It is narrative paragraph that describe a sequence of events or tell stories or experiences. Here is model of present narration:
“For many, Mardi Gras day begins on St. Charles Avenue with the Rex Parade. By nine o’clock, the avenue is lined with people dressed
in all kinds of costumes. At around ten o’clock, the parade begins. First there is the sound of sirens. The police on motorcycles always
lead the parade to clear the street. Then a band usually marches by. At this time the people start clapping and swaying to the music. Next
come the masked men on horseback. Finally, the first float arrives carrying men in costumes and masks. Immediately, everyone rushes
toward the float. They wave their hands and yell, “Throw me something Mister” The men generally throw beads and coins at the
crowd. Then the float passes, but soon another one comes and the people do the same thing over again. After about an hour, the parade
passes by and the first part of Mardi Grass day ends.”
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2 Past Narration
It is narration that describes a sequence of events or stories or experiences in the past time. Here is model of past narration:
“Last school holiday, my brother and I visited our grandfather in Bandung. They have a big vegetable farm. The first day we were there,
we helped grandfather to water the spinach and lettuce. It was a lot of fun. Next, grandmother took us to pick the watermelons. They were
huge. After we picked them, grandfather put them in a truck and took them to the market. After helping grandmother picked more
watermelons, we went back to the house to clean ourselves and have dinner.”
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b. Description
Description conveys the perceptions of the senses-sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch. It means by which people communicate their experience of the
world to others: the color of a car, the sound of a breaking wave, the odor of a chemical compound, the flavor of a barbeque sauce, the feeling of old jeans.
People use description unconsciously to distinguish and relate the elements of
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Regina L. Smalley and Mary K. Ruetten, Refining Composition Skills: Rhetoric and Grammar
, p. 51
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Nina Bates, Real Time 2: An Interactive English Course for Junior High School Year VIII
, Jakarta: PT. Gelora Aksara Pratama, p. 32
their surroundings. And people use it in writing to make things and ideas concrete and vivid in readers’ minds.
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There are two types of description in writing, namely: description of a place and description of a person.
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1 Description of a Place
Description may follow various kinds of order, depending on what is being described. One kind of description follows space order. In space order,
the writer tells where things are. The important in describe of a place is to have some order that will be easy for the reader to follow. Here is model of
description of a place: “Our backyard is dominated by a huge old five oak tree. The base of
the trunk measures approximately ten feet around. The thick muscular trunk rises solidly for about eight feet and then separates into four
main branches. From these, the lower branches spread out horizontally over the ground, reaching into neighborhood cardinals
and blue jays sing to each other, keeping a sharp eye out for cats. As the bird sway in the wind, they look as if they are riding a ship across
a gently swelling ocean. From these heights, too, it is easy to see the variety of shrubs and sweet-smelling flowers lining the two long sides
of our rectangular yard, the small walkway along the back of the house, and the back fence that runs along the alley.”
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2 Description of a Person
In describing a person, the writer selected the person’s most interesting and most outstanding features. It is not only described a person but also an
animal or insect. Here is model of description of a person: “My bestfriend’s name is Shinta. I have always thought Shinta is a
pretty name. it reminds me of Shinta in the Ramayana story. Shinta is also the name of her grandmother. Sshinta is tall. She is about 158
centimeters. She has short hair and it is black. I first met Shinta at school. She just moved to our school from Bandung. She sat next to me
and we have been friends ever since. Shinta’s house is pretty close to mine so every morning we go to school together. I like Shinta because
she is very kind. She always help me with mr homework. Well, actually
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Richard S Beal, The Compact Reader, p. 19.
15
Regina L. Smalley and Mary K. Ruetten, Refining Composition Skills: Rhetoric and Grammar
, p. 69 - 76
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Regina L. Smalley and Mary K. Ruetten, Refining Composition Skills: Rhetoric and Grammar
, p. 72
we kind of help each other. I remembered one time when I was sick and I needed to be hospitalized, she visited me almost everyday. She
read me stories and brought me some notes from class.”
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c. Exposition
