Elements of Writing Theories of Writing
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a. Add an idea
in addition
to, similarly,
also, furthermore, another, moreover
b. Add description to give details
that, what, whatever, which, who, whom, whose
c. Give an example
for example, for instance, such as d.
Show contrast however, in contrast, but, yet, on the
other hand,
though, eventhough,
although, on the contrary, otherwise, not only, unless, while, whether,
instead, at the same time
e. Compare ideas to examine or
look for the difference between two or more things
likewise, as if, in the same way, than
f. Show cause and effect to show
relathionships between ideas because, since, hence, if, so, so that,
consequently, therefore, thus, as a result
g. Summarize or conclude
to express important ideas in a short and clear form
in short, to summarize, to sum up, in conclusion, to conclude.
h. Enumerate to name thingsideas
separately first, second
i.
Show time to indicate time order
finally, later, after a while, before, then, next, after that, since, eventually,
again, until, when, whenever, while, during
j. Show emphasis to give more
particular importance indeed, in fact
:
: :
:
:
:
:
:
: :
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Adding more complete, Langan 2011 classifies transitions into pieces. According to him, the common transitional signals show addition, comparison or
contrast, illustration, and cause and effect. Below are the examples of transitional words provided by Langan 2011:
a. Addition
:
b. Comparisons
:
c. Contrast
:
d.
Illustration :
e. Causes and effect
:
Those common transitons are grouped according to the kind of signal they give to readers. Addition connectives tell that the writer’s thought is going to
continue in the same direction. The writer is going to add points or details of the same kind. Comparison connectives tell that the writer is pointing out a similarity
between two subjects. They tell the readers that the second idea is like the first one in some way. Contrast connectives signal a change in the direction of the
writer’s thought. They tell that the writer is pointing out a difference between two subjects or statements. Illustration connectives tell that an example will be given
and, also, another, finally, first, second, first of all, lastly, furthermore, in addition, last of all,
moreover, next like, likewise, just like, alike, as, similarly
but, however, on the contrary, on the other hand, otherwise, yet
for example, for instance, such as so, as a result, consequently, so that, since,
therefore
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to make an idea clear. Cause and effect connectives signal that the writer is going to describe results and effects.
2 Grammar
Based on the criteria of elements of writing by Tribble 1996, the grammatical aspects are simplified into concord, tense, adjective, article, pronoun,
preposition, sentence fragment, and run on sentence. The following is the further discussion about the suggestion of the grammmatical use in those aspects.
a Subject-Verb-Agreement
Bram 1995 stated that the verbs should agree in person and number with its subject. The writers should make sure that they use the correct singular and
plural forms for verbs , number, and nouns or pronouns. The words ‘one, a, an, each, another, and every’ are followed by countable singular nouns. On the other
hand, the words ‘two, three, both, many, some, a few, these, and those’ are followed by countable plural nouns. A plural noun has a plural verb following it.
The plural nouns usually end in -s or -es and the plural verb forms do not end in - s. Whereas, the singular verb forms usually end in -s. When a subject follows a
linking verb be, the verb should agree with the subject. b
Tense The verb tense indicates the relationship between an action or state of being
and the passage of time. The present tense indicates that something is taking place now. It also can be for timeless statements.
c Word order
Word order is the order of modified words. A modifier is a word or a phrase that alters or adds to the meaning of one of the words in the basic pattern.
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According to Stanley 1991, the word modifiers are placed before the elements they modify. Adjective modifiers add to the meaning of nouns and pronouns,
which are usually found as subjects, objects, or complements. It is used before a
noun, for example, ‘heavy bag’; it is modified by an adverb, for example, ‘ a very
heavy bag’. Stanley 1991 suggested if the writers intend to use more than one adjective
to modify a noun or pronoun, they have to set the adjectives in the correct order.
The following is the common rule to put adjective in order: determiner – opinion
– size appearance – weight – age – temperature – humidity – shape – colour
– nationalityorigin – material – purpose
d Article
As noted by Stanley 1991, the articles are a, an, and the. They modify nouns. A and an are indefinite. The is definite; indicate something specific. The
article a precedes nouns that start with a consonant sound. The article an precedes
nouns that start with a vowel sound. e
Pronoun Stanley 1991 proposed that a pronoun substitutes for a noun or a noun
phrase. Pronouns help the writers to sound less repetitious. Pronouns fall into one of the following categories, such as personal pronouns, reflexive pronouns,
indefinite pronouns, demonstrative pronouns, relative pronouns, interrogative pronouns. In this study, personal pronouns and relative pronouns become the
focus. The personal pronouns itself take different forms, depending on whether they are used as subjects, objects, or possesive form. The relative pronouns, on the
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other hand, modify noun or adjective clauses, such as who, whom, whose, which, and that.
f Preposition
According to Stanley 1991, a preposition links a noun, a pronoun, or a group of words functioning as a noun to some other word in a sentence. It indicates the
relationship of location and logic between the linked words. Prepositions include the following:
about above
across along
among apart from
around at
behind below
beneath beside
between beyond
by down
for from
in during
except at the back of
in case of in front of
in place of inside
instead of into
near of
off on
onto on top of
out out of
outside over
through throughout
toward under
underneath until
up upon
up to with
within without
3 Mechanics
Stated before, the mechanical aspects are classified into punctuation and spelling. Below is the further review about the suggestion of the mechanical use in
the two aspects. a
Punctuation There are so many conventions of punctuation. Since the ninth year
students’ compositions are not as complex as the higher education’s, the researcher focuses the discussion only on the use of period, comma, and
apostrophe. Below is the discussion provided by Stanley 1991 .
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i. Period
To make a sentence readable and understandable, a sentence should be ended. One way to end a sentence is by added a period.
ii. Comma
There are some special effects with comma. First, commas make sense of lists or series. Any time the writers list three or more items in a sentence, they
have a series of items that needs commas to make sense. The last word in a series
is connected by coordinating conjunctions but, for, or, nor, so, or yet. Second,
commas connect clauses. The writers can use a comma and a coordinating
conjunction and, but, for, or, nor, so, or yet to join complete sentences together
without confusing the reader. If the complete sentences the writers want to connect are very brief and closely related, they can flow together without a
comma. iii. Apostrophe
The possesive apostrophe should be used correctly. First, the apostrophe followed by -s is used to form the possesive case of singular and plural nouns that
do not end in -s , such as, the boy’s dog, the woman’s rights, and children’s toys
. Second, the apostrophe is used to form the possesive case of plural nouns
that end in -s, for example, babies’ cribs, the two boys’ tree house, the Joneses’ apartment
, and the Smiths’ home.
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b Spelling
Bram 1995 suggested some guides to follow in order to avoid common
spelling problems. The words there and their, and then and than shoud be used correctly. When a word ends in p, t, d, m, n, and l and has a short vowel in its
final syllable, the consonant should be doubled when the suffixes -able, -ed, and -ing
are added. Furthermore, when the final syllable contains a long vowel, the consonant should not be doubled.
c Capitalization
According to Stanley 1991, there are some convention related to capitalization. First, to capitalize a word, the writer must make the first letter of
the word a capital letter. Second, capitalizing the first word of a sentence, for example, “ She hates to type.” Third, capitalizing proper nouns, such as the names
of specific persons, places, and events.