Name __________________________ Transitioning Nice and Easy Transitions -­‐ uses paragraph breaks to indicate that a transition has occurred. -­‐ correctly uses at least three different S.L.I.D.E.R. transitions. -­‐ correctly uses at least six different S.L.I.D.E.R. transitions. -­‐ uses at least one complex sentence with a subordinate clause to create a recursive transition. -­‐ each new topic is thoughtfully connected to the one that came before it. All of the practitioner column, plus one or more of the following… * use of parallel construction to hint at connections. * “extent” transitions * use of a variety of subordinate clauses. 1. Let’s talk about repetition. Throughout your school career you have probably heard teachers encouraging you not to be repetitive; for example, a teacher might advise you to make the following revision to your writing: Original: The death penalty creates a lot of financial costs. For example, it costs a lot in appeals and lawyer’s feels. The death penalty creates a lot of pain for families. For example, it can create a lot delays and make families feel a lot of uncertainty. Revision: The death penalty, with its extensive appeal process, leads to big financial costs. It can also create a lot of pain for families. Delays in trials and appeals can increase families’ feelings of uncertainty. Notice how in the revision repetitive verbs and transitions have been replaced. Here’s another example from the Writing Center at the University of Alabama: "Military success is what made the Romans successful in most of their
successes."
Success, I get it! Repeated words are more than monotonous. They
underscore a writer's failure to see all the facets of an argument because, if
you have really thought about your topic and looked at it from several
different perspectives, various aspects of the theme will have occurred to
you.
“Different aspects of a thesis require different expressions, that is, a different
word reflecting a different perspective on your paper's theme as it relates to
different circumstances.”
Different, got that? No? Then I'll show you by varying the words in what I
just said, and see if the point isn't clearer. "Different aspects of a thesis
require their own expressions, that is, a certain word chosen to reflect each
individual perspective on the theme as it relates to particular
circumstances." Well, even if the second sentence isn't clearer to you, at
least it sounds more intelligent.
Especially deadly and monotonous is the repetition of words or phrases at
the beginning of successive sentences: "The Romans conquered Gaul. The
Romans spread their culture all over Europe. The Romans ate boatloads of
bread." Avoid this sort of repetition, in particular. It lends a tone of speaking
down to your reader, as if you were addressing a child, an attitude which
won't go over well in academic discourse.
But now let’s talk about GOOD REPETITION. Repetition can and should be used to
help create COHENSION and TRANSITIONS in your essay. If you are writing an
essay focused on the morality of abortion, the words “abortion” and “moral” can and
should show up in almost every paragraph, probably multiple times, and especially in the
first and last sentences of those paragraphs. Where you can avoid repetition is by making
the style of these sentences with their repeated key words slightly different:
Topic Sentence for Body Paragraph One:
In considering whether or not abortion constitutes a moral act, contemporary
philosophers have often started by showing the problems with many political
arguments about abortion.
Topic Sentence for Body Paragraph Two: Abortion’s morality is also wrapped up in big questions about who or what counts as a human. In any given essay, you will probably have three to six key words or phrases that need to be repeated throughout the essay at important moments. Look over your notes, what are your key words or phrases? Write them here: Key Words and Phrases to be Repeated in my essay: 1. 2. 3. 4. 3. Transitions Between Paragraphs. There are a number of different ways to create transitions between paragraphs. Let’s start by looking at a missed transition first. (the fancy word for this is a “non-­‐sequitur” – it means that things appear out of sequence). Take a look at the last sentence and first sentence of these two paragraphs, which are meant to go next to each other: … Pojman points out that the death penalty can be justified by a simple human law: purposefully killing another human being always and forever means that a person has sacrificed his own right to life. Utilitarian arguments about the death penalty suggest that the death penalty is good because it deters criminals who will not murder because of the fear that they might be put to death. Transition Strategy # 1: Using a transitional phrase (SLIDER) and a repeated word … Pojman points out that the death penalty can be justified by a simple human law: purposefully killing another human being always and forever means that a person has sacrificed his own right to life. Utilitarian arguments, on the other hand, justify the death penalty because it deters criminals who will not murder because of the fear that they might be put to death. Transition Strategy # 2: Setting up a key phrase in the last sentence of a paragraph that can be repeated easily in the beginning of the next paragraph … Pojman points out that the death penalty can be justified by a simple human law: purposefully killing another human being always and forever means that a person has sacrificed his own right to life. This argument considers the “rightness” of executing someone who has maliciously killed someone else. It does not consider the consequences, financial or otherwise, of the death penalty. Utilitarian arguments about the death penalty focus acutely on just these sorts of consequences. Transition Strategy # 3: Use a subordinate clause (While, If, Although, Given that, Even though) to create a “recursive transition at the beginning of the second paragraph. … Pojman points out that the death penalty can be justified by a simple human law: purposefully killing another human being always and forever means that a person has sacrificed his own right to life. While the deontological argument focuses on a basic, simple human law, the utilitarian arguments about the death penalty suggest that the death penalty is good because it deters criminals who will not murder because of the fear that they might be put to death. Given that this justification rests on a prima facie rule, Pojman goes on to also point out that there is a utilitarian argument for the death penalty. Transition Strategy # 4: Make it sound like a conversation with one of these great transitional phrases at the beginning of a new paragraph: Lately though, scholars have begun to question… While some researchers have… others have… There are to be sure, scholars, who take issue with this point of view, such as… ___________________ doesn’t deny _____________________; nonetheless, he/she… _____________________ prefers to focus on… Before anyone rushes to the conclusion that ___________________________, it is worth considering… So, how many of these transitions between paragraphs should you use in your essay? Ideally, a mixture of all of them! Go to your organization sheet and figure out where you might use each of these kinds of transitions. 4. Transitions within paragraphs: our S.L.I.D.E.R. list is the best place to start with this. Go through and circle at least ten transitional words or phrases you will employ in your essay. (Note: I’ve added some new ones on to the list since last time) S SUMMARY L LISTING I IN ADDITION TO… D DIRECTION CHANGE E EXAMPLE SET-­‐UP R RESTATEMENT FOR EMPHASIS In conclusion, Ultimately, Consequently, In the final analysis In summary, Accordingly, Hence, Thus, First… second… third… etc. Finally, At first, Simultaneously, Next, To begin, Subsequently, In addition to, Similarly, Likewise, Additionally, Also, Equally important, Furthermore, Moreover, Just as… so to… If… then… Most importantly, Conversely, On the other hand, By contrast, However, Meanwhile, Notwithstanding, Still, Yet, On the contrary, For example, Specifically, For instance, Indeed, To illustrate this… In essence, In other words, Put another way, To put a fine point on it, Obviously, Certainly, Clearly, In fact, Of course, Truly, Making Powerful Transitions Here are some great sentence structures for transitions… Correlative conjunction If Titanic is a film about how ordinary people can be heroic in extraordinary circumstances, then Avatar is a film about how extraordinary circumstances can make someone into a hero. Subordinate Clause While the villain in Titanic represents a kind of moral corruption, the villan in Avatar is more of a figurehead for the organization he represents. Even though Titanic and Avatar share huge special effects budgets, Avatar tries to use its effects to throw us off balance. Other comparative phrases (there are more of these on the SLIDER handout) Avatar, like Titanic,… Avatar, unlike Titanic… In contrast to Titanic, Avatar… Just as Titanic…, Avatar… Contrary to Titanic, Avatar Compared to Titanic, Avatar