| 《英语写作基础》 |
| Chapter 1 The sentences |
Choice of words
build up a large vocabulary
the recognition vocabulary
the active vocabulary
2. Approaches to the building up a vocabulary
Learning words from a word-list or from a dictionary.
(2) Learning words from speech and writing (context)
E.g. Kill
He killed the man.
He killed the dog.
They killed the proposal.
Please kill the engine.
She is dressed to kill.
You are killing me.
She killed her child with kindness.
He took a snack to kill his hungry.
He killed every day at the park.
He killed himself with overwork
He killed the spirit of the group.
The news killed their hope.
These flowers kill easily.
He killed three bottle of Whisky in a week.
Kill one’s appetite
Kill peace
Kill the mood
Kill marriage
II. Using words correctly
1.overcome Chinglish
2. Beware of archaisms, obsolete words, anachronisms and newly-coined words
Words or meaning of words which are no longer in common used but occur in special text (e.g. Religious works) and poetry are called archaic.
Words or meaning which have gone out of use altogether are called obsolete.
Words that are inappropriate for the time about which one is writing are called anachronisms
3.Avoid slang
III. Using words accurately
1. Specific and general words
2. Abstract and concrete words
3. Denotation and Connotation
4. Different connotation between English words and Chinese counterparts
IV. Synonyms
Two or more forms with very closely related meaning, which are often but not always, intersubstitutable in a sentence.
V. Using the words appropriately
type of words
1.Common words
2.formal words (formality)
3.non-standard words (jargon, slang, dialectal and obsolete words)
VI. Analyze and appreciate the following dialogue.
Man Woman and Child
H: Honey, I gotta talk to you.
W: Sure. Is something wrong?
H: Well, sort of. Yes.
W: Bob, something in your voice scares me. Have I done anything?
H: No. It’s me. I’ve done it. Sheila, remember when you were pregnant with Paula?
W: Yes?
H: I had to fly to Europe—Montpellier—to give that paper…
W: And? I trusted
H: I have an affair.
W: This is some terrible joke. Isn’t it?
H: No. It’s true. I—I’m sorry.
W: Who?
H: Nobody. Nobody special.
W: Who, Robert?
H: Her—her name was Nicole Guirin. She was a doctor.
W: And how long did it last?
H: Two, three days.
W: Two days or three days? I want to know.
2 Make Correct and Effective Sentences
1. Basic elements of a sentence
2.what is a sentence?
3.Typical English sentence pattern: Subject +predicate
II. Characteristics of an Effective Sentence
[1] Correctness
1.Sentence fragment
A grammatically complete sentence has a verb with its subject. Structurally it must be a independent unit, capable of standing alone. Fragments are incomplete sentences. Usually, fragments are pieces of sentences that have become disconnected from the main clause, such as phrase clause, appositives and other such group of words, when any of them is written and punctuated as a sentence , it is called sentence fragment. Below are some examples with the fragments:
Fragment (phrase or dependent clause) | Possible Revision | ||
| Purdue offers many majors in engineering. Such as electrical, chemical, and industrial engineering. | Purdue offers many majors in engineering, such as electrical, chemical, and industrial engineering. | ||
| Coach Dietz exemplified this behavior by walking off the field in the middle of a game. Leaving her team at a time when we needed her. | Coach Dietz exemplified this behavior by walking off the field in the middle of a game, leaving her team at a time when we needed her. | ||
| I need to find a new roommate. Because the one I have now isn't working out too well. | I need to find a new roommate because the one I have now isn't working out too well. | ||
| The current city policy on housing is incomplete as it stands. Which is why we believe the proposed amendments should be passed. | Because the current city policy on housing is incomplete as it stands, we believe the proposed ammendments should be passed. | ||
| Chapter 3 Developing Paragraphs | |||
1.Basic structure of paragraphs
Topic sentence:
It states the main idea of the paragraph. It not only names the topic of the paragraph, but it also limits the topic to one or two areas that can be discussed completely in the space of a single paragraph. The specific area is called the Controlling idea.
Supporting sentences:
It develops the topic sentence. That is, they explain the topic sentence by giving reasons. Some of the supporting sentences that explain the topic sentences about gold are.
Concluding sentence:
It signals the end of the paragraph and leaves the reader with important point to remember.
E.g.
There are three reasons why Canada is one of the best countries in the world. First, Canada has an excellent health care system. All Canadians have access to medical services at a reasonable price. Second, Canada has a high standard of education. Students are taught by well-trained teachers and are encouraged to continue studying at university. Finally, Canada's cities are clean and efficiently managed. Canadian cities have many parks and lots of space for people to live. As a result, Canada is a desirable place to live.
What is the topic sentence?
The topic sentence is the first sentence in a paragraph.
What does it do?
It introduces the main idea of the paragraph.
How do I write one?
Summarize the main idea of your paragraph. Indicate to the reader what your paragraph will be about.
What are supporting sentences?
They come after the topic sentence, making up the body of a paragraph.
What do they do?
They give details to develop and support the main idea of the paragraph.
How do I write them?
You should give supporting facts, details, and examples.
What is the closing sentence?
The closing sentence is the last sentence in a paragraph.
What does it do?
It restates the main idea of your paragraph.
How do I write one?
Restate the main idea of the paragraph using different words.
2. Ways of Developing a Paragraph
Definition Paragraph
When writing a definition paragraph, you take a thing or an idea and explain what it is.
The following words can help you to write a good definition paragraph:
1. "is defined as"
Example: | A pest is defined as any animal or plant that damages crops, forests, or property. |
Example: | A pest is a kind of animal or plant that damages crops, forests, or property. |
When writing a classification paragraph, you group things or ideas into specific categories.
Example: Write a paragraph discussing two types of energy resources.
The following words can help you to write a good classification paragraph:
Helper Words: is a kind of, can be divided into, is a type of, falls under, belongs to, is a part of, fits into, is grouped with, is related to, is associated with
Description Paragraph
In a description paragraph, you are writing about what a person, place, or thing is like. Sometimes, you may describe where a place is located.
Examples: | Write a paragraph describing what a polar bear looks like. |
| Describe where Canada's industry is located. |
Helper Words:
Properties | Measurement | Analogy | Location |
| size | length | is like | in |
| colour | width | resembles | above |
| shape | mass/weight | below | |
| purpose | speed | beside | |
| near | |||
| north/east/south/west |
In a compare and contrast paragraph, you write about the similarities and differences between two or more people, places, things, or ideas.
Example: Write a paragraph comparing the weather in Vancouver and Halifax.
The following words can help you to write a good compare and contrast paragraph:
Helper Words:
Similarities | Differences |
| is similar to | the other hand |
| both | however |
| also | but |
| too | in contrast |
| as well | differs from |
| while | |
| unlike |
In a sequencing paragraph, you are writing to describe a series of events or a process in some sort of order. Usually, this order is based on time.
