Study with the several resources on Docsity
Earn points by helping other students or get them with a premium plan
Prepare for your exams
Study with the several resources on Docsity
Earn points to download
Earn points by helping other students or get them with a premium plan
the conten of this book will help students write the different types of academic essays effectively. Thesources are acknowledged in the list of references.
Typology: Thesis
1 / 114
This page cannot be seen from the preview
Don't miss anything!
Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research وزارة التعليم العالي والبحث العلمي University of Tlemcen Faculty of Letters and Languages Department of English جامعة تلمسان كلية اآلداب واللغات قسم اللغة اإلنجليزية Comprehension and Written Expression LMD 2 Dr. Fatima Zohra BENMOSTEFA - BELKHIR Dr. Youcef MESSAOUDI 2018 - 2019
I These lectures are a synthesis of books, university handouts and websites,which were adapted to meet Second year EFL ‘Licence’ students’ needs.These lectures are meant to help students write the different types of academic essays effectively. Thesources are acknowledged in the list of references.
III
- Semester Table of Content Lesson Duration: (3H) Practice Duration: (4H: 30)
A basic essay is a three-paragraph essay: introductory paragraph (introduction), body paragraph (body), and concluding paragraph (conclusion).
The introduction, also called the introductory paragraph, serves as a guide or a map of the essay. It usually starts with general statements that gradually become more specific to lead the reader into the thesis statement (See Figure 1). To this point, the introduction resembles a reversed pyramid , which is specifically called a funnel introduction.
Less general Less general Thesis statement Figure1. Funnel Introduction By and large, a strong introductory paragraph involves three parts: the hook, the background information and the thesis statement.
(a) Hook (b) background information (c) Thesis statement (a) [Every day, new technology appears.] (b) [Ranging from mini-CD's that contain entire encyclopedias to giant space telescopes that can send photographs of distant stars back to earth, technology makes our lives more comfortable and more enjoyable. Of all the new technological wonders, personal computers have probably had the greatest influence on the daily lives of average people. Computers have helped us in the 21th century make a lot of our work easier. Through computers, we can now talk to people in any country, research any topic, work, shop, bank, and entertain ourselves.] (c) [Personal computers have specially reformed communication and business practices in the past twenty years.] Adapted from (Bouguebs & Medfouni, 2007 - 2008 , p. 6)
The body is the heart of any essay because its purpose is to develop the thesis statement in one or more paragraphs. Each body paragraph should explain, discuss or prove one aspect of the main claim or the points presented in the thesis following the tips listed below.
The conclusion is the finale paragraph of an essay. It usually starts with a conclusion transition signal (in conclusion, in summary, to sum up, in brief, in short, in a nutshell or in a word) and takes in three sentences. Its aim is to mark the end of the essay and assemble its principal points. To realize this, one can restate the thesis statement in different words, review the main points discussed in the body paragraph(s) of the assay or leave the reader with a final comment, thought or a sense of closure on the essay’s topic.
To format an essay the writer should:
Activity 1: Analysing the Paragraph and Short Essay Read the paragraph and the essay in the table below then answer the questions that follow. a. Label the three parts of the paragraph and the essay. b. Which is more interesting? c. What information is included in the short essay introduction that is not in the topic sentence of the paragraph? d. What extra details have been added to the body paragraph 1 of the essay? e. What additional details have been added to body paragraph 2 of the essay? f. What information is included in the essay conclusion that is not in the concluding sentence of the paragraph?
Paragraph Essay [My uncle Patricio is one of the most interesting people in my family.] [He is old and has a winkled face. On his arm, there is a tattoo. Patricio has an interesting history. He and my mother were born in a small village in the mountains. When he was seventeen, he left home to explore the world. Now he fixes air conditioners in Los Angeles, and during the winter months, he sometimes comes to visit us and play the accordion. I love spending time with my uncle Patricio because he has an interesting look and a mysterious past. ] [Someday, I hope that he will tell me more about his life.] [My family is full of happy, crazy, and talented people. My aunt Margareta has a yard full of orphaned pets. My brother José is an expert tailor and my mother loves experiment in the kitchen. However, I think the most interesting is my mysterious uncle Patricio.] [Patricio is an elderly man now, with white hair striking up all over his head. Beneath his messy hair, he has a winkled brown face and powerful dark eyes that many emotions. Patricio is tall and skinny, and he wears baggy pants and a plaid shirt. He has a tattoo of a heart on his arm. The heart has the word Rosa written across it in red and black letters, but he has never told me who she is.] [Patricio has an intriguing history. He and my mother were born in a small village in the mountains. When he was seventeen, he left home to explore the world. On one trip, he went to Siberia to look for gold. On another trip, he went to Alaska to work on a fishing boat. Now he fixed air conditioners in Los Angeles, and during the winter months, he sometimes comes to visit us and play the accordion.] [I love spending time with my uncle Patricio. He has an interesting look and a sad and mysterious past. He is also a talented musician. Someday, I hope that he will tell me about Rosa and how he got the tattoo with her name.] Adopted from (Savage & Mayer, 2005, p. 16)
The meanings of words sometimes change overtime. The word cool is a good example. Cool has been used in English for a long time to describe a temperature that is ‘not warm but not too cold’ or to describe a person who is ‘calm or unemotional’. However, an additional meaning was given to the word cool in the past 100 years. Just like the word jazz, African American musicians used the word cool to describe the music they were playing. For them, cool meant ‘good’. As jazz music and other forms of music played by African American musicians became popular, more and more people started to use the word cool in conversation. Today, it is still a commonly used word, especially by younger people, to mean ‘good’ or ‘great’. A word with the opposite meaning of cool is square. Square is, of course, a shape, but it is also used to describe a person who is not cool. This may be because a person who is too old-fashioned and not flexible is like a shape with four straight sides and four corners. English owes some of its interesting and colourful vocabulary to African Americans. Existing ethnic groups in the United States as well as new immigrants will surely continue to bring new words to English and give fresh meanings to existing words. Who knows what the ‘cool’ words of tomorrow will be? Adapted from (Dorothy & Rumisek, 2005 , p. 57 )
Lesson Duration: (1H: 30) Practice Duration: (3H)
III. Main idea of body parapgraph2. A. First supporting point. B. Second supporting point. ... etc. Lastly, details a propos these supporting points are usually marked by Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3, 4, 5 ...). I. Thesis statement: ................................................................................................ II. Main idea of body parapgraph1. A. First supporting point.
To have an objective viewpoint as to their outline, students can ask their classmates or teacher to check their outline for organization, unity and support using the checklist below. Organization: Does the outline provide... Yes No the essay’s thesis statement? main ideas in the right order? supporting points in the right order? details in the right order? the essay’s conclusion? Unity: Is there unity between ... Yes No the main ideas and the thesis statement? the supporting points and the paragraphs’ main ideas?
the details and the supporting points? Support: Are there ... Yes No enough (and not too many) main ideas to develop the thesis statement? enough (and not too many) supporting points for each main idea? enough (and not too many) details for each supporting point?
Activity 1: Looking at an Outline and Showing the Organization of an Essay Read the outline below then answer these questions: a. What will the thesis statement of the essay be? b. How many paragraphs will there be in the main body? c. How many supporting points will the third paragraph have? What will they be? d. How many details will the fourth paragraph have? What will they be? Don’t Support Nuclear Energy! I. Nuclear power is not a good energy source for the world. II. Very expensive. A. Nuclear fuel is expensive. B. Nuclear power stations are expensive to build and operate.