Click here to view the answer to the activity above.
1. Repetition of key noun 2. Repetition of key noun 3. Pronoun + Repetition 4. Repetition with synonym 5. Pronoun 6. Pronoun | 7. Transition 8. Transition 9. Repetition of key noun 10. Pronoun 11. Pronoun + Repetition
|
Write the name of the cohesive device - pronoun , repetition or transition - in the space after each underlined word or phrase before the blank.
The Sinking of the Titanic
In 1912, the Titanic, the largest and best equipped transatlantic liner of pronoun ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select26" ).html( document.getElementById( "select26" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); time, hit an iceberg on pronoun ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select27" ).html( document.getElementById( "select27" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); first crossing from England to America and sank. Of the 2,235 parrengers and crew, only 718 survivived. Research has shown that a number of factors played an important part in the repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select28" ).html( document.getElementById( "select28" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); . transition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select29" ).html( document.getElementById( "select29" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); , the repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select30" ).html( document.getElementById( "select30" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); carried only sixteen lifeboats, with room for about 1,100 people. pronoun ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select31" ).html( document.getElementById( "select31" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); was clearly not enough for a ship of the repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select32" ).html( document.getElementById( "select32" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); size. transition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select33" ).html( document.getElementById( "select33" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); , the designer of the repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select34" ).html( document.getElementById( "select34" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); originally planned to equip the repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select35" ).html( document.getElementById( "select35" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); with forty-eight repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select36" ).html( document.getElementById( "select36" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); ; transition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select37" ).html( document.getElementById( "select37" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); , in order to reduce pronoun ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select38" ).html( document.getElementById( "select38" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); costs for building the repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select39" ).html( document.getElementById( "select39" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); , the owners of the repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select40" ).html( document.getElementById( "select40" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); decided to give pronoun ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select41" ).html( document.getElementById( "select41" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); only sixteen repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select42" ).html( document.getElementById( "select42" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); . A transition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select43" ).html( document.getElementById( "select43" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select44" ).html( document.getElementById( "select44" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); was that the repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select45" ).html( document.getElementById( "select45" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); crew were not given enough time to become familiar with the repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select46" ).html( document.getElementById( "select46" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); , especially with pronoun ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select47" ).html( document.getElementById( "select47" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); emergency equipment. transition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select48" ).html( document.getElementById( "select48" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); , many repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select49" ).html( document.getElementById( "select49" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); left the repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select50" ).html( document.getElementById( "select50" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); only half-full and many more people died than needed to. The transition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select51" ).html( document.getElementById( "select51" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select52" ).html( document.getElementById( "select52" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); in the repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select53" ).html( document.getElementById( "select53" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); was the behaviour of the repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select54" ).html( document.getElementById( "select54" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); officers on the night of the repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select55" ).html( document.getElementById( "select55" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); . In the twenty-four hours before the repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select56" ).html( document.getElementById( "select56" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); , pronoun ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select57" ).html( document.getElementById( "select57" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); received a number of warnings about repetition ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select58" ).html( document.getElementById( "select58" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); in the area, but pronoun ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select59" ).html( document.getElementById( "select59" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); took no precautions. pronoun ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); tmpAr.push( ' ' ); jQuery( "#select60" ).html( document.getElementById( "select60" ).innerHTML + tmpAr.join( '' )); did not change direction or even reduce speed. (p. 22). Source: Pakenham, K.J. (1998). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. |
Read through the text below and consider how you might use pronouns and repetition (either with a key noun or synonym) to replace the bolded expressions. Write your revised text in the submission box.
Facebook did not invent social networking, but the company has fine-tuned into a science. When a newcomer logs in, the experience is designed to generate something Facebook calls the aha! moment. is an observable emotional connection, gleaned by videotaping the expressions of test users navigating for the first time. Facebook has developed a formula for the precise number of aha! moments users must have before are hooked. Company officials will not say exactly what that magic number is, but everything about Facebook is geared to reach as quickly as possible. So far, at least, Facebook has avoided the digital exoduses that beset predecessors, MySpace and Friendster. is partly because Facebook is so good at making indispensable. Losing Facebook hurts. Source: Fletcher, D. (2010, May 31). Friends without borders. , 21, 16-22. |
Write the revised text here: |
Click here to view a suggested answer.
Suggested answer :
The Aha! Moment
Facebook did not invent social networking, but the company has fine-tuned it ( pronoun-first person ) into a science. When a newcomer logs in, the experience is designed to generate something Facebook calls the aha! moment. This ( pronoun-determiner ) is an observable emotional connection, gleaned by videotaping the expressions of test users navigating the site ( repetition with synonym ) for the first time. Facebook has developed a formula for the precise number of aha! moments users must have before they ( pronoun-third person ) are hooked. Company officials will not say exactly what that magic number is, but everything about the site ( repetition with synonym ) is geared to reach it as quickly as possible.
So far, at least, Facebook has avoided the digital exoduses that beset its ( pronoun-possessive ) predecessors, MySpace and Friendster. This is partly because Facebook is so good at making itself ( pronoun-reflexive ) indispensable. Losing Facebook hurts.
So far, we have looked at cohesion within paragraphs. In longer texts of several paragraphs, a combination of pronouns, transition and reptition can be used to maintain logical flow and connection between paragraphs.
The extract presented here consists of four paragraphs of an expository essay entitled Sustainable Development from a Historical Perspective: The Mayan Civilisation . Note how the bolded expressions at the start of the second, third and fourth paragraphs provide cohesive links to the paragraph preceding them.
Click to view Cohesion between paragraphs.
Sometimes known as parallel structures or balanced constructions, parallelism is the use of similar grammatical forms or sentence structures when listing or when comparing two or more items.
When used correctly, parallelism can improve the clarity of your writing.
): : The elderly residents enjoy many recreational activities: swimming, *read and *to garden. : The elderly residents enjoy many recreational activities: , , and .
: The academic conversation group consists of students from China, Japan, Korea and *some Germans. : The academic conversation group consists of students from , , , and
: This paper discusses the main features of the AST system, the functionalities, and *the system also has a number of limitations. : This paper discusses the , , and |
The following excerpt from Bertrand Russell's famous prologue to his autobiography has some classic examples of parallelism:
: The computer is both fast and *it has reliability
: The computer is both and .
: The problem with electronic banking is neither the lack of security nor *the fact that you pay high interest rates.
: The problem with electronic banking is neither nor .
: The aim of the new law is not only to reduce the incidence of boy racing but also *setting up new standards for noise tolerance in the whole neighbourhood.
: The aim of the new law is not only ... but also new standards for noise tolerance in the whole neighbourhood.
Correct the faulty parallel constructions ( bold ) in the following sentences.
1. The researcher wanted to find out where the new immigrants came from and to talk about their future plans.
2. The earthquake victims were both concerned about water contamination and the slow response from the government also made them angry.
3. An ideal environment for studying includes good lighting, a spacious room, and the furniture must be comfortable.
4. Computers have changed the way people live, for their work, and how they use their leisure time.
5. Houses play an important role not only to provide a place to live, but also for giving a sense of security.
Write your corrections here: |
Click here to view the suggested answers.
Suggested answers :
1 The researcher wanted to find out where the new immigrants came from and what their future plans were.
2. The earthquake victims were both concerned about water contamination and angry at the the slow response from the government.
3. An ideal environment for studying includes good lighting, a spacious room, and comfortable furniture.
4. Computers have changed the way people live, work, and use their leisure time.
5. Houses play an important role not only to provide a place to live, but also to give a sense of security.
Read through the text and underline the examples of parallel structures (there are five of them). If you can, write the type of grammatical form used in each case. The first one has been done for you as an example.
Write out the entire paragraph in the submission box if it is easier.
Now you try :
Not only have geneticists found beneficial uses of genetically engineered organisms in agriculture, but they have also found ( 1. paired conjunctions ) useful ways to use these organisms advantageously in the larger environment. According to the Monsanto company, a leader in genetic engineering research, recombinant DNA techniques may provide scientists with new ways to clean up the environment and with more efficient methods of producing chemicals. By using genetically engineered organisms, scientists have been able to produce natural gas. This process will decrease society's dependence on the environment and will reduce the rate at which natural resources are depleted. In other processes, genetically engineered bacteria are being used both to extract metals from their geological setting and to speed the breakup of complex petroleum mixtures which will help to clean up oil spills. (p. 523).
Source: Rosen, L.J. (1995). Discovery and commitment: A guide for college writers. Mass.: Allyn and Bacon.
Write your answer here. |
Click here to view the answer to the question above
« | » |
Search SkillsYouNeed:
Writing Skills:
The Essentials of Writing
Writing Specific Documents
Subscribe to our FREE newsletter and start improving your life in just 5 minutes a day.
You'll get our 5 free 'One Minute Life Skills' and our weekly newsletter.
We'll never share your email address and you can unsubscribe at any time.
Have you ever read a piece of writing and wondered what point the writer was trying to make? If so, that piece of writing probably lacked coherence. Coherence is an important aspect of good writing—as important as good grammar or spelling. However, it is also rather harder to learn how to do it, because it is not a matter of simple rules.
Coherent writing moves smoothly between ideas. It guides the reader through an argument or series of points using signposts and connectors. It generally has a clear structure and consistent tone, with little or no repetition. Coherent writing feels planned —usually because it is. This page provides some tips to help you to develop your ability to write coherently.
Dictionary definition of coherence
cohere , v. to stick together, to be consistent, to fit together in a consistent, orderly whole.
coherence , a sticking together, consistency.
Source: Chambers English Dictionary, 1989 edition.
The dictionary definition of coherence is clear enough—but what does that mean in practical terms for writers?
Once you have achieved coherence in your writing, you will find that:
Your sentences and ideas are connected and flow together;
Readers can move easily through the text from one sentence, paragraph or idea to the next; and
Readers will be able to follow the ideas and main points of the text.
