The Writing Process BUKU | SAIDNA ZULFIQAR BIN TAHIR (VIKAR)

d . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . religious climate. All of these may have played a part, but first it is necessary to consider the precise nature of what is meant by ‘Industrial Revolution’. e . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Industry had existed for thousands of years prior to the eighteenth century, but before this time society as a whole remained agricultural. With the arrival of the ironworks and cotton mills whole towns were dominated by industrial activity. At the same time, agriculture itself went through significant changes which produced more food for the growing urban population. 5. Why are all texts divided into paragraphs? How long are paragraphs? Read the following text, from the introduction to an essay, and divide it into a suitable number of paragraphs. INVESTMENT Most people want to invest for the future, to cover unexpected financial difficulties and provide them with security. Different people, however, tend to have different requirements, so that a 25- year-old just leaving university would be investing for the long-term, whereas a 60-year-old who had just retired would probably invest for income. Despite these differences, certain principles apply in most cases. The first issue to consider is risk. In general, the greater the degree of risk in investment, the higher the return. Shares, for example, which can quickly rise or fall in value, typically have a higher yield than bonds, which offer good security but pay only about 5. Therefore all investors must decide how much risk is appropriate in their particular situation. Diversification must also be considered in an investment strategy. Wise investors usually seek to spread their investments across a variety of geographical and business sectors. As accurate predictions of the future are almost impossible, it is best to have as many options as possible. A further consideration is investor involvement. Some investors opt for a high degree of involvement and want to buy and sell regularly, constantly watching the markets. Others want to invest and then forget about it. Personal involvement can be time-consuming and worrying, and many prefer to leave the management of their portfolios to professional fund managers. 1.11 Organising Paragraphs 1.12 Organising the Main Body cross reference

2. Developing Plans from Titles

Most written work begins with a title, and students must be quite clear what question the title is asking before starting to plan the essay and read around the topic. This unit deals with analysing titles and making basic plans. 1. When preparing to write an essay, it is essential to identify the main requirements of the title. You must be clear about what areas your teacher wants you to cover. This will then determine the organisation of the essay. For example: Academic qualifications are of little practical benefit in the real world – Discuss. Here the key word is discuss. Discussing involves examining the benefits and drawbacks of something. Underline the key words in the following titles and consider what they are asking you to do. a Define Information Technology IT and outline its main applications in medicine. b Compare and contrast the appeal process in the legal systems of Britain and the USA. c Evaluate the effect of mergers in the motor industry in the last ten years. d Trace the development of primary education in Britain. Illustrate some of the issues currently facing this sector. Note that most of the titles above have two terms in the title. You must decide how much importance to give to each section of the essay e.g. title a might demand 10 for the definition and 90 for the outline. 2. The following terms are also commonly used in essay titles. Match the terms to the definitions on the right. Analyse Give a clear and simple account Describe Make a proposal and support it Examine Deal with a complex subject by giving the main points State Divide into sections and discuss each critically Suggest Give a detailed account Summarise Look at the various parts and their relationships

3. Almost all essays, reports and articles have the same basic pattern of organisation:

Introduction Main body Conclusion The structure of the main body depends on what the title is asking you to do. In the case of a discuss type essay, the main body is often divided into two parts, one looking at the advantages of the topic and the other looking at the disadvantages. A plan for the first example might look like this: 1.10 Planning a Text 2.5 Discussion cross reference Academic qualifications are of little practical benefit in the real world – Discuss. Introduction variety of different qualifications different methods of assessment Benefits international standards for professions, e.g. doctors students have chance to study latest theories qualifications lead to better salaries and promotion Drawbacks many successful people don’t have qualifications many qualified people don’t have jobs Conclusion qualifications are useful but not guarantees of success

4. Write a plan for one of the titles in 1.

title introduction main body conclusion

5. Teachers often complain that students write essays that do not answer the question set.

Consider the following titles and decide which sections should be included in each essay. a Describe the growth of the European Union since 1975 and suggest its likely form by 2010. A short account of European history 1900–2000 An analysis of candidates for membership before 2010 A discussion of the current economic situation in Europe An outline of the enlargement of the EU between 1975 and now b Summarise the arguments in favour of privatisation and evaluate its record in Britain. A case study of electricity privatisation An analysis of less successful privatisations A study of major privatisations in the UK A discussion of the benefits achieved by privatisation c To what extent is tuberculosis TB a disease of poverty? A definition of TB