Unit 3 Flashcards
What are paragraphs?
The building blocks of an essay
The 4 principles in paragraphs
- Unity
- Development
- Organization
- Coherence
How do paragraphs help guide readers through longer pieces of writing?
- Break lengthy discussions of one idea into segments of different emphasis, giving the readers rest stops
- Some consolidate several briefly developed ideas
- Some begin or end pieces of writing or link major segment together
What do most paragraphs contain?
A number of sentences that develop and clarify one idea
How do you make a paragraph fit together?
You need to reflect on the entire essay, then channel your thoughts toward it’s different segment. All paragraphs relate to another and reflect a controlled purpose
What is unity?
A paragraph with unity develops one, and only one, key controlling idea
How to make a paragraph have unity?
- Edit out any stray ideas that don’t fit
- Don’t insert interesting but irrelevant side trips because it will confuse the reader
What is the topic Sentence and what does it do?
- States the main ideas of the paragraph
- Helps guage what information belongs in a paragraph and ensures unity
- informs the reader about the point you are making
- Can be places in various sports from paragraph to paragraph
Topic Sentence Stated FIrst
Open with a topic sentence. The writer reveals the central idea immediately and builds from a solid base
Topic Sentence Stated Last
To emphasize the support and build gradually to a conclusion, end the paragraph with the topic . It creats suspense as the reader anticpiates the summarizing remark
Topic Sentence Stated First and Last
Some paragraphs lead with the main idea and then restate it, in differnt words, at the end. This allows the writer to repeat especially important ideas
Topic Sentences States in the Middle
The sentence falls between one set of sentences that provide background information and a follow up set up development the central idea. This allows the writer to shift the emphasis and at the same time preserve close ties between the two sets.
Topic Sentence Implied
Particularly found in narratice and descriptive writing. All sentences point toward a main idea that the readers must grasp for themselves
Adequate Development
- The author needs to give enogh information to make thier point clearly
- Students should not ask for guidlines on lenght of an essay, but instead on what the reader needs to know
Adequate Development: Do not write paragraphs
- inadequatly
- skimpy: may irritate and stump reader
- useless padding: diluted the main idea
What determins the proper amount of details?
- The reader
- The infomation
- Publication medium
What can detail come from?
- Facts
- Figures
- Thoughts
- Observations
- Steps
- Lists
- Examples
- Personal experiences
Paragraph length
- paragraphs signal natural dividing places that allow the reader to pause and absorb material
- Too little paragraphing overwhelms the reader with long blocks of material
- Too much will create a short coppy effect that may seem to simplistic, even irritation
- To counter the problems the wirter should use several paragraphs for an idea that needs extended development, or to combine several short paragraphs into one
Organization
- An effective paragraph uses a clear pattern of organization so the reader can easily follow the flow of ideas
- When writting a draft the author will try to organize thier work, bu when stuck try and follow the order of the climax
The nine Writing Strategies
- Time Sequences
- Space Sequence
- Process anaysis
- Illustration
- Classification
- Comparison
- Cause and effect
- Definition
- Argument
Order of Climax
- creats a crescendo pattern, starting with the least emphatic details and progressing to the most empatic
- Holds the readers interest by building suspense
- The topic sentence can be placed anywhere
- Do not give the heaviest punch first becasue you will trail off and leave the reader dissatisfied
What is Coherence?
writing that flows smootly and easily from one sentence and paragraph to another
What does Coherrence do?