On the other hand, a text that is NOT coherent jumps between ideas without making clear connections between them. It is often hard to follow the argument. Readers may find themselves unclear about the point of particular paragraphs or even whole sections. There may be odd sentences that do not fit well with the previous or following sentence, or paragraphs that repeat earlier ideas.
All these issues provide pointers for how to develop coherence.
There are several different elements that contribute to coherence, or are closely linked to the concept.
They include:
Cohesion , or whether ideas are linked within and between sentences.
Unity , or the extent to which a sentence, paragraph or section focuses on a single idea or group or ideas. In any given paragraph, every sentence should be relevant to a single focus.
A joint effort
Together, cohesion and unity mean that sentences and paragraphs are connected around a central theme.
We can consider coherence at several different levels. These include:
Within sentences. A sentence is coherent when it flows naturally, and uses correct grammar , spelling and punctuation . Coherence also includes the use of the most appropriate words, and avoidance of redundancy.
Between sentences . Coherence between sentences means that each sentence flows logically and naturally from the previous one. Connections are made between them so that readers can see the flow of ideas, and how each sentence is linked to the previous one.
Within paragraphs . This is a logical extension of coherence between sentences. Coherence within a paragraph means that the sentences within the paragraph work together as a whole to present a complete thesis or idea.
Why single-sentence paragraphs don’t work
This definition of ‘within paragraph’ coherence explains why you should (almost) never use single-sentence paragraphs. A single sentence is (almost) never going to be able to provide a complete summary of your thesis or idea.
Between paragraphs . For most pieces of writing, you will also need to consider how the paragraphs fit together. Each paragraph covers an idea or thesis—and must then be connected logically to the next paragraph, so that your overall thesis is built step-by-step.
Between subsections or sections . This final level of coherence is only really important for longer documents. You must create a logical flow between different sections, to guide your reader from one to the next so that they can follow the development of your ideas.
The first step to improving coherence is to plan your writing in advance.
Decide on the main point that you want to make, and the ideas that will lead your reader towards your point. It is also helpful to consider your planned audience, and what they want from your text.
There is more about this in our page on Know Your Audience . You may also find it helpful to read our page on Know Your Medium , to check whether there is anything about your publishing medium that you need to consider ahead of starting to write.
There are some techniques that you can use to help improve coherence within your writing. These include:
Using transitional expressions and phrases to signal connections
Words and phrases like ‘however’, ‘because’, ‘therefore’, ‘additionally’, and ‘on the one hand... on the other’ can be used to signal connections between sentences and paragraphs.
WARNING! Real connections needed!
Transitional phrases and words should only be used where the ideas really are connected.
Just inserting transitional expressions will not connect your ideas. Instead, you need to create a reasonable progression of ideas through a paragraph or section.
You also need to use transitional expressions sparingly. Not all ideas need an obvious link—and sometimes putting one in can seem awkward and contrived.
Using repeating forms or parallel structures to emphasise links between ideas
Generally speaking, repetition of words and phrases is unadvisable.
However, used sparingly, you may be able to harness repetition as a way to signal connections between sentences or ideas.
For example, many research papers have a section setting out the limitations of the study. These limitations can often be quite diverse, which makes for a rather disjointed section. To overcome this issue, writers often use the form ‘First... Second... Finally...’ to demonstrate the links between the disparate ideas.
Using pronouns and synonyms to eliminate unnecessary repetition
Repetition is often the enemy of coherence because it interrupts your movement through the writing. You tend to get distracted by the repeated words, and lose the thread of the argument or idea.
Pronouns and synonyms are a good way to avoid repeating words and phrases. However, care is needed when using them, to avoid ambiguity. It is advisable NOT to use pronouns following a sentence with two elements that might take the same pronoun.
For example:
John was sure that Tom was wrong. He had made the same argument last week.
Who made the same argument last week? John or Tom?
It is better to use at least one name again than create ambiguity.
TOP TIP! Come back later
It is often hard to detect ambiguity in your own writing because you know what you wanted to say.
It is therefore a good idea to leave any piece of writing overnight, and read it again in the morning. This will often identify problems such as ambiguous pronouns, and give you a chance to revise them.
Alongside planning, the single most important thing that you can do to improve the coherence of a piece of writing is to review and revise it with the reader’s needs in mind.
When you have finished a piece of writing, put it aside for a while. Overnight is ideal, but longer is fine. Once you have had a chance to forget precisely what you meant, read it over again as if you were coming to it for the first time.
As you start to read, consider the focus of your text: the main point that you want to make.
With that in mind, consciously examine whether the ideas flow clearly through your sentences, paragraphs and sections. Can the reader grasp your argument and follow it through the text? Is there an obvious conclusion?
While you are reading, you should also consider whether there are any very long sentences. If so, shorten them, using transitional words or phrases to link them together effectively. This will make your writing easier to read, and it will naturally flow better.
It is not always easy to know how to create more coherent writing.
The best way to do so is to plan your writing, and then review it carefully. You should particularly consider your focus, and your readers’ needs. In doing so, you may find it helpful to use some of the techniques described on this page—but they will not, in themselves, be sufficient without the planning and review.
Continue to: Writing Concisely Using Plain English
See also: The Importance of Structure in Writing Editing and Proofreading Copywriting
What this resource is about:.
This resource defines both cohesive and coherent writing and explains how to write cohesively and coherently.
Cohesive writing is “based on how each sentence ends and the next begins” (Williams & Bizup, 2017, p. 65). Each sentence should, in terms of their content , connect to the sentences surrounding it.
"1. Begin sentences with information familiar to your readers.
2. End sentences with information that readers cannot anticipate.
3. Begin sentences with information that readers will find simple; end with information they will find complex” (Williams & Bizup, 2017, p. 67).
Coherent writing is “based on how all the sentences in it cumulatively begin” (Williams & Bizup, 2017, p. 65). The ideas of the sentences in the passage ought to be related in topic and structured so the reader increases their understanding within each sentence and between sentences.
To illustrate the difference between noncoherent and coherent writing, consider these paragraphs. Subjects are bolded both paragraphs.
The subjects in the second paragraph are only ‘readers’ and ‘topics,' whereas the subjects in the first paragraph are more scattered. By unifying the subjects of your paragraphs to one or two kinds of subjects, you can write coherently. By following these tips, writers may establish a flow of information that helpfully and logically organizes information for the reader.
The purpose of these aspects of writing is to think about, understand, and write for your readers. You can improve the clarity and organization of your writing by knowing the differences between concrete versus abstract language and making your paragraphs cohesive and coherent.
Source: Williams, J.M., & Bizup, J. (2017). Style: Lessons in clarity and grace (12th ed.). Pearson Education Inc.
Montana State University P.O. Box 172310 Bozeman, MT 59717-2310
Wilson Hall 1-114, (406) 994-5315 Romney Hall 207, (406) 994-5320 MSU Library 152
[email protected]
Facebook Twitter Instagram
Show AWL words on this page.
Levels 1-5: grey Levels 6-10: orange
Show sorted lists of these words.
--> |
Any words you don't know? Look them up in the website's built-in dictionary .
|
|
Choose a dictionary . Wordnet OPTED both
Cohesion and coherence are important features of academic writing. They are one of the features tested in exams of academic English, including the IELTS test and the TOEFL test . This page gives information on what cohesion is and how to achieve good cohesion. It also explains the difference between cohesion and coherence , and how to achieve good coherence. There is also an example essay to highlight the main features of cohesion mentioned in this section, as well as some exercises to help you practise.
For another look at the same content, check out YouTube or Youku , or the infographic .
It is important for the parts of a written text to be connected together. Another word for this is cohesion . This word comes from the verb cohere , which means 'to stick together'. Cohesion is therefore related to ensuring that the words and sentences you use stick together.
Good cohesion is achieved through the following five main methods, each of which is described in more detail below:
Two other ways in which cohesion is achieved in a text, which are covered less frequently in academic English courses, are shell nouns and thematic development . These are also considered below.
Check out the cohesion infographic »
One way to achieve cohesion is to repeat words, or to repeat ideas using different words (synonyms). Study the following example. Repeated words (or synonyms) are shown in bold.
Cohesion is an important feature of academic writing . It can help ensure that your writing coheres or 'sticks together', which will make it easier for the reader to follow the main ideas in your essay or report . You can achieve good cohesion by paying attention to five important features . The first of these is repeated words. The second key feature is reference words. The third one is transition signals. The fourth is substitution. The final important aspect is ellipsis.
In this example, the word cohesion is used several times, including as a verb ( coheres ). It is important, in academic writing, to avoid too much repetition, so using different word forms or synonyms is common. The word writing is also used several times, including the phrase essay or report , which is a synonym for writing . The words important features are also repeated, again using synonyms: key feature , important aspect .
Reference words are words which are used to refer to something which is mentioned elsewhere in the text, usually in a preceding sentence. The most common type is pronouns, such as 'it' or 'this' or 'these'. Study the previous example again. This time, the reference words are shown in bold.
Cohesion is an important feature of academic writing. It can help ensure that your writing coheres or 'sticks together', which will make it easier for the reader to follow the main ideas in your essay or report. You can achieve good cohesion by paying attention to five important features. The first of these is repeated words. The second key feature is reference words. The third one is transition signals. The fourth is substitution. The final important aspect is ellipsis.
The words it , which and these are reference words. The first two of these, it and which , both refer to 'cohesion' used in the preceding sentence. The final example, these , refers to 'important features', again used in the sentence that precedes it.
Transition signals, also called cohesive devices or linking words, are words or phrases which show the relationship between ideas. There are many different types, the most common of which are explained in the next section on transition signals . Some examples of transition signals are:
Study the previous example again. This time, the transition signals are shown in bold. Here the transition signals simply give a list, relating to the five important features: first , second , third , fourth , and final .
