English Grammar and Composition chapter 17: Short Composition Paragraphs

17 Short Composition: Paragraphs

17/1: Characteristics and Types of Paragraphs

You have done a good deal of work on paragraph writing up to Class 8. Now reflect on your previous experience and note down what you understand about the following:

1. What is a paragraph?
2. What are the characteristics of a paragraph?

Activity 1

Read the following text and then answer the questions that follow.

In the dinosaur age the earth was infested by dinosaurs of different shapes and sizes. Some dinosaurs were very huge; they were heavier than dozen elephants. Some dinosaurs walked on powerful hind legs and stood as tall as palm trees. Still others had short legs, square bodies and were as big as army tanks. These dinosaurs had long horns and ugly, hooked beaks. Dinosaurs were so strange and terrible that other animals ran away from them in fright. The dinosaur age ended with the extinction of dinosaurs.

a. What is the main idea of the passage?

b. Which sentence states the main or the topic idea?

c. Are the other sentences related to the main idea? Does the passage give an impression of unity or oneness?

The passage is an example of a paragraph.

Now read the passage below and note down the points made about a paragraph and its characteristics.

A paragraph is a unit of written discourse (may be spoken discourse also). It may be self contained i.e. complete in itself, or may be used as part of a longer discourse such as an essay or other assignments. The main idea of a well-written paragraph is usually expressed in one sentence. This is called the topic sentence. Then the idea is developed sentence by sentence. It is usually made up of a number of logically connected sentences written on one single

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topic. Each sentence of a paragraph should be closely related to the topic, and the paragraph should have a good structure with a beginning, middle and end.

An effective paragraph, according to Donald et al (1978) should have 3 major characteristics which are:

• It develops one idea only, called the controlling idea or thesis statement.

• It should have sufficient details to support the controlling idea.

• It should have a beginning, a middle, and an end, that is, it requires a topic sentence, a body to develop the topic sentence and a conclusion.

• ❖ The beginning or topic sentence introduces the topic or subject of the paragraph.

• ❖ The middle or body develops and provides support to the topic or thesis statement.

• ❖ The conclusion or end sums up and reaches a conclusion about the topic/subject**.**

Activity 2

Discuss in pairs or groups what the above text says about paragraph and its characteristics.

Activity 3

Read the following texts and see which one is a paragraph and which one is not. Explain why you think so.

Text A

Besides care for personal appearance, he should pay close attention to his manner of talking and finally, an applicant must show self confidence. For a successful interview, an applicant should demonstrate some qualities. The applicant should be elegantly, not too casually or too gorgeously, dressed. Firstly he should be knowledgeable; a good degree also is necessary. Good preparation for interview is also needed. Job interview is important for everyone.

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Text B

Paragraphs can be classified in various ways. In essays paragraphs are classified into introductory, development, transitional, summarizing etc, types. Depending on the purpose of the writer, on the other hand, paragraphs may be classified into persuasive, argumentative, descriptive, narrative etc, types. According to techniques of development they can be classified into cause and effect, contrast, comparison, definition etc. types In short, these are the major classifications of paragraphs**.**

Activity 4

The following sentences are not in proper order to form a coherent paragraph. Rearrange them in a logical order. Put a number in the bracket against each sentence according to the sequence you would like to arrange them in.

( ) Last Friday was a frustrating day.

( ) But my father called me and asked me to type a few official letters for him before I went.

( ) It was my aunt from next door calling to check if I could give her some time.

( ) It was a beautiful, warm and sunny day. I decided to go out and enjoy the lovely weather.

( ) When I finished typing, I got up quickly and hurried towards the door.

( ) I got dressed, took my fishing rod, and got my bicycle out to go fishing.

( ) When I got back home, the sun had already set. I was still dressed to go fishing, and the cycle and the fishing rod were there leaning against the gate.

( ) Just at that moment, the door bell rang.

( ) She needed me to take her to the hospital.

( ) Her daughter, my cousin, has just given birth to a baby boy.

( ) As I took the cycle and the fishing rod inside the house I realized that I had spent the day doing things I never thought I'd do.

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( ) I left the fishing rod and the cycle standing against a wall in the courtyard, ready to go the moment I would finish typing the letters.

Activity 5

Look at the sentences below. They do not fit into one paragraph. They refer to two different topics. Separate the sentences for two different paragraphs and rearrange them into two logically connected paragraphs.

• My first day in the new school was difficult.
• There were some benches and an outdoor oven in the picnic area.
• In the National Park of Shalna we found perfect setting for our picnic.
• I got stuck in the traffic jam and reached school fifteen minutes late.
• Everyone had gone to class and I found no one to ask for direction.
• Nearby we found a football field, and not further away, a big pond where some of my friends went swimming immediately. .
• Twice I was embarrassed when I walked into classroom that was not mine.
• Behind the picnic area was a forest where some of us went for a walk after lunch.
• The building was so huge that it was hard to find my classroom.
• Finally, I decided to go into my classroom
• When I ultimately got to my class, I was almost in tears.
• We liked the place so much that as we rode home on bus, we agreed to have next year's picnic in the same spot

Types of Paragraphs

There are many types of paragraphs. The major types are:

Descriptive paragraph Narrative paragraph Cause and Effect paragraph

Comparison paragraph Contrast paragraph Expository paragraph

Argumentative paragraph Persuasive paragraph Listing paragraph

Some of these types are dealt with elaborately from lesson 3 onward.

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17/2: Topic Sentence

Writing an effective topic sentence

A good topic sentence introduces the topic to be developed in a paragraph. It controls or limits the focus of paragraph, and once the focus is mentioned, there is no scope to go outside it. Anything outside its scope will be redundant or unnecessary. On the other hand, if the paragraph does not sufficiently support the topic statement that proves another weakness of a paragraph.

Remember that although the topic sentence usually comes at the beginning of a paragraph, it may sometimes come at the end or even in the middle of the paragraph. Sometimes the main idea of a paragraph can be so obvious that it need not be stated explicitly.

Activity 1

Read the following paragraph from a thank-you note and then answer the questions that follow.

You have made everybody in our family happy by giving me the raincoat. Sonia is happy because she won't have to lend me her raincoat again. Mother is happy because we have stopped arguing over who is going to use the one raincoat we have had. Father is happy because he doesn't have to buy one now. Even old grandpa is happy because now the house is quiet and he can sleep peacefully. I am the happiest person of all because you gave me a wonderful gift.

a. What is the topic sentence of the above paragraph?

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b. What is the topic?

c. How do all the other sentences add up to explain the main idea of the topic sentence?