44 Reading this chapter, actually the writers do not explain and discuss these
two kinds of text explicitly. There are no words and no explanation about narration and exposition in the content of this chapter, although the title is about narration and
exposition. Which one is better or which one is difficult, there is no explanation in this chapter. Furthermore, the writers clime that many intellectuals who graduated
from doctoral degree face difficult to write an article in a newspaper. So that, the writers suggest the readers to know the strategy of writing not only the general
strategy but also the specific strategy like writing an article in a newspaper.
In this chapter the writers proposes the guidance how to write an opinion in a newspaper and the exercise of making the schema in forming the ideas in writing.
Actually this writer is very valuable especially for the beginner writer.
I. The God praises His Creation
The statement of “the god praises his creation”, in my opinion has another meaning. In this statement the God tells that he is a God who is the most powerful
and the most perfect in everything, even in creating his creation. This condition is different from a writer praises his or her own writing. I agree with Benjamin
Disraeli, he says that an author who speaks about his own books is almost as bad as a mother who talks about her own children.
That a teacher praises his or her students writing, I think it is in a different context. In teaching, a teacher must appreciate the masterpiece or the product of
their students. In producing a writing text, the students have passed the long process that is probably not easy for them. The long process done by students must be
appreciated by the teacher. It is what is called by the process assessment.
What is stressed by the writers as the essence of this chapter is that the teachers should give feedback to their students. The students will be pleased if the
teacher gives feedback when they make mistakes. This feedback also can be a motivation for the students to learn from their mistakes. Teacher’s feedback is very
important and needed by the students in the process of teaching and learning since they can not decide whether what they have done is right or wrong.
I agree with the writers that a teacher must know the strategy how to give a positive feedback to the students. Sometimes, as a matter of fact that the teachers
do not know how to correct and to give feedback to the students. The most important of feedback is that it is understood by the students.
J. “Pokoknya EDAN” It’s Crazy..?
The first reading at a glance the title of this chapter, the question in my mind is “who is crazy?” After continuing my reading I know that EDAN which means
crazy in Javanese language, in this case doesn’t mean crazy but an acronym from Exposition, Description, Argumentation, and Narration.
In writing, a writer should write based on the readers‘contentment and the purpose. There are four kinds of writing which have different ways, styles, and
purposes. An exposition is a kind of writing that its main purpose is to clarify, to explain, to educate or to evaluate a problem. The characteristic of an exposition is
that the text is developed by giving examples, process, cause and effect, classification, definition, analysis, comparison, and contrast. A description is a kind
of writing text that describes things, human being, or an event. In a description text, a writer gives a description of things or event as if the readers are seeing and feel the
condition. Meanwhile, an argumentation is a kind of text that proves something or a
45 matter by giving the evidence based on the statements. The evident or
argumentation used by the writer in this text is not for contradiction but solely for convincing the readers. In argumentation text, a writer often uses the empirical data,
logical arguments, the evidences, thesis statement and conclusion. At last, narration is a kind of text that to narrate or to tell the story. Telling the story here means that a
writer tells the sequence of an event, the chronologies, and so on.
As a matter of fact, even in a university not all students understand precisely the different among the kind of texts. In my experience, the students often mix them.
Furthermore, someone who is good in exposition may not be good in narration, etc.
K. Paragraphs are Coherent
Actually it is also my experience in writing that is I have many ideas in my mind to express but I face the problem how to develop the coherency between the
ideas. In my experience the most difficult in writing is not how to express the ideas but the most difficult things are how to develop a paragraph and how to make the
paragraphs are coherent between each others.
After reading this chapter I can get many information and method how to develop the paragraph and organized them into a good writing. The writers suggest
the reader to learn the paragraph development. Each paragraph has to have one main idea which is called topic or subject. Many practical ways given by the writers in the
paragraph development, for examples, if the ideas or the topic is difficult to understand it is better to make it in simple or short form, and if it is easy to
understand we may make it in long paragraph, etc. To make the coherency among paragraph, the writers suggest using the transitional words or phrases. These
transitional words or phrases are important especially when the writers want to move from one topic to another topic. Halliday and Hasan 1976 recommend that
in changing part of sentences by cohesive devices, ellipsis; eliminating a part of a sentence but the meaning of the sentence is understood; conjunction; the use of
transitional expression to relate sentences, and lexical cohesion; in which the use of synonym and antonym and other vocabularies to catch the intended meaning
In my opinion this book is important for the students to read. As a matter of fact, the most difficult in writing is how to develop the coherency among the
paragraph. Many students often can express their ideas, but they find difficulty in developing the coherency among the paragraph. After reading this chapter we may
know how to develop a paragraph, the method in delivering information, how to develop the coherency, etc.
L. Portfolio is My Chosen
