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Coherence
To stick together. Making ideas flow smoothly and clearly. And making the reader understand.

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Unity: The First Key to Effective Writing It has a clear main point or central idea (topic sentence, thesis statement). Whats your point? Or Whats your main idea?

To have unity: You need to

develop a single point and stick to that point. All the details in your writing are related to that point.

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What Is Coherence?

means "to stick together." All the ideas in a paragraph flow smoothly from one sentence to the next sentence. With coherence, the reader has an easy time understanding the ideas that you wish to express.

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Is Coherence Important?

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Before Build Up Coherence

Is there a working thesis statement in your essay already?

Thesis statement is first priority. Without a working thesis statement, you are lost.

Did you develop clear relationships of ideas

yet?
Check your outline first, does it fit your topic? Is it organized? Is it logical? If not, re-read the topic and revise the outline.

Are there enough specific evidences that

support your points?

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How Can We Create Coherence

Coherence itself is the product of two factors

Sentence Cohesion Paragraph Unity

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Sentence Cohesion
Sentence Cohesion: to achieve cohesion, the link of one sentence to the next, consider following techniques Repetition Synonymy Pronoun Reference Parallelism Transitions (Connectors)

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Repetition - Sentence Cohesion

Repeat key words and phrases.
Example 1 The problem with contemporary art is that is not easily understood by most people. Contemporary art is deliberately abstract, and that means it leaves viewers wondering what they are looking at. Example 2 You can fool some of the people all of the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you cannot fool all of the people all of the time. (Abraham Lincoln)

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Synonymy- Sentence Cohesion

If direct repetition is too obvious, use a synonym of the word you wish to repeat.

Example 1 He appeared so thankful to all the staff, thankful to all of the parents, and especially thankful to his students. He appeared so thankful to all the staff, grateful to all of the parents, and especially appreciative towards his students.

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Pronoun Reference- Sentence Cohesion

Use pronoun to make explicit reference Subject Object POSSESSIVE PRONOUNS
Form

back toForm a form mentioned earlier. (show ownership)

Adjectives

Personal pronouns

was said before, then the reader going on Relative pronouns andwho to the next whom part.
interrogative pronouns which that which that whose + noun

I me my mine because pronouns almost always you you your yours refer the she, he, it her, him, it her, his, its his, its reader to something earlier in hers, the text. we Thus, the us pronoun ourcauses the reader ours to you you your yours quickly and what they sum up, them their subconsciously, theirs

Pronouns quite naturally connect ideas

Pronouns

Source: Ann Hougue, Subject, object, and possessive forms, The Essentials of English: A Writers edition, Pearson Education, 2003. P165~P166; Azar, Betty Schrampfer. 8-1 PERSONAL PRONOUNS. Understanding and using English grammar. 3rd ed. NY: Pearson Education, 1999. 132.

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Pronoun Reference- Sentence Cohesion

Example 1 While the commuters were driving home, they saw the highway buckle. Immediately they began pulling over to stop. Within moments they realized an earthquake had struck their city, San Francisco.

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Pronoun Reference- Sentence Cohesion

Example 2 When scientific experiments do not work out as expected, they are often considered failures until some other scientist tries them again. Those that work out better the second time around are the ones that promise the most rewards.

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Parallelism- Sentence Cohesion

Repeat a sentence structure. A successful parallel sentence reads smoothly, while a faulty parallel sentence lurches awkwardly. Actually, when we do our outline, we are using parallelism.

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Parallelism- Sentence Cohesion

Example 1 I acquired my considerable fortune by investing carefully, hard work and marrying a rich woman. I acquired my considerable fortune by investing carefully, working hard and marrying a rich woman.

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Parallelism- Sentence Cohesion

Example 2 : Repetition+ Parallelism

ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.(John F. Kennedy)

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Transitions - Sentence Cohesion

Link sentences with particular logical relationships. They link your sentences and paragraphs together smoothly so that there are no abrupt jumps or breaks between ideas. Indicate to the reader the order and flow of your writing and ideas. They strengthen the internal cohesion of your writing. Using transitions makes it easier for the reader to follow your ideas. They help carry over a thought from one sentence to another, from one paragraph to another, or from one idea to another.

