Lesson 3: Paragraph Patterns

Development is the process by which you support or explain the central idea of a paragraph, essay,
or other piece of writing.

USE SEVEN METHODS OF DEVELOPMENT

Depending on your purpose—what you want to accomplish—you can use several methods of
development:
narration
definition
description
classification
illustration
cause and effect
comparison/contrast

Each method can be used separately or in combination with any of the others.
Learning which methods best suit your purpose will help when you create outlines and write first drafts
of paragraphs and essays.

1. LEARN TO NARRATE
Use narration to recall an event or explain how a process works. A narrative is a story. It arranges
information in chronological (time) order; one event in a story or one step in a process follows another
just as it happened.
Narratives contain action words—verbs and adverbs—that help move the story or process along and
make it more interesting. They also use transitions such as first, then, soon, after, and suddenly, which
maintain coherence and show movement from one event to the next.

Read this paragraph from Maya Angelou's I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. It recalls a childhood
incident when neighborhood children mocked her and her grandmother. Action words are in red;
transitions are in blue:

Before the girls got to the porch, I heard their laughter crackling and popping like pine logs in a cooking
stove. I suppose my lifelong paranoia was born in those cold, molasses-slow minutes. They came finally
to stand on the ground in front of Momma. At first they pretended seriousness. Then one of them
wrapped her right arm in the crook of her left, pushed out her mouth and started to hum. I realized that
she was aping my grandmother.

2. LEARN TO DESCRIBE
Use description when you need to explain the nature of people, places, and things. It's always a good
idea to start a physical description by relying on your five senses to gather details about what your
subject looks, sounds, feels, smells, or even tastes like.
Unlike narration, which presents information from beginning to end, description can be arranged in
any pattern you think best. Usually, the pattern is spatial, presenting things as they appear in space.
But each writer chooses his or her own perspective—the position from which to view a subject. And
each decides where to begin and where to end.

Read this paragraph from Maya Angelou's I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. Angelou doesn't simply
describe her subjects' appearance; she uses description to explain their characters. She also uses it to
reveal her emotional reaction to their behavior.

The dirt of the girls' cotton dresses continued on their legs, feet, arms, and faces to make them all of a
piece. Their greasy uncolored hair hung down, uncombed, with a grim finality. I knelt to see them
better, to remember them for all time. The tears that had slipped down my dress left unsurprising dark
spots, and made the front yard blurry and even more unreal. The world had taken a deep breath and
was having doubts about continuing to revolve.
LEARN TO EXPLAIN, CONVINCE, AND PERSUADE
Narration and description can also be used to explain an idea or statement, to convince readers that
an opinion is correct, or to persuade them to do something. But such purposes also lend themselves to
other methods.

FIVE WAYS TO EXPLAIN, CONVINCE, AND PERSUADE

Depending on what you want to accomplish, you can choose one or more methods to develop your
central idea:

3. Illustration: Uses examples.

4. Comparison or constrast: Points out similarities or differences.
5. Definition: Explains what a term means.
6. Classification: Distinguishes between types or classes.
7. Cause and effect: Explains why something happens.

USING ILLUSTRATION
Illustration explains abstract ideas by providing clear, specific, and concrete examples. Take this
paragraph from "A Few Kind Words for Superstition" by Robertson Davies:
Many superstitions are so widespread and so old that they must have risen from a depth of human
mind that is indifferent to race or creed. Orthodox Jews place a charm on their doorposts; so do (or
did) the Chinese. Some peoples of Middle Europe believe that when a man sneezes, his soul, for that
moment, is absent from his body, and they hasten to bless him, lest he should be seized by the Devil.
How did the Melanesians come by the same idea? Superstition seems to have a link with some body
or belief that far antedates the religions we know—religions which have no place for such comforting
little ceremonies and charities.
There are two concrete examples here:
Orthodox Jews place a charm . . . .
Some peoples of Middle Europe believe . . . .

USING COMPARISON/CONTRAST
A comparison explains similarities. A contrast explains differences. The first half of the following
paragraph compares a harpsichord and a piano. The second half contrasts these instruments.

