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Refining Composition Skills Rhetoric and Grammar C2: Introduction to the Paragraph The topic of a Paragraph • A paragraph is a group of sentences • The first sentence of this group is indented • It develops a topic: what the paragraph is about • If the topic is too general to be developed in one paragraph, you need to restrict it: narrow it down to a more specific one The topic Sentence • It is the sentence which usually introduces the topic of the paragraph • It should be near the beginning of the paragraph • It also serves to state an idea or an attitude about the topic: the controlling idea • The controlling idea says what sentences in the paragraph will discuss • All the sentences in the paragraph should relate and develop the controlling idea • The controlling idea should be clear and focused on a particular aspect • Sometimes the topic or the controlling idea are clearly suggested in the development of the paragraph • It is a good idea to state topic sentences clearly to help control the development of the paragraph • Each sentence within a paragraph should relate to the topic and develop the controlling idea. • If any sentence does not relate to or develop that are, it is irrelevant and should be omitted from the paragraph • A paragraph that has sentences that do not relate to or discuss the controlling idea lacks unity Coherence • A coherent paragraph contains sentences that are logically arranged and flow smoothly • Smooth flow refers to how well one idea leads into another • If the sentences are not logically arranged, the paragraph is incoherent • A paragraph can be incoherent even when the principle for ordering the ideas is logical C3: The narrative paragraph Narration • A narration tells a story or describe a sequence of events • You should arrange your ideas according to the time in which they occurred • To explain a process, you should begin by explaining what to do first and finish by explaining what to do last • Narration and process description are the two types of writing that require chronological development • It is important in narrative writing to show the reader the time relationship between sentences and ideas • If any of the sentences could be switched around without any significant change in meaning, the paragraph is incoherent • In past narration, you should first sum up the significance of the moment in one sentence • Secondly you should arrange the sentences logically and include only the sentences related to the topic C4: The descriptive paragraph Description of a place • It is not necessary to begin with one area and then proceed to another area • The description must be organized so that the reader can vividly imagine the scene • The arrangements of the details in a descriptive paragraph depends on the subject • The selection and the description of details depend on the describer’s purpose Description of a person • Depending on the subject or assignment, you could describe the person’s personal appearance, behaviour, or both • You can tell about the person’s style of clothing, manner of walking, colour and style of hair, facial appearance • You can also describe the person’s way of talking C5: The expository paragraph • The organization and content of a paragraph are determined by the topic and the controlling idea of that paragraph • A topic sentence must be supported with details organized chronologically in a narrative paragraph and spatially in a descriptive paragraph • The topic sentence does not suggest that you tell a story or describe a scene or a person • If you want to give examples, it is not sufficient just to name it, often you have to explain it to show how it relates to and supports the generalization • It is necessary to add an explanation of the example • A paragraph that explains or analyzes a topic is an expository paragraph • The controlling idea is the word or phrase in the topic sentence that states an idea or an attitude about the topic • This idea is frequently referred to as a generalization: a statement that applies in most cases to a group of things • Specific descriptive details help to support the controlling idea in a description