Example: Write a paragraph outlining how a person becomes the prime minister.
The following words can help you to write a good sequence paragraph.
Helper Words:
Order | Time |
| first, second, third, etc. | recently |
| in the beginning | previously |
| before | afterwards |
| then | when |
| after | after |
| finally | |
| at last | |
| subsequently |
In a paragraph where you have to make a choice, you need to choose which object, idea, or action that you prefer. Often, you will need to give your opinion on a choice of actions or events.
Example: Write a paragraph stating whether you would prefer to play hockey or lacrosse.
The following words can help you to write a good choice paragraph:
Helper Words:
Point of View | Personal Opinion |
| in my opinion | like/dislike |
| belief | hope |
| idea | feel |
| understanding | |
| I think that | |
| I consider | |
| I believe | |
| it seems to me | |
| I prefer |
In an explanation paragraph, you need to explain how or why something happens. Very often in social studies class, you will be asked to explore causes and effects of certain events.
Example: Write a paragraph explaining why so many Europeans moved to Canada during the nineteenth century.
The following words can help you to write a good explanation paragraph:
Helper Words:
Cause | Effect |
| because | therefore |
| since | thus |
| as a result of | consequently |
| is due to | hence |
| it follows that | |
| if . . . then |
In an evaluation paragraph, you make judgments about people, ideas, and possible actions. You need to make your evaluation based on certain criteria that you develop. In the paragraph, you will state your evaluation or recommendation and then support it by referring to your criteria.
Example: Write a paragraph evaluating whether pesticides should be used on farms.
The following words can help you to write a good evaluation paragraph:
Helper Words
Criteria for Evaluation | Recommendation | ||
| good / bad | suggest | ||
| correct / incorrect | recommend | ||
| moral / immoral | advise | ||
| right / wrong | argue | ||
| important / trivial | |||
| Summarizing | |||
I. General Remarks
1.The goal of writing a summary of an article, a chapter, or a book is to offer as accurately as possible the full sense of the original, but in a more condensed form. A summary restates the author’s main point, purpose, intent, and supporting details in your own words.
2. The process of summarizing enables you to better grasp the original, and the result shows the reader that you understand it as well. In addition, the knowledge gained allows you to better analyze and critique the original.
3.First, try to find the main idea in the reading; it’s usually in the first paragraph. Next, skim through the article, glancing at any headings and graphics. Then, read the conclusion. The intent here is both to give yourself a review of the work and t o effectively engage yourself with it.
Now go back and read the original text carefully, jotting down notes on or highlighting the important points. Write the central idea and the author’s reasons (purpose and intent) for holding this viewpoint. Note the supporting elements the author uses to explain or back up her/his main information or claim.
4.Make an outline that includes the main idea and the supporting details. Arrange your information in a logical order, for example, most to least important or chronological. Your order need not be the same as that in the original, but keep related supporting points together. The way you organize the outline may serve as a model for how you divide and write the essay.
5.Write the summary, making sure to state the author’s name in the first sentence. Present the main idea, followed by the supporting points. The remainder of your summary should focus on how the author supports, defines, and/or illustrates that main idea. Remember, unless otherwise stated by your instructor, a summary should contain only the author’s views, so try to be as objective as possible.
6.As you revise and edit your summary, compare it to the original and ask yourself questions such as: Have I rephrased the author’s words without changing their meaning? Have I restated the main idea and the supporting points accurately and in my own words?
7.If you are asked to write a critical summary or to include a critique, you may want to ask yourself questions such as: Does the author succeed? How and why or why not? What are the strengths, weaknesses? Why? What did the author do well? Not well? Why?
II. Requirements for summary writing
generally a summary should not be longer than a third of the length of the original passage.
it should be faithful to the original, with no change in facts or views, and no important points left out.
it should be written in continuous prose, not in the form of an outline.
Summary writing procedures
1. reading
2. writing
omitting the details
reducing the examples
simplifying the descriptions
eliminating all repetition
making phrases do the work of clauses or sentences
using general words instead of specific words
using the shortest possible transitions
avoiding figurative language
3. revision
Conclusion
A summary is a shortened version of someone else's writing or thoughts.
Summaries vary in length and amount of details depending on a teacher's requirements, the length of the original source (article, book, passage) and the purpose of the summary; however, all summaries must:
· be shorter than the original source (article, book, passage) approximately one third the length of the original source;
· include the main idea of the original source in your own words;
· include major details (also known as supporting ideas) in your own words;
· should not include your knowledge, ideas or opinion unless your teacher requests it.
· identify the author, title of article, title of publication, where published, publisher, year of publication, and page information, at the top of the page of your summary (or in-text.)
| Chapter 3 precis and practical writing |
Basic Organization
Introduction (beginning)
Body (middle)
Conclusion (end)
Introduction Paragraph
What is an introduction paragraph?
The introduction paragraph is the first paragraph of your essay.
What does it do?
It introduces the main idea of your essay. A good opening paragraph captures the interest of your reader and tells why your topic is important.
How do I write one?
1. Write the thesis statement. The main idea of the essay is stated in a single sentence called the thesis statement. You must limit your entire essay to the topic you have introduced in your thesis statement.
2. Provide some background information about your topic. You can use interesting facts, quotations, or definitions of important terms you will use later in the essay.
Example:
Hockey has been a part of life in Canada for over 120 years. It has evolved into an extremely popular sport watched and played by millions of Canadians. The game has gone through several changes since hockey was first played in Canada.
Supporting Paragraphs
What are supporting paragraphs?
Supporting paragraphs make up the main body of your essay.
What do they do?
They develop the main idea of your essay.
How do I write them?
1. List the points that develop the main idea of your essay.
2. Place each supporting point in its own paragraph.
3. Develop each supporting point with facts, details, and examples.
To connect your supporting paragraphs, you should use special transition words. Transition words link your paragraphs together and make your essay easier to read. Use them at the beginning and end of your paragraphs.
Summary Paragraph
What is a summary paragraph?
The summary paragraph comes at the end of your essay after you have finished developing your ideas. The summary paragraph is often called a "conclusion."
What does it do?
It summarizes or restates the main idea of the essay. You want to leave the reader with a sense that your essay is complete.
How do I write one?
1. Restate the strongest points of your essay that support your main idea.
2. Conclude your essay by restating the main idea in different words.
3. Give your personal opinion or suggest a plan for action.
Example:
Overall, the changes that occurred in hockey have helped to improve the game. Hockey is faster and more exciting as a result of changes in the past 120 years. For these reasons, modern hockey is a better game than hockey in the 10s.
II. Steps Essay writing
Prewriting Essays
What is the prewriting stage?
The prewriting stage is when you prepare your ideas for your essay before you begin writing. You will find it easier to write your essay if you build an outline first, especially when you are writing longer assignments.
