Dialogue
Introduction:
Like the action
introduction, the dialogue introduction
brings the reader directly into
the action, only this time in
the form of dialogue. If you
are writing about an influential
figure in your life, you can
mention a quote from this person
that exemplifies the importance
that he or she had on your life.
Examples:
"You must stop
seeing that Russian girl, " I
ordered my brother when he returned
home last summer from the University
of Indianapolis. Echoing the
prejudiced, ignorant sentiment
that I had grown up with, I believed
it was wrong to become seriously
involved with a person who does
not follow the Hindu religion
and is not a member of the Indian
race.
Multicultural awareness
is a key aspect of fitting in
well at a university, and admissions
officers are very aware of this.
Thus, it is an excellent idea
to mention how you expanded your
cultural sensitivity. Beginning
the essay by admitting that you
were once less tolerant is a
compelling way to demonstrate
just how much you have grown
as a person.
On the verge of
losing consciousness, I asked
myself: "Why am I doing
this?" Why was I punishing
my body? I had no answer; my
mind blanked out from exhaustion
and terror. I had no time to
second-guess myself with a terrifying
man leaning over my shoulder
yelling: "You can break
six minutes!" As flecks
of spit flew from his mouth and
landed on the handle bar of the
ergometer, I longed to be finished
with my first Saturday rowing
practice and my first fifteen-hundred-meter
“erg test.”
The power of this
introduction comes from its attention
to detail. The question “Why
am I doing this?” gains support
from every horrible detail: the
exhaustion, the terrifying man,
and the specks of spit flying
from his mouth! With such strong
supporting evidence, the quotation
takes on a life of its own. Your
reader will find himself thinking,
“Why would anyone do that? I’d
like to find out…” |
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