College Composition

1. College Composition Week Three

2. Agenda • Workshop #1–Grammar, Subject/Verb Agreement • Discussion: Connotation vs. Denotation and Word Choice • Paragraphs, the Basics • Lecture/Discussion: Introductions/Thesis Statements and the So What? Factor • Journal #2–Paragraphs and Thesis Statements; This I Believe NOTE: Quiz (Review #1 will be next week instead of tonight)

3. Subject/Verb Agreement A singular subject demands a singular verb; a plural subject demands a plural verb. That is the simple principle behind subject-verb agreement. His new roommate likes camping, too.

4. Indefinite pronouns such as everyone and everybody“feel” plural to some writers, but they are always singular — and take a singular verb. Everyone associated with the project is proud to be part of the effort. Someone has to be responsible. Don’t be confused by phrases that come between the subject pronoun and its verb — phrases that may contain plural words. Each of the project partners is responsible for writing a chapter summary.

5. The verb that accompanies pronouns such as all and some will be determined by whether thepronoun is referring to something that is COUNTABLE .or not.

6. Some of the students in the cafeteria have voted already. Some of the grain was ruined by the flood. “Students” is countable, but we cannot count “the grain”; it is one lump, one quantity.

7. None is usually regarded as singular, but it can be used as a plural pronoun. None of the representatives has indicated how he or she will vote. OR None of the representatives have indicated how they will vote.

8. Phrases such as together with, along with, and as well asseem to join subjects, but they do not work the same as and--They are not conjunctions.

9. Some of the hay in the barn, as well as some major pieces of farm equipment, was ruined in the flood. The major spending bill before Congress, together with some other bills that are awaiting action, is going to cost taxpayers plenty.

10. In formal writing, when either and neither appear as a subject alone (without their sidekicks or and nor), they are singular. This is true even though the subject seems to be two things. Neither of these choices appears to be satisfactory. The purchasing office will lend me a company car or compensate me for travel expenses. Either is fine with me.

11. When either and neither act as correlative conjunctions, the subject that is closer to the verb determines the number (singular or plural form) of the verb. Neither the principal nor the teachers are at fault. Either the teachers or the principal has to be responsible for the year-end festival. Has either the President or his aides been in touch with you?

12. When an expletive construction (there is, there are, here is, etc.) begins a sentence, the subject (which determines the number of the verb) comes after the verb. There are several explanations for the Civil War.

13. Be careful when lengthy or numerous modifying phrases come between the subject and its verb. Tim Berners-Lee, one of America’s most prominent computer scientists and —as a founder of the World Wide Web Consortium — one of the most important figures in the development of the Internet, has been working quietly at M.I.T. for many years. The fact that the plural “scientists” and “figures” appear in this sentence has no effect on our choice of a singular verb, “has.”

14. The Meanings of Words Denotation and Connotation

15. Denotation • The strict “dictionary” meaning of a word • Issues with slang Examples…

16. Connotation • The emotional and imaginative association surrounding a word • Cultural influences upon language An Easy way to remember: Think “C” for “community or cultural” meaning and “D” for “dictionary” meaning

17. Language Control • Positive We bought inexpensivesouvenirs at the amusement park. • Negative We bought cheap souvenirs at the amusement park.

18. Word Choice • Childlike or Childish • Average or Mediocre • Spit or Saliva • Antique or Old • Consistent or Stubborn • Odd or Unusual • Overweight or Fat Others?

19. Negative to Positive 1. youngster child juvenile brat 2. unusual odd crazy strange 3. silent tomblike peaceful still 4. pretty beautiful attractive 5. stupid silly foolish unintelligent

20. Context Clues 2. A (swarm, bunch) of bees filled the air near the hive. 3. Tammy (delayed, hesitated) for a moment, then went on speaking. 1. The (odor, fragrance) of apple blossoms filled the entire valley.

21. Reading Critically:Word Choice and Social Agendas Six Accounts of the Shooting of Malcolm X http://faculty.ucc.edu/english-chewning/malcolm.htm

22. Paragraphs • Paragraphs as “miniature essays” • Three parts: Topic Sentence, Supporting or developing sentences, and transitional/concluding sentences • Indented (tabbed) to direct the reader to the start of a new paragraph • On average, 5 to 7 sentences on ONE topic

23. Essays Paragraphs contain a Topic sentence, supporting sentences, and a concluding sentence (or transitional).

24. Winter is my favorite season because I like the clothes, the food and the activities. In the winter, I can wear a big coat and my favorite sweater. When it's cold, I can eat hot foods and soup. I like to drink hot chocolate, too. Best of all, I enjoy many winter activities. I can play in the snow and make a snowman. I can go skiing, ice skating, or stay at home by the fireplace. These things make winter my favorite season.

25. Introductions • Writing an introductory paragraph is like greeting someone. The paragraph should be short and to the point like saying, “Hello!” • Also, you don’t want to get into the meat of the essay. The Introduction is not the place to give specific details or supporting facts for your thesis statement.

26. Needs to do three things: • Briefly introduce the topic • Cleary state your position • Provide three reasons or points of support/clarification

27. Types… • General statement introduction • Question introduction • Quotation introduction

28. General Statement • Almost every time that you turn on the television you will find a number of shows which are extremely violent. • Many public schools have decided that their students should use uniforms. • In the United States of America the public burning of our flag has become a common sight. (These are three different example of how you can begin your paragraph. If you will notice in the first sentence you simply introduce the topic. You do not state your position yet.)

29. Questions • Are you ever bothered by the excessive violence on prime time television? • Do you think that to improve our public school education the students should be required to wear uniforms? • Should we allow citizens to burn the United States flag in public?(Note that none of these is a thesis statement! Don’t confuse rhetorical questions with thesis statements.)

30. Quotation or Paraphrase • A recent article in Time magazine states that the viewing of extremely violent television shows is the number one cause of violence in our inner cities. • The Monitor recently conducted a study and concluded that students in public schools where uniforms are mandatory have less problems and perform better academically. • A recent article in The Austin Statesman states that most Americans are very much against flag burning in public and are in favor of passing a law banning this activity. (Finally, you can begin an essay by providing some information from a magazine or newspaper you might have read. This introduction is a bit more difficult to write, but just as effective as the other ones.)

31. “So what?” The thesis is called many other names: • In a science lab: it’s called a hypothesis • In math: it’s your proof • In English: it may be called a dominant idea or major premise In reality though, a thesis is just another name for reading something and saying “So What?” The thesis is the answer to that question.

32. Journal #2— This I believe Objectives:Critical Listening skillsExploration of narrative-based essay topics/themes http://thisibelieve.org/ This I Believe is an international organization engaging people in writing and sharing essays describing the core values that guide their daily lives.The project is based on the popular 1950s radio series of the same name hosted by Edward R. Murrow.