Six Prewriting Steps:
1. Think carefully about what you are going to write. Ask yourself: What question am I going to answer in this paragraph or essay? How can I best answer this question? What is the most important part of my answer? How can I make an introductory sentence (or thesis statement) from the most important part of my answer? What facts or ideas can I use to support my introductory sentence? How can I make this paragraph or essay interesting? Do I need more facts on this topic? Where can I find more facts on this topic?
2. Open your notebook. Write out your answers to the above questions. You do not need to spend a lot of time doing this; just write enough to help you remember why and how you are going to write your paragraph or essay.
3. Collect facts related to your paragraph or essay topic. Look for and write down facts that will help you to answer your question. Timesaving hint: make sure the facts you are writing are related to the exact question you are going to answer in your paragraph or essay.
4. Write down your own ideas. Ask yourself: What else do I want to say about this topic? Why should people be interested in this topic? Why is this topic important?
5. Find the main idea of your paragraph or essay. Choose the most important point you are going to present. If you cannot decide which point is the most important, just choose one point and stick to it throughout your paragraph or essay.
6. Organize your facts and ideas in a way that develops your main idea. Once you have chosen the most important point of your paragraph or essay, you must find the best way to tell your reader about it. Look at the facts you have written. Look at your own ideas on the topic. Decide which facts and ideas will best support the main idea of your essay. Once you have chosen the facts and ideas you plan to use, ask yourself which order to put them in the essay. Write down your own note set that you can use to guide yourself as you write your essay.
Writing Essays
What is the writing stage?
The writing stage is when you turn your ideas into sentences.
Five Writing Steps:
1. For the introduction, write the thesis statement and give some background information.
2. Develop each supporting paragraph and make sure to follow the correct paragraph format.
3. Write clear and simple sentences to express your meaning.
4. Focus on the main idea of your essay.
5. Use a dictionary to help you find additional words to express your meaning.
Editing Essays
What is the editing stage?
The editing stage is when you check your essay for mistakes and correct them.
Editing Steps:
Grammar and Spelling
1. Check your spelling.
2. Check your grammar.
3. Read your essay again.
4. Make sure each sentence has a subject.
5. Make sure your subjects and verbs agree with each other.
6. Check the verb tenses of each sentence.
7. Make sure that each sentence makes sense.
Style and Organization
1. Make sure your essay has an introduction, supporting paragraphs, and a summary paragraph.
2. Check that you have a thesis statement that identifies the main idea of the essay.
3. Check that all your paragraphs follow the proper paragraph format.
4. See if your essay is interesting.
Publishing Essays
What is the publishing stage?
The publishing stage is when you produce a final copy of your essay to hand in.
Publishing Steps:
1. Make a paper copy of your essay.
2. Show your work to your teacher, tutor, or parents.
3. Ask them for hints on how to improve your writing
III. Types of outlines
The outline quickly and clearly shares your content and thesis with the reader. In the early stages of your research, an outline will help you to organize your ideas and material. Later in the research process, a more detailed outline will help you unify and refine your final paper. Whether formal or informal in style, outlines aid clear thinking and well-developed ideas.
The most important rule for outlining form is to be consistent!
An outline can use topic or sentence structure.
A topic outline uses words or phrases for all entries and uses no punctuation after entries.
Advantages: presents a brief overview of work and is generally easier and faster to write than a sentence outline.
A sentence outline uses complete sentences for all entries and uses correct punctuation.
Advantages: presents a more detailed overview of work including possible topic sentences and is easier and faster for writing the final paper.
You should start your outline by identifying your thesis statement. Then you clarify the progression of your argument as follows:
I. Use Roman Numerals to identify the section of your paper. (e.g. Arguments for, Arguments against, background information, biographical information, Evaluation, etc)
A. Use Capital letters under each Roman Numeral (Be sure to indent!) to present your arguments within those sections. (e.g. under a paper section called "Advantages of studying at ISP" you may have international community, International Baccalaureate, competitive education).
1. Use numbers to list the details or facts that you will use to back up the claims made by the Capital letters.
Sample outline
Thesis: The war on drugs will do far more to control and eliminate illegal drug use in the USA than will the legalization of drugs.
I. Epidemic proportions of drug problem in last decade have prompted efforts at all levels of society to address problem
A. Three pronged effort of President's war on drugs - overview
1. enforcement
2. education
3. treatment
B. Legalization also proposed by many as solution - overview of sketchy implementation plan
II. Arguments in favor of legalization
A. Takes away criminal element
1. citation of Amsterdam experiment - Goldblatt
2. analogy to legalized prostitution in Europe, Nevada
B. Government can control drug quality and quantity
1. FDA supervision
2. more personnel and support required
C. More revenue to support prevention and education
1. estimates of revenue by Scheffer study
2. analogy to revenue from state liquor operations - Maine, Oklahoma
III. Arguments against legalization
A. Violates moral/ethical principles of country
1. Taber's assessment of constitutional intention
2. Heritage Foundation study
B. Makes drugs permanent fixture of society
1. analogy to prostitution - Rosenburg study
2. normalization lowers standards - Whitten's study
C. Encourages greater drug use by wider spectrum of users
1. Post Vietnam study of mid size American cities
2. Impact on middle class and youth - Fallow's views
D. Subsidizes addiction with public money
1. Amsterdam argument - Goldblatt's rebuttal
E. Does not address causes of addiction - inner city survey from 1996
IV. Three pronged war on drugs addresses supply, prevention, treatment
A. Coordinated law enforcement efforts at local, state, federal levels
1. Legislative intent - McMurphy Bill
2. sample cases from PA, MA, DC, CA
B. Education - treatment programs at state - local levels
1. success of NA based programs
2. statistics on welfare cost saving
3. 1997 Florida based study
C. Attention to factors encouraging drug dealing - addiction
1. poverty and lack of education - Wilson data
2. low self-esteem, lack of hope - AMA's new policy initiative
3. lack of community involvement with youth - Center for Urban Studies position paper
V. War on drugs clearly better than legalization
A. War on drugs is long range solution
B. War on drugs addresses underlying causes
C. War on drugs consistent with country's values
D. War on drugs will eventually end widespread drug use
IV. Types of Writing
Narration
Narration
1. What is narration?
The method of development in which the writer tells a story to support a point. Narrative writing tells a story. In essays the narrative writing could also be considered reflection or an exploration of the author's values told as a story. The author may remember his or her past, or a memorable person or event from that past, or even observe the present.
2．Essential Features
a. Context--the writer makes clear what happened, when, where, and to whom
1.) There is a plot that involves escalating conflict between characters, between a person and her-/himself, or between people and nature or some other force.
2.) The conflict sets up an imbalance, a tension that a reader wants resolved, and that finally is.
