PROPERTIES

of a
WELL-WRITTEN
TEXT
ORGANIZATION

- Organization refers to the arrangement of ideas in a

text.
- It is the way a text is organized that helps to guide
the reader logically through it. This property makes
a text readable and its message clear.
 Techniques to achieve organization:
1. Physical Format
The format is an aspect of the organization that is
immediately apparent to the reader. It is seen in how the
text physically appears like headings and subheadings,
bullet points or font emphasis. However, use this
technique with discretion as improper or superfluous
formatting can be confusing.
 Example:
Marxist ideology has three main theories. Historical
materialism purports that all the features of society can
historically be traced back to economic activity. Social
class in capitalist societies is what produces unjust
structures of power that exist today. Socialism would be
the next rational step for the development of human
society.
 Techniques to achieve organization:
2. Signal Words
Signal words are textual cues that readers can use to
follow text. They can “signal” the transition from one
point to another, the ordering of events and concepts, or
the writer’s chosen text type (example: linear narration,
question and answer).
 Example:
Chuck Palahniuk’s novel Fight Club greatly influenced me as
a fictional writer. First, his use of the unreliable narrator
fascinated me, and I have written similar characters in my
works. Second, the theme of patriarchal oppression can also be
found in the stories I write. Third, the novel’s stunning twist is
something that I have been trying to recreate. Thus, I am
extremely grateful to have encountered Palahniuk’s genius
early in my writing.
 Techniques to achieve organization:
3. Structure
The structure provides the framework upon which the
text is organized. It consists of the following:
- Beginning: introduction, thesis statement, hook
- Middle: supporting details
- End: conclusion, summary, final message.
 Example:
Ancient philosophies believe that a person has an “aura,” this appears
as a rainbow of light around the body that can be seen by individuals
with clairvoyant abilities. The colors change depending on one’s mood,
health, and thoughts. Some scientists believe that the existence of the
aura has something to do with the electromagnetic fields produced by
cells and tissues in the human body. Whether auras are real or not, the
fact remains that there are forces everywhere that are real even though
we cannot see them.
2. Proper Language Use
 Proper language use allows you to capture the message
that you want to convey to your readers. It is all about
choosing the right words that accurately capture your
ideas. However, writers sometimes encounter problems
with the following:
 Misused Words
 Words with Unwanted Connotations
 Technical or Highfalutin Words
 Misused Words
A writer might sometimes use a word incorrectly,
and this occurs when the word does not mean
what he or she thinks it does. It is important to be
certain of the definition of a word before using it;
this often happens with words that sound or look
alike.
Example:

There are many behaviours that past societies

considered legal but are now deemed amoral
including slavery, sexism, and racism.
 Words with Unwanted Connotations
There are words that take on a meaning specific to
a context. Some writers might not be aware of
these connotations, so they end up using language
that is unintentionally confusing, comical or even
offensive to readers.
Example:

The coast guard salvaged Priscilla and her sister

after their fishing boat was damaged in the storm.
 Technical or Highfalutin Words
Writers want to sound smart by using that are very
technical or have deep meanings. Though some
writing genres require the use of such words,
writers should still be careful about using them
since they make readers work harder to understand
texts.
Example:

