Cause and Effect Writing

English 1
Prof. Federle
Cause and Effect analyzes
why something happens.
Some effects are caused
by multiple causes.
Some causes, in turn, can
result in multiple effects.
 Main cause: the most important cause
 Contributory Causes: less important
 Immediate Cause: closely precedes the
effect.
 Remote cause: less obvious because it
involves something in the past or far away.
 Causal Chain: an effect can be the cause to
another effect, on so on.
 Avoiding Post Hoc Reasoning:
 Do not assume that just because even A
precedes event B, event A caused even
B. This illogical assumption is called post
hoc reasoning. This error leads you to
confuse coincidence with causality.
 Do not confuse words like because,
therefore and consequently (indicating a
causal relationship), with words like
subsequently, later, and afterward
(chronological relationship words)
Exercise: Global Warming
 1) Listen to the following report, originally
presented on NPR’s news program,
“Morning Edition” on February 17, 2006.
 2) as you listen, answer the questions as
they appear on the screen.
 3) Afterwards, we will brainstorm the
possible chain of cause and effect
contributing to this issue.
 NOTE TAKING WORKSHEET
Study: Greenland Ice Sheet Melting Faster Than Thought February
17, 2006 from National Public Radio’s
Morning Edition
1. Why are researchers interested in Greenland’s
icecap?
2. What are two opposing processes mentioned
by Rignot that might either cause the icecap to
melt, or to replenish it? What is actually
happening?
3. According to Harris, how fast is Greenland now
losing ice? What is the effect?
4. According to Rignot, what was the previous
time scale for the loss of ice from Greenland?
What is it now?
 NOTE TAKING WORKSHEET
Study: Greenland Ice Sheet Melting Faster Than Thought
February 17, 2006 from National Public Radio’s Morning Edition

5. According to Konrad Steffan, what process is

causing the acceleration of the loss of
Greenland ice? Describe it. How fast is the
glacier moving now?
6. According to Steffan, what are the effects of
this rapid melting? What problems might these
effects, in turn, cause?
7. According to Steffan, are these processes fully
understood? Does he feel that the data is
certain?
 Main cause: the most
important cause
 Contributory Causes:
less important
 Immediate Cause:
closely precedes the
effect.
 Remote cause: less
obvious because it
involves something in
the past or far away.
 Causal Chain: an
effect can be the
cause to another
effect, on so on.
Planning a Cause and Effect Essay

 Purpose and Thesis:

 Be sure to identify the relationships among the specific
causes and effect you will discuss.
 Thesis statement should tell the reader
 The points you plan to consider

 The position you will take

 Whether you will emphasize causes, effects, or both.

 The cause and/or effect you consider most

important.
 The order in which you will treat your points.

Planning a Cause and Effect Essay

 Order and sequence; several possibilities
include:
 Chronological

 Main cause first, and then contributory causes

 Contributory causes first, and then main cause.

 Negative effects first, then positive

 First dismiss events that are not causes, and

then discuss actual causes for an effect.
 Most obvious causes first, and then less
obvious causes.

Planning a Cause and Effect Essay

Transitions!
 Transitions are essential to this type of
essay to distinguish causes from effects.
 For a useful list of cause and effect
transitions, see page 43.

Planning a Cause and Effect Essay

Structuring a Cause and Effect Essay
 Finding Causes
 Less important cause > effect> most important cause
 Describing or Predicting Effects
 Cause > first effect> second effect > third (most
important) effect> conclusion (with possible
prediction of additional effects).
Revising a Cause and Effect Essay
 See checklist on page 312

Editing a Cause and Effect Essay

•Avoid redundant phrases like “the reason is because”

examples p 313
•Use Affect and Effect correctly. Examples p 313
•Editing checklist on page 314