Narrative Paragraphs Telling Interesting Stories - PowerPoint Presentation

Slide1

Narrative Paragraphs

Telling Interesting Stories

Expressing Surprising

or Unexpected Things

that have HappenedSlide2

Narrative Paragraphs

Learning goals:

In this chapter you will learn and practice:

Basic

Narrative Paragraph

Structure

Chronological Order

Strong Verbs

Specific/Concrete Nouns

Manuscript Form

The Writing Process

As always,

attention to detail

and

relationships to reality

are very important!Slide3

Narrative Paragraphs: Introduction

Look carefully at the following paragraph.

Do you notice anything interesting about it?

How is it different from a descriptive paragraph?

How are the

verbs different? How are the details organized? Are there any descriptive (sensory) details? Are there any specific (concrete) nouns?

See Page 62 of the textbookSlide4

Narrative Paragraphs: Introduction

This paragraph is from the short story, “A Terribly Strange Bed” by

Wilkie

Collins

  I soon felt not only that I could not go to sleep, but that I could not even close my eyes. I was wide awake, and in a high fever. Every nerve in my body trembled--every one of my senses seemed to be preternaturally sharpened. I tossed and rolled, and tried every kind of position, and perseveringly sought out the cold corners of the bed, and all to no purpose. Now I thrust my arms over the clothes; now I poked them under the clothes; now I violently shot my legs straight out down to the bottom of the bed; now I convulsively coiled them up as near my chin as they would go; now I shook out my crumpled pillow, changed it to the cool side, patted it flat, and lay down quietly on my back; now I fiercely doubled it in two, set it up on end, thrust it against the board of the bed, and tried a sitting posture. Every effort was in vain; I groaned with vexation as I felt that I was in for a sleepless night.Slide5

Narrative Paragraphs: Verbs

How are the red verbs and green verbs different?

  I soon

felt

not only that I could not

go

to sleep, but that I could not even close my eyes. I was wide awake, and in a high fever. Every nerve in my body trembled--every one of my senses seemed to be preternaturally sharpened. I tossed and rolled, and tried every kind of position, and perseveringly

sought

out the cold corners of the bed, and all to no purpose. Now I

thrust

my arms over the clothes; now I

poked

them under the clothes; now I violently

shot

my legs straight out down to the bottom of the bed; now I convulsively

coiled

them up as near my chin as they would go; now I

shook

out my crumpled pillow,

changed

it to the cool side,

patted

it flat, and

lay down

quietly on my back; now I fiercely

doubled

it in two,

set it up

on end,

thrust

it against the board of the bed, and

tried

a sitting posture. Every effort

was

in vain; I

groaned

with vexation as I

felt

that I was in for a sleepless night.Slide6

Narrative Paragraphs: Verbs

This paragraph is from the short story, “A Terribly Strange Bed” by

Wilkie

Collins

  I soon

felt

not only that I could not go to sleep, but that I could not even close my eyes. I was wide awake, and in a high fever. Every nerve in my body trembled--every one of my senses seemed to be preternaturally sharpened. I

tossed

and

rolled

, and

tried

every kind of position, and perseveringly

sought out the cold corners of the bed, and all to no purpose. Now I thrust my arms over the clothes; now I poked them under the clothes; now I violently shot my legs straight out down to the bottom of the bed; now I convulsively coiled them up as near my chin as they would go; now I shook out my crumpled pillow, changed it to the cool side, patted it flat, and lay down quietly on my back; now I fiercely doubled it in two, set it up on end, thrust it against the board of the bed, and tried a sitting posture. Every effort was in vain; I groaned with vexation as I felt that I was in for a sleepless night.

Notice the repetition!Slide7

Narrative Paragraphs: Introduction

How are the details organized? (this is not the best example to start with!)

  I

soon

felt not only that I could not go to sleep, but that I could not even close my eyes. I was wide awake, and in a high fever. Every nerve in my body trembled--every one of my senses seemed to be preternaturally sharpened. I tossed and rolled, and tried every kind of position, and perseveringly sought out the cold corners of the bed, and all to no purpose.

Now

I thrust my arms over the clothes; now I poked them under the clothes; now I violently shot my legs straight out down to the bottom of the bed; now I convulsively coiled them up as near my chin as they would go; now I shook out my crumpled pillow, changed it to the cool side, patted it flat, and lay down quietly on my back;

now

I fiercely doubled it in two, set it up on end, thrust it against the board of the bed, and tried a sitting posture. Every effort was in vain; I groaned with vexation as I felt that

I was in for

a sleepless night.

