KINDS OF PARAGRAPH

A.   Narration

Narration tells “what happened.”  It tells a story. It is the kind of writing that you find in novels, short stories, and biographies. In narration the sentences are usually organized according to time order. One thing happens and then another thing happens, and the events are told in the same order.

 

Example:

BUTTONS

In a small village called York Shire there was a boy called Harry. Harry was always fighting and during fights his button were ripped off. His mother always nagged him about sewing on his button but Harry never did. One day all his buttons had been ripped off so he had to hold his trousers up.

The bell went to go home from school and Harry raced  out of the class room and his pants fell down, all the other children laughed.

Now Harry sews his buttons all the time, without even  being asked.

 

- Year Six Writer                                (from martin & Rothery 1986 : 14

B.                 Description

 

Description may follow various kinds of order, depending on what is being described. If you are describing a man, you will choose different things to say than if you are describing a mountain or restaurant or a dress. One kind of description follows space order. In space order you tell where things are. In this space order, the writer guides the readers from one place to another. This is the order you will probably follow if you want to describe a place.  The aim of paragraph description is to describe something, sound, feeling, taste, size, shape, color, etc. It can be both physical and  process description. Description tells how something looked or felt or sounded.

 

Example I:

          The classroom is large, clean and well lighted. The walls are pale green. On the wall at the left as you enter there are three large windows. The teacher’s desk is in the front. Blackboards cover most of the wall at the right.

 

Example II:

          A ballpoint pen has many part including a button, a

clip and a refill. The refill is inside the case, the clip is outside the case, and the button is partly inside and partly outside the case. A ballpoint pen is usually made of plastic.

 

Example III:

An apple is a fruit. It grows on a tree. One quarter of the apple in the picture has been removed so that you can see the flesh and part of the core. The core is inside the apple. It is in the center of the apple. An apple usually has several seeds.

Example IV:

 

The man who opened the door in answer to my knock was an elderly man, white-haired and bent. He looked at me

over his spectacles, which were far down on his nose. In spite of his age, his dark eyes were keen and his voice was clear and strong. I noticed that he was wearing a bright-colored sports shirt.

(From Horn 1977:9)

 

 

C.       EExposition

Paragraph exposition is a paragraph which explains something. It often answers what, how, and why. Its purpose is to present ideas and to make the ideas as clear as possible. This paragraph is developed  by logical order. This means that the paragraphs are arranged in such a way that the reader can understand the writer’s thinking. In logical order the writer guides the reader from one idea to another.

 

Example I:

          What people call poverty is a bad thing. If you are poor you are worthless in the eyes of other people. At meeting they don’t pay any attention to what you say. Also women do not love a man who is poor. Women want to have money, clothes, and lots of other things. Also if you are poor you will not be able to send your children to school. But if you have money then  you are able to send them. If you have a child who goes to school he will need fees for school, clothes, and money to buy food. If you don’t have money you can’t pay for these things.

(From Larson 1984:372)

Example II

How to Cure Scorpion Bites

          If a scorpion bites someone prepare a drink from the Chiyag tree. First dig well into the very middle of the trunk and scrape out the very smooth part of the core. Then wrap the scrapings in cotton, tie the bundle up and squeeze it very hard in order to wring out the liquid. Then the person who was bitten should drink this liquid.

(from Larson 1984:371)

 

D.      EExemplification

 

Exemplification is developed by giving example. For this, you can use transition signals : such as, for example, for instance, like, etc.

 

Example:

Boymin is a very good student. For example, he does his home work  every night. His note book is neat. He is always able to answer correctly when the teacher calls on him. He usually gets an A on examinations.

(Vivian Horn 1977:128)

 

E.       IlIlustration

 

In illustration you are required to develop your paragraph by giving illustration about a certain situation.

 

Example:

Getting to campus in rainy season is difficult. Getting up in the morning is always hard, but getting up while it is still dark makes is more difficult.  It is unpleasant to go out into the cold, dark morning. It is even more unpleasant to stand on the corner and shiver while waiting for the bus.

 

F.       CClasification

 

In classification, the paragraph is developed by classifying the ideas.

 

Example:

          Plants are  divided into a number of groups. The algae, fungi and lichens are similar in that they have no real stems, roots or leaves. The algae are simple plants that contain chilorophyll and live in water. They vary in size from the green ‘scum’ growing on the walls of fishtanks to the very brown seaweed called kelp. The fungi are different from algae in that they contain no chlorophyll. They are able to feed on other plants and animals. Fungi vary in size from the tiny yeasts used in brewing and baking, to large mushrooms and toadstools found in fields and forests. Mould on bread and the disease ‘tinea’ or athlete’s foot are due to fungi. The lichens are some of the hardiest of plants. They are a partnership of fungus and algae living together to help each other. Lichens can be found clinging to rocks and posts in most parts of the world.

 

(From Hefferman & Learmonth in Halliday & Martin  1993:187)

 

 

G.      DDefinition

 

This type of paragraph is developed by giving definition of the term given. In formal writing it is sometimes necessary to write a paragraph to explain what a term means or how you are using it in a particular situation. A paragraph of definition may be either formal definition , which explains the meaning as you might find it in dictionary, or a stipulated definition, which explains how you are use particular term within a specific context.

 

Example:

          A test, in plain, ordinary words, is a method of measuring a person’s ability or knowledge in a given area. The definition captures the essential components of  a test. A test is first a method. There is a set of techniques, procedures, test items, which constitute an instrument of some sort. And that method generally requires some performance or activity on the part of either the testee or the tester, or both. The method may be quite intuitive and informal, as in the case of judging offhand someone’s authenticity of pronunciation. Or it may be quite explicit  and structured, as in a multiple- choice technique in which correct responses have already been specified by some “objective” means.

 

(Brown 1987 :219)