Substitution means using one or more words to replace (substitute) for one or more words used earlier in the text. Grammatically, it is similar to reference words, the main difference being that substitution is usually limited to the clause which follows the word(s) being substituted, whereas reference words can refer to something far back in the text. The most common words used for substitution are one , so , and auxiliary verbs such as do, have and be . The following is an example.
In this sentence, the phrase 'doing so' substitutes for the phrase 'drinking alcohol before driving' which appears at the beginning of the sentence.
Below is the example used throughout this section. There is just one example of substitution: the word one , which substitutes for the phrase 'important features'.
Ellipsis means leaving out one or more words, because the meaning is clear from the context. Ellipsis is sometimes called substitution by zero , since essentially one or more words are substituted with no word taking their place.
Below is the example passage again. There is one example of ellipsis: the phrase 'The fourth is', which means 'The fourth [important feature] is', so the words 'important feature' have been omitted.
Shell nouns are abstract nouns which summarise the meaning of preceding or succeeding information. This summarising helps to generate cohesion. Shell nouns may also be called carrier nouns , signalling nouns , or anaphoric nouns . Examples are: approach, aspect, category, challenge, change, characteristics, class, difficulty, effect, event, fact, factor, feature, form, issue, manner, method, problem, process, purpose, reason, result, stage, subject, system, task, tendency, trend, and type . They are often used with pronouns 'this', 'these', 'that' or 'those', or with the definite article 'the'. For example:
In the example passage used throughout this section, the word features serves as a shell noun, summarising the information later in the passage.
Cohesion is an important feature of academic writing. It can help ensure that your writing coheres or 'sticks together', which will make it easier for the reader to follow the main ideas in your essay or report. You can achieve good cohesion by paying attention to five important features . The first of these is repeated words. The second key feature is reference words. The third one is transition signals. The fourth is substitution. The final important aspect is ellipsis.
Cohesion can also be achieved by thematic development. The term theme refers to the first element of a sentence or clause. The development of the theme in the rest of the sentence is called the rheme . It is common for the rheme of one sentence to form the theme of the next sentence; this type of organisation is often referred to as given-to-new structure, and helps to make writing cohere.
Consider the following short passage, which is an extension of the first example above.
Here we have the following pattern:
The words 'cohesion' and 'coherence' are often used together with a similar meaning, which relates to how a text joins together to make a unified whole. Although they are similar, they are not the same. Cohesion relates to the micro level of the text, i.e. the words and sentences and how they join together. Coherence , in contrast, relates to the organisation and connection of ideas and whether they can be understood by the reader, and as such is concerned with the macro level features of a text, such as topic sentences , thesis statement , the summary in the concluding paragraph (dealt with in the essay structure section), and other 'bigger' features including headings such as those used in reports .
Coherence can be improved by using an outline before writing (or a reverse outline , which is an outline written after the writing is finished), to check that the ideas are logical and well organised. Asking a peer to check the writing to see if it makes sense, i.e. peer feedback , is another way to help improve coherence in your writing.
Below is an example essay. It is the one used in the persuasion essay section. Click on the different areas (in the shaded boxes to the right) to highlight the different cohesive aspects in this essay, i.e. repeated words/ideas, reference words, transition signals, substitution and ellipsis.
Title: Consider whether human activity has made the world a better place.
History shows that human beings have come a long way from where they started. They have developed new technologies which means that everybody can enjoy luxuries they never previously imagined. However , the technologies that are temporarily making this world a better place to live could well prove to be an ultimate disaster due to , among other things, the creation of nuclear weapons , increasing pollution , and loss of animal species . The biggest threat to the earth caused by modern human activity comes from the creation of nuclear weapons . Although it cannot be denied that countries have to defend themselves, the kind of weapons that some of them currently possess are far in excess of what is needed for defence . If these [nuclear] weapons were used, they could lead to the destruction of the entire planet . Another harm caused by human activity to this earth is pollution . People have become reliant on modern technology, which can have adverse effects on the environment . For example , reliance on cars causes air and noise pollution . Even seemingly innocent devices, such as computers and mobile phones, use electricity, most of which is produced from coal-burning power stations, which further adds to environmental pollution . If we do not curb our direct and indirect use of fossil fuels, the harm to the environment may be catastrophic. Animals are an important feature of this earth and the past decades have witnessed the extinction of a considerable number of animal species . This is the consequence of human encroachment on wildlife habitats, for example deforestation to expand cities. Some may argue that such loss of [animal] species is natural and has occurred throughout earth's history. However , the current rate of [animal] species loss far exceeds normal levels [of animal species loss] , and is threatening to become a mass extinction event. In summary , there is no doubt that current human activities such as the creation of nuclear weapons , pollution , and destruction of wildlife , are harmful to the earth . It is important for us to see not only the short-term effects of our actions, but their long-term ones as well. Otherwise , human activities will be just another step towards destruction .
Aktas, R.N. and Cortes, V. (2008), 'Shell nouns as cohesive devices in published and ESL student writing', Journal of English for Academic Purposes , 7 (2008) 3-14.
Alexander, O., Argent, S. and Spencer, J. (2008) EAP Essentials: A teacher's guide to principles and practice . Reading: Garnet Publishing Ltd.
Gray, B. (2010) 'On the use of demonstrative pronouns and determiners as cohesive devices: A focus on sentence-initial this/these in academic prose', Journal of English for Academic Purposes , 9 (2010) 167-183.
Halliday, M. A. K., and Hasan, R. (1976). Cohesion in English . London: Longman.
Hinkel, E. (2004). Teaching Academic ESL Writing: Practical Techniques in Vocabulary and Grammar . Mahwah: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Inc Publishers.
Hyland, K. (2006) English for Academic Purposes: An advanced resource book . Abingdon: Routledge.
Thornbury, S. (2005) Beyond the Sentence: Introducing discourse analysis . Oxford: Macmillan Education.
Like the website? Try the books. Enter your email to receive a free sample from Academic Writing Genres .
Below is a checklist for essay cohesion and coherence. Use it to check your own writing, or get a peer (another student) to help you.
There is good use of (including synonyms). | ||
There is good use of (e.g. 'it', 'this', 'these'). | ||
There is good use of (e.g. 'for example', 'in contrast'). | ||
is used, where appropriate. | ||
is used, if necessary. | ||
Other aspects of cohesion are used appropriately, i.e. (e.g. 'effect', 'trend') and | ||
There is good via the thesis statement, topic sentences and summary. |
Find out more about transition signals in the next section.
Go back to the previous section about paraphrasing .
You need to login to view the exercises. If you do not already have an account, you can register for free.
Author: Sheldon Smith ‖ Last modified: 03 February 2022.
Sheldon Smith is the founder and editor of EAPFoundation.com. He has been teaching English for Academic Purposes since 2004. Find out more about him in the about section and connect with him on Twitter , Facebook and LinkedIn .
Compare & contrast essays examine the similarities of two or more objects, and the differences.
Cause & effect essays consider the reasons (or causes) for something, then discuss the results (or effects).
Discussion essays require you to examine both sides of a situation and to conclude by saying which side you favour.
Problem-solution essays are a sub-type of SPSE essays (Situation, Problem, Solution, Evaluation).
Transition signals are useful in achieving good cohesion and coherence in your writing.
Reporting verbs are used to link your in-text citations to the information cited.
Coherence is an essential quality for good academic writing . In academic writing, the flow of ideas from one sentence to the next should be smooth and logical. Without cohesion, the reader will not understand the main points that you are trying to make. It also hampers readability. Cohesion necessarily precedes coherence. There is a difference between cohesion and coherence: cohesion is achieved when sentences are connected at the sentence level, whereas as coherence is achieved when ideas are connected. In addition, cohesion focuses on the grammar and style of your paper.
Coherence also means “clarity of expression” and it is created when correct vocabulary and grammar are used. After all, the goal of writing is to benefit the readers. Without both coherence and cohesion, the readers may detect choppiness in the text and feel as if there are gaps in the ideas presented. Needless to say, texts without coherence are difficult to read and understand. It defeats the whole purpose of writing, which is to relay ideas in a clear and efficient manner. There are strategies that you can use to ensure coherence and cohesion in academic writing.
Paragraph coherence and cohesion results in paragraph unity . To ensure that your paragraphs have unity, there are two things to keep in mind: it must have a single topic (found in the topic sentence) and sentences provide more detail than the topic sentence, while maintaining the focus on the idea presented. The paragraph below shows a lack of unity:
Non-cohesive sample: Dogs are canines that people domesticated a long time ago. Wolves are predecessors of dogs and they help people in a variety of ways. There are various reasons for owning a dog, and the most important is companionship.
Cohesive sample: Dogs are canines that people domesticated a long time ago, primarily for practical reasons. Even though dogs descended from wolves, they are tame and can be kept in households. Since they are tame, people have various reasons for owning a dog, such as companionship.
Notice that the ideas in the non-cohesive sample are not arranged logically. The sentences are not connected by transitions and give the readers new ideas that are not found in the topic sentence. Thus, the paragraph is hard to read, leaving readers confused about the topic. On the other hand, the cohesive sample has ideas arranged logically. All ideas in this sample flow from the topic sentence. In addition, they give more details about the topic while maintaining their focus on the topic sentence.
It is important to focus on coherence when writing at the sentence level. However, cohesion smoothens the flow of writing and should be established. There are various ways to ensure coherent writing :
Academic writing is improved by coherence and cohesion. Without coherence and cohesion, readers will become confused and eventually disinterested in the article. Your ideas then become lost and the primary objective of writing is not achieved.
There are six ways for creating coherence, which you will find useful while polishing your manuscript. Creating coherence is not as difficult as it seems, but you will need the right tools and strategies to achieve it.
Academic writing should be concise, coherent, and cohesive. Maintaining these three qualities involves using a number of strategies to impart ideas to the reader. After all, that is the whole point of any type of writing.
