clarity

starts with grammar!

misplaced modifiers dangling modifiers parallel construction passive voice

if you do not understand the meaning of any of these terms:

ask now goto grammargirl.com goto owl.english.purdue.edu

grammar basics: clauses

know the difference: dependant vs. independent clauses

WRONG:› The World’s Fair was popular and it brought together different

people.› The World’s Fair was popular, and brought together different

people. RIGHT:

› The World’s Fair was popular, and it brought together different people.

› The World’s Fair was popular and brought together different people.

“comma splices”: two separate sentences cannot be joined by a comma

WRONG› The World’s Fair was expensive, it brought together different

people. RIGHT:

› The World’s Fair was expensive; it brought together different people.

› The World’s Fair was expensive. It brought together different people.

› The World’s Fair was expensive, and it brought together different people.

Comma splices

• Look at the sentences that have commas.

• Check to see if the sentence contains two main clauses.

• If there are two main clauses, they should be connected with a comma and a conjunction like and, but, for, or, so, yet.

• Another option is to take out the comma and insert a semicolon instead.

grammar basics: “quotations”

quote versus quotation› Quote is a verb that means to repeat

what someone else has said or written.

› Quotation is noun used to describe what you are quoting.

quoting/paraphrasing/summarizingCITE YOUR SOURCES!(see owl.english.purdue.edu/owl)

Quotations are identical to the original and use a small portion of the source. They match the source document word for word and must be attributed to the original author.

Paraphrasing is putting a passage from source material into your own words. A paraphrase must also be attributed to the original author. Paraphrased material is usually shorter than the original passage, taking a somewhat broader segment of the source and condensing it slightly.

Summarizing is putting the main idea(s) into your own words, including only the main point(s). Once again, it is necessary to attribute summarized ideas to the original source. Summaries are significantly shorter than the original and take a broad overview of the source material.

Why use quotations, paraphrases, and summaries? Quotations, paraphrases, and summaries serve many purposes. You might use

them to . . .• Provide support for claims or add credibility to your writing• Refer to work that leads up to the work you are now doing• Give examples of several points of view on a subject• Call attention to a position that you wish to agree or disagree with• Highlight a particularly striking phrase, sentence, or passage by quoting the

original• Distance yourself from the original by quoting it in order to cue readers that the

words are not your own• Expand the breadth or depth of your writing

using quotations Use direct quotations sparingly, choosing them

carefully to make an impression. › A quotation can be short–one or two words–or an entire

paragraph or passage› Only quote a long passage if you then proceed to

discuss it at length, making it valuable for the reader. Do not quote a long passage because you are lazy!

If you are quoting a long passage (usually more than5 lines), indent the quotation, setting it apart from the paragraph in which you analyze the quotation. Depending on the style guidelines you are using, single or double space the quotation.

A paper composed mainly of quotations or ideas from other authors (à la Frankenstein) runs in to the plagiarism risk called “patchworking”! Plagiarism is not tolerated in any form.

using quotations: ellipsis those little dot-dot-dots … The most common and formal use of ellipses

is to indicate an omission.

If you're quoting someone and you want to shorten the quotation, you use ellipses to show where you've dropped words or sentences. Original: “The World’s Fair is fascinating because of its

scope, and it will be a rewarding study.” My professor said, “the World’s Fair is fascinating… and

it will be a rewarding study.”

single vs. double quotation marks

DOUBLE QUOTATION MARKS “ ” are often used around titles:

I recently read the article “This is the Title of the Article I’m Citing.”

used to indicate that a word is special in some way - something called “scare quotes” (foreign terms, irony, sarcasm): Take me to your “leader.”

when you want to refer to a word rather than use its meaning The term “scare quotes” is odd.

single vs. double quotation marks

SINGLE QUOTATION MARKS ‘ ’

when you are quoting someone who is quoting someone else; you enclose the primary speaker's comments in double quotation marks, and then you enclose the thing they are quoting in single quotation marks: He said “I think she said ‘you’re awesome,’ but I’m not

sure.”

when there's a quote in a headline: Harvard Archaeologist Finds ‘Awesome’ Old Thing

to highlight words with special meaning in certain disciplines such as philosophy, theology, and linguistics

be concise more words more better! if you can remove words

from a sentence w/out changing the sentence’s meaning, do it!

use that vocabulary! a precise word choice can replace wordy extrapolation

techniques1. Replace several vague

words with more powerful and specific words.

