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SYNOPSIS
A synopsis is a summary. The purpose of a summary is to provide a shortened version of a given piece of writing. Most frequently a synopsis is a multi-paragraph summary of a chapter, book, article, or drama. It makes no effort to address every idea. The reader understands that a synopsis is necessarily subjective because the writer must select the items to be included. Thus, the synopsis reflects editorial bias.
CHARACTERISTICS
A synopsis generally Selects main ideas which, in the writer’s opinion, best represent the original piece Reflects the style of the current writer, as opposed to the author of the original Gives sufficient details to clarify the main ideas Is sufficiently informative to aid further investigation Has a reporter’s objectivity
PROCESS
Use the following process to develop a synopsis:
PREWRITING
Step 1. Reading the Material
Quickly read the original passage without taking notes. Look for repeated themes and the general treatment of ideas. If unfamiliar names are difficult to you, you may want to list them for later reference, noting the correct spelling. Once you’ve finished reading, jot down the three or four most important ideas. They will serve as the skeletal outline of your synopsis.Remember, you will not cover all the ideas in a synopsis.
WRITING
Step 2. Preparing the Synopsis
Begin the synopsis by identifying in a single sentence the main idea of the original. Weave the title and author into an early (though not necessarily the first) sentence. Follow with a brief description of the main ideas. Follow the organization of the original. Keep in mind that a synopsis will be short, maybe only a paragraph in length. Deal only with essentials.
REVISING
Step 3. Improving the Content
Your synopsis will almost invariably be too long. Begin cutting. Omit needless details. Shorten sentences. Use strong nouns and verbs in order to omit modifiers. Keep cutting.Try this challenge: If you had to summarize the original in a single sentence, what would you say? If you could add on more sentences, what would you say? Follow this progression until you have stated all the important ideas.
PROOFREADING
Step 4. Checking the Details
Once you have completed the revision, check for spelling, punctuation, grammar, mechanics, and usage. Refer also to the dictionary, a thesaurus, and/or the spell check/grammar check for spelling and vocabulary problems. The steps above should enable you to develop a synopsis. Compare your own with the example below, and study the analysis which follows.
SAMPLE SYNOPSIS
The following synopsis summarizes a novel of nearly 550 pages.
Ice-Age Novel
The second book of a trilogy, The Valley of the Horses, fictionalizes the beginning of civilization in the Asian area north of the Beran
Sea. Like Jean M., Auel’s other two books, The Clan of the Cave Bear and The Mammoth Hunters, this one gets its foundation from
archaeological research supporting the evolution of man. In this unusual historical novel, the reader follows Ayla, a child of the Others who has
been reared by the Clan of the Cave Bear only to be ejected from the Clan when she violates customs she cannot understand or accept. In exile
in the Valley of the Horses, she survives five year alone until she meets Jondalar, a man of the Others.
Ayla faces a lonely struggle for survival after her death curse by the Clan. To solve basic survival problems, she must use logic: alone,
how can she kill, butcher, and process an animal large enough to feed her through the severe winter; alone, how can she provide clothing,
cooking utensils, sleeping skins, and shelter for protection; alone, how can she protect herself from the dangers around her? Her training as a
medicine woman and her knowledge of hunting couples with the large brain characteristic of the Others allow her to succeed. Also, as a result
