Types of paragraphs
COMPOSITION 1
What is a paragraph?
Narrative
paragraphs
A narrative
paragraph tells a story. Something happens first, second, third, etc. Of
course, narrative paragraphs are used in fiction as a writer describes the
unfolding of events, but they are also found when describing any actual
sequence of activity.
If you want to write about
a personal experience, try to tell it by using the first person. This is the
easiest style in which to write something. You might choose something that you
remember well, or something that changed your life. Here's an example:
I
remember when I first arrived in the United States. Even before the plane
landed, the little windows in the airplane revealed snow and ice-covered houses
and buildings. As I walked off the plane, cold air crept though the corrugated
ramp that led to the airport terminal. Some people inside the airport were
wearing big coats and hats, which I had seen on television, but never up close.
I felt a little dizzy and needed to sit down, and then my cell phone rang. It
was my Aunt Sophia. She was waiting for me outside in the passenger pick-up
area, so I walked quickly to the exit, forgetting all about my luggage. When
the sliding glass door opened to the outside, there was my aunt--a woman I
hadn't seen in over ten years--wearing a parka and waving her arms frantically in
my direction.
The topic sentence in this
paragraph is the first sentence, I
remember when I first arrived in the United States.
The supporting sentences that follow should be about this experience and how it
is still remembered. The concluding sentence in this kind of a paragraph would
lead to the action in the next paragraph--if there is one.
The activity can be
clearly sequenced so that there's no mistake about what happens first, second,
third, and so on:
Theo's
day began with a shock. As soon as he arrived at the office that morning, he
learned that his best friend was dead. Wasn't it just twelve hours ago that
they were eating chicken wings and tipping back beer in front of a baseball
game at the Cooper's Bar and Grill? After a long day of crunching numbers at
the office, they stopped at a bar for a Thursday afternoon happy hour. They saw
a few coworkers there, and before they knew it, it was closing time. Bill got
in a car with someone he met just that evening and that was the last time Theo
saw him.
When you do the prewriting
for a narrative paragraph, list the sequence of activity.
Expository
paragraphs
An expository
paragraph informs the reader on a subject. It provides
information. Expository paragraphs are found in the books that you read for
school or the instructions that you read when trying to repair something on
your house.
There are many different kinds of paragraphs that
provide information. The three main types of expository paragraphs that we will
explore here are...
- informative
- cause and effect
- comparison / contrast
No matter what form an expository paragraph takes,
the writer focuses on presenting factual information and being objective. This
type of paragraph is usually written from a third-person point of view;
however, if you want to use a first-person perspective, that might be okay; but
consider the reason why you are writing the paragraph. The use of the
first-person can be a bit distracting from the subject at hand, and it might
reveal a bias.
The first example will be of a paragraph that
is informative. This type of a paragraph might explain a process,
describe a category, or provide a long definition of something that is
complicated. The sample paragraph below explains that Canada is a bilingual
country.
English is the
language spoken throughout most of Canada, but in Quebec, the most populated
province, and in areas near Quebec, French is the first language. Because of
this, Canadians recognize French and English as official languages that are
used in business and government. Many people are bilingual and easily go from
French to English and vice versa when speaking with tourists. The farther west
you go, the more English you'll hear, but it is common to meet people
throughout the country who are familiar with both languages.
This paragraph focuses on facts and avoids sounding
judgmental.
A comparison-contrast paragraph
compares two things. The differences can be large or small, depending on the
goals of the writer. This next paragraph compares processed and unprocessed
food, but unlike the previous example, it does stake out a position:
There
are many advantages to purchasing fresh fruit and vegetables as an alternative
to popular processed food items at your local grocer store. While potato chips
and donuts are tasty and frozen food is convenient, a habit of eating food
prepared in a factory leads to overall poor nutrition and can cause bad health.
These ill effects result in increased visits to the dentist or the family
physician. A bag of apples might cost more than a bag of Cheetos, but savings
in health costs far outweigh the immediate savings at the cash register.
Besides, pound for pound, fresh food often turns out to be cheaper than
packaged food. Many people forget that when they buy something that is packaged
or frozen, they are also buying the packaging which lures shoppers into buying
the product. Commercials on television successfully convince consumers that the
decisions to buy packaged food is logical, but facts about nutrition and value
prove otherwise.
This paragraph wants you to accept the idea that
fresh food is better than processed food, and it lists some examples of that.
This could easily be one paragraph in an essay.
A cause and
effect paragraph explains why the action of one
thing (the cause) produces a result (the effect). In this example, the
first-person is used. The example below is by a student:
If I had listened
to my teachers who encouraged me stay in college, I would be in a much better
financial position today. Instead, when I was nineteen, I dropped out of
college and drifted from one job to another. At first, It felt good to have
money while friends of mine who remained in college were always broke, but soon
I realized my mistake. Friends of mine who graduated with degrees in business
and science were suddenly making three or four times what I was making as a
manager of a shoe store. In addition, I began to feel as though my education
was incomplete. Something was missing from my life. Gradually, the consequences
of my short-term thinking became evident; therefore, At the age of twenty-five,
I returned to college to pursue a degree in business administration.
Persuasive
paragraph
A persuasive paragraph tries to
convince the reader that a particular point of view is worthy of consideration.
It wants you to consider both sides of an issue, but it reveals a bias in favor
of one side over another. Facts may be presented in support of a position, but
the writer is not being objective. The point of view is subjective.
objective: impartial;
fair; balanced; factual
subjective: partial; in
favor of an idea; biased
Here's an example of a persuasive paragraph:
Immigration
contributes to the overall health of the American economy. Despite recent
concerns expressed about illegal and some legal immigration to the United
States, this country has largely benefited from the skills, talents, and
ambition that immigrants bring with them. American businesses gain from a good
source of affordable labor, while towns and cities are revitalized by immigrant
families who strengthen communities through civic participation and the generation
of new economic activity. The United States must continue to welcome new
arrivals and help those who are already here; otherwise, the country will lose
the advantages it has over other industrialized countries that compete against
us in the global marketplace and seek to recruit from a vast pool of unskilled
and skilled global workers.
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