Thanks for this nice post. It is very useful.
rich info, thank you.
Thanks for the well explained meaning of cohesion and coherence, how ever, I rated this post with 5 🌟 to show my appreciation, once again thanks 😂😀😀
Nice content 👍🏻
Very interesting content
Rate this article Cancel Reply
Your email address will not be published.
How to Avoid Run-on Sentences in Academic Writing
When writing a paper, are you more focused on ideas or writing style? For most…
How to Improve Your Academic Writing Using Language Corpora
No matter how brilliant a researcher you are, you must be able to write about…
Consejos de corrección Errores comunes de manuscritos Aplicación de la gramática inglesa Consejos sobre redacción…
英語でのライティングスキルの重要性 論文英語の組み立て 日本人によくある英語の間違い 論文執筆の基本
Improving academic vocabulary is an important skill for all researchers. Academic vocabulary refers to the words…
Avoid These Common Grammatical Errors in Your Paper
Manuscript Drafting: Why is Subject-Verb Agreement Important?
Sign-up to read more
Subscribe for free to get unrestricted access to all our resources on research writing and academic publishing including:
We hate spam too. We promise to protect your privacy and never spam you.
I am looking for Editing/ Proofreading services for my manuscript Tentative date of next journal submission:
Which among these features would you prefer the most in a peer review assistant?
Say you’re reading a piece of academic writing – maybe a textbook. As you read, you find yourself drifting off, having to read the same sentence over and over before you understand it. Maybe, after a while, you get frustrated and give up on the chapter. What happened?
Nine times out of ten, this is a symptom of incoherence. Your brain is unable to find a unified argument or narrative in the book. This may become frustrating and often happens when a book is above your current level of understanding. To someone else, the writing might seem perfectly coherent, because they understand the concepts involved. But from your perspective, the chapter seems incoherent. And as a result, you don’t get as much out of it as you otherwise would.
How can you avoid this in your own writing? How can you make sure that readers don’t misunderstand you (or just give up altogether)? The answer is to work on coherent writing. Coherence is perhaps the most important feature of argumentative writing. Without it, everything falls apart. If an argument is not coherent, it doesn’t matter how good the evidence is, or how beautiful the writing is: an incoherent argument will never persuade anyone or even hold their attention.
June 3, 2021
In this series, we’re discussing the way your essays will be evaluated in English 101, Southern’s first-year writing course. The five elements are unity, coherence, content, style, and correctness.
After seeing how to make your essay unified through the use of a good title, an organic first line, a specific thesis, and an interesting closing, let’s go to the next key element of writing, coherence.
Coherence is the quality of an essay that makes it easier to read. The technique can be described with many vivid analogies.
Essays should show natural structure, connectedness, flow, bridge-building, plot, thread, and harmony. Each of these expressions mean the same thing. As they read your essay, readers should have a strong sense of anticipation and sequence. They should be drawn forward toward your conclusion.
A coherent essay is a single unit with a beginning, middle, and end in the same way that an animal “unit” has a beginning, middle, and end. The cheetah has a particular sort of head, body, and tail which makes it perfect for what it does—chase down its prey. It all works together to that end.
Instead of being a disconnected collection of sentences and paragraphs, coherent essays contain sentences and paragraphs that work together for a common purpose. Without cohesion, readers are forced to make the connections between apparently disconnected ideas. Readers have to “write” the essay. You don’t want readers to do your work!
There are many techniques for creating coherence. Any element of an essay that points backward and draws forward will do the job. You can use synonyms, pronouns, paraphrase, and repetition to point forward and backward in an essay. An example of paraphrasing: “The Super Bowl lasted for six hours. This time broke a record.”
The music analogy is particularly potent. To make music, we have to arrange notes harmoniously. Random notes are not the kind of music we usually like. A note is beautiful only in context of other notes. An essay is a “tune,” perhaps even a symphony.
When you read professional writing, note how authors create coherence. There are two ways to learn the principle of coherence. Practice it consciously and identify it in the writing of others. You too can become a fine author.
Visit Us: Collegedale, Tennessee
Follow along.
Writing coherently, learning objectives.
The term “coherence” comes from the verb “to cohere,” which means “to be united,” “to form a whole,” or “to be logically consistent”.
Coherence in writing refers to the big picture of a text. How can you construct an essay or research paper to create a united, logically consistent whole?
The USDA’s controversial and now deprecated food pyramid.
Consider this example:
Micronutrients play a vital role in the maintenance of healthy skin and immune function. Of course, nothing is better for healthy skin than sleep and proper hydration. Many Americans drink too little water every day. There has been a good deal of debate about the 8-glasses-of-water advice that many of us remember from growing up. Will this advice go the way of the food pyramid? As it turns out, the food pyramid does not represent a medically ideal diet. A number of health organizations have criticized the food pyramid’s advice, and some have even suggested that the food industry had far too great a role in its creation. It certainly wouldn’t be the first time the food industry has intervened in public health policy.
This passage is cohesive, meaning that one sentence flows from the next. But it’s not coherent. Why?
Overall, this paragraph illustrates the pitfalls of associative organization (healthy skin → water → nutrition advice→ food pyramid) and topic sentences that fail to live up to the promise they make to readers. Your reader will become disoriented, fail to see your point (if you have one), and walk away frustrated.
A coherent text needs a strong, logical structure. To revise for coherence, you must first check the logic and flow of your draft to ensure readers can see the big picture you are trying to create.
Let’s face it: the process of writing a draft can be hectic, messy, and confusing. Sometimes we don’t really know what we’ve written until the dust settles. Reverse outlining can help us see the overall structure of the draft, which often differs significantly from what we set out to write!
To write a reverse outline,
Compare the sequence of points in your reverse outline with your original outline (if you have one) to see where you diverged from your plan. Finally, you can create a new outline that represents the best possible sequence of points and revise your draft accordingly.
The following video describes reverse outlining, its benefits, and a technique you can use to reverse outline your draft.
If you’re still not sure about the overall order of your argument, you can try writing an outline of questions:
Guiding the Reader to Understand a Piece of Writing or Speech
In composition , coherence refers to the meaningful connections that readers or listeners perceive in a written or oral text , often called linguistic or discourse coherence, and can occur on either the local or global level, depending on the audience and writer.
Coherence is directly increased by the amount of guidance a writer provides to the reader, either through context clues or through direct use of transitional phrases to direct the reader through an argument or narrative.
Word choice and sentence and paragraph structure influence the coherence of a written or spoken piece, but cultural knowledge, or understanding of the processes and natural orders on the local and global levels, can also serve as cohesive elements of writing.
It is important in composition to maintain the coherence of a piece by leading the reader or listener through the narrative or process by providing cohesive elements to the form. In "Marking Discourse Coherence," Uta Lenk states that the reader or listener's understanding of coherence "is influenced by the degree and kind of guidance given by the speaker: the more guidance is given, the easier it is for the hearer to establish the coherence according to the speaker's intentions."
Transitional words and phrases like "therefore," "as a result," "because" and the like serve to move connect one posit to the next, either through cause and effect or correlation of data, while other transitional elements like combining and connecting sentences or repetition of keywords and structures can similarly guide the reader to make connections in tandem with their cultural knowledge of the topic.
Thomas S. Kane describes this cohesive element as "flow" in "The New Oxford Guide to Writing," wherein these "invisible links which bind the sentences of a paragraph can be established in two basic ways." The first, he says, is to establish a plan in the first of the paragraph and introduce each new idea with a word marking its place in this plan while the second concentrates on the successive linking of sentences to develop the plan through connecting each sentence to the one before it.
Coherence in composition and constructionist theory relies on a readers' local and global understanding of the written and spoken language, inferring the binding elements of text that help guide them through understanding the author's intentions.
As Arthur C. Graesser, Peter Wiemer-Hasting and Katka Wiener-Hastings put it in "constructing Inferences and Relations During Text Comprehension," local coherence "is achieved if the reader can connect the incoming sentence to information in the previous sentence or to the content in working memory." On the other hand, global coherence comes from the major message or point of the structure of the sentence or from an earlier statement in the text.
If not driven by these global or local understanding, the sentence is typically given coherence by explicit features like anaphoric references, connectives, predicates, signaling devices and transitional phrases.
In any case, coherence is a mental process and the Coherence Principle accounts for "the fact that we do not communicate by verbal means only," according to Edda Weigand's "Language as Dialogue: From Rules to Principles." Ultimately, then, it comes down to the listener or leader's own comprehension skills, their interaction with the text, that influences the true coherence of a piece of writing.
In each paragraph of an essay, one particular idea or topic is developed and explained. In order to successfully do so, however, it is essential that the paragraph be written in a unified and coherent manner.
A unified paragraph must follow the idea mentioned in the topic sentence and must not deviate from it. For a further explanation on topic sentences, see the Write Right on Topic Sentences .
A coherent paragraph has sentences that all logically follow each other; they are not isolated thoughts. Coherence can be achieved in several ways. First, using transitions helps connect ideas from one sentence to the next. For more on transitions, see the Write Right on Transitions . Second, ordering thoughts in numerical sequence helps to direct the reader from one point to the next. Third, structuring each paragraph according to one of the following patterns helps to organize sentences: general to particular; particular to general; whole to parts; question to answer; or effect to cause.
Remember that a paragraph should have enough sentences so that the main idea of the topic sentence is completely developed. Generalizations should be supported with examples or illustrations. Also, details and descriptions help the reader to understand what you mean. Don't ever assume that the reader can read your mind: be specific enough to develop your ideas thoroughly, but avoid repetition
An effective paragraph might look like this:
It is commonly recognized that dogs have an extreme antagonism toward cats. This enmity between these two species can be traced back to the time of the early Egyptian dynasties. Archaeologists in recent years have discovered Egyptian texts in which there are detailed accounts of canines brutally mauling felines. Today this type of cruelty between these two domestic pets can be witnessed in regions as close as your own neighborhood. For example, when dogs are walked by their masters (and they happen to catch sight of a stray cat), they will pull with all their strength on their leash until the master is forced to yield; the typical result is that a feline is chased up a tree. The hatred between dogs and cats has lasted for many centuries, so it is unlikely that this conflict will ever end.
