Notes on Descriptive Writing

In this unit you will learn:• Types of descriptive words• Two types of description• How to write a descriptive

sentence• Organizational patterns for

paragraphs• Tips for Writing Description



Think of descriptive writing as “writing that shows rather than tells.”

Types of Descriptive Words

• Concrete Words• Polysymbolic Words• Emotionally-impacted Words• Figures of Speech

• Concrete Words

Words that stimulate an impression of one of the five senses


Words that stimulate multiple impressions of the five senses


• Polysymbolic Words

Concrete and/or polysymbolic words that also carry significant emotional value(s)


• Emotionally-impacted Words

Imaginative comparisons

Object A


• Figures of Speech

Object B


Object A



Object B

!?


• similes

• metaphors

• personification

• anthropomorphism

• synecdoche



An indirect comparison using “like” or “as”


• Similes

A direct comparison suggesting a complete transformation of Object A into Object B


• Metaphors

1. Simple metaphor

2. Collapsed metaphor

3. Abstract metaphor

4. Inverted metaphor

5. Functional metaphor


• Types of Metaphors

1. Simple metaphor

John is a fox.



2. Collapsed metaphor

John, the fox



3. Abstract metaphor

_____, “fox”



4. Inverted metaphor

foxy John



5. Functional metaphor

“That John! He sure ‘outfoxed’ me!”



Attributing life-like qualities to inanimate objects/subjects


• Personification

Attributing specific human-like qualities to inanimate objects/ subjects


• Anthropomorphism

Referencing a part of one object to compare that object with another


• Synecdoche

Problems with Figures of SpeechA Sample Paragraph

Cool water flows through the rocky banks of the creek and into a wide pond. Reeds and cattails surrounding the bank embrace the pond like a mother’s enfolding arms reaching out to caress her sleeping child. Like a beaming proud mother’s eye, the sun drenches the scene with its loving warmth. Just beneath the sparkling surface of the water, minnows shoot from rock to rock like silver darts thrust like scattershot by some unseen hand.

Problems with Figures of SpeechA Sample Paragraph

Cool water flows through the rocky banks of the creek and into a wide pond. Reeds and cattails surround the bank. The sun drenches the scene with its warmth. Just beneath the sparkling surface of the water, like silver darts, minnows shoot from rock to rock.

• Objective Description• Subjective Description

Two Types of Description


• Objective Description

“technical description”

Concrete Words

Polysymbolic Words


• Objective Description

“personal description”


• Subjective Description

Concrete Words

Polysymbolic Words

Emotionally-Impacted Words

Figures of Speech


• Subjective Description

Writing the Descriptive Sentence

• The descriptive sentence is always an abstraction with specific details.• The descriptive sentence always focuses on the subject or the predicate.• The descriptive sentence supports an objective—one part of the paragraph or another.

• The descriptive sentence is always an abstraction with specific details.Descriptive sentences never

present all the images; each sentence creates a limited picture.


• The descriptive sentence always focuses on the subject or the predicate.

Subject -- Predicate


• The descriptive sentence always focuses on the subject or the predicate.

Subject Noun – Verb – Object Nouns

Who? What? Where? When? How?


• The descriptive sentence supports an objective—one part of the paragraph or another.

Clarifies the main idea of the topic sentence

Clarifies primary development

Clarifies secondary development


A sample descriptive sentence:

The blue-grey laptop computer, perched on the parquet-laminated kitchen table, cluttered with books and papers, displays the PowerPoint abstract background—softly blended graphics that fade into white, punctuated with stiff, black letters.


A better descriptive sentence:

On its two back legs, the blue-grey laptop computer perched on the parquet-laminated kitchen table.

(subjective description)


An alternative descriptive sentence:

Raised on back legs, the blue-grey laptop computer was set on the parquet-laminated kitchen table.

(objective description)


Basic Patterns for Organizing Effective

Description• Directional Organization• Spatial Organization• Psychological Organization

• Directional Organization

Order of the Compass

Linear

Chronological

Sequential


Description

• Spatial Organization

General to Specific/Specific to General

Small to Large/Large to Small

Front to Back/Back to Front

Inside to Outside/Outside to Inside


Description

• Psychological Organization

Most important to least important

Least important to most important

Associative (familiarity)

Non-associative (random)


Description

Facing east, the house rests atop two acres of farmland. The gated drive begins at the highway and winds in a gentle “S” across the grassy front lawn and ends at the garage to the left of the main house. Behind the house stretches freshly plowed ground, rows ranging from left to right. A line of oaks crowns the crest of the property.

Sample Paragraph #1

Sample Paragraph #2

Resting deeply back in his chair, his feet crossed on the corner of his desk, Dr. Marsh is fast asleep. The few silver-grey strands of hair sweep back from his receding hairline. His lips sealed loosely, his wide chin rests comfortably over his neck. A pair of black reading glasses dangle on the end of his nose. His chest rises and falls as he snores softly in a slow rhythm. His pulpy hands are folded in his lap over a brown folder of loose pages.

Tips for Descriptive Writing

• Focus the descriptive words on the subject or predicate.• Don’t overwork the detail.• Arrange descriptive sentences consistently, following an organizational plan.• Keep descriptive detail objective in business communications.• Use description along with other developmental patterns.

Notes on Descriptive Writing

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