Types ef Paragraphs Your writing varies not only because of its content but also because of its purpose. In this lesson, you will study four different purposes for writing paragraphs and essays. DESCRIPTIVE ‘When your purpose is to describe a person, a place, an object, or an animal, use the following suggestions. « Use sensory details to appeal to the reader’s five senses (sight, hearing, smell, touch, and taste) and to create a main impression, or mood. « Use spatial order to present the sensory details from left to right, top to bottom, or closest to farthest. I measured the crocodile with my eye. erage basketball players laid out head to foot in a straight line. ‘Tt lay flat on its belly in the dusty pen, open mouthed. ‘Dozens of pointed teeth edged the huge jaws. ‘I could see ts narrow snout and two glittering two nostrils toward the base of i eyes set in bumps on its flat head. ‘Large scales of varying size covered. ite whole body except for what looked like sharp, black claws on the of spikes lined its back down to ‘From _a_ safe distance, att was longer than three av powerful, short legs. ’Like armor, rows the end of its powerful tail. *Even at rest, the crocodile seemed dan- gerous and armed. NARRATIVE ell a story—either a fictional story or a When your purpose is to t in the steps in a process, use the true narrative—or to explai following suggestions. « Break the story or process into its most critical events or steps. « Use chronological order (time order) to relate events in the order they occurred. This is also a useful order for explaining a step-by-step process. ch * Writi hapter 2 * Writing Effective Paragraphs and Essays 29 Escaneado con Lesson 2.4 €ompesition Context—writer’s position and setting Spatial order: head first Sight detail 5b touch dete — Spatial order: tail last Main impression ‘Writers sometimes use a one-sentence paragraph for emphasis. When the surrounding paragraphs are longer, a single- sentence paragraph packs a punch, cetn accu ‘Through the night, emergency. workers piled sandbags along the river banks, and behind them other workers bu: emergency dikes. But nothing could stop the Red River at Grand Forks, North ‘Dakota. 3On April 18, the river crested, rushing over sandbags ang Event B dikes. ‘As the waters flooded downtown and residentia] neighborhoods, residents fled, some in motorboats. sThe next day, ks’ 50,000 residents were ordered to leave, as Saturday, all of Grand For Ore 6As they left, a second disaster struck: an electrical fire downtown, Event D 7With waist-deep water everywhere and fire hydrants underwater, the firefighters couldn’t control the blaze. Event A Expository in and to inform: You can compare and There are several ways to explait contrast; you can discuss cause and effect; you can define, classify, or analyze. When writing exposition, use the following suggestions. * State your main idea as early and as clearly as possible. © Use facts, examples, quotations, statistics, and definitions as supporting details to develop the main idea. ¢ Present the details in a logical order—in a way that makes sense 0 the reader. Transitions help your reader follow your thinking. Writing Model Main idea ‘The Vietnam Veterans Memorial_in_Washingto®.—— 1 Facts: date, design — imple, powerful design. *But in 1981 when judges chose Maya Lip V-shaped design from 1,421 entries, controversy erupted. fot at nce, some people complained that the two black intersectiné Transition ed oN too plain. ‘There was nothing to see, they said, not ei Statistic: number fenton Yet in the years since, visitors have often praised fore, atte. “First, on the monuments walls, the names of the 58.2% ‘their eam Americans are engraved in chronological © a than alphebetion enemas People find this onde’ more emote”, cious erat teal order. "Second, they comment positively OP ‘che ‘Gotcben ‘ranted, she Sa black granite for the two long a "il. " a 1a" at + a, reflection” in the aa visitors, especially veterans, “See SFB S See wou ieuuy vu USt PERSUASIVE ose is either to convince someone that your opinion is ‘When your pulp’ right or to persuade someone to take action, use the following suggestions: « Begin with a sentence that is an attention grabber. « Include a claim that clearly expresses your point of view. « Supply reasons and other evidence (facts, examples, statistics, anecdotes, quotations) to support your opinion. Arrange the supporting details in the order of importance—from most to least important, oF the reverse. « Include a call to action that tells the reader what to do. Rc ention grabber ‘something drastic must be done. apewer than half of the eligible elect a president, and in local statist a isan actually go to the polls t eee elections, the turnout is abysmal. *Perhaps the government should ae a tax credit to voters, OF perhaps nonvoters should pay a fine. sMaybe nonvoters shouldn't ibe allowed to get or renew their driver's pinion statement __| licenses. sVoting isn’t just a privilege that half the citizens can ignore; Call to action jt’s a serious