Now

can be used in many ways, one of which is

“[…] to indicate that an event has occurred and as a result something else may or will happen”Why do you think the writer repeats it so much in this paragraph?Slide8

Narrative Paragraphs: Introduction

Descriptive details (in addition to the descriptive verbs):

  I soon felt not only that I could not go to sleep, but that I could not even close my eyes. I was

wide awake

, and in a

high fever

. Every nerve in my body trembled--every one of my senses seemed to be preternaturally sharpened. I tossed and rolled, and tried every kind of position, and perseveringly sought out the cold corners of the bed, and all to no purpose. Now I thrust my arms over the clothes; now I poked them under the clothes; now I violently shot my legs straight out down to the bottom of the bed; now I convulsively coiled them up as near my chin as they would go; now I shook out

my crumpled pillow

, changed it to

the cool side

, patted it flat, and lay down

quietly

on my back; now I

fiercely doubled it in two, set it up on end, thrust it against the board of the bed, and tried a sitting posture. Every effort was in vain; I groaned with vexation as I felt that I was in for a sleepless night.Slide9

Narrative Paragraphs: Introduction

The

Basic

Purpose of a Narrative Paragraph is

to tell a story

, or

clearly relate a series of events to the reader.

The addition of strong verbs and specific nouns makes these sentences much more interesting and helpful to the reader.

The week sentences don’t help the reader to imagine the events at all.

It is easier to imagine the events expressed in the strong sentences because they provide more information.Slide10

Last night

, I went home

at about 6 o’clock

.

First

, I sat down on the sofa and watched TV. After a while, I ate dinner. Then, I did my homework. Finally, I went to bed at 11 o’clock.Narrative Paragraphs: Time Prepositions, conjunctions, adverbs, etc.

Narrative Paragraphs are usually written in

Chronological Order

. This means that the details are expressed in

time

. Therefore, in order for the reader to clearly understand the order of the details, the sentences

must

include prepositions/adverbials of time.

Example: I went home. I watched TV. I ate dinner. I did my homework. I went to bed.

Horrible!

This is just one of many possibilities!Slide11

Before we get started, a question:

Put up your hand if you think that prepositions in English are difficult to learn and use.

Now, put up your hand if you study them regularly.

How regularly? Every day? Every week? Every month?Slide12

A quick note on meaning

“[…] the meaning of a word, phrase or sentence [is] the accumulation of its previous occurrence.” (Sinclair 2005)

Accumulation

 is the collecting together of things

over a period of timeSlide13

A quick note on meaning

What are the implications of the idea that meaning is an

accumulation

of previous encounters with it?

Can you memorize the meaning of a word? (can you look at a vocabulary book or dictionary once or twice and then claim to know the meaning of the word?)

Sometimes, but not often.

Often partially, but this is rarely very helpfulMemorization usually doesn’t work well for grammatical words like prepositions, articles and other determiners, etc.Slide14

Narrative Paragraphs: Transitional Markers (Time)

Fill in the blanks:

My first class begins ____ 9 o’clock.

This year,

Chuseok

was ____ September 22.

Christmas is ____ December.I’m always tired ____ the end of the day.I came to Korea ____ 2001.Your assignment is due ____ Friday.The Halloween horror movie festival begins ____ midnight, ____ October 30.

I have to go to work ____ the morning, but I’m always free ____ night.

She usually goes hiking ____ weekends.

____ the beginning of class, the teacher takes attendance.

at

in

on

atinonat

on

in

at

on

atSlide15

Narrative Paragraphs: Prepositions/Adverbs of Time

At

Use

‘at’ with a specific time on the clock

I went to bed

at ten o’clock. Let’s eat lunch at noon.

With ‘the end of’ and ‘the beginning of’

Give me your paper

at the end of

class.

I’m usually tired

at the end of

the day. With ‘night’ I like to watch horror movies at night.Slide16

Narrative Paragraphs: Prepositions/Adverbs of Time

In

Use

‘in’ with a specific month

My

birthday is in December. With a specific year I was born

in 1971

.

With a specific amount of time (from now)

This class will be over

in fifteen minutes

. With ‘the morning’, ‘the afternoon’, and ‘the evening’See page 66 (and slide 11 of this presentation for more information!Slide17

Narrative Paragraphs: Prepositions/Adverbs of Time

On

Use

‘on’ with a specific day of the week

I’ll see you

on Monday. With a specific date (month, number, and possibly year) I was born on

on

December 11, 1971

.

