大学英语写作课件4 Composing essays

Before writing, we must:
decide on the purpose & audience of our writing; try to adapt the style and language to suit our purpose & audience.
Steps in Writing a Composition
定义常用表达式
A is … A means … A signifies … A is considered to be … A is taken to be … A refers to … A is defined as …
Example of beginning by an Analogy
引语法常用表达式
One of the great men/writers/scientists once said/remarked, “…”. It is true. As the proverb says/goes, “…”. Now more and more people share this belief./Now it still has a realistic significance. There is much truth in the old saying, “…”. In other words, nothing is more important/valuable than …
With our purpose in mind, we should look at the list again and cut out irrelevant, unnecessary, or unimportant details.
Types of Outline
Sentence outline（句子提纲）: made up of sentences; the controlling idea or thesis is subdivided into smaller parts; Roman & Arabic numerals or letters of the alphabet are used to number & order ideas. Topic outline（主题提纲）: consisting of nouns & their modifiers or their equivalents (gerund/infinitive phrases).
承接句:
• Such a/an case/event/story/phenomenon is quite popular. • The case/eventwk.baidu.comstory/phenomenon is not rare/isolated/unique.
• It is just one of many typical examples I have heard/encountered. • We may regard/see/view/think of the case as a result/sign of / a response/reaction to … • It has now drawn public/much attention to the problem/issue of… • A number of factors could account for this:
Thesis (controlling idea) I. Introduction II. Main Idea A. Sub-idea B. Sub-idea 1. Supporting detail 2. Supporting detail a. Fact 1 b. Fact 2 III. Main Idea A. Sub-idea 1. Supporting detail 2. Supporting detail B. Sub-idea C. Sub-idea IV. Conclusion
Rules for Writing Outlines
• Avoid single subdivisions; • Avoid mixing sentences & phrases in an outline; • Make sure subheads of the same rank (e.g.: A, B & C) are of equal importance, are related to the headings I, II & III, and are arranged in logical order; • Always write the thesis in one complete sentence.
Ways of Beginning an Article
1. Relevant background material; 2. Relevant Episode(趣闻轶事法); 3. The time and place of the event to be described; 4. A quotation; 5. A question; 6. A statement; 7. Figures or statistics; 8. A definition; 9. An analogy(类比法).
A/One recent / new / general study / survey / investigation conducted / taken by experts / officials / scientists indicates / suggests / proves / shows/ demonstrates that … As is shown/is evidenced/can be seen in the graph / data / findings/ table provided / released by an institute/the government, …
Planning a composition Writing the first draft (初稿) Revising the first draft Making the final copy (定稿)
Planning a Composition
1. Putting down all the relevant facts;
away from the city where you live and think you know nobody there, you are surprised to find that you run into one of your old classmates on the street. Perhaps both of you would cry out, “What a small world!” (主题)Why is the world getting smaller and smaller? For one thing, …. For another, ….
Having listed all the facts, we should think of a theme, that is, a controlling idea, and decide on our purpose.
3. Re-examining the list of details & outlining
The writer should think of an many relevant facts as she could at the very beginning . List all the related facts and ideas.
2. Thinking of a proper theme & deciding on the purpose;
God helps those who help themselves.
Constant dropping of water wears away a stone.
用格言，谚语或习语总结全文，既言 简意赅，又有更强说服力．
数据统计法常用表达式
From/According to the recent survey /study/statistics by the officials / government / scientists /experts, it can be predicted / learned / seen /estimated that … All statistical /reliable evidence points to the fact / goes to show that …
Criteria of a Good Composition
• It should have sth. interesting and/or important & if possible sth. new to say; • This “sth.” is expressed clearly, accurately and appropriately.
Example of beginning by a Definition
(定义引导)Patriotism [‘peɪtri:ə.tɪzəm] means the love of one’s country. A person’s motherland is a place where he is born and bred, a place where his ancestors lived from generation to generation. (主题)Naturally one should develop a strong patriotism and show deep love for his people, tradition and every piece of land.
A traditional story describes a foolish
man lifting a rock too heavy for him and having his own feet squashed. Hitler was like that foolish man, but he was different in that, before he destroyed himself, he destroyed millions of other people.
趣闻轶事法常用表达式
开头:
• Most of us have such (an) experience(s): when you go to some place…, you are surprised to find… • Many people have shared the experience like this…
Beginning with Relevant Episode
The World Is Getting Smaller and Smaller (CET-4, 1993.12)
(趣事引导)Most of us may have such experiences: When you go to some place far
Three Main Parts of a Composition
The Beginning The Middle/Body The End
The Beginning
rouses the readers’ interest &
draws their attention to the subject matter of the paper and/or provides necessary background information