《英语写作教案》PPT课件.ppt

16 Types of Essays Four major types of essays: Narration: giving an account of an event or a series of eventsstories, biographies, histories, news items, narrative poems, etc. Description: painting a verbal picture of a person, place, object or scene Exposition: providing information by explaining, defining, analyzing, illustrating or comparing Argumentation: persuading or convincing through evidence or emotional appeal They are often used in combination, especially narration and description, and exposition and argumentation. Narration tell a story from ones experience decide on a thesis sentence subject / attitude Look at the examples on pp.74-75. The Introduction functions 1. attract the readers attention 2. narrow the topic 3. show the importance of the topic 4. set the tone Look at the example on p.75. The Body: story 1. the tellers point of view (example on pp.76- 77) 2. the events/plot 3. focus on the central theme (example on pp.77 -78) 4. details / plot / storyline (example on p.78) The Conclusion reconfirmation of the central idea Read the example essay “Very Cold and Alone” and do the first two exercises. Read the following essay and make some comments on the plot and language. Sample Essay The Stamp Incident I can never forget the stamp incident which happened when I was a primary school pupil. My best friend whose nickname was Apple was a stamp-collector. He tried every way to get stamps and spent every penny he had on them. Once he obtained a beautiful or precious stamp he would be more than happy. I was always his companion in his search for stamps. One day Apple whispered to me mysteriously that he had found a most wonderful stamp on a letter addressed to our young arithmetic teacher, who was a very pretty and kind- hearted girl. Apple wanted that stamp so badly that he said if he couldnt get it, he wouldnt be able to eat or sleep. Then the idea of stealing occurred to him, and he couldnt get rid of it. I was frightened and begged him not to do that. He showed signs of much hesitation, too. Without saying any more words, he left. That evening he hurried to my home and almost dragged me out of the house to the corner of a street and showed me a letter. It was in a mans handwriting. In the letter the man implored our teacher to forgive him and asked her to meet him at the gate of Shanlin Park at eight that evening. If not, hed take it that she would never forgive him, and it meant the end of their relationship. “The teacher asked me if there was any letter for her this afternoon. You see, she knows I am a stamp-collector and always wander about the place where the letters are delivered. When I said No, she looked rather sad.” Apple told me after I had read the letter. We were completely at a loss. Too frightened to go to the teacher, we decided to go to the meeting place ourselves. When we arrived at the park, we found at the gate a tall young man with glasses, walking back and forth as if he was waiting anxiously for someone. He looked at his watch from time to time. I did not know how long we had been there. Finally the man left, looking very worried and disappointed. A few days later, our teacher asked Apple to go to her room and gave him many stamps. With a melancholy expression on her face, she told Apple that she once had a friend who was a stamp-collector too, but she had lost him forever, so the stamps she had collected for him were no longer useful. Apple ran to me with stamps in his hand and tears in his eyes. We both cried bitterly. From then on. Apple never collected any more stamps; neither did I. AssignmentAssignment Page 86: Activity Write a narrative essay on the moral from Aesops fables Description Description: painting a verbal picture; creating a sensory experience with the use of words. Key: good vocabularyspecific and concrete use of similes and metaphors (See the examples on pp88-89) 1) description of a person details of appearance character, thoughts and feelings focus on distinctive features Example essay: Colan Hobart She was ninety-two years old when I met her, a gentle, diminutive lady in European dress. Her face was deeply lined, and her coarse grey hair had yellowed with years. She spoke softly in a quivering voice that was half English, half American. Her gnarled hands testified to the years of hard work on the farm in her homeland. Yet, in her dark eyes and in her gentle manner there was a childlike simplicity as she told her tale. I thought “She has the wisdom that comes with years of experience, and the gentle purity of a childa wonderful but strange combination of traits.” I knew that I would never forget her. Her name was Colan Hobart. When she was a young woman, her homeland was invaded by foreign troops. She had been keeping house for her father, brothers, husband and her two young children. One day she returned from the market and found the mutilated bodies of her father and one of her brothers on her doorstep. They were among the many victims of the war. Colans husband was much older than she, and he soon succumbed to the vigorous demands of field work and mental strain, leaving Colan alone with her two small children. Many of the towns people helped her, and she was able to produce enough on the small farm to feed her family. Shortly after the turn of the century, her daughter married and went to America. After a few years Colans daughter sent her some money to come to the United