There is an ongoing discourse about the

antidisestablishment assemblage and the
administrative political body.
 3. Coherence and Cohesion
 Coherence and Cohesion make your text easier for your
readers to follow and understand.
 Cohesion is the connection of ideas to the central concept
of a text
 Coherence is the relationship of ideas between sentences.
Both should be present in your text because having one
without the other will still confusion for readers.
 3. Coherence and Cohesion
 A text with cohesion has a central concept or “glue” that
holds all the different ideas together. Although without
coherence, there is no apparent logic to the way these
ideas are presented. The writer appears to move on to
another related ideas without a proper transition from the
previous ideas.
 Example:
Cubism is an avant-garde art movement that started in the early
20th century in Europe. A famous Filipino cubist painter is
Vicente Manansala. He is a National Artist of the Philippines in
Visual Arts. Did you know that visual arts have different forms
including architecture, video, and textile?
 3. Coherence and Cohesion
 A text with coherence has ideas that are logically
sequenced in a way that is easy to follow for the
reader. Although without cohesion, no central
concept links all these ideas together. The main point
of the text remains unclear for readers.
 Example:
My favorite painting is “The Weeping Woman” by Pablo
Picasso, which is an intriguing painting that symbolizes
suffering. As a result, I love bright primary colors, so I
wear a lot of shocking yellows, blues, and reds. Also, as
an outgoing person, I enjoy performing for large crowds.
In the end, people should not judge an artist’s talent
based on one standard.
 3. Coherence and Cohesion
A text with both cohesion and coherence has a central
concept linking all the ideas in the text, and these ideas
are presented in a logical manner. The main point is
clear, and the text is easy to follow and understand.
 Example:
International Women’s Day is celebrated on the 8th of
March of every year. It began as a Socialist political
event in several Western countries. Then, other countries
also started celebrating the holiday just as a way to
express their love for women. Currently, the United
Nations observes the holiday as a way to bring to light
women’s issues around the world.
 4. Appropriate Language Use
 Appropriate language use refers to the acceptable style of
language for a particular form of text. For business
correspondences, for instance, the style must be concise and
formal which is why writers of such texts should not use
wordy phrases and must have a courteous tone to it. For
literary pieces, on the other hand, the language and style
may be less formal and more creative.
 4. Appropriate Language Use
 It is important that you make good choices when it
comes to language use because how you use language
affects the tone of the text and the readers’
interpretation of it. Before writing, you have to think
about and consider your target audience.
  Determine when it is appropriate to use formal
language or when informal language is acceptable

1. Informal language is usually used in writing for

oneself or in writing to family, friends, and colleagues.
2. formal language is used in writing academic,
business, and official texts.
 Example

1. We asked the secretary to call the professor and get

her permission for us to continue our research.

2. We requested that the secretary contact the professor

and obtain her permission for us to continue our
research.
 When you write, you should also make sure
that the language you use is direct and simple
rather than complicated so that readers would
easily understand the text. If your readers are the
youth, then you should use words that are familiar
to young people.
 Why Sunglasses Are a Must-Have for Kids (An Excerpt)
(NewsUSA) Most parents know how damaging the effects of ultraviolet radiation (UVR) can
be to our skin, which is why they dutifully slather sunscreen on their kids during the summer.
But one thing that often gets overlooked is protecting their children’s eyes. According to vision-
care experts, kids receive three times more UV exposure than adults annually, yet less than 30
percent of parents currently protect their children’s eyes with sunglasses. The reason for concern
is that children and adolescents are particularly vulnerable to the sun’s rays because their ocular
lenses are not mature enough to filter UV light as effectively as adults, causing damage to the
retina.
“Everyone buys into what happens to your skin when it comes to sun damage, but many
parents are really surprised to learn about the cumulative UV damage to the eyes,” Dawn
Hartman, an optometrist at Columbus Ophthalmology Associates in Columbus, Ohio, told the
Wall Street Journal in an interview. But the right sunglasses can help, as parents become more
aware that protection from the sun is not just skin deep. Source:  (USA, NEWS USA, 2016)
http://www.copyrightfreecontent.com/health/why-sunglasses-are-a-mus
 You should also be sensitive enough to use
unbiased language so that you will not offend
any individual or any particular group of
people.

Unbiased language is language that is free of racial

bias, free of religious bias, and free of gender bias.
 Example

1. A teacher should make it a point to motivate her

students.