This paragraph is effective for the following reasons:
Reference: Strunk, Wiliam Jr., and E. B. White. The Elements of Style . 4th ed., Allyn and Bacon, 2000.
Copyright © 2009 Wheaton College Writing Center
Want to create or adapt books like this? Learn more about how Pressbooks supports open publishing practices.
When you think about it, there’s no contradiction in the advice of these two American writers. You should respond with genuine feeling and without inhibition to what stimulates you – in our case, a set of texts. But feeling isn’t enough. When Gustave Flaubert asked “Has a drinking song ever been written by a drunken man?” he meant a coherent song. Between “getting it down” and “handing it in” good writers show respect for their readers by organizing their material into recognizable patterns. An important benefit of this is that by distancing yourself from your ideas and putting them in order for your reader, you are forced to shape your own nebulous feelings into clear thoughts.
This brings us to the well-known (but apparently not well enough known) paragraph: the basic unit of composition. The traditional and still useful rule that a paragraph must have unity, coherence, and emphasis only means that it must make sense, that the sentences should fit together smoothly, and that not all the sentences function in the same way.
When you see that its purpose is to support your thesis by developing and connecting your ideas meaningfully, then paragraph structure should appeal to your common sense. As a point of emphasis a topic sentence – whether you choose to put it at the beginning, middle, or end – allows you to control your writing and guide your reader by expressing the main idea of the paragraph. Remember, you’re not writing a mystery novel. There will be relatively few instances in this type of essay when you’ll want to surprise your reader.
Must every paragraph have a topic sentence? Not necessarily: if the main idea is obvious, then a topic sentence may be omitted. But even if it is only implied by your paragraph, you and your reader should be able to state easily the main idea . Whether explicit or implicit, the topic sentence of each of your paragraphs should come out of your thesis statement and lead to your conclusion. Like the paragraph, the whole essay should have unity, coherence, and emphasis. Try this: next time you read an essay, underline only the topic sentences of each paragraph; then reread only what you’ve underlined. In many cases you’ll see that the underlined sentences make up a coherent paragraph all by themselves (this is an easy way to write an abstract, incidentally). That’s because most topic sentences are more specific than the thesis statement that generates them, but still more general than the supporting sentences in the paragraphs that illustrate them. Thus they are transitions between the writer’s promise to the reader and the keeping of that promise.
Examples: Opening Paragraphs
From a student essay discussing Kafka’s The Metamorphosis :
When Nietzsche declared that “God is dead,” he did so with an air of optimism. No longer could man be led about on the tight leash of religion; a man liberated could strive for the status of Overman. But what happens if a man refuses to let go of his “dead” God and remains too fearful to evolve into an Overman? Rejecting the concept of the Christian God means renouncing the scapegoat for the sins of man and accepting responsibility for one’s own actions. In The Metamorphosis Gregor Samsa plays the god-like role of financial provider for his family. However, when his transformation renders him useless in this role, the rest of Samsa’s family undergoes a change of its own: Kafka uses the metamorphoses of both Gregor and his family to illustrate a modern crisis.
Some comments on the structure: Two provocative introductory sentences, then a transition question and a response that presents the central idea of the essay. Next, introduction of the text and characters under discussion. Finally, the topic sentence of the paragraph, which, as the thesis statement, promises an interpretation. A paragraph such as this engages the reader’s interest right away and makes the reader look forward to the rest of the essay.
From a student essay on the question, “What Do Historians of Childhood Do?”
In his 1982 book The Disappearance of Childhood , Neil Postman argues that the concept of childhood is a recent invention of literate society, enabled by the invention of moveable-type printing. Postman says as a result of television, literate adulthood and preliterate childhood are both vanishing. While Postman’s indictment of TV-culture is provocative, he ignores race, class, ideology, and economic circumstance as factors in the experience of both children and adults. Worse, he ignores history, making sweeping generalizations such as the claim that the pre-modern Greeks had no concept of children. These claims are contradicted by the appearance of children in classical Greek literature and in the Christian Gospels, written in Greek, which admonish their readers to “be as children.” A more useful and much more interesting observation might be that the idea of childhood and the experience of young people has changed significantly since ancient times, and continues to change.
Some comments on the structure: Like the previous example, this essay begins with a statement from a text (this time with a paraphrase rather than a quotation) and builds towards a thesis statement. In this case the build-up, where the writer disagrees with one of the class texts, is stronger than the thesis. The writer has not stated exactly what he will argue, aside from saying he finds at least some of the ideas of childhood advanced in the course materials unsatisfactory. Keeping the reader in suspense may add to the interest of the essay, but in a short paper it might also waste valuable time and leave the reader unsure whether the writer has really thought things through.
From an essay on Crime and Punishment :
“Freedom depends upon the real…It is as impossible to exercise freedom in an unreal world as it is to jump while you are falling” (Colin Wilson, The Outsider, p. 39). Even without God, modern man is still tempted to create unreal worlds. In Feodor Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment Raskolnikov conceives the fantastic theory of the “overman.” After committing murder in an attempt to satisfy his theory, Raskolnikov falls into a delirious, death-like state; then, Lazarus-like, he is raised from the “dead.” His “resurrection” is not, as some critics suggest, a consequence of his love for Sonya and Sonya’s God. Rather, his salvation results from the freedom he gains when he chooses to live without illusions.
Comments: Once more, a stimulating opening. Between the first and last sentences, which frame the paragraph (the last one, as well as being the thesis sentence, is the specific application of the general first sentence), the writer makes her transition to the central idea and introduces the text and character she wishes to discuss. The reader is given enough information to know what to expect. It promises to be an interesting essay.
Each of the writers above chooses to open with a quotation or reference that helps to focus the reader’s attention and reveal the point of view from which a specific interpretation will be made. Movement from the general to the specific is very common in introductory thesis paragraphs, but it is not obligatory. You can begin with your thesis statement as the first sentence; start with a question; or use the entire opening paragraph to set the scene and provide background, then present your thesis in the second paragraph. Make choices and even create new options, so long as your sentences move to create a dominant impression on the reader.
Examples: Middle Paragraphs
From a student essay comparing P’u Sung-ling’s (17th century) The Cricket Boy and Franz Kafka’s (20th century) The Metamorphosis , two stories that deal with a son’s relationship to his family. (The writer’s thesis: according to these authors, one must connect in meaningful ways with other human beings in order to achieve what Virginia Woolf calls “health,” “truth,” and “happiness.”)
The most obvious similarity between Kiti and Gregor is that they both take the forms of insects; however, their and their families’ reactions to the changes account for the essential difference between the characters. Whereas Kiti thinks a cricket represents “all that [is] good and strong and beautiful in the world ( Cricket Boy , p. 2), Gregor is repulsed by his insect body and “closes his eyes so as not to have to see his squirming legs” ( Metamorphosis , p, 3). Their situations also affect their families differently. Kiti’s experience serves as a catalyst that brings his family closer together: “For the first time, his father had become human, and he loved his father then” ( CB , p. 2). Gregor’s transformation, on the other hand, succeeds in further alienating him from his family: his parents “could not bring themselves to come in to him” ( M , p. 31). While Kiti and his parents develop a bond based on understanding and mutual respect, Gregor becomes not only emotionally estranged from his family, but also physically separated from them.
Some comments on the structure: The writer is clearly on her way, with specific examples from the texts, to supporting her argument concerning the need for self-respect and communication. Notice that she uses transitions such as “however,” “whereas,” “also,” “on the other hand,” while,” and “not only…, but also…” to connect her thoughts and make her sentences cohere. Transitional words and phrases are the “glue” both within and between paragraphs: they help writers stick to the point, and also allow readers to stay on the path the writer intends.
Transitions
Writers use transitional words and expressions as markers to guide readers on their exploratory journey. They can express relationships very explicitly , which is often exactly what is needed. However, experienced writers can also build more subtle bridges between ideas, hinting at relationships with implicit transitions. These relationships may change from vague impressions to a very concrete statement, as the argument develops, allowing the reader to “discover” the writer’s conclusion as the essay builds to its final paragraph.
Examples of explicit transitional expressions
If you find that you are overusing explicit connectors and your transitions are beginning to feel mechanical (How many times have you used “furthermore” or “however”? How many “other hands” do you have?), you can improve the flow of your writing either by changing up the transitional expressions, or by shifting toward more implicit transitions. One technique is, in the first sentence of the new paragraph, refer (either explicitly or implicitly) to material in the preceding paragraph. For example:
When Alcibiades does give his speech, we see that his example is Socrates himself.
While this interpretation still seems reasonable, I was surprised at the difficulty of uncovering useable data in the records of past societies.
This sometimes sickening detail that Dante uses to draw the reader emotionally into the Inferno also stimulates the reader to think about what he or she feels.
The Greek system is much more relaxed; obeisance and respect for the gods is not required, although in most cases it seems to make life easier.
Each of these implicit transition sentences builds on the previous paragraph and calls for support in the new paragraph. Even more subtle (that is, more difficult) would be to make the last sentence of the paragraph indicate the direction the next paragraph will take. If you try this, be careful you do not at the same time change the subject. You do not want to introduce a new idea at the end of a paragraph, and destroy its unity. Since it suggests a change in direction, we see this device used most commonly with thesis sentences at the end of introductory paragraphs, or in transitional paragraphs like the example above.
Other examples of hinges writers use to make connections include pronouns referring back to nouns in the previous paragraphs and synonyms to avoid repetition and overuse of pronouns. A good rule is not to overuse any device.
