HOW TO WRITE A NARRATIVE ESSAY FOR GCSE
ENGLISH LANGUAGE
It is essential to be aware that a narrative essay involves
‘telling s a story’ - it therefore needs a definite plot. This is
what distinguishes it from a descriptive essay which does
not require a plot. A narrative essay of course can be
descriptive and this of course will give it its substance.
Remember to make good use of adjectives and adverbs:
My sister walked into the room:
My inquisitive sister walked into the room
My gregarious sister walked into the room
My flamboyant sister walked in the room
This is characterisation - the reader (examiner) will have a
clearer idea of who this character in your story is and what
they are like
I sat in my bedroom
I sat in my cluttered bedroom
I sat in my dimly-lit bedroom
I sat in my shadowy bedroom
I sat in my hideously dark-blue bedroom
I sat in my cramped bedroom
The adjective you use will depend on the context of the
story - what kind of atmosphere are you trying to build?
Perhaps your story borders on being a horror story and you
therefore want to build up an ominous atmosphere - and
therefore an adjective such as ‘shadowy’ would work well.
, Below is an extract from Harper Lee’s novel “To Kill a
Mockingbird” which shows how adjectives make a
description so much more colourful and vibrant (this is for
illustration and is not to be re-produced in an essay). Note
also the use of simile “like a glacier” - create your own
similes to make the writing more vibrant and interesting.
“She was horrible. Her face was the colour of a dirty pillow-case,
and the corners of her mouth glistened with wet, which inched like a
glacier down the deep grooves enclosing her chin. Old-age liver
spots dotted her cheeks, and her pale eyes had black pinpoint
pupils. Her hands were knobbly, and the cuticles were grown up
over her fingernails.”
He walked along the path
He walked cautiously along the path
He walked fearfully along the path
He walked briskly along the path
He walked purposefully along the path
He walked furtively along the path
NARRATIVE ESSAY - has a plot and a descriptive element
DESCRIPTIVE ESSAY - is descriptive but does not have a
plot.
You can choose 1st person narration (I, me) or 3rd person
narration (he/she; him/her) (Exam note: do not shift the
narrative perspective during the story - you must use one or
the other)
ENGLISH LANGUAGE
It is essential to be aware that a narrative essay involves
‘telling s a story’ - it therefore needs a definite plot. This is
what distinguishes it from a descriptive essay which does
not require a plot. A narrative essay of course can be
descriptive and this of course will give it its substance.
Remember to make good use of adjectives and adverbs:
My sister walked into the room:
My inquisitive sister walked into the room
My gregarious sister walked into the room
My flamboyant sister walked in the room
This is characterisation - the reader (examiner) will have a
clearer idea of who this character in your story is and what
they are like
I sat in my bedroom
I sat in my cluttered bedroom
I sat in my dimly-lit bedroom
I sat in my shadowy bedroom
I sat in my hideously dark-blue bedroom
I sat in my cramped bedroom
The adjective you use will depend on the context of the
story - what kind of atmosphere are you trying to build?
Perhaps your story borders on being a horror story and you
therefore want to build up an ominous atmosphere - and
therefore an adjective such as ‘shadowy’ would work well.
, Below is an extract from Harper Lee’s novel “To Kill a
Mockingbird” which shows how adjectives make a
description so much more colourful and vibrant (this is for
illustration and is not to be re-produced in an essay). Note
also the use of simile “like a glacier” - create your own
similes to make the writing more vibrant and interesting.
“She was horrible. Her face was the colour of a dirty pillow-case,
and the corners of her mouth glistened with wet, which inched like a
glacier down the deep grooves enclosing her chin. Old-age liver
spots dotted her cheeks, and her pale eyes had black pinpoint
pupils. Her hands were knobbly, and the cuticles were grown up
over her fingernails.”
He walked along the path
He walked cautiously along the path
He walked fearfully along the path
He walked briskly along the path
He walked purposefully along the path
He walked furtively along the path
NARRATIVE ESSAY - has a plot and a descriptive element
DESCRIPTIVE ESSAY - is descriptive but does not have a
plot.
You can choose 1st person narration (I, me) or 3rd person
narration (he/she; him/her) (Exam note: do not shift the
narrative perspective during the story - you must use one or
the other)