3.) The setting places the events in a definite time period and particular location
4.) The events happen to a combination of round characters, the best of whom perform in ways that are unpredictable, yet ultimately consistent with their own individual personalities and motivations, and lesser personages.
b. Point of view--the writer takes a consistent point of view in relation to the action, writing either as a participant (first person -- using "I") or as a spectator (third person -- using "he," "she," "it," "they").
c. Selection of detail--the writer focuses only on the actions and details that further the story and promote the point, minimizing or eliminating others.
1.) Expression of feelings
2.) Dialogue--direct quotes of what the characters say to each other
d. Organization--the writer organizes the events of the story in a chronological order using time transitions.
e. Purpose—there's a reason for telling the story. One way to find it is to complete the statement, "The moral of the story is..."
2. Why do writers use narration?
a. To entertain
b. To report
c. To instruct
Ultimate goal: to tell an entertaining story yet also bring readers to a clear understanding of a larger issue.
3. How can readers and writers tell narration from the other MODs? They can ask:
a. Does something happen between people and people or people and outside forces? What happens?
b. Where is the tension?
c. How is the conflict resolved?
d. Do characters dialogue with each other? Are there direct quotations?
e. What kinds of feelings are brought out?
f. What is "the moral of the story?"
The more of these items which appear, the more likely it is narration.
4. How does one write essays with it?
a. Determine an audience and purpose in telling the story--a broad instructive point it may make about human nature or the ways of the world. Who needs to have this information in order to have a more satisfying life?
Determining the audience and purpose helps the writer select details and events.
It also keeps him/her from wasting time developing a pointless essay.
b. Context—Establish the setting of the essay, the world in which the action takes place, in the first paragraph or two.
Give the characters real names and include a capsule portrait of each--a one or two sentences or phrases that captures the personalities of the main ones.
State where the events take place using place names that could be found in an atlas, and/or describing items such that Spielberg's set dresser wouldn't have much trouble knowing what to get or where to put them.
Use time indicators: breakfast, afternoon tea, midnight, sunrise, almost noon, first, then, next. . .
c. Keep a consistent point of view throughout the essay, writing either in the first or third person throughout. Eliminate any "you" or "your" that creeps into a sentence by revising it.
d. Select details and events that serve a worthwhile purpose, but not so much that there is an excess of information that is ultimately boring.
e. Organization: Give the information needed in the order that the reader needs it. Whether the story goes straight from the beginning to the end or uses a flashback or frame technique, keep the reader in mind. If words like "I forgot to mention earlier...," creep in to the text, write another draft in which the information appears where the reader needs it. An outline can help.
f. For the most part, past tense is the most effective verb tense to use because it is the easiest for most readers to comprehend. Keep the verb tense consistent.
g. Use time transitions as needed but not obtrusively.
5. Thesis pattern
6. How can one practice recognizing narratives?
In outside reading (not English or reading textbooks),
Practice looking for writing which tells one story
Look for a conflict that causes tension
Confirm that the paragraphs cause a tension to rise
Identify the characters who interact with one another as they work through a conflict
Monitor whether you feel a desire to know how it all turns out
Verify that the overall text teaches a lesson
If the tension rises as a result of the above then gets resolved, the text is probably a story.
An Example and Outline for Narration Writing
If assigned a narrative essay, start like this: think about one of the most important lessons that a person can learn from life. Recall how you came to learn it, list the major events, and develop them to write the story of how it happened for you. Organize it using this outline.
I. Introduction which
Establishes the setting, characters, and time period
Identifies the event and the lesson learned from it in the thesis sentence
Uses a college level strategy
II. Body
First major event
Second part of the story
Third part …
Climax, the high point in the narrative
Resolution in which the tension is resolved
III. Conclusion
To tell it with a flashback, include the current concern in the introduction, make the transition to the past, narrate the events in the body, return to the present in the conclusion, and explain the relationship of the past event to the present.
| Writing for Practical Purposes |
Notices
Sample:
Contemporary British Theatre
Speaker: Prof. Bernard Holland
Professor of English Literature, Cambridge University
Author of The Experimental Theatre
Date: Monday, 6 October
Time: 10 a.m.
Place: Rm.201
All Welcome
Basically the notices consist of the following parts:
1. activity
2. background information about the speaker
3. day of the week—date—time
4. place
Notes
Notes of introduction
Notes are short letters written for various purposes. Compared with a letter, a note is simpler in form and often informal or colloquial in language. It must be precise and to the point. In a note, the following may be omitted:
the addresses of addressee and the addresser
the word“dear”in the salutation
the complimentary close
the year in the date
In the note of introduction the following are usually included:
the name of the person to be introduced
his or her identity
the purpose of the introduction
appreciation
Sample:
2 Feb.2006
Dear Mr. Smith,
This is to introduce Mr. Ma Ming. He is a graduate student in linguistics at our university. Mr. Ma is looking for a teaching assistant’s post. Any assistance rendered him would be highly appreciated.
Jone
Thank-you Notes
In writing a thank-you note. Apart from our gratitude, we may also show our pleasure at such an invitation, a dinner, a party or a gift itself. For example, we may say that I accept your invitation with pleasure or we enjoyed the party a lot, etc. we may also show our appreciation of the addressee’s hospitality or consideration, etc.
Sample:
28 July,2005
Dear Pam & Sim,
I’m writing to thank you for the lovely dinner yesterday. We enjoyed the evening greatly. It was most kind of you to introduce some new friends to us. We loved to meet those interesting people. Please accept our warmest thanks.
Cathy
Notes of invitation
A note of invitation should state precisely. It includes:
(1) what invitation it is
(2)the time and the place
(3)the pleasure of seeing the addressee on that occasion
(4)a reply is expected
Example:
20March,2005
Dear Helen,
We are going to have an English evening in our classroom this coming Saturday. The time is 7:00pm. Would it be possible for you to join us? We would be very happy if you could be with us. Drop me a line if you are interested.
Yours,
Jianhua
Notes of Appointment
In writing a note of appointment, we have to be very precise as to the time and place. Both must be stated clearly. Quite often a reply of the addressee is expected.
Example:
15 May,20__
Dear Sydney,
I’d like to discuss with you about our new project. Could we meet for about an hour at the Cooper’s on Monday afternoon at 3 o’clock? If you are otherwise engaged, please ring me to make another time. Thank you.
Paul
Notes of Congratulation
In writing a note of congratulation, one usually relates
how he/she hears of the good news
What the good news is
How he/she is happy for the addressee
Then extends his/her congratulation
Example:
August 8,20____
Dear Rosemary,
The news of your music scholarship to the University made my day. No one could have been more deserving. How exciting it must be for to realize your dream after all those years of faithful practice and proficient performance.
Your diligence combined with your innate talents indicates a dynamic future. I wish you all the best in your college years.
Kate
Notes of Apologies
In writing a note of apologies, we express our apologies for not being able to do sth or bringing some trouble. We have to explain the reason why we were unable to do it. If possible, we may offer a suggestion to make up for it. We may again show our regrets at the end of the note.
