1、Lecture 1: Types of Writing and General Introduction,For the postgraduates,Main Contents,1)What is an essay ? 2)Types Of Writing A) Descriptive EssayB) Narrative EssayC) Expository EssayD) Argumentative Essay2) Research paperA) Term PaperB) ThesisC) Dissertation,Main Contents,4) What is involved in
2、research paper writing ?A) Pre-writing Stage B) Writing StageC) Post-writing Stage 5) Lay-out of the Lectures in this Term,What is an essay?,“An essay is a short literary composition on a particular theme or subject”.It can also be defined as “ an analytic or interpretative literary composition usua
3、lly dealing with its subject from a limited or personal point of view”.,Structure of an Essay,An Essay has three mian parts: an introduction, a body and conclusion.,Diagram,Descriptive Essay描写,Narrative Essay叙述,Expository Essay说明,Argumentative Essay议论,Description,Description is painting a picture in
4、 words of a person, place, object or scene.“ a description essay is generally developed through sensory details, or the impressions of ones senses sight, hearing, taste, smell, and touch.,Examples: person,“Chou En-lai arrived at the guest house for state visitors at 4:30. his gaunt, expressive face
5、was dominated by piercing eyes, conveying a mixture of intensity and repose, of wariness and calm self-confidence. He wore an immaculately tailored gray Mao Tunic, at once simple and elegant. He moved gracefully and with dignity, filling a room not by his physical dominance, but by his air of contro
6、lled tension.”,Examples: Place,With a shopping bag in my hand, I entered the gate if the free market near my home. Suddenly a terrible smell reached my nose and I could not help feeling nauseated. Looking around I found that the foul smell came the poultry stalls on the left side of the street. Ther
7、e, every stall cage was packed with four or five chickens. Occasionally, the chickens crowed sadly as if they knew they were going to be cooked. The feed stank under the hot summer sun. I put a hanker-chief to my nose and hurried away.,Examples: scene,The typhoon came out of the sea as a deep hollow
8、 roar. Then it appeared as a monstrous black cloud. The cloud seemed a thing alive, shaping itself this way or that, torn by contending winds. However, it might stretch to right or left, it continued to spread upward and reach toward east and west. The day darkened to twilight and the dreaded roar o
9、f sound came rushing toward me from out of the depths. I crouched behind my rock and waited.,Narration,To narrate is to give an account of an event or a series of events. In its broadest sense, narrative writing includes stories, real or imaginary, biographies, histories, news items, and narrative p
10、oems.,Example: narration,The most important day I remember in all my life is the one on which my teacher, Anne Mansfield Sullivan, came to me. I am filled with wonder when consider the immeasurable contrasts between the two lives which it connects. It was the third of March,1887, three months before
11、 I was seven years old.,Example: narration,On the afternoon of that eventful day, I stood on the porch, dumb, expectant. I guessed vaguely from my mothers sighs and from the hurrying to and fro in the house that something unusual was about to happen, so I went to the door and waited on the steps.,Ex
12、ample: narration,The afternoon sun penetrated the mass of honey suckle that covered the porch, and fell on my upturned face. My finger lingered almost unconsciously on the familiar leaves and blossoms which had just come forth to greet the sweet southern spring. I did not know what the future held o
13、f marvel or surprise for me. Anger and bitterness had preyed upon me continually for weeks and a deep languor had succeeded this passionate struggle.,Exposition,Exposition means expounding or explaining. An expository paper explains or explores something, such as the process of making a machine, the
14、 cause of a natural or social phenomenon, the planning of a project, or the solution of a problem.,Example: exposition,The grading system also contains penalties and rewards, but thats what makes people tick. Would any student write a tem paper, read a textbook, or attend a lecture in a field outsid
15、e his interest if he were not motivated by grades? Because studying and learning are hard work, students need penalties and rewards. Of course this results in pressure. Certainly, this produces competition. But without them, few people would strive to let their learning exceed their intellectual rea
16、ch. Oh yes, there are a few students who are highly self-motivated and are genuinely interested in learning. But most student would rather see a basket ball game, rap in the Grill, or watch a movie. Lets face itthats why we need the present grading system. Anything else would result in a lowering of
17、 the standards and a fifth-rate university.,Argumentation,An argumentative essay tries to make the reader agree with its point of view and support it, to persuade him to change his mind or behavior, and to approve a policy or a course of action that it proposes.,Difference between exposition and arg
18、umentation,Exposition To tell, to inform Make something known and make the reader understand,Narration To convince, to persuademake the reader agree with its point of view and support it, to persuade him to change his mind or behavior, and to approve a policy or course of action,Argumentation is act
