the previous one.

… Distance learning, then, seems to improve accessibility in some ways while representing a step backwards in others.

However , considering the issue of personal interaction among students presents a different picture.

If you want to know more about AI tools , college essays , or fallacies make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples or go directly to our tools!

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• Post hoc fallacy
• Appeal to authority fallacy
• False cause fallacy
• Sunk cost fallacy

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The structure of an essay is divided into an introduction that presents your topic and thesis statement , a body containing your in-depth analysis and arguments, and a conclusion wrapping up your ideas.

The structure of the body is flexible, but you should always spend some time thinking about how you can organize your essay to best serve your ideas.

An essay isn’t just a loose collection of facts and ideas. Instead, it should be centered on an overarching argument (summarized in your thesis statement ) that every part of the essay relates to.

The way you structure your essay is crucial to presenting your argument coherently. A well-structured essay helps your reader follow the logic of your ideas and understand your overall point.

Comparisons in essays are generally structured in one of two ways:

• The alternating method, where you compare your subjects side by side according to one specific aspect at a time.
• The block method, where you cover each subject separately in its entirety.

It’s also possible to combine both methods, for example by writing a full paragraph on each of your topics and then a final paragraph contrasting the two according to a specific metric.

You should try to follow your outline as you write your essay . However, if your ideas change or it becomes clear that your structure could be better, it’s okay to depart from your essay outline . Just make sure you know why you’re doing so.

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I threw caution to the wind to make my son’s dream trip a reality

Oct 6, 2023 • 15 min read

The author and his son Owen attend the Goodwood Revival, Chichester, UK on September 9, 2023 © Adrian Wenner

I’ve been an Anglophile for as long as I can remember. My 16-year-old son has been obsessed with automobiles since he could eat solid food. At this year’s Goodwood Revival , we found the perfect day out.

I’d never heard of the “Goodwood Revival Meeting” until my son, Owen, was invited to attend by a British friend of his. My wife and I did a quick search, and it looked like a pleasant weekend of antique car racing in the south of England .

Now, I’ve loved all things English my whole life. The Beatles, Wimbledon and James Bond were my gateway drugs. But after my first visit to London as a nine-year-old, I was hooked on harder stuff: punks, the Tube, “The Young Ones,” dry scones…even cricket! Luckily, my wife shares a borderline unhealthy obsession with the place, and we travel to the UK as often as we can.

But I didn't think this trip was going to work out. We’d had a lean year and couldn’t really afford it. And the dates in question were just as Owen’s junior year of high school was to begin. I found it hard to justify flying all the way from  Los Angeles and his missing the first days of class just to watch some old cars go around a track.

“The car gene”

Some background: the “car gene” must be recessive in my family. My parents always owned “sensible” (boring) sedans. When I moved to Los Angeles, driving quickly became the bane of my existence. A car became a necessary evil. Something used to get places, aggravatingly slowly. And car racing made even less sense to me. I thought all motorsports was NASCAR – a loud, unrefined blood sport that was terrible for the environment.

Then we had our son. Owen came out of the womb loving cars. They were the only things he wanted to play with, watch or read about. I’m not exaggerating when I tell you my wife and I could both recite the movie Cars  line for line by the time he was six. As he got older, Disney cars were replaced by Hot Wheels, which were replaced by elaborate models of supercars. Cartoons became episodes of Top Gear and early morning Formula 1 races. He’s now planning on focusing on mechanical engineering in college and getting a master’s degree in motorsports. His goal is to become a design engineer for McLaren, Aston Martin or Mercedes.

A few days after a “Sorry, kid, maybe another time” talk, I ran into Rick, my rabid car-enthusiast friend. He had recently driven in the Mille Miglia in Italy  (I googled it). I mentioned the invite we were about to turn down. Frustration washing over his face, he told me if there was one automobile event in the world for which he would drop everything, it would be the one I was about to callously deprive my son of.

“Your son is into motorsports, and you’ve been offered tickets to Goodwood?! You have to go.” Rick shook his head in disbelief. “You just have to.”

No sleep till Goodwood

So we booked it – credit-card interest rates be damned. It would be a whirlwind trip affecting Owen’s crucial, penultimate year as little as possible. Fly in on Friday, drive down to the race on Saturday, catch our breath Sunday and back to LA on Monday. No. Sleep! Till Goodwood!!

For the as-yet unenlightened, “Goodwood” refers to an estate in West Sussex, owned by the 11th Duke of Richmond. I could bore you with details of the history of the place – which dates back to the 1600s and an illegitimate son of Charles II – but the important bit (as I understand it) is this: during World War II, the 9th Duke allowed the RAF to build a runway on his land to help fight the Battle of Britain. After the war, he turned the newly built ring road around this makeshift airbase into a motor circuit and staged races for the public until 1966. In 1998, the current Duke “revived” the tradition, creating the late-summer event celebrated every year.

