Page 211 - DENG102_COMMUNICATION_SKILLS_II

Communication Skills-II

notes You have seen how using a variety of sentences types and using active and passive voice
appropriately can help make your sentences more effective. Now you are ready to combine these
sentences to form logical paragraphs.
Developing logical paragraphs: A paragraphs is a group of related sentences that focus on one
main idea. The main idea is often identified in the first sentence of the paragraph, which is then
known as a topic sentence. The body of the paragraph supports this main idea by giving more
information, analysis, or examples. A paragraph is typically part of a longer message, although
one paragraph can contain the entire message, especially in such informal communication as
memorandums and e-mail.
Paragraphs organize the topic into manageable units of information for the reader. Readers need
a cue to tell them when they have finished a topic, so that they can pause and refocus their
attention on the next topic. To serve this purpose, paragraphs must be unified and coherent, be
stated in parallel structure, and be of an appropriate length.

14.1.8 Keep Paragraphs Unified and Coherent

Although closely related, unity and coherence are not the same. A paragraph has unity when
all its parts work together to develop a single idea consistently and logically. A paragraph has
coherence when each sentence links smoothly to the sentences before and after it.

Unity: A unified paragraph gives information that is directly related to the topic, presents this
information in a logical order, and omits irrelevant details. The following excerpt is a middle
paragraph in a memorandum arguing against the proposal that Collins, a baby-food manufacturer,
should expand into producing good for adults:
Don’t: (1) We cannot focus our attention on both ends of the age spectrum. (2) In a recent survey,
two-thirds of the under-35 age group named Collins as the first company that came to mind for
the category “baby food products”. (3) For more than 50 years we have spent millions of dollars
annually to identify our company as the baby-food company, and market research shows that we
have been successful. (4) Last year, we introduced Peas ‘N Pears, our most successful baby-food
introduction Peas ‘N Pears, our most successful baby-food introduction ever. (5) To now seek to
position ourselves as a producer of food for adults would simply be incongruous. (6) Our well-
defined image in the marketplace would make producing food for adults risky.
The paragraph obviously lacks unity. You may decide that the overall topic of the paragraph
is Collin’s well-defined image as a baby-food producer. So Sentence 6 would be the best topic
sentence. You might also decide that Sentence 4 brings in extra information that weakens
paragraphs unity and would be left out. The most unified paragraphs, then, would be Sentences
6,3,2,5 and 1, as shown here:
Do: Our well-defined image in the marketplace would make producing food for adults risky. For
more than 50 years we have spent millions of dollars annually to identify our company as the
baby-food company, and market research shows that we have been successful. In a recent survey,
two-third of the under 35 age group named Collins as the first company that came to mind for the
category “baby-food products” to now seek to position ourselves as a producer of food for adults
would simply be incongruous. We cannot focus our attention on both ends of the age spectrum.
A topic sentence is especially helpful in a long paragraph. It usually appears at the beginning of
a paragraph. This position helps the writer focus on the topic, so the paragraph will have unity.
And it lets the reader know immediately what the topic is.
Coherence: A coherent paragraph weaves sentences together so that the discussion is integrated.
The reader never needs to pause to puzzle out the relationships or reread to get the intended
meaning. The major ways to achieve coherence are to use transitional words and pronouns, to
repeat key words and ideas, and to use parallel structure.

206 lovely Professional university