Eight-legged essay

Hey kiddo! Do you know what an essay is? It's a piece of writing that people usually write for school or work.

Well, a long time ago in China, people had a special type of essay that they had to write. It was called the "eight-legged essay".

Now, imagine an octopus. An octopus has eight legs, right? Well, this type of essay had eight parts, just like an octopus has eight legs!

The first part was called the "opening" and it was where the writer would introduce what they were going to talk about.

The second part was called the "thesis" and it was where the writer would state their argument or main point.

The third part was called the "discussion" and it was where the writer would explain their argument in detail.

The fourth part was called the "anticipation of objections" and it was where the writer would think of possible arguments against their point and address them.

The fifth part was called the "refutation of objections" and it was where the writer would explain why their argument was still right even after thinking about the objections.

The sixth part was called the "conclusion" and it was where the writer would wrap up what they wrote about.

The last two parts were all about making the essay sound fancy and scholarly. One part was called the "imitation of the ancients" and it was where the writer would try to make their writing sound like the old, classic Chinese writings.

The other part was called the "antithesis" and it was where the writer would use fancy language to make their writing sound even more sophisticated.

So, that's what the eight-legged essay was! It was a special type of essay in China with eight parts, just like an octopus has eight legs.