- Clarifies the relationship among ideas, allowing the reader to grasp connections
- forms sufficent detail and your firm sense of the way your ideas go together
- Signal to the reader with transitions
What are Transitions
Devices that link sentences to one another
4 Types of Transitions
- Connection words and phrases
- Repeated Key Words-Same words
- Prononus and Demonstrative adjectives
- Parallelism- repeated words and sentence structures
Repeated Key Words
- Key workds, especially thoes that help convey a paragraph’s central idea, can smooth the readers path
- The words may appear in different forms, but their presence keeps the main issues before the reader
Pronous
- Stand in for nouns that appear earlier in the sentence or in previous sentences
- Mixing pronous and nous help prevent monotony and promotes clarity
Demonstrative Adjectives
- Specail adjectives that identify or point out nouns rather than describe them
- 4 Demonstrative adjectives that help hook ideas together are: this, that, these, and thoese
Parallelsim
- The use of reptition of grammatical form to express a series of equivalent ideaws
- The repetition adds rhythm and balance to the writing
Paragraphs With Special Functions
- Include introducations, transitional paragraphs, and conclusions
- One paragrap introductions and conclusion appear in short, multiparapgraph essay while transtion paragarapshs occur primarily in long compositions
Connecting Words and Phrases
Clarifies relationships between sentences
Connecting Words and Phrases: Showing Similarity
- in like manner
- likewise
- moreover
- similarily
Connecting Words and Phrases: Showing Contrast
- at the same time
- but
- even
- so
- however
Connecting Words and Phrases: Showing Results or effects
- Accordingly
- As a result
- Because
Connecting Words and Phrases: Adding ideas together
- also
- besides
- first (second, third)
- in addition
Connecting Words and Phrases: Drawing conclusions
- As a result
- Finally
- In brief
Connecting Words and Phrases: Pointing out examples
- For example
- For instance
- To illustrate
Connecting Words and Phrases: Showing emphasis and clarity
- above all
- After all
- Again
- As a matter
Connecting Words and Phrases: Indication Time
- At time
- After
- Afterwards
- From then on
Connecting Words and Phrases: Conceding A point
- Granted that
- Of course
- To be sure
Introductions
- A good introduction announces an essay’s topic and may directly state the thesis
- It will set the tone of the paper
- First impression are important and should rouses the readers interest and pave the way for the readers ideas
Information in an introduction
- Do not use mechanical, plodding or dull information because it will turn the reader away
- Gear the length of the introduction to the length of the essay
- There are many different ways to start an essay depending on purpose, subject, audience, and personality
Introduction: A Directly Stated Thesis
A common type of opening, that is informing the reader about what will follow
Introduction: A Definition
Works will in papers that acquaint the reader with an unfamiliar topic
Introduction: A Quotation
Is good for springboarding ideas that will follow in the paper. Makes sure the quote is related to the topic
Introduction: An Anecdote or Personal Experience
A well told personal anecdote can lure readers into the rest of the paper. It should also show what will be wrote about
Introduction: An Arresting Statement
Jolt the reader into attention, using content, language, or both, particularly if our essay develops an unusual or extreame postition
Introduction: Interesting Details
Details pique curiosity and draw the reader into hte paper
Introduction: A Question
A provocative question can entice the reader into the essay to find the answer
Transitional Paragraphs
- A short paragraph that announces a shift from one group to another
- They summarize previously explained ideas, repeat he thesis, or point to ideas that follow
Conclusions
- Round out the paper and signals that the discussion has been completed
- Not all paper require a separate conclusion; Narrative and Descriptions don’t
Why the conclusion is important
- benefits the essay because they drive the point home a final time
- To be effective the essay must mesh logically and stylistically with the information that comes earlier
- A long, complex paper often ends with a summary of the main points in writing conclusions
Cautions in writing conclusion
- Don’t introduce new material. Draw together, round out, but don’t take off in a new direction
- Don’t take on an ending in desperation when the hour is late and the paper is do tomorrow
- Don’t apologize. Saying that you could have done a better job makes the reader wonder why you didn’t
- Don’t moralize. A preachy conclusion can undermine the position you have established in the rest of the your composition
Conclusion: Restatement of Thesis
Put the thesis in the conclusion but in different words
Conclusion: A Summary
Draw together and reinforce the main points of a paper
Conclusion: A Question
A final question often prompts the reader to think further on the topic. If it is a persuasive essay phrase the conducting question so that a reasonable person answer emphasizes your point of view
Conclusion: Ironic Twist or Surprising Observation
Prompt the reader to think further about a paper’s topic
Conclusion: Clever or Lighthearted Ending
An ending to make the reader think but end on a good note and ends by exaggerating the fault being criticized
Conclusion: Personal Challenge
Prompts the reader to take some action
Conclusion: Hope or Recommendation
May restate points already made in the essay or suggest actions to take in order to arrive at a solution