2. Teachers should make it a point to motivate their

students.
 Language Use Tips
1. Use clear and concise sentences. On average, a sentence is
18words long. Note that this dies not require every sentence
to be composed of exactly 18 words.
2. Avoid redundancies, wordiness, clichés, and highfalutin
language.
3. Avoid excessive use of “there” and “it” structures. These
sentences can be revised by dropping “there” and “it”
phrase and transforming the sentences appropriately.
 Language Use Tips
4. Use precise vocabulary. Be accurate and condense lengthy
phrases into fewer words.

5. Be consistent with your pronoun’s point of view.

6. Avoid sexist language

7. Use appropriate level of formality.

4. Proper Mechanics
Mechanics refers to the conventions of writing which includes
capitalization, punctuation, spelling, numerals, abbreviations,
acronyms, and contractions. You may have experienced being confused
as to whether you have committed an error in grammar or mechanics
when you accidentally put an apostrophe in the possessive pronoun it’s
or in the plural form of a noun such as cat’s. These errors are not errors
in grammar since you have demonstrated that you know the rules in
forming the possessive pronoun and plural. Since you made a mistake
in the use of punctuation, you committed an error in mechanics.
 Spelling
When you write, always make sure that you are
consistently using one standard with regard to
the spelling of your words. Remember that
there are slight differences in American
English spelling and British English spelling.
Example:
American Spelling British Spelling
Color Colour
Defense Defence
Organize Organise
Traveled Travelled
Theater Theatre
Learned Learnt
Airplane Aeroplane
anesthesia Anaesthesia
Analyze Analyse
aging Ageing
 Punctuation
Punctuation is the act of using a system symbols
such as the comma, period, quotation marks,
question marks, etc. that are used to give structure
to and organize a text. The use of punctuation
guides the reader regarding how the text should be
read.
Examples:
 I love to paint portraits I would paint one every day if I had the
time.
 I love to paint portraits. I would paint one every day if I had the
time.

 This book is dedicated to my parents, Noel and Corazon.

 This book is dedicated to my parents, Noel, and Corazon.
 Capitalization

 Capitalization is the act of writing the first letter

of a word in uppercase while the rest of the
letters are in lowercase. There are rules in
capitalization that one has to remember.
Examples:
 PROPER NOUNS
Ex. Alex, Manila

 PROPER ADJECTIVES
Ex. Canadian

 DAYS OF THE WEEK

Ex. Monday, Tuesday

 MONTHS OF THE YEAR

Ex. January, December
Examples:
 SPECIFIC COURSE TITLES
Ex. Theater 101
 KINSHIP NAMES USED IN PLACE OF PERSONAL NAMES AND
FOLLOWED BY PERSONAL NAMES
Ex. Grandma, Dad, Aunt Paz, Uncle Alvin.
 ADJECTIVES, VERBS, ADVERBS, NOUNS, AND PRONOUNS IN A
TITLE AND THE FIRST AND LAST WORD IN A TITLE
Ex. Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There (literature)

 HISTORICAL PERIODS, EVENTS, DOCUMENTS

Ex. Great Depression, the Renaissance, the Constitution
Key Points:
 Informal language is used in writing for oneself and to family,
friends, and colleagues, while formal language is used in writing
academic, business, and official texts.
 Using simple, direct, and familiar language rather than choosing
complicated words would make a text easier to understand.
 Using unbiased language could prevent offending any individual or
any particular group of people.
 Mechanics are conventions that have to be considered in writing.
Some of these conventions are punctuation, capitalization,
and spelling.
The following should be observed in academic and
more formal texts:
 Always use standard English.
 Avoid contractions (e.g. shouldn’t)
 Avoid exclamation marks unless they are part of a direct quotations.
 Mention the full name of the institution or organization with the
abbreviation in parenthesis, in first mention. Thereafter, use the
abbreviation.
 Numbers from zero to ten should be spelled out while numbers
higher than ten should be written in figures.
 Generally, citations are used in academic and formal texts.
However, they are sparingly used in business texts.
-END OF THE LESSON-
Thank you for Listening!