Writing a reflective analysis essay can be a nightmare for most students. You are tasked to write a reflective analysis essay, and you sit staring and your blank pages, a pen in hand (or probably a lifeless keyboard) not knowing where to start. Read this article, and at the end, you will have a way out.
Contents
What is a Reflective Analysis Essay?
A reflective analysis essay relates to some past event or experience. Your reader expects you to give an account of your life in a particular period.
When writing a reflective essay, you should focus on different memories, feelings, and emotions related to that particular period. Writing a reflective analysis essay helps you to think more about yourself, who you are, and how you have changed.
Reflective Analysis Essay Outline
An outline allows you to establish the necessary details of your paper. It acts as the skeleton of the essay, thus saving you time.
The outline of a reflective analysis essay is as follows;
Introductory Paragraph
The first paragraph of your essay serves as the introduction. It should describe the main topic to give your reader an overview of what to expect in the rest of the essay. Your introduction should consist of;
- The hook – Get a catchy phrase or statement to catch the reader’s attention. It is what makes the reader want to read more of your essay.
- Thesis statement – Have a sentence that describes your main topic. A thesis statement gives the reader an understanding of what you are discussing in your essay.
Body
The body is the central part of your reflective analysis essay. In the first paragraph, write about the reasons that your subject had the impact it had on you. You can describe the subject and how it came to be part of your story.
The other structure of the body paragraphs is best described in chronological events. It is written by answering questions such as;
- What was your first impression?
- What was your experience?
- Did it match your expectation?
- What part do you recall most?
- What emotions are brought by those memories?
Conclusion.
Lastly, when you have your essay in place, it is time to wrap up your ideas and develop a sense of how you have changed or developed since then. Describe your feelings, mention discoveries, and your plans. Finish your essay with a rhetorical question to your readers about how they might act in a similar situation. Alternatively, ask them to reflect on a related topic of their own.
How to Write a Reflective Analysis Essay Step by Step
Here is a step by step guide from where to begin writing a reflective essay up to the end:
Choose a topic
If you haven’t been assigned a topic to discuss in your essay, then it should be the first thing you do. Avoid borrowing a topic for your essay. As the name suggests, the essay should be about your own past experiences.
Here are some ideas on what you can write about to help you begin.
- An experience you will never forget.
- A fight with a family member.
- The moment you overcame a fear.
- A secret spot in your house, school, or residence.
- The most difficult choice I had to make.
- A time your beliefs were challenged.
Gathering information
Gathering information about a reflective analysis essay you should write is more of a reflective process. You sit down to think about every detail that relates to that experience. Try to put down as much information as possible.
Organizing your thoughts
When you have put your thoughts down on paper, it is time to organize them. List them down chronologically as you would want them to appear on your essay.
Writing a Draft
Writing a draft allows your ideas to flow freely, knowing that you will always have time to edit your work. Review and edit your work to come up with the best version you can.
Write the final essay
When you’ve gone through the processes above, you can now write a clean copy of your essay. You follow the structure as outlined previously. Then read through to ensure your essay is as you would like it to be. When you are comfortable with your text, your essay is ready for submission.
Writing a reflective analysis essay should be fun and enjoyable. It is like narrating a story from your past. It would help if you had the correct focus. If you are still stuck, feel free to contact our experts to help you out.
