What is a Definition Essay?
A definition essay is writing that explains what a term means. Some terms have definite, concrete meanings, such as glass, book, or tree. Terms such as honesty, honor, or love are abstract and depend more on a person's point of view.
Three Steps to Effective Definition
Tell readers what term is being defined.
Present clear and basic information.
Use facts, examples, or anecdotes that readers will understand.
Choosing a Definition
Choosing a definition is a key step in writing a definition essay. You need to understand the term before you can define it for others. Read the dictionary, but don't just copy the definition. Explain the term briefly in your own words. Also, it's important to limit your term before you start defining it. For example, you could write forever on the term "love." To limit it, you would write about either "romantic love," "platonic love," or "first love."
Thesis Statement of a Definition Essay
The thesis statement usually identifies the term being defined and provides a brief, basic definition.
(term) (basic definition)
Ex: Assertiveness is standing up for your rights.
How To Write an Effective Definition
Create a definition. There are several ways to define a term. Here are a few options.
Define by function. Explain what something does or how something works.
Define by structure. Tell how something is organized or put together.
Define by analysis. Compare the term to other members of its class and then illustrate the differences. These differences are special characteristics that make the term stand out. For example, compare a Siberian husky to other dogs, such as lap dogs, mutts, or sporting dogs.
(term) (precise definition)
Ex: A Siberian husky is a dog reputed for its ability to tolerate cold, its distinctive features, and its keen strength and stamina.
Define by what the term does not mean. This distinction can sometimes clarify a definition and help a reader to better understand it.
Use understandable facts, examples, or anecdotes. Select facts, examples, or anecdotes to fully explain your definition. Ask yourself, "Which examples will best help readers understand the term? What examples would most appeal to my readers? Will a brief story reveal the term's meaning?" Do not use any examples that will not support the definition.
Remember: A definition essay is writing that explains what a term means. When writing a definition essay, remember to tell readers what term is being defined, to present a clear and basic definition, and to use facts, examples, or anecdotes that readers will understand
from
http://essayinfo.com/essays/definition_essay.php
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Monday, November 2, 2009
Analytical Writing
Scientific | Humanistic | |
Epistemology | Discover the truth | Create meaning |
Human Nature | Determinism | Free will |
Value Priority | Objectivity | Emancipation |
Purpose of Theory | Give universal laws | Give rules for interpretation |
Research Methods | Experiment and Survey | Textual analysis and ethnography |
Standards for Evaluation | Explanation of data | Understanding of people |
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Classification Essay
What is a Classification Essay?
In a classification essay, a writer organizes, or sorts, things into categories.
Three Steps to Effective Classification:
1. Sort things into useful categories.
2. Make sure all the categories follow a single organizing principle.
3. Give examples that fit into each category.
Finding Categories
This is a key step in writing a classification essay. To classify, or sort, things in a logical way, find the categories to put them into. For example, say you need to sort the stack of papers on your desk. Before you would put them in random piles, you would decide what useful categories might be: papers that can be thrown away; papers that need immediate action; papers to read; papers to pass on to other coworkers; or papers to file.
Thesis Statement of a Classification Essay
The thesis statement usually includes the topic and how it is classified. Sometimes the categories are named.
(topic)...(how classified)...(category) (category) (category)
Ex: Tourists in Hawaii can enjoy three water sports: snorkeling, surfing, and sailing.
How to Write an Effective Classification Essay
1. Determine the categories. Be thorough; don't leave out a critical category. For example, if you say water sports of Hawaii include snorkeling and sailing, but leave out surfing, your essay would be incomplete because surfing is Hawaii's most famous water sport. On the other hand, don't include too many categories, which will blur your classification. For example, if your topic is sports shoes, and your organizing principle is activity, you wouldn't include high heels with running and bowling shoes.
2. Classify by a single principle. Once you have categories, make sure that they fit into the same organizing principle. The organizing principle is how you sort the groups. Do not allow a different principle to pop up unexpectedly. For example, if your unifying principle is "tourist-oriented" water sports, don't use another unifying principle, such as "native water sports," which would have different categories: pearl diving, outrigger, or canoe racing.
3. Support equally each category with examples. In general, you should write the same quantity, i.e., give the same number of examples, for each category. The most important category, usually reserved for last, might require more elaboration.
Common Classification Transitions
* The first kind, the second kind, the third kind
* The first type, the second type, the third type
* The first group, the second group, the third group
Remember: In a classification essay, the writer organizes, or sorts, things into categories. There are three steps to remember when writing an effective classification essay: organize things into useful categories, use a single organizing principle, and give examples of things that fit into each category.
http://essayinfo.com/essays/classification_essay.php
In a classification essay, a writer organizes, or sorts, things into categories.