With ‘the weekend’ or ‘weekends’

I will be correcting homework

on the weekend. I like to go hiking on weekends.Slide18

Narrative Paragraphs: Prepositions/Adverbs of Time

Common mistake

s will At, In, On

1. Do

not combine …

At

In

On

with

Next

Last

This

Every

Incorrect:I have a test on next Tuesday.Correct: I have a test on Tuesday.I have a test next Tuesday.Slide19

Narrative Paragraphs: Prepositions/Adverbs of Time

Use

in + amount of time from the

present

Not:

amount of time from now + later

If you are speaking / writing about an event that will happen later than the present (you are speaking now about a time in the future) do not use ‘amount of time’ + ‘later’

Incorrect:

The class will be over

five minutes later.

Correct:

The class will be over

in five minutes.3. ‘On’ is optionalThe preposition ‘on’ is not necessary (usually), and is often omitted. For practice, however, students should always include it.Correct:I’ll see you on Tuesday.I go jogging on weeknights.

Also Correct:

I’ll see you Tuesday.I go jogging weeknights.

See page 66 for practice, and when you’re reading try to notice how these prepositions are used.Slide20

Narrative Paragraphs: Prepositions/Adverbs of Time

Look in the textbook pages 38~41 for more prepositions/adverbs of time and pages 52~53 for practice exercises.Slide21

Creating a ‘Recount’ Story

The common composition genre of ‘telling a story’ is actually made up of many sub-genres.

We have to be very careful when we are creating our compositions – we must create the correct kind of story!

Genre: Story

Some Types

of Stories

Observation

– personal response to series of events

Moral Tale or Fable

– a story with a lesson to be learned

News Report

– as seen in newspapers or on TV

Recount

– simple re-telling of a personal series of eventsNarrative

– involves an unusual or important eventSlide22

Creating a ‘Recount’ Story

A simple recount might look like this:

This morning

my alarm went off

at

seven o’clock, but I just couldn’t seem to wake up. I hit the snooze button three times and finally got out of bed at 7:30. I immediately went to the kitchen and made some coffee. While I drank the coffee, I watched the news on CNN. At about 7:45 I thought I should get dressed and go to my office. Before I decided what to wear, I checked the weather report on the Internet and chose to wear a sweater to work today. Finally, I got to my office at about 8:30 and started planning my day.

Notice that nothing very interesting has to happen. This is a simple re-telling of a series of normal, everyday events. However, it is told using

chronological order

, and this is very important because the reader needs to be able to follow the order of events logicallySlide23

Narrative Paragraphs: Purpose and Elements

The

purpose

of a narrative is to tell a story that involves an

unusual or interesting event

.

Remember,

we

must help/allow the reader to clearly imagine a series of events.

Element

Purpose

Abstract

Tells the reader what the narrative is about, in general. Summarizes the whole story.

Orientation

Answers the questions Who, What, When, Where, (and perhaps Why, and How)

The narrative must include one of these elements, and it may include both (it usually does). Often, the orientation is a series of sentences that lead up to the complicating action/event. It may, however, be a single sentence.

Narrative Paragraph Structure:

Narratives have 6 distinct

elements

(sometimes called ‘moves’). These elements are parts of the story that have a specific purpose.

“The basic textual questions that readers need answered as they seek to relate a text to their own experience are

when

and

where

.” (Hoey 2007)Slide24

Narrative Paragraphs: Purpose and Elements

Element

Purpose

3.

Complicating Action / Event

This is the event that makes the story worth telling.

This

must

be included in the narrative (otherwise the story is basically a simple recount, not a narrative at all!)

Element

Purpose

4.

Evaluation

Answers the questions, ‘So what? Why did you tell this narrative? What is the point?’

This

must

be included.

The worst response a reader can give your narrative is, ‘So what?’Slide25

Narrative Paragraphs: Purpose and Elements

Element

Purpose

Result

Answers the question, ‘What finally happened? How does the story end?’

Coda

Sums up the message of the story.

The narrative must include one of these elements, and it may include both.Slide26

The Elements: Explanation

The Abstract

:

We can think of the abstract as a way of taking the reader out of the ‘here and now’ and moving their minds to another time and another place.

The abstract begins to establish

context

.Now, we are in this classroom. The narrative, however, takes place in a different place, in a different time. The reader needs this part of the story to make that mental change in context.Slide27

Narrative Paragraphs: The Elements

Abstract:

My brother and I love playing badminton together.Slide28

The Elements: Explanation

The Orientation

:

‘To orient’ means “to familiarize (a person) with new surroundings or circumstances”.

