Here is a sample of the format you should use for your essays: 

• 12pt font
• Times
• double spaced (no extra spaces) 
• header (Name, Assignment, Due Date, Instructor's Name)
• indentation for each new paragraph

Ramona Quinby

Essay #1: Cause & Effect

September 23, 2013

Inst. Vickie Mellos

The Effects of Urban Living

            Is living in the city natural? A look through human history might suggest so. Cities have been around for thousands of years, from the Egyptians to the Greeks to modern-day society.  Cities have become such a natural place for humans to live that today more people live in cities than in the country. In America alone, nine out of ten people live in an urban area. Cities are a product of human beings. However, the experience of living in the city also has certain effects on the way people think and behave.

            First of all, living in the city can cause people to feel anonymous. Walking around the sidewalks of a large city gives people the sense that they are one of millions. Nobody knows our name, our profession, or anything about our personal life, so we feel lost in the crowd. This can ultimately make people keep to themselves even though they are so physically close to other people, such as at the bus stop or on the subway. We might be social creatures, but the city actually seems to have the opposite effect on us sometimes.

            At the same time as making us feel anonymous, cities can actually have an effect on our identity.  People usually feel a bond with the city in which they live. People from New York are “New Yorkers” and people from Paris call themselves “Parisians”. We consider ourselves “members” of the city because living in a city for a long time causes us to take on the city itself as part of our personality. People like to use their “city name” when they meet others because it is part of their identity. We might have control over which city we live in, but eventually, the city seems to have control over the way we feel about ourselves.

            Finally, city living can also broaden our experiences. Large cities promote diversity. They are full of people from all around the world, who bring their own cultures and customs with them. Vietnamese restaurants sit next door to Chinese supermarkets, Colombian coffee shops, and French bakeries. Being surrounded by so many other cultures different from our own makes us more aware of the diversity of the world. After people are exposed to other cultures, they are more likely to begin to accept them, which is probably why many city dwellers enjoy being surrounded by different ways of life.

            Cities can have a strong effect on people, including how they feel about themselves and how they feel about others. Some of this happens without our being conscious of it or our even having control over it, but that is part of what makes city living so exciting. Cities have played an important role in human history, and it is safe to say that life without them would be less interesting.