Example:
4 October,20__
Dear Betty,
I’m terribly sorry I failed to meet you in your office yesterday afternoon. One of my friends got injured in a car accident, so I had to send him to hospital and looked after him all night. I should have called to tell you, but I was rather busy then. Do please forgive me. Peter
John
| Manuscript Form and Punctuation |
I. Punctuating Compound Sentences
A comma is used in a compound sentence of which the clause are joined by a conjunction.
--He bought a red evening dress, and he gave it to his wife for her birthday.
2. Use a semicolon before independent clauses.
(1) when they are not joined by the coordinating conjunction such as “as, and, but, for, or, nor”.
--Smoking is dangerous in the woods; it may result in a fire.
(2) When they are joined by such connectives as:“for example, nevertheless, otherwise, that is, besides, therefore, accordingly, however, also, consequently, hence, still, stead, thus”. The section after the semicolon expresses ideas which a stage further the thought in the proceeding section.
--I waited for him; therefore, I saved him a seat.
(3)when there are commas within the clauses, that is, when the clauses are internally punctuated by commas.
--The travel agency, the first one to open in our city, offered special tours at reduced rates to any city within the province, and some cities in neighboring provinces to newly weds, and groups organized by peasants associations and workers unions; and within three weeks over 1,000 people bought tickets.
3. Use a semicolon or a colon between impendent clauses when the second clause explain or restates the idea in the first.
--Exposure to the sun will not cause these drape to fade: they are made of a color-fast synthetic material.
4. when a compound sentence is very short, a comma before the conjunction is not essential.
--The thunder roared and the lightning flashed.
II. Punctuating Series
1. place a comma after each item in a series except the last one.
----They sent books for son, records for the daughter, and a set of dishes for parents.
2. If all of the items in a series are connected by “and” or“or”, do not use commas.
--They telephoned Ruth and Alice and Jane.
3. Do not use a comma before the final adjective in a series if the adj, is thought of as part of the noun.
--It was a hot , humid, bright August day.
4. Short independent clauses in a series may be separated by commas.
--We worked, we swan, we read, we slept, and we saw the summer pass by too quickly.
5. use a colon before a series of appositives ,or a series of any kind introduced by such words as “the following” or “as follows”
--They locked the cabin and carried in our furniture: a couch, four chairs, a table, and two beds.
6. Use a semicolon between items in a series if the items contain internal commas.
--Three men were selected to the board of directors: Arthur Crane, an insurance executive; Geogore Blakeley, the owner of a lumber mill’ and Fred Blankenship, the manager a department store chain.
| Preparing Research Paper |
I. Definition and Purpose
By now you have been introduced to the writing of a paragraph which can be developed by several modes, and also the writing of a narrative or expository essay. You have also learned practical writing. Now please answer the following questions to see if you can move another step forward in writing: thesis writing, that is the writing of a research paper.
Have you ever had the experience of writing a research paper?
How did you like it?
Was it a success?
Can you tell me what a research paper is?
Now here is my definition:
A research paper usually deals with an important issue, factual or theoretical, and it is usually fairly long and well-documented.
What will you learn in the process of preparing a research paper? Well, I think you may at least achieve the following:
1. You may learn how to use libraries, how to read books critically and efficiently, and how to use books wisely and correctly.
2. You may familiarize yourself with the knowledge and mechanics necessary for writing a research paper.
3. You may combine the course work of Thesis Writing with the actual preparation of your BA paper writing.
4. You may also gain some experience in writing long papers or reports, which most probably will be part of your future work.
The above 4 points can be taken as the purpose or objectives of thesis writing. When you finish this course, you may use these points as a checklist to evaluate your learning and see if you have accomplished your task.
II. Steps
Generally speaking, you go through five steps or stages in the process of preparing a research paper:
1.choosing a topic;
2.collecting information;
3.analyzing the information, organizing ideas, and working out an outline;
4.writing the first draft; and
5.revising the draft and finalizing the paper.
Now, we are going to discuss these five steps one by one and you will be asked to do some exercises to make sure that you do a good job at each stage.
Choosing a Topic
You should first take notice of the above 2 goals and always keep them in mind while you are working on this unit. These 2 goals can also be used as a set of criteria to evaluate the result of your learning at the end of this unit.
The selection of a topic is the first important step in preparing a research paper. An inappropriate decision about a research topic may lead to failure of the whole project, or at least a waste of time and energy. When you choose a topic, it is advisable to go from the general to the specific in the following way:
1) Selecting a general topic;
2) Reading and thinking;
3) Narrowing down the scope of your topic to a specific aspect;
4) Formulating the final topic.
1. Selecting a general topic
At this initial stage, you should first choose a topic that you are interested in and know something about. It would be much better if you already have some ideas about the topic and you feel that you can develop these ideas into a research paper.
Now think of a general topic in which you are interested and on which you think you may possibly write a paper.
2. Reading and thinking
Now you should go to the library to look for the reference material you need for your topic. You should read as many books as possible. While reading, you should ask yourself whether the topic in your mind has already been explored quite thoroughly, and whether you can develop it further by offering something new. If the answer is negative, you should drop that topic.
Now write down the titles of 3-5 books you have found for you topic below:
3. Narrowing down the scope of your topic to a specific aspect
Let's say you are interested in Chinese poetry. Obviously, this topic is too big to be dealt with in your paper. You should narrow down the scope of that topic to something more specific. After you have read some books, you may find that Chinese poetry in the Tang Dynasty, especially the poetry by Li Bai, is worth exploring. So your final research topic may be something like "Nature in Li Bai's Poems."
Now try to narrow down the general topic you thought of at the first step to something more specific and write it down just below the general topic in the space below:
4. Formulating the final topic
The following points may be used as a set of criteria for your final topic:
1) It should be a topic that is meaningful and serious. A research paper should make people think and learn.
2) It should be a topic which you are able to handle. You will not be able to write anything significant on subjects in which you do not have the necessary training. For example, you are an English major and if you intend to write your BA paper on nuclear physics or chemistry, very probably the paper you produce may not be of high quality. It may be a big failure!
3) It should be a topic for which sufficient materials are available. If you can find only one or two books or articles related to your subject, and if you draw conclusions only from them, it is highly probable that your conclusions will not be well-grounded.
4) It should be a topic that can be treated objectively, a topic that does not involve personal likes or dislikes. Suppose you are thinking of writing a paper on our economic reform and one or more of your family members or relatives or friends have had very unsuccessful experiences in the reform. If you are to write your paper on the economic reform and draw your conclusion on the basis of the experiences of your family members, relatives and friends, you can hardly write a paper of any significance.
5) It should be a topic that is not too topical. Topical topics refer to the ongoing hot issues in the world. For instance, it would be very difficult for a student to write a conclusive paper on the ongoing conflicts in the Middle East.
If the topic you have chosen can meet the above criteria, you can move forward to the next step. Otherwise you have to work further on the topic till you think it does meet the criteria.