“Did we tell you it’s important to dress in period costume?” This was the next text we received after we accepted our friends’ invite. 

Because the event is a celebration of the golden age of motorsport, the Goodwood Revival is designed to take one back in time to the 1940s and 1950s. Attendees are encouraged to play along and dress accordingly. I believe the English call this “fancy dress” – a term that (no surprise) I love. Lucky for us, my wife’s niece is a costume designer and hooked us all up with some vintage duds. We were all set.

As instructed by our hosts, we set off from London bright and early to beat the crowds and arrive in time for the first race. By the time we’d gotten to Guildford, the countryside had become absolutely spectacular in the morning sun. Rolling green hills could be glimpsed when not in a corridor of ubiquitous British hedgerows. Each village pub looked more inviting than the last. But it was important not to be distracted and keep the throttle down – because as we neared our destination, we had plenty of company.

“Dad, you’re holding everything up,” my son admonished from the backseat. In the rear-view there was a man in a tweed vest and driving cap, anachronistically driving a red Ferrari. And he was none too pleased with me getting reacquainted with the right-hand drive in my pokey rented Nissan. Behind the tailgating Italian stallion was someone in a muscle-y Mustang Cobra, followed by a few other sports cars whose names my son gleefully called out as they roared past. All I knew was I was the “arsehole” holding things up as they overtook me on the straight.

Traffic built as we approached Chichester, and we began to see quite a few frustrated gentlemen in three-piece suits and jaunty hats with iPhones to their ears, standing beside their olde-time cars with the bonnet (that’s a “car hood” for you Yanks) open and steaming. Turns out, the 1930s Bentleys and Rolls Royces weren’t faring well already, because even though it was September in England, temperatures were already in the low 30s Celsius (90s Fahrenheit). I suppose there was at least one advantage to driving a 2019 Versa with laughably low horsepower.

Back in time

We parked in a field and made our way to the entrance, surrounded by women in polka dotted dresses with pompadour hairstyles and men wearing all manner of fedoras and braces. Our friends were right: seemingly everyone attending had made an effort to wear some fashion of the era. At the gate were men and women checking tickets in woolen WWII uniforms and period overalls. I knew that I was entering a world so quintessentially English...it was group cosplay on a level that Americans could never pull off. Even in the sweltering sun and high humidity, the English were game.

And that made the whole thing even more English.

It wasn’t lost on me that 80 years ago, this country was bearing the brunt of the Nazi war machine with stiff upper lips and a dignified resolve. From this piece of land, young men were flying off, never to return home. In that context, are you really going to complain about itchy trousers or uncomfortable shoes? What’s a little bit of sweat and some blistered feet compared to the Blitz? Keep calm and carry your jacket, if you must. “At least it isn’t tipping down rain,” someone opined behind me, a pproaching peak English.

If you’ve come all that way and regret wearing a tank top and shorts, don’t despair. There are all manner of shops and tents where you can buy a vintage outfit or polish off your look with the right accessory. You can even purchase some period racing overalls for the kids. Ladies can pop into a salon to have their hair done. There’s really no excuse not to play along, and I found myself tut-tutting the rare spectator who broke the communal illusion with cargo shorts or some new trainers.

Breakfast for champions

We walked through the tunnel under the track and found our friends in time for a quick breakfast in one of the pavilions which thankfully offered a little bit of respite from the heat and humidity. (I have no idea about the different level of tickets there are to the event. I assume, like Wimbledon or The Open, there are different prices for grounds passes and those offering access to the various pavilions and grandstands. The website only allows you to “enquire” about booking for next year. I highly suggest you do.) All I know is I’m eternally grateful to Owen’s friend for handling the arrangements and reserving us a place to sit near some albeit meager air con.

I studied the Racing Program , complete with vintage advertisements for motor oil and cigarettes. The first race was about to begin! “A 20-minute race for Grand Prix and Voiturette cars of a type that raced between 1930 and 1951.” In layman’s terms? Picture an old, old race car – basically a cigar of metal with one seat and four big tires. Put the guy driving it behind a big wooden steering wheel wearing leather goggles. You’ve got the idea.

You knew a race started simply by the sound of it. My hunch is that in 1930s grand prix cars, a muffler wasn’t something that came standard. As these nearly century-old machines came popping and moaning down the straight some ways off, the race looked tame, something almost resembling an exhibition. I asked my son how fast these jalopies could go. “Flat out, the leaders are probably hitting 170km per hour (105mph).” What?! Not a chance, I thought.

