Expository Essay

Although explaining a topic can be done in several ways, the most common approach to developing an expository paragraph requires using specific details and examples. No matter what type of paragraph you are writing, you will need specific details and examples to support the controlling idea in your topic sentences. The controlling idea is the word or phrase in the topic sentences that states an idea or an attitude about the topic; this idea or attitude is frequently referred to as a generalization. A generalization is a statement that applies in most cases to a group of things, ideas, or people. A generalization can be a value judgment or an opinion. ("Mr. Mantia is a nice person") or a factual statement "The English language has borrowed many terms from French").

Specific details

The topic sentence "Going to college can be expensive" should yield a paragraph that provides some information or explanation about the controlling idea - expensive. The topic sentence might be developed as follows: "Going to college can be expensive. Everyone knows that tuition and room and board aren't cheap, but there are other expenses that make going to college even more expensive. For instance, the cost of books and supplies is high. In addition, there are all kinds of special fees tacked onto the bill at registration time. Students usually have to pay for parking and even for adding and dropping courses after registration. The fees never seem to end."

Does this paragraph effectively demonstrate that going to college can be expensive? Although the writer mentions a few of the expenses that students must incur, the writer has not provided the reader with enough hard evidence to support the controlling idea - expensive. Specific details would help support this statement more strongly. Just as specific descriptive details help to support the controlling idea in a description and make the description more vivid and interesting, specific details help "prove" or support the generalization in an expository paragraph. This paragraph can be improved by using specific details: "Going to college can be expensive. Everyone knows that tuition and room and board can cost anywhere from $3,000 to $10,000 per semester, but there are other expenses that make going to college even more expensive. For instance, books typically cost between $150 and $400 each term. Supplies, too, are not cheap, for as any students knows, paper, notebooks, writing utensils, and the many other supplies needed usually cost more at the college bookstore than at local discount department store. For instance, a package of notepaper costing $1 at a discount store might cost $2 at a college bookstore. In addition, there are all kinds of special fees tacked onto the bill at registration time. A student might have to pay a $30 insurance fee, a $15 activity fee, a $10 fee to the student government association, and anywhere from $20 to $100 for parking. If a student decides to add or drop a course after registration, there is yet another fee. The fees never seem to end. "

Instead of just referring to the expenses of attending college, in this revised version the writer uses specific details - in this case, factual details – to illustrate or prove the generalization.

In expository writing, the writer is like a lawyer who is trying to prove a point; a layer cannot make generalization without giving proof to support his or her statements. Good proof is factual detail.