Section 3. Writing Practice. Composition Technique Description. There are two kinds of description: technical and suggestive. Technical description gives an objective account of the appearance or structure of a thing. Read the following description of a sitting-room: As you come into the room you notice a piano with a low music-stool in front of it. Next to the piano a tall bookcase is standing against the wall. On the left there is a large window. Under the window there is a radiator but you can’t see it because it’s behind the settee. On the settee there are two cushions. the fire-place is at the other end of the room. On each side of the fire-place there is an arm-chair. In the center of the mantelpiece there’s a clock and above it an oval mirror. On the right you can see a standard lamp. Opposite the fire-place you can see a small table with an ash- tray and some newspapers on it. By the table there’s a small chair. The floor is covered with a beautiful thick carpet. An electric light is hanging from the middle of the ceiling. At night, when it gets dark, we switch on the light and draw the curtains. During the day the light comes in through the window. Suggestive description evokes an impression of a place, scene, or person. It is primarily emotional. In describing a place or a scene the student shpuld first determine the central emotional effect which he wishes to arouse. Then the student should select the details which will most effectively develop this impression and present them as vividly as he can. For an illustration, see the passage by John Galsworthy quoted from The Apple Tree: Spring was a revelation to him this year. In a kind of intoxication he would watch the pink-white buds of some backward birch tree sprayed up in the sunlight against the deep blue sky, or the trunks and limbs of the new Scotch firs tawny in violet light or again on the moor, the galebent larches which had such a look of life when the wind streamed in their young green, above the rusty black underboughs. Or, he would lie on the banks, gazing at the clusters of clog-violets, or up in the dead blacken, fingering the pink, 41 transparent buds of the dewberry, while the cuckoos called and yaffles laughed, or a lark, from very high dripped its beads of song. Exercise 1. Write a description of the following. (First decide the impression you wish to give, then make a list of the main things you intend to mention to give the impression; arrange them in what you consider the best for your purpose.) a. A new hotel in your city; b. The street you live in; c. The University you study at; d. A village you spent your holidays in; Exercise 2. Disaster Scene . For this exercise you will write a disaster scene that takes place in a restaurant. Disaster doesn't necessarily mean explosions of the Die Hard movie type. Write a disaster that's based on a personal/ psychological conflict. It might be easier to first think of your characters and what they are doing at the restaurant. What is their relationship to each other? What are they talking about? What type of restaurant is it? What do they order? Use sensory details to make the scene come alive. Remember to show, don't tell. Use dialogue if possible. Have fun with it. Don't be afraid of sounding ridiculous or unbelievable. Just have fun with it. Happy writing! 42 Lesson 5 Section 1. Spelling. A. Words with the Diagraph -gu-. The diagraph -gu- may occur at the beginning or at the end of a word, and is pronounced as /g/. Explain what the words given in the list mean and give their derivatives if possible. Copy the list. guarantee guile catalogue league guard guilt colleague plague guerilla guinea epilogue prologue guess guise fatigue rogue guest disguise the Hague vague guide guitar intrigue vogue In the middle of a word -gu- is pronounced as /gw/: to distinguish /dis 'tiŋg wi ʃ /, language / ' l æŋg wi ʤ /, linguistics /li ŋ'g wistiks/. N o t e: argue / ' a: g ju:/ - argument, tongue /t ʌŋ /. Exercise 1. Fill in the blanks with the words from the above list. Translate the sentences. 1. This man, to whom so much had been given, and from whom, in consequence, so much was expected, this … of yours, has betrayed the trust imposed on him. 2. I was … in the head from lying in the hay. 3. A pause ensued, and suddenly I felt overcome by a profound and hopeless … . 4. All the people who had low-grade jobs were perpetually … for high-grade jobs, and all the people with high- grade jobs were counter-… to stay where they were. 5. There was no sincerity in the man, but there was a good deal of craft and … as well as shrewdness. 