2. Interrogate every word in a sentence.

3. Combine Sentences.

some examples from Acadia University English Dept. (http://english.acadiau.ca/Grammar/):

common useless words: generally - tend to -

really - apparently - in my opinion - very basically - I think that - various - essentially - I feel in some ways - virtually - I believe - for all intents and purposes

due to the fact that = because

for the purpose of = for appear to be = appear with the possible exception

of = except almost any use of “being”

tips on eliminating words

Eliminate words that explain the obvious or provide excessive detail

Eliminate unnecessary determiners and modifiers

Omit repetitive wording Change Passive Verbs into Active Verbs

Sentence clarity

Do your sentences "hang together?"1. Readers must feel that they move easily from one sentence to the

next, that each sentence relates to the one before and after it.2. Readers must feel that sentences in a paragraph are unified with each

other.

Paragraphs Will your reader quickly identify the "topic" of each paragraph?

Two Principles• Begin sentences with short, simple words and phrases that a) communicate information that

appeared in previous sentences, or b) build on knowledge that you share with your reader.• In a paragraph, keep your topics short and reasonably consistent.

• Begin sentences with short, simple words and phrases that a) communicate information that appeared in previous sentences, or b) build on knowledge that you share with your reader.

• In a paragraph, keep your topics short and reasonably consistent.

Go from old to new informationIntroduce your readers to the "big picture" first by giving them information they already know. Then they can link what's familiar to the new information you give them. As that new information becomes familiar, it too becomes old information that can link to newer information.

Be careful about placement of subordinate clausesAvoid interrupting the main clause with a subordinate clause if the interruption will cause confusion:

clear (subordinate clause at the end):Industrial spying is increasing rapidly because of the growing use of computers to store and process corporate information.

clear (subordinate clause at the beginning):Because of the growing use of computers to store and process corporate information, industrial spying is increasing rapidly.

not as clear (subordinate clause embedded in the middle):Industrial spying, because of the growing use of computers to store and process corporate information, is increasing rapidly.

Improving sentence clarity

Use active voiceSentences in active voice are usually easier to understand than those in passive voice because active-voice constructions indicate clearly the performer of the action expressed in the verb. clear (active):The committee decided to postpone the vote.not as clear (passive):A decision was reached to postpone the vote.

Use parallel constructionsWhen you have a series of words, phrases, or clauses, put them in parallel form (similar grammatical construction) so that the reader can identify the linking relationship more easily and clearly.clear (parallel):In Florida, where the threat of hurricanes is an annual event, we learned that it is important (1) to become aware of the warning signs, (2) to know what precautions to take, and (3) to decide when to seek shelter.not as clear (not parallel):In Florida, where the threat of hurricanes is an annual event, we learned that it is important (1) to become aware of the warning signs. (2) There are precautions to take, and (3) deciding when to take shelter is important.

Avoid noun stringsTry not to string nouns together one after the other because a series of nouns is difficult to understand. One way to revise a string of nouns is to change one noun to a verb.unclear (string of nouns):This report explains our investment growth stimulation projects.clearer:This report explains our projects to stimulate growth in investments.

Avoid overusing noun forms of verbsUse verbs when possible rather than noun forms known as "nominalizations."unclear (use of nominalization):The implementation of the plan was successful.clearer:The plan was implemented successfully.

Avoid multiple negativesUse affirmative forms rather than several negatives because multiple negatives are difficult to understand.unclear (multiple negatives, passive):Less attention is paid to commercials that lack human interest stories than to other kinds of commercials.clearer:People pay more attention to commercials with human interest stories than to other kinds ofcommercials.

