PARAGRAPHS

Last Modified by Steve Custer 08 December 2005

Introduction to Paragraphs and Transitions

The paragraph is a fundamental unit of writing. A good paragraph should contain an single idea or point which is developed and linked to the other ideas or points in the paper. Each paragraph should also develop an idea. As a reader you usually consciously or unconsciously know if the paragraphs are well developed and linked. Textbooks you like probably have good paragraphs and transitions, while textbooks you do not like often have poorly developed paragraphs and transitions. Poor paragraphs and transitions are signaled during reading when you have difficulty determining what the paragraph has to do with the topic under discussion. You may recall the experience during reading when your brain is saying, "but what does this fact have to do with the idea?" or , "Gosh this idea is really separate, this is a whole new point. Where is this idea coming from, where is paper going?" You may also have encountered a paper with eight paragraphs each two lines long occurring in succession (news style). Each element of the paragraph (topic (transition), body and concluding sentence are important.

In the topic position, the writer must look back to what has gone before and look forward to the new idea and link that idea to the position. This sentence must do many things and is very important. Remember, "Paragraphs in a paper do not stand alone. They are related to each other and, especially, to the position or thesis of the paper. Writers must always very clearly lead, so that the readers can very easily follow" (Bruffee, 1980, p. 21; See also Gopen and Swan, 1990). An examination of the nature of transition sentences may clarify the outline because the transition sentences should clearly show the thread of the argument. Thus the first sentence of a paragraph might look back at the previous idea and forward to the next topic in the argument. These sentences are often difficult to write until one gets used to the idea of explicitly leading the reader through the argument.

Once the topic sentence is written, the idea the paragraph is about must be developed. This part of the paragraph is sometimes called the body and develops the evidence, data, and/or logic that supports the idea the paragraph has taken up. Usually, figures, tables, and data as well as logic are used to support the point of the paragraph. These data are critical to the argument and the reader should not be left to their own devices to figure out what the data show. Write about the figure or table. A simple parenthetical citation which sends the reader to the figure or table is often inadequate. Make clear what the data show and how the figure relates to the paragraph topic. Because each paragraph should have a topic sentence, a body, and a concluding sentence, paragraphs should rarely be one to two lines long. Each paragraph should contain support for the topic of the paragraph.

After the body of the paragraph is developed there should be a concluding sentence. This sentence is in the emphasis position in the paragraph (Gopen and Swan, 1990) and should be related to the paragraph. A common error is to introduce new material in the concluding sentence of a paragraph. This often leaves the reader surprised because main point of the paragraph is expected in the emphasis position. The concluding sentence should reiterate and clearly state the main point the paragraph makes.

A technique which can help create good paragraphs is to identify the function of a paragraph. Analysis of what the paragraph does and says is often useful. The distinction between what a paragraph does and says is important and can be clarified with some examples from English. Words that describe what a paragraph does include: describe, trace, compare, analyze synthesize,..... . Thus the paragraph you are currently reading describes the difference between what a paragraph does and says. A statement of what a paragraph says is harder to subsume with single words, but again can be illustrated through the paragraph you are now reading. This paragraph says that there is a difference between what a paragraph does and what a paragraph says, and that analysis of a paragraph's function may help the writer write more clearly. Note that what the paragraph does and what it says are different. The "says" identifies the idea the paragraph intends to convey; the "does" is the mechanism by which the paragraph conveys the thought. By reviewing your own paragraphs and analyzing what they do and say, you can often clarify your writing so that the reader can better follow your argument.

In general, a paragraph should contain a transition which connects the paragraph with what has gone before with what is to come, a clear topic sentence, and a clear, and smooth development of the paragraph topic which leads to a conclusion. The paragraph does not have to develop an earth shaking idea, but may be a transition itself which clarifies where the reader has been and directs the readers attention to a new topic related to the previous material. The writer should clearly convey what the paragraph is trying to "say" and should recognize what the paragraph is "doing" to convey the idea. Such a paragraph functions to direct or lead the reader through the argument to the conclusion the writer plans.

Discussion Questions:

Are the paragraphs by Minnich (1987) or Blatt (1979) good? Why?

Minnich (1987, p. 601)

"During the rancho period in the early nineteenth century, ranchers may have contributed to the burning in the mountains by igniting coastal valley grasslands to improve browse. Arturo Bandini, whose family has been long resident in southern California, reported to Kinney (1887, p. 31) that his relatives and their vaqueros saw considerable "burning off of the brush in the mountains." Similarly, Vernon (1956, 143) reported that "Spaniards started fires in the foothills to clear them of brush. These fires were set at will and allowed to burn themselves out. On more than one occasion fires are said to have burned steadily for several months before running their course." In 1841, Deflot de Mofras saw "black and copper clouds" and "a fire cloud of ashes fall" in the coast ranges of central California (Wilbur 1937, Pt. 2, 23). De Mofras noted that these were "ordinary spectacles" as such fires "smolder for months and spread from one end of the province to the other."

