Unity and Coherence in Essay Writing
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Unity and Coherence in Essay WritingSkills for unity, coherence and development of a paragraph are not only applicable to writing an individual body paragraph when we write an essay, but can also help with handling the relations between body paragraphs.UnityParagraph unity refers to the harmony between the topic sentence and supporting sentences in a paragraph. If we want to achieve such unity, the first thing we do is to decide on a topic sentence.When we write a single paragraph composition, the topic sentence is usually very broad because the paragraph may be dealing with many things which need a broad topic sentence to cover them all. However, when we write an essay of several paragraphs, the topic sentence for each body paragraph should be fairly specific because each body paragraph deals with only one of the many things stated in the thesis sentence. Take, for example, one of our familiar subjects, describing one’s hometown. If we are assigned to write one paragraph, we can begin with such a broa d topic sentence as “My hometown is an unforgettable place,” and then proceed with describing the things that make it unforgettable, for instance, its beautiful landscape, its hospitable people, and its impressive modern industry.However, if we are to wr ite an essay on the same subject, a statement like “My hometown is an unforgettable place” will become the thesis statement, while the things that make it unforgettable will be discussed in body paragraphs, perhaps one thing in each paragraph. The topic sentence of a body paragraph, therefore, handles a narrow, specific aspect of the “hometown,” either its landscape or people or industry.Can you write down the three topic sentences for the body paragraphs of this essay on “my hometown”? Have a try. Then, compare them with the topic sentence of a single paragraph composition.The position of a topic sentence may vary in the paragraph. So far, when we talk about the topic sentence, we often refer to the first sentence in a paragraph. It is true that a majority of topic sentences appear at paragraph beginnings, but it is also true that a topic sentence may appear at the end of a paragraph if the writer presents the supporting details first and concludes with the central point. Still, some topic sentences, though few in number, will appear somewhere in the middle of a paragraph if a general conclusion is drawn from the example but is then further illustrated. Skillful writers make use of all these different positions to serve their purpose and add variety to their writing.After the topic sentence come the supporting sentences. Unity requires that these sentences match the topic sentence. When we gather materials and write the first draft, it is possible that one or two sentences or even a section of the paragraph may have drifted away from the topic. In general, this will not present a serious problem because this mistake can be easily corrected when we do revision and proofreading of the drafts. However, some of us do have the bad habit of making constant digressions once the pen begins to move on the paper. Therefore, it is advisable to double-check the paragraph unity.Similarly, paragraphs may drift away from the thesis and thus destroy the unity of the essay. This is why we should always make sure that there is no digression in the essay and that each body paragraph actually supports the thesis.CoherenceIn the body of an essay, coherence exists on three levels: within a sentence, between sentences and between paragraphs. On the first two levels, coherence can be achieved through the following measures:1. Proper ordera. Space orderb. Time orderc. Logic order2. Transitional words and phrasesa. Conjunctionsb. Connectivesc. Adverbial phrases3. Repetition of a key term4. The pronoun as a means of transitionSentences should be tied together through these transitional devices to form a coherent paragraph. This is what we already know.The same principle that functions on the sentence level also applies to the relationship between paragraphs. Paragraphs in an essay should not appear as isolated blocks of thought; rather, they should be tied together to form a unified whole and should present a step-by-step progression toward a focus, i.e. the thesis. One way to avoid a scattered, choppy essay is to link each paragraph to the preceding one with a transitional device. Just as sentences in a paragraph need to be connected, so paragraphs need to be connected. And we may use the same transitional devices listed above for paragraphs as well as for sentences.Let’s have a closer look at the order in which body paragraphs are presented in an essay. Sometimes the subject itself will suggest this order. In a narrative essay, for example, the paragraphs naturally follow time order so that one event grows out of another, giving readers a clear line of development. In exposition, climactic order enables readers to finish reading the body paragraphs with a fresh memory of the strongest point. If we choose comparison and contrast as the logic order, we may arrange the pairs of contrasting points climactically and save the most important pair for the end.Besides proper order, other sentence level transitional devices can also be used on the paragraph level. The first sentence of a body paragraph often contains either a transitional word or phrase or a repeated term or a parallel structure. (Underline the paragraph transition of this paragraph.) Sometimes a paragraph may even use a transitional sentence, and in long essays, there may even be transitional paragraphs standing between other paragraphs. However, in most cases, we prefer to compress a transitional sentence into a phrase or a subordinate clause in the topic sentence. In the compressed phrase or clause, a word or two summarizes or refers back to the previous paragraph and, therefore, links the two paragraphs. (Can you find such a phrase in this paragraph? Underline it and double underline the words referring back to the previous paragraph.)。
