Developing Paragraph Skills

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In Passage 1, the writer compares the biology class to a jail house. To back up his opinion, he uses two examples, the depressing mood of the students and the suffocating atmosphere of the examination room. Each example is described in great detail. The paragraph leaves a strong impression, this could not be achieved without the details included in the description.

Passage 2 contains an additional story in the last part. What , then, does the story do to the passage? First, it makes the original examples more meaningful by supplying a real incident. Then, with actions and images, it helps to hold the readers’ attention and add lasting memories to their mind. Finally, it takes a step forward: while the brief examples show that misunderstanding of nonverbal communication can be serious, the story shows that such misunderstanding actually does happen. With this additional story, the passage becomes more concrete and convincing.

The following essay was written by an American student in response to an assignment that asked the students to use examples to illustrate the role that music plays in their culture or in their own lives.

The Sometimes Silent Partner

To see how important music was to me, I tried going without it for an entire day. There were no songs playing on my alarm clock to wake me. There was no music on the car while I drove to school. I went through the entire day without listening to a single CD. Did I survive? Of course I did. Was I miserable? You bet. I was alternately stressed out and bored. It felt like Lent1, where I have to give up something I really enjoy. Music is a necessary and integral part of our lives, so much so that we may not recognize its value. From the most insignificant to the most important moments in our lives, music helps make our experiences complete. Music also helps us remember and celebrate our heritage as part of rituals and in everyday events.

One place music plays an important role is in movies. Many of us think that background music reflects the action of a scene, which it does, but it also helps create the emotions we feel when we are watching that action. For example, would the shark-attack scenes in Jaws be as suspenseful without the famous “Ta-Dum, Ta—Dum” of the theme song? Would we be as likely to shed a tear in a sad movie without the swelling of violin s in the background? Sound directors use this music to trigger a viewer’s emotional reaction to a movie. The beauty of a good movie soundtrack is that you don’t notice it. The next time you put a tape in the VCR, try spending a few minutes watching the movie with the sound off. Chances are that your experience of the movie during those few minutes will be flat and maybe even boring.

On the other hand, certain pieces of music have become all important to us over time and have come to symbolize certain events. Can you imagine going to a baseball game and not sing “Take Me Out to the Ball Game?” For me, this song and the six clear notes before the crowd yells “Charge!” are at the heart of enjoying the game. In other cases, a certain piece of music is central to an important ritual or ceremoney. When an organist plays “The Wedding March,” we know that it is time for the bride to walk down the aisle. When Americans hear “The Star Spangled Banner,” they stand up and put their hands over their hearts. When we hear the harmonizing trumpets of the Olympic theme,we know that the games are about to begin or a medal is going to be awarded. Each of these pieces of music goes hand-in-hand with the ritual itself. It is hard for me even to think about one of these events without hearing its accompanying music.

Finally, the importance of music is universal: it is used by people of all countries to remember their heritage an culture. For example, the people of Louisiana have continued to sing folk songs in Cajun French, keeping the language alive. Cajun musicians use the same instruments (the fiddle, accordion, and guitar) as their Acadian ancestors who immigrated to Louisiana. When they perform, these musicians pass on the language, traditions, and sounds of their forefathers and foremothers to the next generation. There are other ways people keep their heritage alive though music. For example, American Indians sing songs passed down from their ancestors as part of religious ceremonies. In my church, the choir sometimes sings humns in Latin to reflect the ancient roots of our faith. Regardless of language or nationality, we all have probably gained some sense of our cultures through music. Songs can be the most familiar ties to our heritage because they are all around us; they are sung in times of celebration and of mourning, as part of ritual and as part of leisure.

Whether it is front and center or behind the scees, music helps give meaning to activities and events in our lives. In movies, ceremonies, or cultural gatherings, music is sure to play an important role. We may not always notice the presence of music in our lives and may sometimes take it for granted. Without it, however, our world would indeed be a silent place.

Note: 1. Lent: a period of 40 days weekdays before Easter observed by some Christmas as a period of prayer, fasting (not eating), and self-denial

Questionsa;

- Locate the thesis sentence of the essay.

- How many examples are used to illustrate the power of music? Do they support the thesis statement?

- Does the writer follow any particular order(s) in his arrangement of the examples? What are the ordres?

- How does the writer make transitions within a paragraph and beetween the paragraphs? Underline the transitional words and expressions in this essay.