How to write good cause and effect essays

As indicated by the term, cause and effect essays discuss the causes and effects of a particular topic. The topic could be a phenomenon or an incident or a significant event. The study is aimed at giving the students a deep understanding of the situation. When you study a topic from its causes and pursue it till its effects, the study on that topic is almost complete. There are many aspects which must be taken care of while preparing essays of this nature.

Organizing the causes and effects in your essay

Cause and Effect EssayWhile writing essays on causes and effects, you must aim at giving the reader a complete idea of the essay topics. It should begin with the causes, developed through the incident or the phenomenon itself and then conclude with a detailed description of the effects, making it a complete circle. You can frame your essay on cause and effects as follows:

• Introduction: Tell the reader about your topic. The reader might or might not be aware of the fact that it is a cause and effect essay. Hence, mention it anyway. Give some background information on the topic to help the reader get a better grasp of the situation. There are various topics which has multiple causes or effects. If your topic is one of those, explain if you are going to discuss all of them or if your essay is just discussing one cause and the related side effect. This must be stated clearly in the thesis statement.

• The body paragraphs: In the body paragraphs, discuss the points one by one. Discuss the main cause first, then the next and then the rest, if applicable. Do likewise with the effects as well. If any one of the causes is directly linked to the effects, remember to mention that. Start each paragraph with a sentence which explains what is going to be discussed in that body paragraph. This will help the readers to follow your essay better.

• The conclusion: In the conclusion of your cause and effect essay, summarize the main points. The immediate cause, the most prominent result etc must be a part of the conclusion. Reinstate your thesis with reference to the main points. Use a concluding line which marks the end of the discussion, to wind up the essay effectively.

What to remember while preparing your essay on causes and effects

It is not difficult to put together an impressive essay on causes and effects if you know how to organize the points well and develop them appropriately. Be careful about how you arrange the points and in which order you present them. While developing the essay, remember a few things:

1. Try to avoid the less relevant causes or effects unless you have too much space to fill up.

2. Focus on one thing at a time. While discussing causes, do not digress off into the effects unless it is necessary to retain the link between the two.

3. Mention which are the most prominent cause and effect and why it is so.

4. If the causes or effects are a chain of events, ensure that the events are presented in the right order.