What is the secret of effective
descriptions?
How do you describe seeing, hearing,
touching, tasting?
Effective description:
• Creates sharply etched word pictures of
objects, persons, scenes, events, or
situations
• What are the elements of description?
• How do you convey sensory impressionsreflecting sight, sound, taste, smell, and
touch?
Elements of description:
• Purpose --Some descriptions merely create images and
mood, but description can also stimulate understanding or
lead to action
• Sensory impressions –begin with close physical or mental
observation --when you can’t find the right words, try a
comparison
• Dominant impression --an overall mood or feeling such
as joy, anger, terror, or distaste
• Vantage point --fixed/moving
• Selection of details -- effective description depends as
much on exclusion as on inclusion
• Arrangement of details--clear pattern of organization
Gargantua
Erasmus
Ovid, Metamorphoses