The

abstract

takes the reader away from the ‘here and now’ and then the orientation places their imaginations in the new context by telling them who is doing what, where it is happening, when the events took place, etc.Slide29

Narrative Paragraphs: The Elements

Abstract:

My brother and I love playing badminton together.

Orientation:

Last night my brother and I went to the playground near our apartment.Slide30

Abstract and Orientation: Summary

Remember, a narrative must have either an abstract or an orientation, or both.

Beginning a story without and abstract or orientation is very confusing to the reader.

Imagine that I

begin

a story with,

“We made a bet that whoever lost the game would have to buy dinner.” Would you have any idea what I was talking about? Who is ‘we’, what ‘game’, why are you telling me this?Slide31

The Elements: Explanation

The Complication

:

Obviously, this

complicates

the story.

This is the reason you tell the story, and so it must be included in every narrative.The complicating action/event is the interesting detail that makes the story more than just a simple recount. Slide32

Narrative Paragraphs: The Elements

Abstract:

My brother and I love playing badminton together.

Orientation:

Last night my brother and I went to the playground near our apartment.

Complication:

We made a bet that whoever lost the game would have to buy dinner.Slide33

The Elements: Explanation

Evaluation

:

The evaluation is most often

lexical.

That means that

our choice of words helps to tell the reader our opinion of the situation (think back to our lesson about denotation and connotation).Slide34

Narrative Paragraphs: The Elements

Abstract:

My brother and I love playing badminton together.

Orientation:

Last night my brother and I went to the playground near our apartment.

Complicating Action:

We made a bet that whoever lost the game would have to buy dinner.

Evaluation: expresses how he or she feels about the story to the reader.

My brother

smashed

the shuttlecock in a low arc to the back corner of the court and I

dove

to return it.

[the point is to emphasize that the game is very competitive. It’s not just to have fun, but to win a bet.]Slide35

The Elements: Explanation

Evaluation

(continued):

Imagine if we wrote, “My brother

hit

the shuttlecock and I moved to return it.”The reader would surely be thinking, “So what? Why is she/he telling me this boring story? What is the point?”

‘So what?’

is the

worst

thing someone could say about your narrative!

However, we sometimes (but very rarely!) evaluate using sentences like “I thought/felt that…”Slide36

The Elements: Explanation

Result

:

The result is really just the ‘end’ of the story.

It tells the reader how the story ends.

The complicating action/event has to be ‘resolved’ or ‘solved’ in some way.

You don’t want your reader asking, “And then what happened? How does it end?”Slide37

Narrative Paragraphs: The Elements

Abstract:

My brother and I love playing badminton together.

Orientation:

Last night my brother and I went to the playground near our apartment.

Complicating Action:

We made a bet that whoever lost the game would have to buy dinner.

Evaluation: expresses how he or she feels about the story to the reader.

My brother

smashed

the shuttlecock in a low arc to the back corner of the court and I

dove

to return it.

[the point is to emphasize that the game is very competitive. It’s not just to have fun, but to win a bet.]Result:I dropped to my knees, arms in the air, and yelled triumphantly.Slide38

The Elements: Explanation

Coda

:

The coda is often a summary of the story.

It often presents the overall message or meaning of the narrative.

Just as the Abstract takes the reader to a different time and place, the Coda returns the reader to the ‘here and now’.Slide39

Narrative Paragraphs: The Elements

Abstract:

My brother and I love playing badminton together.

Orientation:

Last night my brother and I went to the playground near our apartment.

Complicating Action:

We made a bet that whoever lost the game would have to buy dinner.

Evaluation: expresses how he or she feels about the story to the reader.

My brother

smashed

the shuttlecock in a low arc to the back corner of the court and I

dove

to return it.

[the point is to emphasize that the game is very competitive. It’s not just to have fun, but to win a bet.]Result:I dropped to my knees, arms in the air, and yelled triumphantly.Coda:That was the first time I ever beat my brother at badminton, but I’m sure it won’t be the last.Slide40

The Elements: Explanation

Normally, the narrative may have either a result or a coda, or both.

In this class, you must include the result (I will be looking for clear results).

In simple narratives, the result is often enough to return the reader to the ‘here and now’ and the coda is optional.

It is not always necessary to summarize the message/meaning of the story, but it is often very helpful.

That is a choice you will have to make!Slide41

Narrative Paragraphs:

Another example of the elements

Abstract:

This morning was very hectic for me.

Orientation:

I woke up on the floor of my living room at 8:30.

