How to Write Dialogue in an Essay

Dialogue (from the Greek dialogos – a conversation between two people) is a conversation between two or more persons in a work of art, such as a book, a story, or an essay. Dialogue is the most important compositional component, along with monologue, portrait, landscape, etc. It is one of the main means of characterizing heroes and conveying the essence of their inner lives.

Dialogue is an element of a work of art that requires special attention, formatting (e.g. in MLA style), analysis of examples, and careful planning. Those who know how to write dialogue in an essay also understand that the main characteristic of a quality dialogue is the absence of superfluous elements. Even a couple of unnecessary phrases will make a conversation boring and tedious, and the reader will have a strong desire to skip it.

Properties of a Good Dialogue

What are the qualities and style of an exemplary dialogue in an essay?

1. Appropriateness and informative value. People have empty conversations every day. However, in writing, each phrase is used to achieve a goal. Dialogue advances the story, conveys important information to readers, and helps characters to express themselves.
2. Appropriateness and informative value. People have empty conversations every day. However, in writing, each phrase is used to achieve a goal. Dialogue advances the story, conveys important information to readers, and helps characters to express themselves.
3. Appropriateness and informative value. People have empty conversations every day. However, in writing, each phrase is used to achieve a goal. Dialogue advances the story, conveys important information to readers, and helps characters to express themselves.
4. Appropriateness and informative value. People have empty conversations every day. However, in writing, each phrase is used to achieve a goal. Dialogue advances the story, conveys important information to readers, and helps characters to express themselves.
5. Appropriateness and informative value. People have empty conversations every day. However, in writing, each phrase is used to achieve a goal. Dialogue advances the story, conveys important information to readers, and helps characters to express themselves.
6. Appropriateness and informative value. People have empty conversations every day. However, in writing, each phrase is used to achieve a goal. Dialogue advances the story, conveys important information to readers, and helps characters to express themselves.

Dialogue Design Rules with Examples

Want to quickly learn how to write dialogue in an essay? First, you need to learn the basic rules and styles (MLA is most commonly used in academic and research works). Here are the examples of the main rules for dialogue design in an essay using MLA style:

Conversation without the words of the author

The direct speech begins with a new line, and before the beginning of each phrase – there must be a dash.

— I miss Paris. We first met there.

— My dear, your romantic nature never ceases to amaze me.

Reply after the words of the author

The direct speech begins with the words of the author, followed by a colon. The replica is written from a new line.

I heard a knock on the door:

— Why did you come?

John replied:

— I brought a package.

Reply before the words of the author

We change the period to a comma, the rest of the punctuation marks do not change, then follows a dash and words of the author with a lowercase letter.

— Why did you come? I asked the visitor.

“I brought a package,” Boris answered.

The author’s words interrupt the replica

Reply, dash, words of the author, then dot, dash (MLA). The new line starts with a capital letter.

“It was a wonderful day,” Lisa sighed. — When will we see each other again?

A rare design rule – the words of the author are divided into two parts, which refer to different parts of direct speech. The second part is preceded by a colon, then a dash.

 —“It’s all right,” — Marek muttered. And he immediately added: — It’s going to rain, let’s go to the café.

Author’s words within one phrase

Dash, quote, comma, then a dash, the remark begins with a small letter.

— “I am pleased,” — the girl replied, — “I adore roses.”

The Bottom Line

Firstly, the dialogue must be absolutely necessary. Without it, the development of the plot or the disclosure of the personality of a particular hero is impossible.

Heroes shouldn’t talk in a vacuum. Create a living world around them – with smells, sounds, environments, weather, lighting, etc. Let the characters not only speak but also gesticulate, move, and make faces.

Make sure that the speech of your essay characters corresponds to the place, time, mood, and individual characteristics of each one of them. If a person woke up with a hangover, he is unlikely to be able to joke with girls; if a sledgehammer fell on a lumberjack’s leg, he would not exclaim: “Oh, how it hurts!”

Lastly, if you want to understand how to write dialogue in an essay with the right formatting, refer to our examples using MLA style in the previous section.