Three Steps to Effective Classification:
1. Sort things into useful categories.
2. Make sure all the categories follow a single organizing principle.
3. Give examples that fit into each category.
Finding Categories
This is a key step in writing a classification essay. To classify, or sort, things in a logical way, find the categories to put them into. For example, say you need to sort the stack of papers on your desk. Before you would put them in random piles, you would decide what useful categories might be: papers that can be thrown away; papers that need immediate action; papers to read; papers to pass on to other coworkers; or papers to file.
Thesis Statement of a Classification Essay
The thesis statement usually includes the topic and how it is classified. Sometimes the categories are named.
(topic)...(how classified)...(category) (category) (category)
Ex: Tourists in Hawaii can enjoy three water sports: snorkeling, surfing, and sailing.
How to Write an Effective Classification Essay
1. Determine the categories. Be thorough; don't leave out a critical category. For example, if you say water sports of Hawaii include snorkeling and sailing, but leave out surfing, your essay would be incomplete because surfing is Hawaii's most famous water sport. On the other hand, don't include too many categories, which will blur your classification. For example, if your topic is sports shoes, and your organizing principle is activity, you wouldn't include high heels with running and bowling shoes.
2. Classify by a single principle. Once you have categories, make sure that they fit into the same organizing principle. The organizing principle is how you sort the groups. Do not allow a different principle to pop up unexpectedly. For example, if your unifying principle is "tourist-oriented" water sports, don't use another unifying principle, such as "native water sports," which would have different categories: pearl diving, outrigger, or canoe racing.
3. Support equally each category with examples. In general, you should write the same quantity, i.e., give the same number of examples, for each category. The most important category, usually reserved for last, might require more elaboration.
Common Classification Transitions
* The first kind, the second kind, the third kind
* The first type, the second type, the third type
* The first group, the second group, the third group
Remember: In a classification essay, the writer organizes, or sorts, things into categories. There are three steps to remember when writing an effective classification essay: organize things into useful categories, use a single organizing principle, and give examples of things that fit into each category.
http://essayinfo.com/essays/classification_essay.php
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Write On, Laugh On
HOW TO WRITE GOOD [sic]*
Thanks to: Chani Silverberg for this contribution
My several years in the word game have learnt [sic] me several rules:
1. Avoid alliteration. Always.
2. Prepositions are not words to end sentences with.
3. Avoid cliches like the plague. (They're old hat.)
4. Employ the vernacular.
5. Eschew ampersands & abbreviations, etc.
6. Parenthetical remarks (however relevant) are unnecessary.
7. It is wrong to ever split an infinitive.
8. Contractions aren't necessary.
9. Foreign words and phrases are not apropos.
10. One should never generalize.
11. Eliminate quotations. As Ralph Waldo Emerson once said:
"I hate quotations. Tell me what you know."
12. Comparisons are as bad as cliches.
13. Don't be redundant; don't more use words than necessary;
it's highly superfluous.
14. Profanity sucks.
15. Be more or less specific.
16. Understatement is always best.
17. Exaggeration is a billion times worse than understatement.
18. One-word sentences? Eliminate.
19. Analogies in writing are like feathers on a snake.
20. The passive voice is to be avoided.
21. Go around the barn at high noon to avoid colloquialisms.
22. Even if a mixed metaphor sings, it should be derailed.
23. Who needs rhetorical questions?
*Note: [sic] or (sic) (from Latin sic for "thus") is a bracketed expression used to indicate that an unusual spelling, phrase, or any other preceding quoted material is intended to be read or printed exactly as shown (rather than being an error) and should not be corrected.... from: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SIC
Thanks to: Chani Silverberg for this contribution
My several years in the word game have learnt [sic] me several rules:
1. Avoid alliteration. Always.
2. Prepositions are not words to end sentences with.
3. Avoid cliches like the plague. (They're old hat.)
4. Employ the vernacular.
5. Eschew ampersands & abbreviations, etc.
6. Parenthetical remarks (however relevant) are unnecessary.
7. It is wrong to ever split an infinitive.
8. Contractions aren't necessary.
9. Foreign words and phrases are not apropos.
10. One should never generalize.
11. Eliminate quotations. As Ralph Waldo Emerson once said:
"I hate quotations. Tell me what you know."
12. Comparisons are as bad as cliches.
13. Don't be redundant; don't more use words than necessary;
it's highly superfluous.