But Owen was already dragging me closer toward the track.

And they’re off

Lame-dad instincts die hard, I find. I fought the voice in my head urging me to keep my boy far away from any potentially deadly flying bits of crashing car. “We should get as close to the chicane as we can.” He was speed-walking with delight toward a small swerve in the track that he had already scoped out as the best spot to observe the drivers’ skills. I highly recommend doing the same when you go; even I could recognize the strength and artistry needed. Hard on the brake, downshift, then punch the throttle while somehow managing to stay on the track.

As they fought these antique beasts through the jog, missing the barrier with centimeters to spare, Owen was grinning ear to ear. (And anyone with a 16-year-old knows outward shows of enthusiasm are not their strong suit.) Watching these machines roar past made me a quick convert. It turns out there’s something thrilling about seeing man push machine to both their limits. And this was going to be the slowest race of the day!

For any motorcycle enthusiasts, the next event was a competition for pre-1966 racing bikes. (Luckily for this lame dad, going over 100mph on only two wheels has no appeal for my son.) The break from the cars offered us a chance to use our badges to go on a tour of the paddocks. It didn’t disappoint.

Sensory overload

It’s actually hard for me to put into words what a stroll through the aisles of Goodwood’s paddocks does to one’s senses. From every corner of the stalls, majestic motors roar to life as the cars are tested and prepped for their races. Most stalls include grizzled men with hand-rolled cigarettes lit and toolboxes opened nearby, prepared to adjust or fix or tweak at a moment’s notice. (Some are friendlier than others, but many are up for a chat or to answer a question from an inquisitive teen.) The smell of petrol (gasoline), tarmac and tobacco mixes, and the sum of the whole somehow becomes more pleasant than its parts.

Visually, it’s overwhelming. Literally hundreds of cars from all eras of motorsport. Pick your poison. Turn-of-the-century Bentleys – maybe a dozen of them – on your left. Scores of Lotuses from 1948 to 1982 on your right, all part of a celebration of 75 years of the brand and triumph of British engineering. Walk a bit further and Emerson Fittipaldi’s former Formula 1 car sits in pieces, giving you an up close look at the (to my uneducated eye) chaos of steel and wires lurking underneath its gleaming exterior. Many of the cars proudly display their provenance.

There’s the oldest surviving Le Mans–winning Bentley. Here’s the Ferrari 250 GTO that won the 1963 RAC TT (whatever that was). This Lotus-Offenhauser Mk-X was evidently ordered by James Dean, but he was killed in a car crash before taking ownership. Some of the rarest cars in the world were sitting there, unattended. Another reminder that we were in England, where proper decorum is respected without being asked.

If you’re stealthy, I recommend glomming onto a group of people listening to someone who knows what they’re talking about. Chances are they do, and you can learn a tidbit or two. According to an older gentleman with a clipboard Carroll Shelby’s first racetrack winner was a 1949 MG TC. And the silver 1962 Ferrari 250 last sold for over 20 million pounds. My son and I lost ourselves in an acre of the most iconic racing cars on the planet.

To be uncouth about it, I was probably looking at billions of dollars in collectors’ items.

No car gene? No problem

I should mention here that there are plenty of things to do for non-car-obsessed in your group. Besides the vintage shops and hair salons, there are vendors of all kinds. Food kiosks and bars line the paths. (Refreshments are also of the era.) There’s also an aviation area devoted to refurbished Spitfires and Tornados, where you can book a helicopter tour of the area. Music stages feature different period styles, and a cinema shows vintage films. Incidentally, children under 12 are free with a paying adult. There’s a Family Experience Area which offers activities and story sessions as well as a “traditional funfair” with old-time rides and games.

Speaking of children…while mine was somewhere filling up his phone with photos, my attention was drawn to a corner of the paddock. Dozens of eight-to-10 year olds in period jackets, ties and dresses sat in metal pedal cars. They were lining up for the next race, awaiting their turn on the hallowed piece of road in the Settrington Cup. I wasn’t going to miss it. I managed to drag Owen back to our place at the fence to watch, and it did not disappoint. These kids picked right up from where the “Voiturette” racers had left off. Their race featured some real “elbows out” driving and more than one crash. (No injuries, happy to report.)

Behold! I am a convert

Now that I was a true believer, I excitedly allowed Owen to educate me on every race. There was something for every car enthusiast. A race of only Porsche 911s from the 1964 to 1966. (Though it’s not his favorite manufacturer, he appreciates the iconic design.) The Lavant Cup featured 15 Ferrari 250GTs. (According to Owen, one of them was a one-of-a-kind SWB from 1961 – he’d overheard a mechanic bragging.) There was even a race devoted to pre-1966 sports prototypes, some of them piloted by world-famous drivers he knew. (I didn’t.)

