♣ DESCRIPTIVE TEXT ♣

☼ DESCRIBING PEOPLE, PLACES and THINGS ☼

In this section, you will get some knowledge and learn
some skills of describing people, tourism destinations, and
famous historical buildings. This module is divided into two
learning activities. In the first learning activity, you will do
some exercises to improve your spoken language in
describing people, tourism destinations, and famous
historical buildings. In the second learning activity, you will
practice how to describe people, tourism destinations, and
famous historical buildings in written form.
 Descriptive Text
Definition of Descriptive Text
Descriptive Text is a text which says what a person or a thing is
like. Its purpose is to describe and reveal a particular person, place, or
thing.
Description is about sensory experience—how something looks,
sounds, tastes. Mostly it is about visual experience, but description also
deals with other kinds of perception.
So, it can be said that this descriptive text is a text that explains
about whether a person or an object is like, whether its form, its
properties, its amount and others. The purpose of the descriptive text
is clear, that is to describe, represent or reveal a person or an object,
either abstract or concrete.
Social Function (Fungsi Sosial):
► To describe a particular person, place or thing (mendeskripsikan
secara rinci/detail ciri-ciri seseorang, suatu benda atau tempat
tertentu)

Generic Structure (Struktur Teks):

a) IDENTIFICATION (Pengenalan benda, orang atau sesuatu yang
akan dideskripsikan)
b) DESCRIPTION (Deskripsi: menggambarkan ciri-ciri benda
tersebut, misalnya berasal dari mana, warnanya, ukurannya,
kesukaannya dsb. Deskripsi ini hanya memberikan informasi
mengenai benda atau orang tertentu yang sedang dibahas saja,
misalnya deskripsi tentang ‘My Bicycle’. Ciri-ciri ‘sepeda saya’
tersebut dapat berbeda dengan sepeda yang lain)
Language Features (Unsur-unsur Kebahasaan)

 Using ‘nouns’, for examples: teacher, house, my rabbit, etc.

 Using ‘Simple Present Tense’
 Using ‘detailed noun phrase’ for giving specific information about
subjects, for examples: She is a beautiful young lady.
 Using ‘adjectives’, for describing, numbering, classifying, for
examples: two strong legs, two white horns, etc.
 Using ‘relating verbs’ for giving specific information about
subjects, for examples : My teacher is really beautiful; My cat has
very thick fur, etc.
 DESCRIBING PEOPLE
Reading Section
Please read an example of descriptive text about a famous people below.

Oprah Winfrey

Oprah Gail Winfrey is a great talk

show host from America. Her well-known
talk show The Oprah Winfrey Show was
the highest-rated television program
from 1986 to 2011. Because of this
phenomenal talk show, she dubbed as the
“Queen of All Media”. She has also been
ranked the richest African-American and
greatest black philanthropist in American
history.
 Oprah was born on January 29, 1954 in Mississippi, United
States. By 2019, her age is 64 years old. She has 169 centimeters
tall while her weight is 77 kilograms. During her career, she
successfully lost her weight. But then, she gained much weight
again. She has brown eyes & black hair.
Oprah Winfrey was born into poverty in rural Mississippi. She
was molested by her cousin, uncle, as well as a family friend when
she was nine years old. At 14, she became pregnant but her son
was born prematurely and died shortly after birth. Then, she
moved to her father’s house and landed a job in radio. Her
consistent efforts led her into the successful African-American.

Taken from: https://englishcoo.com/contoh-descriptive-text-about-someone/

Please answer the questions below based on the text above.

Questions:
1. What is the text about?
2. Who is Oprah Winfrey?
3. How do you describe her physical appearance?
4. What is the writer’s purpose in writing the text above?
5. How do you describe Oprah Winfrey’s personality?
 DESCRIBING PLACES

Please read an example of descriptive text about a famous place below.

The Eiffel Tower

The Eiffel Tower is an iron

lattice tower located on the Champ
de Mars in Paris. Built in 1889, it
has become both a global icon of
France and one of the most
recognizable structures in the
world. The tower is the tallest
building in Paris and the most-
visited paid monument in the
world; millions of people ascend it
every year.
 Named for its designer, engineer Gustave Eiffel, the tower was built as
the entrance arch to the 1889 World's Fair. The tower stands 324 metres
(1,063 ft) tall, about the same height as an 81-story building. Upon its
completion, it surpassed the Washington Monument to assume the title of
tallest man-made structure in the world, a title it held for 41 years, until
the Chrysler Building in New York City was built in 1930; however, due to
the addition in 1957 of the antenna, the tower is now taller than the
Chrysler Building. Not including broadcast antennas, it is the second-tallest
structure in France after the 2004 Millau Viaduct.
The tower has three levels for visitors. Tickets can be purchased to
ascend, by stairs or lift, to the first and second levels. The walk to the first
level is over 300 steps, as is the walk from the first to the second level. The
third and highest level is accessible only by elevator. Both the first and
second levels feature restaurants.
The tower has become the most prominent symbol of both Paris and
France, often in the establishing shot of films set in the city.
Taken from: https://www.jagoanbahasainggris.com/2017/11/contoh-descriptive-text-tentang-tempat-wisata.html
Please answer the questions below based on the text above.

Questions:
1. What is the text about?
2. ‘The tower is the tallest building in Paris and the most-visited
paid monument in the world; millions of people ascend it every
year.’ The underlined word refers to…
3. What makes The Eiffel Tower become the global icon of France?
4. How do you describe the characteristics of The Eiffel Tower?
5. ‘The tower has become the most prominent symbol of both
Paris and France, often in the establishing shot of films set in
the city.’ What is the synonym of the underlined word?
Speaking Section
Grammar Focus

Questions and answers for asking about people’s physical appearance:

Questions:
 What does he/she look like?
 What is he/she like?
 Does he/she have long hair?
 Is he/she tall?
 How old is he/she?
 Does he/she wear glasses?
 What colour is his/her hair?
 Does he have mustache?
Answers:
 She is beutiful and sexy.
 He is very handsome and tall.
 Yes, she has long black hair.
 He is average height.
 She is in her 40s.
 No, he wears contact lenses.
 He has brown hair.
 Yes, he has mustache and beard.
Adjectives for describing people’s appearance
Kinds of adjective
Do you know the meaning of these adjectives below?
Please study the vocabulary used for describing people’s
appearance:
▫ height : tall, short, medium
▫ body : fat, thin, slim, sexy, muscular, well-built
▫ face : beautiful, handsome, ugly, pretty, oval, round, square
▫ hair : long, short, straight, wavy, curly, black, blond, gray
▫ complexion : fair, dark, white
▫ age : old, young, middle-aged, teens, elderly
▫ eyes : big, slanted, small, almond-shaped, blue, black
▫ nose : pointed, flat, sharp
▫ lips : thin, thick, sexy, wide
▫ others : mustache, beard, dimple, scar, mole
Adjectives in Order
Now please write the description one of the persons in the picture below
(please choose one of them).
You should write in some paragraphs which contain at least 150 words.
Use your own words and sentences, and please don’t copy paste from other
sources in the internet or books or articles.
☼ Thank you ☼