Sample 1
Now look at the following example which shows how to restrict the scope and work out a suitable topic for a research paper:
General topic: 20th Century American Novelists
Restricted: Hemingway and His Works
More restricted: Hemingway and His Short Stories
Topic chosen: Old People in Hemingway's Short Stories
You should not be worried if you have two or three topics in mind at this stage. They will be of great help in case there is not as much information available as you hoped on a topic and it is always nice to have more topics to choose from.
Collect information
Having done a satisfactory job at the first stage of choosing a research topic, now you are ready to learn how to collect information. You should always keep the above goals in mind while you are working at this stage.
Information here refers to the material you will need for your research. It is impossible for you to write a paper of some significance without any information, and the quality and quantity of the information you have for your paper show the depth of your research. You should begin collecting the necessary information for your paper the moment you begin your research and you are supposed to keep on doing this till the end of your research.
At this stage, you should learn to do the following 3 things:
1. Using the library
2. Reading
3. Taking notes
Using the library
A library is a center of information. You should go to different libraries to find and borrow the books relevant to your research.
In a library, books are arranged alphabetically according to their authors, titles and the subjects they belong to. That is to say each book has an author card, a title card and one or more subject cards in the card catalogue rooms. Nowadays, most libraries are computerized and the books are arranged in the same way as in the card catalogue rooms. You can use the library computer to look for the books you need. You can easily find the books you need either in the card catalogue rooms or on the computer, if they are available, according to the last names of the authors, or according to the first words of the titles of books.
Suppose you are interested in the famous American writer Saul Bellow and his novel The Adventures of Augie March. You can either look up Bellow, Saul in the author catalogue file, or you can look up Adventures of Augie March in the title catalogue file. In both files, you will find the same information.
The purpose of going to the subject catalogue is mainly to find what has been written on your topic, or at least find some titles which seem to be related to your topic.
The subject cards in many libraries of our country are divided into some 20 major categories such as philosophy, social sciences and politics, economy, art, literature, language, history, geography, etc., and each category is represented by an alphabet letter. For example, according to the Cataloguing system of Renmin University of China, literature is represented by the letter "J", history by "K" and geography by "L". According to the Cataloguing system of the National Library of China, literature is represented by "I", history and geography are represented by "K".
You can see that these are quite general divisions and they are mainly useful for the arrangement of books in a library. For the information you need for your research, you have to go to a more specific subject catalogue file which is available at the moment in only a few libraries in China.
Nowadays you can also go on the net to look for the information you need for your research. You find the web address of a certain library , look for the necessary information by giving the name of an author, title of a book or some key words of the information you need and you will find a lot of information for your research.
Encyclopedias such as Encyclopedia Britannica and Encyclopedia Americana are very useful in your research. If you read all the articles on or related to your topic in them and read the brief bibliographies provided at the end of each article, you will be able to collect a number of titles. As English majors, you may also find the following general reference books helpful: World Bibliography of Bibliographies, Bibliographical Index, A Guide to English and American Literature, The New Cambridge Bibliography of English Literature, Oxford Companion to English literature and Oxford Companion to American Literature. Of course, if you are completely at a loss about where to find reference materials, you can always ask librarians for help.
You should copy down all the titles of the books which you believe are relevant to your research, preferably on cards. What you are doing is actually compiling a preliminary or working bibliography, which will be expanded by new titles drawn from the bibliographies in the books you are going to read.
For bibliography forms please see "Unit 4 Bibliography" in Format of Thesis Writing.
2. Reading
Most of the information or raw material for a paper will come from books, magazines and newspapers. Reading is the main method of collecting information.
When you are reading, you should try to find and evaluate useful information in as little time as possible. You should learn to read books quickly and critically. It is not always necessary to read an article from beginning to end or a book from cover to cover. Look at the table of contents or the index to find out what chapters or parts might give you some useful material. You should skim the irrelevant pages until you get to the information you need.
If you find something useful in a book, you have to consider its reliability. Your material is not valuable if the source is doubtful. So it is necessary to know what has been said about the book and who has said so. You should try to find the latest edition of the book and compare what is said in it with what other books say on the same topic. You should make sure that the information you have is not outdated or biased
3. Taking notes
When you are reading, you should take notes because it is almost impossible for you to remember everything you have read, and without good notes it is very difficult for anyone to produce a good research paper.
When you take notes, it is better to take notes on cards than in a notebook. By doing so, you may easily rearrange your cards whenever necessary. You should remember the following rules when you are taking notes.
Rules for note-taking
1) Take notes on cards, or on separate pieces of paper.
2) Place only one note on a card. One note is one fact, one idea, one opinion. If you put two facts or ideas or opinions on one note card, one of them is likely to be neglected or lost among your accumulated notes. Very often, you may find that you have to recopy that second fact, idea, or opinion, or cut your notes into smaller units for different purposes.
3) Be selective. You should not take notes of facts and opinions on the information you and your readers already know. It is not necessary, for example, to note that Zhou Enlai was the first premier of the People's Republic of China.
Information on a note card
Every note card should contain two kinds of information:
1) the fact, idea or opinion, and 2) the source. Since you have the complete data for the source on your bibliography card, you need to give yourselves just enough information on the note card to refer to the appropriate bibliographical reference. Usually, the author's last name and the page number from which you take the information will be sufficient.
III. Analyzing the Information
Organizing Ideas working Out an Outline
By now you are supposed to have decided on the topic of your research paper and have collected quite a lot of information for it. What you are going to do next is to analyze the information or material you have collected, organize your ideas, and work out the thesis statement and outline for your paper.
1. The thesis statement
The thesis statement is the central idea of your research paper. A research paper without a proper thesis statement is like a human being without a heart. The thesis Statement is usually a single sentence that expresses the main point of view on your topic. Writing this statement is a way of making sure that you know what you are doing and where you are going. It may help you to remain on the right track when you plan and write your paper. In other words, the thesis statement will serve as a guideline to your paper. Everything you are going to write should focus on it, support it and bear it out.
In your thesis statement, you should only state the central idea of your paper. Words like "I intend to···", "The purpose of this paper is to···", or "The method of research I am going to adopt is···" should not appear in your thesis statement.
Sample 1
Topic: Confucius' Main Teaching Methods and Their Applicability to China's Education Today
Thesis statement: Confucius' elicitation method of teaching and that of teaching students in accordance with their aptitude are still applicable to China's education today.
You can well see from the above sample that the topic of the paper only puts forward the issue or question the author is going to work on in his or her research. The topic involves at least two aspects of the issue: (1) What are Confucius' main teaching methods? (2) Are his main teaching methods still applicable to China's education today?
The author does not say anything clearly in the topic as to what his or her ideas are on the issue under discussion.
It is in the thesis statement that the author states the central idea of the paper clearly. The thesis statement is the result of the author's research: (1) Confucius' main teaching methods are the method of elicitation and that of teaching students in accordance with their aptitude; (2) These two methods are still applicable to China's education today.