14. Profanity sucks.
15. Be more or less specific.
16. Understatement is always best.
17. Exaggeration is a billion times worse than understatement.
18. One-word sentences? Eliminate.
19. Analogies in writing are like feathers on a snake.
20. The passive voice is to be avoided.
21. Go around the barn at high noon to avoid colloquialisms.
22. Even if a mixed metaphor sings, it should be derailed.
23. Who needs rhetorical questions?
*Note: [sic] or (sic) (from Latin sic for "thus") is a bracketed expression used to indicate that an unusual spelling, phrase, or any other preceding quoted material is intended to be read or printed exactly as shown (rather than being an error) and should not be corrected.... from: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SIC
Check Your Spelling
The Trouble with Spell Checkers
Pome
1
I have a spelling checker -
It came with my PC.
It plane lee marks four my revue
Miss steaks aye can knot sea.
2
Eye ran this poem threw it,
Your sure reel glad two no.
Its vary polished in it's weigh,
My checker tolled me sew.
3
A checker is a bless sing,
It freeze yew lodes of thyme.
It helps me right awl stiles two reed,
And aides me when aye rime.
4
To rite with care is quite a feet
Of witch won should be proud.
And wee mussed dew the best wee can,
Sew flaws are knot aloud.
5
And now bee cause my spelling
Is checked with such grate flare,
Their are know faults with in my cite,
Of nun eye am a wear.
6
Each frays come posed up on my screen
Eye trussed to bee a joule
The checker poured o'er every word
To cheque sum spelling rule.
7
That's why aye brake in two averse
By righting wants too pleas.
Sow now ewe sea why aye dew prays
Such soft wear for pea seas!
Labels: Check your spelling?, Enjoy
Pome
1
I have a spelling checker -
It came with my PC.
It plane lee marks four my revue
Miss steaks aye can knot sea.
2
Eye ran this poem threw it,
Your sure reel glad two no.
Its vary polished in it's weigh,
My checker tolled me sew.
3
A checker is a bless sing,
It freeze yew lodes of thyme.
It helps me right awl stiles two reed,
And aides me when aye rime.
4
To rite with care is quite a feet
Of witch won should be proud.
And wee mussed dew the best wee can,
Sew flaws are knot aloud.
5
And now bee cause my spelling
Is checked with such grate flare,
Their are know faults with in my cite,
Of nun eye am a wear.
6
Each frays come posed up on my screen
Eye trussed to bee a joule
The checker poured o'er every word
To cheque sum spelling rule.
7
That's why aye brake in two averse
By righting wants too pleas.
Sow now ewe sea why aye dew prays
Such soft wear for pea seas!
Monday, October 5, 2009
Rhetorical Functions
| 1 | What does X mean? (Definition) |
| 2 | What are the various features of X? (Description) |
| 3 | What are the component parts of X? (Simple Analysis) |
| 4 | How is X made or done? (Process Analysis) |
| 5 | How should X be made or done? (Directional Analysis) |
| 6 | What is the essential function of X? (Functional Analysis) |
| 7 | What are the causes of X? (Causal Analysis) |
| 8 | What are the consequences of X? (Causal Analysis) |
| 9 | What are the types of X? (Classification) |
| 10 | How is X like or unlike Y? (Comparison) |
| 11 | What is the present status of X? (Comparison) |
| 12 | What is the significance of X? (Interpretation) |
| 13 | What are the facts about X? (Reportage) |
| 14 | How did X happen? (Narration) |
| 15 | What kind of person is X? (Characterization/Profile) |
| 16 | What is my personal response to X? (Reflection) |
| 17 | What is my memory of X? (Reminiscence) |
| 18 | What is the value of X? (Evaluation) |
| 19 | What are the essential major points or features of X? (summary) |
| 20 | What case can be made for or against X? (Persuasion) |
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Assignment Schedule
Date | Week | Unit | Assignments Each chapter contains an Intro, an Overview, Guidelines, Example Readings, and Writing Checklist/Activities | ||
8/27/09 | 1 | 1 Intro | I. A Rhetoric: College Student's Guide to Writing | ||
9/3/09 | 2 | Brief Overview Chapters | I. A Rhetoric: College Student's Guide to Writing Reading, Thinking, Viewing, and Writing | ||
1. Critical Thinking Through Reading, Viewing, and Writing | |||||
The Writing Process | |||||