responsibility. ‘Have you registered to vote yet? "Do it aif you are registered, 80 1° the polls every chance you get: drastic solutions to make a point now. Exercise 8 Writing for Different Purposes Write at least two different types of paragraphs. You may use the suggested topics below or choose a topic of your own. 1. A persuasive paragraph for or against wearing school uniforms or imposing @ curfew on teenagers 2. A descriptive paragraph about a favorite place, a piece of clothing, an animal, or a person : 3, Anarrative paragraph about an accident, a surprise, or an adventure 4. An expository paragraph giving information about your school, your communi an invention, a sports figure, a person in the arts, OF a Person involved i mare in civic affairs Chapter 2 © Writing Effective Parc CErfectine Paraereol egg RS FYmpesition writing Essays Some Ways to Begin an Essay anecdote vivid image example quotation question bit of dialogue interesting statement or fact nocturnal, as used in Exercise 11, comes from the Latin adjective, nocturaus, which means “of, at, or by night.” Many animals are nocturnal hunters. For more on outlining see Composition Lesson 1.2. | |IME> All essays (piece: s of writing on 2 limited topic) have three th th common: an introduction, 4 body, and a conclusion. IntTRODUCTION . ‘The beginning paragraph of an essay accomplishes two things; Ity the reader think, uy'd like to continue reading this,” and it Preseny overall idea of the essay- The thesis statement of an essay is its overall idea. It can also be a claim or a controlling idea. The thesis statement is for the whole essay what the topic senteng the paragraph. Each paragraph in the body of your essay should sy your thesis statement. For example, the paragraph about blue jean page 24 could be part of an essay with the following thesis statem: The wardrobe of most Americans consists of three garments with remarkable histories: jeans, T-shirts, and sneakers. The side column at the left lists some ways to begin an essay. ‘The following beginnings are less effective: In this paper, | am going to write about . . . This paper is about . . . Bopy ‘The body of the essay can be several paragraphs long. Here is wht! say everything you have to say about your thesis. The following tu suggestions will help you draft the body of an essay. «teas | 1. Ideas and Unity Think of the body as a series of main ides a ? one expressed in the topic sentence of a paragraph and e2¢h Supported by relevant details. Organization and Coherence Arrange your main ideas ve way that’s easiest to follow. Begin with background iN}, and then move through your main ideas in the way your re i ow them, When you outline an essay before you write, Sanizing the ideas for the body. / 3. Wor ‘i . , ist rd Choice Avoid repetition, and eliminate wordiness- ban yourself, “What am I trying to say?” Then say it as clearly . weovurieuuy vuWriting Essays ConcLUsION Pay When you've said everything that is important about your topic, stop writing. The concluding paragraph has only one job to do: It provides a definite ending. It doesn’t have to be long; sometimes even only one or two sentences are sufficient. See the box at the right for some ways to end an essay. Some Ways to End on Essay + summary of main ideas +comment on importance of topic * thought-provoking . . question The following endings are less Cee > quotation \'m sorry | can’t tell you more about . . . « prediction about the That is all | know about nae * call to action a Assume you have to write a narrative essay based on an autobiographical incident, and you choose to tell about the time you were called to the stage to receive an award. Going up the steps in full view of every student and teacher, you tripped and landed on your face. Draft an introduction that will make your Classmates want to read your whole essay. Make up any details that you need. Exercise 9 Drafting an Introduction Exercise 10 Drafting a Conclusion Draft a concluding paragraph for a persuasive essay about a proposed curfew law for teenagers in your community. (See page 31 for some suggestions on writing persuasively.) In your conclusion, state your opinion and the main reasons for your opinion. Exercise 11 Writing Body Paragraphs Based on Notes Use the following notes to write one or more paragraphs for the body of a research paper about bats. Give each paragraph a topic sentence, and support the topic sentence with facts. Your audience should be your high school science class. Characteristics of bats (background info) Only mammal that flies Nocturnal (awake at night; sleep by day) Use echolocation (a kind of sonar) to navigate In dark and locate food More than 1,000 species; many endangered impt: all those species can be classified into only 2 kinds of bats: (1) larger megabats (called “flying foxes”) eat fruit, nectar, pollen; pollinate trees and plants in rain forests (2) smaller microbats mostly eat insects: live in caves Chapter 2 * Writing Effective Parann caneado con Citing Essays Exercise 12 Revising an Essay Revise