19、ually exposition with the additional purpose of convincing or persuading.,Basic features,1) A debatable point: It is imperative that the paper should have a debatable point, that is, something which can be viewed from more than one angle and is therefore open to dispute.,What should be avoided,1)Chi
20、nese doctors use acupuncture anesthesia to perform certain operation (mere statements of facts)Acupuncture anesthesia should replace conventional anesthesia in all operations (debatable point),What should be avoided,2) William Faulkner is my favorite American writer ( statements of personal preferen
21、ce)William Faulkner is the greatest Chinese writer in the 20th century American literature ( disputable point),What should be avoided,3)Noise pollution is harmful to peoples health (Viewpoints that are generally accepted) :Noise pollution is the most harmful of all environmental pollution( disputabl
22、e point) .,Basic features,2) sufficient evidence : You are required to provide sufficient evidence to convince the reader. It includes:a) common knowledge;b) specific examples;c) hard evidence, or facts, not your personal opinions.d) expert and authoritative opinions, quotations from authorities,Bas
23、ic features,3) Good logic and clear logic Good logic is even more important to argumentation than to any other types of writing. All the facts and reasons that are given as evidence should be logically connected with thesis statement and conclusion.,Basic features,3) Good logic and clear logic clear
24、 logic means that a typical argumentative essay usually consists of three parts: an introduction which identifies the issue to be discussed and explains the importance of such a discussion; a body (too much complicated and difficult) which presents the evidence; and a conclusion in which the proposi
25、tion is reaffirmed.,The three Basics,论点：argument;thesis; proposition 论述中的确定性意见及支持意见的理由。论据：grounds of argument;basis of an argument;contention;datum 证明论题的判断；在一个推论中,充当理由根据,以便推衍出结论的部分。论证：demonstrate; proof用论据证明论题的真实性 testify;expound and prove根据个人的了解或理解证明,What is research paper,A research paper (sometim
26、es called a literary paper or a term paper or a thesis) is usually a formal, fairly long and well-documented composition that explores, discusses, or analyzes a certain factual or theoretical issue, and it should be characterized by lucid and coherent exposition.,Commonly adopted forms,1) Book repor
27、t; 2) Term paper; 3) Review article; 4) Thesis; 5) Dissertation,Term paper,The name term paper refers to a project that summarizes or demonstrates mastery of the work of a term or semester.Depending on the course, a term paper may or may not include formal research.,Thesis,The word thesis commonly r
28、efers to a substantial research project. As the word implies, a thesis should draw an original conclusion based on information derived from research. In American usage, it is generally reserved for the Masters paper or the undergraduate honors paper.,dissertation,A dissertation is a research paper s
29、ubmitted by a candidate for the doctoral degree. This paper requires more research and more extensive development of ideas than a masters thesis.（博士学位）论文，（专题）论文，学术演讲长而正式的论文，尤指大学里由博士学位攻读者所写的论文；学位论文,What about its writing process?,The process of writing a research paper is generally divided into five
30、steps or stages: 1) choosing a topic 2) collecting information 3)analyzing the information, organizing ideas, and working out an outline; 4) writing the first draft 5) revising the draft and finalizing it,Process of writing a research paper,1)choosing a topic,2)collecting information,3)analyzing the
31、 information, organizing ideas, and working out an outline;,4)writing the first draft,5)revising the draft and finalizing it,a, Documentation,b, Language,c, Style,Lay-Out of The Lectures for This Term,Pre-writing Stage:Lecture 1: A General introduction of the Writing course; Lecture 2: how to negoti
32、ate a topic, gather materials and form a preliminary bibliography; Lecture 3: how to take notes and avoid plagiarism ; Lecture 4: how to formulate a thesis statement and work out an outline;,Lay-Out of The Lectures for This Term,Writing Stage:Lecture 5: How to write the introductory paragraph and co
33、ncluding paragraph; Lecture 6: How to gain unity and coherence for the body ; Lecture 7: How to revise the essay; Lecture 8: How to deal with the final draft and proofread.,Lay-Out of The Lectures for This Term,Post-Writing Stage:Lecture 9: How to edit and document the paper (MLA style centered); Le
34、cture 10: how to strive for clarity and accuracy; Lecture 11: How to practice economy Lecture 12: How to gain appropriateness,Lay-Out of The Lectures for This Term,Lecture 13: Criticize and appreciate the papers: Model 1; Lecture 14: Criticize and appreciate the papers: Model 2; Lecture 15:Criticize
35、 and appreciate the papers: Model 3; Lecture 16:Criticize and appreciate the papers: Model 4.,Reference Books,Ding Wangdao, et al. A Handbook of Writing. Beijing: Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press,1994.Huang Guowen, et al. How to Write Research Paper. Chongqin: Chongqin University,2006.Li
36、u Jianbo.ed. Writing English Research PapersA Handbook for English Majors. Beijing: higher Education Press,2006. Shi Jian and Shuai Peitian.ed. English Essay Writing. Chengdu: Sichuan Peoples Publishing House, 2005. Slade, Carole. Form and Style: Research Papers, Reports nd Theses. Thomson Learning Asia Houghton Mifflin Company.Beijing: Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press,2000.Tan Xianmei,et al. A Coursebook in Graduation Thesis Writing for College English Majors. Changsha: Hunan Normal University Press.,