2. Beginning the Writing Process | |||||
3. Planning | |||||
4. Drafting | |||||
5. Revising | |||||
6. Editing and Proofreading | |||||
7. Submitting, Writing, and Creating Portfolios | |||||
The College Essay | |||||
8. One Writer's Process | |||||
9/10/09-9/24/09 | 3-5 | Weeks 3-5 Unit I | Narrative, Descriptive, and Reflective Writing | ||
9/10/09 | 3 | Chapter | 9. Forms of College Writing | ||
9/17/09 | 4 | Chapter | 10. Narration and Description | ||
Selected Reading | "Mzee Owitti" by Jacqui Nyangi Owitti | ||||
Selected Reading | "That Morning on the Prairie" by James C. Schaap | ||||
Selected Reading | "A Hanging" by George Orwell | ||||
Selected Reading | "Sunday in the Park" by Bel Kaufman | ||||
Selected Reading | "Northing" by Annie Dillard | ||||
9/24/09 | 5 | Chapter | 11. Description and Reflection | ||
Selected Reading | "The Stream in the Ravine" by Nicole Suurdt | ||||
Selected Reading | "Call Me Crazy But I Have to Be Myself" by Mary Seymour | ||||
Selected Reading | "None of This Is Fair" by Richard Rodriguez | ||||
Selected Reading | "Who Shot Johnny?" by Debra Dickerson | ||||
10/1/09 | 6 | Unit I (Narrative, Descriptive, and Reflective Writing) Paper Due | |||
Unit II | Unit II -- Analytical Writing | ||||
Weeks 6-10 | |||||
10/8/09 | 7 | Chapter | 12. Cause and Effect | ||
Selected Reading | "Adrenaline Junkies" by Sarah Hanley | ||||
Selected Reading | "The Legacy of Generation N" by Christy Haubegger | ||||
Selected Reading | "Our Tired, Our Poor, Our Kids" by Anna Quindlen | ||||
10/15/09 | 8 | M I D T E R M Chapter | 13. Comparison and Contrast | ||
Selected Reading | "A Fear Born of Sorrow" by Anita Brinkman | ||||
Selected Reading | "Two Views of the River" by Mark Twain | ||||
Selected Reading | "Shrouded in Contradiction" by Gelareh Asayesh | ||||
Selected Reading | "Like Mexicans" by Gary Soto | ||||
10/22/09 | 9 | Chapter | 14. Classification | ||
Selected Reading | "Three Family Cancers" by Kim Brouwer | ||||
Selected Reading | "Four Ways to Talk About Literature" by John Van Rys | ||||
Selected Reading | "No Wonder They Call Me a Bitch" by Ann Hodgman | ||||
10/29/09 | 10 | Chapter | 15. Process Writing | ||
Selected Reading | "Wayward Cells" by Kerri Mertz | ||||
Selected Reading | "Downloading Photographs from the MC-150 Digital Camera" (from WFB) | ||||
Selected Reading | "Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow" by Verne Meyer | ||||
Selected Reading | "Campus Racism 101" by Nikki Giovonni | ||||
11/5/09 | 11 | Chapter | 16. Definition | ||
Selected Reading | "The Gullible Family" by Mary Beth Bruins | ||||
| Selected Reading | "Understanding Dementia" by Sarah Anne Morelos | |||
Selected Reading | "Deft or Daft" by David Schelhaas | ||||
Selected Reading | On Excellence by Cynthia Ozick | ||||
11/19/09 | 13 | Unit II (Analytical Writing ) Paper Due | Presentations | ||
Unit III | Persuasive Writing | ||||
Chapter | 17. Strategies for Argumentation and Persuasion | ||||
11/26/09 | 14 | Chapter | 18. Taking a Position | ||
Selected Reading | "An Apology for Ms. Barbie D. Doll" by Rita Isakson | ||||
Selected Reading | "In Defense of the Animals" by Meg Greenfield | ||||
Selected Reading | "Apostles of Hatred Find It Easy to Spread Their Message" by Leonard Pitts Jr. | ||||
Selected Reading | "Pornography" by Margaret Atwood | ||||
Selected Reading | "Demystifying Multiculturalism" by Linda Chavez | ||||
12/3/09 | 15 | Chapter | 19. Persuading Readers to Act | ||
Selected Reading | "To Drill or Not to Drill" by Rebecca Pasok | ||||
Selected Reading | "Soul of a Citizen: Living with Conviction in a Cynical Time" by Paul Rogat Loeb | ||||
Selected Reading | "I Have a Dream" by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. | ||||
Selected Reading | "The Media's Image of Arabs" by Jack G. Shaheen | ||||
12/10/09 | 16 | Chapter | 20. Proposing a Solution | ||
Selected Reading | "Preparing for Agroterror" by Brian Ley | ||||
Selected Reading | "Uncle Sam and Aunt Samantha" by Anna Quindlen | ||||
Selected Reading | "The Media and the Ethics of Cloning" by Leigh Turner | ||||
Unit III (Persuasive Writing) Paper Due | Presentations | ||||
12/17/09 | 17 | Final | Final Exam |
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