A Descriptive Paragraph 2u4o59

Unit

By the end of this unit, you are expected to be able to:

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define what a descriptive paragraph is and mention its generic structure

1.1 Definition of Descriptive Paragraph Descriptive paragraph is paragraph which expresses or describes place, thing and person in such vivid detail that the readers can easily visualize the described place, thing and person or can picture what it looks like. In addition, descriptive paragraph is also defined as a paragraph which is written with our senses since the paragraph will make the readers see, touch, taste, hear or smell the object. The writer should try to present his/her paragraph in the light of the five senses so that the readers will have the same picture as the writer. Furthermore, writing a descriptive paragraph is mainly intended to provide the reader with a vivid description so that the paragraph will appear as a picture to the readers. Therefore, a good descriptive paragraph will make the readers clearly catch what is trying to describe. Exercise: can you define what a descriptive paragraph is?

1.2 Generic Structure Descriptive paragraph is intended to describe place, person, and thing so that the reader will be able to visualize the object. Writing descriptive paragraph, generally, you have to consider the following generic structure: a. Identification Identification is a part in which you identify or write the recognition; moreover, it can be a general statement about place, person, or thing that you want to describe.

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b. Descriptions Descriptions are vivid detail of place, person, or thing that you want to describe so that the readers can easily imagine or picture the object, or they can feel the object with their five senses. c. Conclusion The last part of descriptive paragraph is optional (i.e. it may be included or not). In this part, you conclude the paragraph or restate the identification. Exercise: can you mention the generic structure of descriptive paragraph? SUMMARY:  Descriptive paragraph is paragraph which expresses or describes place, thing and person in such vivid detail that the readers can easily picture or visualize what is being written about, or when the readers read the paragraph, it appears in their five senses.  In writing descriptive paragraph, there are some generic structures that should be followed: a. Identification You identify or write general statement of the place, person, or thing that you want to describe. b. Descriptions You describe the place, person, or thing in such vivid detail in order to give a crystal clear picture to the readers. c. Conclusion This part may be included or not. It can be restatement or conclusion of the paragraph.

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Unit

By the end of this unit, you are expected to be able to:

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mention characteristics of a good descriptive paragraph and

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write a good descriptive paragraph

2.1 Characteristics of a Good Descriptive Paragraph A good descriptive paragraph, in general, should be able to present a picture to the reader. Therefore, it should be written on the basis of the following characteristics. a. Using descriptive words that appeal to the readers’ senses. Present verbal pictures what the reader can see, touch, taste, hear or smell. b. Using specific and concrete vocabulary to describe details. c. Involving the reader enough so he/she can actually visualize or picture the things, person or people being described. d. Using appropriate transitional phrases so that the paragraph will be well organized and structured.

2.2

Writing Descriptive Paragraph In this sub discussion you will be given step by step processes of

writing descriptive paragraph. The process of writing descriptive paragraph is preceded by writing the identification, descriptions, and conclusion, and it can be further described as follows: a. Identification Identification states or identifies the place, person or thing that you want to describe. Identification will tell the reader what is going to be described. Example: Saul ‘Slash’ Hudson who amazes me in playing guitar is one of my favourite guitar players.

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b. Descriptions After stating identification of the paragraph, now you try to develop it through providing it with some descriptions that can picture place, person, or thing that you are going to describe. These descriptions should be well organized in order to make it unified and coherent. Use as many as possible descriptive words that reveal the description of the object. In descriptive the more details you include, the more clear your reader will imagine what you are describing. Your details should appeal to the five senses, and they should tell the reader how something looks, smells, sounds, feels and tastes. Write about colors, sizes, shapes, odors, noises, and textures. To develop your descriptions, in order to make them well organized, you can use spatial order (Oshima and Hogue 2007). In description, a writer uses spatial order to organize his/her ideas. Spatial order is the arrangement of items in order by space. Here are some spatial order signals: at the top of, in the center, on the left, in front of, in the front of, inside, next to, between, behind, in back of, in the back of, across The following are some descriptions which can be drawn from the topic sentences: Example: -

He is 179 cm tall and well-built.

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His style in playing guitar amazes me.

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He has white skin with a haired skull and his name tattooed on his right upper arm.

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He has white skin with a hairy skull and his name tattooed on his right upper arm.

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He has special characteristic.

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He has long black curly hair covered by magician hat and tight skin pants.

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He always uses ‘Les Paul Gibson’ guitar.

