Paragraph Cohesion

Dr. Heather Blain Vorhieshblain@umd.edu

Office of Writing InitiativesThe Graduate School

WHAT IS A PARAGRAPH?

One-Minute Essay

Using only one side of the index card, describe what makes a paragraph.

In other words, what makes a paragraph different from a bunch of sentences grouped together?

Label this side of the index card #1.

UNITYA paragraph treats one controlling idea.

What is the controlling idea?

• A paragraph must have unity. Each sentence within the paragraph contributes to one controlling idea.

• Readers need to be able to easily discern what this controlling idea is and how all other ideas relate to it.

Glossing the controlling idea

Paragraph Structure

All sentences contribute to the controlling idea.

ORGANIZATIONParagraphs show hierarchies of ideas.

Paragraph Organization

General Specific

Claims/evidence/analysis

It can be useful to think of your paragraphs as needing a claim, evidence, and analysis.

Not every paragraph will have this structure, but most should.

COHESIONMaking sentences family.

Old New Information Flow

• This is also referred to as the Known/New contract or as the Topic/Comment pattern.

• The first sentence of the paragraph sets up the pattern.

Some astonishing questions about the nature of the universe have been raised by scientists studying black holes in space. The collapse of a dead star into a point perhaps no larger than a marble creates a black hole. So much matter compressed into so little volume changes the fabric of space around it in puzzling ways.

Some astonishing questions about the nature of the universe have been raised by scientists studying black holes in space. A black hole is created by the collapse of a dead star into a point perhaps no larger than a marble. So much matter compressed into so little volume changes the fabric of space around it in puzzling ways

An example from Williams

How to Revise

• Begin sentences with information familiar to your readers.

• End sentences with information readers cannot anticipate.From Style: Lessons in

Clarity and Grace

Alexander Bain

An example from Gopen

Old New• Up to the time of Darwin,

Lamarck was the only biologist to develop a theory of organic evolution in extensive fashion. Its failure as a scientific theory was discussed in the last chapter.

No information flow• Up to the time of Darwin,

the only biologist to develop a theory of organic evolution in extensive fashion was Lamarck. The last chapter demonstrated how much a failure was this scientific theory.

Revision Practice

Re-write a paragraph of your own, revising for the old new information flow.

Sample Text

Some Other Revision Techniques

• Glossing• Work template sentences into your writing • Keep in mind that most template sentences

from They Say/I Say will need to be adjusted for your field and for the graduate level

• What’s best is to build your own template sentences from literature in your field (“Prior work on X has been reported by Y…”)

A FEW GOOD RESOURCESCampus, Web, and Print Resources

Writing Fellows

One-on-One Writing Consultation for Graduate Studentswww.gradwritingfellows.umd.edu

Web Resources

• Purdue University’s Online Writing Lab• University of Wisconsin-Madison Writing Center Website• University of North Carolina Writing Center Website• Helen Sword’s The Writer’s Diet• Anthony Melchiorri’s

The Science of Science Writing workshop

Print Resources

• The Sense of Structure: Writing From the Reader’s Perspective (George D. Gopen)

• Style: Lessons in Clarity and Grace (Joseph Williams and Joseph Bizup)

• Understanding Style: Practical Ways to Improve Your Writing (Joe Glaser)

• The Science of Scientific Writing (In your articles module)

• The Art of Science Writing (In your articles module)

One-minute Essay

Using the back side of your index card, write a one-minute essay to the same question with which we began this workshop.

What makes a paragraph a paragraph?

Label this side #2. Be sure to give me the index card on your way out.