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Evaluating
types of discourse
By
Debbie Harris, Contributor
 IN
PAPER Two, Section 1 of the examination
you are often required to read an
extract taken from a passage, and
then write an essay in which you not
only state the writer's main point
but also comment on the strategies
used by the writer as well as discuss
the suitability of the extract for
a specific audience. In order to respond
adequately to such a question, you
ought to be able to identify each
type of discourse. Generally, this
is done according to the writer's
purpose, the intended audience and
the writer's style (structural techniques,
devices and strategies). Here is a
table which shows the common discourse
types along with detailed characteristics
of each.
TYPE
OF DISCOURSE
PURPOSE
STYLE:
STRUCTURAL TECHNIQUES/DEVICES
APPLICATIONS
 Narration
(tells a story, details a series of
related events)
To entertain, to inform
Action Verbs
Dialogue
Narrative point-of-view
First/third person narration
Novels, biographies, short stories
and autobiographies
Description (gives sensuous
details about people, places, times
of day, feelings and so on)
To
identify, to construct a verbal picture,
to express what a thing looks, sounds,
feels, smells or tastes like.
Adjectives
Sense
data
Descriptive
sequence
Catalogues,
travel books, scene settings, word
portraits
Exposition
(makes an idea clear, analyses a situation,
defines a term, gives instructions)
To
explain, to identify the subject in
a number of alternative ways, to inform
Analysis,
classification, definition, illustration,
cause and effect, comparison and contrast,
analogy
Textbooks,
reference books, training manuals,
essays, reports
Persuasion
(1) Psychological to convince by using
emotional/ non-rational appeals
(2)
Argument to convince by appeals to
reason/logic/the intellect
To
cause belief or action
(1)
Repetition, rhetorical questions,
emotional appeals
(2)
Evidence facts, authoritative opinions,
personal experience
Refutation
of counter argument
(1)Advertisements,
political speeches, sermons
(2)
Essays
Use the given table to draw lines
to link each type of discourse in
Column A with an appropriate
example from Column B.
| Column
A |
Column
B |
| a.
Description |
1.
She did not sit the Spanish examination
in May. |
| b.
Exposition |
2.
Therefore, the expression is
meaningless.
|
| c.
Argument |
3.
We jumped in the back of the pickup
and headed towards the beach.
We were in for a fun-filled day,
little did we know that some of
us would not have made it back.
|
| d.
Narrative |
4.
Seth draped the multi-coloured
satin scarf around her neck as
she strutted down the runway.
|
ANSWERS
(a)
4 Note the adjectives: multi-coloured,
satin, strutted
(b)
1 Note the informed tone: the
use of a factual statement
(c)
2 Note the opinionated tone:
therefore, meaningless
(d)
3 Note the sequence of events/actions:
we jumped, headed
HOMEWORK
Write
the appropriate type of discourse
on the dotted line next to each example.
1.
........... I am of the view that
air transport continues to offer a
great combination of convenience,
speed and safety unmatched by any
other means of transportation.
2.
........... Getting lost can be a
frustrating experience. Last summer
three friends and I took a camping
trip to YS Falls. We loaded our camping
equipment and started for the campground.
3.
........... The little trees had real,
scratchy barks and were bristled with
leaves and needles. Some of the branches
held tiny pine cones, walnuts, apples
and pears.
4.
........... The rocks found on the
earth and the moon are composed of
the same minerals and elements.
Try
doing these activities. As simple
as they may seem, you are practising
how to identify the different types
of discourse. While you are reading
this week (that is, for academia or
for entertainment), see if you can
do similar exercises. See next week's
lesson for the answer to the homework
assignment. So, until then, walk good!
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