Concluding Paragraphs
From a student essay on Crime and Punishment :
Raskolnikov finally finds a new life:
Indeed he [is] not consciously reasoning at all; he [can] only feel . Life [has] taken the place of logic and something quite different must be worked out in his mind. (Epi. II, p. 464)
Thus he ends his suffering by abandoning intelligence and reasoning. Jean-Jacques Rousseau said that “above all the logic of the head is the feeling of the heart.” Ultimately, Raskolnikov transcends the “logic of the head” by discovering love and freedom.
Some comments on the structure: The paragraph works well as a conclusion because you can tell immediately that the writer has said all that she wants to say about the subject. She uses a quotation from another source, to “rub up against” Dostoevsky, expanding the dialogue between the text, the writer, and the reader by adding another voice. The answer to the “so what?” question is implied in the last sentence: love and freedom are values we all can share. Note that although this is a different conclusion from that of the earlier essay discussing Crime and Punishment , both interpretations are interesting and valid because both writers supported their arguments with careful readings of the text.
From a History essay analyzing the influence of Philippe Ariès’s book Centuries of Childhood on later historians:
In the end, Centuries of Childhood did not establish a conceptual framework for children’s history. Nor did the rival philosophies of history create a new paradigm for children’s history. Ariès identified a subject of study. He was a prospector who uncovered a rich vein of material. Subsequent miners should use whatever tools and techniques are best suited to getting the ore out of the ground. Historians should stop fighting over theories and get to work uncovering the lives of children and families. This will involve, as Jordanova suggested, self-awareness and sensitivity. But it should not be sidetracked by ideological debates. As Cunningham observed, the stakes for modern children and families are high. To make children’s history useful for the present, historians of children and families need to put aside their differences and get back to work.
Some comments on the structure: As in the previous example, the writer includes the perspectives of other commentators. This is especially common in essays on secondary sources in history, because “historiography” is often imagined as an ongoing conversation about primary and important secondary texts. The “so what” statement is more explicit this time, relating the study of children in the past to improving the lives of children and families today. The importance of connecting with the needs of today is problematic (many historians would criticize this as “presentism”); so the writer includes a supporting perspective from a sympathetic commentator.
From an essay in which the writer compares and contrasts the character she is examining with a character from another work:
Like Ophelia, Gretchen has moments of confusion and despair, but she decides to give in to her feelings and take responsibility for them. By having Gretchen freely stay behind to face her execution, Goethe casts aside any similarities that his character shares with Shakespeare’s Ophelia. Along with the empowering freedom of Gretchen’s striving comes the struggle to act rightly. But if no objective absolutes exist, according to Goethe’s God, on what basis can Gretchen make her decisions in order to be saved? She comes to the realization that the only absolutes exist within herself. Goethe’s God saves her, not for being a penitent Christian, but for staying true to these self-imposed absolutes.
Some comments on the structure: Another strong conclusion. The writer’s interpretation could be contested, but she has argued it well and convincingly throughout the essay and concluded strongly. Incidentally, note also that by specifying “Goethe’s God” in her interpretation she avoids any distracting discussion of religion and keeps her writing focused on literary analysis. We don’t argue the nature of “God” in an essay about literature; only the nature of the “God” in the text.
A Short Handbook for writing essays in the Humanities and Social Sciences Copyright © 2019 by Salvatore F. Allosso and Dan Allosso is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.
Want to create or adapt books like this? Learn more about how Pressbooks supports open publishing practices.
Strong essays are built with solid, coherent, and unified paragraphs. They should be digestible units of thought that have similar structure to the essay itself: a topic sentence, a body of support, and a concluding or transitional statement to help the reader move through the essay with clarity. Body paragraphs should also be arranged according to your primary pattern of development and focused on supporting your big idea(s).
A body paragraph is an expansion of a single thought that is laid out according to a specific, logical structure:
BEST: When the writer uses paragraphs to present unified, coherent, organized, and well-developed thoughts in support of their overall thesis.
The Writing Process Copyright © 2020 by Andrew Gurevich is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.
:: : In this module students will learn to use the following tools to create coherent paragraphs and to revise paragraphs for greater coherence: "Coherence" refers to the logical flow of ideas in a paragraph. A paragraph is coherent when each sentence leads smoothly into the next one through the use of transitional expressions, logical relation of ideas, repetition of key words, and/or the use of pronouns to refer to a previous subject. A paragraph is not coherent if there are inadequate connections between ideas causing the reader to get lost or to struggle to figure out the author's intentions.
One way to improve paragraph coherence is through the use of transitional expressions between sentences. Transitional expressions are words used to signify the type of connection between sentences; they indicate that the next sentence will be an example, or the effect of a cause just stated, an explanation, or an expansion of thought on the previous idea, etc. There are many transitional expressions, but don't feel you need to memorize them all to create coherence. Knowing a handful of expressions will help you in most situations, and opening a writer's handbook to a list of expressions, or simply "googling" "transitions" or "transitional expressions" should help you find what you need if you get stuck.
Be careful, however, not to overuse transitional expressions. Save them for significant connections between ideas that you want to call special attention to. Overuse can be distracting.
Often sentences have implicit logical connections that help the reader follow the thread of a discussion or argument. When a writer picks up on a subject that has been established in the previous sentence, coherence is established. Consider the example below: Though no transitional expression is used, the passage is coherent. It is clear that the writer is continuing a discussion of grocery stores in Chinatown, offering an interesting an distinctive detail about these stores. A good way to test the coherence of your paragraph is to examine each sentence and ask yourself what your reader would expect you to say next based on that sentence. Given the first sentence in the passage above, a reader might ask "What are these stores like?" or "What is distinctive about these stores that draws Asian-Americans?" The next sentence supplies an acceptable answer to that question, and so the passage is coherent.
Key words are the words carrying most significance in a paragraph— the key words are those words a writer wants the reader to focus on as the paragraph progresses. In the following exerpt from a paragraph on sports tourism, note the key words used by the author: tend to be between the ages of 18 and 44, male, and relatively affluent. Again, as with the first sample (Gibson & Yiannakis, 1992), a notable group of men and women in late adulthood chose to be active . This information can be readily demonstrated by the winter-month use of golf courses in the southeastern United States by "snowbirds." For recreation agencies in these areas, winter-month use by retirees is of prime importance. For leisure education practitioners, such activity patterns not only dispel stereotypes attributed to older adults but also support the idea of teaching skills that can be practiced throughout a person's life. The majority of active research has focused on people who participate in one specific . . . (Gibson)These key words remind the reader that the details discussed all elaborate on the subject of sports tourism.
Echo words and phrases allow writers to remind the reader of the topic being discussed without becoming repetitive, as too much repetition of the same words can be distracting and even irritating to a reader. Echo words are actually synonyms for the key word, but they can also be phrases. Consider the echo words in the following paragraph about tourists and souvenirs: throughout the mid-20th century has created a well that collectors can tap. The that have proved the most desirable in recent years are ones dating from the 1920s through the 1960s. For collectors, the good news is that the tablecloths, tumblers, snow globes, ashtrays, charm bracelets, and other from this period were produced in such large quantities that surviving are still easy to find and affordable. Prices range from a few dollars to a few hundred, with many falling between $20 and $40. (Proeller)The key word in this paragraph is "souvenirs." To avoid repetition of this word, however, the author uses substitutes: "objects" and "examples." Note, too, that the author adds adjectives and modifying phrases to the echo words to further clarify her meaning, as in "other objects from this period," and "surviving examples." Echo words and phrases are far more desirable than general pronouns like "this" and "it" because they do add so much clarity to the sentence. In fact, using these general pronouns can often get developing writers into trouble with pronoun reference problems, so an echo word or phrase is a far better choice for a subject. : Pronouns have a place in creating coherence, however. Pronouns can help a writer avoid repetition of a subject when there is no confusion about who or what that subject is. who find the whole vintage-souvenir genre irresistible, and collect with wild abandon. (Proeller)If there is potential confusion about the word the pronoun refers to, the using an echo word or phrase is probably preferable.
Gibson, Heather. "The rules of the game." , 34:6, June, 1999.
|
Objectives 1. What does coherence mean? 2. Creating coherence through transitional expressions 3. Creating coherence through logic 4. Creating coherence through repetition
| |
| | | |
Learning Objectives: |
LESSON Coherence The quality of a writing that is well-organized and where events make sense. Coherence occurs when the ideas in a passage or in an entire piece “stick together,” allowing the reader to make sense of the information. is an important element in good writing and happens when all the elements of an essay A short piece of writing that focuses on at least one main idea. Some essays are also focused on the author's unique point of view, making them personal or autobiographical, while others are focused on a particular literary, scientific, or political subject. or paragraph A selection of a writing that is made up of sentences formed around one main point. Paragraphs are set apart by a new line and sometimes indentation. successfully work together to reinforce the main idea The most important or central thought of a reading selection. It also includes what the author wants the reader to understand about the topic he or she has chosen to write about. . Coherent writing makes that piece of writing much easier for a reader to understand. In this lesson, you will learn how to use referents The noun or idea that different words or phrases stand for in a sentence or paragraph. For instance, in the following sentences, John is the referent for He . John was a good boy. He always walked his sister to school . and transitions Tying two events, passages, or pieces of information together in a smooth way. In writing, transitions are sometimes called links. to create coherence in your own writing.
Referents One way that writers create coherence between sentences in a paragraph is by using referents in each sentence to connect it to the paragraph's main idea. A referent can be any number of words or phrases that refer back to the main idea. When you scatter references to your main idea throughout your writing, you remind readers what you are writing about. Restatements Using words or phrases to say something that has been said before in a different way. , synonyms A word or phrase that has an identical or very similar meaning to another word. Example: tiny is a synonym for small . , antonyms A word or phrase that has the opposite meaning from another word. Example: huge is an antonym for small . , pronouns A part of speech that substitutes for a noun or noun phrase. Examples include: I , he , you , they . , and enumeration To number or list things one after another. are all types of referents that you can use to keep the main idea fresh in readers’ minds.