The settlement of the southern California mountains after statehood and the advent of newspapers brought increasing information on mountain fires. The earliest detailed accounts come from the western San Bernardino Mountains, where fire was a direct threat to the primary timber resource of southern California (Minnich 1988). san Bernardino newspapers even specified the canyons involved. Ten burns were reported in various portions of Waterman Canyon between 1870 and 1919; 13 were reported in City Creek (Fig. 1). Numerous fires were reported in the mountains in 1858, 1876, 1878, 1879, 1881, and 1889.

In the San Gabriel Mountains, which remained unpopulated until c. 1890, smoke annually elicited numerous comments in the Los Angeles newspapers, especially in relation to Indians, weather, or the beauty of the spectacle (Table 1). The typical news observation was a vague statement that fires were raging in the mountains. The language suggests t hat burning was an ordinary circumstance and persisted for considerable periods. Fires were sometimes viewed as the cause of heat waves, because they apparently tended to grow larger and produce more smoke in hotter weather. Most fires occurred in summer although some reports extended into the Santa Ana wind season after September. Many fires were probably overlooked during cooler weather when views of the mountains were obscured by low morning clouds and afternoon sea haze. Most smoke columns were probably ignored."

Blatt et al., 1972, p. 480-81

"No conclusive evidence exists that de novo growth of dolomite crystals from a body of water is taking place today. Only a few years ago, however, prior to the discovery of modern dolomite of replacement origin, the apparent absence of dolomite in Holocene sediments was used as an argument for dolomitization being a phenomenon associated with deep burial. In considering the type of evidence that would be acceptable, the "whiting" phenomenon discussed in Chap. 12 immediately comes to mind. If a cloud of dolomite crystals could be observed forming in a body of water, and it could be demonstrated that the dolomite was not resuspended bottom sediment, this would be quite convincing. Whitings indicate rapid nucleation and initial growth and, therefore, the rate of growth of dolomite crystallites is of interest.

One locality in which the rate of growth of such crystallites has been studied is Deep Spring Lake, located on the California-Nevada state line (Peterson et al., 1966). No whitings have been seen but dolomite crystals, mostly less than 1 µ in size, are abundant on the lake bottom. Detailed C¹⁴ measurements have been made of this dolomite. The age of various size fractions from the sediment was determined and, in every case, the coarser sizes had a greater average age. The rate of growth of the crystals ranged from 0.05 to 0.09 µ/1000 y, which is extremely slow compared to growth rates of most substances from saturated solutions.

X-Ray diffraction studies of different layers within the dolomite crystals revealed that the surficial layer(s) on the growing crystal is (are) calcium-rich but that 1:1 stoichiometry of magnesium and calcium ions is achieved by short-range solid state diffusion before the inner part of the crystal is buried too deeply inside the crystal and effectively isolated from the growth medium.

Deep Spring Lake is perhaps the closest approach to documented primary dolomite yet reported but if primary dolomite is defined as spontaneous nucleation from a body of natural water, not even the Deep Spring occurrence qualifies. The dolomite crystals in the lake appear to result from metasomatism of calcium carbonate at the sediment-water interface and the process here seems to require time periods of tens or hundreds of years to occur. Clearly, a time interval of this duration is irresolvable in ancient rocks. For this reason, some geologists would refer to the Deep Springs dolomite as primary and the correctness of this usage is largely a semantic question."

Assignment:

Turn in three paragraphs you have written for the paper in this class at the end of the class period. You are encouraged to bring two copies. One your colleagues can mark up and one you can turn in. This way you have the comments you get from your peers.
Continue to rewrite your paper in light of your self analysis. Bring at least three consecutive paragraphs you have written to support your position and are willing to share with the class.

Break into groups of two or three. Exchange paragraphs.

Do your colleagues paragraphs have good transitions?
How might your peer's paragraphs be improved? (Critical review is usually a bit painful for the reviewee, but a weak paper is even more painful in the end. Be a friend and constructively criticize your peer's work.
Are there problems you are having with your writing you would like help with? (Don't forget -- If you are having writing problems you can use the writing center as well as your peers and your instructor.)

Grade:

1% attendance; 1% three typed paragraphs turned in at the end of class with your name on the front page. Quality of writing and participation may influence the points awarded.