المحاضرة الثاتية:
Rule 2: Be Forceful
Being forceful means that we will take GENERAL statements, and try to make them clearer and stronger by adding details or modifying them.
Some people are not sure how to express their opinion in English in writing so they use vague terms or sentences.
For example, if you read Dickens's Hard Times, and you were asked to write a review of the plot or characters, instead of saying for instance:
Hard Times has a moving plot and an interesting set of characters. (good writing)
Which is your own opinion, you write something like:
In my opinion, Dickens' book which I read yesterday, that is called Hard Times, does not seem to be very interesting to me and is not so reader-friendly. (bad writing)
(example from book page 17-18)
The aim of writing is to get sense of the writer and the object, not only the object, so when you are writing something it is important to show your own way of thinking about something.
So being forceful means: expressing your opinion directly and clearly, and revealing a part of yourself to the reader.
How to be forceful:
1- Do not say 'I' unless you have to:
Avoid using words like: I, my, mine, in my opinion, I think, I feel, I believe, etc
When you use such words, you are trying to remind the reader that this is your opinion, but he already knows that.
- You can only use such words if you are writing about yourself, or your own experience (you are the object of your writing).
2- Use the active voice:
Microsoft launched a new operating system
A new operating system was launched by Microsoft.
In the active version, there is an action, someone is doing something. In the passive, something is being acted upon, so there is no focus on the action itself and that makes your writing a bit weaker.
You can use the passive voice only if you do not know who did the action, in that case there is no option (or if you want to focus on the result only), or when you want to focus on the way the subject has been acted upon.
3- Come on Strong (avoid expletives)
Try not to start your sentences with expletives, which in English, replace the subject.
In English we have: subject + verb + object (complement)
If we do not know the subject, sometimes we fill its space by an expletive
It is useless to read a book in low light
But using expletives is not recommended, so what do we do, since we have no subject?
We can use a gerund:
Reading a book in low light is useless
Now: Reading a book in low light is the subject
IMPORTANT: When IT and THERE (or other expletives) are used as referential expressions (refer to specific things or places), it is fine to use them:
There is my book, it is on the table.
4- Avoid vague language:
When you are specific, the reader will get your point much faster. You should avoid words like: good, bad, excellent, mean, great, interesting, etc
e.g.
This book is great
This book has a moving plot and entertaining characters
5- The 5 Ws and H
When you face something vague, or you have a vague topic to write about, try asking questions, it is the best way to generate ideas and get rid of vagueness:
e.g. Sarah is an excellent employee
What exactly does she do? How does she show how excellent she is? Why does she deserve to be called excellent?
These questions might help you get ideas that help you make the general word more specific, so instead of saying:
Excellent
You can say: enthusiastic, hard working, skilled, etc
Even though we said it is better to use fewer words, but not when they are vague or general.
6- Avoid clichés:
Clichés are words or phrases that have been used many times and they lost their real meaning: e.g.
It is raining cats and dogs
It is used to make the reader get the meaning that it is raining very hard, but it has been used so much, that now you can directly tell the meaning, without actually visualizing cats and dogs. That is called a cliché, and using it in writing is not so recommended. You have to use something else like:
It was raining so hard, I need windshield wipers for my glasses
7- Avoid jargon:
Jargon= specialized vocabulary e.g. legal or medical terms, which are only understood by people who know the trade.
e.g.
Please finalize these plans
Problem with jargons: they are boring like clichés. Jargon can make your reading impossible to understand (e.g. page 25)
How to identify a jargon:
Nouns used as verbs (target, impact)
Hyphenated words (user-friendly)
Newly created words (interface, bottom line)
COMPREHENSION
Types of comprehension questions normally expected:
- give a title to the paragraph
- summarize the paragraph
- give a synonym or an antonym of a word
- explain the meaning of a word
- replace a word by another
- questions about the text: about the main ideas or certain details
- inference questions: where the answer is not clearly written in the paragraph, but you can get it from keywords
There is not a fixed strategy you can use. Every one of you will have to come up with their own way to deal with this type of questions.
The following are tips to improve your understanding of the text, and thus your answers will be better.
a- Read the first question before you begin reading the passage. By doing so, you can read more actively — with an eye out for the information you need.
b- Try to identify the main idea of the passage
c- Set a time limit for yourself, try not to spend more than 20 minutes
d- Never confirm your answer to a question until you've read the entire passage. Information relevant to a question can appear anywhere in the passage.
e- Using your pencil and scratch paper, jot down a rough outline as you read. It will help you locate relevant details quickly as you answer the questions, and minimize vertical scrolling and re-reading. Or underline key words.
f- Don't be overly concerned with details (dates, examples, and lists) as you read; instead, jot down in outline form where these details are located in the passage so you can locate them quickly as needed to respond to the questions.
g- Be on the lookout for answer choices that provide information supported by the passage but not responsive to the question.
h- Be on the lookout for wrong answer choices that provide information not mentioned in the passage.
i- Look out for structural words that tell you the important ideas or transitions in a passage.
Continue the Idea Words:
Similarly, Moreover, Additionally, In the same way, Likewise,
Conclusion Words
Thus, Therefore, Hence, So, In summary, In conclusion,
Contradiction or Contrast Words
Nevertheless, Nonetheless, However, But, Although, Though, Even though, Notwithstanding, Yet, Despite, In spite of, On the one hand on the other hand, While, Unlike
j- Pay attention to pronouns and their reference