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He also uses some accessories such as rings, silver bangles, skull necklace, and a gold ‘nose ring’ pierced in the right nostril.

c. Conclusion After writing a good identification and its descriptions, now you should also write a good conclusion. A conclusion is not absolutely necessary, but it is often very helpful to the readers because it usually signals the end of the paragraph and because it reminds them of your important points. A concluding sentence can be a paraphrase (i.e. repetition of the topic sentence in different words) of the topic sentence or summary which is not specifically stated in the topic sentence. Example: Slash who is ired by a lot of people is very stylish rock guitarist in his period. After constructing identification, descriptions, and conclusion, these three elements are further arranged into a descriptive paragraph. In arranging these elements, we, obviously, have to consider the two additional elements (i.e. unity and coherence). The paragraph will be as follows: Slash Saul ‘Slash’ Hudson who amazes me in playing guitar is one of my favourite guitar players. He is 179 cm tall and well-built; moreover, he has white skin with a haired skull and his name tattooed on his right upper arm. As my favourite guitarist, he has special characteristic that differentiates him with other guitarists. For example, his long black curly hair covered by magician hat and tight skin pants always accompany him when he rocks his fans in a live concert with ‘Gibson Les Paul’. In addition, he usually uses some accessories such as rings, silver bangles, skull necklace, and a gold ‘nose ring’ pierced in the right nostril. To summarize, Slash who is ired by a lot of people is very stylish rock guitarist in his period. Exercises: Please describe the steps of writing a descriptive paragraph!

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2.3

Let’s Practice

a. Recognizing Identification, Descriptions and Conclusion. To improve your understanding about generic structure of a descriptive paragraph, now you try to identify and list identification, descriptions and conclusion of the following paragraph: My Banana Garden Behind my childhood home, there is a large piece of land that is surrounded by banana trees growing in wild disorder. Crowds of banana trees grow freely everywhere. Their green leaves are so thick that sunlight cannot through. Underneath the trees, the ground is so moist that wild mushrooms and plants grow there all year around. In the center is a wild field where the children of my village often fly kites. Every evening, just before sunset, some birds arrive to look for a place to rest their tired wings. They want to land in the dark banana garden, but the banana leaves are too wide to be made into nests. The birds cry out and then fly away, seeking a better place to nest. During the rainy season, it rains for days and days, and the banana leaves become glossy and slick. The rain also makes the banana garden produce a very strange melody. On rainy days, I used to sit near my window and listen ti this wonderful song. Now, whenever I hear the plop-plop-plop of raindrops on the roof of my small, tidy apartment in the city, I the beautiful, wild banana garden of my childhood. (Oshima and Hogue 2007) 1 Topic Sentence  2. ing Sentences      3. Concluding Sentence 

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b. Writing Your Own Descriptive Paragraph In order to make you more skillful in writing a paragraph, the following practice steps can be followed (Writing under pressure 15 minutes): 1. Choose the following titles: - My Classroom - My Dictionary - My Best Friend 2. Draw the identification from the title chosen. 3. Make at least four descriptions for your identification or main idea. 4. Conclude your paragraph. 5. Put your identification, descriptions, and conclusion together in the form of paragraph, and try to arrange them in unity and coherence. (You can check the result by using paragraph checklist page 19) Note: Lecturer asks three or five students to present or write their paragraph in front of the class while the other students try to identify the three major structural parts of a good paragraph. SUMMARY:  A well-written descriptive paragraph has five elements: identification, descriptions, conclusion, unity and coherence. Besides, a good descriptive paragraph should use descriptive words that appeal to the readers’ senses, use concrete/specific vocabularies, involve the readers, and use appropriate transitional phrases.  After stating the identification, and then you have to provide some descriptions so that the reader will be able to picture the idea, and conclusion is drawn if it is necessary. Finally, to make the paragraph more interesting and understandable to read, these elements should be well arranged to make it unity and coherence.

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Descriptive Paragraph Checklist 

Form

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Does your paragraph have a title?

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Do you write the title correctly?

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Do you use writing style accordingly?

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Identification

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Does your paragraph contain an identification?

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Descriptions

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Do your descriptions develop the identification?

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Conclusion

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Does your paragraph have a conclusion?

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Unity

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Does your paragraph develop one main idea?

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Coherence

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Is it readable and understandable?

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Do you use enough transitional signals?

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Are all your sentences grammatically correct?

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Do you use correct punctuation?

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Structure and Mechanics

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