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Transitions - Sentence Cohesion

Example My morning routine never changes. My alarm clock rings for the third time. I get up. I sleepwalk to the shower. I stand in the shower for ten minutes. I am finally awake. I get dressed. I got to the kitchen, make a cup of tea and put a slice of bread in the toaster. I eat breakfast and feed my cat. I put her outside. I am ready to face the world. I get on the bus and go to school. My first class begins, I go back to sleep. My morning routine never changes. When my alarm clock rings for the third time, I get up and sleepwalk to the shower. I stand in the shower for ten minutes until I am finally awake. Then I get dressed. Next, I got to the kitchen, make a cup of tea and put a slice of bread in the toaster. After I eat breakfast and feed my cat, I put her outside. Finally, I am ready to face the world, so I get on the bus and go to school. As soon as my first class begins, I go back to sleep

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Transitions - Sentence Cohesion

Useful Signals for Compare /Contrast Essays Signals of likeness Signals of difference Related words Signals of logical consequence Signals of illustration Signals of restatement Likewise, In the same way, Similarly On the other hand, in contrast, on the contrary Whereas, unlike Therefore, Thus, Consequently, Hence For example, For instance That is, in other words, in simpler terms, to put it differently,

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How Can We Create Coherence

Coherence itself is the product of two factors:

Sentence Cohesion Paragraph Unity

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Paragraph Unity

Coherence is necessary. Unity without coherence results in

a second-class paragraph.

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Paragraph Unity

An essay focus on one overall theme.

This is an essay Each paragraph is about ONLY ONE 1 paragraph main idea. Introduction + Thesis Statement
st

All the sentences

2nd paragraph One main idea

Topic Sentence

Supporting topic sentence Sentences 3 paragraph supporting sentences The anther idea Concluding Sentence detail sentences (sometimes) the concluding sentence Concluding paragraph
rd

are all telling the reader about ONE main idea.

Sum up your ideas

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Paragraph Unity
San Francisco is one of the perfect places to spend a vacation. First of all, it is a beautiful city. From the top of its hills, the views of the sparkling blue water of San Francisco Bay and the green hills beyond are spectacular. Second, San Francisco has many excellent restaurants. With hundreds of restaurants serving delicious food from every part of the world, the city is truly a food-lovers paradise. San Francisco is also fun. Riding a cable car down one of the citys steep hills, eating a seafood cocktail at Fishermans Wharf, windowshopping in Cinatown, or walking across the famous Golden Gate Bridge are just a few of the activities on every visitors must-do list.

Topic Sentence Supporting Sentences

Concluding Sentence

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Review

What is Coherence?

Making ideas flow smoothly and clearly. And making the reader understand. Sentence Cohesion + Paragraph Unity

How to create Coherence?

Repetition Synonymy Pronoun Reference Parallelism Transitions (Connectors) Unity

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Reference

Ann Hougue (2003).The Essentials of English: A Writers edition, Pearson Education Azar, Betty Schrampfer (1999). Understanding and using English grammar. 3rd ed. NY: Pearson Education Zemach, Dorothy. E. & Rumisek, Lisa A. (2003). College Writing: From Paragraph to Essay. Oxford: Macmillan. http://lrs.ed.uiuc.edu/students/fwalters/cohere.html (point by point) (pithy) http://hospitality.hud.ac.uk/studyskills/writing/index.htm (Repetition) http://web.uvic.ca/wguide/Pages/SentParallel.html (Parallelism) http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/grammar/g_parallel.html (Parallel Structure) http://more.headroyce.org/research/writing/techniques/transsignals11.html (Transition Signals) http://www.uwf.edu/writelab/handouts/paragraphcoherence.pdf (Paragraph Coherence Writing Lab 2003)

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Q&A

Q&A

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THANKS FOR YOUR ATTENTION!