Writing to Achieve Cohesion Nouns that belong together Clear pronouns Conjunctions and transitions Review A Review B

Cohesion When we say that a piece of writing has cohesion, we mean that all of its parts stick together to form a unified whole all of its ideas are arranged and connected in a way that makes sense If a paragraph is cohesive, the reader can easily follow the writer’s thoughts and understand his or her message.

Cohesion Here are three tools that writers use to make their writing cohesive 1. nouns that belong together 2. pronouns with clear reference 3. conjunctions and transitions

Cohesion Mark Twain opens Life on the Mississippi with this cohesive paragraph about his subject: The Mississippi is well worth reading about. It is not a commonplace river, but on the contrary is in all ways remarkable. Considering the Missouri its main branch, it is the longest river in the world—four thousand three hundred miles. It seems safe to say that it is also the crookedest river in the world, since in one part of its journey it uses up one thousand three hundred miles to cover the same ground that the crow would fly over in six hundred and seventy-five.

Nouns that belong together See how Mark Twain achieves cohesion by using nouns that belong together. The Mississippi is well worth reading about. It is not a commonplace river, but on the contrary is in all ways remarkable. Considering the Missouri its main branch, it is the longest river in the world—four thousand three hundred miles. It seems safe to say that it is also the crookedest river in the world, since in one part of its journey it uses up one thousand three hundred miles to cover the same ground that the crow would fly over in six hundred and seventy-five. These nouns belong together because they all refer to the topic of the paragraph, the Mississippi River.

Nouns that belong together To make your writing cohesive, make a list of nouns that belong with your topic before you begin to write. Topic: hybrid cars Nouns: gasoline, fuel, engine, motor, power, electricity, batteries

Nouns that belong together Give your topic in the topic sentence of a paragraph and use the nouns that belong with your topic in supporting sentences within the paragraph. Topic Sentence: Many automotive companies are developing hybrid cars. Supporting sentence: New engines that run on both batteries and gasoline make these cars more fuel efficient. You can test your writing for cohesion by making sure that each paragraph includes many nouns that belong with the topic each sentence in a paragraph supports the main idea given in your topic sentence

Clear pronouns Pronouns create cohesion by referring to something that the writer has already mentioned. See how Mark Twain achieves cohesion by using clear pronouns. The Mississippi is well worth reading about. It is not a commonplace river, but on the contrary is in all ways remarkable. Considering the Missouri its main branch, it is the longest river in the world—four thousand three hundred miles. It seems safe to say that it is also the crookedest river in the world, since in one part of its journey it uses up one thousand three hundred miles to cover the same ground that the crow would fly over in six hundred and seventy-five.

Clear pronouns Although Twain doesn’t repeat “Mississippi River” even once in his paragraph, we understand his meaning because there is no doubt what the pronouns it and its refer to. The Mississippi is well worth reading about. It is not a commonplace river, . . . Considering the Missouri its main branch, it is the longest river in the world. . . . It seems safe to say that it is also the crookedest river in the world, since in one part of its journey it uses up one thousand three hundred miles. . . . When you write, create cohesion by using pronouns to refer to important nouns, such as your topic. Make sure that each pronoun clearly refers to one noun.

Conjunctions and transitions Another way to achieve cohesion is to connect ideas carefully by using conjunctions and transitions. See how Twain uses conjunctions and transitions. The Mississippi is well worth reading about. It is not a commonplace river, but on the contrary is in all ways remarkable. Considering the Missouri its main branch, it is the longest river in the world—four thousand three hundred miles. It seems safe to say that it is also the crookedest river in the world, since in one part of its journey it uses up one thousand three hundred miles to cover the same ground that the crow would fly over in six hundred and seventy-five. The Mississippi is well worth reading about. It is not a commonplace river, but on the contrary is in all ways remarkable. Considering the Missouri its main branch, it is the longest river in the world—four thousand three hundred miles. It seems safe to say that it is also the crookedest river in the world, since in one part of its journey it uses up one thousand three hundred miles to cover the same ground that the crow would fly over in six hundred and seventy-five.

Conjunctions and transitions Both conjunctions and transitions connect ideas by showing how they relate to each other. It is not a commonplace river, Contrasting Ideas Idea 1 but on the contrary is in all ways remarkable. Idea 2 Comparing Ideas It is the longest river in the world. . . Idea 1 It is also the crookedest. . . Idea 2 . . . since in one part of its journey it uses up one thousand three hundred miles to cover the same ground that the crow would fly over in six hundred and seventy-five. Cause and Effect Idea 3

Writing to achieve cohesion On Your Own Identify whether each pair of ideas is connected by nouns that belong together (N), clear pronouns (P), or conjunctions and transitions (CT). 1. Above the fireplace hung a picture of Lord Quimby. No one entering the room could ignore that portrait. 2. The mayor has proposed building a convention center. However, the council wants to invest in a stadium. 3. This guitar has no electronic parts. A metal resonator allows it to be heard from far away. 4. Downhill skiing was too expensive, so we decided to go snowshoeing. [End of Section]

Review A Connect each pair of ideas by writing in the blank an appropriate noun, pronoun, conjunction or transition, as indicated. 1. If you see Javier, give ________ this message. (pronoun) 2. In the Peruvian desert giant animal figures were carved long ago. No one is sure who made these ________. (noun) 3. ________ we had already read all of the books on the list, we voted on a new selection. (conjunction) 4. Everyone is supposed to bring his or her favorite snack food. I made some ________. (noun) 5. Unlike birds, these mammals do not migrate when the weather gets cold. ________, they hibernate. (transition)

Review B Write a paragraph telling why a particular place is important or interesting to you. Include nouns related to this place. Use the pronoun it or its, making sure that each pronoun clearly refers to a particular noun. Connect ideas by using conjunctions and transitions. Mark your paragraph in different colors to identify where you used each method for achieving cohesion.

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