2. Outlining
An outline is the framework of a research paper. The outline will help you organize your ideas and put your material in good order. However, you should not be restricted by your outline. The reason is that very often in the process of preparing a research paper, new ideas may turn up and they may lead your thoughts in a different direction. When that happens, you should not hesitate to revise or reshape your original outline. Sometimes, you have to make changes in your outline when your paper is half done or even when you have finished your paper.
When you were collecting information, you put your note cards into different groups with different headings. Now with these headings, the outline will almost write itself. Your outline can be either a topic outline, in which all the parts of your paper are laid out in short phrases, or a sentence outline, in which all points of your paper are expressed in complete sentences.
While working out the outline, you should observe all the conventions of good outlining. Whenever you feel uncertain about your outline, you can always refer to the section on outlining in Chapter Five.
Sample 2
A sentence outline
Hawthorne's Conflicting Views on the World in The Scarlet Letter
Thesis Statement:
Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter reflects his conflicting views on the world and demonstrates that he is both a critic and an heir of Puritanism.
Outline:
I. The Scarlet Letter tells a story about sin and pain.
A. The Scarlet Letter is not a story of adultery, but of sin and its effects.
1. The main characters in the story are all sinners.
2. Hawthorne calls the story " a hell-fired story".
B. The three sinners all suffer greatly and fail to escape their doomed fate.
1. Hester's miserable life is the penalty for her sin.
2. Dimmesdale's living death is the punishment for his sin.
3. Chillingworth changes into a devil.
II. Hawthorne holds different attitudes towards the three sinners.
A. Hester, presented as a heroine, wins Hawthorne's sympathy and admiration.
1. Hester is presented as a beautiful, brave and loyal woman.
2. Hester is presented as a kind, able and sympathetic woman.
3. Hester wins a new sense of life and freedom.
4. Hester is linked to the human race by her daughter Pearl.
B. Dimmesdale is presented as a coward and a hypocrite as well as a victim.
1. Dimmesdale is a coward and a hypocrite.
2. Dimmesdale is a victim.
3. Dimmesdale is greatly different from Hester.
C. Chillingworth is presented as a devil and the worst sinner.
1. Chillingworth is rich in knowledge but poor in sympathy.
2. Chillingworth "violates in cold blood the sanctity of a human heart."
III. Hawthorne is both an heir and a critic of Puritanism.
A. The blackness thrown into the story shows Hawthorne's Puritan belief.
1. The seventeenth century Puritan society is the background of the story.
2.
Hawthorne makes everyone in the story a sinner and leaves them no way of escape.
3.
The only right way of self-discovery lies in the realization of one's sinfulness and being true.
B. Hawthorne's views on the three sinners demonstrate that he is a critic of Puritanism.
1. The Puritan society is cruel and cold in excommunicating Hester.
2. The puritan society is corrupted and inharmonious.
3.
Hawthorne challenged the Puritan society through Hester's new sense of life.
You can easily see that this is a sentence outline and all the points of the paper are expressed in complete sentences. You can of course choose to make a topic outline in which all the parts of your paper should be laid out in phrases. For a sample topic outline, please refer to A Sample Research Paper in this chapter.
There are other ways of outlining, but the two forms discussed here are the commonest.
IV. Write the first draft
Now that you have the thesis and outline for your paper, you can begin to write your first draft. Writing the first draft is to turn your idea or ideas expressed in your thesis statement into a unified and organic research paper. You should develop your idea or ideas step by step according to your outline.
While you are writing your first draft, you should put into practice all the rules of good writing you have learned. Special attention should be paid to the following points:
1. Using your own words
The first rule to remember is to use your own words in your paper. It is easy to say so but quite difficult to put it into practice. In the process of writing your first draft, you will certainly use the information or material you have collected for your research. You should make a careful study of your notes on cards and decide how they could be used. You should not simply put your notes together to "form" a paper. Otherwise you will not be writing your paper, but merely copying your notes. What's more, if you do so, you will not be regarded as an honest scholar and your paper will not be considered a real research paper. The basic principle is that the paper must be yours ─ your ideas, your organization, and for the most part, your own words. Your notes should be used to back up your ideas, and all the sources should be acknowledged. That is to say you should make a note for everything you use from other sources.
2. Using the proper tenses
The use of tenses in a research paper is a problem for many students, and any improper use of tenses may lead to confusion, even misunderstanding on the part of the reader. Here are a few points for your reference.
1) When you are dealing with an event or a concept of the past, the past tense should be your basic tense.
Sample 1
Confucius often encouraged his disciples to express their own ideas so that they would form the habit of active thinking. When a student was too timid to express his ideas, the Master urged him on in a most friendly manner, and did not command him with the severity of an old-style Chinese teacher.
2) Biographical details of a person's life should normally be reported in the past tense.
Sample 2
Ernest Hemingway (19─1961) was born in 19 in Oak Park, Illinois. His father was a successful and well-to-do physician who enjoyed hunting and fishing in his spare time. He often took young Hemingway with him while hunting or fishing and initiated him into the virtues of sportsman. It is said that Dr. Hemingway left his son not only a way of life but also a way of death.
3) If you mention events in a story in a chronological order, you should use the simple present tense for all. But the simple past tense or the present perfect tense should be used for an event that happened before one that has been mentioned.
Sample 3
Here is a summary of The Scarlet Letter in The Oxford Companion to American Literature.
An aged English scholar sends his young wife, Hester Prynne, to establish their home in Boston. When he arrives two years later, he finds Hester in the pillory with her illegitimate child in her arms. She refuses to name her lover and is sentenced to wear a scarlet A, signifying Adulteress, as a token of her sin. The husband conceals his identity, assumes the name Roger Chillingworth, and in the guise of a doctor seeks to discover her paramour. Hester, a woman of strong, independent nature, in her ostracism becomes sympathetic with other unfortunates, and her works of mercy gradually win her the respect of her neighbors. Chillingworth meanwhile discovers that the Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale, a revered, seemingly saintly young minister, is the father of Hester's beautiful, mischievous child, Pearl. Dimmesdale has struggled for years with his burden of hidden guilt, but, though he does secret penance, pride prevents him from confessing publicly, and he continues to be tortured by his conscience. Chillingworth's life is ruined by his preoccupation with his cruel search, and he becomes a morally degraded monomaniac. Hester wishes her lover to flee with her to Europe, but he refuses the plan as a temptation from the Evil One, and makes a public confession on the pillory in which Hester had once been placed. He dies there in her arms, a man broken by his concealed guilt, but Hester lives on, triumphant over her sin because she openly confessed it, to devote herself to assuring a happy life in Europe for Pearl, and helping others in misfortune.
4) The present tense should also be used for your comments on the content of a book or the language and style of an author.
