Organisation
1 Chronologically or Reverse-Chronologically
2 In spatial relation
3 From General to Specific (inductive)
4 From Specific to General (deductive)
5 From Least Important to Most Important
6 Through Division and Classification
7 By Cause and Effect
8 By Problem and Solution
9 Through Comparison or Analogy
10 Through Contrast
11 By Process
12 Through Definition
Style
• Verbs – avoid phrasal (prepositional) – use single (often
Latinate) verbs
• Do task nine = p. 20
• Avoid Contractions
• Use formal negative forms:
– The analysis didn’t yield any new results
– The analysis yielded no new results
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•
•
•
Avoid “run on expressions”: etc, and so forth, and so on
Avoid addressing reader as “you”
Generally avoid use of “I”
Limit use of direct questions: “What can be done about
this?”
• Place Adverbs within verb: “Very little is actually known…”
• Use words efficiently/avoid being “wordy”
Flow/Coherence
• Use linking words/phrases
• See: http://home.ku.edu.tr/~doregan/Writing/Linkers.html
• Use appropriate punctuation
Task 18 page 34
• Use of summary words
GeneralSpecific Texts
• Answers to examination questions
• Opening paragraph to an assignment
• Background to analysis or discussion
General Statement
Details/Supporting Points
Broader Statement
What’s “general” is relative to the
focus of your writing
All over the world, ever since the beginning
of time people have spoken languages.
Russian is one of these languages.
Russian is a thriving language although
with the collapse of the Soviet Union, it’s
influence isn’t as great as it was.
What’s “general” is relative to the
focus of your writing
Russian is a language belonging to the
East Slavic subgroup of the IndoEuropean language family.
GS Texts often begin with…
•
•
•
•
Short or extended definition
Contrastive or comparative definition
Generalization or purpose statement
A statement of fact
Definitions
• Who is your audience?
• Can you not assume that your educated
academic audience already understands
the meaning of key concepts?
• When might, even your professor benefit
from you defining your terms?
• Even if your professor knows what a term
means, what other reason might you have
for providing a definition?
Where do definitions come from?
• Do you write them yourself?
• Copy them from another source?
• Consult a dictionary?
From Homework – Exercise 3
• What words have you defined?
• Any common? (if so, compare with
classmates).
Introducing/Signaling a definition
• Use verbs: named (but rarely used)
denote
call (but can be tricky)
refers (use for terminological explanations)
When using these verbs you normally provide the
definition first and then at the end provide the “term”
you are defining.
Use phrases: known as
define as
From Homework – Exercise 5
• Can you find any definitions in the texts
you have brought to class?
• What verb/phrase is used to introduce the
definition.
• Is it a
– Short definition/gloss?
– Sentence definition?
– Extended definition?
Grammar/Structure of Definitions
Term
(A)______________ is
(A)__solar cell ____ is
Class
Distinguishing Detail
(a) ____________ Wh-word ____________________.
(a) ___device____ which __converts the energy of the sunlight into electric energy_.
Do the definitions in your texts follow this pattern?
Task 7
• Articles – to use or not to use?
Task 9
• Use of relative clauses
• Instead of
“A thermometer is an instrument with
which temperature can be measured” why
not say:
“A thermometer is an instrument used to
measure temperature”.
Task 11
• Provide peer feedback on your definitions
Extended Definitions
Tend to begin with 1 sentence definitions
as above
Focus on components,
types, applications,
history, examples.
Task 16 p. 72
Competing Definitions
• Not so common in the hard sciences
• Often found in social sciences
• Note useful phrases on p. 73 for
introducing your chosen definition
Term
(A)______________ is
A Turk is…
Class
Distinguishing Detail
(a) ____________ Wh-word ____________________.
Contrastive Definitions
(concrete vs cement)
• What concepts in your field of expertise
might you be asked to distinguish
between?
• Choose one of these pairs and write a
contrastive definition now.
Comparative Definitions
• What’s the difference between a
comparative definition and a contrastive
definition?
• What is the value of using one or more
comparative definitions?
Dictionaries
• Do you use them?
• Which particular dictionaries?
• For what do you use them?