同等学力申硕英语考试

Paragraphs

I. What is a good, effective paragraph?

●Unified---all the sentences in the paragraph are

focused on one central thought or on a single

topic.

●Coherent---it develops naturally and smoothly,

with one sentence leading to another logically.

●Well-developed---it fulfills what it sets out to say.

1. Paragraph Unity

Unity is concerned with the content of a paragraph. A unified paragraph discusses only one topic or one aspect of a topic. Only one central idea or theme it may have.

When a new idea is generated, a new paragraph must begin.

Sample 1

We Americans are incredibly lazy. Instead of cooking

a simple, nourishing meal, we pop frozen dinner into

the oven. Instead of studying a daily newspaper, we are contented with the capsule summaries on the network news. Worst of all, instead of walking even a few blocks to the local convenience store, we jump into our cars.

Sample 2

When people sit down to eat, they unconsciously reveal their personal habits. The color of the food that they order indicates their tastes.For instance, a person who orders red, yellow, and orange foods usually wears brightly colored clothes and lives in an apartment decorated in lively colors. The texture of the food gives clues to the way that people deal with life situations.The diner who prefers such crunchy foods as crackers probably meets the day-to-day conflicts head-on while the diner who orders soft creamy foods will go to almost any length to avoid

conflicts. Finally, the manner in which people eat their meals reveals their work habits. Those that eat all of their food at the same time probably have four or five things going on; those that finish one dish before beginning another one may be capable of handling only one project at a time.

Topic Sentence

A topic sentence will help you focus on your subject, but if it is expressed in terms that are too general, it will be less likely to help you achieve unity.

●Marriage for couples under twenty is foolish.

●Married couples under twenty have more problems than those over twenty.

●Taking a course in English composition is beneficial. ●Taking a course in English composition is beneficial at least in three ways.

●College students could make better use of their leisure time.

●College students could make better use of their leisure time by cultivating one or two hobbies.

2. Paragraph Coherence

Ways to achieve coherence:

●Using parallel structures

●Repeating words or word groups

●Using pronouns to refer to nouns in preceding

sentences

●Using transitional expressions

Sample 1

Americans are queer people: they can’t play. They rush to work as soon as they grow up. They want their work as soon as they wake. They used to open their offices at ten o’clock; then at nine; then at eight; then at seven. Now they never shut them.

Sample 2

People differ from one another; they have different likes and dislikes; they have their own interests and way of doing things. Yet they all need to get along with someone well. Sometimes they need to work with someone; sometimes they need to live with someone; and sometimes they need to play with someone. Whatever they do, they are not doing it all themselves.