6. They were here not a half-hour after you’d gone, those …, and they tore my house apart to find you. 7. I saw that now he wished with all his heart that he had held his … . 8. He saw that she was going to hit him again, and lifted his arm to … his face. 9. 43 Then to prevent … I must decide for you all. 10. Mr. Smith tried to talk to me about the picture, but he was incoherent, and I had to … at what he meant. 11. He felt that they were all in … to call her away. 12. He did not want to be involved in this dangerous … . Exercise 2. Replace the italicized words with those given in the list below. Translate the sentences. (argue, colleagues, vague, guardian, rogue, distinguished, languor / ' l æŋgə /, blackguard / ' bl æg a:d/) 1. Mr. Campbell reasoned with his visitors about Edward Brown. 2. “He is quite a scoundrel and besides an eminent one.” Mr. Campbell finished and weariness appeared on his yellow face. 3. One of his companions, Mr. Forester, said, “I suppose we should know the opinion of Mr. Stone, as defender of Ted Brown’s interests. 4. His words were of the same uncertain quality. 5. Deceit and hypocrisy are no credit to anybody. B. Words with the Diagraph -qu-. The diagraph -qu- is pronounced in different ways, depending on its position in the word, for example: quick /kw/, cheque /k/. A list of such words is given below. Copy it and make sure that you know their pronunciation and meaning. Give some derivatives. quaint adequate squat quality consequence squeak quantity earthquake squeeze quarrel eloquence squirrel quartet equal tranquil queen equip antique queer equivalent brisque quest (inquest) exquisite conquer queue frequent grotesque quiet inquire oblique quit inquisitive physique quite liquid picturesque quiver require technique 44 quote sequence unique acquaint square bouquet acquire squash parquet N o t e: liquor / ' lik ə /, quay /ki:/ Exercise 3. Fill in the blanks with the words from the above list. Translate the sentences. 1. Their … little Chinese faces were screwed up into strange grimaces. 2. But though his words were repentant, there was obviously something … about his behaviour. 3. Crowds of workers were … up in front of the station. 4. There was the usual gesticulating crowd on the … . 5. Its delicate branches against the winter sky, its … leaves in summer had stood before my bedroom window all my life. 6. She was still … by the many friends she had made. 7. Her guest did not omit … after her husband’s health. 8. He was different with; notwithstanding his shyness you felt in him an … kindness. 9. That lady’s resolution had given way to terror the moment she had … Manfred. 10. But though he said nothing of any … , there was something in his personality, which prevented him from being dull. 11. I was confused as a boy in his first passion, who cannot speak because he has no … word. 12. It was really a crowd and Marion was immediately … between two pretty women on a sofa. 13. Edward’s … brought tears to our eyes. 14. And when he forgot them and began to chatter, to wave his hands, he became at once … . 15. The castles built by the Normans exist today as … ruins in the grounds of large country houses. 16. He was very vain of his … . 17. Though apparently being good friends, they often … . 18. A small chamber about seven feet deep and four feet … lay open to us. 19. At the sound of his name John’s mouth … with rage and disgust. 20. She was still very young, but she was described to us as an extraordinary person, who had … London in a few months. Exercise 4. Replace the italicized words with those given in the list below. Translate the sentences. (to acquire, antiquity, to quieten, frequently, to quarrel, exquisite, to require, to quit, quite) 45 1. I didn’t like the man either, but I didn’t like him for entirely another reason. 2. Shakespeare is the author most often quoted. 3. It should be added that the work of the interpreter demands great presence of mind. 4. To tell the truth, I didn’t expect to find in him so delicate a sense of beauty. 5. I’m told that he has fallen out with the girl he was going to marry. 6. The boy was still crying bitterly and no one tried to calm him down. 7. It can be demonstrated that this custom has survived in Greece since ancient times. 8. Learning the vocabulary of a foreign language is not simply learning a fresh set of labels to attach to familiar meanings. 