Sample 4
Saul Bellow is regarded by many as "probably the most important living American novelist". Seize the Day is considered to be Bellow's greatest achievement, and one of the great short novels written by an American.
5) When you quote from an authority, the reporting verb can also be in the present tense.
Sample 5
Sinclair Lewis (1885─1951), the first American Nobel Prize winner for literature says that "Dreiser... more than any other man, marching alone, usually unappreciated, often hated, has cleared the trail from Victorian and Howellsian timidity and gentility in the American fiction to honesty, boldness and passion of life."
3. Uniting facts and views
Facts and views in a paper are equally important just like flesh and bones in a human body and a good paper is marked by the unity of facts and views.
Your paper is not good if it just expresses a lot of views, even good ones, without strong supporting facts. The reader may be impressed by those views at the first glance, but very soon he/she will begin to doubt if they are really sound.
Your paper is not good either if the facts, even interesting ones, in it do not support your view or views. The reader may wonder what all those facts are there for. Instead of being enlightened, the reader may be confused.
When you are writing your paper, you should always bear in mind that you must combine both facts and the assessment of facts, both authentic, verified factual information and views firmly founded on it.
4. Paying attention to logic and organization
Facts and views in your paper are convincing only when they are properly arranged. Views should be developed logically and facts should be used to support your views at the right time and in the right place. And all the facts and views should center around your main theme. If possible, you should start a paragraph with a topic sentence and the whole paragraph should center around the idea the topic sentence expresses. Similarly, you should start a section with a paragraph which outlines the main idea of the whole section.
5. Making your tone objective rather than personal
Your paper is supposed to be an academic research paper dealing with an important issue and the conclusion you draw should be based only on relevant facts and careful analyses of facts, but not on personal likes or dislikes. Your arguments will be convincing if they are well grounded and presented in an objective tone.
6. Choosing the right style
The style of a paper is largely determined by personal preference and naturally it varies from person to person. But for the students who are learning to write a research paper, it is advisable to use the formal, written style. You should do your best to make your paper easy for your reader to understand. Your language should be simple, clear, straightforward and smooth. Florid expressions or unnecessarily complicated structures should be avoided. You should remember that pompous language and complicated structures do not make a good research paper. You should also try to put the quotations into your paper as naturally as possible to guarantee that the whole paper is smooth and the style consistent.
V. Revising the Draft and
Finalizing the Paper
When you finish your first draft, you are only halfway in the process of writing a research paper. The draft has to be revised several times. When you are revising your draft, you should make sure that your paper is unified, coherent and clear. You should start with the content. See to it that you have a unified point of view and your ideas are logically developed, that the facts and views in your paper are properly arranged so that they prove convincingly that your views are correct and your conclusions are sound. You should delete the facts or views that are irrelevant, unimportant or repetitive. To improve the fluency and coherence of your paper, you may need to add transitions to show how one sentence relates to another and how one paragraph leads to the next.
You should pay attention to other aspects of your language such as brevity in wording and variety in sentence patterns.
You should also make sure that you correct all the technical errors in your draft including errors in punctuation, grammar, spelling and the format of your notes and bibliography.
Finally, you should make a clear copy of your paper and proofread it carefully
A Suggested List of Topics for Research Paper
A. The English Language and Linguistics
1.A study of the relative position of the pre-modifiers in English
2.The English elliptical sentences
3.A linguistic study of the progressive aspect
4.A study of English active form with passive meaning
5.Syntactic function of English noun clause
6.Absolute nominative construction
7.On preposition of place and their syntactic meanings
8.Emphatic patterns in English
9.Some ways of expressing implied negation
10.A tentative study of the functions of English intonation
11.Variant tone patterns in statements, questions, exclamations and commands
12.Color words in English
13.Learned words and popular words --- a study of the interrelation between etymology and register
14.Substantivized phrasal verbs
15.A study of syntactic relations of compound words in English
16.A study of meaning relations in English
17.First language acquisition vs. second language acquisition
18.A study of relatedness between language and society
19.On the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis and the influence of language and culture on each other
20.A preliminary study of the application of the set theory in the semantic field theory
B. Literature
1.On the happy ending in Shakespeare’s comedies
2.A view on the differences of the tragic spirit as expressed in English drama and Chinese drama
3.The characterization of Milton’s Santan
4.Byron’s Don Juan and the picaresque hero
6.The structural patterns of Shelley’s “Ode to the west Wind”
7.The imagery of death and immortality in Keats’ odes
8.The motifs of death and regeneration in “When lilacs last bloom’d in the dooryard”
9.the treatment of the theme of love in the poetry of the Brownings
10.The characterization of the loyal servant—from Man Friday to Uncle Tom
11.The character of Pickwick and its possible predecessors
12.The function of the moor in Hardy’s novels
13.Evil and punishment—a study of Hawthorne’s major works
14.Journeying towards freedom—an interpretation of the symbols of the rover and rafter in Twain’s Huckleberry Finn
15.The clash of the finite and the infinite—an interpretation of Moby Dick
16.The art of the suppression of anger—on the meaning of Hemongway’s code hero
17.Fitzgerald and his rich boys
18. A satire on contemporary American society—a criticism of Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
19.The“Liminous Halo”—Virginia Woolf’s theory of fiction and her practice
20.The portraits of failure—on James Joyce’s The Dubliners
C．English Teaching as and Learning
1. Teaching English through dialogues
2. Teacher-pupil partnership in middle school English classes
3. On developing intelligence through foreign language teaching
4. Cloze procedure as a pragmatic test
5. Intercultural communication in English learning
6. Errors in English learning
7. Grammar vs. vocabulary – a dissenting view on the priorities in ELT
8. From a foreign language to a second language –thoughts about the foreign language teaching in our country
9. An investigation of the factors that affect Chinese students’ listening comprehension of English
10. A survey of some cooperative aspects of second language learning and teaching
11. A brief survey of the communicative approach
12. Techniques for motivating students to learn English in junior middle school
13. How to teach English prepositions
14. Achievement tests in foreign language testing
15. Characteristics of an effective English teacher
16. How to design multiple –choice questions
17. An investigation of the difficulties in learning English pronunciation for Chinese students
18. A survey of the relative advantages of the different techniques used in oral/aural training
19. Teaching spoken English to Chinese scientists and technicians
20. How to master reading skills
D. American/Western Culture
1. The Civil War and its influence on American history
2. How and why the American Constitution came into being
3. Immigration and development of the United States
4. A brief survey of 1996’s student movement in America
5. The black people’s function in the American Civil War and Lincoln’s contribution to the black people’s liberation
6. American cities in crisis
7. Vietnam War : the America’s nightmare
8. Westward expansion in American history
9. The domestic policies of Roosevelt’s New Deal and its significance
10. Women’s position in American society
11. The declining of the crown – the signing of Magna Carta and its significance
12. The European Community
13. A look at the mass media of today
14. On ancient Roman architecture and sculpture
15. On culture shock
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