the following brief essay to strengthen the introduction, body, and conclusion, Eliminate sentences that weaken the unity of the essay, so that information is presented in th and reorganize the paragraphs improve the essay. e most logical order. Make any other changes to ‘The main point of this paper is to tell you that stargazing can be pretty easy to start even if you live in a city where there is a lot of light. At no cost to yourself, you can learn about the natural universe from your backyard or rooftop. You'll enjoy fitting th pieces of the night sky together using a simple star map. ‘Even if you live in a place where lights stay on all night, you may have the most access to Jearning about the star s[ Jearned about the stars from my brother who has a night guard job. ‘He watches stars a lot. 7Look for constellations that are particularly bright such as Orion the Hunter, Cassiopeia’s Chair, and the Big Dipper. ‘Next, start identifying the constellations of the zodiac. *You'll find that some of them look like their name, such as Taurus the Bull. ‘9thers bear no relation to their name, such as Aries the Ram. “One of the most rewarding ways to start learning about the stars is to get a copy of a star map from an encyclopedia, from a newspaper, or from a star atlas in your library. "A star map will hel you locate the most well-known constellations. "When you go out on a cold night, tak ‘warm clothes and a dim light so you can see your map. “People who live in cities often feel that only people in the country can get a clear view of the stars. “Not true! “Cities often have several amateur organizations for observing stars. "These groups are filled with people, young and old, who are fascinated by the beauty and mystery of the stars. “In addition, cities often have excellent planetariums with weekend and evening programs on the universe, stars, or even the seasons. Visiting a planetarium is more interesting than visiting an art museum. On a clear night, the brightest constellations are visible even in the most light-polluted areas in the country. “Furthermore, unlike rural areas, most large cities are fantastic centers of sky observing. “That's about all I can tell you about looking at stars. “I know that if you start going out on clear nights in a city, or if you ever visit the desert where the air is dry and cleat you will be able to pick out dozens of constellations with very little practice COU IeUUY LUII UIi mpesition varying Sentence Beginnings | mp For variety, begin some of your sentences with a subordinate ¢, | Lesson 7.3 provides practice in beginning sentences with different " phhrases, Subordinate clauses give you another tool for varying sent * beginnings. Here is the same idea expressed in a number of ways, * ontcinat Giacomo Puccini died in 1924 before he finisheg last act of his opera Turandot. PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE In 1924, Giacomo Puccini died before he finishe last act of his opera Turandot. PARTICIPIAL PHRASE. Not yet finished with the last act of his op Turandot, Giacomo Puccini died in 1924. ADVERB CLAUSE Before he finished the last act of his opera Turandot, Giacomo Puccini died in 1924. NOUN CLAUSE. That Giacomo Puccini died in 1924, before finishing the last act of his opera Turandot, mean another composer had to finish it. ‘Too much of anything becomes monotonous, so don’t make your sentences all simple or all compound or all complex. An experienced writer, which is what you are becoming, is able to express ideas by using a variety of sentence structures. aa | Exercise 1 Revising Sentence Beginnings | Ona separate piece of paper, rewrite each sentence to change the way | begins. You may reword the sentences if necessary. | 1. Hank Aaron broke Babe Ruth’s home-run record when Aaron hit 75 | home runs during his major league career. | 2, Cuban exiles tried to invade Cuba during the Bay of Pigs invasion i 1961, but their attempt failed. | 3. Harry S. Truman won the election in 1948 despite the fact that | Rewspapers and commentators predicted his defeat. 4. Two hundred Sioux men, women, and children were killed by army troops in 1890 at Wounded Knee Creek in South Dakota. 5. New Zealand gave women the right to vote in 1893, more than twenty years before American women could vote. 36 Chapter 3 © Writing Effective Sentences r wovurieuuy vu UsExercise 2 Revising a Press Release Work with a partner or small group to revise the following press release. Your audience is the readers of your local newspaper. In your revision, try to vary some sentence beginnings and structures. Combine sentences, and find other ways to eliminate unnecessary repetition. “Tarquin is the Shaw High School drama club. *Tarquin will present Kiss Me, Kate. ‘Kiss Me, Kate will be presented November 6, 7, and 8. ‘Performances are in the Shaw High School auditorium. ‘Performances begin at eight o'clock, ‘Tickets are $8.00. ’Jim Austin and Nancy Magnusson play the leading roles. ‘Jim Austin plays Petruchio, and Nancy Magnusson plays Kate. *Kiss Me, Kate is a