9. I had been staying at the hotel only two days when I was given notice to leave it. C. Words with the Diagraph -ch-. The words spelt with the diagraph -ch- , given below, are mostly international words. The diagraph -ch- is pronounced as /k/. In words of French origin the diagraph -ch- is pronounced as / ʃ /. Explain what the words given in the list mean and give their derivatives if possible. ch - /k/ ache character Christmas anarchy chemist chronicle anchor choir chrysanthemum architect cholera echo archaeology choreography epoch archaic chorus mechanic chaos Christian melancholy orchestra psychology scheme scholar schooner stomach technique ch - / ʃ / chagrin chauffeur machine champagne chauvinism moustache charade chef-d’oeuvre niche parachute N o t e: yacht /j ɔ :t/; schedule / 'ʃ edju:l/ - Br., / ' skedju:l/ - Am. 46 Exercise 5. Fill in the blanks with the words from the above list. Translate the sentences. 1. She had … and intrigued all her life. 2. I often wondered at the beauty which now and then men create out of the … . 3. He is doing a post-graduate course in psychiatry and … , she is taking a diploma in … . 4. After a moment he realized that Felicity was the severe Miss Lemon’s … name. 5. She devoted herself with …-like efficiency to her employer’s affairs. 6. I was like the man who is so frightened of cancer that he will not go to the doctor for … ache. 7. The girls would come down after their studies were over, then they sang in … or listened to the piano. 8. It was almost impossible in that quiet room, listening to the nun, to realize that on the other side of these four walls … was raging. 9. When the …-making speech of the president was printed in the newspapers, it aroused warm comment. 10. His throat was … , and he wanted to cry. 11. It was near … by the time all was settled. 12. The detective laughed and the hall … the sound in a great ha-ha. 13. Notwithstanding, George smiled at himself as he combed his hair and twirled his … . 14. They considered his drinking … at dinner to be a mad thing to do. Exercise 6. Replace the italicized words with those given in the list below. Translate the sentences. (technical, schools, to scheme, melancholy, character, to echo, chaotic, archaic, characteristic of, scheme) 1. He is a good lawyer; ask him to advise you on your plan. 2. She described the man and his manner of asking questions; it was so typical of my friend Poirot that I knew at once who the man was. 3. The writer achieves a humorous effect by making his hero use old- fashioned words when he speaks with his wife. 4. What seems only confused movements at first sight may in fact be governed by some strict laws, which have not yet been discovered. 5. I fired twice and the hills sent the sound back. 6. Once it was my aim to study all sides of his nature. 7. The seat opposite me was occupied by a sad-looking gentleman with a big guards-man’s moustache. 8. He had planned all this time to arrive unexpectedly and to spoil the party. 9. Of the several different branches of Greek philosophy, it was stoicism, 47 which gave the most attention to languages. 10. Special terms are often necessary as they eliminate a good deal of ambiguity. D. Words with the Diagraph -ph-. The diagraph -ph- occurs mainly in international words of Greek origin and is pronounced /f/. Below is a list of words spelt with the diagraph -ph- . Explain their meaning and give some derivatives. alphabet pheasant physics atmosphere phenomenon physiology emphasis philanthropy physique epitaph philharmonic prophet geography Philip sophisticated hyphen philology sphere metaphor philosophy sphinx orphan phonetics symphony pamphlet phrase telegraph paragraph physical telephone phantom physician triumph phase physicist trophy N o t e: (a) The pronunciation of the final e and -ph- in the following words: apostrophe / ə' p ɔ str ə fi/, catastrophe /k ə' t æ str ə fi/, shepherd / 'ʃ ep ə d/, nephew / ' nevju(:)/ or / ' nefju:/. (b) ‘Physician’ is an archaic word for a doctor, except in certain professional medical contexts. Exercise 7. Fill in the blanks with the words from the above list. Translate the sentences. 1. You cannot reproach one who has no ear for music because he’s bored at a … concert. 2. They were like human beings suddenly flung out of the old settled routine by some … . 3. One day you may realize that … is not my strongest quality. 4. Almost in every book of hers is a character who is interested in occult … . 5. And I noticed that I always wrote to her of Edward as a hero, a … . 