The harpsichord and the piano are closely

related. Both are keyboard instruments, and
both produce sound when jacks or hammers
attached to keys strike metal strings. The piano
is a direct descendant of the harpsichord and takes
its shape from that instrument. In fact, many musical
compositions played on one can be adapted to the other.

However, today the piano is the more popular

of the two instruments. It is capable of producing
greater volume and variety of tone, and it is more
versatile than its predecessor. Pianos provide
accompaniment for vocalists both classical and popular,
and they are used in every instrumental group
from the small dance band to the grandest symphony
orchestra.

USING DEFINITION
A definition identifies a term and sets it apart from all other terms that may be related to it. Often,
definitions begin by mentioning the general class to which a term belongs. Then they provide specifics
to distinguish the term from other members of that class. For example, if you were to define whale, you
might start by saying it is an aquatic mammal. Then you could talk about its size, shape, varieties,
environment, breeding habits, and so on.

Read this paragraph. Try to determine the general class to which the subject belongs; then find
specifics that distinguish it from other members of that class.
The viola is a stringed instrument in the violin family. It is only slightly larger than the violin and is tuned
at a lower pitch. Like its smaller relative, the viola is held on the shoulder under the chin and is played
with a bow. While the violin has many uses, the viola is used mainly in orchestral and chamber music.

COMBINING METHODS OF DEVELOPMENT

One method of development can be used in combination with others. Reread the paragraph defining
the viola. Pick out examples of comparison and contrast.
The viola is a stringed instrument in the violin family. It is only slightly larger than the violin and is tuned
at a lower pitch. Like its smaller relative, the viola is held on the shoulder under the chin and is played
with a bow. While the violin has many uses, the viola is used mainly in orchestral and chamber music.

USING CLASSIFICATION
Classification—distinguishing types or classes—can help you explain a great deal of seemingly
unrelated information in an organized and easy-to-follow manner. Take this paragraph that explains
stringed instruments:
There are many types of stringed instruments. The violin family is made up of the violin, viola, cello, and
double bass. Fretted instruments (frets are strips that show players where to put their hands) include the
banjo, mandolin, lute, ukulele, and guitar. Related to these instruments are the lyre and the harp. The
dulcimer, zither, and psaltery form another family, whose strings are stretched over flat sound boxes.
Finally, there are the keyboard stringed instruments such as the piano, clavichord, and harpsichord.

NOTE:
Once again, remember that two methods of development can be used together. Read the
paragraph on stringed instruments above again. See if you can find places where the writer has used
definition and description.
There are many types of stringed instruments. The violin family is made up of the violin, viola, cello, and
double bass. Fretted instruments (frets are strips that show players where to put their hands) include the
banjo, mandolin, lute, ukulele, and guitar. Related to these instruments are the lyre and the harp. The
dulcimer, zither, and psaltery form another family, whose strings are stretched over flat sound boxes.
Finally, there are the keyboard stringed instruments such as the piano, clavichord, and harpsichord.

USING CAUSE AND EFFECT

The cause-and-effect method is useful in explaining why something happens. Take this paragraph on
the causes of avalanches:
An avalanche is a huge snow slide that rushes down the side of a mountain, carrying large trees, rocks,
and other debris in its path. Avalanches are similar to landslides but can be more dangerous and
destructive. Avalanches can occur when huge amounts of new snow fall on layers of snow and ice
that have become unstable because of melting. They can also be triggered by explosions or
earthquakes.

COMBINING METHODS OF DEVELOPMENT

Read the paragraph on avalanches again:
An avalanche is a huge snow slide that rushes down the side of a mountain, carrying large trees, rocks,
and other debris in its path. Avalanches are similar to landslides but can be more dangerous and
destructive. Avalanches can occur when huge amounts of new snow fall on layers of snow and ice
that have become unstable because of melting. They can also be triggered by explosions or
earthquakes.
Where is definition used in this paragraph? How about comparison?