States. Colan had lived in the United States for thirty years. As Colan told her story, her eyes became large with fear and her breath became rapid with excitement. Then she wept. After a short time, she sat silently with her head bowed. Suddenly, she rose from her chair, lifted her skirt to just above her ankles, and began to dance in short, jerky steps. She sang almost inaudibly in her native language, but I knew it was a childrens song. The simple melody and the simple dance steps were those of children all over the world. Her eyes shone with youthful gaiety, and her voice was light and happy. Her grandson appeared at this time, spoke to her affectionately, and led her from the room. 2) Description of a place for its own sake revealing the personality and character of a person, or creating a feeling or mood a clean tidy rooman orderly person the falling of autumn leavesdepressive feeling the howling of the chilly windsomber mood the blooming of flowershappy mood Sample essay: A Free Market With a shopping bag in my hand, I entered the gate of 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 from the poultry stalls on the left side of the street. There, every small cage was packed with four or five chickens. Occasionally, the chickens crowed sadly as if they knew they were going going to be cooked. The feed stank under the sun. I put a handkerchief to my nose and hurried away. “Live fish! Fresh and cheap!” A husky voice of a man was heard. In front of his stall, there stood a bit canvas bag. Inside, a lot of fish were struggling in the turbid water. They opened their mouths widely to have their last breath of air. Terrified at the price, I left for the other stalls. Just then a young fellow stopped me and tried to persuade me to buy a chain of garlic in his hand. He was disappointed to see me shaking my head. Then I came to the vegetable and fruit stalls which made up the busiest section of the market. A good variety of vegetables and fruits could be found here at the summertime. Red tomatoes, green cucumbers and peppers were put at the most conspicuous places. The sweet smell of the fruitspeaches, plums, muskmelons （香瓜 ）, and purple-colored grapeshad drawn many customers. The sellers were praising their produce in strong provincial accents and competing with each other by offering lower prices. Housewives would certainly drive a good bargain with the sellers before they really bought anything. At the far end of the market were the clothing stalls. Colorful clothes were hung up high to attract peoples attention. There were quite a number of people but only few bought any clothes. A girl had stood at one of the stalls for a long time. Obviously she desired to have that fashionable skirt which was said to be made in Hong Kong. But finally she left, for she was unwilling to pay almost her monthly wage of 80 yuan for it. After hours of shoppingchoosing and bargaining, I left the noisy market, exhausted but quite satisfied, my bag full of vegetables and fruits. 3) Description of an object details of size, shape, color, texture (the way that a surface, material, etc. feels when you touch it, and how smooth or rough it looks) taste and smell. use, usefulness and role / function Example Essay: The Earliest Coins in China Of the various currencies used in ancient China, the round bonze coin with a square hole in the center was by far the most common. The earliest coins in this form, known as Qin ban liang, were a product of Chinas first centralized kingdom, the Qin dynasty, established by Qin Shi Huang in 221 B.C. Before the Qin dynasty, Chinese currency had taken many forms. Coins shaped like various items of clothing, farm implements, or knives were in circulation, but they were costly and hard to produce, and difficult to carry and transport. The new coins were a great improvementthey were relatively simple to cast and could be strung together for ease of transportation. The new coins also had a particular philosophical significance to the ancient Chinese, who made the coins to symbolize their belief that heaven was round and the earth was square, and that heaven sheltered the earth and all things in the universe were united. This concept of unity was important to the Qin emperors, who ruled over a unified China and believed their power great enough to spread to the four corners of the earth. The coins also had great aesthetic appeal. They were thought to represent the relationship between man and nature. Commonly found in nature, the circle represents freedom, comfort, and ease; whereas the square is seen as something man-made, a symbol of law, order, and restraint. All these factors had been combined to keep coins in circulation for more than 2,000 years. Only in the twentieth century did they cease to be legal tender (法定货币）. 4) Description of a scene three basic factors: the setting, the people and the actions It is also possible to describe the scene of some natural phenomenon. Example Essay: A Walk along the Seashore There is much enjoyment to be gained by strolling along the seashore. Many people who live far away from the sea envy those who live near it. They sometimes form excursion parties and go to that part of the land which skirts the expanse of salt water to spend their Sundays. To gaze upon a calm sea and watch the ships as they glide steadily and quickly through the water is very pleasant. But on a summers day, when the air is warm and th