6. I suggested laying more … on the positive nature of his activity. 7. I heard the … 48 now for the first time and it struck me as quite shameless. 8. “He was just a hog; vain of his … ,” he said with contempt. 9. Mrs. Reed wanted to get rid of the poor little … and therefore she sent Jane to Lowood School. 10. “What have you got as game?” – “I got a … and a woodcock.” 11. There was an … of calm and peace about the place. 12. … is a branch of linguistics dealing with the system of sounds in the language. 13. I said I must look into Plato. I always meant to do some … . Exercise 8. Replace the italicized words with those given in the list below. Translate the sentences. (sphere, to phrase, phrases, to triumph over, prophets, emphasis, to emphasize, phenomena) 1. He often speculated on different things that happened in nature and society. 2. In learning foreign languages some people attach special importance to the study of their phonetic system. 3. The stress was put on the wrong word, and the sense of the whole paragraph became obscure. 4. The new doctrine was quickly spreading over the English-speaking world and he was one of its advocates. 5. He was said to be a man who could always defeat any opposition. 6. The manuscript was spoiled: many word-groups and even whole sentences were rubbed out. 7. I didn’t mind what he said but I didn’t like how he expressed it. 8. In those days politics was outside the field of my activities. Section 2. Sentence Structure Avoid a succession of simple sentences. When you begin learning a foreign language, short simple sentences are the best you can manage. You are at the level of a child who speaks in a series of short sentences: My trike was lost. I found my trike. It was behind the garage. I lost it last night. It was wet. It rained on it. With time, after you have mastered enough grammar you should be able to present the same ideas in a more sophisticated form: Bobby found his tricycle behind the garage, where he had left it last night when it began to rain (note the change in tenses, too). 49 Combine ideas logically. Sentences may lack logic and therefore clarity because they are overloaded with unrelated and often incompatible details, e.g. The library, old and dusty and well lit with bright new lamps, was a melancholy place to work in. Melancholy seems to be related to old and dusty, but not the new lightning, so this last detail should either have been omitted or expressed in a subordinate clause: The library, though well lit with new lamps, was old and dusty and therefore a melancholy place to work in. Here is another example of muddled logic in writing. Military training teaches a person to stand upright and walk with his head up; this helps in future life because it becomes a habit and so many people have the habit of walking stooped and this leads to poor health and poor appearance. If you write sentences like these, your remedy is to go back to the first principles of thought communication: say one thing at a time; say it as simply and as clearly as you can; say it so that it cannot be misunderstood. Let us dissect these sentences in order to discover what the writer was trying to say. Military training teaches a person to stand upright and to walk with his head up. (that is enough for one sentence) Good posture (that is, evidently, what the writer means by this and it) becomes habitual, which leads directly to better health and better appearance. As you see, the improved version is shorter, clearer and more sophisticated in syntax. Exercise 1. (a) Join the following parts of sentences using the conjunctions as, since, because, now that. 1. We did not expect you. You did not let us know you were coming. 2. The shops have shut. We could go home. 3. You did not understand the question. I will repeat it. 4. It is raining heavily. I will not go out. 5. I did not tell him. I was afraid I would hurt his feelings. 6. You had better not stay too long. I have a lot of work to do. 7. We should go home. The sun has set. 8. He is sure to pass his examination. He has worked so hard. 9. She has bought a car. It will be easy for her to get to work. 10. I did not go to the theatre. I could not get tickets. 50 . once … . 15 . The castles built by the Normans exist today as … ruins in the grounds of large country houses. 16 . He was very vain of his … . 17 . Though. newspapers, it aroused warm comment. 10 . His throat was … , and he wanted to cry. 11 . It was near … by the time all was settled. 12 . The detective laughed and