Body Paragraphs -
Taken from the
Regent's Testing Program at Georgia Tech
Most successful
Regents' Exam essays include two to four developmental (body)
paragraphs, each of which develops one of the points supporting
the thesis. These paragraphs should make up the bulk of the
paper, and their evidence (support) should be very detailed and
specific.
Main Elements of Body Paragraphs:
For this kind
of essay, start each body paragraph with a topic
sentence, which clearly states what supporting point (a
reason, a cause, an effect, etc.) the paragraph will
develop. Try to be subtle rather than mechanical and
repetitious. If you have outlined the subpoints in the
thesis, be sure not to repeat them word for word in the
topic sentences. Use transitions in the topic sentences,
but, if possible, avoid "first," "second" and "third."
After the topic sentence, develop each paragraph (that is,
prove each topic sentence) by providing one or more of the
following:
- specific
details
- an
expanded example
- a series
of closely-related short examples
- a
narration of an event
- an
analysis of a process
- a
cause-effect sequence
- a
classification scheme
- a
definition
- a
comparison/ contrast
- a detailed
description
- or a
combination of these techniques.
Try to end your
paragraph with a concluding sentence that directly ties your
details or example to your topic sentence or your overall
thesis. Do *not* end with a sentence repeating your topic
sentence.
Above all, body
paragraphs must be convincing, and they will be if you add
enough specific detail. A paragraph made up of only vague
generalizations is never successful. The length of a
developmental paragraph does not determine its success. It
must include specific support.
Two sample
paragraphs (one vague, one specific):
Topic: Is a
college degree less meaningful today than in the past?
A second
area which shows the importance of a degree is that of
the high technical aspects of society today. As more
advances are made in every field concerning living
today, jobs are requiring that people obtain more
knowledge and technical know-how. A college degree
should insure that more knowledge has been obtained;
thus the person is more prepared for his job. Again,
higher paying jobs such as those available in the
professional fields are those same jobs that are more
technically orientated. Professional people need to
acquire a college degree before they can even consider
becoming professionals. Again experience is just not
enough.
First of all, the sheer number of degree candidates
today seems to cheapen the accomplishment of working
one's way through four years of classes. In my parent's
day a diploma was a rare and treasured thing; in the
mill towns of west Georgia it was a virtual assurance of
financial security. Today, the same area of the state is
overrun with degree holders, many of whom work in the
same pulpwood mills or textile "sweat shops" as their
unschooled parents. The advent of the community college
"diploma mills" is largely responsible for this
phenomenon; by providing almost everyone a chance for a
low-cost education, these colleges have flooded the area
with men and women whose degrees make them the rule,
rather than the exception, when they begin job-hunting.
Sample Well-Developed Paragraphs (from successful student
papers):
Topic: Is the traditional role of fathers changing?
Discuss.
It is true
that fathers are becoming more involved with the lives
of their children. Many even find happiness in munching
homemade cookies with other parents at PTA meetings.
Discussing school lunch menus is pure bliss to some. It
is the changing attitudes toward traditionally male (and
female) roles that have facilitated the coming-out of
these "closet mothers," and it deserves a great
"Hurrah!" More and more articles and papers are being
written on the impact of fathers' active participation
in their children's development. There are classes and
seminars on not only "How to be better parents" but also
on how to be a better father. Fathers are beginning to
realize that it's all right to be involved with the PTA,
to play with their kids on the weekdays, to help with
homework and fix lunches. They find it doesn't hurt to
ask if the children have taken their Fred Flintstones
and Barney Rubbles, to change the baby's diapers, or
give baths.
Topic: What
advice would you give to an entering freshman? Discuss.
Granted
that the dorm has some surprises, the real shock comes
from the dining hall. Where else can you get the same
meatloaf three weeks in a row? To eat in the dining
halls you need only two things -- antacid and a very
vivid imagination. By the time spring quarter rolls
around, you should be addicted to either Rolaids or
Pepto-Bismol. Both are quite effective and are
frequently on sale at Kroger. The vivid imagination is
the part I have trouble with. It's quite difficult to
believe that they use fresh chicken every day. We have
fried chicken on Monday, soggy fried chicken on Tuesday,
Italian chicken hidden fathoms deep in tomato sauce on
Wednesday, and the ultimate "Chicken Surprise" on
Thursday. Friday of course is reserved for fish.
Topic: In
general, do movies and/or television provide a realistic
picture of life in America? Explain.
Suppose you
are from a foreign country and your television set
happens to receive American programming. One day while
changing channels you happen upon an episode of The
Bold and The Beautiful. Obviously, you would have
the misconception that everyone in America is
untrustworthy, manipulating and rich. Kristen has just
married Clarke and Clarke happens to be the father of an
unborn child. Of course, Kristen is not carrying this
unborn child, nor is she aware of it. Everyone else on
the show is either having an affair or calculating some
devious plan in pursuit of greed. No one cares about
anyone else, only his or her own pleasure.
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