A restatement is exactly what it sounds like—stating the main idea repeatedly with the same words. For example, if you are writing an essay that outlines the effects of childhood obesity, you might want to reuse the words "childhood obesity" and "effect" more than once because it reinforces the idea that you are discussing the effects of childhood obesity. This is a good technique to a certain point; however, you should not overuse it because readers can get tired of too much repetition.
To add variety in your writing, you can also utilize synonyms and/or antonyms of your main idea. In the example of writing about the effects of childhood obesity, you could use the words "result," "consequence," and "outcome" because they are synonyms for "effect." You could also use "juvenile" and "heaviness" or "unhealthy weight" to refer to childhood obesity. Also consider using antonyms like "healthy weight" or "slimness." These two techniques help you stay on topic as you write and assist your readers in clearly following your thoughts.
Pronouns are another way to refer back to your topic. A pronoun is a way to restate a noun.
Examples of Pronouns
In the example about the effects of childhood obesity, you could use pronouns to refer to the effects as "they" and childhood obesity as "it." Again, this breaks up the monotony that could occur by repeating "childhood obesity" multiple times.
The last major type of referent is enumeration. Enumeration is the process of listing where each sentence in the list relates back to the topic. Such lists use transitional words like "first," "second," and "third," and often use restatements as a companion strategy. For example, when writing about the effects of "childhood obesity," you could state that there are three main effects of obesity in childhood and then describe those effects in order.
Example of a paragraph lacking sufficient referents
Childhood obesity has a number of very negative effects. The first effect of childhood obesity is physical. Obese children are at a much higher risk for diabetes, and some children are so obese that the children are experiencing heart disease, a condition normally associated with adults. The second effect of childhood obesity is social. Obese children can be made fun of by their classmates and excluded from activities. The last effect of childhood obesity is psychological. Obese children tend to have much lower self-esteem than their peers. This affects them not only in their childhood, but adults who were obese as children generally are less happy. To avoid these effects, parents and teachers need to help children avoid obesity.
The paragraph above works to a certain extent. It certainly discusses the effects of childhood obesity, but it is very repetitive, which bores readers, and also lacks nuance Subtle differences in meaning and style of expression. . Now look at the same paragraph that uses referents and see how it is even more coherent.
Example of a paragraph using sufficient referents
Childhood obesity has a number of dire consequences. To begin with, kids who are even moderately overweight are at a much higher risk for diabetes, and some children are so heavy that they are experiencing heart disease, a condition normally associated with adults. In addition to the physical effects, heavier kids are also impacted socially. They can be made fun of by their classmates and excluded from activities. Lastly, kids who can't reach a healthy weight suffer psychologically. Obese children tend to have much lower self-esteem than their peers. This affects them not only in their youth, but also as adults. Those who had an unhealthy weight as children generally are less happy even if they are able to become more fit later in life. To avoid these effects, parents and teachers need to help children reach and maintain a healthy weight.
In the above paragraph, notice the various referents that make it richer and more interesting to read.
Restatements: Childhood obesity and effects Synonyms: heavy, overweight, unhealthy weight, kids, youth Antonyms: healthy weight, fit Pronouns: they, this Enumeration: To begin, In addition, Lastly
Transitions In addition to using referents, writers can also include transitions to guide readers from one idea to the next. Without transitions, readers have difficulty navigating through an essay. Here are a few examples of transitions.
Examples of Transitions
The last example paragraph used a number of transitions. Read through the version below and notice how it is more difficult to read when the transitions are removed.
Example of a paragraph lacking transitions
Childhood obesity has dire consequences. Kids who are even moderately overweight are at much higher risk for diabetes, and some children are so heavy that they are experiencing heart disease, a condition normally associated with adults. Heavier kids are impacted socially. They can be made fun of by their classmates and excluded from activities. Kids who can't reach a healthy weight suffer psychologically. Obese children tend to have much lower self-esteem than their peers. This affects them in their youth, but also as adults. Those who had an unhealthy weight as children generally are less happy even if they are able to become more fit later in life. Parents and teachers need to help children reach and maintain a healthy weight.
When you are explaining to a friend how to get somewhere, coherence is the difference between good directions and bad directions. Good, coherent directions are easy to follow, anticipate the confusing parts of the trip, and make your friend confident that he will get to where you want him to go. Bad directions that lack coherence tend to end up with a phone call from your friend telling you that he is lost.
The same is true in your writing. If you write an email or cover letter when applying for a job and that writing lacks coherence, the potential employer will get lost, stop reading what you have written, and look for another candidate. On the other hand, if your writing is coherent, the potential employer will look favorably on your application and consider you for an interview or possibly even the job itself.
Following is an example of a brief paragraph showing coherence:
Teachers have several expectations for their students. One of these includes being on time while another expectation is bringing the necessary materials. An additional requirement is reading the assigned chapters. Instructors also require class participation. In the end , a student who meets these expectations is likely to be a successful student.
What is the main idea here? Teachers and their expectations of students.
Does the writer use referents? Yes. restatement: expectations ; synonyms: requirement , instructors , require ; antonyms: none; pronouns: these ; enumeration: One of these , An additional , also
Does the writer use transitions? Yes. One , additional , In the end
Now, notice how the use of referents and transitions connects the following sentences together into a coherent paragraph.
Coherent Paragraph:
Giving an oral report can be challenging. It requires preparation and practice. Doing these can help the speaker sound intelligent and credible. In fact, many speakers find it is easier to give oral reports after they have built confidence by speaking in public for awhile. In addition, listeners seem to respond better to a confident speaker. In the end, the most important elements in giving successful oral reports are practice and professionalism.
Answer the questions about how the following paragraph shows coherence:
One of the most important parts of the college experience that is often overlooked is socializing. It not only helps students have a good time while at school, but making new friends also contributes to their overall success. Studies show that students who socialize with classmates are more likely to do well in their classes and graduate with a degree than students who stick to themselves. Therefore, every new student should make an effort to connect with someone in each of their classes or join a student group during their first year; it may make the difference between having "some college" experience and actually getting a degree.
What is the main idea here?
The importance of making friends in college.
Does the writer use referents?
Yes. restatement: socialize , students ; synonyms: making new friends , classmates ; antonyms: stick to themselves ; pronouns: it , these ; enumeration: none
Does the writer use transitions? If so, list them.
Yes. Therefore
Now, use referents and transitions to connect these sentences together into a coherent paragraph.
Sample Answer
Texting while driving has become a major hazard facing many motorists today. Recent studies show that people who are texting while driving are more distracted and have worse response times than those who are intoxicated. This makes it imperative that people put their phones down and focus on driving when they are behind the wheel. In addition, laws should be passed making it illegal to use a cell phone while driving. Taking these two steps will help make the roads safer for everyone.
What types of transitions do you like to use in your writing and how do they help build coherence?
I like to use, "first, second, third" to mark my supporting details and this helps connect one sentence to another, giving the paragraph unity.
If a paragraph does not contain transitions and/or referents, readers may find that it reads choppy, or jumpy, and they may not be able to find the focus of the paragraph.
Copyright ©2022 The NROC Project
Expert-verified answer.
That parts of a paragraph or essay fit together logically and the ideas are connected.
Explanation:
Coherent means that a reasoning is logical and consistent. As a result, coherency is produced by several factors that combine to make every paragraph, sentence and phrase support the meaning of the whole text. Some coherence techniques are transitions, pronouns, synonyms, repetition, rephrasing and consistency of word choice.
Get more answers for free, you might be interested in, new questions in english.
To revisit this article, visit My Profile, then View saved stories .
Products are independently selected by our editors. We may earn an affiliate commission from links.
Y ou’re blushing! my sister cries with delight. We’re playing on the front steps of our London house and have just heard skateboard wheels approaching. I am 13 and in love with the skateboard’s owner, a boy who lives up the street whom I’ve never actually spoken to. He has long sandy hair and an American accent. Basically, he’s Kurt Cobain. It’s magical and mortifying and a secret —except it’s not, because it’s written all over my face.
If the eyes are the window to the soul, then our cheeks are the back door. What other part of the body so readily reveals our hidden emotions? Embarrassment, exuberance, delight, desire, all instantly communicated with a rush of blood. It’s no wonder that blush has been a mainstay of makeup bags for decades: Ancient Egyptians used ground ochre to heighten their color; Queen Elizabeth I dabbed her cheeks with red dye and mercuric sulfide (which, combined with the vinegar and lead concoction she used to achieve her ivory pallor, is believed to have given her blood poisoning); flappers applied blush in dramatic circles to achieve a doll-like complexion, even adding it to their knees to draw attention to their shorter hemlines.
Can something so classic become new again? In the latest take on blush—seen everywhere from the fall runways of Chanel and Dior to the red-carpet looks of Gigi Hadid and Ayo Edebiri—rouge is no longer relegated to the cheekbones, but worn expansively across the face, or even across the bridge of your nose. The new blush is dynamic, constitutionally opposed to the idea of contouring: You’re not trying to fix your face in 3D, emphasizing your sphinx-like planes and angles; you’re signaling to the world that something has happened to you—emotion, exertion, or some combination of the two.
However, the line between rosy and rosacea is undeniably thin, and so before I endeavor to re-create any of these looks, I solicit the advice of experts. “I always apply blush as the last step in my beauty routine,” Peter Philips, creative and image director of Christian Dior makeup, advises. “And I like to build it up slowly to avoid any regret.” When asked about his inspiration, Philips says, rather poetically, “Everywhere men and women are immortalized in great light” and inadvertently gives me the directive I will, for the rest of my life, use when asking someone to take my photo. Armed with this catchphrase, I attempt my first dialed-up blush look with Dior Rouge Blush Colour & Glow in Riviera, a subtle peachy pink—it’s feminine and fresh but not hugely audacious. I add extra layers to build an expansive bloom, then add some to my chin and forehead. Next I dare myself to try Dior’s Rosy Glow in Pink, a hue so electric I cannot find an apt point of comparison. Peonies? A tropical sunset? The color it most reminds me of is Lil’ Kim’s iconic pink hair from the ’90s. Blush is daring, I tell myself, then start powdering.