Choose action verbs over forms of beWhen possible, avoid using forms of be as the main verbs in your sentences and clauses.

Unclear (overuse of be verbs):One difference between television news reporting and the coverage provided by newspapers is the time factor between the actual happening of an event and the time it takes to be reported. The problem is that instantaneous coverage is physically impossible for newspapers.Clearer:Television news reporting differs from that of newspapers in that television, unlike newspapers, can provide instantaneous coverage of events as they happen.

Avoid unclear pronoun referencesBe sure that the pronouns you use refer clearly to a noun in the current or previous sentence. If the pronoun refers to a noun that has been implied but not stated, you can clarify the reference by explicitly using that noun.This, that, these, those, he, she, it, they, and we are useful pronouns for referring back to something previously mentioned. Be sure, however, that what you are referring to is clear.

proofreading tips Read your work backwards Read your work out loud. Have a friend read it or read it to you. Always proofread a printed version of

your work (though try to use scrap paper!).

Give yourself some time!!!

It is easier to see coherence and clarity in other people's writing; we become familiar with our content. Detached re-reading takes practice. PEER REVIEW.

sources: grammargirlirl.com, owl.english.purdue.edu/owl

“order concerns” “Higher Order Concerns”: Big Picture

› Topic› Audience› Thesis Statement & Purpose› Organization› Supporting data

“Lower Order Concerns”: Mechanics› spelling› grammar› punctuation› sentence structure› word choice› syntax (word order)

Higher & Lower Order Concerns necessary for success!

organizing papers is easy!

1. Tell what you're going to tell them (introduction).

2. Tell them (body).3. Tell them what you told them (conclusion).

see http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/

argumentative thesis

Clearly defined topic Clearly defined thesis statement/argument Goal is to persuade audience to that point of view Must support thesis with proof (specific data) and

sound reasoning use secondary and primary sources remembered source evaluation from Annotated Bibliography

lecture

organizing information flow

within a paragraph, a reliable way to

organize information is to move from general

to specific:

1. Transition sentence: relates to previous paragraph for clear progression of ideas

2. Topic sentence: tells the reader what you will be discussing in the paragraph.

3. Evidence and analysis: relates to your topic and provides detail

4. Wrap-up sentence: tells the reader how and why this information supports the paper’s overall thesis statement; it demonstrates that the information in the paragraph is related to your thesis and helps defend the thesis

topic sentences

A “topic sentence” is the main sentence (controlling idea) of an individual paragraph, which describes its content and direction.

There is only ONE topic per paragraph. Information that is not related to the topic

sentence does NOT belong in the paragraph. A new topic requires a new topic sentence

and a new paragraph.

example of a poorly organized paragraph:

What is the topic sentence? Do all the sentences relate to a single topic sentence? Do the ideas move logically from the general to the specific or vice

versa? Does the paragraph move from transition (relating the previous

paragraph to this one), to topic, to evidence, to wrap-up (relating this idea to the thesis statement)?

Knives were an integral part of Montagnais culture. The name Montagnais means “Mountaineers” in French. When the French originally came in contact with the Innu, which they prefer to be called today, they were impressed by the ability to survive in the harsh winters and thus called them “Mountaineers”. I am assuming the sheath was probably a present given to a husband, brother, or son in the community to commemorate a first hunt or a ritual hunt. The quills embroidered on the sheath also represent and important part of their culture because the Montagnais were also referred to as the “Porcupine Indians”. They thought the porcupine was a delicacy. The sheath was used to protect the tool that the Montagnais needed for their survival.

Concluding paragraphsConclusions summarize and wrap up your

piece/argument. Your conclusion is marked by a move back to general information that restates the main points of your argument.

restate your topic and why it is important, restate your thesis/claim, (perhaps) address opposing viewpoints and

explain why readers should align with your position,

(perhaps) call for action or overview future research possibilities.