Achieving Coherence
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You can make your paragraphs more coherent by ordering their support
according to basic organizational patterns. Three common patterns are time
order, space order, and order of importance.
Time order (or chronological order) means simply that the supporting
elements in a paragraph are arranged in the order in which they occurred or
in which the reader would expect them to occur.
In paragraphs ordered by time, you must be sure that your supporting points
consistently follow a chronological sequence and that no important point is left
out.
In paragraphs ordered by space the writer organizes the support in the
paragraph according to a special arrangement or pattern. Space order
enables a reader to visualize what is being described.
Space order and time order are not mutually exclusive. The supports in a
paragraph can be ordered by both space and time.
Ordering the supports in a paragraph according to their relative importance is
another way to make your paragraphs coherent. Order of importance is
probably used more often than any other principle in the arranging of supports
within a paragraph.
When you write your paragraph order your supports from the least to the most
important. Fill in secondary supports as needed.
Transitional devices add coherence to a paragraph by linking the ideas in a
sentence with those in the next. They remind the reader of what preceded
and signal what is to follow.
When used effectively, transitional words and phrases can make the
difference between a clearly written and easy-to-read paragraph and one
which is difficult to follow because it moves abruptly from sentence to
sentence.
When selecting transitional words and phrases for your paragraphs, be sure
to select only those that fit logically and to use only as many as are needed to
make your paragraph coherent.
Pronouns add coherence to a paragraph in two ways: they smooth the flow of
the sentences by eliminating awkward repetition of nouns, and they help to
knit a paragraph together by referring to nouns in previous or following
sentences or sentence parts.
Use pronouns only when they are needed, be sure that every pronoun has a
clear antecedent and be certain that every pronoun agrees with its
antecedent in person, number and, if possible, gender.
To maintain focus on the controlling idea throughout a paragraph, writers
often repeat key words and phrases that emphasize this idea.
Repetition of key words and phrases adds coherence to a paragraph by
drawing the reader’s attention to the controlling idea of the paragraph.
By combining brief, simple sentences, in longer, more developed sentences,
you can render your paragraph more coherent and less choppy.
Longer, more developed sentences and more clearly establish the
relationships among the facts and ideas in your sentences by emphasizing
important points and subordinating less important points.
Do not, however, think that a paragraph is coherent only when its sentences
are long and complicated: sentence length should reflect the relationships
among the ideas being presented.
There are three major tenses in English: present, past and future.
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If you begin writing in one tense, stick to that tense throughout your
paragraph unless a given context logically requires the use of a different
tense.
Illogical and unnecessary shifts in verb tense within a paragraph disrupt the
flow of ideas and detract from the paragraph’s coherence.
Another way to ensure that your paragraphs are coherent is to maintain
consistency in the person of the pronouns that you use.
Person depends on the tone you wish to adopt in a paragraph. First-person
pronouns are informal and personal; third-person pronouns are more distant
and objective. Most expository paragraphs are written in the third-person.
In expository writing the pronoun you is used less frequently than first- and
third–person pronouns and is reserved primarily for instances where the
writer is speaking to a clearly defined audience.
Remain consistent to the person of the pronouns throughout the paragraph.
Mixing the persons of the pronouns in a single paragraph, unless there is a
clear-cut reason for doing so, results in awkward shifts in the perspective
which can destroy the coherence of the paragraph.
Avoid using the indefinite you because it creates vagueness and an overly
casual tone.
Source: A. Franklin Parks, James A. Lavernier, Ida Masters Hollowell, ; ‘Structuring Paragraphs; A guide
to Effective Writing’, 1986, St. Martin’s Press, Inc, New York.