musical by Cole Porter. “It opened in 1948. "Some popular songs from Kiss Me, Kate are “So in Love” and “We Open in Venice.” "Cole Porter based Kiss Me, Kate on The Taming of the Shrew. “The Taming of the Shrew is a play by William Shakespeare. Exercise 3 Writing a Paragraph Use the notes below to write a paragraph on a separate piece of paper. Try to vary your sentence beginnings and structures. US. flag—aleo called Stars and Stripes, Old Glory Betsy Ross (seamstress in Philadelphia) sewed & designed Seqtetson 24 fe first American flag—no proof of this story; a legend? ee Congress adopted official flag, June 14, 1777: 13 red/white Seared stripes (1 for ea, colony); 13 stare on blue field—representing a “new constellation” Flag Day celebrated June 14, anniversary of date Flag changed many times—new stare added for new states; stripes remain @ 13 Chapter 3 + Writing Effective Sentences 37 Escaneado con Cini Ees. SUIiPpeung Combining Senten . tien Subjects and compoune Verbs he follo’ only wastes space by The repetition in the lowii nces not only was! t yet wing sente P sounds boring. Emma enews team. Jody is on the All-Star soccer team. is on the All-Star soccer team. Liz is on the All-Star so is iter can say the same thing more efficiently and gracefully hasing e with a compound subject. and Jody are on the All-Star soccer team. andardized test ay see an item in compound ts are connected e correlative nctions neither . . . 1 either... or. In cases, make sure verb agrees with the ject nearer the verb. item 1 on page 293 an example. in a single sentenc revised Emma, Liz, The word compound means “two or more of something.” Any sentence part can be compound. lt A sentence with a compound subject nee two oe more subjects sharing the same verb. Use a conjunction to join the separate subjects. SEPARATE SUBJECTS Coal is a fossil fuel. Natural gas is a fossil fuel. Petroleum is a fossil fuel. COMPOUND suBJECT Coal, natural gas, and petroleum are fossil f SEPARATE SUBJECT Alaska has large deposits of oil. Texas has large deposits of oil. COMPOUND suB}EcT Both Alaska and Texas have large deposits of {Illi} A sentence with a compound verb has two or more verbs sharing the same subject. Use a conjunction to join the separate verbs, Use these conjunctions SEPARATE VERBS to create a compound subject or a compound verb. People can heat their homes with fossil fuels, Pec Can drive their cars with fossil fuels. People can not only heat their homes but also drive their cars with fossil fuels. Many people waste fuel. M; COMPOUND VERB ‘COORDINATING CONJUNCTIONS SEPARATE VERBS and or but nor yet any people complain eve conroun about the high cost of fuel, ‘CONJUNCTIONs > vers Many people waste fuel yet complai either... of high cost of fuel. Pisin about th neither... nor ; not only... but also both... and Combining as a useful tool to hel and create Smoother-sounding P You vary sentence lengt! wus vueExercise 4 Combining Sentences On a separate piece of paper, combine the sentences in each numbered item into a single sentence with a compound subject or a compound verb. In your revised underline the subject(s) once and the verb(s) twice. Do not underline sentences, have to drop or change the conjunction as part of the compound. Hint: You may some words as you combine sentences. 1, Photography developed in the 1820s. Photography became a new art form. 2. The scenes in photographs can be both moving and powerful. The faces in photographs can be both moving and powerful. 3, During the Civil War, Mathew Brady photographed soldiers and battle scenes. Mathew Brady's assistants also photographed soldiers and battle scenes during the Civil War. 4, In 1888, George Eastman’s box camera made photography easy for everyone. That year George Eastman’s roll film made photography easy for everyone. 5. Margaret Bourke-White photographed Americans during the Great Depression of the 1930s, Walker Evans photographed Americans during the Great Depression of the 1930s. Dorothea Lange photographed Americans during the Great Depression of the 1930s. Exercise 5 Revising a Report With a partner or small group, improve the following passage from a report. Look for ways to combine sentences, using compound subjects and compound verbs. Compare your revised passage with those of other pairs or groups. ‘In 1955, Edward Steichen created a special photography exhibit. “Steichen called it The Family of Man. ‘Photographs from sixty-eight countries appeared in the exhibit. ‘Quotations from all over the world appeared in the exhibit. ‘Steichen Not every sentence in thi passage need: to be changed grouped the photos according to themes. ‘Steichen hung the photos in the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. ’He was curator of photography there. ‘Children are the subjects in the photos. "Families are the subjects in the photos. “Workers are the subjects in the photos. "The photographs show activities common to all people. “The photographs convey a simple message: We are all part of one family—the human family. Chat SURAT OTT