Sometimes descriptive essays are seen in too simplistic terms as just essays which describe things. However, descriptive essays are organized around a dominant impression, usually personal, about some subject. The essay develops through the accumulation of concrete and specific details revealing the subject as it is seen (felt, experienced) by the narrator. Descriptive essays often conclude by emphasizing the personal value and importance of the subject to the narrator. If the subject is presented with sufficient detail and emotional expression, readers are drawn into and empathize with the narrator's perception of the subject.
A key means of identifying whether an essay is narrative or descriptive is to determine if a significant change has taken place between the beginning of the essay and the end as a result of a conflict. If so, the essay is narrative. If there is no conflict and no change from the beginning of the essay until the end, then the essay is descriptive.