Close Reading Sentence Structure

Most students have no problem at all being able to identify the elements of a sentence that they can write about in any given answer. The hard part is when you need to explain the effect of the structure on the sentence or the writer’s argument…

Quick Revision ‘Fun’ Quiz introduces a quotation, a list or an explanation of a previous statement. comes between two statements that are closely connected, or which balance or contrast one another. Also separates a list of phrases. used to add an extra piece of information or to indicate the breaking off of a sentence. marks off an extra, non essential piece of information. Brackets also… (Parenthesis) enclosed quotes, direct speech or the title of something. Colon: Semi-colon; Single Dash- Two Dashes- - Inverted Commas ‘ ’

Repetition Used to hammer home a message for a particular effect. Climax and Anti-Climax CLIMAX leaves the most important statement to the end. ANTI-CLIMAX builds up the reader to expect something that does not happen. Short Sentence or Minor Sentence Suggests informality, creates impact. Used very often in Close Reading passages… Quick Revision ‘Fun’ Quiz

Also be on the look-out out for: The use of words at the beginning of a sentence that wouldn’t normally be there… E.g. ‘And’ or ‘But’ Inversion… Rhetorical questions… Sentence Structure

Being able to identify the structure is half the battle – and you don’t even get any marks at Higher for identifying them! The important part (and where the marks come from) is your explanation of the effect of the structure. Sentence Structure

The Approach Read the question and read again the lines it asks you to look at. Quickly underline any bits of structure that you think are unusual or interesting. Depending on the marks available choose the ones you feel are the easiest to comment on. (As a general rule, if a question is worth 2 marks then you need to make a strong comment on one aspect of structure. But you may prefer to make two comments on two separate bits – you’ll also get two marks. Sentence Structure

Worked Example Campaigners for drastic cuts in emissions fear that talk of ‘adapting’ rather than ‘mitigating’ will ease political pressures on the big polluters such as the US and Japan. Q: Show how the punctuation of this section helps you to understand the author’s point of view.

Identify any examples of interesting sentence structure? The use of inverted commas around ‘adapting’ and ‘mitigating’. Identify the author’s opinion? He’s doubtful that this would work. Worked Example

Answer: Inverted commas are used to suggest there is something doubtful about the substitution of ‘adapting’ which is weaker than ‘mitigating’ which is a stronger word. The campaigners clearly have doubts about the use of these terms shown by putting them in inverted commas. This makes the reader suspicious and likely to examine exactly what is happening. Worked Example

Yet Ireland has managed to attract its young entrepreneurs back to help drive a burgeoning economy. We must try to do likewise. We need immigrants. We cannot grow the necessary skills fast enough to fill the gap sites. We need people with energy and commitment and motivation, three characteristics commonly found among those circumstances prompt them to make huge sacrifices to find a new life. Q: Show how the writer’s use of sentence structure demonstrates her strength of feeling in lines (2 marks) Worked Example

Identify any interesting examples of sentence structure? Repetition of ‘We’; Use of ‘and … and’; Use of imperatives – ‘need’, ‘must’, ‘cannot’ (can be used in conjunction with the repetition of ‘We’; Use of short sentences which get gradually longer. Worked Example

Answer: The repetition of ‘We’ involves us all in the argument – stating that we need immigration for us all to prosper. Likewise the use of imperatives such as ‘need’ or ‘must’ suggest there is a sense of urgency about this while the sentences get gradually longer which suggests increasing passion about this idea. The use of the repeated ‘and’ in the final sentence suggests her enthusiasm and commitment because it builds to a climax and hammers her message home. You would not need to deal with all of these to get two marks. If this had been worth 4 marks then that’s probably what it would have got! Worked Example