Were any of these guys pulling back, playing it safe with these priceless specimens? Not that I could tell, as I watched them go wheel to wheel in the straights and skitter into the grass through the chicane. They all wanted to win . When one of those same Ford GTs that I’d been close enough to drip sweat on a few hours ago went off and crashed into the wall in the last race, the collective groan that rolled through the crowd said it all. Thousands of spectators were breathless. Yes, I’m sure there was brief concern for the driver. But that car! That beautiful, beautiful car… My son summed it up as the marshals pushed the wounded hulk to safety: “that was an expensive crash.”

Seven races (not including the kids) complete, the late-summer sun was starting to set. I gently coaxed Owen from his place on the rail, reminding him that the drive back to London was long and not nearly as glamorous as what we’d been watching. We made our way back to the car park passing spent, sunburned fathers with toddlers on their shoulders. Moms bravely limped forward in their vintage heels pushing prams (strollers). English to the end, the queues for last-minute merch were orderly and polite. 

I realized we hadn’t even made it to the vintage fairground, with its carousel and dodgems (bumper cars). A few years back, Owen might have grown bored of the racing and asked for a spin or two on the carousel. I got misty-eyed as we trudged by it. Maybe it was the scenic twilight or my probable sunstroke from the day or a combination of the two, but I suddenly missed that little boy, playing with his anthropomorphic toy cars. He was walking ahead of me, taller than his mother, holding the silver Goodwood keychain he’d just bought. (His driver’s test is scheduled the week we get back, and then my little boy will be at the mercy of Los Angeles traffic…without me.) In this 1950s ambiance, time felt like it was moving too fast. He’d become a man when I wasn’t looking. 

But I managed to push through my melancholy to see what this day had been: a true gift. On a beautiful day in West Sussex, my son’s passion had meshed with mine in magical harmony. I’d let go of preconceptions and allowed my son to lead me for a change. I was walking away with a newfound understanding and appreciation of where he was going while still keeping in my heart where he’d been .

Roy Salvadori said, “Give me Goodwood on a summer’s day, and you can forget the rest of the world.” And when I caught up to Owen, and he put his arm around me, I really did.

And it was grand.

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Opinion Guest Essay

Should Trump Be Sentenced to Prison? Two Opposing Views.

Credit... Damon Winter/The New York Times

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By New York Times Opinion

• June 2, 2024

Now that Donald Trump has been convicted on 34 felony counts, his sentencing hearing looms on July 11. Below are two legal experts weighing in on the critical question of whether Mr. Trump ought to receive a prison sentence.

The Case for Prison Time for Trump

By Norman Eisen

Having witnessed every day of Donald Trump’s criminal trial for falsifying business records to conceal a sex scandal that threatened his presidential campaign, I strongly believe the former president should be sentenced to incarceration.

I am a lawyer, not a judge, but I have practiced criminal law for over three decades. Under New York law, sentencing should be based on the gravity of the crime — and the 34 offenses on which Mr. Trump has now been convicted are profoundly serious. To find him guilty of felony business record falsification, the jury had to determine that he intended to commit, aid or conceal a second crime by making or causing false entries.

Jurors were given only one option for that second offense. That was the payment of hush money to hide damaging information, “a criminal scheme to corrupt the 2016 presidential election” under New York’s criminal code. Joshua Steinglass, one of the prosecutors, underscored the significance of that in his closing argument, telling jurors, “Democracy gives people the right to elect their leaders, but that rests on the premise that the voters have access to accurate information about the candidates.” Mr. Trump sought “to deny that access, to manipulate and defraud the voters, to pull the wool over their eyes in a coordinated fashion,” Mr. Steinglass said.

Because the legitimacy of our entire system of government rests on free and fair elections, this offense is deserving of punishment.

Sentences should take into account outcomes in comparable cases. When Justice Juan Merchan sentences Mr. Trump, he will do so against a backdrop of many other defendants who have been convicted of this felony. My research for a book about the case, “Trying Trump: A Guide to His First Election Interference Criminal Trial,” included examining almost 10,000 prosecutions for falsifying business records in New York since 2015. In the most serious of these cases, about 10 percent of the total, incarceration was imposed. Mr. Trump’s assault on our democracy is as serious as or more serious than any of those others. My research also showed that first-time offenders like Mr. Trump are not exempt from sentences of incarceration, nor should they be if, like the former president, their offense is serious enough.

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