Transcript The Basics of Writing

The Basics of Writing
Expository Writing
and
Personal Responses
Types of Writing
 Expository Writing: essays, quick writes,
and summaries; formal writing.
 Purpose is to inform or explain something.
 Use third person ONLY; Write in present tense
 Personal Writing: reflections, responses,
and narratives; formal and informal writing.
 Purpose is to focus on personal opinions, ideas,
and events.
 Uses third person ONLY; first person is implied
Perspective (Pronouns)
 First Person: the person speaking
 Singular: I, me,/ my, mine,/ myself
 Plural: we, us,/ our, ours,/ ourselves
 Second Person: the person being spoken to
 Singular: you,/ your, yours,/ yourself
 Plural: you,/ your, yours,/ yourselves
 Third Person: the person being discussed
 Singular: he, him, she, her, it,/ his, her, hers,
its,/ himself, herself, itself
 Plural: they, them,/ their, theirs,/ themselves
Indefinite Pronouns
 In expository writing, avoid using
indefinite pronouns because they are too
ambiguous and vague.
 Indefinite pronoun: refers to persons,
places or ideas in a more general way
than nouns.
 ie. Anything, everything, thing, it, someone,
some, something, somebody, nobody, no
one, everybody, everyone, one, any, etc…
Using Pronouns Correctly
 Pronoun: a word that takes the place of
a noun.
 Antecedent: the noun to which the
pronoun is referring to.
 In expository writing, do not use a
pronoun without an antecedent.
 i.e.. Though Georgia O’Keefe was born in
Wisconsin, she grew to love the landscape of
the American Southwest. (ID the antecedent)
Using Pronouns Correctly
 Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement: all
pronouns must agree with their
antecedents in number, gender, and person.
 Number: agree with plural or singular ant.
 Gender: agree with masculine or feminine ant.
 ie. Emily Dickinson wrote her poems on scrap
paper. (singular feminine pronoun)
 Person: agree with 1st, 2nd, or 3rd person ant.
 The lost generation wrote about their loss of
innocence because of the World Wars.
Clear Pronoun Reference
 Clearly state the antecedent of the
pronoun. Make sure that a pronoun does
not refer to more than one antecedent.
 Don’t use the pronoun this, that, which, it, any,
or one without a clearly stated antecedent.
 ie. Dickens loved public speaking, and that
greatly boosted his popularity. (What boosted
his popularity? His speeches did, but the word
speeches is not specifically mentioned.)
 Dickens loved public speaking, and his
speeches greatly boosted his popularity.
Clear Pronoun Reference
 If a pronoun seems to refer to more than
one antecedent, either reword the sentence
to make the antecedent clear or eliminate
the pronoun.
 ie. After the tickets slipped between the
reports, they were lost. (Tickets or reports?)
 The tickets were lost when they slipped
between the reports. (clear antecedent)
 When the tickets slipped between the reports,
the tickets were lost. (no pronoun)
Verb Tenses (Present Tense)
 Verb Tense: forms that help to show time.
 In expository writing, use only present
tense verbs.
 Present Tense: expresses a constant,
repeated, or habitual action or condition. It
can also express a general truth.
 The present-tense form of a verb is the same as
the base form of the verb, except for the 3rd
person singular, which adds –s or –es.
Present Tense Examples
 Hemingway writes in a simplistic and
rich style. (always; a habitual action)
 Shakespeare explores the use of
language in his works. (not just in one
play but in every play; a repeated
action)
 Bilbo Baggins is an unusual hero. (a
general truth).
Verb Tenses (Past Tense)
 Never use past tense in expository writing
because literature is ongoing.
 Past Tense: expresses an action or a
condition that was started and completed
in the past.
 Nearly all regular and irregular verbs
(except be) have just one past-tense
form, such as climbed or ran. The verb be
has two: was and were
Verb Tenses (Future Tense)
 Future Tense: expresses an action or a condition
that will occur in the future.
 Form future tense by using the auxiliary verb shall
or will with the base form. Also, by using going to
or about to with the present tense of the verb be
and the base form of the verb.
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Pip will achieve great expectations.
When shall I study?
Pip is going to achieve great expectations.
Pip is about to achieve great expectations.
Consistency of Tenses
 Don’t shift, or change, tenses when two or
more events occur at the same time.
 The soloist stopped suddenly and coughs
loudly. (correct this)
 Keep a statement about a general truth in
the present tense if other verbs are in the
past tense.
 We remembered that Shakespeare is a master
of characterization.
Voice of Verbs (Active Voice)
 In expository writing, always use active
voice.
 With active voice the action comes alive.
 An action verb is in active voice when
the subject performs the action.
 ie. The brown bear caught a salmon.
 ie. Shakespeare wrote these sonnets.
Voice of Verbs (Passive Voice)
 An action verb is in passive voice when its
action is performed on the subject.
 Do not use passive voice- it is boring.
 Form the passive voice by using the
auxiliary verb be with the past participle of
the verb.
 A salmon was caught by the brown bear.
 These sonnets were wrote by Shakespeare.
Subject- Verb Agreement
 A verb must agree with its subject in
number.
 Number refers to whether the word is
singular or plural.
 A Singular subject indicates one (with most
regular verbs, add –s or –es to form the sing.)
 ie. The author writes.
 Plural subjects indicate more than one and
require plural verbs.
 ie. The authors write.
Agreement with Compound Subjects
 A compound subject that is joined by and
or both is plural unless its parts belong to
one unit or they both refer to the same
person or thing.
 ie. The lion and the tiger are roaring. (plural)
 ie. Peanut butter and jelly is my favorite type
of sandwich. (singular because it is one unit).
 ie. His best friend and companion is George.
(singular because it is one person).
Agreement with Compound Subjects
 With compound subjects joined by or or
nor (or either…or or neither…nor), the
verb agrees with the subject closer to it.