Oracle & Folly du Jour: On Fake News

Essay Writing: The Introductory Paragraph

In the first article in this series of posts, Essay Writing: The Overall Organization of an Essay, I pointed out what the general layout of an academic essay should look like. Today, we're going to see how the first paragraph of such an essay should be organized.

By way of reminder, an entirely different organization is possible, but for the sake of helping exam takers sitting timed EFL (English as a foreign language and not the English Football League!) examinations, I stick to one particular style so that test-takers can focus on one kind of layout which should save time. Note also that I'm writing about academic essays and not letters or emails, reports, proposals, newspaper or magazine articles, or narratives. Those varieties of written work have their own traits and therefore need to be discussed in separate blog posts (which I hope to eventually address at some later time).

But for now, let's get back to our academic essay introduction.

Monica Wood - Disappearing (Overview - Part 4)

This is the fourth part of the overview to Monica Wood's short story "Disappearing" which covers the story's themes: body image, assistance, silence, and acknowledgment.

If you want to read an introduction which includes a link to the story, a short biography of the author, the setting of the story as well as the characters that interact in it, click here. 

Part two deals with the plot and the "growth" process through which Wood intimates how destructive others can be and how -- as traumatizers -- they can permanently stunt development (to read that, click here). 

Part three about the story's point of view and symbolism can be found here.

C2 Sample Essay 27 (Past criminal record)

Writing at C2 level (Proficient User) on English language examinations is the same no matter the awarding body when it comes to writing essays. If you are a candidate giving an exam in English, make sure you read my earlier post What do I do with the sample writing found on this blog? to get the most out of the sample essays provided on Argute Legacy.  
 
  If you are not taking an exam but need to discuss whether a jury should have information about a defendant's past criminal record or not, then read on and note down what you deem useful. If you intend to use this essay as part of an assignment, remember to paraphrase so as not to plagiarize.

Monica Wood - Disappearing (Overview - Part 3)

This is part three of the overview to Monica Wood's short story "Disappearing". It covers the story's point of view and symbolism. 

If you want to read an introduction which includes a link to the story, a short biography of the author, the setting of the story as well as the characters that interact in it, click here. Part two deals with the plot and the "growth" process through which Wood intimates how destructive others can be and how -- as traumatizers -- they can permanently stunt development (to read that, click here.)

10 More IELTS Cue Card Questions (Part 5)

Please note that the following questions are not only for those sitting the IELTS examination. Teachers, students or anyone who wants to improve their spoken English can use them to practice speaking.
All you have to do is practice with a tutor or speaking partner, or even by yourself. Use a stopwatch to time your answers -- a reasonable answer should last 2-5 minutes. 
For IELTS test takers, this is the fifth list of cue card questions, so if you haven't seen the previous lists, here are the links: 
10 More IELTS Cue Card Questions (part 1)
10 More IELTS Cue Card Questions (part 2)
10 More IELTS Cue Card Questions (part 3)
10 More IELTS Cue Card Questions (part 4)

Remember to limit your answers to 2 minutes.

IELTS candidates should also read the tips for Part 2 of the Speaking section here:IELTS Speaking: Part 2 Sample Questions (List 1) & Tips.

C2 Sample Essay 26 (Reasons for attending college)

Writing at C2 level (Proficient User) on English language examinations is the same no matter the awarding body when it comes to writing essays. If you are a candidate giving an exam in English, make sure you read my earlier post What do I do with the sample writing found on this blog? to get the most out of the sample essays provided on this blog.  
 
If you are not taking an exam but need to discuss the reasons why people decide to attend college, then read on and note down what you deem useful. If you intend to use this essay as part of an assignment, remember to paraphrase so as not to plagiarize.

Grammar: Wishes

Please read the first two paragraphs from Grammar: The Subjunctive by way of introduction to this series of blog posts regarding grammar.

Knowing how to properly use constructions that contain wishes in them demonstrates a better knowledge of English, which is why it is taught to students preparing for a B2, C1 or C2 level English examination (IELTS, ECPE, ECCE, ESB, LRN, MSU-CELP, MSU-CELC, TOEFL, TOEIC, ALCE, to name a few).

In English, wishes are expressed either using the verb "wish" (which is a regular verb) or the phrase "if only" stated just before you say the thing you wish for.

It is easy to learn how to express wishes if you divide them into three categories.

The Latest Word: Paroxysm

Today's word is one that is found in a near-identical form in many other languages, as it's been borrowed from the Greek word παροξυσμός or the verb παροξύνειν. Simply take a look at these translations:

Monica Wood - Disappearing (Overview - Part 2)

This is the second part of the overview of Monica Wood's short story "Disappearing". Before reading, please take a look at the introduction I've written here which includes a link to the story itself, a short biography of the author, the setting of the story as well as the characters that interact in it.

This second part will cover the plot and deals with the "growth" process the story describes. Through this process, Wood intimates how destructive others can be and how -- as traumatizers -- they can permanently stunt development.

In part 3,  the point of view and symbolism are discussed.