Definition/illustration Paper Guide
What is it?
A definition/illustration paper begins with a paragraph introducing and defining the word or concept chosen. This definition is developed by giving pertinent, specific, and detailed examples that show the definition in action.
For English 111, the paper must be approximately 1,200 words long.
Steps for developing:
Brainstorming: Choosing a Topic
1. Thinking about an abstract word or concept:
Choose three and look them up online.
Read through all the definitions.
Copy the one/s that you think are most accurate by YOUR definition.
2. For those three choices:
Make a list of possible examples that would fit your definition of the word/concept.
3. Look at your lists.
Which list is the longest?
Which list is the most interesting?
Which list has the examples that you would find most compelling?
Using those questions (or others you come up with), decide which abstract word/concept you will write about in your paper.
Brainstorming: Details for Composing
Take your abstract word or concept and go back online.
1. Look up the definition from multiple sources.
Keep copies of the definitions with the URLs so you can find them again.
2. If one of these definitions perfectly matches yours, great. Mark it somehow so that it will be easy to find in the list.
If your definition is a little different, write out your definition in your own words.
Rewrite the definition in other words. Your own definition tends to be more interesting to read.
3. Look for quotes on the word/concept.
Find at least two that you think pertain to your definition of your topic.
Copy these and put the URLs with them.
4. Take your list of possible examples. Expand it.
What other examples can you think of?
Look online for other examples.
Ten is a good number of examples to brainstorm.
5. For each possible example, write at least five details to include.
6. Begin narrowing your choices.
Which examples have the most details?
Which examples are the most interesting?
Which examples show the most diversity of the definition while still matching it?
Beginning to Write: Definition
Ideas for the introduction paragraph:
Background for why you think this concept is worth writing about.
An experience with confusion over the meaning of this concept.
Definition of the concept that you think are mistaken. Then discuss why/how mistaken.
Definition of the concept.
Quotation(s) about the concept.
If you are using someone else’s definition or a quotation, you need to create a Works Cited for those.
See http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/08/ for a list of what should be included.
Usually the last sentence or two in the paragraph give your thesis. Your thesis, in this case, would be your definition for the word or concept.
Beginning to Write: Illustrations
Choose the illustration you think will be easiest to write.
Look at the details you brainstormed.
Can you think of others that would show how this example matches your definition?
Write your illustration.
You can either write all your illustrations and then revise OR revise the illustration after you have finished writing it.
Make sure you have sentences of different lengths, different beginnings for sentences, and lots of detail words.
Arranging the Illustrations
Once you have your illustrations written, you need to consider the order they will be presented in.
If your definition is far from the norm, you want the most pertinent example to be first. That will help to persuade your audience that your definition makes sense and is a good one.
If your definition is more average, but you know that your audience would disagree with it, again, pick the most pertinent example.
Other than that, pick the second best example you have.
There are a couple of ways to arrange the paper.
For a typical read, arrange the paper in the following order:
definition
second best illustration
third best illustration
fourth best illustration
etc
best illustration
conclusion
For building a persuasive argument, organize the paper in the following order:
definition
fifth best illustration
fourth best illustration
third best illustration
second best illustration
best illustration
For a paper where you know the audience well, organize based on your own experience. Start and end with the illustrations that will be most convincing for them.
Flow
Once you have your definition paragraph and your illustrations basically written, you may want to go back and add transitional sentences to the end of all your illustrations.
If your first example is on designer shoes being a luxury and your second example is on a sports car being a luxury, then you might write something like this:
Obviously designer shoes purchased at anywhere from $300 to $3,000 are a luxury, based on the definition of something that is not necessary or expected; owning a sports car—the beginning price of which is far more than most designer shoes—is also a luxury that even Americans do not need.
Writing a Conclusion
Sometimes conclusions simply remind the reader of what they have already read.
Sometimes they explain why the paper’s ideas are important.
Sometimes they finish with a story that links together several earlier elements.
Sometimes they end with a call to action. (Asking the reader to do something about the topic.)
Sometimes they restate the definition in other words.
Sometimes they end with a really strong quotation on the topic that sums up the whole paper.
Editing the Paper
After you have written the whole paper and arranged it, re-read it.
Do you see unwarranted repetition of words? (Note: Sometimes writers purposefully reuse one word three times in close proximity to emphasize that word. However, you need to have a good reason to emphasize it.)
Do you have multiple sentences with begin with the same word or words and do not build to a crescendo?
Are all your illustrations in the body of the paper about the same length? They do not need to be exactly the same length, but four paragraphs on one example and one on another do not create a well-balanced paper.
Ask a friend to read the paper.
Ask them to mark any words, sentences, or ideas they were confused about.
Ask them to mark any sentences, ideas, or examples they would like to know more about.
Ask them if they see any gaps between the idea in one sentence and the idea in the next.
Try to clarify any confusion.
Consider adding to the paper to give more information on the things your reader was interested in.
Add bridge sentences to close the gaps between ideas and sentences.
Put the paper away for a day.
Take it out again and read it out loud.
Is it fairly easy to read? Are there any places where there seem to be gaps between ideas or sentences?