Paragraph Writing Part 2

Unity and Coherence of a Paragraph Body of a paragraph will explain, support and prove the idea or attitude of a paragraph. So every sentence of a body will be related to the topic, not irrelevant. This is called the unity of a paragraph. All sentences of the body of a paragraph will a logical sequence. This is called Coherence. So, Coherence means logical sequence

2. Body In order to maintain the unity and coherence two kinds of Techniques are necessary. 1. Cohesive devices 2. Techniques of paragraph development or Rhetorical devices

2. Body – Cohesive Devices(Connectives) A) Sentence Connectors : Connect sentences and link the relation between two sentences 1. To show addition: and also besides futhermore moreover in addition Examples: 1. This food is very tasty. It is also nutritious. 2. Mine is pretty. Besides, she is intelligent. 3. This house is very old. Moreover, the price is too high.

2. Body – Cohesive Devices(Connectives) 2. To show contrast: but however nevertheless unlike on the contrary on the other hand Instead Examples: I like dogs. But I hate cats. Hamid is not foolish. On the contrary, he is very clever. He doesn’t study at all. Instead, he sits and day-dreams.

2. Body – Cohesive Devices(Connectives) 3. To show comparison likewise in the same way Similarly in like manner Example: 1. A garrulous(talkative) person is seldom loved by others. Likewise, a reticent(unwilling to tell people about something) person is not always well liked.(garrulity- garrulousness)(She was shy and reticent. reticence; reticnetly) 2. Parents love their children. Similarly, children love their parents.

2. Body – Cohesive Devices(Connectives) 4. To show emphasis: in fact indeed certainly as a matter of fact Examples: Though Mina is a proud girl, everyone likes her. In fact, she is often surrounded by a number of young men. I seldom travel. As a matter of fact, I hate travelling.

2. Body – Cohesive Devices(Connectives) 5. To introduce an example: for example that is for instance in other words Examples: 1. Karim has no manners at all. For example, he cut me dead in the street. 2. Money cannot insure happiness. For instance, although Mr. Hakim is rich, he is very unhappy.

2. Body – Cohesive Devices(Connectives) 6. To introduce a result: so therefore consequently as a result hence accordingly Examples: 1. The weather was bad. So, I stayed indoors. 2. Hasina was ill. Therefore, she was absent from school yesterday. 3. He did not pay the telephone bill. As a result, his telephone was disconnected.

2. Body – Cohesive Devices(Connectives) 7. To introduce a conclusion: In short to sum up finally In a word in conclusion Examples: 1. Mina did not answer my letter; she refused to talk to me when I called on her. In short, she behaved rudely. 2. Kamal is handsome; he is rich; he has a beautiful car. In a word, he is very fortunate.

2. Body – Cohesive Devices(Connectives) 8. To show a sequence: First second next Examples: 1. If you want to do well in the examination, you have to do these things: First, you must attend your classes regularly. Second, you must do your homework. Third, you must review your notes frequently.

2. Body – Cohesive Devices(Connectives) A) Reference: Reference also works like sentence connectors. Reference can be of Three Types: 1. Pronoun Reference: Karim is a student. He studies at BUET. ‘He’ in the second sentence can not be understood without the presence of ‘Karim’ in the first sentence.

2. Body – Cohesive Devices(Connectives) 2. Demonstrative Reference: Men are physically stronger than women. This statement is generally true. The word ‘this’ can not be understood without the presence of first sentence.

2. Body – Cohesive Devices(Connectives) 3. Comparative Reference: Mina will not sing at the function. You will have to find someone else . The phrase ‘someone else’ can not be understood without ‘Mina’.

2. Body – Cohesive Devices(Substitution) C) Substitution: When a word will be used in place of other word, this is called substitution. Substitution can be of three kinds. 1. Nominal Substitution: This knife is blunt. Give me a sharper one. The word ‘one’ is the substitution of ‘knife’.

2. Body – Cohesive Devices(Substitution) 2. Verbal substitution: Have the children gone to sleep? I think they must have done. The word ‘done’ is the substitution of the verb ‘sleep’.

2. Body – Cohesive Devices(Substitution) 3. Clausal substitution: Are you going to Dhaka tomorrow? If so, we can travel together. The word ‘so’ is the substitution of the clause ‘Are you going to Dhaka tomorrow?’.

2. Body – Cohesive Devices(Ellipsis) D) Ellipsis: Ellipsis means to omit a word or a sentence. Ellipsis can be of three types. 1. Nominal Ellipsis: Why don’t you use a knife? I haven’t got any. To convey the answer, the word ‘knife’ should be supplied after the word ‘any’.

2. Body – Cohesive Devices(Ellipsis) 2. Verbal Ellipsis: Is it going to rain? It may, or may not. To convey the answer, the main verb has not been used. The verb ‘rain’ should be supplied after the word ‘may’.

2. Body – Cohesive Devices(Ellipsis) 3. Clausal Ellipsis: Can you swim? Yes. The word ‘yes’ indicates – I can swim.

2. Body – Cohesive Devices(Lexical) E) Lexical: Lexical devices also link between sentences. 1. Repetition of words: He was walking home from his fields. His feet sank deep in the thick dust. A dry, hot wind blew dust across the brown fields. The words – ‘dust’ and ‘fields’ are repeated here.

2. Body – Cohesive Devices(Lexical) 2. Use of Synonyms or Antonyms: The audience gave three cheers for their leader. The leader acknowledged the applause. The words ‘cheers’ and ‘applause’ are synonyms. He fell asleep. A loud crash woke him. The words ‘asleep’ and ‘woke’ are antonyms.

2. Body – Cohesive Devices(Lexical) 3. Collocation(some words are used together): I gave a party yesterday. I invited friends and relations. The words ‘friends’ and ‘relations’ are collocations. He is a heavy drinker. The words ‘heavy’ and ‘drinker’ are collocations.

Source: Learning English the Easy Way- Sadduruddin Ahmed

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