Complicating Action:I had passed out after drinking soju with my friends until 4 a.m. and I had to get to Tim’s English Composition exam by 9 o’clock.

Evaluation: expresses how he or she feels about the story to the reader.

I

frantically

searched for my electronic dictionary and

finally

discovered it under a pile of papers on the floor.

Result:I collapsed into my seat just as Tim started to hand out the exam papers.Coda:I think I passed the exam, but I’ll never again drink soju with my friends the night before an important exam. Slide42

Peddling On My Own

Learning how to ride a bike for the first time was a nerve racking independent moment. I was about five years old when my sister informed me that I was too old to still be riding a bike with training wheels. That was the time I decided not to depend on them anymore. Even though I had some doubt, my sister and I went outside and started to take the little wheels off my bike. After my bike went through the transformation, I was now ready for the big moment. With butterflies in my stomach, I slowly got on the bike, and with my shaky hands, I gripped the handles tightly. Meanwhile my sister was holding on to me to help keep my balance. I was so afraid that she would let go, yet I was determined to ride this bike on my own. Next with a little push from her, I started to peddle. The faster my bike went the faster my heart raced. Finally I looked back nervously and noticed that my sister had let go of my bike a long time ago. I was so excited that I had accomplished freedom on my bike that I forgot to peddle. The next step I remember, I was lying on the ground, yet I did not care because of the adrenaline rush. I will never forget the exhilarating moment and growing up stage of riding a bike without training wheels.

~© Fallon

Fauque

2005~

http://english120.pbworks.com/w/page/19006987/narrative%20paragraphs

(this website has even more examples of narrative paragraphs)Slide43

Abstract

Learning how to ride a bike for the first time was a nerve racking independent moment.Slide44

Orientation

I was about five years old when my sister informed me that I was too old to still be riding a bike with training wheels. Slide45

Complication

That was the time I decided not to depend on them anymore. Slide46

Evaluation

After my bike went through the transformation, I was now ready for

the big moment

.

With

butterflies in my stomach, I slowly got on the bike, and with my shaky hands, I gripped the handles tightly. Meanwhile my sister was holding on to me to help keep my balance. I was so afraid that she would let go, yet I was determined to ride this bike on my own. Next with a little push from her, I started to peddle. The faster my bike went the faster my heart raced. Finally I looked back

nervously

and noticed that my sister had let go of my bike a long time ago. I was so

excited

that I had

accomplished freedom

on my bike that I forgot to peddle.Slide47

Result

The next step I remember, I was lying on the ground, yet I did not care because of the adrenaline rush.Slide48

Coda

I will never forget the exhilarating moment and growing up stage of riding a bike without training wheels.Slide49

Narrative Language

This paragraph has a few very good nouns and adjectives that help us imagine the events.

The big moment

Butterflies in my stomach

Shaky hands

Determined (strong adjective)

Excited (adjective – could this be stronger?)Afraid (adjective – could this be stronger?)Slide50

Narrative Language

There are also a few strong verbs and adverbs

Gripped … tightly (strong verb + adverb)

Looked back nervously (neutral verb + adverb)

Accomplished (strong verb alone)

Discussion:

Are there places where strong verbs could improve the story?Slide51

Peddling On My Own

Learning how to ride a bike for the first time was a nerve racking independent moment. I was about five years old when my sister informed me that I was too old to still be riding a bike with training wheels. That was the time I decided not to depend on them anymore. Even though I had some doubt, my sister and I went outside and started to take the little wheels off my bike. After my bike went through the transformation, I was now ready for the big moment. With butterflies in my stomach, I slowly got on the bike, and with my shaky hands, I gripped the handles tightly. Meanwhile my sister was holding on to me to help keep my balance. I was so afraid that she would let go, yet I was determined to ride this bike on my own. Next with a little push from her, I started to peddle. The faster my bike went the faster my heart raced. Finally I looked back nervously and noticed that my sister had let go of my bike a long time ago. I was so excited that I had accomplished freedom on my bike that I forgot to peddle. The next step I remember, I was lying on the ground, yet I did not care because of the adrenaline rush. I will never forget the exhilarating moment and growing up stage of riding a bike without training wheels.

~© Fallon

Fauque

2005~

http://english120.pbworks.com/w/page/19006987/narrative%20paragraphs

(this website has even more examples of narrative paragraphs)Slide52

References

Hoey, M., Mahlberg, M., Stubbs, M., &

Teubert

, W. (2007).

Text , Discourse and Corpora

.