My first stop is my living room, where my husband (a fellow Brit) is rapturously watching England play soccer with our eight-month-old son bouncing on his lap. I wait until halftime before looming my face in his direction.
“How do I look?” I ask, tilting my cheeks from side to side.
“Pretty!” he says confidently.
He falters.
“...Pink?” he hazards.
He’s not wrong, sweet man, but I’m seeking a more specific endorsement.
“It’s giving Kirsten Dunst in Marie Antoinette, ” says a friend I meet for lunch. “You look like you just ran a marathon,” declares another.
For my next attempt, Violette, Guerlain’s creative director of makeup, talks me through her process. She recommends sfumato, the technique perfected by Leonardo da Vinci of creating imperceptible transitions between light and shade. “Applying blush where blood flows enhances a healthy and natural appearance,” she says, “unlike applying it to just the cheekbone, which can look structured or unnatural.” I start with Guerlain’s Terracotta Blush in Light Nude, then add accents with the Deep Nude hue from the same collection. Somehow I look like I just slept 12 hours. Blush is rest, I think.
After a few days of the sfumato look, which I also re-create with Chanel’s sumptuous Cream-to-Powder blushes, I pivot from powder to its playful little sisters, lip and cheek stains. There are lots of good options in this category: Milk Makeup’s Cooling Water Jelly Tints and Clinique’s Pop Lip + Cheek Oil in Black Honey, but I find myself returning most often to Benefit’s Benetint, the cult-followed crimson stain, created in 1976, and the first item of makeup I ever bought.
As I rub the familiar solution into my cheeks, I’m transported to being 13 again, waiting for the sound of skateboard wheels. Because how could I have forgotten? Blush is youth. Both a connection to it and a re-creation of it. But what is underneath our desire for youth, for health, for passion—all the many things blush represents?
For me, the answer became clear when my son was born. He was two months premature and not very well; one of the first hopeful signs of his progress was when his cheeks turned from pallid to pink. By the time he finally came home, his face had the same glow as the cherry blossoms on our street. Only then did I feel he was safe. Of course, I think, adding yet another layer of crimson to my already rosy cheeks. No wonder we want more of it, as much as we can get. Blush is life.
Joues Contraste Powder Blush
Milk Makeup
Cooling Water Jelly Tint
Terracotta Powder Blush
NEIMAN MARCUS
Luminous Matte Beauty Blush
Huda Beauty
Lip Blush Cream Lip & Cheek Stain
HUDA BEAUTY
Clé de Peau
Beauté Cream Blush
SAKS FIFTH AVENUE
Martha Stewart’s Skincare Routine, According to Her Dermatologists
The Secret to Blake Lively’s Incredible Hair? Stop Using Conditioner
The Blush Hack Every Woman Over 40 Should Know
How To Get the Viral Glass Manicure
Marc Jacobs Tells Us Everything About His Nails
Sign up for Vogue ’s beauty newsletter to receive the insider’s guide to all things beauty and wellness
Never miss a Vogue moment and get unlimited digital access for just $2 $1 per month.
The Vogue Runway app has expanded! Update to the latest version to see all Vogue content, as well as new features like our Runway Genius quiz, Group Chats, and posts from Vogue contributors.
Want to hear our Vogue Beauty experts’ insider knowledge on the latest beauty trends? Join Vogue Club to watch the latest episode of Beauty Haul.
IMAGES
VIDEO
COMMENTS
Coherence is crucial in writing as it ensures that the text is understandable and that the ideas flow logically from one to the next. When writing is coherent, readers can easily follow the progression of ideas, making the content more engaging and easier to comprehend. Coherence connects the dots for the reader, linking concepts, arguments ...
Coherence is about making everything flow smoothly to create unity. So, sentences and ideas must be relevant to the central thesis statement. The writer has to maintain the flow of ideas to serve the main focus of the essay. 5. Stick to the purpose of the type of essay you're-writing.
Unity. Unity is the idea that all parts of the writing work to achieve the same goal: proving the thesis. Just as the content of a paragraph should focus on a topic sentence, the content of an essay must focus on the thesis. The introduction paragraph introduces the thesis, the body paragraphs each have a proof point (topic sentence) with ...
Two key aspects of coherence. Cohesion: This relates to the linking of ideas within a sentence, the linking of sentences (the ties between sentences) within a paragraph and the linking between paragraphs. Unity: This relates to the question of relevance and maintaining the central focus of a single paragraph and throughout the essay.
Coherence is an important aspect of good writing—as important as good grammar or spelling. However, it is also rather harder to learn how to do it, because it is not a matter of simple rules. Coherent writing moves smoothly between ideas. It guides the reader through an argument or series of points using signposts and connectors.
Coherence is built in first drafts essay as whole - by relationships into the paper of language, the sentence, paragraph, takes more images, and to constructing these that occur patterns. throughout a strategies can celebrated begin with sentence gay activist structures from "Invisibility Adrienne that seem in Academe," to As you read, if by.
In a coherent text, the ideas are in the right order, the ideas are explained and exemplified just enough, and the ideas are linked together clearly. To help you write coherent text, we will look at coherence at a number of levels. We'll start with a general overview, looking at an example paragraph in different versions which are coherent ...
The purpose of these aspects of writing is to think about, understand, and write for your readers. You can improve the clarity and organization of your writing by knowing the differences between concrete versus abstract language and making your paragraphs cohesive and coherent. Source: Williams, J.M., & Bizup, J. (2017).
Coherence describes the way anything, such as an argument (or part of an argument) "hangs together.". If something has coherence, its parts are well-connected and all heading in the same direction. Without coherence, a discussion may not make sense or may be difficult for the audience to follow. It's an extremely important quality of ...
Asking a peer to check the writing to see if it makes sense, i.e. peer feedback, is another way to help improve coherence in your writing. Example essay. Below is an example essay. It is the one used in the persuasion essay section. Click on the different areas (in the shaded boxes to the right) to highlight the different cohesive aspects in ...
Cohesion and Coherence. A well-organized paper uses techniques to build cohesion and coherence between and within paragraphs to guide the reader through the paper by connecting ideas, building details, and strengthening the argument. Although transitions are the most obvious way to display the relationship between ideas, consider some of the ...
Total: 4) Coherence is an essential quality for good academic writing. In academic writing, the flow of ideas from one sentence to the next should be smooth and logical. Without cohesion, the reader will not understand the main points that you are trying to make. It also hampers readability.
Coherence is a matter of perception, so you have to write in a way that your reader will understand. Make sure you use terms that the reader will understand. Also, use lines of reasoning that the reader can follow. In school assignments, the reader is your teacher or professor, so this is the person you need to keep in mind as you write.
Coherence is the quality of an essay that makes it easier to read. The technique can be described with many vivid analogies. Essays should show natural structure, connectedness, flow, bridge-building, plot, thread, and harmony. Each of these expressions mean the same thing.
Define coherence in terms of writing. Identify strategies to revise your argument for coherence. The term "coherence" comes from the verb "to cohere," which means "to be united," "to form a whole," or "to be logically consistent". Coherence in writing refers to the big picture of a text. How can you construct an essay or ...
This article provides tips on how you can make your essay cohesive. 1. Identify the thesis statement of your essay. A thesis statement states what your position is regarding the topic you are discussing. To make an essay worth reading, you will need to make sure that you have a compelling stance. However, identifying the thesis statement is ...
In composition, coherence refers to the meaningful connections that readers or listeners perceive in a written or oral text, often called linguistic or discourse coherence, and can occur on either the local or global level, depending on the audience and writer. Coherence is directly increased by the amount of guidance a writer provides to the ...
In each paragraph of an essay, one particular idea or topic is developed and explained. In order to successfully do so, however, it is essential that the paragraph be written in a unified and coherent manner.. A unified paragraph must follow the idea mentioned in the topic sentence and must not deviate from it. For a further explanation on topic sentences, see the Write Right on Topic Sentences.
Examples: Middle Paragraphs . From a student essay comparing P'u Sung-ling's (17th century) The Cricket Boy and Franz Kafka's (20th century) The Metamorphosis, two stories that deal with a son's relationship to his family.(The writer's thesis: according to these authors, one must connect in meaningful ways with other human beings in order to achieve what Virginia Woolf calls ...
6. Step #3: Coherent, Unified Paragraphs. "Vintage Book" by Suzy Hazelwood, Pexels is in the Public Domain, CC0. Strong essays are built with solid, coherent, and unified paragraphs. They should be digestible units of thought that have similar structure to the essay itself: a topic sentence, a body of support, and a concluding or ...
What does coherence mean? "Coherence" refers to the logical flow of ideas in a paragraph. A paragraph is coherent when each sentence leads smoothly into the next one through the use of transitional expressions, logical relation of ideas, repetition of key words, and/or the use of pronouns to refer to a previous subject.
LESSON Coherence The quality of a writing that is well-organized and where events make sense. Coherence occurs when the ideas in a passage or in an entire piece "stick together," allowing the reader to make sense of the information. is an important element in good writing and happens when all the elements of an essay A short piece of writing that focuses on at least one main idea.
question. Answer: That parts of a paragraph or essay fit together logically and the ideas are connected. Explanation: Coherent means that a reasoning is logical and consistent. As a result, coherency is produced by several factors that combine to make every paragraph, sentence and phrase support the meaning of the whole text.
Products are independently selected by our editors. We may earn an affiliate commission from links. You're blushing! my sister cries with delight. We're playing on the front steps of our ...